31-35

Chapter 31: Gifts for the Roommates

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

“Hey, how can you be like this? You told me to come in half an hour but you’re five minutes late!” Xia Yu laid lazily on the sofa and looked at Xia Wanyuan with an aggrieved expression.

God knew how he got up, dressed, washed up within two minutes, and ran all the way to the school gate. Everyone in the dormitory thought he had gone crazy.

“Why haven’t you been to the hospital for your checkup lately?” Xia Wanyuan passed her luggage to Nanny Li. She had just gotten off the plane when she received a call from his attending doctor yesterday, saying that Xia Yu hadn’t gone for his checkup at all.

“I recovered a long time ago. Why would I go for a follow-up check? If you don’t believe me, take a look.” Xia Yu pretended to raise his arm, but the vague pain made him frown.

“Go to the hospital with me,” Xia Wanyuan looked at Xia Yu unhappily. ‘It takes a hundred days for the bone to knit and the tendons to heal, yet this person is being so careless.’

“I’m not going. I have an appointment with my roommates for games later.” Xia Yu shrank his head.

“If you don’t go, then don’t bother coming to me in the future. Go and do whatever you want,” Xia Wanyuan said before heading downstairs.

…

“Let me tell you, I’m not going to the hospital because of your threat. Do you think I want to stay here?”

As expected, Xia Yu caught up with her not long after, but his beautiful eyes were filled with disdain.

“I know. You’re afraid that your heroic image will be damaged, right?”

Tsk, how could this person steal his lines? Xia Yu was stumped by Xia Wanyuan’s words. He sat in the front passenger seat and sulked alone while looking out of the window.

They took a scan when they arrived at the hospital. Thankfully, Xia Yu’s injuries healed quickly as he was still young, but he still could not make large sweeping gestures or movements. Resting for a while more would be sufficient for  his complete recovery.

“Young man, your sister treats you pretty well. She comes with you every time for your checkup,” the doctor chatted with Xia Yu as he changed his dressing.

“Huh?” Xia Yu subconsciously replied. He turned to look at Xia Wanyuan, who was sitting in the waiting area. This was the first time he had a family member accompanying him while he was at the doctor’s.

“Well, I guess,” Xia Yu mumbled. The doctor did not notice his burning ears.

After treatment, Xia Yu followed Xia Wanyuan to collect his medicine. A person rushed in from the door. Seeing that the elevator was about to close, that person rushed over quickly. Xia Wanyuan did not notice and was almost knocked down by him. Xia Yu hurriedly supported her to prevent her from falling.

Not far away, a camera was focused on this scene. The camera’s owner grinned excitedly.

He did not expect that he would be able to take some “good” photos during his trip to the hospital due to a cold. They looked as if they were hugging each other in the photos. Even though the woman only had a side profile, those who were familiar with her could easily tell who she was.

“Are you blind!” Xia Yu shouted at the elevator, but the door had already closed. Xia Yu let go of Xia Wanyuan.

“Can you calm down?”

…

After getting the medicine, the chauffeur was about to drive the car back to the apartment.

“I’m living pretty well in the school dormitory.” Xia Yu didn’t have many friends since he was young, and he was used to being lazy, so he didn’t spend much time in school.

After being taught a good lesson by Jun Shiling and staying in the dormitory for a few days, he quite liked the atmosphere there.

This university was actually not bad. Back then, Father Xia had donated a building and had to pull some strings to get him in. His roommates had all entered the university through actual examinations. They were simple and well-educated.

“I’ll just stay in the dorm. My roommates are fun.”

“Sure.” Xia Wanyuan nodded. Indeed, he could not always live with his family as an adult man. He should have his own social circle.

“Chauffeur, take us to the supermarket.”

“What for?” Xia Yu was confused.

When they arrived at the supermarket, Xia Yu’s eyes turned red as she watched Xia Wanyuan search through Baidu whilethrowing all sorts of living essentials into the trolley. He pursed his lips and suppressed his tears.

Xia Wanyuan did not notice Xia Yu’s emotions. She was simply dazzled by the variety of goods available.

There was also a small supermarket next to the hotel where she lived. She liked to shop there when she had nothing to do. After all, every item here was very novel to her.

“What is this?” Xia Wanyuan handed the phone to Xia Yu. On it was a list of necessities needed by male university students. Xia Wanyuan pointed at the words that said ‘gaming computer’.

