"I will not give up on you!!" He whispered. His gaze was full of determination.
Tang Li Mei felt her heartbeat fasten as she stared at those pale blue pearls.
"You..." Before she could say anything, they were distracted by the commotion outside.
'BAMMMM!!'
Soon they saw a woman dressed in a beige fur coat carrying an expensive bag walk in.
Her face was caked with makeup, her long blonde hair was curled up, and with pearls adorning her neck and high heels, she looked like a B-rated model.
"Bao'er!!!" She screeched.
"Mommy!!" The chubby boy quickly ran into her arms.
Her eyes widened when she took note of her child's swollen face and missing teeth.
"Who did this to you??" She asked in displeasure.
The little boy turned his head and pointed towards the little bun, who was cozily sitting in his mother's lap as her arms encircled his body.
The blonde woman looked at the mother-son pair before glaring at them.
"You!!! What kind of mother are you?? Is this what you teach your child?? To beat up other kids???" She questioned the black haired woman with pure annoyance.
"Only when the other kids are finding unnecessary trouble with him," the grey-eyed woman muttered.
The people in the room were dumbfounded.
The blonde-haired woman was stunned for a minute.
'What??'
Han Zhixin, on the other hand, smirked at her response.
Tang Li Mei barely looked toward her since she was busy checking the little one's wounds.
The little one smiled at her.
"How dare you!!! Give that bastard to me; let me teach him some manners. You can thank me later." Her hands extended to grab the little boy.
Han Zhixin stared at those approaching hands with animosity.
The little one curled up further in his mother's arms out of fright.
'He didn't want to go with this woman; he wanted to stay with his mama.'
Tang Li Mei's gaze sharpened as she caught the woman's hand and mercilessly twisted it.
"Pop"
The entire room turned silent when they heard the sinister sound of bones breaking.
However, the blue-eyed man simply smirked and dotingly gazed at the grey-eyed woman beside him.
The people in the room glanced at the cold beauty and soon felt a shiver run down their spines.
"Aaaaahhhhh"
Mrs. Huo's eyes were filled with tears.
She glared at the woman, but when she saw the menacing look, she stumbled back in fear.
When her eyes fell on the young man beside the grey-eyed beauty, her face heated up.
'This kind of man, what was he doing besides this slut???'
"You slut!!! Now I know where this bastard of yours got this habit from!! With a slut mother like you, what else can you teach him?? No wonder his father left you both!!" She cursed.
Although the pain was killing her, she couldn't let go of the embarrassment she felt in front of a man like him.
As they continued to listen to the woman's constant cussing, the people in the room felt awkward.
Li Suyin was rather annoyed by this woman; she had the urge to slap her, but when she took a quick look at her boss, an eerie grin appeared on her face.
Miss Wan, who was standing next to her, shuddered as she gave Li Suyin a sideways glance before quickly backing away.
Han Zhixin's pale blue eyes had a certain chill in them that he usually kept hidden.
He felt a surge of fury when he heard the woman curse Tang Li Mei and the little one mercilessly.
The atmosphere around him turned dark and ominous.
Just as he was about to call security to escort the woman out, he felt a change in the person beside him, and his lips hooked up.
There was a proud look in his eyes as he glanced at his woman.
Tang Li Mei stood up and placed her little bun on the bed.
"Take some rest. Mama will take you home once the discharge procedure is done. Okay," she informed him warmly.
The little boy nodded his head.
Tang Li Mei gave Han Zhixin a look, and he nodded in response. The tacit understanding between them surprised them, but now was not the time to mull over it.
"So Mrs. Huo wants to punish my son??" she calmly questioned.
Mrs. Huo felt her back being covered in sweat, not only from the pain but also from fear.
She felt as if she were being preyed on by Tang Li Mei.
"Yes, since your bastard child has harmed mine, then he should be punished for it." She sneered; however, the pain in her hand was killing her.
Tang Li Mei smiled.
But her calm and aloof smile gave chills to the people in the room.
"In that case, what would be the appropriate punishment for the mental stress your son has caused??" she asked.
"What do you mean??" She was dumbfounded by the grey-eyed woman's accusation.
Tang Li Mei simply smiled at her.
"Suyin"
"Yes, President!!" Li Suyin quickly passed her the tablet.
Tang Li Mei clicked on the video, and soon children's voices filled the room.
"Qinqin, don't play with him." A little boy's voice was heard.
"Bao'er, what do you mean?? Xun'er is our friend. We always play together." Qinqin replied.
"My mommy says that we shouldn't talk to people who are dirty; she said he is a bastard because he doesn't have a father," Bao'er replied arrogantly.
Qinqin looked at Xun'er and hesitated.
"Xun'er, tell them you have a papa like all of us," she said.
Tang Xun looked at all of his classmates and was unable to reply.
He clenched his hands tightly and held his tears at bay.
"See, I told you he doesn't have a father. Mommy says his mother is a bad woman; that's why his father left them," Bao'er explained as he angrily scolded the little boy.
The little bun felt his eyes moisten when they cursed his mother.
"My mama is not bad. She is the best mama in the whole world; you shouldn't talk about my mama like that!!" He screamed with tear-filled eyes.
Bao'er laughed at him and pushed him away.
The little boy felt agitated, and soon a punch landed on Bao'er, followed by children's cheers for a fight.
"Aaaaahhhhhh" the video paused.
