Chapter 1332: The Grand Finale: A Shroud of Mystery, But He Isn't In a Hurry to Unravel It

Yin Shixiu put back all the things Xiao Xiaoang had taken out of his backpack earlier, but the piggy bank, cartoon wallet, and the drawing book with ten signed pages that Xiao Xiaoang gave him were not put back.

After a little tidying up, he stuffed them into his own bag.

Xiao Xiaoang blinked his big eyes and looked at Yin Shixiu in surprise, “You took my money, does that mean you agree?”

“Let’s have dinner first. We won’t discuss this during dinner, after all… You really want Su Xiaomeng, and I really want her too, so I need to think it over carefully, right?”

Xiao Xiaoang quickly nodded,

“Right, right!”

“Let’s have dinner first and fill our stomachs.”

“Okay.”

Yin Shixiu tidied up Xiao Xiaoang’s clothes, tied his scarf properly, and then went into the elevator one after the other.

When they got out, the sky was already a bit dark. Yin Shixiu checked the time; it was already six o’clock.

His phone vibrated, and he glanced at it. It was Su Xiaomeng calling, and looking at Xiao Xiaoang, he still answered.

“Are you on your way back?”

“I’m not coming back for dinner today.”

“Ah? Oh… okay. So where are you having dinner?” Su Xiaomeng casually asked with concern.

Yin Shixiu glanced at Xiao Xiaoang again, remembering how Xiao Meng and Xiao Yan went to Gui Street late at night for snacks and proudly talked to him about some secrets…

“Concerned? Want to join?” Yin Shixiu teased while unlocking the car, letting Xiao Xiaoang get in.

Yin Shixiu got into the driver’s seat.

“Tch, I don’t want to. Who are you eating with that’s so mysterious, not even informing me you won’t be home for dinner…” Su Xiaomeng grumbled and then said sourly, “Which beauty, maybe I even know her…”

Yin Shixiu smirked, glanced at the rearview mirror, where Xiao Xiaoang was quietly waiting in the back, and said to him,

“Put on your seatbelt.”

“…Okay.”

Xiao Xiaoang responded, then put on his seatbelt.

Xiao Xiaoang was extremely clever; now he had to obediently listen, or Yin Shixiu might get annoyed and change his mind.

At the other end of the phone, Su Xiaomeng also had her ears perked up, listening carefully to the noises on the other end…

“A child’s voice?”

“Wow, Madam, you have such sharp ears.”

“You’re the one with sharp ears!”

Su Xiaomeng immediately retorted, and Yin Shixiu laughed out loud. The entire time, Xiao Xiaoang sat quietly in the back, feeling as if…

Yin Shixiu, being sharp, glanced again at the rearview mirror, catching Xiao Xiaoang’s puzzled and eager expression, and immediately said to Xiao Meng,

“It’s a secret! We’ll talk when I’m back.”

Having said that, he hung up the phone. At the other end, Su Xiaomeng looked at the phone that had been hung up, eyes glaring, “Yin Shixiu, you dare to hang up on me!”

“Mom…”

“What?”

“…You’re so fierce.” Shuangshuang mumbled and immediately snuggled up to her brother.

Su Xiaomeng took a deep breath, glared at the phone again, and secretly thought: I’ll deal with you when you come back!

————

“Earlier… Was that Su Xiaomeng?”

Indeed.

With Xiao Xiaoang’s clever look, Yin Shixiu knew he had noticed.

“Yes, it was Su Xiaomeng.”

“Ah, then why didn’t you let me speak to her?”

“Why should I let you talk to her?”

“…” Xiao Xiaoang puffed his lips, muttering something about being “stingy” before sitting back down.

Seeing he had fastened his seatbelt, Yin Shixiu asked, “What do you usually like to eat?”

“Pizza.”

“Okay, then we’ll go have pizza.”

“I only love Pizza Hut’s pizza.” Xiao Xiaoang added.

However, Yin Shixiu said, “We won’t be eating Pizza Hut’s pizza today.”

“Ah?”

“I’ll take you to eat pizza at another place.”

“But I only love Pizza Hut’s pizza.” Xiao Xiaoang quickly repeated.

Yin Shixiu turned his head slightly, fixedly looking at him… Xiao Xiaoang’s stretched neck slowly retracted, mumbling, “Alright, alright, as you wish.”

After all, Su Xiaomeng was still in his hands.

Yin Shixiu took Xiao Xiaoang to a Michelin five-star French restaurant. With Xiao Yan’s financial strength, whatever Yin Shixiu could give Xiao Xiaoang, Xiao Yan could provide too; this was without question, he was certain.

Only…

It was alright for Xiao Xiaoang to love Pizza Hut’s pizza, but he couldn’t let him only love Pizza Hut’s pizza.

Xiao Xiaoang stood outside the Michelin restaurant, looking at the beautifully decorated buildings with a starry ambiance, opening his mouth in awe, “Wow.”

“Sir, do you have a reservation?”

Yin Shixiu pulled out a card from the inner pocket of his wallet and handed it to the waiter who came to receive them.

