After two days of buzz, the news that the livestream’s categories now included an underage villain had become common knowledge.
As a huge number of viewers flooded into Huahua’s livestream room, she went viral across the stars overnight, becoming the hottest topic of the year.
Many people were envious of such incredible luck. But no matter how jealous they were, they would have been embarrassed to openly pick a fight with a little child who had accidentally become bound to a livestream device. She might become a great villain in the future, but she was not one yet. Even if they wanted to smear her, they had no idea where to start.
People like that made up only a small portion of the audience. Most viewers were very fond of Huahua and concerned about her.
Everyone wanted to know whether she could successfully change her fate, and countless people followed the livestream to find out.
The only regret was that Huahua was too young to read and could not communicate with them. She did not even seem curious about them, treating the livestream device as though it did not exist.
【I’ll say it ten thousand more times: Huahua is so beautiful. I still refuse to believe she’ll grow up to become such a terrible person.】
【I heard a lot of streamers have already applied to visit Huahua’s parallel world and see whether she really is a villain.】
【Then they’ll have to wait. The application procedures for traveling between worlds are incredibly complicated.】
【But I’m really looking forward to it!】
***
The capital.
Mu Qingrou took Huahua to stay for one night at a shabby little hotel. The next day, she brought Huahua to keep watch outside the Li family’s office building, which she had located online.
She was very lucky. Before three hours had passed, she saw Li Xiuzhe enter and leave the company in a Maybach.
Mu Qingrou’s spirits lifted, but she did not rashly approach him. She did not dare.
Once she had confirmed that he really was there, she took her daughter’s hand and prepared to leave. Huahua had been squatting beside her with her little bottom sticking up, chatting with a stray cat in the flower bed.
Huahua gazed at the little white cat that had followed them all the way there and said happily, “Mommy, the kitty says it wants to come home with me. Can we keep it?”
Mu Qingrou glanced at the little white cat rubbing itself against her legs and said apologetically, “Mommy doesn’t have the means to keep it right now. When things get better, we can get a kitty, all right?”
Huahua was a little disappointed, but she still obediently agreed.
She crouched down and stroked the little white cat as she explained, “It’s not that Mommy doesn’t like you. It’s just that Mommy and I don’t have any money right now. When Huahua has money later, I’ll keep you.”
“Meow~”
The little white cat had a very good temper. It did not get angry at being rejected. Instead, it rose up, licked the tip of Huahua’s nose, and then leaped into the bushes, disappearing from sight.
【Cats of the primitive species are really so cute, ahhh! It’s a shame our current environment isn’t suitable for fragile, unevolved cats to survive in.】
【Why doesn’t Mu Qingrou just go to that handsome man? Isn’t he Huahua’s father?】
【The adult world is too complicated. Mu Qingrou must have some difficulty she can’t talk about.】
【Hurry up! Huahua staying with Mu Qingrou isn’t a good choice. She doesn’t have the ability to raise a child on her own, and Huahua would benefit from staying with her father too.】
After Huahua waved goodbye to the kitty, she took Mommy’s hand and looked up at her with her little head tilted back.
“Mommy, where are we going? Aren’t we waiting for Daddy anymore?”
Mu Qingrou smiled gently. “How about Mommy takes Huahua to the amusement park?”
“Really? But, Mommy, didn’t we run out of money?”
She knew Mommy had only two thousand yuan, and they had spent almost all of it along the way. She had even wanted to drink yogurt, but she had held it in and said nothing.
Mu Qingrou’s nose stung. She crouched down and pinched her daughter’s thin cheek, forcing herself to smile naturally.
“Huahua doesn’t need to worry about that. Mommy wants to go to the amusement park. Will Huahua keep Mommy company?”
Huahua always believed everything Mommy said. She happily bounced twice and nodded hard.
“I will, I will!”
And so, that afternoon and evening became the happiest day of Huahua’s three-year-old life.
Mommy took her to the amusement park, where they went on all sorts of fun rides. They also ate delicious ice cream and yogurt, and that evening Mommy took her to the old white-bearded man’s place for hamburgers.