Xia Wanyuan knew these words when separated, but when put together, it was somewhat incomprehensible.

“It’s a computer for games,” Xia Yu explained to Xia Wanyuan about the popular PUBG and MOBA games.

After the explanation, Xia Wanyuan finally understood what it meant. In fact, it was similar to football and shuttlecock kicking in her previous life. The difference was that the games had developed into video games.

“Do you have one?” Xia Wanyuan had never objected to her siblings playing games. What she objected to was playing through life and having no serious ambition.

“It’s in the Xia family home.”

So Xia Wanyuan brought Xia Yu to the electronics section. She didn’t know what to buy, so she took the most expensive model in the area. The alien logo on the computer shone brightly.

“…”

These few days, he had finally experienced the hardships of the people. The Xia family was bankrupt, and Xia Yu knew that a certain family would not care about them at all. So, although he was touched, he was a little worried that Xia Wanyuan would buy things for him and not have any money left for herself.

“Hey, you don’t have to buy it.”

“I want four of these.”

Before Xia Yu could finish speaking, Xia Wanyuan had already finished communicating with the staff. Hearing that she wanted four, the staff grinned from ear to ear. A year’s worth of sales target had been hit one day! She ran over to write a receipt for Xia Wanyuan immediately. Her actions were so fast as if she was afraid Xia Wanyuan would go back on her word.

“Why did you buy so many?” Xia Yu was shocked. Had he worried about Xia Wanyuan for nothing?

“It’s your first time living in a dorm. Shouldn’t you bring some presents for your roommates?”

Xia Wanyuan acted as if nothinghad happened. She estimated the amount of money the original owner of the body had in her card. She still could afford to buy a few computers. Furthermore, she had just read online that this was a present that all young men dreamed of.

“…”

Xia Yu was completely speechless.

The trunk was gradually filled up. When they arrived at the dormitory, it was impossible for the chauffeur and Xia Yu to move the things themselves.

Xia Yu called his roommates for help and soon, three sleepy people came down with their slippers.

“F*ck, Xia Yu, did you wipe out everything? Why are there so many things?”

Xia Yu was leaning against a pile of boxes that were half the height of a person downstairs. If he did not have a pretty face and an annoying expression, people who didn’t know him would have thought that he was a delivery man.

“Cut the crap and help me carry them up.”

There was a huge pile of boxes. The four young and strong men carried all of them to the sixth floor. Even though they were young, they were exhausted from carrying so many things. When they entered the dormitory, all of them were panting heavily.

“We worked so hard to move your things, you have to treat us to a meal.” Zhang Zhe wiped the sweat off his face and gulped down a mouthful of water, teasing Xia Yu.

“That’s right, that’s right. Let’s go to Quanjude for some Peking duck!”

The others agreed.

“What’s inside anyway? I’m exhausted from lugging it up.” Su Mei carried a heavy big box that was half the height of a person.

“You’ll know when you open it.”

There were no taboos between roommates. Su Mei immediately opened the box and the others surrounded him.

“F*ck! Holy sh*t!”

“Damn!”

“Wow!”

Different words were expressed in the same tone.

Chapter 32: Requesting a Change in the Cast

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

“Tycoon! The alien has blinded our eyes!”

“Let me take a look at the model. F*ck! It’s the latest high-end version. I’m so jealous.” Zhang Zhe looked at Xia Yu enviously.

As a male university student of this era, who wouldn’t want to wake up with a top-notch gaming computer that allowed one to play all the games with maxed-up specs?

“Hey, why are there more below? Why did you buy so many?” Su Mei flipped through the box and found another one below the first one.

“My sister bought them for you. She said they’re a gift for you all.” This was the first time Xia Yu called Xia Wanyuan ‘sister’, but unfortunately, she could not hear it.

With that, Xia Yu went forward and opened the box. The four brand new computers were shining, but compared to the excitement and brightness in the eyes of the other three, it seemed a little dim in comparison.

“F*ck!”

The three of them were stunned by what Xia Yu’s sister had done. From their usual interactions, they had guessed that Xia Yu was a rich second-generation heir. But, they didn’t expect him to be so generous.

They went forward and touched the gaming computers that were said to have top-tier performance. Sure enough, expensive items felt different.

However, they were still students. Other than Yang Lin, the other two had a good family background. However, they had never received such a valuable gift.

Therefore, although the three of them were very excited, they rejected the gift.

