At 3 PM, the father and son prepared their fishing gear, ready to set off.
They didn’t drive; they strolled leisurely to the manor.
People with membership cards tend to walk with a breeze.
The manor’s lake is primarily for leisure fishing. Baiting is not allowed, as it affects the clarity of the water.
If you really can’t catch anything, you can always buy fish from the manor to barbecue.
Lu Qin: “...”
Not wanting to embarrass himself in front of his little boy on their first trip, Lu Qin applied to become a VVIP to gain one-time baiting privileges.
Boss Pei, cold and unyielding, replied, “No.”
He wanted Dundun to understand that it wasn’t his dad’s skills that were lacking. Without baiting, it’s just hard to catch fish. Even if it were Daddy Lu, it’d be the same.
This was a matter of male pride.
Lu Qin glanced at the eager little boy and came up with an idea.
“We’re not fishing with rods anymore; let’s use a net to catch fish instead.”
Pei Dundun: “?”
The manor drains the pond for maintenance every year, and the management has fishing boats and nets available.
With no one else fishing by the lake, Lu Qin used his son as his pass and successfully borrowed a net, work pants, and even a life jacket for the little boy. Holding Dundun, who was now dressed in his life vest, they sailed out to the center of the lake on a small boat.
Pei Dundun was so excited by this new experience that he couldn’t stop smiling. Lu Qin gently pinched his mouth shut. “If the wind gets into your stomach, it’ll hurt.”
When they reached a good spot, they cast the net, threw stones to scare the fish, and then returned, taking Dundun on a tour of the manor while waiting an hour before coming back to retrieve the net.
Pei Dundun rolled on the grass and suddenly felt something underneath him. He stood up to check, and to his surprise, it was the watch he had traded for Orange!
“Dad, my watch!”
Lu Qin had heard Madam Jiang mention that Ms. Lin took blind dates seriously and had bought a watch just like his. It seemed that the lost watch must be hers.
He cleared his throat and said, “It was another lady who lost it. We handed it over to the security guard.”
He and Dundun took the watch to the security guard, who immediately contacted Ms. Lin to retrieve it.
Lu Qin said, “Don’t tell your dad about this, okay?”
Pei Dundun asked, “Why?”
Of course, Lu Qin didn’t want to bring up any details related to that blind date in front of Pei Rong. It would only make it harder to pursue him.
He had given Pei Rong a watch just like Ms. Lin’s. What if Pei Rong minded?
Although he was the one who bought the LP001 watch first!
Lu Qin, with a righteous tone, explained, “Because your dad is the owner of the manor, and people of integrity don’t flaunt their good deeds. How many kids can do that?”
Pei Dundun raised his hand, “Me!”
Lu Qin said, “How about we go fishing with Dad?”
The two of them boarded the boat again. Lu Qin expertly cast the net, as if his father, Lu Jianye, had made a fortune through fishing.
The little one sat nearby, exclaiming, “Dad! Another one!”
“What a big fish!”
“Five already! Six now!”
“There are little shrimps too!”
Lu Qin removed the fish from the net. The net had large holes, so everything they caught was at least the size of a hand. He removed the fish with one hand and threw them into the oxygenated tank with the other.
Splash, splash—the water sprayed everywhere.
A black bass jumped out and landed right in Pei Dundun’s lap.
Pei Dundun frantically grabbed at it, getting slapped twice by the fish’s tail, his whole body drenched. Yet he stubbornly clung to it with both hands and feet. Luckily, Lu Qin had foreseen this and made sure he wore gloves and a mask.
Pei Dundun crouched low, curling his entire body into a ball. No matter how slippery the fish was, it had nowhere to escape. It was more effective than using both hands.
The scene resembled a failed attempt at posing like one of those traditional New Year paintings of children holding carp.
Lu Qin turned around and took the fish from him.
Pei Dundun squatted by the water tank, counting: “Daddy, there are so many! You’re amazing!”
Lu Qin handed the fishing net to the staff and patted Dundun’s head. “Are you happy?”
Pei Dundun: “Happy! This is more fun than fishing with a rod!”
The two went ashore, and the staff had already set up a barbecue grill. There was a designated barbecue area by the lake, where the grill was embedded in a marble table, usually covered with glass.
The fish were also cooked with the help of the kitchen staff, skewered on iron sticks.
Lu Qin skillfully marinated and grilled the fish, using minimal seasoning for the little one. With his excellent culinary skills, he brought out the natural freshness of the ingredients.
