Pampered by Short-Lived Bigshot by Beautiful Crescent

Chapter 241: 176 Big Brother cooking? Jiangjiang's little tricks Beijing Xie Family Xie Duo gently adjusted his rimless glasses on the bridge of his nose and observed the person sitting across from him.

The old man was leisurely sipping tea, dressed in a soft white robe, his hair and beard as white as a crane's feather, his eyes exceptionally profound. With a visage marked by the vicissitudes of time, he exuded warmth and tranquility.

"... Jiang Yanting has understood everything, yet he still insists on this," Xie Duo accurately relayed the events of the day.

"Did he really say that?" the elder Mr. Xie narrowed his eyes.

"I believe he's serious about Shen Zhixian. After all these years of conflict, I've cto understand him quite well." Xie Duo did not wish for the two to be together at all. Yet, he saw Shen Zhixian's reactions and understood that although he had not met her many times, she appeared dignified and approachable yet harbored a deep wariness towards others.

Usually very cautious in her actions, she surprisingly pretended to sleep at the Hospital. Moreover, she beca completely different person around Jiang Yanting, shy and coquettish.

It entirely challenged his worldviews! "He may think so, but the Jiang Family might not agree..." elder Mr. Xie sighed deeply. "I've always been worried that they might not accept her background, not to mention her health and the child..." "Didn't Grandmother Jiang agree to their meeting? Isn't that an indirect acceptance of Zhixian's status?" "That cat the cost of my begging. Besides, a meeting is one thing, but marriage is another matter. Now that Jiang Yanting is in Beijing, even with a child, countless young women are vying to join the Jiang Family. When compared closely, why must he choose Zhixian?" Xie Duo said nothing in response.

At that moment, a lady in her forties emerged from the side and placed a tray of freshly made desserts in front of the old man, "Dad, please try this, it's freshly made." This woman was Xie Duo's mother and the wife of the Xie Family - Du Jinglan.

With a smile upon her lips and an elegant demeanor, "The Jiang family members are quite nice. I think you're worrying too much. As long as Jiang Yanting is willing and Zhixian likes him, I think it could work." "It's just that child of Jiang Yanting's..." She stopped mid-sentence.

"Speak your mind," said elder Mr. Xie.

Du Jinglan smiled, "I've met that little grandson from the Jiang Family a few times. Their children are well-raised and won't disappoint, but he might not be willing to accept Zhixian. Besides, the entire Beijing doesn't know about her birth mother's circumstances. If she suddenly appears..." Xie Duo, who had been quietly listening, now took a sip of tea, giving his mother a meaningful glance.

"Let it be, we can only do our best and leave the rest to fate. I'm going back to my room to change and then head to the hospital," the elder Mr. Xie said, attempting to rise. Du Jinglan immediately stood to help him, "No need to worry about me, I can still get to my room." "Then take it slow." The elderly Mr. Xie, having injured his leg in his youth, walked with a limp and relied on a cane.

As his figure disappeared, Du Jinglan swiftly began to tidy up the tea set on the table.

"Mom..." "Right, your dad won't be hfrom the office today. I'm going to the Hospital with your grandfather later. There's food left for you at home. Just eat here." "Don't you want Zhixian to marry Jiang Yanting?" As Du Jinglan paused in her handling of the tea set and smiled at him, "What are you talking about? I just think there are many things we need to consider in advance. However, if the two of them really end up together, you might have to start calling Jiang Yanting 'Uncle'..." The smile faded from Xie Duo's face.

He had been excellently raised, never uttering a word of profanity throughout his life, but the mere thought of this matter almost made him curse! Particularly considering Jiang Yanting's sharp tongue and punch-worthy demeanor, it was increasingly frustrating to think about.

Meanwhile, at the Jiang Family home, Tang Wan and Jiangjiang arrived hto see a car parked at the entrance. Jiangjiang immediately sprinted inside and before even seeing the person, he yelled, "Daddy-" "Your dad's in the kitchen,” Fan Mingyu clicked her tongue.

"Grandma, Great-Grandma..." Jiangjiang greeted each guest in turn before finally running to the kitchen, only then realizing that his dad was actually making soup, "Daddy, is this for me?" Jiang Yanting was not adept in the kitchen, with just a few soups up his sleeve, which he had learned specifically to coax Jiangjiang when he was ill and reluctant to eat, leading the little guy to naturally assit was made just for him.

However, before Jiang Yanting could answer, Jiangjiang excitedly described his soccer achievements of the day, boasting about how aweshe had been.

