This was the sense of home that Lu Chuanbai had always yearned for.
Lu Chuanbai's gaze fell on the two kids who were distributing chopsticks around the table. There was a tinge of desolation in his bearing.
Xu An'an looked up and met Lu Chuanbai's gaze. She quickly lowered her head, pretending to be nonchalant.
After distributing the chopsticks, Xu An'an quietly pulled Xu Yiyi aside.
"Brother, I just met Lu... Dad... Uncle Lu's gaze. He seemed extremely sad."
After learning that Lu Chuanbai was actually their biological father, Xu An'an felt awkward and conflicted about how to address him.
Although Xu Yiyi was also somewhat touched, he still said awkwardly, "We haven't confirmed the paternity test results yet..."
Waiting for the paternity test results was the only excuse Xu Yiyi could come up with.
Otherwise, he always felt it would be strange to directly recognize Lu Chuanbai as his father.
"Brother, what should we do about the garden party the day after tomorrow? Mom is injured, and Grandpa and Grandma can't participate."
Xu An'an propped her small hands under her chin. Her apple cheeks puffed up, making her look like a little hamster with its cheeks full of food.
At their previous kindergarten's garden party, Xu Qingqing had participated. But because she was not as heavy as the other kids' dads, she lost the competition.
"What can we do? We can only ask the teacher for leave," Xu Yiyi said, his bun-like face drooping and the corners of his mouth turning down.
"Otherwise, let's ask..."
Before Xu An'an could finish her sentence, Xu Yiyi flatly refused.
"No way."
They were still in a cold war with Uncle Lu. It would be too embarrassing to ask him now.
When all the dishes were served, Xu's mother greeted Lu Chuanbai, who was still in the hallway changing his shoes, to come and eat. "Just treat this as your own home. Don't be so reserved."
"Thank you, Auntie," Lu Chuanbai said. He put Xu Qingqing's clothes on the sofa and gently walked towards the two kids sitting on the carpet in front of the sofa.
"Yiyi, An'an, come and have dinner."
The two kids didn't respond. They just got up and went to the table.
The light in Lu Chuanbai's eyes dimmed, but he comforted himself.
This was the result he deserved. He couldn't get discouraged so quickly.
While helping to serve the rice, Xu's mother asked Xu Qingqing, who had come downstairs in her home clothes, "Where's your brother? Isn't he coming back for dinner?"
Xu Qingqing was worried that telling the truth would make her parents angry, so she casually replied, "My brother has some urgent work at the company. He has to go and deal with it first."
"A workaholic!" Xu's mother shook her head.
"For a man, it's important to focus on his career," Xu Qingqing said in defense of Xu Yan. She thought to herself that she had to find a way to get the car repaired when her parents weren't paying attention.
Alas, she wondered how her brother was doing. She hoped that Xu Yan wouldn't get into a fight with someone because of his impulsiveness. Otherwise, he would surely get beaten up.
During the meal, Lu Chuanbai kept peeling shrimps for Xu Yiyi and Xu An'an.
Xu Yiyi and Xu An'an ignored the shrimps on their plates. They let Lu Chuanbai pile up the shrimps like a small mountain but didn't eat any. They just ate their rice on their own.
Xu Qingqing saw this. To save Lu Chuanbai from embarrassment, she smiled and picked up the shrimps from the kids' plates.
"Yiyi and An'an don't want to eat the shrimps. Then Mom will eat them. Mom just needs to supplement some calcium to recover," she said.
On one side, Xu's mother added a bowl of soup for Xu Qingqing and frowned.
"These two kids have been feeling gloomy these days. I thought they missed their mom. But why aren't they happy now that their mom is back?"
"Grandma, we're not unhappy," Xu Yiyi explained.
"Right," Xu's mother suddenly remembered the notice the teacher had given her when she picked up the two kids from school.
"There's a garden party at school the day after tomorrow. Parents are required to attend. Your dad and I are too old to participate in those young people's games. And Qingqing's back is injured."
"Otherwise, let Chuanbai go instead of you. Anyway, everyone in the kindergarten thinks Chuanbai is Yiyi and An'an's dad."
Hearing Xu's mother's words, more guilt welled up in Lu Chuanbai's heart. He didn't want to lie to kind Auntie Xu anymore.
So Lu Chuanbai decided to admit the truth. "Auntie, actually... I'm Yiyi and An'an's biological father."
"I don't want to! I don't want to go to the garden party with him!"
Xu Yiyi and Lu Chuanbai's words blurted out at the same time. Suddenly, the table fell silent.
Lu Chuanbai looked at Xu Yiyi with a hurt expression. His hand gripping the chopsticks tightened until his knuckles turned white.
Xu Yiyi avoided Lu Chuanbai's gaze. His hand under the table clenched his pants tightly.
No!
He actually... actually hoped that Uncle Lu would go. But why was he always being so stubborn?
Snap!
The shrimp that Xu Qingqing was holding with her chopsticks fell onto the table. She was stunned after hearing Lu Chuanbai's confession.
Xu Qingqing had been thinking about how to tell her parents the truth gently. She even planned not to tell them at all to avoid making them angry.
But she never expected that Lu Chuanbai would reveal the truth without discussing it with her!
Moreover, Xu Yiyi's rejection of Lu Chuanbai was stronger than she had imagined.
"What did you say?" Xu's father squinted his eyes after hearing Lu Chuanbai's words. His face turned as black as the bottom of a pot.
Xu Qingqing had suffered so much while raising the two kids abroad. Xu's father had long hated the bastard who had made his daughter pregnant.
He even swore that if he ever met that guy, he would teach him a good lesson and ruin his reputation!
But he never expected that the heartless bastard who had abandoned his wife and children was right beside him!
He had even been nice to this scumbag and thought he could be a good son-in-law!
"Chuanbai, are you joking? Auntie knows you like Yiyi and An'an, but lying..." Xu's mother's face also looked unpleasant. She tried to smooth things over.
If Lu Chuanbai was a suitor who didn't mind that Xu Qingqing had two kids, Xu's mother would be very satisfied with him.
But if Lu Chuanbai was really the heartless man who had abandoned her daughter for several years, Xu's mother would find him disgusting!
"Auntie, Uncle, I'm telling the truth. I'm sorry to Qingqing and the two kids. I'll definitely make up for them in the future..."
Xu's father directly threw the bowl of rice in his hand at Lu Chuanbai. It hit Lu Chuanbai's chest, and the bowl rolled onto the ground.
"I'm sorry, Uncle," Lu Chuanbai said, showing no change in expression as if he didn't feel the pain.
"Dad, what are you doing?" Xu Qingqing was startled. She quickly reached out to pat off the rice stuck to Lu Chuanbai's chest.
She looked at her furious father and pushed Lu Chuanbai away. "Chuanbai, you'd better go first. Come back after my parents calm down."
Otherwise, even she, as a daughter, wouldn't know how to handle the situation!
"Get out of here! Our family doesn't welcome you!"
"Don't come to see my daughter and the two kids again!"
Xu's father was so angry that his chest hurt. He pointed at Lu Chuanbai with a trembling hand.
If it weren't for Xu's mother holding him back, Xu's father would have rushed up to punch Lu Chuanbai hard!