Chapter 143: The Real and Fake Daughters Who Were Switched at Birth – 2

Xie Hui had already been suspicious—what kind of baby, barely half a month old, was this lively? The little one in his arms was clearly too spirited for her age.

But seeing the look of utter despair on Yuan Huan’s face now, he knew answering her was more important at the moment.

As for the little brat in his arms, he’d have plenty of time later to test his suspicions.

“Tomorrow, my assistant will come find you to sign a labor contract. We’ll talk more after your confinement period is over. Right now, in your condition, you’re in no shape to take care of my daughter.”

Originally, Xie Hui had only planned to offer her a job to help her escape that toxic household. But after noticing the strange behavior of the little brat in his arms, he decided Yuan Huan would be the one to care for her.

“Alright, alright, thank you, thank you so much, sir.”

Tears began to fall from Yuan Huan’s eyes as she spoke. She even tried to lift the blanket and get out of bed to properly thank Xie Hui.

But the moment her hand touched the blanket, Xie Hui turned and gave his assistant a subtle signal.

“You’re still in your postpartum recovery period. You need to focus on healing. If your body doesn’t recover well, how are you going to take care of our young miss?”

The assistant’s words made Yuan Huan sniffle and hold back her tears. Ever since she gave birth, her husband and mother-in-law had been blaming her for spending money on a C-section just to deliver a worthless girl.

She never expected the first words of genuine concern she’d hear would come from a stranger.

Xie Hui left the assistant to handle things. Tomorrow, the little brat would be moved from the hospital to a postpartum care center.

That night, Xie Hui received a message from the Entruster’s ex-girlfriend. She had refused the bank card he had prepared for her.

[“I appreciate the gesture, but I can’t accept the money. If I do, it would feel like I sold my child to you. I love her very much. If you’re willing, keep the money in that card and give it to her when she comes of age. Tell her it’s from her mother.”]

Xie Hui was sitting on the balcony. The Entruster had a habit of drinking a little wine before bed, but the bottle hadn’t been opened yet.

He glanced at his phone. At the top of the screen, it showed she was still typing.

Then another message came through.

[“I’m sorry, but I hope we never have any contact again. I don’t want to know anything about the child either. Just tell her her mother died giving birth.”]

Her words made it clear—she was determined to cut all ties.

Xie Hui wasn’t the type to cling to people who didn’t want to stay. He didn’t object.

The way she handled it was, in truth, the best solution. It spared the child the pain of asking about her mother in the future.

But Xie Hui had a feeling that, with this child… he probably didn’t need to worry about that.

They had already agreed that the baby would be breastfed until the end of the first month, and then there would be no further contact. Xie Hui wouldn’t ask her for child support, and per her strong request, she had no visitation rights.

The night before the baby was sent to the postpartum care center, Xie Hui gave some thought to what her name should be in this world.

The Entruster had come up with many names for a daughter. The one they had originally chosen, Xie Hui no longer intended to use. But from the list, he picked one: Xie Qianjin.

Once the baby was settled at the care center, Xie Hui didn’t visit much. Mainly because he didn’t want to run into the ex—it would be awkward.

Most mothers are reluctant to part with their daughters. In many cases, they keep the child and hide her from the father. But there are also cases like the Entruster’s ex—handing the child over to the father to raise.

Different things hold different value in people’s hearts. Xie Hui understood that, and respected it.

To help Yuan Huan get divorced smoothly, Xie Hui even sent a company lawyer to assist her.

They collected evidence of domestic abuse, and the divorce went through quickly. That family didn’t want the child anyway—disappointed that she was a girl—so there was no fight over custody.

Yuan Huan even borrowed a month’s salary in advance from the steward to repay the money spent on the C-section.

A month passed in the blink of an eye. When Xie Hui went to bring Xie Qianjin home, the little girl was dressed in lighter clothes, her tiny fists clenched. The moment he picked her up, she punched him square in the face.

She was only just past her one-month mark, so the punch didn’t hurt. But seeing her furrowed brows and determined little face made Xie Hui chuckle.

“Jinjin likes Daddy this much?”

His words startled the fierce little brat. She looked up at him in confusion, drooling as she spaced out.

Xie Hui pulled out a tissue and gently wiped her mouth, frowning helplessly.

Yup, mystery solved—this little girl was definitely no ordinary baby.

As Xie Hui carried her to the car, the system chimed in:

“Host, this is the mission I warned you about. It won’t be easy.”

On the way home, the sun was bright and harsh. Xie Hui raised his hand to block the light, watching the little girl drool with her head tilted in his arms. He wiped her mouth again.

She really was adorable. Other people frown when they’re upset—she scrunched up her nose like a little ball.

She wore a red hat with two cute pom-poms on top.