"I scored five goals today!" He tilted up his little face, his eyes shining with anticipation.

Praise me, con, praisequickly.

"Then you performed very well." Jiang Yanting crouched down, raised his hand, and ruffled his hair. Jiangjiang, however, detected a faint fragrance on him.

It was a scent he had never smelled before, and remembering his father not returning hlast night, he instantly becguarded.

Though he verbally expressed his wish for Jiang Yanting to find him a stepmother, they had grown accustomed to relying solely on each other. Suddenly having someone else join them was still instinctively unwelcome.

"What's wrong?" Unable to hide it, Jiang Yanting immediately sensed something was off.

"Dad, did you not change your clothes yesterday? You smell bad." "What?" Jiang Yanting lifted his arm, sniffed the scent on himself-it was nothing serious, probably just the smell of disinfectant from the hospital—"Then I'll change later. Today, when I went out with your second aunt, I heard she bought something for you to eat. Did you thank her?" "Of course, I did. The stuff was particularly delicious; I'll take you there someday." Jiang Yanting chuckled, thinking this boy just wanted an excuse to eat there himself.

However, remembering Shen Zhixian's illness, he looked at Jiangjiang with a complex expression.

Meanwhile, Jiangjiang was standing on tiptoes, eyeing the soup in the pot and already beginning to salivate.

During lunch, however, Jiang Yanting didn't stay at home; instead, he packed sof the nicely stewed soup into a thermal container, preparing to take it to the hospital.

Jiangjiang watched him package the soup and get ready to leave. He scooped the soup, biting his lip tightly, and remained silent without uttering a word.

But by the tJiang Yanting rushed to the hospital, someone else had already taken over the hospital room. Upon inquiry, the nurse said her family had cto discharge her. He immediately made a phone call.

"You've been discharged?" "It's just the old ailment, nothing serious." "Did you go back to the Xie Family?" "No." "I'll cto see you so we can talk properly." There were many things from the past that puzzled Jiang Yanting. "Maybe if there's a chance. I've got things to handle, I'll hang up now." After the call was disconnected, Jiang Yanting couldn't reach her again, no matter how many times he tried. Even when asking Xie Duo, he was tight-lipped and unwilling to reveal anything.

** Finding no one in the hospital, Jiang Yanting got shelp to look around; but since the Xie Family was being evasive, it was not easy to obtain any information. As he waited for any news, he went back to his company to take care of business, staying busy until late at night before heading home.

Jiangjiang was lying on Jiang Jinsang's bed, flipping through a comic book.

"Uncle, can I ask you something?" "What?" Jiang Jinsang put down the book he was holding and looked at him seriously.

"Is Dad trying to finda stepmom?"

Jiang Jinsang thought it would be better for Jiang Yanting to explain this matter personally, so he just flashed a smile. "Don't worry about it; if you're not reading, just go to sleep early." But having grown up in the Jiang Family and adept at reading expressions and tones due to his unreliable father and uncle, Jiangjiang had already sensed something was off.

Sure enough...

At that moment, his little phone rang-a video call from Jiang Yanting.

"Dad, why are you still at the office?" "Working overtime; the New Year is coming, and it's pretty hectic." "Are you coming htonight?" "If it's too late, I won't cback. I don't want to sleep alone. Go to Grandpa and Grandma or go see your uncle and his wife so they can stay with you." "What about my soccer match tomorrow?" Jiangjiang had been training long for a soccer match scheduled just before the New Year.

"Mm, I'll be there." "It starts at nine in the morning, don't be late." "Mm." The video call between father and son was mostly dominated by Jiangjiang chattering away.

After hanging up, Jiangjiang seemed exceptionally excited. “Uncle, are you going tomorrow too?" "Yeah, I'll be there to cheer you on."

Being a child, it was easy for Jiangjiang to feel content; despite having sworries lurking in his mind, the excitement for tomorrow's match and both his dad and uncle cheering for him momentarily made him forget about the stepmom issue.

Meanwhile, Jiang Jinsang was silently pondering what to get him as a gift after the matc, glancing outside where the sky was gloomy-a forecast predicted rain or snow tomorrow. Around midnight, Jiang Yanting was still in the company handling documents when his phone vibrated with a message.

There were no remarks or any extra words, just a simple address.

Fiddling with his fingers, Jiang Yanting thought if she could cto Jiangjiang's match tomorrow...

Little did everyone know, what was assumed to be a routine soccer match was about to unravel a series of unexpected events.