Chapter 321 Water Flowing Out in a Trickle Lasts Long

With the good start, Du Xiaoxian began to try to be friends with Lu Haochen. However, when she thought of his former shameless performance, she felt a little uneasy. But as they slowly got along, she found Lu Haochen was very clear with the boundary between friends. He never said anything inappropriate to her, nor did he do anything out of line. He was really a good friend that made her feel at ease.

The only thing that left Du Xiaoxian speechless was that he doted on Du Niannian too much.

Du Niannian now was very attached to Lu Haochen. If she did not see Lu Haochen one day, she would ask, “Where’s Dad? Is Dad coming today?”

If Du Xiaoxian said he wouldn’t come, a look of disappointment would immediately appear on Du Niannian’s little face.

If Du Niannian couldn’t see Lu Haochen for two days, she would find Du Huayue and call Lu Haochen, “Dad, why don’t you come to see me? I miss you!”

Every time Du Xiaoxian heard her daughter speak in such a pitiful tone, she could not bear to scold Du Niannian. The paternal love that had been missing for nearly four years suddenly came, and Du Niannian was like a child who had fallen into a honey pot. She was extremely happy every day.

Lu Haochen doted on Du Niannian very much. So when he heard these aggrieved words, he immediately rushed over after he hung up the phone.

Every time he came, he would buy some snacks and toys for Du Niannian. Sometimes, Du Niannian would share them with the other kids in the neighborhood. She would even take out the snacks in her pocket and show them off, saying, “My dad bought this for me!”

So many neighbors came to ask Du Xiaoxian, “Is Niannian’s Dad back?”

Every time this happened, Du Xiaoxian would always explain awkwardly, “No, no, just a godfather.”

Then the neighbors made an ‘oh’ sound and looked at her with more meaningful eyes. Du Xiaoxian felt that the more she explained, the more they misunderstood. So she stopped explaining.

She was not afraid of gossip, but she felt that this was not appropriate. She euphemistically told Lu Haochen that. Lu Haochen was smart enough to understand what she meant, so he stopped visiting. But after he did not come, Du Niannian became unhappy. She would cry and make a phone call to Lu Haochen. Lu Haochen could only coax her and say that he was too busy at work. He promised to visit her after his work was done.

However, a child did not care about this. Anyway, if she could not see him, she would be depressed, and her appetite would be reduced. She could not hear others mention Lu Haochen. When she heard his name, she would pout. If Du Xiaoxian mildly scolded her, she would immediately burst into tears and cry for a long time.

The child, who used to be lively, now held the doll that Lu Haochen bought for her and sat on the sofa in a daze, sighing with a sad face. Du Xiaoxian saw this and felt very sorry. But there was no other way. She could not always trouble Lu Haochen!

But later on, Du Niannian missed Lu Haochen to the point where she couldn’t eat or drink. Du Huayue couldn’t bear to see this continue and scolded Du Xiaoxian without letting Du Niannian know. He asked Du Xiaoxian to personally invite Lu Haochen back. Looking at her daughter who was getting thinner day by day, Du Xiaoxian had actually been hesitant a long time ago, but she felt it embarrassing to ask Lu Haochen to visit them. Now that Du Huayue had said this, she could only call Lu Haochen.

Therefore, Lu Haochen started to come to her home again. He would come three to five times a week. Sometimes, he would personally go to pick up Du Niannian from school. When they got home, he would play with Du Niannian and have dinner at their home. After eating, he would sit for a while and chat with her. He would coax Du Niannian until she fell asleep before leaving.

At first, Du Xiaoxian was a little uneasy. She always felt that it was strange. After getting along with him for a while, she gradually got used to it. Du Niannian was even more used to it. She was even closer to Lu Haochen than to Du Xiaoxian.

Sometimes, they would take Du Niannian to the amusement park. Du Niannian held Lu Haochen with one hand and held her with the other, jumping and laughing all the way. In the eyes of others, they were like a happy family of three.

