Huo Yueze and his little sister lovingly shared an entire small strawberry cake.
Huo Xiaozheng reminded him coolly, "It's almost 7 o'clock. If you start now, you can still catch the bus."
Huo Yueze let out a loud "Ow!" as he suddenly remembered he had to take the bus to school today.
He rushed into the bedroom to wash up and change, then bolted to the entryway to put on his shoes. His frantic behavior nearly caused a whirlwind in the house.
Huo Ning was somewhat dumbfounded.
"Daddy, can't we drive brother to school?" she asked, tilting her head back to look up at him.
Huo Xiaozheng's face was cold and stern: "No, running is good for your brother's physical and mental health."
"Oh." Huo Ning thought about it and figured that made sense, so she didn't push further.
All morning, Huo Yueze had been basking in his sister's approval. Now, he couldn't hear any of the cold words directed at him.
He cheerfully waved to Huo Ning: "I'll be there in no time! Don't worry, sis. Bye-bye, I'll come see you on the weekend!"
Huo Ning smiled brightly and waved back: "Bye-bye, brother!"
Huo Xiaozheng narrowed his eyes. This display of affection was making him uncomfortable.
It seemed it was time to ask his older brother to sign Huo Yueze up for more classes.
Huo Jing, who had been observing coldly from the sidelines, was surprised to see Huo Xiaozheng's rare display of emotion. She turned to look at the little dumpling waving foolishly, lost in thought.
"Aunt Xu took the day off. You should go back to the old house for breakfast," Huo Xiaozheng said, turning his attention to Huo Jing after chasing away his nephew.
Huo Jing laughed sarcastically: "I suppose your chef just happened to take the day off too?"
"That's right," Huo Xiaozheng replied with a straight face.
Before Huo Ning came, there had always been a professional chef in Huo Xiaozheng's villa. The chef's surname was He, and he was responsible for Huo Xiaozheng's three meals a day.
But because of Huo Xiaozheng's workaholic nature, this chef often found himself idle at home. Over time, he stopped staying at the villa and instead studied at a star-rated restaurant while waiting for the housekeeper's call.V/\IssịT n0(v)eL/b(i)(n).co/m for the b/est novel reading experi/en/ce
So, technically, Huo Xiaozheng wasn't lying.
"Daddy, does this mean I won't get to eat Uncle He's baked lobster with supreme stock tonight?" Huo Ning asked, a bit disappointed.
Huo Xiaozheng, who had just claimed the chef was on leave, now faced his daughter's innocent question without fear: "Daddy will take you to a restaurant to eat."
Huo Jing let out a cold laugh, realizing that Huo Xiaozheng had no intention of being reasonable at the moment.
Huo Xiaozheng ignored her.
With Aunt Xu absent, the task of grooming and dressing Huo Ning fell to Huo Xiaozheng.
Huo Ning was quite capable, able to wash up and dress herself.
However, because her hair was a bit long, she had difficulty styling it on her own.
It seemed that Huo Jing had been having too little work lately as well.
Huo Jing, absorbed in the praise, didn't notice that she had just been mentally assigned more work.
However, Huo Ning, while admiring her own beauty in the mirror, caught sight of Huo Xiaozheng's expression.
She hopped down from the chair, walked over to Huo Xiaozheng, and took his hand: "Daddy, it's time for us to go to work."
Huo Xiaozheng snapped out of his thoughts. Huo Ning's initiative to be close to him improved his mood considerably.
"Alright, do you want to bring your drawing board?"
Huo Ning nodded.
Huo Jing, standing to the side, was a bit confused: "Ning Ning, are you going to work with your dad? Don't you need to go to school?"
Huo Ning hesitated a bit.
Due to her experiences in her past life, she was always reticent about discussing illness, preferring not to mention it.
"She's a bit weak, so she's staying with me temporarily to improve her health. She'll start school in the fall," Huo Xiaozheng explained.
Huo Jing thought it was strange but didn't pursue the matter.
"It must be so boring going to work with your dad. I have a magazine cover shoot today, and it's near your dad's company. Would you like to come play with auntie?"
Huo Xiaozheng frowned, about to refuse, when he caught sight of Huo Ning's curious expression from the corner of his eye. He held his tongue.
"Can I really go?"
This was a field Huo Ning had never experienced before, and she was very curious.
Huo Jing immediately agreed: "Of course you can."
Huo Ning looked up at Huo Xiaozheng.
Huo Xiaozheng felt as if he was looking at a little puppy wagging its tail, begging for a bone, silently pleading 'please, please.'
"If you want to go, then go," Huo Xiaozheng raised his hand to pat her head, but considering her elaborate hairstyle, he resisted the urge. "Call me if anything happens."
Huo Ning, of course, nodded obediently in agreement.
When addressing Huo Jing, Huo Xiaozheng's tone wasn't nearly as gentle.
"Don't let her be photographed by the media."
Huo Jing was a bit impatient: "I know. She calls me auntie, after all. I do have some discretion."
Saying this, she reached out and pinched Huo Ning's little face, smiling indulgently: "Auntie will definitely protect Ning Ning well, right~"
Huo Ning loved it when the beautiful woman showed her affection. She nodded vigorously and played along in her sweet voice: "Right!"
Huo Xiaozheng's temple twitched. He had a bad feeling about this.