Early the next morning, the business car that had come to pick up Lu Qin was already parked in front of the villa.
Pei Dundun stood by the car holding a bag full of boiled eggs, looking very much like the touching scene of a father stuffing his trunk with local specialties after visiting home for the holidays.
Unlike them, Pei Rong only wanted to make some boiled eggs and couldn’t wait to send the father and son off.
Lu Qin said, “Daddy will help you carry it.”
Pei Rong had boiled ten eggs, which were quite heavy.
Pei Dundun, holding the eggs like a treasure, said, “I can carry them, they’re not heavy at all.”
Pei Rong smiled brightly and said, “These eggs will take Daddy’s place and keep you company.”
“Don’t contact me unless it’s necessary.”
Pei Dundun nodded, “Okay!”
Pei Rong kissed his little face, “Get in the car.”
Pei Dundun sat properly, pressing his face against the glass and waving at his dad.
Lu Qin looked at Pei Rong, “Don’t you have anything for me?”
Pei Rong replied, “If you get hungry on the road, you can eat the eggs with Dundun. He can have half, and you can have one and a half.”
After sending off the little rascal, just as Pei Rong was about to return to the sanatorium, a call came in from the manor. They said an important guest had arrived and wanted to meet the boss in person.
Pei Rong asked, “Who is it?”
“Zhou Hang.”
His old boss from the entertainment industry.
Zhou Hang had been doing quite well in recent years. With his sharp eye for talent and Lu Qin’s large investments, Zhou Hang had gained absolute influence. The first film project of Jianglu Entertainment was a huge success, making a star out of both a rising actress and actor. Their subsequent projects also did well, and this year, the Lu family received considerable dividends, proving the investments paid off.
Now that even Lu Qin's secretary knew where Pei Rong was, it wasn't surprising that some people would leak the information to Zhou Hang.
At the manor.
Zhou Hang looked at Pei Rong, who had become even more stunning after more than two years. He couldn't help but marvel at how time hadn't diminished his beauty. Despite leaving the entertainment industry for two years, he hadn't let himself go.
He was born to be a star.
"Still interested in acting?" Zhou Hang asked. "This time, I'm approaching you purely because of your talent. There's no pressure or temptation. Rest assured, the company won't market you like before. If you're willing, you can quietly act without taking on any endorsements or promotional work. Just treat it as an ordinary job. Didn't you hone your acting skills while filming in the Northwest? Your fans write to the company every day, asking when you'll return from your world tour."
Pei Rong smiled but didn’t say anything.
Zhou Hang lowered his voice and said, “I heard that President Lu has a son, whom he dotes on a lot. It’s almost certain that he’ll be the heir to the Lu family business.”
Pei Rong: “You’re talking about that…”
Zhou Hang: “President Lu likes you, but to secure a position in such a top-tier family, you’ll need to have your own unshakable assets, or else people will look down on you. You have fame, so even if a man changes his heart, he has to consider if you’ll expose his secrets. Especially since he already has an heir, do you really want to focus on being a stepdad?”
Zhou Hang frowned himself, worried about his old friend’s life. “With your temperament, even your own child might test your patience, let alone being a stepdad. I’ve heard that the kid is incredibly sharp and clever. By the time he was one and a half, he was already talking. The smarter they are, the harder it is to bond with them.”
Pei Rong: “...” It’s not easy being the real dad either. Maybe one day I should send the little rascal to your office for you to experience it yourself.
Zhou Hang: “Have you met him?”
Pei Rong: “Yeah, he’s tough to handle, even the dogs avoid him.”
Zhou Hang sighed, “The Lu family elders value him a lot, so you also need to…”
Zhou Hang rambled on: “I just dropped by on my way somewhere else.”
Pei Rong: “Oh? So you just happened to bring a script along?”
Zhou Hang coughed, “Well, I brought it casually. If you have time, take a look to pass the time. Whatever role you want to play, just say the word, and we’ll pay you based on the peak of your popularity.”
To show that he really was just passing by, Zhou Hang didn’t linger and try to persuade Pei Rong further. He mentioned a couple of things briefly, and they finished their meal and parted ways.
Pei Rong took the script back to the sanatorium. He did need something to pass the time while he stayed by the bedside.
Aunt Zhao was happy to see him pick up a script again.
Pei Rong didn’t have the heart to tell her he was just reading it as if it were a novel.
Aunt Zhao was weak and spent more time lying in bed every day. Today, she was feeling better, so they chatted for a while. She slid a gold bracelet off her wrist.
“Aunt Zhao doesn’t have much, and you don’t lack anything either. This bracelet was made when I got married. In the future, give it to Dundun’s wife. I hope she won’t dislike it.”
Pei Rong’s eyes welled up slightly as he accepted it. “You’re so good to Dundun.”
Yet she wouldn’t let Dundun come to the hospital to keep her company. Aunt Zhao was still as stubborn as ever.
***
Lu Qin returned to the headquarters after working for a week, compressing a month's worth of tasks into that time.
In order to improve efficiency and see Pei Rong as soon as possible to help him take care of Aunt Zhao, Lu Qin had no choice but to leave Dundun with Madame Jiang for eight hours during the day and take care of him himself at night.
However, despite Madame Jiang’s deep affection for the child, she had to take a break every other day because her energy couldn’t keep up, and she didn’t trust leaving him with anyone else.
Lu Qin could only intermittently take the child with him to work. Every morning, he rode his motorcycle to work but didn’t ride it back, resulting in a deduction of three points from his license each time, which was apparently a “sustainable development” plan.
But there were only so many points. In just a few days, all the points on his motorcycle license were deducted, though it made the little one incredibly happy, behaving well for an entire morning each time.
Pei Dundun already knew the motorcycle experience was limited-time and didn’t insist when it was over. His eyes sparkled as he pointed to the wedding car fleet outside, saying, “Daddy, I want to ride that.”
The kind with pretty flowers on the front!
Lu Qin glanced at it, feeling bitter, “Daddy wants to ride it too.”
But he couldn't win over his wife.
Pei Dundun tilted his head in confusion. Then why don’t you ride it? Is it because there are twenty cars following behind in those weddings, while we only have two, which isn’t enough?
Lu Qin replied, “To ride that car, we need the consent of your other dad, Pei Rong.”
Pei Dundun bit his finger, realizing it might be difficult.
Before setting off to see Pei Rong with the child, Lu Qin called Pei Rong to ask if he needed anything brought along.
Aunt Zhao’s health data wasn’t looking good, and even though Pei Rong was prepared for it, he couldn’t help but feel depressed.
Staring at the stars shining over the mountain opposite the sanatorium, Pei Rong crushed a stone under his foot and suddenly said, “President Lu, take me for a ride on your motorcycle.”
Lu Qin: "…" I don’t have a license.
Next time, he thought, he would propose to lift the motorcycle ban as a corporate representative.