Pei Dundun sat on a stone bench, resting his chin on his hands as he leaned on the marble table, watching eagerly. The grill was embedded in the table, and since he was sitting at the other end, he couldn’t touch anything hot, allowing him to watch up close.
“Daddy, can we eat now?”
“It smells so good.”
“Wait a little longer.”
Lu Qin pulled out his phone and sent an invitation to Pei Rong to eat grilled fish.
Pei Rong: “I’m accompanying Aunt Zhao for her check-up. I won’t be eating.”
Lu Qin: “I’ll accompany Aunt Zhao tonight. You can go home and rest.”
Pei Rong: “We’ll see.”
Accompanying Aunt Zhao was certainly not as tiring as taking care of the kid.
Before wrapping up, Lu Qin planned to pack a fish in a foil box to bring to Pei Rong.
He placed the grilled fish in front of Dundun. The crispy exterior and tender interior were carefully separated from the bones. He picked out small pieces and placed them in Dundun’s bowl.
Pei Dundun’s appetite was limited, and Lu Qin couldn’t eat too much of this kind of food, so one fish was more than enough.
Lu Qin then started grilling the fish for Pei Rong.
He sprinkled a generous amount of cumin, making it smell even better.
Pei Dundun sniffed the air—his dad’s food really was different from what kids got to eat.
Suddenly, he gasped: “Daddy, you’re bleeding!”
Lu Qin froze and looked at his left arm. Sure enough, red blood had started seeping through the layers of bandages.
In the afternoon, he got carried away, fishing with a net and grilling fish, completely forgetting about his injury.
Well, not completely forgetting. There was still a faint pain while pulling the net.
Lu Qin hurriedly gave the fish one last flip on the grill, placed it into a foil box, and asked a staff member to deliver it to Pei Rong at the sanatorium. Then, he grabbed the little child. “We’re going to the hospital to change my bandages.”
Pei Dundun’s eyes were red, feeling guilty that he had forgotten to keep an eye on Daddy Lu.
Seeing the little guy about to cry, Lu Qin picked him up with one hand to comfort him: “It’s alright, Daddy’s not in pain.”
Pei Dundun pouted: “I don’t want to be carried. I can walk by myself.”
He ran to the car and waited for Lu Qin to open the door.
Lu Qin drove to the hospital. Caught up in fishing, neither of them had noticed until they were in the car that their clothes reeked of fish.
While changing the bandages, Lu Qin was scolded by the doctor. His wound had reopened from fishing. What was he thinking?
With the fishy smell still on him, there was no way to explain. Lu Qin silently endured the reprimand, wincing in pain.
Pei Dundun, with tears welling in his large eyes, stood by and choked out, “Doctor, my dad knows he was wrong.”
Doctor: “...” Fine, I won’t scold him anymore.
After leaving the hospital, Lu Qin gave another reminder: “This little incident, let’s not tell Daddy, okay? Otherwise, he’ll worry and won’t let us fish anymore.”
Playing the pity card was one thing, but reopening his wound and making Pei Rong worry after all his care these past few days was something else—completely unforgivable.
Pei Dundun thought about it for a while, then gave in to the temptation of being a fishing expert. “Okay.”
He still wanted to go fishing with Dad and Daddy Lu one more time, and maybe even take Orange along.
When Pei Rong received the grilled fish delivery, he immediately felt something was off. Why didn’t Lu Qin deliver it himself? He called the manor, and they told him that Lu Qin and Dundun left right after eating a fish.
Where did they go?
Could it be that something came up at the company and he left early?
Pei Rong felt a brief pang of disappointment. He checked Dundun’s location on his phone.
They were at the hospital.
Who was in the hospital? Lu Qin? Did his wound tear open?
Pei Rong frowned. He had already forbidden Lu Qin from chumming the waters; how could leisurely fishing tear open his wound?
“Are they fishing?”
Zhuang Yuan: “Uh, they’re out on the boat, casting nets to catch fish. Can’t you tell? President Lu is quite skilled at pulling in the nets.”
Pei Rong: “...” Pulling nets, huh?
He waited for the caregiver shift change, then quickly hurried home.
The father and son snuck home sneakily, only to be caught red-handed.
Pei Rong: “Why is your location showing as the hospital?”
The man and his son exchanged glances, completely flustered.
The next second, they spoke in unison.
Lu Qin: “The barbecue fire singed the bandages.”
Dundun: “I pressed on Dad’s wound.”
Pei Rong closed the door. “Stand outside and reflect on your actions.”
