"Want to be your daddy? Is he your mom's suitor?"
"The suitor... my mommy seems to have said the same thing. She said he is a friend and will not become my daddy."
"Well, if your mom said that, what else are you worried about?"
"But he often calls mommy and buys me things, but I don't really like him. Mommy only needs me!" The little girl's eyes looked quite annoyed.
On the side, Chu Feng Yi and Chu Qingchan seemed to understand somewhat. This is the normal reaction of a child afraid of having their love taken away.
But the little girl suddenly changed the subject: "I think my big brother would be a good daddy for me."
"Huh?!"
The Chu family sisters exclaimed together, then looked at each other, turned their heads away simultaneously, and stopped looking at each other.
"Why?"
Xu Lin found it amusing. How could this girl think someone she just met would be suitable as a dad?
"Because big brother tells stories very well, he's smart, and he sings well. He's very gentle and treats me well, and... my big brother is handsome."
"Haha, you really know how to talk, but big brother can't be your dad."
"Why not?"
"Well, your mom definitely wouldn't consider me."
Xu Lin didn't know what to say. After all, he didn't have a serious girlfriend yet. This reason wasn't wrong.
She's the chairman of a billion-dollar company, and he's just a regular student.
Apart from having a slightly better appearance, there wasn't much else about him that would make her look at him differently.
"What if mommy did consider you?"
The little girl continued to ask persistently.
"Little girl, you just said that mom only needs you, and besides, big brother, I'm not old enough to be your dad."
"Big brother, sister, and uncle and aunt are not the same age." She counted on her fingers, thinking cutely.
"Then when big brother grows up, he can be a daddy."
"Haha, okay, we'll wait until big brother grows up." Xu Lin just went along with it.
After chatting for a few more sentences outside, Ye Fanleng returned to the car, and the metal gate slowly opened, driving directly into the grass field.
"Miss Ye, just park the car over here." A young man waved to them, and they parked in a corner of the grass field.
[T/N: It is indeed'miss' here. It might be a little spoilery, but she is unmarried. [Shaoyao is her adopted daughter.]
After parking the car, everyone got out, and the handsome middle-aged man walked over with a few others.
But when he saw Xu Lin carrying Shaoyao out, his eyebrows twitched, and the smile on his lips cooled slightly but immediately regained its warmth.
"Everyone, let me introduce myself. I'm Zhang Qingzhen, Fanleng's high school teacher. Later, I met such an outstanding student like Fanleng, and my teaching career was also fulfilled."
"Now I do some small business, hoping to provide everyone with a place to exercise, play basketball, football, or whatever."
He fully displayed his Versailles abilities, but except for Xu Lin's nodding, the other two didn't respond at all, making him a bit awkward.
So he glanced at Ye Fanleng, and she said, "Let me introduce everyone."
"Business partner, Miss Chu Fengyi, and her sister, and this is their friend, Xu Lin."
"Well, what would you like to play? I basically have all the facilities here."
He continued to smile and speak, and although he was a bit unsure about Chu Fengyi's age, his main focus was still on Xu Lin and the little girl in his arms.
If she's just a friend of a business partner, why would he be holding her daughter in his arms? He bought gifts every time he saw her, and he has never seen her daughter so affectionate.
"I want to play badminton!" Shaoyao shouted.
"Alright, then let's play badminton. What about you two?" Xu Lin looked at Chu Qingchan and Chu Fengyi.
"I want to lie down and sleep, but since we're all here, Mr. Zhang, do you have a place for martial arts practice?" Chu Fengyi yawned, suddenly remembering that she and Xu Lin hadn't done their daily exercise yet.
"Miss Chu, do you want to practice dancing?" We do have a place for dancing."
"No, I mean a place for combat sports like wrestling."
"I didn't expect that; not many girls like martial arts nowadays. Taekwondo and Judo share a practice area that is currently unused. I'll have it opened for you, Xiao Li. Come over."
