"The matter concerning Huanhuan can’t just be left unresolved."
"Then you plan to..."
He picked up the desk ornament, his frown deepening even more.
"Say that we felt a connection with her, so we adopted her from the orphanage."
"This... Otherwise, let’s just drop it, a love child is a love child!
"How can that be okay? I don’t care, but don’t you care about your own reputation?" He turned to look at her and gently put the ornament back in its place.
"How can it not be okay? I’ve always treated Huanhuan as my own daughter."
"But she is indeed not our biological child."
The two were about to clash when Qin Mu didn’t dare to argue with him any further and, feeling agitated, simply lowered her head and walked to the side, biting her lip forcefully, deep in thought.
Not biological, not biological, are you stupid? She clearly looks so much like you.
Qin Mu was so angry she was almost driven insane, but she didn’t dare to show it.
Mu Yichen walked over and gently wrapped his arms around her soft, slender waist from behind: "How about you join me for the interview this afternoon?"
She rejected the idea without a second thought.
"But everyone already knows we live together. Since you plan on a secret marriage, at least let people think we are at the stage of discussing marriage. It’s better than letting them write nonsense every day." He continued, coaxing her softly.
Qin Mu’s big eyes drooped, but her mind was clear.
"I don’t want to, you can say whatever you want to them, they can write whatever they want, I simply don’t care about any of it."
She pushed his hands away and then went to stand farther off, her thoughts lingering on Huanhuan. If he went to the media and said Huanhuan was a child they adopted...
Ha ha ha, she found it amusing to think of Huanhuan one day learning her father treated her like an adopted child. She reckoned Huanhuan would laugh herself to death.
She wondered what Mu Yichen’s mood would be then.
She thought, even if Mu Yichen didn’t know for these few years, he would have to find out sooner or later, maybe many years later, or after they broke up. Even if he still hadn’t realized, she would have to let him know everything.
In any case, it seemed like things were starting to move out of rhythm. Every time she deviated from the original plan, she felt like things were spiraling out of control, feeling irritated, tense, and uneasy.
Mu Yichen frowned, "If you’re not going, let it be. You say you don’t care about anything?"
"Replace the photo with one of the three of us from a while back."
By the time she turned around, he had already slammed the door and left.
Qin Mu’s gaze instinctively went to the desk ornament...
That afternoon, she watched the live broadcast in her office.
The reporter wasn’t someone she knew, and the subtitle read "Zhuo Xing."
Reporter: "So, Mr. Mu means that this young girl is your biological daughter?"
Reporter: —— "So, this young girl is indeed the child of you and Miss Qin?"
The reporter straightened his back, clearly frightened by his chilling gaze.
The surrounding staff dared not approach. When he agreed, the expression on his face showed not a hint of a father’s joy, but instead, indifference.
The reporter also fell silent for a while before gently asking, "Since President Mu has already fathered a daughter with Miss Qin, why not marry? Have you ever considered giving them the legitimacy of being your family?"
President Mu raised his eyes, a grim look shooting towards the female reporter as she clutched the microphone tightly, fearing it might damage her reputation. Suddenly, President Mu scoffed, "What I think doesn’t matter; you need to ask the leading lady."
"So you mean, it’s not that President Mu is unwilling, but the lady is the one who disagrees?"
"Indeed! However, we are currently cohabiting!"
Mu Yichen reluctantly raised his eyebrows, his smile tinged with bitterness.
"It seems like the good news is not far off. When did the two of you meet? Could you share a bit more with us?"
"When she was just born!"
"Childhood sweethearts?"
The reporter had heard rumors but was still pleasantly surprised to hear it confirmed by Mu Yichen himself.
"Alright, thank you, President Mu, for cooperating with this interview. We will report the truth!"
After the interview, the reporter left with her team. Once they were out the door, everyone was wiping cold sweat and heaving sighs of relief.
Mu Yichen remained seated in his office, not moving. He sat there for a long time afterward, gazing up at the familiar sky outside.
He could never bring himself to be harsh on Qin Mu.
He had indeed prearranged today’s interview; he couldn’t let her handle certain matters as she wished.
But the thought of her feelings, of her unfortunate experiences, he really feared she would get hurt, become scared, and be unable to continue being with him so calmly and breezily.
As for Huanhuan’s matters, he wanted her to have a beautiful childhood!
Meanwhile, Qin Mu was so shocked in the office that she couldn’t move; he said Huanhuan was their daughter? He said they were cohabiting?
Then why didn’t he just say that they were already legally married?
The man who was always so prideful and domineering, the man who always controlled the situation, why didn’t he disclose their marriage when it came to that?
Why did he make himself seem so affectionate?
When she first returned, her thoughts were simple; she was sure she couldn’t escape his clutches, might as well fulfill his wishes and live with him, then use his influence in Rongcheng as a backer. But now...
But his interview had relieved her quite a bit. The more he showed on the outside, the less she felt indebted to him.
It wasn’t until Huanhuan and Xiaomei crept up behind her and scared her with a loud shout that she was nearly frightened out of her wits.
"Qinqin, are you okay?" Xiaomei asked with concern, seeing her pale.
"I’m fine!" Qin Mu replied softly and then forcefully lifted Huanhuan onto her lap, "How have you become so mischievous?"
"Haha, Mommy, Mommy!"
Huanhuan kept squeezing her face and calling her.
Huanhuan’s eyes were crescent-shaped when she smiled and especially sparkling.
The media in Rongcheng was in turmoil that afternoon.
Some people’s homes were silent as death that afternoon.
Some people went mad with frenzy that afternoon.
Naturally, there were also those who watched the drama unfold and offered their blessings.
Mu Yichen remained sitting in the office until he thought of their baby, soon to belong to both of them; then his mood lightened a bit.
By the time he left, the sky had already quietly darkened. He dialed Qin Mu’s number: "Wait for me in the studio!"