Doctor Lu Always Wants To Steal My Baby! Chapter 37
byChapter 37 A Bowl of Noodles
“He really made that demand, not choosing a godfather?” As the family boarded the hovercar, Xia Xue frowned and muttered, “What about the promise he made to us before? Why the sudden change…”
“It’s not sudden,” He Siyuan said coldly. “I doubt he ever truly intended for me to be He Leyan’s godfather.”
“Are you saying he was just stalling before?” He Hongsheng, He family’s second maternal uncle, asked—he was He Yayun’s biological brother and was riding in the same car as the family of three.
“I suspect he has never been loyal to the family and has been constantly putting on an act. It’s ridiculous that First Uncle and the others don’t believe it and still want to promote him. Second Uncle, you must be cautious—” He Siyuan’s expression was grim. Before he could say more, his terminal chimed.
He looked down, his face changing slightly. He shifted his body to block the terminal, his eyes vicious as he replied to something.
He Hongsheng glanced at He Yayun, who had been unusually silent since getting into the car. “Someone is responsible for him not being loyal to the family.”
“The He family doesn’t need a bastard,” He Yayun said coldly.
Sitting in the back, Xia Xue’s expression was strange upon hearing this. Although she knew her mother-in-law was biased, hearing it firsthand was still…
What kind of person calls their own child a “bastard”?
But that wasn’t the main point. The main point was—”If he can’t be the godfather, won’t He Leyan be completely under He Chen’s control?”
He Leyan was the next “Lu Changqing.” Lu Changqing wielded immense power; He Siyuan had to pull strings just to get him for treatment. With just Lu Changqing alone, the Lu family could get anything done smoothly, with people clearing the path for them.
Xia Xue’s family specialized in business, and she considered herself quite business-savvy. She had long envisioned how she would leverage He Leyan to amass great wealth—what a beautiful prospect!
“Even without a godfather, he still carries the He surname,” He Siyuan said lightly. Just because he wasn’t the godfather didn’t mean he couldn’t control He Leyan.
Han Jin died, and then He Chen became He Leyan’s father. What if He Chen died?
Based on blood ties and kinship, it would naturally fall to him, the paternal uncle, to adopt the child.
Unfortunately, the hasty attempt that day failed…
“What does that mean? Didn’t you say He Chen wasn’t loyal to the family?” Xia Xue didn’t understand what her husband meant.
He Hongsheng, however, looked at his refined nephew.
He Siyuan also looked at He Hongsheng. “Second Uncle, He Chen is deliberately opposing the family, and he is still the garrison commander of Hanhe. The matter with the Star Pirates might not go smoothly. Also, he seems to be very close to Lu Changqing. Has he been secretly bought off by the Lu family?”
“Close to Lu Changqing?” He Hongsheng looked back at He Siyuan and snorted. “Who told me that he was highly favored by Lu Changqing and even received treatment from him personally?”
He Siyuan’s handsome face twisted. Recalling the last time Lu Changqing treated him, his mood grew even darker.
That probably wasn’t treatment at all. He felt foolish for believing it.
But why? Why did He Chen receive such protection from Lu Changqing… He Siyuan was grinding his teeth in hatred:
“In any case, something is wrong with He Chen, Uncle. Be careful not to raise a tiger that will turn on you—”
As he spoke viciously, he suddenly met He Yayun’s gaze. Mother and son locked eyes. He Siyuan’s heart sank—he had never revealed his true thoughts in front of He Yayun before.
However, He Yayun didn’t say a word. After a glance, she coldly withdrew her gaze, as if it were none of her business.
“Going together? What are you looking at, Senior Brother?” After buckling He Leyan into the hovercar, He Chen looked at Lu Changqing curiously.
Lu Changqing watched He Siyuan’s hovercar leave, then withdrew his gaze. “Nothing, just thinking about a few things.”
He spoke, preparing to get into the driver’s seat, but looked down to see He Chen already sitting there excitedly, opening the manual driving mode like playing with a toy.
Lu Changqing subtly curved his lips and got into the back seat to fasten He Leyan’s safety belt.
As the belt clicked, He Leyan suddenly remembered something. He dug and dug in the pocket of his beautiful little formal suit and pulled out two crumbled pieces of pastry.
“Not full?” Lu Changqing asked.
“No.” He Leyan looked at the crushed, no-longer-pretty pastry, his little face falling slightly. Still, he stretched his hand forward, offering it to He Chen—”Daddy didn’t eat enough.”
He Chen had been called away for the martial arts competition halfway through the banquet, and then went to see the Emperor afterward. He hadn’t had time to eat at all.