In the blink of an eye, it was Du Niannian’s fourth birthday. Lu Haochen had planned to give Du Niannian a grand birthday party, but Du Xiaoxian rejected it. She said that it was too ostentatious and would make the child’s vanity too strong.

Lu Haochen listened to whatever Du Xiaoxian said, so they prepared a generous meal at home. He even personally cooked and fried some chicken legs. Du Xiaoxian was a little surprised. She did not expect that Lu Haochen, who seemed so high and mighty, could actually cook. They were already very familiar with each other now, so she joked, “I didn’t expect you to cook. Whoever marries you in the future is really lucky.”

Lu Haochen squinted at her. “You want to hand over such a good opportunity to someone else?”

He was also joking, but there might be a tone of seriousness in his words.

Du Xiaoxian chuckled and changed the topic. In fact, Lu Haochen rarely mentioned this topic to her. Today, she was the first to bring it up, so he answered. Seeing her smirk, he knew that she wanted to get away with it.

During this period of time, Lu Haochen felt that his strategy was right. At least now, Du Xiaoxian no longer rejected him. She was also very relaxed in front of him and sometimes would even joke with him. When he bought things for her and Du Huayue or some toys and food for Du Niannian, she would gladly accept it. She didn’t seem to treat him as an outsider.

He believed that water flowing out in a trickle lasted long and that time revealed a man’s heart. Someday, he would replace the man in her heart.

The hot dishes were served on the table. Four adults and one child sat around the table. Du Niannian sat between Lu Haochen and Du Xiaoxian. She looked at Lu Haochen and then at Du Xiaoxian. Her eyes were curved and her braids were swaying. She looked really cute.

Du Huayue asked, “Niannian, are you happy today?”

“Yes,” Du Niannian smiled and said, “When it was my birthday last year, only Mom and Uncle accompanied me. But this year, I have Dad, Mom, as well as Uncle and Aunt. I am so happy!”

Du Xiaoxian picked up a big meatball and placed it in Du Niannian’s bowl. She smiled and said, “Happy birthday to my dear daughter!”

Du Niannian answered loudly, “Thank you, Mom!” She stood up and kissed Du Xiaoxian on the face. Then she turned around and kissed Lu Haochen on the face. Everyone laughed.

Lu Haochen also picked up a big chicken leg and put it in Du Niannian’s bowl. “I wish Niannian good health and happiness every day!”

“Thank you, Dad!” Du Niannian took a bite of the chicken leg. “I am very happy every day!”

Du Huayue suggested, “Let’s have a drink together. Let’s celebrate that Niannian is a year older. Cheers!”

The four amber-colored wine glasses collided. Du Niannian held a cup of coconut milk and tiptoed to touch each of the glasses. Cling-clang, the sound was crisp and clear. Everyone’s faces were beaming with smiles. Everyone chatted, laughed, and toasted each other. This birthday banquet was very lively.

Lu Haochen was a little tipsy. He glanced at Du Xiaoxian and saw that her face was pink. Her smiling eyes seemed to have a dazzling beauty. In fact, the happiness of ordinary people was so simple. The family sat together and had a happy meal. They laughed heartily and drank happily. Looking at the smiling faces, his heart was filled with satisfaction. As the saying goes, a person who is contented is always happy. This was probably what it meant.

After a lively meal, Lu Haochen took out the big cake that he had bought and lit the candles. Everyone sang the birthday song together. Du Niannian wore a golden birthday hat and put her hands together. She closed her eyes devoutly and made a wish. When the song stopped, she opened her eyes and looked at the four small colorful candles. She smiled sweetly. “Dad, Mom, let’s blow them together!”

Lu Haochen and Du Xiaoxian looked at each other and smiled. They leaned over and blew the candle together with Du Niannian.

“Niannian, what wish did you make?” Ma Cuicui asked.

Du Niannian looked at Du Xiaoxian. “Mom, can I say it?”

