"You're in such a good mood? Looks like you slept well last night. Miss Daddy?"
"Daddy, Daddy!"
"Let Daddy feel your head, is it hot? Do you still have a fever."
Niannian obediently snuggled into his arms, pressing her forehead against Lu Mingzhe's cheek.
After a few seconds of father and daughter closeness, Lu Mingzhe concluded.
"No more fever. Niannian is so good, she can fight viruses by herself, what a good girl!"
Niannian happily applauded herself.
Although her two little hands couldn't clap perfectly together.
Xiang Wan came over and interrupted their interaction.
"Grandma changed clothes, did she wake up last night?"
Lu Mingzhe glanced at her on the bed. "Let's talk outside."
He recounted the events of the previous night to Xiang Wan.
Xiang Wan's mood was heavy.
Not just for Grandma, but for everything.
Her career had just gotten on track, and she had thought that if things continued at this pace, life would only get better.
But now...
Life was so hard.
Seeing her troubled expression, Lu Mingzhe could roughly guess what she was thinking and comforted her.
"Most human illnesses are caused by overthinking and excessive mental burden. What's done is done, and worrying won't help. You need to take care of yourself."
Easy for him to say.
She was Xiang Wan's own grandmother.
An old lady in her seventies or eighties, who had traveled far with her to make a living, had never enjoyed a single day of comfort, worked hard every day taking care of the child and doing housework, and now she was bedridden.
If she could feel no guilt at all, would she even be human?
Comfort was useless. The more Xiang Wan thought about it, the more distressed she became, her eyes starting to redden.
Lu Mingzhe quickly told her that he had contacted a renowned neurologist, and the hospital was already processing the transfer. She would be moved there soon, and there shouldn't be any major problems.
Xiang Wan finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Really? Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
She was a person who valued her pride. Lu Mingzhe was afraid that given their current relationship, she might refuse his help.
Seeing that she was still willing to rely on him, he felt quite happy.
"In short, I'm here. You don't need to worry about anything."
"Why did you two come so early? Have you had breakfast?"
"No. We came out after Niannian finished her milk. I figured you hadn't eaten either, so I wanted to get here early."
"Then let's eat outside. We don't want to wake Grandma."
The two sat on chairs in the corridor and opened their porridge and buns.
Xiang Wan brought Niannian back. "You eat first. I'll hold her."
Lu Mingzhe refused.
"No need. She only weighs a few pounds, less than one of my dumbbells. Holding her is more than enough, consider it a workout."
"Is that Niannian? You're a rather insignificant little fellow."
Niannian seemed to dislike his comment. She stared at him blankly for two seconds, then with a "poof," she let out a fart.
Lu Mingzhe couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"You little rascal, I realize you're quite mischievous!"
Niannian also laughed.
Xiang Wan sent a message to Tang Haichao to ask for leave, then quickly stuffed a bun into her mouth.
"The hospital you mentioned is quite far. It's inconvenient without a car. I need to go back to where we ate yesterday to get the car, and also go home."
"Is there anything you need to buy? I can get it for you while I'm there."
Lu Mingzhe didn't want her to leave.
"Grandma has been asleep for a while. I'm afraid she might wake up and need to use the restroom later."
"I'll run the errands for you. You stay here with her."
Xiang Wan thought for a moment, it made sense, but she was still worried about him. "Do you know the way?"
"I can use navigation. And if all else fails, I have a mouth and can ask."
Lu Mingzhe ate faster than her. One bun, a bite, then the next, he finished two in no time.
He didn't drink the porridge, but handed his daughter over.
"Once things are sorted, we might have to rush to that hospital. I need to hurry. I'll leave the child with you, I'm going now."
"Okay, be careful on your way."
Like an old married couple, they began the handover with unspoken understanding.
Unfortunately, Niannian was not cooperating.
It was as if her hands and feet had suction cups, clinging to Lu Mingzhe's arm and refusing to let go.
She also cried out agitatedly, "Ahhh ahhh – Daddy, Daddy!"
"This child is getting naughtier by the day. Why is she always clinging to you?"
Xiang Wan pulled her over. "It's not the time to be clingy. Daddy has things to do and can't take you. Come here quickly."
Niannian kicked and struggled, refusing to go into Xiang Wan's arms, and started crying loudly.
It was as if Lu Mingzhe was abandoning her.
To make his beloved darling so upset so early in the morning, Lu Mingzhe couldn't bear it.
"Alright, alright. If she doesn't want to be separated, then bring her along."
"Are you kidding me? You're going out on business, not playing around. Wouldn't it be troublesome to bring her?"
"The hospital smells so bad, and she wouldn't be comfortable staying in the ward. It would be good for her to come out with me and move around a bit."
"But you're driving, how will you bring her?"
"Don't you have a child seat in your car?"
"That's just for show. She absolutely refuses to sit in it. Usually, Grandma holds her when I drive."
Lu Mingzhe, still protective, couldn't bear it. "Don't worry, if there's really no one to hold her, she'll behave. Besides, I believe Niannian will listen to me."
Niannian stopped crying instantly and stood on his leg with a look of perfect obedience.
Xiang Wan sighed, defeated by this little girl.
"Alright then, drive slowly. And don't spoil her too much."
Without Xiang Wan, Niannian was indeed well-behaved.
Lu Mingzhe opened the car window a bit for her, and they left at a leisurely pace.
She sat in the child seat, playing with her feet and looking at the scenery outside the window, incredibly well-behaved.
As the car drove into the residential complex, Lu Mingzhe carried her out.
Before they could even go upstairs, a group of aunts, estimated to be in their fifties or sixties, rushed over.
"Isn't that Xiang Wan's car? And isn't that Niannian? They're back?"
"Why is a man bringing her back? Is he her colleague?"
Lu Mingzhe spotted a familiar face in the crowd.
Aunt Zhang.
Aunt Zhang explained to everyone. "This is the Niannian's father I told you about yesterday. I wasn't lying, was I? He's quite handsome, right?"
Everyone was very surprised.
"Impossible, right? Is he really her boyfriend? What kind of era is this, where someone can be so busy that they don't come back to see their wife and child for months on end?"
"Exactly. He's indeed quite handsome, but the handsomer the man, the less reliable he is. Look at his attire, he looks like an unmarried young man."
"He just left them, mother and daughter, here for so long. What good can he be?"
Aunt Zhang was displeased.
"You people, if a man isn't around, you speculate if they're divorced and Niannian is illegitimate."
"Now that he's back, you say he doesn't look like a good person. No matter what, you're not satisfied. So what do you want?"
"We don't want anything. We're just worried about Xiang Wan. We don't know how her grandmother is doing. Let's go ask."
Aunt Zhang called out to Lu Mingzhe.
Out of politeness, he stopped.
In fact, he had heard them all discussing and sizing him up.
He felt quite displeased.
Although he knew that the lower the social stratum, the lower the quality of people, he couldn't help but get angry at the thought of Xiang Wan being their topic of conversation.