I Bacame the Mother of His Child-Chapter 56 - 55: Meeting Cui Shuo in the Mall

Sichuan Pavilion’s business had fully stabilized, and Xu Xiuxiu, while staying at home with Song Chengguang and Zhao Nan, started to entertain the idea of opening a branch of Sichuan Pavilion whenever she felt idle. Knowing that Chen Hualong had ventured into real estate, Xu Xiuxiu entrusted him once again with the site selection for the branch.

Upon receiving the call, Chen Hualong, aware of Xu Xiuxiu’s intention to open a branch, agreed without a second word. It wasn’t long before the site selection, renovation, and opening date for the branch were all set. Xu Xiuxiu, with the experience of opening the first Sichuan Pavilion and knowing people in site selection and renovation, didn’t have to work as hard as before. She occasionally visited the branch to check on the renovation progress and had them improve anything that wasn’t right while she mainly stayed at home, at ease, taking care of the children.

Time flew by quickly, and over a month had passed in the blink of an eye. The originally frightening wound on Zhao Nan’s face had healed, perhaps due to Xu Xiuxiu occasionally using Space Spring Water for cooking. The scars on Zhao Nan’s face were fading, and now they were almost invisible, only discernible upon close inspection.

As the weather turned colder, the clothes Zhao Nan had brought from the Military District in the summer had been completely phased out. Seeing the weather getting colder, Xu Xiuxiu took the initiative to change his clothes early. Zhao Nan, perhaps feeling embarrassed, declined several times, but Xu Xiuxiu dismissed his refusals by saying that Zhao Jian Country would repay her when he returned.

Seeing that more than a month had passed since Yuanhuan and Zhao Jian Country had left on their mission, and the two were like evaporated from the earth without a trace, Xu Xiuxiu couldn’t help but worry a bit, but she didn’t show it. Knowing how astute and sensitive Zhao Nan was, Xu Xiuxiu dared not probe.

That morning when Xu Xiuxiu got up, she noticed a sudden drop in temperature outside. There was a hint of frost condensing in a corner of the yard that had been dampened the night before.

Xu Xiuxiu went back inside to check on Zhao Nan and Song Chengguang, who were nestled at home, and after getting them up to drink some plain porridge, she took them to a nearby large shopping mall.

Zhao Nan, who had never been to a mall before, was visibly excited, darting around, frequently looking up, then running back to explore with Xu Xiuxiu. Zhao Nan was full of questions, sometimes leaving Xu Xiuxiu unable to respond. Watching the energized Zhao Nan, Xu Xiuxiu glanced down at Song Chengguang, who was sitting in the stroller babbling and shouting excitedly, and felt a twinge of worry.

She wondered if her Little Baby would also become so demanding in the future!

—Thud—

Just as Xu Xiuxiu was lost in her thoughts, Zhao Nan, not far from her, was also looking around curiously. He marveled at the mall’s exquisite decor as he walked, and inadvertently bumped into a chubby little kid who was wobbling along. The little chubby boy squatted down on the floor, his eyes full of a dumbfounded expression, which after a long while, shifted to a hint of fear.

Seeing this, Xu Xiuxiu immediately pushed Song Chengguang’s stroller closer and recognized the little chubby kid sitting on the floor. It seemed like the same little chubby one, Cui Shuo, who had followed behind Song Chengguang in the amusement park last time. The little fellow had changed a lot, obviously having grown during the months, but his adorable look remained the same, prompting Xu Xiuxiu to smile lightly.

"Little brother, I’m sorry! Let me help you up!" Zhao Nan, upon realizing he had bumped into a little kid, immediately apologized and reached out to help him up without any reluctance.

"Hmph." The little chubby boy haughtily hummed, shrugging off Zhao Nan’s hand. He tried to stand up on his own, supporting himself with his little chubby hands against the floor, his lips pursing stubbornly, which was quite amusing to watch.

"I mean, kid, why don’t you watch where you’re going? You didn’t see who you were bumping into!" Suddenly a plump middle-aged woman burst out nearby, pointing at Zhao Nan’s nose and scolding. "Little master, are you alright?" After scolding, she quickly turned aside, bent down, and concerningly picked up the little chubby boy from the floor, with a face full of fright.

She had pulled many strings just to become the Cui Family’s nanny. The young madam was selecting a birthday gift for the two-year-old little master at the toy store, and the little master couldn’t sit still and kept wanting to run outside. The young madam instructed her to follow behind and ensure the little master didn’t come to any harm. Who would have expected, not even ten minutes later, while she had taken her eyes off for just a blink, the little master had run off. She had been watching him closely when she saw the little master getting knocked down by a six or seven-year-old boy, and her heart seemed to clench tightly together.

"Auntie, I’m sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose." Zhao Nan bowed as he apologized, his tone sincere. "I was looking at that chandelier over there and didn’t know there was someone behind me. I turned around and bumped into the little brother, I’m really sorry." Zhao Jian Country often taught Zhao Nan; when you’re wrong, you’re wrong, and a sincere apology is enough. You shouldn’t be afraid to take responsibility, nor should you be like Wang Bing, that troublesome girl, who shirks from situations. Boys should be brave enough to stand up and own their mistakes.

"Do apologies work? Do you know how precious our little master is? If he were hurt, your life wouldn’t even begin to cover it." The middle-aged woman held Cui Shuo tightly, while she scolded and pointed her right index finger to repeatedly poke at Zhao Nan’s head.

"I’m sorry." Zhao Nan had never faced such a situation before, and he instantly froze, meekly accepting the scolding and swallowing back the explanations that were caught in his throat, standing silently with his head bowed.

"Hmph, don’t apologize to me, I can’t handle that. Just go and explain it to our young madam later." She knew how carefully the young madam treated the little master. Since the little master had taken a fall, she couldn’t, and wouldn’t hide it. So, she decided to place all the blame onto the boy in front of her; otherwise, who knows how the young madam would blame her! The middle-aged woman silently calculated as she held Cui Shuo, casting a disdainful snort towards the top of Zhao Nan’s head.

"Let go." Cui Shuo didn’t like being held, and he squirmed continuously.

"Good boy! I’m taking you to find the young madam right now," the middle-aged woman said, ignoring Cui Shuo’s protests and walking a few steps forward, "You, come with me to apologize to the young madam." She haven’t walked two steps before stopping and shouting back at Zhao Nan.

"Okay." By now, tears were falling down Zhao Nan’s face.

"This lady, it’s just a minor kids’ issue, there’s no need to make such a fuss over it!" Xu Xiuxiu felt sorry for Zhao Nan’s plight and stepped forward to stop it.

"Auntie, it’s okay, I did bump into the little brother. Apologizing is the right thing to do." Although Zhao Nan was upset, he still intended to apologize. Hearing Xu Xiuxiu kindly defending him, he quickly tugged at the hem of Xu Xiuxiu’s clothes.

"Okay, Auntie will go with Zhao Nan to apologize." Xu Xiuxiu said softly as she rubbed Zhao Nan’s head.

"Mhm." Zhao Nan agreed softly, following the middle-aged woman with small steps, and Xu Xiuxiu pushed the stroller with Song Chengguang alongside Zhao Nan.

"Let go." Cui Shuo continued to struggle in the middle-aged woman’s arms, his gaze gathering tears about to burst, his little fists clenched as if ready to hit someone, his domineering attitude beginning to show.