Even at her young age, her delicate features hinted at future beauty. When she lay quietly, she looked like a sweet little angel.

But the moment Xie Hui leaned in close, she’d start grunting in protest—soft baby sounds that somehow still managed to sound fierce.

When they arrived at the villa, the assistant opened a sun umbrella for them. Inside, Xie Hui sat down on the living room sofa.

The nursery had already been set up by the steward, per Xie Hui’s instructions. There were actually two rooms prepared, though one was decorated more luxuriously.

Originally, Xie Hui had planned to take in the other child as a goddaughter, so the two girls could grow up together.

But now that he knew the little brat in his arms wasn’t a normal baby, their treatment would have to differ. They couldn’t be raised exactly the same.

No one wanted a baby swap to happen. But that other child had lived under the name Xie Qianjin for years. Even if it wasn’t her fault, she still owed something to the real Xie Qianjin.

It was like a pitiful child who had struggled in the mud for years, only to one day be told she was supposed to be wearing a princess dress, eating strawberry cake in a fancy dining room, and worrying about which dress to wear tomorrow.

That kind of contrast could drive a person mad.

After Xie Hui sat down, Yuan Huan came over. She had arrived two days earlier, and Xie Hui had asked the steward to prepare some things for her.

The steward was already used to Xie Hui’s eccentricities—like hiring extra help just because a fortune teller said so.

What surprised him this time was that the new nanny had brought her own child along.

What could a woman with a baby that young possibly do?

Yuan Huan’s baby had suffered from a delayed C-section and had been deprived of oxygen for too long, so her health wasn’t great. Not long after arriving at the villa, she’d already been to the hospital twice.

Yuan Huan felt like she wasn’t even here to work.

Especially since the young miss she was supposed to care for hadn’t returned from the postpartum care center yet. She spent her days doing nothing—feeling both awkward and uneasy—but she couldn’t bear to give up such a good job.

“Sir, is this the young miss?”

Xie Hui nodded gently. The little one in his arms seemed to recognize a familiar voice and tried hard to lift her head to look.

But she wasn’t developed enough to lift her head yet, so her eyes just rolled around, betraying her eager curiosity.

Yuan Huan placed her own daughter in the stroller and walked over to take a look. She smiled and praised:

“Sir, the young miss is absolutely beautiful. She’s the most gorgeous baby I’ve ever seen.”

No father dislikes hearing compliments about his daughter, and Xie Hui was no exception.

“Sir, may I hold her?”

Before coming here, the assistant who picked her up had already told her that she was being hired to care for the young miss.

Now that she was divorced and had a child of her own, she was deeply grateful that Xie Hui was still willing to give her a job.

“Of course.”

Xie Hui handed the baby over. The little girl immediately broke into a wide grin in Yuan Huan’s arms, showing her toothless gums and drooling again.

Yuan Huan was stunned for a moment by the baby’s smile. A strange warmth filled her heart. She wiped the drool away, and when she looked down again, the little girl had already scrunched up her nose in a pout.

Xie Hui had no intention of letting Yuan Huan take care of both babies on her own. Human energy is limited—if either child ended up neglected, that was the last thing Xie Hui wanted to see.

So, he hired two live-in maternity nannies to help Yuan Huan with the babies.

The full-month celebration wasn’t held on the exact day of their one-month birthday. Instead, after they left the postpartum care center, Xie Hui bought a cake, held his daughter in his arms, and had the villa’s staff share it among themselves.

Of course, he didn’t forget the little star of the day in his arms. He dipped a fingertip into the frosting and gently dabbed it on her cheek.

At first, the little one didn’t seem to register what had happened. It took a while before she finally scrunched up her face and burst into tears.

The other baby, the one Yuan Huan had named Yuan Yu, shared the same birthday. At least that made things a bit simpler.

Xie Hui dabbed a little frosting on Yuan Yu’s cheek as well—just a tiny bit, easily wiped clean with a tissue.

Yuan Yu, a textbook example of a sleeping baby, lay there snoring softly, completely unfazed by the lively atmosphere. Even with frosting on her cheek, her breathing didn’t falter for a second.

Yuan Huan took the now-crying Xie Qianjin from him and gently tried to soothe her. But instead of calming down, her wails only grew louder.

If Yuan Huan hadn’t seen it with her own eyes—that all he did was dab a bit of cake on her face—she might’ve actually thought he’d done something to upset the little lady, judging by how heart-wrenchingly she was crying.

“Waa… waaah…”

Listening to her cries, Xie Hui recalled the memory from the Entruster—the child who used to be like a little hedgehog. His lips curved into a faint smile.

Reborn as a baby, with more than a decade ahead of her, perhaps this new life could overwrite the shadows of her past.