The taxi they tried to hail was not found, but the person they had been longing to see was right there.
"Daddy!"
The three children rushed towards Di Mingjue, but he pushed them away just as they were about to reach him.
"Daddy?"
Di Mingjue had rushed over after receiving a call from the company's front desk, learning that they had come to the company to find him privately. If the security guards hadn't felt something was amiss after they left and reported it to the front desk, he wouldn't have known.
Seeing their innocent and wronged expressions, unaware of their mistake, Di Mingjue suppressed his anger and opened the rear car door. "Get in!"
They didn't dare to protest and quickly lined up to get into the car.
Sitting in the car, the three of them looked at each other nervously.
"Daddy seems very angry."
"Why did only Daddy come? Why didn't Mommy come?"
As Yu Ze spoke, Qian Qian and Xiao Ran both looked at Di Mingjue as he got into the driver's seat.
Through the rearview mirror, Di Mingjue's gaze remained stern.
Before they had even fastened their seatbelts, Di Mingjue started driving.
Normally, he would have repeatedly checked if they were seated properly before driving, but this time he drove off without even looking.
"Daddy is so strange," Qian Qian whispered.
Xiao Ran and Yu Ze nodded in agreement.
It wasn't just a little strange; it was unprecedented.
All the way, the children speculated about why Di Mingjue was acting this way, while Di Mingjue drove back to the Ye residence without a word.
Upon returning to the Ye residence, Ye Qianzhi's tense heart finally relaxed when he saw the children Di Mingjue had brought back.
"You are too disobedient. Why did you leave without telling me?" Ye Qianzhi scolded them for their childish outburst and departure.
The children all lowered their heads, their eyes fixed on their toes with nervous expressions.
"Dad, please calm down. I'll discipline them," Di Mingjue said.
Ye Qianzhi looked at Di Mingjue. He had other matters to discuss, so he didn't want to waste more time on the children. "I'll wait for you in the study."
"Alright." Di Mingjue watched him leave.
The children secretly glanced at him. Xiao Ran immediately sidled up to Di Mingjue, "Daddy, why didn't Mommy come back with you?"
The anger that had just subsided resurfaced.
"Stand still!" Di Mingjue reprimanded.
Xiao Ran flinched in fear, quickly withdrawing the hand he had placed on Di Mingjue's clothes.
"Who had the idea to sneak out today?"
"Me."
Di Mingjue looked at Xiao Ran, who answered without hesitation, then turned and took down the feather duster that was hanging up.
*Slap!*
Tears welled up in Xiao Ran's eyes from the pain.
This was the first time Di Mingjue had ever hit him.
Yu Ze and Qian Qian stood on the side, stunned. Their eyes fell on the feather duster in Di Mingjue's hand, and they quickly stepped forward to block Xiao Ran. "We all came up with the idea together."
"Yes, it wasn't just Xiao Ran Gege's idea. We missed Daddy and Mommy so much. You guys hadn't come back, and you wouldn't answer our calls. We said we missed you very much, so we snuck out," Yu Ze explained.
Missed them!
Di Mingjue loosened his grip, and the tightly held feather duster fell to the ground.
Since he was poisoned, they had neglected the children. Now that Ye Zi Yu had been taken away by Gu Xiu Yu, he hadn't been home all day. It was no wonder the children were trying every way to see them.
Di Mingjue looked at Xiao Ran, who gritted his teeth and stubbornly remained silent, then turned and walked upstairs.
Receiving no response or comfort from him, Xiao Ran cried out of grievance.
Qian Qian watched, also feeling wronged, and began to cry along with Xiao Ran.
"Mommy must have something going on!" Yu Ze said.
Since Daddy knew about their outing, Mommy would know too. She definitely wouldn't let Daddy come back alone unless she had an unavoidable reason not to.