“Thank you for your sister’s good intentions, but this is too expensive. We can’t afford to pay it back.” Although Yang Lin was poor, he did not have anything against the rich. He knew that he should not accept gifts from others for nothing.

“Yeah, that’s right,” the other two echoed.

“Just accept it. She already bought it.” Recalling Xia Wanyuan’s words before she left, Xia Yu pursed her lips. “Besides, my sister told you to supervise me to get an A grade result at the end of the semester. If I get it, those will be yours and you can consider them repaid.”

Since Xia Yu had already said so much, the three of them no longer refused.

All of them said that they would definitely supervise Xia Yu and make sure he did well in his final exams.

“Xia Yu, does your sister need a younger brother? Do you think I can become her brother too?”

“That’s right, that’s right. I can do it too!”

“Get lost!” Xia Yu scolded jokingly.

“Wow, snacks! And so many fruits! Boohoo, Xia Yu, your sister is my sister going forward!”

“Dream on!”

They played around in the dormitory and shared snacks and like this, their relationship became more harmonious.

…

After a night of discussion, the topic of Xia Wanyuan slowly climbed to the top of the search rankings and appeared before everyone again.

“Xia Wanyuan only took ten days to complete the filming of ‘The Long Ballad'”

When this topic was brought up, a group of anti-fans, as well as the fans of the novel who had been paying attention to the filming of the drama series, were instantly incensed. They didn’t care about anything else and started scolding her first.

One of the marketing accounts displayed the photos of Xia Wanyuan leaving and returning to Beijing, and the time difference between the two photos was twelve days.

[I’m dying of laughter. This is the first time I’ve heard of a second female lead finishing filming in twenty days.]

[Trash Xia Wanyuan destroyed my goddess. When will such a useless person who is unprofessional and has no acting skills get out of the entertainment industry?!]

[Poor Prince Charming Qin Wu and Goddess Ruan Yingyu. They filmed the drama so conscientiously, yet this woman treated the hard work of others like this!]

[Get out of the entertainment industry, Xia Wanyuan! Since filming is done in only ten days, it’s not too late to change her out! Get someone else to play the role!]

[That’s right! Change her out! Get Xia Wanyuan out of the entertainment industry!]

The voices of those who had seriously collated the number of times the Heavenly Spirit Princess would appear and realized that she didn’t have many scenes were drowned in the sea of public opinion.

Gradually, passers-by, haters, fans of the original novel, swarmed into “The Long Ballad” production team under the influence of people with ill intentions.

One by one, they started to post about boycotting Xia Wanyuan on their latest Weibo post, asking for a replacement. The angry fans of the original novel even gathered together and drew red crosses on the photos. Everyone demanded a replacement actress on Weibo.

In just two hours, there were close to a hundred thousand comments.

The situation was getting more and more serious. Director Yang, who had just returned to the Beijing Film City, had just caught his breath when his subordinate reported the news. He was fuming with anger.

“Nonsense! They keep asking us to adhere to the original, and we did! And when we film according to the original, they complain about the role not having enough scenes! Ridiculous!”

Seeing that there was no response from the Weibo account of the cast and crew of “The Long Ballad”, the angry fans immediately pushed the topic “Xia Wanyuan Heavenly Spirit Princess” onto the hot search list.

The hottest post was a certain fan’s strong complaint and request for a change in casting. Seeing that the trending topic was getting more popular, the anger of the fans also increased.

At long last, the production crew of “The Long Ballad” finally responded with two responses to the outcry of the masses.

One was Xia Wanyuan’s role description.

The other was a fifteen-second video.

All the fans of the original novel who had angrily clicked onto the video went silent after watching it.

Chapter 33: Short Video

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

Amidst the scolding on Weibo, a cacophony of different voices slowly appeared.

[Seems like the Heavenly Spirit Princess doesn’t appear often…]

[I just saw the scenes list. Xia Wanyuan really did finish filming most of the Heaven Spirit Princess’s scenes already.]

Some logical fans of the original novel had also come up with a comparison between the scenes in the original novel and scenes from the drama, confirming that Xia Wanyuan had indeed filmed most of her scenes.

[What the f*ck? You guys still have the mood to discuss this? I’m shocked by the video.]

[Me too… Is that Xia Wanyuan? I suddenly feel like there’s no need to replace her.]

[Me too…]

[AHHHHHHHH! She’s so pretty! I take back my words. Don’t replace her!]

Originally, it was just a trending topic that was occupied by fans of the novel. As the rankings slowly rose, many passers-by also started to talk about it.

