Chapter 172: with translation of chapter title

This reaction was as she had expected, so Ye Qingran wasn't surprised either; on the contrary, she reached out and rubbed his head again.

"It seems Mother guessed correctly; you overheard my conversation with Xiao Hu that day." Ye Qingran nodded gently. "Mother didn't tell you herself because she was worried you'd overthink after learning it. But it's Mother's fault for keeping it from you; she should have explained it clearly sooner, which has made you worry these past days."

Fu Qianchen shook his head. "Don't blame Pretty Mother."

"From now on, call me Mother just like you call Xiao Hu, okay?"

Fu Qianchen's inner shock went without saying. His heart was filled with wild joy, yet also a faint unease.

"Or perhaps you're not willing?"

"I'm willing!" Fu Qianchen replied without a moment's thought. How could he not be willing? This was his dream come true!

"In Mother's heart, whether you are my biological child or not, to me you and Xiao Hu are the same. As long as you call me Mother for a day, I will treat you as my own for that day. Unless someday you find your own birth mother, or have a better option…"

Why, just the thought that one day Fu Qianchen would embrace another woman and call her Mother makes her heart ache so much?

A flicker of suppressed pain crossed Ye Qingran's clear eyes.

"No, it won't happen!"

Fu Qianchen gently shook his head, his tone firmer than ever.

"There will be no other Mother from now on—only you!"

"But what if you find your birth mother someday?"

Fu Qianchen's gaze flickered briefly, then cleared again, and he spoke in a resolute tone: "Even so, in my heart Mother will always be irreplaceable!"

Ye Qingran's nose instantly soured. Though she considered herself unemotional, whenever faced with these two children she would unintentionally be moved to tears.

Perhaps this is the wordless happiness of being a mother.

"Mother, marry my Father Lord!"

"What?"

The warm atmosphere was utterly destroyed by Fu Qianchen's sudden remark.

Ye Qingran stared at Fu Qianchen in shock, only to hear the little guy add: "That way, our family of four can stay together forever!"

"Marry the National Master?"

As the ideal spring‑dream lover of countless maidens, the National Master, who could be called perfect, is certainly a fine choice—yet there are too many obstacles between them.

The Female Lecherous Thief who stole the National Master's purity is her!

She herself has a child, but the father's identity is still unknown.

The National Master also has a child, but the mother's whereabouts are unknown.

What if one day the father of her child and the mother of Xiao Chen both return—what then?

Just thinking about it gives me a headache!

However, meeting Fu Qianchen's hopeful eyes, Ye Qingran didn't want to disappoint him, so she gave a vague reply: "Xiao Chen, marriage is a big matter; we mustn't be rash. I need to observe your Father Lord first. If we truly suit each other, marrying him isn't out of the question, but if we don't…"

"You two are definitely a good match!" Fu Qianchen said confidently.

Ye Qingran rolled her eyes. "You little brat, always speaking up for your dad!"

"Then we'll wait and see?"

"Mm-hmm, don't worry—I'll make Father Lord put on a good show!"

Hehe~

Ye Qingran wore a grin on her face, but inside she was a hundred percent unwilling; she only hoped the National Master would stay far away, lest he discover her little secret and ruin the fun.

"By the way, what did you do with my blood last night?"

With the earlier groundwork, being asked this by Ye Qingran no longer made Fu Qianchen so nervous.

"Mother, I told you—you mustn't get angry."

Ye Qingran glared at him. "Am I really that kind of mother?"

Fu Qianchen thought to himself: Mother, don't you know how fierce you get when you're violent?

"I used Mother's blood to run a Bloodline Detection…"

Ye Qingran's eyes flashed—she had actually guessed this possibility already, but hearing Fu Qianchen admit it herself still brought a wave of sorrow, as if a hard lump rose from her abdomen and lodged in her throat, making her feel awful.

She gazed deeply at Fu Qianchen.

What kind of obsession would drive one to pursue a Bloodline Detection despite knowing it's impossible, without hesitation?

"Mother, are you angry?"

Ye Qingran gently shook her head. She wasn't angry; she felt heartache.

"Xiao Chen…" she exhaled, softly calling his nickname.

"Hmm?"

"Remember, no matter what the Bloodline Detection shows, in Mother's heart you will always be my child."

Perhaps this promise is too heavy.

Yet Ye Qingran still spoke it without hesitation.

Because she knows this is her innermost genuine feeling.

She can't worry about anything else anymore; she only wishes to follow her heart.

The suppressed negative emotions hidden in Fu Qianchen's heart vanished like smoke at this moment. He lifted his gaze to the woman before him; his starry eyes seemed dotted with countless stars, bright and spirited, radiating brilliant light.

This was his mother's promise to him, freeing him from any lingering worries and making him suddenly enlightened.

"Mother, no matter what the Bloodline Detection shows, in Xiao Chen's heart you will always be my mother." No matter what happens later, even if my birth mother returns to find me, in my heart you will forever be the mother I most revere and cherish, never to change.

That day, mother and son held each other tightly, their feelings elevated; from then on, no one could ever separate them.

Ye Residence

Ye Yu summoned his two daughters and Zhao Shi to the study. As for Ye Qingran, he didn't think she would listen to him, so he simply didn't call her.

But to Ye Yu's surprise, Ye Qingran showed up uninvited.

Ye Yu frowned, looking at her, pondered for a moment, then had her sit down as well.

"Ye Sisi, you good-for-nothing! Seventh Prince, you can't even keep an eye on him? What use are you?!" Ye Qingran had just sat down when she heard Ye Yu slam the table and burst out shouting.

Ye Sisi, already as pale as paper and utterly worn out from recent events, trembled at Ye Yu's sudden shout, her whole body shaking like a leaf in an autumn wind—pitifully beautiful.

What Ye Sisi didn't expect was that her usually gentle father would scold her as a good-for-nothing, his gaze filled with disappointment and disgust.

Is this still her father?

Ye Sisi stared at the father who had always been kind to her in her memory, unable to reconcile his two faces.

"Dad, I've already lost Xuan Gege—how can you still say this to me? Could this situation possibly be what I want to see? If it weren't for that slut Zhao Yan, how would I have lost Xuan Gege?!"

"You lack ability yet blame others? How come the Crown Prince isn't two-timing like the Seventh Prince? He was even snatched away by another woman? In short, it's just your own incompetence!"

Ye Sisi stood with her mouth open, unable to believe that these words came from the mouth of the father she respected.

She had worked hard to maintain her relationship with the Seventh Prince, even giving her whole heart, yet what did she get in return? The betrayal of her beloved! And her father's condemnation and insult!

In an instant, grief welled up within her, tears streaming down like beads, pattering continuously.

"What's the point of crying? All you know how to do is cry! When will you be half as excellent as Huanhuan? I wouldn't be this angry with you otherwise! I've painstakingly raised you, and this is how you repay me?" Seeing Ye Sisi cry so miserably, Ye Yu couldn't help but feel ill-omened.

As he said those last words, Ye Yu's gaze flicked over Ye Qingran, carrying a hint of indirectly blaming her.