Guo Ziyi's art exam had finally arrived. On this day, the campus of Jiangcheng Media University was as lively as a festival. Early in the morning, vehicles dropping off exam candidates clogged the campus, making it impossible to move. Yang Yi even gave up on his idea of exercising.
Guo Ziyi, however, was carefree. He woke up early and crouched by the school gate, "observing" the stunningly dressed girls until it was almost time for the exam. Only then did he rush back, grab his bag, and hurry over.
Yang Yi's coffee shop was almost fully decorated. With nothing else to do, he wiped cups inside the shop, pondering when to open for business. Of course, the sign wasn't ready yet! He wanted a rustic wooden sign, so he'd finally found a carpenter to custom-make one, which would take a week.
"Dad!" A faint, familiar, and longed-for call came from outside. Yang Yi snapped back to reality and quickly looked out.
Through the sealed glass window, a cute little angel was excitedly waving at him. Her sweet smile and bright, big eyes tugged at Yang Yi's heart.
He really did miss her!
Yang Yi hurried over to open the door. As soon as it was open, the little one couldn't wait to pounce on him: "Dad, Xixi missed you so much!"
"Dad missed you too." Yang Yi bent down and picked up the little one, speaking softly. Seeing his daughter's joyful expression, he felt happiness flowing through his heart.
"Cough, cough!" Mo Fei, who had been left out, expressed her presence with some dissatisfaction.
Only then did Yang Yi shift his gaze to her. But... wasn't this woman too hot? At the turn of spring and summer, she was still wearing a trench coat, wrapped in a scarf, a knitted hat, and had a mask and sunglasses on her face. She looked like an Eskimo living in a snowy world!
"Aren't you hot?" Yang Yi frowned, reaching out to take off her knitted hat.
Mo Fei was caught off guard by Yang Yi's sudden concern. By the time he removed her hat, she instinctively shrank back.
But it was too late. Once the knitted hat was off, Mo Fei's wavy hair cascaded down like a waterfall, and a faint, rich fragrance lingered in the air.
"What are you doing?" Mo Fei's heart fluttered, but on the surface, she was stubborn. She snatched the hat from Yang Yi's hand and demanded angrily.
"Coming to my place, why dress up like that?" Yang Yi carried Xixi inside and asked calmly after Mo Fei entered.
"Xixi knows why!" The little one, clinging to her dad's neck and refusing to let go, was lively. She raised her little arm, looking at her dad with eager eyes.
As if to say, want to know? Ask Xixi!
Yang Yi chuckled and gently tapped her little nose with his finger, speaking softly, "Then tell Dad, Xixi!"
"Because Mom is afraid of being seen by reporters!" Xixi giggled, looking proud of herself.
Yang Yi immediately understood. He remembered Chen Yijie, who had come a few days ago—weren't all these big stars like that?
Mo Fei took off her trench coat and removed the rest of her disguise, finally breathing a sigh of relief. It had been way too hot! She said with a hint of reproach, "Why didn't you say today was Jiangchuan's art exam? With so many reporters around, luckily I had some gear in the car!"
Mo Fei probably didn't realize the change in her tone. Maybe Yang Yi's slightly intimate gesture earlier had softened her a bit.
Yang Yi frowned, looking at Mo Fei with confusion, and said, "You didn't inform me beforehand, did you? Besides, today's Wednesday. How was I supposed to know you'd come?"
Mo Fei was taken aback, then remembered she really had forgotten! But lately, she'd been coming so often that she'd gotten casual, feeling like it was her own home. Did she need to report in advance to come home?
So, a bit annoyed, she said, "Hey, do I need to ask for your permission to come?"
Yang Yi was momentarily speechless. He felt that talking to women was really troublesome—their logic was on a completely different level, or maybe they just didn't reason at all. Forget it, he decided not to continue that line of conversation.
Mo Fei watched Yang Yi happily playing with their daughter and felt a pang of jealousy. She went over, took Xixi from him, and then said bossily, "Make me a cup of coffee. I want to see if this coffee shop of yours is up to standard!"
Wanting coffee wasn't hard. Yang Yi nodded and went to the bar to prepare it.
Xixi was almost four and taller than other kids her age. Mo Fei found it hard to carry her, so she took her hand and strolled around Yang Yi's coffee shop, checking out his decorations and furnishings.
"The sofa is quite comfortable... What are these bookshelves for? Why are they empty?"
"Some are for books. I'll put them up after I buy and read them. Some are for music CDs."
"What about mine?"
"What about yours?"
"I don't care. I only allow you to display my albums!" Mo Fei bit her lower lip and said angrily.
"You only have a few. I'll think about it after I find time to listen to them," Yang Yi said nonchalantly. He set down the freshly brewed coffee gently on the table in front of Mo Fei.
But faced with the aromatic coffee, Mo Fei was unmoved. She stared intently into Yang Yi's eyes, her gaze cold.
"Only display my albums!" Mo Fei said, enunciating each word. "I'll have Xiaojuan bring them over later!"
Yang Yi wasn't buying it. "That won't do. Everything here has to go through my selection. I'd prefer to collect a variety of classic CDs."
Mo Fei's eyes showed hurt and sadness, but she still pursed her lips coldly, staring straight at Yang Yi.
Yang Yi actually fell for it. Unable to withstand her gaze, he relented and said helplessly, "I'll set aside one shelf for you!"
"I want a whole bookshelf!" Mo Fei also compromised, but she was still stubborn.
"There's not enough room for that many..."
"I have a lot: singles, albums, photo books, covers from big magazines... And I'll release many more songs in the future."
Yang Yi waved his hand in resignation and said, "Fine, fine, pick one yourself!"
A glimmer of joy flashed in Mo Fei's eyes. She pulled Xixi up, not even bothering with the coffee, but pretended to be reserved, slowing her pace. She made a haughty inspection and pointed to the bookshelf directly opposite the bar. "I want this one! You're not allowed to put anyone else's CDs on it!"
"Xixi wants one too! Xixi wants one too!" The little one hopped excitedly, thinking it was something fun.
"Xixi doesn't need one." Yang Yi quickly took out several wooden frames from a nearby box and said, "Xixi, Dad prepared these for you. Later, Dad will frame your paintings and hang them on the walls around here."
"Really? Then Xixi needs to paint a lot of pictures!" the little one exclaimed in surprise.
Mo Fei felt another pang of jealousy, this time toward her daughter. Yang Yi had thought everything through for Xixi, so why didn't he take the initiative to think about her?