Ready to Go Home

Although Ren didn't personally experience the waves his comics were making in the outside world, or how many people were despairingly comparing their instant noodles to the tofu in his comics, he could roughly tell from the comments online and some articles in the media that his single volume "Your Name" and "Cooking Master Boy" had definitely made his name known.

"Yes, keep the praises coming, that's how it should be," Ren nodded in satisfaction as he browsed through comments about himself on his phone.

Everyone likes to be praised.

However, Ren's satisfaction was short-lived as he stumbled upon a headline claiming, 'Shocking, the real identity of Porter is him—Warren.jpg'.

"Tch, what kind of journalists are these, clearly not as handsome as me," Ren sighed.

At least the journalists could choose some better-looking photos, right?

At that moment, his daughter, Yuuki, was playing with her daddy's belly when she heard his sigh and immediately stood up, her little head inching closer to check the photo on Ren's phone and then looked at him.

The look of disdain was evident on her little face.

Ren caught this expression and teased, "Hey, little one, are you saying your dad isn't as handsome as him?" He then grabbed her cheeks and playfully rubbed them.

"Umm... Handsome! Daddy is better looking!" Yuuki couldn't resist much and betrayed her true feelings.

Once Ren was satisfied and let go, Yuuki quickly stood up, ran about five or six meters away from him, stuck out her tongue and yelled, "Daddy is a monster! Blah blah blah~~"

Seeing Ren stand up, Yuuki giggled and hurriedly ran upstairs.

"This kid..."

Ren returned to his sofa and continued reading the comments.

He had to admit, these comic reviewers knew their stuff, recognizing the high quality of his work and heaping on the praise.

Plot, art style, paneling—all received a thorough commendation.

Some even analyzed aspects that he himself hadn't realized, similar to doing a reading comprehension exercise where sometimes even the author couldn't answer the question correctly.

As Ren was contently reading the comments, Jada came back and glanced at him before saying, "Ren, are we going to your hometown this week?"

She asked somewhat nervously.

Though she and Ren weren't married, the thought of meeting his parents was still somewhat intimidating.

"Yeah, this Saturday," Ren sat up and poured Jada a glass of water. "Don't worry, just pretend you're my wife."

He felt a bit awkward saying this.

Actually, his mom already knew that Jada wasn't his wife.

But his mom had specifically instructed him over the phone to act this way, making Jada think his mom believed she was his wife to create an opportunity once they got there.

Though Ren felt it wasn't quite right, he went along with his mom's plan... If it really went too far, he'd just tell the truth.

"We'll be counting on you then," Ren added.

"It's nothing, after all, since you're Yueyue's dad, I've been expecting this day."

Jada's words weren't wrong.

After all, Ren was a man, and it would be too much for him to continue without marrying. She felt that his parents wouldn't accept it easily.

Pretending to be husband and wife seemed fine.

They even made a fake marriage certificate just in case Ren's parents found out.

...

Time ticked by, and soon it was Saturday.

In the city of Shi, Ren packed some things into the car, and little Yueyue eagerly helped, though most of what she carried were her toys.

"Ren, is this all we're taking?" Jada asked as she placed a box of wine in the trunk, worried that it might not be enough.

After all, even if it was a pretense, it should look convincing.

She thought Ren should bring more since it was rare for him to go home.

"Don't worry, my parents would find it troublesome if you brought too much," Ren reassured her.

Although his mom was scheming a bit this time, wanting to use the misunderstanding to push him and Jada together, it was still out of good intentions.

After all, in his mom's view, Jada and he had done everything a married couple would do; they even had a child.

Wouldn't it be a pity if they didn't end up together?

A child should indeed be raised by their own parents.

Otherwise, if the two of them didn't end up together, whose child would it be?

Reassured by Ren's words, Jada stopped objecting and got into the car with him.

"Let's go!!!"

The excited little Yueyue waved her arms from the backseat

, her sweet voice easing Jada's nerves.

The child had been excited since the night before.

After all, she had never seen any relatives other than her mom.

She had been up all night asking what her grandparents were like and if they would like her.

And now, she started asking again.

"Daddy, daddy, do you think grandma and grandpa will like Yueyue?"

She had been looking out the window, but suddenly turned her little head and asked timidly.

"Yueyue, why do you keep asking that?"

Seeing her through the rearview mirror, Ren was curious.

After all, when he and Yueyue first recognized each other, she hadn't been this worried.

Yueyue's eyes darted around before she whispered, "In kindergarten, Sovannra told me some grandparents prefer boys over girls. Since Yueyue is a girl, maybe grandma and grandpa won't like me..."

Understanding her concern, Ren laughed and said, "Don't worry, our Yueyue is so adorable, how could grandma and grandpa not like you?"

"Yeah, Yueyue, don't worry," Jada soothed her, patting her head.

Reassured by the praise, Yueyue hugged her face shyly and chirped, "That's right~~ I'm so cute, how could they not like me! Right! That's right!"

With newfound confidence, Yueyue patted her chest and sighed in relief.

Seeing her like this, both Ren and Jada couldn't help but laugh.

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