Chapter 395: Mother‑Child Interaction

"Yan bro?"

Su Ze Yan said softly, "I'm sorry, I'm not in a good mood."

After saying that, Su Ze Yan went into the bathroom, changed clothes, and left.

"I'm going to rent a place."

A hotel expense of 220 per day is something Su Ze Yan can no longer afford.

Zheng Dongping looked at the messy hotel room, feeling down as well. She grabbed a bag casually and stormed out.

She didn't notice that Su Ze Yan, who had just said he was going to rent a place, was following behind her.

Zheng Dongping arrived at the detention center and, seeing Mu Jiguang overnight grown a beard and white hair, felt deep compassion!

"Brother, are you and the child okay?"

Their conversation was being monitored, so Zheng Dongping didn't dare speak recklessly. Yet the pity in her eyes was about to overflow!

Mu Jiguang wasn't foolish; while in prison, seeing that his father‑in‑law would drag him down and prevent his release, he had to cling tightly to Zheng Dongping as a lifeline.

"I can still endure, two children! Sigh!"

Zheng Dongping, eyes watery, looked at Mu Jiguang, "Then what can we do? Su Ze Yan has fallen out with his family, and Su Zhengda and the others have cut ties with him. Without Su Family's help, how can I possibly save you!"

"What did you say?"

Zheng Dongping relayed the information she had received verbatim. She truly didn't know what to do! Apart from the Su Family, she had no other force that could get Mu Jiguang out!

It's all Lin family's fault! If they hadn't entangled the Mu family, it wouldn't have escalated to this point.

"Brother, isn't this Lin family's fault? You can get out, right? The kids are still young, what can they understand? They'll be fine, right?"

In the monitoring room, Su Ze Yan's childhood friend kept shifting his gaze between the surveillance screen and Su Ze Yan. That screen was a new acquisition for their bureau, capable of picking up sound. Yet as he listened, something always felt off.

"They're step‑siblings, right? Their relationship is a bit too close!"

Moreover, his brother's gloomy expression looked as if he'd been cheated on!

Su Ze Yan stormed out. The childhood friend didn't get angry; Su Ze Yan's temperament is what it is, not something that can change quickly.

Once he accepts that he's not the Eldest Young Master of the Su Family, he'll probably learn how to get along with ordinary people.

He stroked his chin, looked at the two people on the surveillance screen, reported upward, requesting that more people keep an eye on Zheng Dongping; he had a feeling this woman was not simple.

Su Ze Yan casually asked about the rent of a house with a yard near the hotel, "Five hundred, higher floors are even cheaper."

A house with a yard now can grow vegetables and raise chickens and ducks, saving a huge amount of daily expenses.

The agent, seeing Su Ze Yan's decent looks, was about to explain the details, but Su Ze Yan ran off.

"What kind of person is this!"

The agent shook his head, never expecting to meet someone so rude; sigh, what a waste of goodwill! Su Ze Yan returned to the hotel, waiting for Zheng Dongping to appear.

Zheng Dongping came back, saw Su Ze Yan sitting on the hotel sofa, looking bewildered, "Yan bro, didn't you go to look at a house?"

"I looked, it wasn't suitable. Where did you go?"

Zheng Dongping held up the shrimp in her hand, "I went to the seafood market and bought some shrimp; you love shrimp the most, right? Eating something you like will lift your mood a bit."

Su Ze Yan lowered his gaze, lost in thought. After a while, he spoke, "The seafood market is near the police station? Have you taken the chance to see your mother? If she's okay, she could spend some money for bail."

"No, after this huge incident, I have no idea how to tell my mother about it. I'm afraid she'll come with hope, see me, then go back disappointed, which would be even worse for her health!"

Zheng Dongping felt deep regret at that moment! Had she known Su Ze Yan would be driven out, she would have hidden more money! Those two old folks, who knows what they were thinking; she didn't sever ties when she married Su Ze Yan, nor when she gave birth, but only when the Mu family got into trouble!

Now, she can't even scrape any money from the Su Family! Su Ze Yan's hanging heart finally died! After hearing Zheng Dongping's words and recalling the past, he felt he was a fool!

In fact, Zheng Dongping wasn't lying; she only said half, leaving the other half out. This big fool will automatically fill in all the missing parts and charge into the fray for her!

The big fool Su Ze Yan's mood plummeted; he dared not think further, wondering how many mistakes he'd made over the years. Su Ze Yan fell asleep on the big bed. He dreamed again, dreaming of a woman who looked like Zheng Dongping yet was different.