"Oh, now we can talk about how to punish such a mannerless child. Shall we??" Tang Li Mei calmly asked, but a storm was brewing in her eyes.
The blonde-haired woman looked at her stupid son and clenched her teeth in anger.
The man in white had his hands clenched when he heard those words, and he glanced at the little boy.
The little bun sat quietly on the bed, staring at his hands.
He didn't know why, but he felt the urge to hug the little one in his arms and shield him from this sinister world.
He gently stroked the little bun's head, and the little fellow stared at him with tear-filled eyes.
His lips quivered.
Soon he climbed up in his arms and wrapped his arms tightly around his neck.
The man was stunned at this gesture.
These kinds of things were new to him; however, he was willing to try.
He relaxed himself and gently patted the little one's back.
************************
"Do you have to be so calculative towards a four-year-old?? Whatever my son said, is it not the truth?? Where is his father??" Mrs. Huo snarled.
Tang Li Mei felt her heart throb at the question.
"If my son is a bastard, then what should i call yours?? Aren't you still searching for his father??" She sneered.
The blonde-haired woman was alarmed by the things she heard.
"Karma is a funny thing, isn't it? Didn't you ask me where my child's father was?? I would like to ask you the same. Where is your child's father??" Tang Li Mei asked coldly.
Mrs. Huo felt the hair at the nape of her neck stand as she stood listening to this.
Her eyes held a visible amount of fear, and her palms became sweaty.
Tang Li Mei stared at the woman who was squirming under the stares of others.
She smirked before masking it with a loud gasp.
"Oh dear!!"
"Mrs. Huo, did I say something I shouldn't have?? Was this supposed to be a secret??" she snickered.
The sinister smile playing on her lips gave creeps to the people around her as they visibly gulped.
The blonde-haired woman stared at Tang Li Mei as if she had seen a demoness.
"How dare you teach a four-year-old all this rubbish?? How dare you insult my child?? Do you think his mother is dead??" She scowled.
Her piercing gaze frightened the blonde-haired woman to the core.
"What would happen if this kind of news got out of the room??" She questioned.
"You!!" the woman scowled.
"WHAT?? If you have the guts to talk about my family and insult them, then at least you should have the guts to face the consequences. So what if my child doesn't have a father?? At least I didn't cheat an innocent by asking him to take responsibility for my child. For my child, I can become a mother and a father figure. I don't need a man and his riches for that. If you have even an ounce of shame left in you, then tell them the truth and take responsibility for your mistakes. Then you can come and insult me all you want. I will at least have a little respect for you."
The woman's face was red with anger and humiliation. She never thought lousy teatime gossip would come back to bite her like this.
She was done for. If people came to know about this, then she would probably have to leave the country. She took a look at her child, who was staring back at her.
Mrs. Huo quickly picked up her son and ran out.
*********************************
Tang Li Mei turned around, and her eyes held a surprised look when she saw her little bun snuggling in a stranger's arms.
This was something new; she slowly walked towards them and picked up the little one in her arms.
The little boy tightly held his mother and snuggled in her arms.
Han Zhixin looked at Tang Li Mei in a new light. He was proud of the way she stood up for herself and her child.
He was slowly getting to know her.
Although he wanted to hug the mother-son pair and shower them with love, he didn't want to further agitate his woman with his ways.
What he needs to do to win her heart is to be patient.
Tang Li Mei sat on the bed with her little bun in her arms and continued to watch the video. Han Zhixin stood beside her, watching it with her.
"Xun'er, how many times has Mama told you to keep your chin up and your hands need to be straight here? Look at this pose; if you had bent your leg a little more here, this kick would have been ten times more effective." She nagged the little one like a strict teacher.
"Once your wounds are healed, you are to start practicing martial arts again. Do you understand?"
The young boy quickly stood up straight on the bed and replied,
"Yes Ma'm"
Han Zhixin's lips curled up as he sat beside the two and pointed out
"Xun'er, look at this one. Your fingers need to be tightly clenched, and your thumb needs to be securely wrapped around your second and third knuckles. Your fist should look like a solid, flat brick, like this," he explained with his fist. Tang Li Mei absent-mindedly nodded her head while the little bun seriously listened to all the rules and practiced.
Doctor Lu and Teacher Wan felt their eyes twitch.
'What kind of parents teach their kids like this???'
Li Suyin's eyes sparkled with mischief.
She carefully took a photo of the three and sent it to their group of five with the caption.
'It seems like our boss's bachelor days are soon going to be over.'
Soon, tons of messages flooded her phone.
Miss Wan and Doctor Lu were completely worn out by the roller coaster of emotions they went through in the past hour.
They now had a second-hand experience of why the Tang Corporation's president is famously known as a demoness.
The door to the private room opened as a doctor walked in. He looked worn out as he walked inside.
"Chief Operation Theater 5 needs your assistance," he informed.
Han Zhixin nodded and looked towards Tang Li Mei. His eyes held mixed emotions.
He didn't want to leave her at a time like this; he wanted to be here with them more than anything, but...
"Doctor Lu will help you with the discharge procedure. Right now, the little one's temperature is normal, but if there's any change, then quickly call me," he explained as he patted the little one's head.
He passed his card to her and walked out.
Tang Li Mei held the card in her hand and stared at it.
"Han Zhixin, President of SH Group." She whispered.