CHAPTER 26: FAILED PERSUATION

There was something in his eyes that didn’t match the man she thought she could manipulate, something cold, sharp, and utterly unyielding.

"I appreciate your effort to persuade me," Yuanfeng said finally, his tone polite but distant, "but next time, if Father has something to say, he can tell me directly."

With that, he turned away, shifting Huaijin slightly so that her face was hidden from Xu Meilin’s view again.

The woman’s painted smile twitched. Her fingers clenched subtly around the silk fabric of her dress, nails pressing faintly into her palm.

She took a step forward. "Wait, Yuanfeng—"

But before she could reach him, Huaijin spoke again, loud and clear this time, with all the blunt innocence of a child who had no filter whatsoever.

"Daddy, let’s go. I don’t want to talk to this fake lady." Chi Huaijin scrunched her nose up, as if she smelled something bad, puckering her lips like a baby duck as she looked up and Yuanfeng and squeezed his fingers.

Luo Ming almost choked on air this time. He quickly turned away again, shoulders shaking slightly.

Yuanfeng’s mouth curved upward, not quite a smile, but close enough. "You heard her," he said lightly, not even glancing back at Xu Meilin as he walked past her.

Xu Meilin stood frozen in the middle of the corridor, her lips pressed tightly together as she watched them go.

The soft sound of Huaijin’s small laughter, muffled by her father’s shoulder, echoed faintly behind her, and it stung more than any insult could have.

They reached the courtyard entrance not long after. The car was already waiting, polished black under the morning sun.

Luo Ming hurried ahead to open the door, glancing around discreetly to make sure no one followed.

Huaijin still hadn’t let go of her father. "Daddy," she murmured, "that red clothed woman... she’s scary."

Yuanfeng smiled faintly, brushing a lock of her hair away from her cheek. "Scary?"

She nodded seriously. "She looks like those fake princesses from the stories you read to me. Pretty on the outside but full of poison on the inside."

Yuanfeng chuckled quietly, unable to resist her earnest tone. "You’ve been reading too many of my books."

"No," Huaijin said stubbornly, frowning slightly. "I can feel it. She looks at you weirdly. Like she wants to eat you."

Luo Ming, who was just closing the trunk, froze and barely managed to hold back his laugh.

"She also glared at me, her face turned all wrinkly and ugly when she tried to give me a candy. I know what it is!"

Yuanfeng looked helpless as he asked her, "Oh? You know what it was?"

"That’s right," Huaijin nodded her head vigorously with all seriousness as she said, "That aunty was trying to bribe me! Bad aunty! She wants to take Daddy away while bribing me! I won’t give Daddy to anyone!" Chi Huaijin crossed her arms on her chest as she looked at Yuanfeng with red-rimmed eyes, puffing like an angry duck as she exclaimed.

Yuanfeng shot Luo Ming a warning look before turning back to his daughter, who was pouting adorably now.

"Don’t worry," he said gently, patting her head. "No one’s going to eat me. And no one’s going to take you away either."

Huaijin blinked up at him, her eyes wide and trusting. "Promise?"

He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Promise."

That single word seemed to melt away the last of her fear. She smiled again, a little shyly, before reaching out to press her tiny pinky finger against his.

"Then you have to pinky swear," she said seriously. "If you break it, you’ll have to buy me a hundred ice creams."

Yuanfeng laughed quietly. "Deal."

They sealed it with a pinky promise, her small hand barely wrapping around his finger. Luo Ming, watching from the side, smiled faintly, though his expression softened with something deeper.

He’d known Yuanfeng for years, had seen the man walk through the wreckage of loss and responsibility, but only around Huaijin did he truly live.

And what Huaijin said about Xu Meilin was also concerning, because children don’t lie. Though their little miss was an exception, she fell in the cute exception category!

She wouldn’t lie about Xu Meilin’s hostility towards her, considering how she has been on guard against Miss Xu from the moment they met, like a kitten guarding its food from strangers.

Since it was something crucial, Luo Ming thought it would be wise to let Old Master Chi know about it too.

Once they got into the car, Yuanfeng glanced back toward the manor. Through the tall windows, he could faintly see a shadow, Grandfather Chi, watching them from his study balcony. The old man’s expression was unreadable.

Chi Yuanfeng met that distant gaze for a long moment before turning away.

The car engine started, a low purr beneath the silence.

As they drove through the manor gates, Huaijin leaned against her father’s side, her little head resting on his arm. "Daddy," she murmured sleepily, "are we going home now?"

"Yes," Yuanfeng said softly. "We’re going home."

"Good," she whispered, eyes fluttering shut. "Home smells better."

He chuckled quietly. "Does it now?"

"Mhm," she mumbled, already half-asleep. "It smells like you."

Her words made his smile falter, just slightly. He looked down at her peaceful face, her lashes fluttering softly as she drifted into slumber, and his heart clenched.

She was so small, so fragile, yet she had already learned to sense the malice of people twice her age.

He brushed a hand through her hair, his eyes darkening as he turned his gaze toward the passing scenery outside the car window.

There were things he had kept hidden, from his family, from the world, and he had every intention of keeping them that way.

For her sake.

The phone in his pocket buzzed once, but he ignored it. He already knew who it was. The same unknown number from the night before.

The people who thought they could manipulate the Chis, and by extension, him.