He lifted Jiang Nan Fang's chin and was about to kiss her lips when she moved slightly, her face contorted in pain.
Zhan Bei Jue stopped. "What's wrong? If you don't want me, fine, but you won't even let me kiss you now?"
"No, it's nothing."
Jiang Nan Fang shifted the arm between them, moving it behind her back. "It was just pressing on my hand."
"What's wrong with your hand?" Seeing her deliberately try to hide it behind her back, Zhan Bei Jue reached out to grab it, intending to take a look. As he grasped her wound, Jiang Nan Fang gasped in pain. Feeling something on her arm, Zhan Bei Jue quickly let go and leaned in to see. Her arm was wrapped in a bandage.
"What happened? You're injured? Is that why you didn't go to work today?"
"How did this happen? Is Xu Yan Chuan making you a screenwriter or a martial arts choreographer? How can typing on a keyboard do this to you?"
Seeing his serious expression, as if she had broken a bone, Jiang Nan Fang smiled. "It has nothing to do with Xu Yan Chuan. It's nothing, not serious. I was just unlucky today and got bitten by a dog when I went out."
"Bitten by a dog? You're not kidding, are you?" It was normal for him to be surprised, as no one could imagine being bitten by a dog out of the blue.
Jiang Nan Fang hid her hand behind her back again. "It's not serious anyway, don't worry about it. I've already been to the hospital."
"Let's go, I'm still washing vegetables. It's inconvenient with one hand, you help me wash the vegetables."
Her hand is inconvenient, yet she's still cooking? What a joke! Zhan Bei Jue picked up her hand again, his heart aching. "You're injured and still cooking, are you trying to die? Come here, let me see how serious it is."
Without further ado, he pulled her to sit on the sofa. Jiang Nan Fang sat on his lap, and he gently unwrapped the bandage. "What happened? Was it a rabid dog? Was the dog owner there? Why didn't they call me?"
"How did they handle it? Was the dog caught, or did they just let it go? You didn't let him off the hook easily, did you?" She knew that calling him would only make things worse.
Jiang Nan Fang said, "It wasn't a rabid dog. Oh, stop asking. It's not serious, and I'm not an idiot. I'll handle it."
"You have such a big accident and don't even call me? Do you still see me as an outsider?" Looking at the three shocking scratches on her hand, Zhan Bei Jue felt both heartache and anger. Seeing her former crush, whose handsome face was deeply furrowed for her, caring for her so tenderly, Jiang Nan Fang felt an indescribable warmth in her heart.
She couldn't help but lower her head and peck him on the cheek. "I was afraid you'd worry and disturb your work, so I didn't tell you. I don't see you as an outsider; I just didn't want to trouble you."
"Nonsense. Is this what you call troubling me? Did Xu Yan Chuan take you to the hospital?"
"It's troubling me if you'd rather call him than me!" How could he be jealous about everything? Jiang Nan Fang couldn't help but smile again. "He didn't accompany me to the hospital; I went by myself. Alright, I've learned my lesson. I'll call you first from now on, okay?"
That was more like it. Zhan Bei Jue grabbed her arm and began to examine it again. Seeing that the wound was quite deep, he couldn't help but worry. "Such a deep wound, and just a vaccine is enough? Didn't you have a doctor look at it to see if it would scar?"
Jiang Nan Fang was indifferent. "It's on my arm anyway, not my face. It doesn't matter."
"That won't do. How can my Zhan Bei Jue's woman suffer such a grievance? If I didn't know, it would be one thing, but now that I do, I can't just stand by and watch you scar."
"What nonsense. Let's go, I'll take you to the hospital." As he said this, he prepared to stand up with her in his arms, but Jiang Nan Fang quickly stopped him. "No. The children will be back soon. What will happen to them if we leave? Don't make a fuss and scare them."
Just then, A Zhong pushed open the door from outside. Four little figures, carrying their schoolbags, came bounding in. Seeing their Mommy sitting on Daddy's lap and the two of them embracing, they all rushed towards them.
"Daddy, Mommy, you're back! We missed you so much, did you miss us?"
"Mommy, I behaved well at school today, and the teacher gave me a prize. Look!"
"Me too. I got a prize as well!"
"Mommy, I have a prize too!" They eagerly took things out of their schoolbags to share with their parents.
Looking at the lively and adorable children, Jiang Nan Fang and Zhan Bei Jue exchanged a glance, their hearts filled with warmth. How could they be so fortunate, to have four such wonderful children given their past relationship?
While everyone took out their prizes, only Jing Yu did not. Zhan Bei Jue comforted him alone. "Mommy says Jing Yu is the best among all the children. Are you adapting well to the new environment?"
Jing Yu replied with a proud expression, "No. It's just a kindergarten, nothing challenging. I didn't need to adapt at all."
"..."
"The holiday is almost here. Did you sign us up for summer camp? I want to play exciting activities. Being cooped up in kindergarten with a bunch of silly kids playing follow-the-leader is so boring."
"Is that so?" Zhan Bei Jue was relieved to know that Jing Yu disdained prizes. He looked up at A Zhong. "Did you hear that? Young Master wants to attend summer camp. It's your responsibility. Find the best quality one, and I'll have A Cheng accompany them then."
A Zhong took the order, nodded, and retreated. Jiang Nan Fang reached out to take Ge Er's prize, her own injured arm forgotten. The children immediately noticed the wound on her arm.
"Mommy, what happened to your hand? How did it get like this?" All eight big eyes turned to her hand. Jiang Nan Fang instinctively wanted to hide it, but then she thought that this was a good opportunity to educate them.
"Mommy encountered a mad dog today and had a bit of a conflict with it, so it bit me. See how scary it looks?"
"Mad dog?"
"Yes, so from now on, if you encounter a dog that isn't on a leash, or a stray cat, don't touch it casually."
"Animals are animals after all; they have wild instincts. Once they go mad, they can harm us. At best, it leaves scars, and at worst, you can contract infectious diseases. The consequences are very serious."
The little ones nodded obediently, then they all blew on her hand. "It must hurt a lot, Mommy. Will your hand scar?"
"No," Zhan Bei Jue answered quickly. "I'm going to take Mommy to the hospital and won't let her scar."
"Can we go too? We don't want to leave you alone at home. We're worried about Mommy and want to go with you."
"Daddy, can we all go?" Zhan Bei Jue was indeed worried about leaving the children at home alone, and since Jiang Nan Fang was injured today and couldn't cook, they would have to eat out.
Soon, the family of six grandly proceeded to the underground parking lot. After settling the children, Zhan Bei Jue smiled and drove the car out. In the darkness, Gong Bei Bei and Huo Dong Ning sat opposite each other, watching the recorded video and exchanging glances. Both showed expressions of astonishment.