The waiter took the card, bowed with a smile, and invited them to proceed inside.

Xiao Xiaoang blinked again, tugged on Yin Shixiu’s clothes while following beside him, and asked, “Why are they bowing to you?”

“This is the basic courtesy of a French restaurant’s waiter towards guests, it means they’re welcoming us.”

“Oh.”

Xiao Xiaoang nodded.

Yin Shixiu expertly navigated through the highest-level VIP passage of the restaurant, “We don’t need a private room, just a window seat with a riverside view will do.”

“Certainly, sir, this way please.”

The waiter led them to a seat by the riverside view. From the window, one could look down at the shimmering river surface, where a few boats were, and the moon slowly emerged from behind the clouds.

“Menu.”

The waiter handed the menu to Yin Shixiu, who then said to him,

“He likes pizza, it’s more suited to a child’s taste. Please recommend the one your restaurant does best.”

The waiter recommended several options to Yin Shixiu, who didn’t specifically ask about Xiao Xiaoang’s tastes, but instead chose one based on his intuition.

He also ordered two main courses, several side dishes, and drinks.

Xiao Xiaoang stood again by the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the river below, his eyes seemed to sparkle like stars…

Yin Shixiu leaned back in his chair, arms crossed… His eyes, half eagle-sharp, at that moment carried warmth only he could perceive.

He had gone through so much effort to calm the enormous waves of turmoil within his heart!

He was curled up on a sofa chair in the hall, head tilted, sleeping without much care for appearance, the little blanket not even properly covered, soft strands of hair tilted to one side, that crimson flower-shaped birthmark on the center of his forehead… He could never forget it.

At that instant, countless doubts arose in his heart, many dead-ends, emotions he couldn’t untangle… Shock, and even fear suddenly overwhelmed him.

Xiao Xiaoang’s appearance was like a hammer crafted from a giant stone, hitting him heavily.

At that instant, he no longer had to wonder why Xiao Meng was always entangled with Xiao Yan and his son, no longer had to question why Xiao Meng was so attached to him, thinking of him…

Xiao Xiaoang was the child of him and Su Xiaomeng.

He didn’t even need to do a DNA test to be certain of this.

Looking at appearances, character, and the birthmark at the center of his brow, these were enough to convince him.

The food was served quickly, but the pizza was a bit slow. Xiao Xiaoang tried the foie gras Yin Shixiu ordered, then a bit of seafood, finding the taste quite good, so he had a small expectation for the pizza yet to be served.

When the pizza arrived, it indeed didn’t disappoint Xiao Xiaoang.

He ate with oil all over his mouth, while Yin Shixiu just ate silently. Xiao Xiaoang was completely captivated by the pizza before him, naturally ignoring the rice.

Yin Shixiu thought, heaven might really enjoy joking with him, one joke after another, never tiring of it.

While blaming heaven, only heaven knew how much gratitude Yin Shixiu felt at this moment.

He didn’t know how Xiao Meng’s difficult labor surgery went five years ago, didn’t know the interests and emotional entanglements in between, didn’t understand how the said Little Treasure grew into a boy, or how a child declared a stillborn with icy cold limbs managed to live on and grow up.

Everything that happened five years ago was like a fog to Yin Shixiu at this moment.

But he’s in no hurry to unravel this fog now; he’s simply enjoying the feeling of dining at the same table with this child who mysteriously grew up.

A serving of pizza was about enough for four adults, but seeing Xiao Xiaoang’s stance, he intended to eat two servings on his own…

“Can your stomach hold that much food?”

“It’s tasty!” Xiao Xiaoang responded honestly.

Yin Shixiu wiped his mouth, looking at him with a gentle smile, asked, “So do you think the pizza here is better or at Pizza Hut?”

“Here!”

Xiao Xiaoang answered immediately without any hesitation,

“But…”

“But what?”

“But Pizza Hut has a kid’s playground.”

Xiao Xiaoang had already looked around, not finding any playgrounds for kids to play.

“Seems so.”

“And Pizza Hut gives toys.”

Xiao Xiaoang added another point, and this conversation was overheard by the nearby waiter, who inwardly chuckled to themselves, thinking, what kind of restaurant they were in, and what kind of a restaurant Pizza Hut was, how could they compare?

That faint, self-satisfied, mocking smile was casually noticed by Yin Shixiu.

He raised a hand, signaling the waiter to come over, and the waiter walked over respectfully, “Sir, is there anything I can help you with?”

“Have you been to Pizza Hut?”

“Uh? Oh, I have been.”

“Have you eaten the pizza there?” Yin Shixiu asked again.

“Um… Haven’t eaten it in a long time. The pizza there certainly doesn’t compare to the one in our restaurant.”

“Given your age, do you have children?”

“…Not yet.”

The waiter was somewhat uneasy, not quite understanding the purpose behind these questions.

“If you have children in the future, never bring them to dine here.”

The waiter was momentarily confused.

Yin Shixiu saw his face full of confusion and said, “Because they will be mocked by the waiters.”

“…” The waiter’s expression froze, facing Yin Shixiu’s angry eyes, feeling apprehensive.