Ah, this man is truly childish. This isn't about Huo Zheng, but about her attitude.
She would never fall in love with Huo Zheng. What is Tianyi jealous about?
As Susu was contemplating whether to text Huo Zheng back, his call came again.
"Sister Susu, congratulations. When the baby is born, can I be his godfather?" Huo Zheng spoke first on the phone, his joyful tone sounding somewhat forced.
Susu replied happily, "Of course, I'd be delighted."
Huo Zheng made his tone particularly cheerful, "I won't talk to you for long. Training ends in a couple of days. After I finish, we'll gather again..."
"Huo Zheng, wait," Susu heard his tone and realized he probably didn't know Huo Jin was murdered, not that it was an accident. His current training must be completely isolated from the outside world; he likely couldn't access the internet or watch the news.
"Sister Susu, is there anything else?"
"Is the training going well? Are you tired, is it hard?" Susu still hadn't told him about recent events. Since Huo Liangcheng and his wife chose to keep it from Huo Zheng for now, they must have their reasons.
It would be better to let Huo Zheng complete his RJ training peacefully. She would tell him after he finished.
"It's hard, it's tiring," Huo Zheng complained playfully, seizing the opportunity to vent. "It's similar to the training Grandpa described when he was a soldier. Back then, Grandpa wanted me to join the army, but I refused no matter what. This time, I'm experiencing the same strict management and training as in the military. We eat in this enclosed place, ten people per table. We can't start eating until everyone is present, and we have to sing in unison before every meal..."
He had found someone to complain to and started pouring out his woes to Susu non-stop.
Susu had heard about RJ's training mechanisms before. When training employees abroad, they adopted the West Point Military Academy model. She was surprised they continued to use this training model after entering the domestic market; it was quite character-building.
Without saying much more, she acted as a listener, letting him vent his frustrations for nearly half an hour. When she finally heard them calling for lights out on his end, he hung up.
Susu also felt tired. She covered her abdomen with her hand, a happy expression on her face as she lay down on the bed, quickly falling asleep.
...
Ten days passed in a flash, and it was almost New Year's Eve again.
Susu was at home learning to cook traditional New Year dishes with Chen Ma.
Xiao Xingxing's school had started its winter break. He ran around the house, occasionally darting into the kitchen and picking up freshly made egg dumplings with his fingers, popping them into his mouth.
Susu wanted to tell him not to do that, but he always darted away.
Chen Ma chuckled, "He's just a child, don't mind him, as long as he's happy."
Susu continued to fry egg crepes with a large spoon and asked Chen Ma how to mix the dough.
Qin Tianyi had been discharged from the hospital a couple of days ago and was also resting at home, not going to the group.
Xiao Anjing had told him to recover from his injuries at home and also to accompany the pregnant Susu. He suggested Qin Tianyi return to the group to handle business after the New Year, which Qin Tianyi gladly accepted.
Susu wanted to visit the studio every day, but with Qin Tianyi at home, she couldn't find any opportunity to slip away. She could only communicate with her colleagues online, basically working remotely.
Xiao Mei had already put up red paper-cuts and couplets on the villa walls. The entire house was filled with a festive New Year atmosphere.
The only thing that still worried her was Xiaoxiao in the hospital, who hadn't found a suitable bone marrow transplant.
Her and Xiaoxiao's bone marrow matching results had come out long ago, and they weren't a match.
And the search for Xiaoxiao's biological father was still without any clues. The main reason was that Shu Yan had destroyed the surveillance records of the hotel where she had stayed, making the search for Xiaoxiao's biological father more difficult.
If they were to find anyone else with a familial connection to Xiaoxiao, it would have to be someone from the Shu family.
But at this time, neither she nor Qin Tianyi could step forward to find people from the Shu family, and she certainly didn't want to encounter them.
She heard from her colleagues at the studio that the suit designed for Shu Zhongze last time had been rejected.
Shu Zhongze's condition was that Susu redesign it and personally deliver the new design to him for fitting.
Susu had ignored the matter and had her colleagues return Shu Zhongze's deposit.
However, Xiao Anjing mentioned that Xiaoxiao could only hold on until after the New Year, and if a transplant couldn't be found, she might not survive. This made Susu anxious and hesitant about whether to personally approach Shu Zhongze about the matter, at least so Xiaoxiao would have a glimmer of hope.
Qin Tianyi appeared in the kitchen at some point, embracing her from behind. "It smells so good, I couldn't sit upstairs anymore."
Susu was frying egg crepes. "Don't mess around, be careful not to get burned. Try the egg dumplings I just made, see if they're tasty."
Qin Tianyi released her, picked up a dumpling with his fingers, and threw it into his mouth. After eating it, he said, "Not bad."
"Your eating posture is just like Xiao Xingxing's," Susu teased him.
"Who told you we're father and son?" Qin Tianyi said, turning off the induction cooker she was using.
"Hey, I haven't finished making the egg dumplings, why did you turn off the stove? Stop messing around and go rest." Susu also put down her spoon and tried to push him out of the kitchen. She realized they were the only two in the kitchen; Chen Ma had left at some point.
Qin Tianyi grabbed her hands and pulled her into his arms, kissing her forehead. "Stop working. Let's go out and buy New Year's goods. Chen Ma and Xiao Mei can finish the rest."
"Go shopping now?" Susu looked at him, about to ask what he wanted to buy, when Xiao Xingxing ran in like a gust of wind.
Xiao Xingxing hugged Susu's legs tightly, clamoring, "I want to go out too! I want to go with you!"
"Okay, okay, let's go together," Susu reached out and pinched his little face, then said to Qin Tianyi, "It's a good opportunity to take him to the children's play area in the mall. If he keeps running around the house, I'm afraid he'll fall."
Qin Tianyi picked up Xiao Xingxing and smiled at him. "Then the three of us will go to the mall together."
Xiao Xingxing wanted to cling to Susu. "Okay, Dad, you go get the car, I want Mom to carry me."
"That won't do. Mommy has a little baby in her belly now, so she can't carry you anymore, understand?" Qin Tianyi said to him with a serious expression.
He widened his eyes dramatically and looked at Susu, asking, "Mom, are you going to have a sister for me?"
Susu smiled and nodded at him, saying softly, "When the baby in Mommy's belly is born, she can hold you."
Xiao Xingxing became very sensible, hugging Qin Tianyi's neck tightly and saying, "Okay, then I want Dad to carry me."
Qin Tianyi amusingly put him down. "You're so big now, and you still want to be carried all the time. Hold Mom's hand and wait by the door. I'll go get the car."
With that, he left the kitchen. Susu took off her apron, tidied her hair, and led Xiao Xingxing to the door.
Xiao Xingxing tugged on her hand and suddenly stopped, asking, "Mom, if you have a sister, will you and Dad still like me?"