He Leyan had seen He Chen eat three bowls of rice in one sitting and knew he must be hungry. When Consort He was feeding him earlier in the main hall, he had secretly hidden two pieces of pastry for He Chen.
Unfortunately, they got crushed.
He Chen didn’t mind the crushed pastry at all. “Thank you, sweetie!”
He even took the two miniature pieces of pastry right from He Leyan’s hand and swallowed them whole. “Delicious!”
“Are you sure you can taste it?” Lu Changqing watched his actions the entire time.
“Of course, it’s very sweet.” He Chen proudly looked at Lu Changqing through the rearview mirror—he blindly guessed that Lu Changqing was jealous; Leyan only brought him pastry!
However, Lu Changqing was focused on wiping He Leyan’s hands, seemingly not paying attention to him at all.
“Ahem!” Seeing Lu Changqing meticulously caring for He Leyan, He Chen felt guilty again. “Senior Brother, about the godfather matter, I wasn’t trying to freeload.”
“What is ‘freeloading’?” He Leyan had been wanting to ask.
“It means getting treatment without paying,” He Chen explained to his son, then looked at Lu Changqing. “Senior Brother, no matter which doctor from the Medical Academy treats Leyan, I will pay the consultation fees normally.”
He promised.
“You are already paying,” Lu Changqing said. “There’s no need to feel guilty. Everyone is helping Leyan voluntarily. You don’t owe anyone anything, and you shouldn’t feel morally obligated.”
Hearing this, the burden on He Chen’s heart genuinely lightened. “Thank you for understanding, Senior Brother.”
“You’re welcome,” Lu Changqing said, patting He Leyan’s back and wiping his sweat.
He Leyan leaned quietly against his Dad. After a whole day of commotion, the little guy was starting to feel sleepy.
He Chen slowed the car down and drove more smoothly.
“Congratulations on your promotion to Major General,” Lu Changqing said softly, looking at He Chen.
“Thank you,” He Chen replied, but his face showed little joy—less than when he first touched the steering wheel of Lu Changqing’s hovercar, and certainly less than when He Leyan gave him the pastry.
“So calm?” Lu Changqing asked.
“Yeah, it’s not that big of a deal,” He Chen said. “However—”
He paused.
“However what?”
“However, it does fulfill a wish from my youth.”
He Chen fell silent after speaking.
It was actually a wish made jokingly by four people: to achieve the rank of general together someday.
Now, he had achieved it. Alone, with no one present.
In their youth, they truly didn’t know the immensity of the world, thinking this general’s star was some great prize.
He Chen thought, lifting his eyes to look at He Leyan in the rearview mirror.
Among the four of them, Jin Ge was the most serious about this wish. He was strict and self-disciplined, obsessively trying to improve himself, climb higher, and see the view from the top.
But Jin Ge’s dying confession revealed that only in his final moments did he suddenly realize that more than being a general, he wanted a family. That’s why he went to the gene bank to match for a child, like buying a lottery ticket, with an expectation he couldn’t quite articulate.
“You are still young now,” Lu Changqing spoke, recalling He Chen’s wandering thoughts.
“Thank you, Senior Brother.” He Chen forced a relaxed smile. Meeting Lu Changqing’s calm and profound eyes, he was momentarily stunned and quickly shifted his gaze.
He also changed the subject—
“The house next door is ready. Moyan is waiting there too. Senior Brother, Leyan and I will move next door tonight.”
“Mhm, alright,” Lu Changqing responded calmly, tapping his fingers on his knee.
“Can Dad come sleep with us?” A sleepy He Leyan lifted his small head to ask. The new room was spacious, the bed was huge, and he wanted to invite his Dad to sleep with them!
“Don’t talk nonsense, Leyan!” He Chen was embarrassed. “Daddy will sleep with you tonight. You don’t need to be scared.”
“I’m not scared,” He Leyan said softly. “Isn’t today a holiday for everyone to reunite? If we move out, won’t Dad have to celebrate alone?”
“This isn’t reuniting at all!”
He Chen was startled and looked into the rearview mirror. Lu Changqing in the mirror was serious, calmly coaxing the child: “As long as the heart is reunited, it doesn’t matter where you sleep.”
“Besides, the holiday is celebrated during the day. We have already reunited.”
“Really?” He Leyan, who hadn’t even finished kindergarten, was skeptical but couldn’t find evidence to argue against it.
He Chen also nodded.
Surely two adults wouldn’t lie to him? He Leyan accepted it and got out of the hovercar.
They still went to Lu Changqing’s house first—to pack their luggage.