The top trending topic was the Weibo account that strongly accused the production team of “The Long Ballad” of indulging Xia Wanyuan in slacking off and demanded a replacement.

While the second most popular topic was the video that was released by the production team.

With a curious heart, the passers-by on Weibo wanted to see what the production team had done to make the fans so angry that they demanded a replacement.

Fifteen seconds later.

F*ck!

Why were they asking for a replacement?!!! Were these people crazy?

The video was only fifteen seconds long. It was obvious that it was an unedited film.

On the long street, lanterns of all colors were arranged on both sides of the city, and pedestrians were everywhere.

Enshrouded by the waning light, Xia Wanyuan, who was wearing a light purple dress, stood up. She held a rabbit lamp in her hand as she walked towards the camera.

Slim-waisted with somewhat sloping shoulders, and she had a slender neck that accentuated her lithe figure. The lantern cast a layer of warm light on her body, and her whole body was surrounded by a heart-stirring indifference and elegance, like a lotus blooming alone under the moonlight, leisurely and refreshing.

[Geez, fans nowadays are really hard to please.]

A small group of passers-by began to speak up for Xia Wanyuan.

[Yes, she’s pretty, but with Xia Wanyuan’s acting skills, will she be able to act as the Heavenly Spirit Princess?]

Seeing that public opinion was slowly changing, some professional accounts started to change their argument. What was the use of being pretty? Her bad acting skills would still destroy the character.

[That’s right. Look at her eye-piercing acting. She was like a picture in JPG format. No matter how pretty she looks, she’s just a pretty face.]

[At least she has a pretty face. Let’s see if she can act well after the drama is out.]

The netizens could not help but click on the short video again.

‘Oh my, she’s really pretty. She has a strong aura too.’

However, the past photos and videos of Xia Wanyuan were still clearly displayed in the comments. It was hard to imagine how such a good-looking person could act so stiffly.

[Forget it, based on this face and appearance, I won’t scold her for the time being. We’ll talk about it after the drama is released.]

The comments were chaotic, but they were no longer filled with insults. Although the majority of the comments were still skeptical, people were reluctantly honest.

Within just one hour, the video was played three million times.

A short video was sent to the WeChat group called “Four Great Generals”.

“Hey, look at this video my girlfriend sent me. This is the actress who played the Heavenly Spirit Princess. She’s my goddess!”

In the dormitory where they were all quietly lying on their beds and playing with their new computers, Zhang Zhe’s roar broke the silence.

“The Long Ballad” was adapted from a novel written for males, so the audience was mostly male. The two female characters in the original novel were naturally regarded as goddesses by many men.

And in this dormitory, other than Yang Lin, everyone else had read this novel before. Xia Yu knew that Xia Wanyuan was going to act in the drama, so he had specially downloaded the novel to read a few days before.

“Holy f*ck! Who is this?! I declare! She’s my goddess from now on!”

“This is the Heavenly Spirit Princess I’ve imagined all my life! Goddamn, she’s beautiful! I can look at her a hundred times!”

No matter how much hatred was stirred among the fans, liking someone was just so simple and straightforward for straight men.

Xia Yu heard what they said and clicked on the video with a look of disdain. A look of surprise flashed past his eyes. ‘This woman actually looks pretty good in ancient clothes.’

“I think she’s so-so,” Xia Yu remarked mercilessly.

“Wow! Xia Yu, your expectations are too high! How can she be ‘so-so’? She is practically a pretty face that only appears once in five thousand years!”

“Xia Yu, I’m telling you. You can scold me, but you can’t insult my goddess. Come out and fight!”

“Tsk, childish,” Xia Yu scoffed. However, he was secretly overjoyed by the praises given to Xia Wanyuan by his roommates.

Chapter 34: Empty Silence

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

After getting Xia Yu out of the car, the chauffeur slowly drove around the campus at Xia Wanyuan’s request.

It was time for classes and there were not many people on campus. The campus was green and beautiful. The blue sky and white clouds reflected on the huge glass walls of the stadium, turning the entire stadium blue. On both sides of the road, there were all kinds of banners and signs hung up by clubs to recruit new members. It was amazing how fulfilling college life was.

The young students were either carrying backpacks, carrying books, or rushing to the classroom with hurried steps. All of them looked young and energetic.

In the small buildings hidden in the large trees, one could see young faces that were thirsty for knowledge through the open windows.

