“I cracked it too! One minute faster than him!” Ye Zizheng said, a hint of pride in his tone.
“If my godmother hadn’t kept dragging me to take photos, I would have definitely surpassed you!” Yue Yue retorted, unconvinced.
Ye Zizheng: “While you were taking photos, I was also idle and not coding!”
Qin Beiting’s good mood was interrupted, and he was annoyed. The bickering was giving him a headache. He closed the door in annoyance and said coldly, “Did you call me out here to watch the two of you argue?”
Yue Yue and Ye Zizheng immediately stopped arguing.
“Look.” Yue Yue turned the computer screen towards him. “You promised you’d teach me once I cracked it.”
Qin Beiting didn’t rush to look. Instead, he asked, “What did you just call me?”
Yue Yue suddenly felt a bit awkward. He hadn’t thought highly of Qin Beiting before. Even though they were father and son by blood, after learning his codename, he was instantly filled with admiration.
Men’s admiration was that simple; as long as someone was better than them, they became an idol.
“Dad.” He called out crisply, more decisively than ever before.
Qin Beiting’s lips curved into a smile. “Good boy.”
Then, his gaze turned to Ye Zizheng. “And you?”
Ye Zizheng met his sharp gaze and, being a wise man who knew when to yield, swallowed. “Bro… brother-in-law.”
After all, he also wanted to learn.
Qin Beiting was finally satisfied. He stepped out, took Yue Yue’s computer, sat down at a desk in the office area, and examined the code he had written. “Not bad.”
Although it took a long time, the patience to solve it showed genuine interest and talent.
Receiving recognition from the big shot, Yue Yue couldn’t help but smile.
“Look at mine.” Ye Zizheng also handed over his computer.
Qin Beiting scanned it quickly. “Okay, also not bad.”
Ye Zizheng, having received approval, couldn't hide his pride. “Of course. But don’t tell my sister.”
After all, he was secretly learning, and masters usually didn’t like their disciples learning from others without permission, right?
Qin Beiting saw through his little thought at a glance. He didn’t pay it much mind. Instead, he was quite happy to teach him on behalf of Yu He, which would free up Yu He’s time for himself.
Then, he set different challenges for each of them based on their respective skill levels.
“New assignment, keep cracking. But you can’t just sit in front of the computer all the time. Go play with your sister for a while first, and don’t disturb your mother and me while we’re discussing matters in the room.” Qin Beiting said.
Yue Yue didn’t know what ‘matters’ they were discussing, but he was happy to receive a new assignment. He hugged his computer and, with Ye Zizheng, trotted off to find Duoduo to play with.
After sending the two away, Qin Beiting returned to the room.
Yu He had already tidied her clothes and was about to leave. Qin Beiting pulled her into a hug. “Baby, let’s continue. No one will disturb us now.”
Yu He had lost all her earlier enthusiasm. “Be serious. Everyone else is here!”
Four hours later, the plane landed at Lucheng Airport.
Everyone had already eaten a light meal on the plane. After disembarking, they transferred directly to a villa by the sea.
After being assigned rooms and resting for a while, Cheng Lizhu took the lead in preparing the New Year’s Eve dinner. Yu He, Ye Qichen, and Ruan Tianxin voluntarily came to help.
Qin Beiting took the children out to play. Shi Ban, Nan Ou, and Ye Jianming, who couldn’t cook, started playing in the living room, and then disappeared somewhere later.
At eight in the evening, the sumptuous New Year’s Eve dinner was ready. Everyone gathered together and raised their glasses.
“Happy New Year’s Eve~”
After dinner, Grandma Ye led the distribution of red envelopes. Duoduo and Yue Yue ran to the front, their pockets bulging with red envelopes after a full round.
Duoduo handed all the red envelopes she received to Yu He. “Mommy, there are so many red envelopes, we won’t have to worry about not having meat next year~”
Everyone burst into laughter. Qin Beiting, however, couldn’t laugh. He felt a pang of sympathy for Yu He, thinking about how difficult it must have been for her to raise two children alone for the past five years.
Qin Beiting slipped an unlimited black card into a red envelope and handed it to Duoduo. “With Dad here, you can eat as much as you want from now on.”
“Thank you, Daddy~” Duoduo said sweetly, then immediately turned and handed the red envelope to Yu He, whispering, “Mommy, hide it quickly. I saw it. It’s Daddy’s unlimited card. I’ll have my brother go ask Daddy for another one.”
