Volume One, Chapter 80: Where Is Your New Husband?

All the way, Huo Xiaobei kept chatting with Huo Cong, easing much of his tension and unease.

Ye Sheng leaned back against her seat with a yawn.

“Tired?” Huo Lindong adjusted her seat, making it recline further. “If you’re sleepy, just rest. After all the traveling, you should take a break. Don’t force yourself.”

Ye Sheng truly couldn’t hold up much longer. She’d been out on business for days, hadn’t slept well on the plane back, and kept herself tightly wound at the Huo residence. Now, sitting in the car, she couldn’t tell whether it was the subtle, cool scent clinging to Huo Lindong that made her feel safe, or the comforting, drowsy drone of Huo Xiaobei’s chatter. Maybe it was simply that Huo Cong’s fever had broken and his health was no longer a worry—her anxious heart could finally settle.

Ye Sheng fell asleep.

Out of the corner of his eye, Huo Cong stole a glance at her. She looked tired, but peaceful in sleep—and, he realized, really quite beautiful.

At six, Huo Cong already had a sense of aesthetics, an idea of what was pleasant to look at, whether a person or a thing. At the beginning of the school year, there’d been a parent meeting where both children and parents attended. His father had an important meeting and couldn’t make it, so Aunt Minshu went in his place.

Many of his classmates thought she was his mother and complimented him on how pretty she was. Huo Cong said nothing at the time, but silently retorted in his heart: You haven’t seen my mother—my mother is even more beautiful.

Remembering this, his cheeks flushed slightly. Just as he was about to look away, his gaze met Huo Lindong’s, who was watching him with an amused, knowing look.

Caught red-handed, Huo Cong blushed even deeper.

They soon arrived at Lan Court International.

Ye Sheng, carrying Huo Cong’s backpack, took her suitcase from Huo Lindong, unlocked the door, and looked at him with genuine gratitude. “Lin, thank you so much for today.”

She knew that Huo Lindong had purposefully made time to go to the Huo residence, partly for her sake. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have left together with her. Perhaps her brother had asked him to look after her. And as the eldest, Huo Lindong had done his part thoroughly; Ye Sheng felt deeply grateful to him.

“Don’t be so formal with me. I’ve told you that many times,” he replied. Seeing her obediently nod, his expression softened a little. He looked down at Huo Cong and asked, “How are you feeling? Do you think you can go to school tomorrow?”

Huo Cong nodded. “I can.”

“That’s great! Then we’ll go together tomorrow,” Huo Xiaobei exclaimed, delighted. Since seeing Huo Cong today, he’d been bubbling with excitement—a far cry from his gloomy self days before. “Come have breakfast with us tomorrow morning. What would you like to eat?”

Huo Cong was infected by his enthusiasm and his face relaxed. “Anything is fine.”

They waved goodbye to each other in the hallway before going their separate ways.

Once the door clicked shut, Huo Cong stood in the unfamiliar entryway, suddenly realizing he had truly come back with Ye Sheng to her “home.” His small face tensed up, showing his nervousness.

“Let me disinfect your hands,” Ye Sheng said, offering him sanitizer, then brought out the slippers Huo Mingtian had prepared. “Change your shoes.”

Huo Cong did as told. Ye Sheng took off his coat and hung it up.

Seeing how out of place he looked, Ye Sheng curved her lips in a gentle smile and bent down to lift him into her arms.

Startled, Huo Cong hardly dared move.

“I’ll give you a tour of the house,” Ye Sheng said, carrying him easily from room to room. “This is your uncle’s apartment—I’m just staying here temporarily. If we ever need, I’ll buy a place, and you can help me pick it out. However you want it decorated, you’ll get to decide.”

Huo Cong listened in a daze, then looked at her curiously. “I have an uncle?”

“Yes,” Ye Sheng replied. “You have three uncles—one by blood, and two honorary. Xiaobei’s father, if you don’t want to call him great-uncle, you can call him uncle instead. In terms of family seniority, you and Xiaobei are brothers.”

At that, Huo Cong’s eyes lit up; this, he liked.

“Would you like to stay in this room?” Ye Sheng asked. Huo Cong nodded, and she set him down, pulling out fresh sheets to make up his bed.

Standing by, Huo Cong watched Ye Sheng work with swift efficiency, and childhood memories began to surface. As the images overlapped, much of his awkwardness slipped away.

“Um…” Huo Cong hesitated, “what about him?”

“Hmm?” Ye Sheng fetched a pillow from the wardrobe, not quite following. “Who?”

Looking her straight in the eye, Huo Cong said, “Him. Your new husband. Is he coming back tonight?”