Xia Wanyuan watched enviously.

She was well-read in poetry, painting, and etiquette, but she had never been to school.

“University life looks so amazing. It’s a pity I don’t have the chance to experience it.” Xia Wanyuan looked away regretfully.

“Yes, university students are really carefree,” the chauffeur said. “But there are no age restrictions in college now. You can get in as long as you pass the exam.”

Xia Wanyuan raised her eyebrows in surprise. She clearly admired the current education system.

After returning to the apartment and taking a good rest, she finally felt relaxed.

Once Xiao Bao finished school for the day, the chauffeur brought him back to the apartment.

“Mommy!” Xiao Bao ran to the second floor as soon as he got home, and Xia Wanyuan hugged him tightly.

“How was your day?”

“Mommy, the teacher taught us how to dance today. I’ll dance for you.”

“Sure.”

The apartment was filled with joy and laughter. But there was no such cheer in the manor. It had returned to its usual solitude.

“Young Master, the food is ready.” Uncle Wang walked towards Jun Shiling. “Little Master has been taken to Miss Xia.”

Without Jun Yin’s chatter in the manor, it seemed even more deserted.

Taking off his coat, Jun  Shiling sat at the dining table, his eyes skimming over the empty seats with ease. In the huge dining room, only the sound of chopsticks occasionally touching the plates could be heard.

Jun Shiling paused for a moment when he picked up the prawns with his chopsticks. Stir-fried prawns were Jun Yin’s favorite dish. He was reminded of how Jun Yin had served him the prawns the day before.

An indescribable feeling spread in his heart, and Jun Shiling suddenly lost his appetite. He put down his chopsticks and went upstairs.

After washing up, Jun Shiling lay on the bed. The scent of Xia Wanyuan, mixed with Xiao Bao’s milky scent, still lingered on the pillow where she had slept, causing Jun Shiling to frown suddenly.

It was a sleepless night.

…

The waves of public opinion on the Internet had slowly subsided. It had to be said that the video published by the production team had given everyone a buffering period, and everyone was now waiting for the drama to be aired.

When the time came, Xia Wanyuan’s performance would be the deciding factor in how things would develop.

If she acted well, everyone would be happy.

If she did not act well, the current calmness would be the calm before an even greater storm.

It was obvious that 99% of the people in the industry believed that Xia Wanyuan would suffer a severe backlash. The remaining 1% were the crew members of the drama production team.

“Good job! This expression! This action! Edit all of them in.” The director checked the filmed scenes on the side, talking to the editor excitedly from time to time.

“Give her more scenes. Let them scold her now. They’ll be shocked speechless when they watch the drama. The viewership ratings will definitely increase then.”

The director was delighted. Who would have thought that Xia Wanyuan, who had originally been the biggest stain on the drama, would become the highlight in the end?

…

Today was likely the most difficult day for the higher-ups of the Jun Corporation.

Jun Shiling had always been a very strict person, but with high salaries came high standards and responsibilities, and everyone had always been very motivated at work.

But today, Jun Shiling hadalways been a very strict person, but with high salaries came high standards and responsibilities, and everyone had always been very motivated at work.

But today, Jun Shiling had already rejected five proposals.

Although Jun Shiling always had a cold expression on his face, it was different today. Even the executives did not dare to go near Jun Shiling. The frosty aura on the Big Boss was practically tangible.

Everyone looked at Lin Jing for help. “Assistant Lin, we’re depending on you. We don’t dare to go.”

Lin Jing was speechless. As if he wasn’t afraid of Jun Shiling. Picking up the latest acquisition plan, he gently knocked on the office door.

“Come in.”

“Young Master, this is an acquisition plan by Ji Shi Medical Equipment Company. CEO Chen and his team have revised this for the second time.”

Jun Shiling took the document and flipped through it quickly. He frowned and threw it on the table.

“Have them redo it.”

“…”

Lin Jing silently lit a candle for his colleagues. ‘I can’t help you either.’

The sky darkened. Lin Jing recalled that he had heard Xia Wanyuan’s voice in the previous video conference, however, Jun Shiling seemed to have no intention of getting off work.

He asked indirectly, “Young Master, it’s getting late. Should we send a car to fetch Little Master?”

“No need, Xia Wanyuan has taken him home.”

Jun Shiling glanced at Lin Jing, who felt as if he had been seen through.

“Alright, Young Master. I’ll take my leave now.”

