You Huan was still asleep.
After getting up and washing, she went downstairs and jogged around the residential complex for an hour.
Breaking a sweat made her feel refreshed all over.
Not wanting to make breakfast, she went to the breakfast shop outside the complex and bought three portions.
When she got home, Chengcheng was awake, but You Huan was still sleeping.
Chengcheng ran over with pattering footsteps: “Good morning, Mommy!”
“Good morning, baby. Did you wash your face and brush your teeth?”
“Yeah.”
“Then let’s have breakfast.”
“Should we wake Godmother?”
“Don’t wake her. Let her sleep. We’ll eat first.”
Li Mai kept one portion of breakfast warm.
After breakfast, Chengcheng said: “Mommy, I want to go to the library.”
“No problem. Go change your clothes.”
Li Mai left a note for You Huan and went out with Chengcheng.
She spent the day at the library with Chengcheng, and they ate lunch out as well.
Monday—back to the grind.
As soon as she arrived at the office, Ji Wangyu called her into his office.
“Come with me on a business trip tomorrow.”
Li Mai: “…”
When she first started, she had told Ji Wangyu she wouldn’t go on business trips—everything else was fine, but not that.
She had a child at home with no one to watch him.
Ji Wangyu knew her situation and had never asked her to go on business trips.
Besides, when they were in Sucheng, Ji Wangyu didn’t need to travel.
Eating, drinking, having fun—as long as company performance was passable, he sent subordinates on any business trips.
But now at headquarters, the situation was different.
“Manager Ji, can you take someone else? I have a child at home—I can’t leave.”
Ji Wangyu looked at her: “Secretary Li, you know my situation. I’m not comfortable taking anyone else.”
Here, he only trusted Li Mai.
“How about this—leave your son at my place. I have a housekeeper who can watch him for you.”
Li Mai hesitated for a moment, then agreed.
Working in the professional world, she didn’t have the right to refuse company arrangements.
Her supervisor had already thought of a solution for her—he was being very accommodating.
She couldn’t be unreasonable and difficult anymore.
After getting home, Li Mai told Chengcheng about the business trip.
Chengcheng was very obedient and agreed to go to Ji Wangyu’s house.
Zhou Songyan had just returned from a week-long business trip abroad.
After getting home and taking a shower, he picked up his phone and sent Li Mai a message.
[Let’s have dinner together tomorrow night. Bring Chengcheng.]
Message failed to send.
A big red exclamation mark appeared.
Zhou Songyan was stunned.
Then came anger.
Li Mai had deleted him.
He found Li Mai’s phone number and called.
Li Mai was taking a shower.
Chengcheng held the phone and knocked on the bathroom door: “Mommy, there’s a phone call.”
Li Mai’s voice came through: “Answer it for Mommy.”
“Oh, okay.”
Chengcheng swiped the green arrow and put the phone to his ear.
“Hello.”
Zhou Songyan recognized Chengcheng’s voice and reined in his anger.
“Where’s your aunt? Let her answer the phone.”
Chengcheng recognized that it was his father on the other end.
“My aunt is taking a shower. It’s not convenient for her to answer the phone.”
Zhou Songyan fell silent.
Chengcheng suddenly spoke: “Uncle, can you help me with something?”
Zhou Songyan raised an eyebrow: “Go ahead.”
“Can I stay at your house for a few days?”
Zhou Songyan: “…”
Chengcheng: “My aunt has to go on a business trip. I have nowhere to go.”
He didn’t want to go to Uncle Ji’s house.
But he also didn’t want to make things difficult for his mother, so he reluctantly agreed.
“Business trip? Who is your aunt going on a business trip with?”
“Uncle Ji, her boss.”
Chengcheng waited a long time but didn’t hear Zhou Songyan agree.
He felt a bit disappointed.
“Never mind. If you won’t agree, I’ll just go to Uncle Ji’s house.”
“Who said you could go to Ji Wangyu’s house?”
“My aunt did. She’s not comfortable leaving me alone, and Uncle Ji has a housekeeper who can watch me.”
“Don’t go. Come to my house.”
Chengcheng pressed his lips together, suppressing a smile.
“Uncle, can you come pick me up tomorrow morning? We live in Heyun Residential Complex.”
“My aunt will take me to Uncle Ji’s place tomorrow morning. We’ll be catching a taxi at the complex entrance—come early.”
“Don’t tell my aunt that I told you the address. Just say…”
“Just say you found it out yourself.”
Zhou Songyan: “…”
So he was supposed to take the blame.
This little guy was small but clever—his mind was sharp.
What made Zhou Songyan even angrier was that Li Mai had lied to him again.
She didn’t live in that complex she mentioned last time at all.
He had glanced at it then—that complex wasn’t called that name.
What was Li Mai’s deal?
Deleting him from WeChat, giving him a fake address…
Was she afraid he’d cling to her?
How ridiculous!
“Uncle, are you listening?”
Zhou Songyan came back to his senses: “Yeah, I’ll come over tomorrow morning.”
“Goodbye, Uncle!”
Chengcheng hung up and ran to his room to pack his things.
When Li Mai came out from her shower, she saw Chengcheng packing clothes into his little suitcase and felt incredibly touched.
“Chengcheng, you’re so capable!”
“By the way, who was calling Mommy just now?”
“Spam call. I deleted it.”
“Oh.”
Li Mai didn’t think much of it and went to blow-dry her hair and do her skincare routine.
After finishing, she hung up the freshly washed laundry.
By the time she entered Chengcheng’s room…
The little guy was asleep.
His little hands were folded on his chest, sleeping in a proper position.
Li Mai crouched down.
Her fingers touched Chengcheng’s little face.
Her baby was too mature for his age—so mature it made her heart ache.
If it weren’t absolutely necessary, she wouldn’t send him to Ji Wangyu’s house either.
Li Mai sighed.
She stood up to check what Chengcheng had packed himself.
She added two more sets of clothes and packed toiletries.
Only then did she close the suitcase and quietly leave the room.
Li Mai returned to the master bedroom and continued packing her own things.
She kept busy until midnight before going to sleep.
The flight was at 11 a.m.
Li Mai needed to drop Chengcheng off at Ji Wangyu’s house first, so they left before 8 o’clock.
Walking toward the complex exit…
Li Mai reminded him: “Chengcheng, you need to behave at Uncle Ji’s house. Don’t run around. Eat whatever the housekeeper makes—don’t be picky. Whatever you want to eat, Mommy will make it for you when she gets back.”
Chengcheng nodded: “I know, Mommy.”
“The car Mommy called should be…”
Li Mai looked up and saw Zhou Songyan. The rest of her words got stuck in her throat.
Zhou Songyan was leaning against a silver sports car, the autumn breeze lifting his long black trench coat.
Li Mai was surprised that he knew she lived here.
Zhou Songyan strode over with his long legs and looked down at her from his height: “Awkward, isn’t it? Little liar.”
Li Mai: “…”
It was quite awkward.
“Mr. Zhou, how did you know I live here?”
Li Mai didn’t suspect at all that it was her own son who had done this.
Zhou Songyan: “It’s easy for me to find out anything about you.”
Li Mai believed he had that capability.
But she was in a hurry to take Chengcheng to Ji Wangyu’s house and had no time to chat with him.
“Mr. Zhou, I still have things to do. I’ll be going now.”
“Taking Chengcheng to Ji Wangyu’s house?”
“How do you know?”