"Chu Fengyi, we came over to rest today. Do you still want to practice?"
"Of course, but we won't do evasion training today. It'll be purely offensive moves training."
"That's fine, then." Xu Lin breathed a sigh of relief; the other party was giving him some face. Otherwise, it would be embarrassing to get beaten up in front of so many people.
"Brother, don't fight."
"It's not fighting; it's practicing martial arts."
"Like the ones on TV, flying around?"
"Similar, but not as intense."
"Oh, okay. How about we play badminton first?" She coquettishly suggested, and not far away, Ye Fanleng also smiled at them.
Suddenly, Zhang Qingzhen felt a sense of unease. What's going on? The girl I have been chasing since her college days will not be abducted by this kid, right? Could it be that she has been rejecting me all along because she doesn't like men my age, preferring younger ones? But she spends all her time working every day; I haven't seen her...
After about fifteen minutes, they rode a cart across the field and arrived at the indoor badminton court. There were many people playing badminton, making it very lively.
"Brother, I'm really good at playing badminton!"
"Well, I'm not very good at badminton, so I probably can't beat you."
Xu Lin went straight into the court, holding Shaoyao. It's good to have the boss's arrangement; many people were waiting in line for a court, but they managed to secure one.
The other few people sat down nearby, and Zhang Qingzhen quickly sat down beside Ye Fanleng, while the little girl rolled her eyes at him from afar.
"Why do you dislike him so much? He seems like a decent person."
"I just don't really like him. Mommy also said he's not as good as he seems. She said, What was it? That many people actually have unseen sides to them."
"That's true." Xu Lin thought Ye Fanleng's words were spot on.
"Brother, let's start."
"Okay."
So the little girl took a unique children's badminton racket and began serving, but she succeeded in failing the first time and then again on the second attempt.
"I'll serve; you receive," Xu Lin said.
"Okay," the little girl blushed, raising the racket.
Xu Lin also lifted his arm, and before the shuttlecock even left, it fell directly to the ground.
"Brother also missed, haha!"
"Cough, I served properly."
To be honest, he really didn't know how to play badminton well, or rather, he hadn't played badminton since elementary school.
Concentrating, on the second try, he finally managed to control his strength and hit it out, landing right towards the little girl.
The little girl also jumped up and hit the shuttlecock, sending it flying back towards him, but because she wasn't tall enough and didn't have enough strength, it was blocked by the net.
"You guys, take down the net." Zhang Qingzhen, who was watching the scene, immediately waved, and several young people went up to remove the net.
"Hey, Fanleng, who is this young man?" He lowered his voice and asked the person beside him, Ye Fanleng.
"What do you mean?"
"Fanleng, you know what I mean."
"Male..."
Instantly, his eyes widened.
"Male friend."
"Phew~ Don't scare me."
"Teacher Zhang, we've known each other for so many years; please stop pursuing me. You're already 36 or 37; find a girl to settle down with; someone like Jiarou would be nice."
"She's not as good as you; no one is."
"Teacher Zhang, if I really liked you, would we still have been friends for almost 10 years? Even if I agreed, would your parents agree? I have a child with me."
"I can negotiate with the children! If it's not possible, we can still discuss it. Sometimes, titles..."
"Don't say anymore, Teacher Zhang; it's really not possible."
Ye Fanleng's face turned even colder, and Zhang Qingzhen also slapped his own mouth, unable to control his words.
After playing badminton for more than ten minutes like this, the little girl couldn't keep up anymore.
"Who wants to play badminton?"
"Sister, do you want to play?"
"I don't want to..."
"Oh? Are you scared? Afraid that the few things you have that can surpass me will become even fewer?" Chu Fengyi mocked again.
Chu Qingchan lifted her head directly and picked up the sports shoes prepared beside her. "Chu Fengyi, although I may not be as good as you in fighting or doing business..."
"But you shouldn't think that I'm inferior to you in everything! Come on, let me show you why I'm your sister!"