That woman wailed in pain, jolting Su Ze Yan awake. He glanced at Zheng Dongping, who was already asleep beside him, and unlike before when a nightmare woke him, he held her, saying he felt sorry for her and would buy her what she wanted.

Late at night, Su Ze Yan stared out the window, unable to calm for a long while.

Same late night, Zheng Dongqing watched Su Yi turning the bed into a trampoline, unable to calm for a long while.

"Wuwu, she wanted to kill the confident self who, just a moment ago, had taken Su Yi under her care!"

Su Xi followed Yang Zhichun and Su Zhengda to the study! She didn't understand what two adults would discuss with a small child, but she knew Su Xi was very worried about Su Yi and concerned that the steward couldn't watch over Su Yi.

Zheng Dongqing, who considered herself a freeloader who had even cost the Su Family a lot of money, offered that she could help take care of Su Yi.

Zheng Dongqing still remembered that Su Xi's gaze was very complicated, solemnly telling her that Su Yi was very mischievous! Zheng Dongqing recalled that she pounded her chest and said, "It's fine! I can take good care of him!"

Her former step‑brother Mu Jiguang was even more mischievous; whether he hit her, scolded her, or pranked her, she endured it all.

He still wouldn't be worse than Mu Jiguang, right?

She didn't expect that Su Yi's mischief was different! Mu Jiguang wanted to tear her apart!

Su Yi wanted to break things! "Baby, little Yi, stop bouncing, okay? Let's eat fruit?"

"No!"

Su Yi lifted his head, refusing! As Su Yi turned to rummage through the cabinet, tapping board on board, Zheng Dongqing hurriedly pulled him back to the bed to play the trampoline game.

Zheng Dongqing worriedly stared at Su Yi giggling on the bed, entertaining himself. At such a young age, would this kind of jumping be harmful to his body?

Fortunately he was assigned to the first floor of the manor. If he lived on the second floor, the people downstairs would surely hate him to death. Late‑night trampoline without sleeping! Su Yi was delighted! His older brother wouldn't let him play this game any more!

He didn't understand what was different about this mother compared to the previous one, but he knew "give an inch, take a mile"! When Su Xi came back, what he'd see was a filthy Su Yi who had ripped apart Zheng Dongqing's room.

Zheng Dongqing opened her mouth to explain. She saw Su Yi bouncing on the bed and falling, worried he'd hurt his limbs, so she let him down. But as soon as he got down, he went to dismantle the nightstand.

After tearing apart the nightstand, he got even more excited about the stuff behind it! Su Xi didn't hesitate to take the chicken‑feather duster he specially brought and swat Su Yi's butt.

"Ow! Brother, I'm sorry!"

Su Yi "swished" and rushed out! "Butler, arrange a new room for mother!"

"Alright! It's already arranged, Young Madam, please come this way!"

Zheng Dongqing stared blankly and went to the new room, "Butler, please wait a moment!"

"Young Madam, what orders do you have?"

"You seem quite practiced?"

"The Young Master has been mischievous since childhood; tearing things apart is common, you'll get used to it later."

Su Yi is very restless; when he finds running around boring, he likes to tear things apart or climb up and down.

"If the Young Master goes too far, you can go to the Eldest Young Master; the Young Master fears his older brother the most. The Eldest Young Master is very strict with the Young Master."

"Then, what about Su Xi and Su Yi's father?" Zheng Dongqing felt oddly awkward. The steward called her "Young Mistress"; Su Xi and Su Yi are the Eldest Young Master and Young Master, so what about their father? Won't he return?

Although Yang Zhichun says her son is a jerk, he is still her son. If Su Xi and Su Yi's father returns, what will she do? She doesn't want to be with a stranger man!

She resists so much; will Yang Zhichun get angry and demand she repay the money? She can't pay it back now! Zheng Dongqing understands that her current status and treatment are because Yang Zhichun regards her as a "daughter‑in‑law".

Zheng Dongqing has already started thinking about how to run away and shirk, and later, if she works, how to calculate interest and repay the money.

"The Young Master has already cut ties with the Lord and Lady, the Eldest Young Master, and the Young Master. He won't return, and please, Young Mistress, try not to mention him in front of the Eldest Young Master and the Young Master. Both the Eldest Young Master and the Young Master will be displeased."

"Huh? So he's that much of a jerk?"

Zheng Dongqing thought Yang Zhichun's "jerk" comment was just a vent, but it turned out to be true! "Yes!"

"The two children are so pitiful! Abandoned by their father at such a young age!"

Zheng Dongqing felt very sorry, especially the little adult‑like Su Xi; he must have been forced to grow up, right?