Lin Jing quickly put away the documents on the table and walked out. But in his heart, he roughly understood why the big boss had become a moving freezer.

“Redo it.” Lin Jing walked out of the office under expectant gazes, and then his words broke everyone’s expectations.

Ignoring the crowd of employees lamenting behind him, Lin Jing made a call.

“Hello, is this the principal? Nice to meet you…”

…

In the house of Director Yang, the Yang family was entertaining his daughter’s classmates.

“Xiao Nian, you’re so outstanding. You should teach our Xiao Hui some of your ways.”

“Uncle, you’re too kind. Xiao Hui is great too. She even won first place at the school’s speech contest.”

Director Yang was elated by Li Nian’s praise.

After dinner, Yang Hui sat on the sofa with Li Nian to watch television.

“Why haven’t I seen your mentor recently?” Yang Hui took a bite of the apple.

“Don’t you know how much my mentor loves painting? I heard that there’s an auction in New York. Apparently, a very famous piece of art will appear there, so my mentor went abroad last week. He’ll probably be back in the next two days.”

“How much of your thesis paper have you written?”

“It’s almost done. I just have to wait for my mentor to come back and review it.”

Li Nian felt a little bloated after eating an entire apple, so she stood up and stretched a little. Suddenly, she was attracted by a painting on a table not far away.

Li Nian leaned over. The drawing seemed to have been hastily painted. The paper was slightly wrinkled, but it could not hide the vividness of the rabbit on the drawing.

There was only a large rock and a few stalks of grass beside the rabbit, but those few simple strokes were enough to make one feel a strong sense of vitality.

Although Li Nian did not know much about paintings, since she had been with her mentor for a long time, she would know if the painting was a good one.

“Xiao Hui, did your father draw this?”

“No way. He probably got it from the crew. My dad doesn’t know how to draw.”

“Why?”

Director Yang walked out with the freshly washed strawberries. He was a little confused when he saw his daughter and the guest gathered around the table.

“Uncle, where did you buy this painting from?” Li Nian asked.

“Nah, I didn’t buy this. The actors in the production team casually drew it for the lanterns. They’re not worth much. You can take them if you like.”

Director Yang was surprised that Li Nian liked the painting. Could it be that Xia Wanyuan had some skills? But how valuable could a painting be? Furthermore, it was casually drawn by Xia Wanyuan. Without much thinking, Director Yang gave it to Li Nian.

“Thank you, Uncle!” Although Li Nian did not quite understand, she could show it to her mentor after her mentor came back. Anyway, her mentor liked those kinds of cold and clean styles of paintings.

Chapter 35: Principal

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

The next day, the International Kindergarten held a family-themed comic and art exhibition.

“In the end, Little Monkey and its parents lived happily together.”

“The Little Bunny is the baby of Daddy Bunny and Mommy Bunny. Every night, Daddy Bunny will accompany Mommy Bunny and their son to visit the carrots that they planted.”

…

The principal looked at the children in the classroom worriedly. Why did some parents complain that their family education was not up to standard?

However, when the principal thought about the various books and toys that the parent who complained had donated, she let out a smile. It seemed that she needed to continue working hard. ‘Parents’ complaints should be viewed as a motivation!’

“Sister Principal, do parents and children live together?”

A baby voice suddenly sounded beside her feet. The principal lowered her head to take a look. ‘Aiyo, isn’t this the cutest little Jun Yin?’

His little mouth was too sweet. She was already over thirty years old, yet the cute little dumpling still addressed her as Sister. She couldn’t help but feel elated.

“Yes, little one. Family members should of course live together.”

The principal smiled as she patted Jun Yin’s head. However, she did not expect that the little dumpling, who always had a pair of smiling eyes, would lower his head sadly. That pitiful look of his made her heart ache.

“What’s wrong, little one? Tell Auntie what happened.” The principal crouched down and pulled Xiao Bao into her arms. The little cutie in her arms had tears in his eyes.

“Then why don’t my parents live together?”

The principal was stunned. She guessed that he came from a divorced family, and so her heart ached even more for this delicate little boy.

“Do Daddy and Mommy love you?”

“Mmm.” Xiao Bao nodded vehemently. Although his father always had a cold expression, he would chase away little monsters for him. Even though his mother used to hate him, she would accompany him every day now.

“Although they don’t live together, they love you very much. Their love for you will never change,” the principal said as she took a toy from the side and changed the topic. “Let’s play with the giraffes together, okay?”

