"President Pei?"
Su Banxia spoke weakly, looking at him with disbelief written all over her face.
"Are you planning to make the two kids wait for you how much longer?"
Pei Shaoze frowned at the person standing still in place without moving an inch.
Su Banxia immediately shook her head and hurriedly caught up with him.
At the school gate, cars came and went. As the bell rang, a group of children soon rushed out of the campus. When Guoguo saw that Pei Shaoze had come with Su Banxia, her eyes lit up.
"Is Uncle taking Guoguo to eat something delicious?"
Su Guoguo looked up and asked in a babyish voice.
This little foodie never forgot about eating no matter where she went. Seeing her lifted little face, Su Banxia couldn't help but laugh, and the gloom that had just hung over her heart seemed to dissipate completely.
Pei Shaoze bent down and scooped Guoguo into his arms: "Of course. Is Guoguo tired after a whole day of class?"
"I was tired, but seeing Uncle Pei, I'm not tired anymore."
Su Guoguo, a clever little one, tightly hugged Pei Shaoze's neck and said in that babyish tone.
"Suck-up."
Su Hao looked at Su Guoguo and commented bluntly, though the smile between his brows was unstoppable.
Children are the most innocent. Su Banxia stood there, watching the two kids and Pei Shaoze getting along like old friends.
She suddenly felt that the bond of blood was something inescapable. No matter how hard she tried to hide it, she couldn't conceal the father-child connection between them.
Su Hao was very composed, but when facing Pei Shaoze, he still couldn't help but feel drawn to him.
This was probably why she was afraid to let Pei Shaoze get close to the two children, wasn't it?
The family of four drove noisily to a restaurant for dinner before heading home.
Su Sinian hid in the shadows, taking it all in, feeling deeply unsettled.
Although Su's mother had promised to help her deal with Su Banxia, her eyes could no longer tolerate even a grain of sand. She wished she could go right now.
"Su Banxia, you chose to block my path. You chose to court death!"
Su Sinian gripped the steering wheel tightly, staring fiercely ahead.
Su Banxia's heart trembled for no reason. She instinctively turned back to look, and seeing the empty road behind her, she couldn't help but frown slightly.
"What's wrong?"
Pei Shaoze kept driving but turned back to look at her. Today's Su Banxia was very unusual!
"Nothing, it's nothing."
Su Banxia shook her head. "Thank you for today, for spending so much time with the kids."
Looking at the two children already asleep in the back seat, a strange feeling welled up in Su Banxia's heart.
"Your children are my children. It's only natural for me to be good to them."
Su Banxia was slightly stunned: "President Pei sure knows how to joke. How could my children have anything to do with you?"
"You yourself belong to me, let alone the children?"
Pei Shaoze's voice was unusually gentle, a far cry from his usual style.
"It's getting late. I need to take the kids to rest."
Su Banxia didn't dare look up into Pei Shaoze's eyes. They seemed to hold a special magic that, once she looked, made it impossible to look away.
Pei Shaoze watched Su Banxia hurriedly carrying the two children and couldn't help but curl his lips into a beautiful smile.
He didn't know how Su Banxia had managed to take care of these two children alone before, but seeing how skilled she was now, she must have gone through a lot back then, right?
On the weekend, Su Banxia got up early. After watching Pei Shaoze leave for work, she instructed Su Hao to take care of Guoguo and then headed out herself.
On the way back to the Su family home, her heartbeat quickened, and she couldn't stay calm.
After leaving home for six years, returning now, her heart felt more reluctance than joy.
"Banxia is back."
Su Sinian had been waiting at home early. When she heard the car horn outside, she came out to greet her immediately.
"Miss Su."
Su Banxia greeted the newcomer respectfully.
Su Sinian smiled warmly at her: "We're family, why be so formal?"
As she spoke, she reached out to take Su Banxia's arm.
Su Banxia gave a faint smile and stepped back discreetly: "Miss Su is too kind. After all, you're the eldest daughter of the Su family, and I'm just a wild girl."
"Heh, is that so?"
Su Sinian's hand hung awkwardly in the air, a flicker of malice passing through her eyes, though her face still wore a warm smile: "It's rare for you to come home. Dad misses you terribly. Come inside."
Entering the living room, Su Banxia couldn't help but tighten her grip on her handbag, deliberately straightening her back to give herself courage.
Su Jin was reading the newspaper on the sofa, his glasses nearly sliding down to his chin.
Su's mother sat beside him, peeling an apple.
This harmonious scene looked particularly jarring to Su Banxia.
They were the real family of three, and she was always the extra outsider.
"Mom, Dad, Banxia is here."
Su Sinian cleared her throat and said with a faint smile.
"After six years away, you finally remember you have a home."
Su's mother snorted coldly. She had always detested Su Banxia. If it weren't for her daughter's future, she wouldn't have let her set foot in this house at all!
Su Jin frowned slightly. Even without speaking, he exuded an imposing aura. Seeing this, Su's mother immediately shut up.
"Mr. Su, Mrs. Su, I'm back."
Su Banxia greeted the two in front of her softly, a clear distance in her smile.
"Good to have you back. I've been thinking about you these past few days. Not seeing you home safely made me uneasy."
Su Jin set the newspaper aside and waved his hand: "Banxia, come here."
Seeing Su Jin's ambiguous smile, Su Banxia was a bit stunned.
"Dad wants you to go over."
Su Sinian gave her a subtle push.
Su Banxia stumbled, nearly losing her balance, but managed to steady herself by grabbing the table behind her, though she still looked a bit flustered.
Su's mother let out a sneer. In her opinion, a wild girl was just a wild girl, never fit for the spotlight.
Su Banxia paid no attention to this minor incident. In the Su family, she had faced far greater humiliations before.
"Mr. Su."
Su Banxia steadied herself, walked up to Su Jin, and said with a calm smile.
"You've lost weight. Life outside has been tough, hasn't it?"
Though Su Jin's words sounded caring, they made Su Banxia inexplicably uncomfortable.
She instinctively stepped back a few paces, deliberately avoiding Su Jin's gaze, and said calmly: "It's fine. I'm used to it."