Thinking of her own life from childhood, Zheng Dongqing almost wanted to pull Su Xi over now, hold him in her arms, and tell him she doesn't know how to be a mother, but she'll definitely learn to be a good mother!

The steward thinks the Young Mistress may have misunderstood something.

It's not that the Young Master abandoned the Eldest Young Master and the Young Master; it's that the Eldest Young Master unilaterally decided for himself and the Young Master, abandoning the Young Master. The Young Master had no chance to say "no".

However, the steward, seeing the Young Mistress's expression of concern for the children, swallowed the explanatory words. This is also fine; the two children have been like they have no parents since childhood, and now they have a mother who cares for them. Whatever the reason, at least they have a mother now!

The next day, Su Xi went to see Zheng Dongqing and received a hug.

"Baby, have you had breakfast?"

"Mom, I'm already four years old, not a baby!"

Su Xi's cheeks flushed as he retorted Zheng Dongqing's words.

"Alright, baby!"

"……"

"Baby, what do you usually like to play?"

Su Xi thought seriously; it seemed he didn't really have any favorite activities.

"I don't have any favorites."

"Then what do you usually do?"

"Watch my little brother, play with my little brother, hit my little brother!"

This time it was Zheng Dongqing who was speechless.

"You don't go out to play usually?"

Why is it always with the little brother? "You should be going to kindergarten, right?"

In Zheng Dongqing's memory, at four years old, it seemed they were supposed to go to a nursery? "The house has a steward and servants, grandparents will hire a teacher for us, and when we reach the age, we go straight to elementary school!"

"Then go out to play? Go to another city?"

Zheng Dongqing has always wanted to leave this city. The city is bustling; even a beggar asking for money can live comfortably, but she doesn't like it.

This city holds her most unbearable memories.

"Mom, where do you want to go play?"

Su Xi doesn't know how many rewind cards Su Yu gave him. He wants, when he has his memories, to spend more time with his mother.

"I... don't know!"

Zheng Dongqing truly doesn't know. She knows the motherland is vast, but doesn't know where to go in the future.

"Mom, do you want to see scenery, or chase a career?"

"Chase a career? You're so young and already know about careers?"

Zheng Dongqing rubbed Su Yi's face, seeing his ears and cheeks flushed, got excited, held him in her arms, and gave him a kiss.

"Baby, you're really so cute!"

Cute looks, good temperament, stable emotions, and he cares about her, puts her first! How could anyone not like such a good kid? "Mom, men and women shouldn't be intimate!"

"You're my son, only four years old! It's okay to kiss!"

"Wuwa!"

A deafening cry rang out, Su Xi gave up arguing with his mother, "I'll go see my little brother. Mom, you take good care of yourself! Recover your health before going out!"

Su Xi "da da" left, Zheng Dongqing pressed the bell and called a servant in.

"Is Su Yi crying? Is he injured?"

Zheng Dongqing's body hasn't fully recovered; any movement hurts. Therefore, she spends most of her time lying in bed or staying still in one spot.

"Young Mistress, the Young Master has woken up. When the Young Master wakes and can't see the Eldest Young Master, he cries."

"Is this crying normal?"

The servant's expression remained unchanged, "It's normal!"

She thought of the main family's regard for this new Young Mistress and earnestly explained to Zheng Dongqing, "Young Mistress, the Young Master cries like this every time he wakes. If the Eldest Young Master is away too long, he also cries like this, at least three times a day. What you just heard was normal volume."

"Abnormal volume, what?"

The servant didn't hide anything, "When the Young Master is in a good mood and sings, it's powerful, like sawing a wooden stake!"

She worries that one day this Young Mistress's maternal love might overflow, and she'll want to sing and play games with the children. Then the suffering won't just be hers, but also those of us who work.

During the time Zheng Dongqing spent with Su Yi, his mood was also good, especially when tearing things apart.

The servant's next words answered her doubt, "Each time the Young Master sings, the Eldest Young Master hits him, and he cries."

To the servant, the crying sounds nicer than the singing.

"As long as no one coaxes the young master to sing, the young master won't easily start singing."

Zheng Dongqing understood; she must not coax Su Yi to sing.

Zheng Dongqing's ensuing days were ordinary but fulfilling; every day she woke up just to watch Su Xi and Su Yi interact.

When Su Xi was happy, he would play with his younger brother; when he got tired of playing and couldn't bear it, he would start teaching his brother to read.

Often, as soon as Su Xi began teaching Su Yi, Su Yi and Zheng Dongqing would fall asleep together.

Zheng Dongqing also began to accept wholeheartedly that she was the mother of these two children.

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