Lu Changqing didn’t say anything. While He Chen and He Leyan were packing upstairs, he went into the kitchen and cooked a bowl of noodles.
When He Chen came downstairs carrying his suitcase, the noodles were already set on the table. “Pastry isn’t filling enough, have a little more.”
“Thank you.” He Chen looked at the steaming bowl of noodles, then at Lu Changqing, who had his sleeves rolled up, wore an apron, and possessed a reserved and steady demeanor.
Was he usually this caring and thoughtful?
Or was it… “Understanding, and then acting accordingly”? Was he doing all this to win over him, his partner?
That seemed unnecessary. His value wasn’t that high…
He Chen was conflicted but sat down to eat the noodles.
What ingredients did he add? It was savory and delicious.
But he absolutely wouldn’t drop his guard just because of a bowl of noodles. Absolutely not.
He Chen finished the noodles, drank the soup, and stood up with firm resolve. “Is there any more?”
Lu Changqing was reading a bedtime story to He Leyan. He looked up at He Chen. “There’s one more bowl in the pot.”
He Chen slipped into the kitchen, scooped the remaining noodles into a bowl, and while eating, involuntarily looked toward Lu Changqing and He Leyan in the living room. The warm yellow light shone over their heads, making He Chen think of the word “home” for the second time that night, for some reason.
Tightening his grip on the chopsticks, He Chen withdrew his gaze, quickly finished the noodles, washed the bowl, and then bid farewell with He Leyan.
He Leyan was reluctant to leave, turning back every few steps. After walking quite a distance, he ran back to hug Lu Changqing, who was standing at the door. “Dad, good night.”
“Good night.” Lu Changqing smiled genuinely, picked him up for a kiss, and then set him down. “Go to sleep now. Come here for breakfast tomorrow morning.”
“What are we eating?” He Leyan’s eyes immediately lit up, his previous reluctance seemingly a misconception.
“Little duck crepes,” Lu Changqing replied.
“Okay!” He Leyan answered loudly, happily running back to He Chen and naturally taking his hand again.
So, what exactly were crepes… He Chen swallowed.
“Will Junior Brother and Moyan join us for breakfast tomorrow?” Lu Changqing observed him and asked proactively.
“Ahem, that would be troubling you, Senior Brother.” He mainly wanted to see how the crepes were made so he could tell Old Wang later.
“Don’t mention it,” Lu Changqing slightly curved his lips, silently watching them walk toward the house next door.
Turning back, he looked at the much emptier living room. He narrowed his eyes for a moment, then walked toward the kitchen without lingering.
The moment his hand reached for the flour bag, his terminal chimed. Lu Changqing raised his wrist to look, paused for a moment, and then headed to the garage.
“Did the Emperor bring up Zero specifically because he suspected something?”
A moment later. At the Lu family’s old residence, Lu Jingshan asked Lu Changqing, who had just entered.
“I don’t know. I didn’t hear him mention it beforehand,” Lu Changqing replied, his expression cold.
“Did he agree to your trip to the Hanhe Base? Did he raise any suspicion?” Lu Jingshan asked again, his expression even colder than Lu Changqing’s.
Although father and son were speaking, neither looked at the other.
“He agreed. He arranged for a few people to go with me to assist.”
“Assist you?” Lu Jingshan sneered.
He stopped smiling instantly, then said coldly and irritably, “You must leave as soon as possible. Once you are there, act discreetly.”
“Yes,” Lu Changqing responded.
“Once the ore is mined, assemble it directly there to avoid complications.”
“Father is wise,” Lu Changqing said.
Lu Jingshan glanced at him, a flicker of disgust crossing his features. He took out a small porcelain bottle and placed it on the table beside him.
“This month’s medicine. Take it and get out. I don’t want to see you,” he said, turning to leave.
“Thank you, Father,” Lu Changqing said, curving his lips. His eyes, however, were equally cold, even colder, as he picked up the medicine bottle and returned to his own residence.
Inside the bottle were two black pills. As Lu Changqing walked into his courtyard, he poured out the two pills, casually crushed them, and tossed them into the water feature without hesitation.
Then he gave an order: “Do not allow anyone to disturb me.”
“Understood.” A dark shadow flickered and silently vanished.
Lu Changqing entered the house, closed the door, and walked at a steady pace into a dark room.
A moment later, the sound of rushing water came from the dark room. Beneath the water noise, there were intermittent sounds of something tearing, and very occasionally, one or two low, suppressed groans of pain.
Dark red blood continuously flowed into the floor drain and seeped into the ground, nourishing the roots of many plants in the courtyard.
Allowing them to crisscross, weave a net, and savagely grow upward in the darkness!