Du Xiaoxian loved her daughter so much, and she also felt in debt with Du Niannian. So she was willing to find a way to realize all of Du Niannian’s wishes, except the wish to have a legitimate father.

“Of course,” She looked at Du Niannian gently. “What is your wish?”

“I want Dad to stay tonight and sleep with us so that when I wake up tomorrow morning, I can see him!”

The room suddenly quieted down. No one had thought that Du Niannian had made such a wish!

Four pairs of eyes looked at Du Xiaoxian. Du Huayue, Ma Cuicui, and Du Niannian’s eyes were full of expectations. Although Lu Haochen was also looking at her, his eyes were calm which did not make her feel uneasy. Du Xiaoxian touched Du Niannian’s little head and said with a smile, “Our house is too small. There is no place for Daddy to sleep!”

“I just need to sleep in such a small place,” Du Niannian stretched out her two small hands and gestured. “The rest is for Daddy to sleep on.”

Everyone was amused. Du Huayue said, “I will help Cuicui to get the goods tomorrow morning, so I plan to stay with her tonight. If President Lu could stay, it would be wonderful. If you don’t mind, President Lu, you can sleep in my room!”

Lu Haochen said with a smile, “Sure, no problem.”

“Alright, then it’s a deal.” Seeing that Du Xiaoxian didn’t say anything, Du Huayue decided.

“That’s great, bravo! Daddy won’t be leaving tonight!” The happiest one was Du Niannian. She clapped her little hands, shaking her head, jumping and laughing. Lu Haochen quietly glanced at Du Xiaoxian and saw that her face was gentle and calm. She was cutting the cake and did not seem to have any objections.

Du Niannian helped deliver the cake. The first piece was given to Lu Haochen, the second one…Du Niannian looked at Du Huayue and then at Ma Cuicui. In the end, she gave it to the latter.

Du Huayue said, “Why didn’t you give it to me?”

Du Niannian said seriously, “Aunt Cui is the guest. She should eat first.”

Ma Cuicui glanced at Du Huayue. “You are not as sensible as Niannian!”

Everyone laughed again. Du Niannian suddenly remembered while eating the cake. “Dad, where is my gift?”

She knew that among the four of them, only Lu Haochen would prepare gifts for her. Her mother rarely bought things for her. Her Uncle and Aunt Cui had just given her a red envelope. Therefore, only Lu Haochen had not given her anything yet.

Lu Haochen smiled and said, “Just wait.” He got up and went into the room. When he came out, he held a big box in his hand and handed it to Du Niannian.

Du Niannian’s eyes lit up when she opened the box. It was a Barbie doll that she wanted even in her dreams. It was almost as tall as her. In another small box, there were a lot of clothes and hair accessories for the Barbie doll. Those crystal diamonds were shining in the light, and the eyes of the Barbie doll were blinking. Du Niannian felt like she was dreaming. Her classmate Yangyang had a Barbie doll and had once brought it to the school. She played with it, and was envious for a long time, but she never asked her mother for it. Now, the one she was holding in her hand was much bigger and more beautiful than Yangyang’s. There were also so many clothes. She could change the clothes for the doll every day for a long time without repeating!

She stood there, overwhelmed by the excitement, and even forgot to thank him. Du Xiaoxian looked at Lu Haochen and said, “Why did you buy such an expensive gift for her?”

Lu Haochen smiled and said, “It’s Niannian’s birthday. I just want to make her happy.”

Usually, Du Xiaoxian did not allow Lu Haochen to buy expensive gifts for Du Niannian. Lu Haochen would act accordingly so as not to make her feel guilty. But today, seeing that Du Niannian was so happy, Du Xiaoxian did not pursue the matter.

Du Huayue and Ma Cuicui sat for a while longer before leaving. They knew what to do in such a situation. It was rare for Lu Haochen to be allowed to stay for a night and they should not play gooseberry.

However, as soon as they left, Du Xiaoxian and Lu Haochen became a little embarrassed.