After the theme exhibition finally ended, the principal returned to her office. Suddenly, she was reminded of Xiao Bao’s pitiful look and opened up the kindergarten student enrollment folder.

To her surprise, it did not show that Jun Yin was from a divorced family.

The principal looked at the names written on his parents’ column unhappily. ‘His parents are too irresponsible. Even if they are not going to continue the marriage, shouldn’t they consider the feelings of their child?’

She searched for the contact information attached to the back of the folder and made a call.

“Young Master, the kindergarten is calling.”

Back then, when they were filling in the form, they had considered Jun Shiling’s identity and Xia Wanyuan’s job as an actress. Hence, the names filled in were not their exact names. As a result, the principal did not know that the person on the other end of the phone was the kindergarten’s biggest investor.

“Hello, is this Jun Yin’s father?”

“Yes.” Jun Shiling frowned. ‘Did Jun Yin beat up his classmates in kindergarten again?’

“Have you divorced your wife?”

“No,” Jun Shiling said after a moment of silence.

The principal was furious. When she thought of Xiao Bao’s pitiful look, she instantly imagined a rich family drama and started criticizing the child’s father.

A long tirade began immediately. From the child’s mentality to the growth of his body and mind, as well as his future, the principal covered all of them.

“I hope that as parents, you will pay more attention to your child’s mental health and create a harmonious and warm family environment for your child. If there is no divorce, please do not live separately. A complete family will help a child grow up normally in a healthy environment.”

Finally, the principal concluded and stopped talking. She felt that her mouth was parched.

“Okay. Thank you for your input, Principal. Goodbye.”

Jun Shiling spoke for the second time. His tone was extremely cold. The principal, who had calmeddown a little, suddenly became irritated again.

‘Why is the father of this family like this? I can’t communicate with him at all.’ The principal could only call his mother. After all, a mother should be more easygoing.

After hanging up the phone, Jun Shiling was more than a little annoyed by the scolding. However, he could not deny that what the principal said had gotten to him.

“I can tell that Jun Yin loves you both very much and wants to live together with his Daddy and Mommy. Actually, he knows everything. He’s very sad, but he doesn’t want to tell you because he’s afraid of making you upset or angry.”

Jun Shiling squeezed the fountain pen in his hand tightly as he felt a little guilty towards Xiao Bao. When he was young, he had suffered alone. Now that he had his own child, he had made his child suffer as he did.

…

In the apartment, the coffee by the window had already turned cold. Xia Wanyuan was still listening to the principal on the phone.

“Yeah, okay. Thank you for your input, Principal. Goodbye.”

Her tone and answer were almost identical to that of the child’s father. The principal was stunned. ‘What is going on with this family?’

In her previous life, Xia Wanyuan had brought up her younger siblings. When she found out that her parents had passed away, she was very sensible and did not mention anything about missing her parents in front of them.

However, there were many times when she would dream about them in the middle of the night. When she was sick and talking in her sleep, she would still subconsciously call for her parents.

For the first time, Xia Wanyuan felt a little helpless. This era was not like the past, and Xiao Bao’s situation was not like her younger siblings.

From Xiao Bao’s point of view, his parents had been living separately even though they were married. He must be feeling very sad too.

In fact, Xiao Bao must have missed Jun Shiling as well. He probably had a nightmare last night and had asked Daddy to help him fight the little monsters.

At that moment, the phone rang again. He thought it was the principal, but it was a familiar black profile picture.

“Hello, what’s the matter?” Xia Wanyuan picked up the phone.

“Did Jun Yin’s kindergarten principal call you?” A deep voice came through the phone.

“Yes.”

“The divorce agreement in three months will still be effective.During this period of time, stay in the manor and take good care of Jun Yin. When the time comes, I’ll give you two more houses on the Third Ring Road.”

They had planned the divorce agreement from the start, but now that it was mentioned, Jun Shiling was not happy at all. Instead, he felt as if there was a rock pressing down on his heart, making it hard for him to breathe.

“I don’t need the house. Xiao Bao is my child too. I didn’t do my duty as a mother before. This is what I owe him.”

“Mmm.” Jun Shiling remained silent for a while and said nothing more. “I’ll arrange a car to pick you up later.”

“Alright.”

Even though Xia Wanyuan had declined, Jun Shiling called the legal department after hanging up the phone and transferred three of the best houses in the city to be under Xia Wanyuan’s name.