Chapter 7: Mother

Luo Yun looked at the person behind her with a face full of disgust.

Although she said that, the pace of her footsteps gradually slowed down.

“Where are you taking me?”

“You’re coming with me to paint.”

“I don’t know how.”

“I’ll teach you.”

While He Rou was still processing the information, Luo Yun led her into a slightly smaller room.

“We’ll have to make do with this one for now. The big room can’t be entered without Grandpa’s permission—he has quite a lot of collections stored in there.”

Luo Yun looked at the furnishings in the room with a hint of disdain in her eyes.

“Don’t wander around. If you need to use the bathroom, tell me. You can only eat when I’m hungry.”

“Why so strict? It’s like being at school.”

“Because I’m the one who brought you back.”

Luo Yun’s answers were always so willful and unreasonable.

“Then…”

She pulled out an easel and some tools from the side.

“I’ll start teaching you how to paint now. Put that painting you’re holding aside for now.”

“Oh.”

Being in someone else’s home, He Rou was very obedient.

During this period, whatever Luo Yun told her to do, she did—just like a dog that had been tamed for a long time.

The gloomy sky, as seconds ticked by, became stained with the black paint of night.

He Rou knelt on the floor, with traces of paint here and there on her body.

She felt a bit dirty, but Luo Yun thought it was quite charming.

“Aren’t you tired?”

He Rou asked her weakly.

“What? It hasn’t been that long and you’re already complaining about being tired? I still have so many new ideas I haven’t tried out yet.”

Luo Yun was somewhat angry.

After experiencing that period just now, her interest had risen to its peak.

This feeling of control, of imparting the knowledge she understood—it was really satisfying, even addictive.

She could gradually feel that the person before her would, in the future, truly become something that belonged only to her—a being with no independent thoughts, loyal only to her.

“I’m so hungry…”

He Rou hugged her stomach with both hands and looked at her with a pitiful expression, as if trying to use this method to make Luo Yun stop her next actions.

“Hmm, alright then.”

Her tactic actually worked.

Luo Yun, who had wanted to continue, stopped her next thought.

Luo Yun didn’t want to torture her; she just wanted to tame her first dog.

So giving the little dog some rest and rewards at appropriate times would make it more obedient.

Then He Rou was taken to the kitchen.

At first, Luo Yun had only intended to give her some snacks, but the current scene in the kitchen was too chaotic for them to enter.

Many people were busy.

It seemed there was going to be a banquet tonight.

Unexpected things always triggered a sense of crisis in Luo Yun’s need for control.

Irritation, anger, anxiety—these negative emotions bombarded her brain.

After taking a few deep breaths, she abandoned He Rou beside her and went to find Grandma.

In the garden of the estate, Grandma was holding feed in her hands, looking relaxed at the ornamental fish swimming beneath the pond’s surface.

“Grandma, is something happening tonight? Why is the kitchen suddenly so lively?”

Hearing the movement behind her, Grandma turned around.

“Oh my, it’s Xiaoyun. Your father told me this afternoon that he was bringing people home for dinner tonight, so he asked me to make arrangements. Looks like the company matters are all settled. Really… will Xiaoyun still come to visit Grandma like this in the future?”

As she spoke, a trace of loneliness flickered in her deep eyes.

After understanding the situation, Luo Yun’s nervousness eased a lot.

And seeing Grandma’s expression, she comforted her, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll come often to keep Grandma company. After all, besides Grandpa, there’s only me, right?”

“Xiaoyun really is the one I raised. When you grow up, you’ll definitely be someone who knows how to care for others, just like I used to be. Alright, look, it’s getting late now. Your father should be back soon.”

“Will Mom come too?”

“Of course. Back when you were little and asleep at night, your mother would often call me late at night to ask about you. Oh, the questions she asked—the only thing missing was taking you to the hospital for a checkup.”

“Because I’m the one Mom loves the most.”

Luo Yun smiled with a red face.

She loved her mother.

Being in her mother’s arms was so comfortable—a comfort no one else could give.

And deep down, she had always been strange since childhood, but when she was by her mother’s side, that sensitive and suspicious heart would be quickly sealed away, replaced by the heart of a pure little girl.

At this moment, He Rou was sitting upright on the sofa, head down, looking at her feet.

In someone else’s home, without the owner’s guidance, she felt very awkward.

Aside from sitting alone, she couldn’t do anything.

The kitchen was bustling with activity.

Luo Yun was nowhere to be seen.

She didn’t want to go back to the studio after spending the whole afternoon there.

Just as He Rou was idly fidgeting with her fingers, from the entrance—

A sound of chatter and laughter came from there.

There were men and women, not many people—maybe four or five.

Hearing this noise, He Rou jerked her head up.

A feeling of loneliness and fear冲击ed her mind.

‘When is Luo Yun coming back… Would it be too late to rush back to the studio now? No… that would definitely make me look like some kind of criminal. What about behind the sofa? They’re not blind.’

In this situation, before He Rou could finish thinking, the door was opened.

Since she hadn’t made any move yet, she simply closed her eyes—out of sight, out of mind.

The adults who walked in from outside clearly saw He Rou sitting on the sofa with her eyes tightly shut.

She looked utterly ridiculous at that moment.

The man walking in front saw her and found it a bit strange, but then he thought—she was probably his daughter’s friend—so he stopped worrying about it.

But the man walking behind him was quite surprised when he saw the person sitting on the sofa.

“Xiao… Xiaorou?”

The voice calling He Rou wasn’t loud or soft, but it reached her ears just right.

The voice sounded familiar—like someone she saw every day but still felt like a stranger.

“Dad?”

She lifted her head and looked toward the entrance.

There were four people at the door.

One man and one woman were her parents.

The other two, without a doubt, were Luo Yun’s parents.

The coincidences in the world were always so wonderful.

Today was her first day meeting Luo Yun, and she had already seen both sets of parents.

The man in front turned around and asked, “Is she… your daughter?”

“Haha, yes, President Wen.”

He Rou’s father responded with a smile, as if the person before him was someone he absolutely couldn’t offend.

“Oh… it seems our two families are not only in sync at work, but even our children and families are very attracted to each other. My daughter has never brought a friend home before, but from today, it’s finally broken the zero record. Now I don’t have to worry about whether there’s something wrong with her psychology.”

The two men were chatting about all sorts of things, while their wives behind them had already stepped past them and reached the sofa.