Lu Beichen, who was called out, realized that Lu Xiaocha was looking over. His ears instantly turned red. “No… No way!”
1
His loud retort sounded like he was exposing himself instead.
However, his heart quickly sank. He pursed his lips and looked a little disappointed.
“Why haven’t you ever told me these things?”
He had no idea that his parents had been through so much in the first place.
Lu Beichen rubbed his head and blushed even more.
“Why would a child need to know so much?”
Besides, that period of time was like a scar in her and Lu Zhan’s lives. Who would open up their scars so easily?
Besides, they did not want their son to suffer too much at such a young age.
Lu Beichen wanted to retort that he was no longer a child, but in his parents’ eyes, he had indeed always been a child.
Pei Anran looked at Lu Xiaocha gently and asked carefully.
“Xiaocha, can you … leave here and go home with us?”
She didn’t say that she wanted Lu Xiaocha to forgive them or force her to call her Mom. Pei Anran thought that as long as Xiaocha was willing to go back, everything would be fine. Everything else could come slowly.
Lu Beichen looked at her too.
Lu Xiaocha nodded without hesitation, a faint smile on her cute face. “Okay, Mom.”
3
Her tender voice was crisp and clear.
Upon hearing that, Pei Anran stood up excitedly. She couldn’t believe her ears, and her words trembled slightly.
“What… What did you just call me? No, no, Xaiocha, can you say that again? Just once.”
Pei Anran looked at her daughter expectantly and breathed lightly.
Lu Xiaocha was a decisive person. She did not have many thoughts in her head and always did whatever she wanted.
She already had a good impression of this woman. For some reason, she liked her very much and wanted to get close to her.
After learning the truth about how the original owner of this body had become an orphan, Lu Xiaocha felt a little pressured to call her mother.
She did not know why she had become the Lu Xiaocha of this world, but she knew that the tragedy of ‘Lu Xiaocha’s’ life was not caused by the Lu couple. On the contrary, they were the victims.
1
She was never someone who would let herself be wronged. She always puts herself first. For example, now that the Lu family had come to look for her, she could only judge two things after hearing their explanation.
Firstly, whether this woman was telling the truth.
Secondly, did she want to go to the Lu family?
For the first question, she felt that the woman was not lying. As for the second one, she did want to go to the Lu family.
She liked this woman. She was also an orphan in the post-apocalyptic world and had secretly envied the children at the base who had the protection of their parents.
When she saw that Pei Anran beat up those thugs for her without hesitation, she suddenly felt that this feeling of being protected by a mother was not bad at all.
“Mom.”
Lu Xiaocha said without any pretense. Her eyes curved with innocence and purity.
In the post-apocalyptic world, she learnt how to survive. She mostly came into contact with mindless zombies and some lonely old people. When she died, she was only an 18-year-old young girl.
Therefore, even though she had already lived for a lifetime, Lu Xiaocha was a simple and clean person. Now that her age had regressed, she did not feel uncomfortable at all.
Moreover, for some reason, the original ‘Lu Xiaocha’ was almost identical to her in terms of personality and mannerisms. Although she was a little absent-minded, the original ‘Lu Xiaocha’ also liked to hide her food under the bed like a hamster.
4
After she came here and woke up, her behavior was no different from the original Lu Xiaocha. She had just woken up from her absent-minded state and could communicate with people. Her mannerisms had not changed at all.
Therefore, no one in the orphanage suspected anything. She did not disguise herself at all, she simply acted as herself!
After Pei Anran calmed down, the director pushed open the door and walked in. Then, she handed her a very small shirt.
“This is what Xiaocha was wearing when I picked her up.”
Pei Anran took the clothes and touched the word ‘Cha’1 on the collar. She flipped open the other side of the collar. The word ‘Lu’ was embroidered on the place where the word ‘Cha’ was originally embroidered.
This was a double-sided embroidery. Furthermore, both the fabric or the embroidery thread used were of very high quality. When a baby wore it, it would not cause any damage to their tender skin.
“This is the one.”
As Pei Anran examined the shirt, a tear fell onto the fabric.
She had looked so powerful before, but now she was crying.
A mother was as gentle as she was strong.
“Don’t cry.”
A pair of soft hands wiped her tears. Pei Anran smelled a strong orange scent. Her daughter had just eaten an orange.
“I’ll protect you from now on!”
Lu Xiaocha was very serious. Pei Anran smiled through her tears and embraced her daughter tightly.
“Mom, Dad, and your brothers will protect you well from now on.”
1
Lu Xiaocha didn’t argue.
After the matter was settled, Lu Xiaocha left with the Lu family. She pushed open the door and walked out of the room. A cool and tall man was standing outside.
He gave outsiders a strong sense of oppression, but gave his family a sense of security.
Lu Zhan extended his palm, and Pei Anran naturally placed her hand in his.
Lu Zhan’s cold eyes instantly softened. He looked down at the delicate little girl beside his wife who looked exactly like his youngest son. His heart softened, but his expression didn’t change much.
“Dad.”
Lu Xiaocha looked up and called out to her father softly.
Lu Zhan’s pupils constricted, and he was faintly excited. The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, revealing… a slightly ugly arc.
He wanted to laugh, but his usually stoic face looked a little ugly when he smiled. It also looked fierce, as if he was provoking and threatening someone.
3
When Lu Beichen suddenly saw his father’s smile, he was so frightened that he almost choked.
1
Pei Anran held her forehead and said, “Zhan, you look very good when you smile. Let’s not smile in the future.”
2
His smile would scare children.
Lu Zhan didn’t know what to say.
His body tensed up for a moment, but he quickly regained his expressionless face. He looked at Lu Xiaocha with a little frustration and nervousness.
He hadn’t frightened her earlier, had he?
Fortunately, Lu Xiaocha was very bold and would not be frightened by this scary smile.