Huahua had so much fun that she completely lost herself in it, never noticing the reluctance and sorrow Mommy was trying desperately to conceal in her eyes.
After a full day of playing, Huahua fell asleep early. Curled up in her mother’s arms, she dreamed only of happy things.
By comparison, Mu Qingrou held Huahua close and gazed at her peaceful little face, tears already soaking the pillowcase.
The only thing she had left to give this child was a trip to an amusement park she had never visited before.
She kissed her daughter and whispered, “Baby, you have to be good when you go with Daddy from now on…”
Perhaps Huahua sensed Mommy’s kiss in her dream. She nuzzled into the hollow of Mu Qingrou’s neck and murmured, “Mommy…”
Mu Qingrou covered her mouth so her sobs would not wake the child.
The viewers who had witnessed everything guessed what Mu Qingrou intended to do and sighed one after another at the depth of a parent’s love for their child.
Despite how reluctant she was to let go, Mu Qingrou still brought Huahua to stand outside Li Xiuzhe’s company early the next morning.
Huahua tipped her head back to look at the skyscraper that seemed to pierce the heavens. Her eyes sparkled as she asked, “Mommy, is Daddy in there?”
“Yes.”
Huahua, who had always wanted a daddy, immediately tried to pull Mommy inside. But even after using all the strength in her little body, she could not move her mother. Huahua turned back in confusion.
“Mommy?”
Mu Qingrou, dark circles beneath her eyes, slowly crouched down and reminded her earnestly, “Huahua, do you remember what Mommy taught you before we left?”
Huahua immediately declared proudly, “I remember. Daddy’s name is Li Xiuzhe. I have to tell the lady at the front desk that Huahua wants to see her daddy, Li Xiuzhe.”
“Huahua is such a good girl.” As usual, Mu Qingrou praised her daughter, then slowed her speech. “But Mommy and Daddy are having a quarrel, and Mommy doesn’t want to see Daddy for the time being. So Huahua has to go see Daddy by herself. Can Huahua do that?”
Children all loved little missions like this. Huahua clapped her hands and promised, “I can.”
Mu Qingrou was amused by her daughter and could not resist kissing her twice. Then she gave her the most important instruction.
“Mommy put a letter for Daddy in your little bag. When you see Daddy, give it to him. Only give it to Daddy, all right?”
“Mhm, mhm! Huahua remembers. I’ll only let Daddy read the letter.”
“That’s right. Also, Daddy might not come to see you right away, but Huahua mustn’t come back outside. You have to wait for Daddy the whole time, understand?”
Huahua tried hard to remember everything Mommy told her. She nodded her little head to show that she had memorized it all.
Mu Qingrou looked at her daughter, who was about to leave her side, suppressed the faint pain in her heart, and smiled as she gently urged her forward.
“All right, go on.”
Huahua bounced forward twice, then thought of something and turned back to ask, “Mommy, when are you coming to pick me up?”
Mu Qingrou forced a smile. “Didn’t Mommy tell you? Mommy found a job, and she can’t bring Huahua along, so Huahua will stay with Daddy for a while.”
In Huahua’s memory, she had never been apart from Mommy for more than two days. Her idea of “a while” was therefore two days. Although she hated to part with Mommy, she really wanted to meet Daddy too.
Once she met Daddy, no one would call her a fatherless wild child anymore.
She counted on her fingers and decided that two days would be acceptable.
She ran over and hugged Mommy, then planted a loud kiss on her cheek.
“Mommy, don’t work too hard! Huahua can go a really long time without eating hamburgers, and I don’t have to go to the amusement park either.”
“…Yes. Good girl, go on.”
Huahua waved goodbye to Mommy and cheerfully ran into the office building.
Only after her little back had vanished from sight did the tears Mu Qingrou had held back for so long burst forth.
She cried for a while, ignoring the strange looks from passersby, then walked away, turning back every few steps.
By then, Huahua had already hooked her little hands over the reception desk and was doing her best to rise onto her tiptoes. But because she was too short, she still remained in the blind spot below the receptionist’s line of sight.
“Miss, I’m looking for Li Xiuzhe.”