Chapter 20

An’an, wearing fluffy slippers, trotted over to Li Datao’s side, awkwardly patting his back with his small hands.

“Don’t be angry Daddy.”

A middle-aged man who had never shed a tear no matter what he encountered outside, now had red eyes just because of his son’s small gesture.

He pulled An’an’s soft little body into his arms. This was his son, the son he and his wife had raised together.

When registering his household, they originally intended for him to take the surname Li, but at that time, their family’s conditions were poor. When they found An’an, there was a letter in the swaddling cloth.

It didn’t explain why they abandoned the child, nor did it offer any words of guilt, but it did mention their family’s surname, Xie.

It said that if their family’s situation improved in the future, they would come back to find the child. At the moment, it was due to their circumstances that they couldn’t.

At the time, Li Datao and his wife both thought that with their situation, they might end up starving to death one day. If An’an’s biological parents ever came to find him, it would be easier to leave a surname.

It didn’t matter what surname he had, or whether there was any blood relation. In Li Datao’s heart, this was his son.

He didn’t want those relatives who spoke of blood ties to someone of the same surname. When their family was struggling, those people never once came to help.

At first, Li Datao saved some money, and they had enough to get by. Later, when Fan Chunxiang fell ill, all the money was spent, leaving nothing behind.

When life became unbearable, he considered borrowing from his relatives, but each of them refused, saying they weren’t close enough to be called family.

Now, when they saw that their lives had improved, they began to bring up their blood relations. Li Datao, even if he were a patient person, couldn’t let this slide.

“Daddy don’t be angry, you have An’an. When An’an grows up, he’ll be filial to Mommy and Daddy.”

Every time An’an spoke to his father, he would deliberately slow down his speech, his bright, clear eyes fixed on his father. The maturity on his face wasn’t typical for a child his age.

“Daddy, don’t worry. An’an doesn’t want his biological parents, just you and Mommy are enough”

After saying this, An’an nuzzled Li Datao with his head, just like when he was younger. His fluffy little head rubbed against Li Datao’s neck like a small, energetic dog.

Li Datao’s eyes had already been red, but after seeing the words he thought An’an was trying to say, his emotions became uncontrollable. His eyes filled with tears.

He buried his face in An’an’s shoulder, his shoulders shaking as he cried uncontrollably.

All his hard work had been for the sake of making sure his family could live well, not so that An’an, at such a young age, would be so understanding.

After a while, Li Datao calmed An’an to sleep and, along with Fan Chunxiang, tidied up the living room. After everything was cleaned up, they stood on the balcony. Li Datao gestured, indicating he never wanted to see either side of their relatives again.

When Fan Chunxiang had been ill, Li Datao had nearly begged them to lend him money, but no one was willing to help.

That period of time was something Li Datao would remember clearly for the rest of his life. The family had no money left. He had nearly fainted from hunger outside the hospital, rummaging through trash cans just to avoid starving.

If they didn’t want to lend the money, then fine, it was normal for distant relatives with no emotional connection to avoid involvement.

After that incident, Li Datao didn’t hold any grudges or dissatisfaction. He just didn’t visit or stay in touch with them during holidays anymore.

But now, those so-called relatives came to interfere in their lives, and it completely enraged him. How could they be like this?

Fan Chunxiang gently patted Li Datao’s back. Her thoughts were the same. The children of those relatives were nowhere near as good as their own An’an.

She had personally watched An’an grow from a tiny baby to the boy he was now, and he was no different from a biological son, especially considering how well-behaved An’an was.

Children needed more sleep than adults. The next day, when An’an woke up, he was wearing his pajamas, his hair a mess, and came out to find Li Datao, who was also rarely at home.

Seeing An’an wave at him after waking up, Li Datao quickly went over to him, and An’an reached out his hand.

It happened to be a weekend. While Fan Chunxiang was preparing breakfast in the kitchen, Li Datao moved a stool to the sink for An’an to stand on, helping him squeeze out toothpaste.

The two of them, one large and one small, looked at their reflections in the mirror. An’an squinted happily, shaking his head.

After Li Datao brushed his teeth, he reached out and rubbed An’an’s head. Sometimes, the little guy’s obedience was so heartwarming.

When they didn’t have children, there were always people who would intentionally bring up the topic of having a child to take care of them in their old age, so that when they got older, someone would be there for them.

At that time, Li Datao had thought that if they ever had a child, that child would need to be ambitious and excellent.

But once they actually had An’an, he no longer cared about such things. He just wanted his precious An’an to grow up healthy and safe.

Li Datao was no longer the fool he had once been, who only knew how to act tough after being bullied. After he confirmed that Fan Chunxiang had no objections to his actions, those people never appeared in front of their family again.

This weekend, Li Datao stayed with An’an, playing with him. As he watched An’an sitting on the carpet, reading, a small pang of regret stirred in his heart.

If he had been more patient and moved away from that narrow alley earlier, would An’an have been less sensitive and introverted than he was now?

That alley had a lot of gossipers. When life wasn’t going well, they couldn’t bear to see anyone else doing better. Some adults would even make inappropriate jokes to tease children.

Such as saying An’an was a child they had picked up and that if he wasn’t obedient, they’d send him back. They didn’t want him anymore.

That kind of gossip couldn’t be kept a secret, and neither Li Datao nor Fan Chunxiang liked seeing An’an being forced to be obedient out of fear.

After An’an grew tired of reading, he stretched his neck and ran to Li Datao, sitting on his lap to continue reading.

Fan Chunxiang came out of the kitchen with a plate of cut fruit. Seeing this father-son moment, she couldn’t help but smile.

…

An’an’s grades had always been excellent. Even as the subjects got harder, he continued to maintain first place in his class.

He was naturally gifted, smart, and learning came easily to him. However, it was hard on Wu Jingyu.

Wu Jingyu was a little older than An’an and considered himself his big brother. He insisted on looking out for An’an, as how could a big brother have worse grades than his little brother?

To save face, Wu Jingyu, even as a young child, was always striving to outdo An’an.

Li Datao’s company had just been registered and had received a big order, so he personally went to the school to pick up their third-grade little one.

On the way home, Li Datao noticed that An’an wasn’t his usual self, as if something was on his mind.

There were too many people outside, so Li Datao didn’t ask. Once they got home, he briefly spoke with his wife, and the two of them went to the study, standing beside An’an.

While An’an was doing his homework, he noticed the two of them and was startled. He was hiding something in his heart, and his guilt and panic showed in the fake smile he quickly flashed.

“Daddy, Mommy…”