Chapter 109 Nostalgia

The couple was having hotpot and chatting intermittently.

Chu Yuxuan found the nourishing hotpot rather tasteless and ate slowly.

In contrast, Zhao Yanan, who hadn't eaten anything since lunch due to her busy schedule, was eating steadily with her head down.

After a while, feeling someone's gaze, she glanced up and met Chu Yuxuan's affectionate eyes. She said with a gentle smile, "Why are you staring at me? Just eat."

Chu Yuxuan pulled out a tissue and handed it to her with a smile, "Take your time; I'm not competing with you."

Zhao Yanan gave him a sidelong glance and took the tissue to wipe her mouth.

At the next table, a mother was sitting with her two children. The family was laughing and talking. The mother hardly ate, her attention solely focused on her children. She answered their whimsical questions and served them food with a face full of happiness.

Being a mother is the greatest profession in the world, bar none.

The couple looked at them simultaneously, as if something deep within their hearts had been touched. The atmosphere grew heavy and subdued.

Chu Yuxuan picked up a piece of beef and dipped it into the pot, his eyes reflecting memories. "When I was young, my mother was like this—she would coax me to eat first and then eat herself."

Zhao Yanan recalled her own mother, and her eyes suddenly grew moist. She tightened her grip on the chopsticks, as if trying to control her emotions. She bit her lip and, after a moment, sighed, forcing herself to stop reminiscing. "Your mother must have been a very gentle woman, right?"

"Yes!" Chu Yuxuan nodded cheerfully. "She was very gentle, but only to me and my grandmother. As for Chu Zhijing, she would slap him almost every time they met."

Zhao Yanan blinked, seeming a bit curious.

Chu Yuxuan put down his chopsticks, speaking with interest, "Chu Zhijing met my mother after his first marriage ended. He promised to marry her, but my grandfather refused to agree, even though my mother was already pregnant with me... Later, my mother ignored everyone's advice and insisted on having me. As a mother, how could she bear to abort her own child? Do you know, on the day I was born, Chu Zhijing got married again."

Zhao Yanan's heart trembled. No wonder this spoiled second son had never been kind to Chu Zhijing.

She used to think that Chu Yuxuan's treatment of his father was exceedingly unfilial and thus had always kept him at arm's length. Now, she realized that if she were in his position, she might have been even worse.

Chu Yuxuan continued, "My mother was very stubborn. From that day on, she completely left Chu Zhijing and raised me alone without taking a penny from the Chu family... But that old man was so shameless. He often came to beg for forgiveness, and every time he came, my mother would hit him without holding back. Later, when I was six and about to start school, my mother was busy again, so Chu Zhijing took me back to the Chu family. Their relationship eased a bit then."

When mentioning the Chu family, Chu Yuxuan's eyes darkened slightly. "My mother thought the Chu family could provide me with the best education and growth, but she didn't expect that I would be so unwelcome there. From top to bottom, except for Chu Zhijing, no one regarded me as a person. Can you believe it? Even the old housekeeper's grandson could bully me. Well... Chu Zhijing was always busy. He would go abroad for months and return for only a few days before getting busy again."

"Later, when I was in middle school, my mother came to see me at school once. I didn't notice her, and she saw the marks from being beaten on my body. That day, at the school gate, my mother cried like a madwoman... Later, she took me away. But at that time, she was already a medical doctor, often sent on secret research missions and required to keep it confidential, leaving for months at a time. During those years, I lived with my grandmother until the second year of high school..."

Chu Yuxuan abruptly stopped.

Listening to his past, Zhao Yanan felt a bit oppressed, with a hint of sympathy in her eyes.

She wanted to ask what happened next but remembered what Chu Yuxuan had said that night: "Don't ask about my past."

So she kept quiet.

"Am I being a bit gloomy talking about this?" Chu Yuxuan touched his mouth. "Let's eat. I didn't want to make you unhappy. Actually, I just wanted to have a meal with you tonight, with no other purpose, no ulterior motives, and not to make you pity me. Talking about the past was just triggered by the scene."

Zhao Yanan, no longer as aloof as usual, hesitated for a moment and said abruptly, "I was wrong about you before. I apologize."

Chu Yuxuan was a bit confused. "What?"

Zhao Yanan spoke earnestly, "I mean, my attitude towards you. I always thought you were a disgraceful scoundrel."

Chu Yuxuan couldn't help but laugh, "So am I not a scoundrel now?"

Zhao Yanan nodded, "At most a bit shameless." After a pause, she added, "No need to thank me."

Chu Yuxuan swallowed the words "Thank you for the compliment" and flashed a brilliant smile.

Just then, four elegantly dressed men entered the hotpot restaurant.

The leader was Ye Tianyi, the young master of the Ye family who had just returned to the country.

As soon as Ye Tianyi entered, he looked around as if searching for someone.

After a moment, a friend beside him tapped him and gestured toward Zhao Yanan and Chu Yuxuan in the corner.

Ye Tianyi's lips curled into a wicked smile as he walked over confidently.

Chu Yuxuan had just popped a fish ball into his mouth when he saw the group approach and wondered who they were.

Zhao Yanan looked up and her expression froze, her eyes showing surprise as she unconsciously shifted her chair slightly.

Seeing this, Chu Yuxuan's face darkened abruptly, his gaze turning menacingly toward Ye Tianyi.

Ye Tianyi glanced at him and then looked at Zhao Yanan, smirking, "Miss Zhao, how have you been?"

Zhao Yanan furrowed her brows and greeted coldly, "Mr. Ye."

"Zhao Yanan, I told you four years ago that I would have you. Do you remember? Haha... I didn't expect to run into you so coincidentally today. Just to let you know, I'm back, and what I said back then still stands."

Zhao Yanan replied, "Mr. Ye, please be respectful."

As soon as she finished speaking, Chu Yuxuan suddenly stood up, a mix of grimness and surprise on his face, or perhaps even joy. "Mr. Ye? Are you Ye Yongsheng's son?"

In all of Jiangcheng, the only person who could be called "Mr. Ye" was Ye Yongsheng's son.

This afternoon, Chu Yuxuan had been contemplating how to encounter the Ye family, and now it had come to him.

Ye Tianyi glanced at him with disdain, "Hey, Chu, even though everyone relies on their parents, you need to face reality. I'm not an illegitimate child, and you're not Chu Xiaotian's beloved grandson, the firstborn of the Chu family. Haha... Let me give you a piece of advice: don't be so arrogant. When I was playing in Jiangcheng, you were still a model student!"

"Yuxuan," Zhao Yanan, fearing that her strong and capable man might cause trouble, hurriedly said, "I've finished eating; let's go home."

However, Ye Tianyi had no intention of leaving. His eyes were cold as he stared at Zhao Yanan, "Zhao Yanan, when I pursued you four years ago, you acted all high and mighty, saying you didn't like rich second-generation types. Haha... How come you're married into the Chu family now? Huh? And you married an illegitimate son! Do you look down on the Ye family? I'm telling you..."

Before he could finish, Chu Yuxuan suddenly grabbed his hair and shoved his head into his own hotpot!