Yu He was amused and exasperated.
“It’s so lively outside, let’s go out and play too.” Ruan Tianxin was attracted by the excitement outside.
Usually, the seaside here was quite quiet at night, but tonight, due to the New Year’s Eve light show, the beach was brightly lit. Many people were gathered, playing with fireworks and enjoying the light exhibition, making it exceptionally lively.
Yu He held Duoduo and Yue Yue’s hands. At first, she was worried they would get separated, but after playing for a while, the two children were bolder than she had expected. They quickly made friends with a few children and were happily building sandcastles with them.
“There are bodyguards following them, so you don’t have to worry about them,” Qin Beiting said, seeing her watching the children intently.
Yu He had noticed the many people Qin Beiting had arranged nearby, but as a mother, some instinctive habits were involuntary.
“Are you tired? Sit down and rest.” Qin Beiting found two beach chairs.
Yu He lay down, looking at the lively crowd, and sighed, “I didn’t expect so many people to spend New Year’s Eve by the sea in Lucheng.”
“If you like it, we can spend every New Year’s Eve here in the future,” Qin Beiting said, holding her hand.
Yu He took a deep breath of the sea breeze. “Okay.”
In the blink of an eye, it was time for the New Year’s countdown. Everyone on the beach counted down in unison:
“Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one”
“Happy New Year!”
“Bang bang bang—” A large burst of fireworks instantly erupted over the sea. The colorful fireworks illuminated the entire night sky, and the dazzling light reflected on everyone’s faces, lighting up their happy smiles.
After the fireworks exploded, four words appeared in the night sky: “Happy New Year.”
“Wow, Mommy, it’s so beautiful,” Duoduo said loudly, pulling Yu He’s hand.
Yu He nodded, looking at the sky full of fireworks, which reminded her of her eighteenth birthday, which had been just as brilliant.
Her eyes held an unconcealed smile. She turned to look at Qin Beiting and met his deep gaze.
He had been watching her.
Then, another round of brilliant fireworks went off. “Bang bang bang—”
The two looked at each other affectionately under the fireworks, a look that spanned a lifetime.
“Wow~”
“Happy birthday!”
Everyone suddenly exclaimed and shouted “Happy birthday!” Yu He snapped back to attention and saw four words appearing in the night sky, sparkling with fireworks:
“Happy Birthday”
And the family and friends around her were also shouting in unison, “Happy birthday!”
Yu He looked around at everyone, her gaze finally returning to Qin Beiting. Her heart pounded like the sound of fireworks exploding, “bang bang bang.” Suddenly, her eyes felt a little moist.
“Thank you!”
“Bang bang bang…” Fireworks rose in unison again. This time, they formed five words: “Baby, marry me.”
“Wow!” The cheers from the people on the beach grew even louder. As the fireworks faded, everyone turned to look.
Soon, someone discovered the proposal candidate, and people began to gather around.
Qin Beiting was kneeling on one knee before Yu He, holding a ring, his gaze filled with deep emotion as he looked at her.
“Baby, from the moment you walked into my world, I knew that in this lifetime, I would marry no one but you.
“It was you who showed me the gentle side of this world; it was you who helped me find the meaning of life.
“Without you, I wouldn’t be able to live.
“So, will you marry me?
“Let me take care of you for the rest of my life.”
Yu He looked at the man kneeling before her, her eyes uncontrollably welling up with tears. Her throat was a little choked, and for a moment, she couldn’t speak.
Her emotions had been tossed and turned by him all day.
“Marry him!”
“Marry him!”
“Marry him!”
…
Ruan Tianxin started the chant, and everyone joined in.
Amidst the cheers and applause, Yu He nodded. “Okay.”
Qin Beiting placed the ring on Yu He’s left ring finger, then stood up and pulled her into a tight embrace, so happy he couldn’t help but spin her around a few times.
“Thank you, baby, I love you.”
Yu He wrapped her arms around his neck. “I love you too.”
“This time, you’re not allowed to go back on your word,” he whispered in her ear.
Five years ago, he had proposed to her once. Later, due to some events, Yu He felt she didn’t understand him very well and had returned the ring to him.
This time, after five years of separation and reunion, she was certain of her feelings for him.
In this life, it had to be him.
Yu He: “Yes, I will never go back on my word!”
(End of main text)