Chapter 531: Chapter 470: Keeping the Child

“Our second son… he’s been busy these past few days and couldn’t come. He asked me to visit you in his place.” Sang Luo offered an excuse for her son, ashamed.

You Hua looked at her and suddenly smiled. “Thank you for your kindness, Madam, but I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. The child I’m carrying isn’t his. It’s from another male.”

“But didn’t you say…”

“I wasn’t in my right mind. I wanted to get something out of you, so I intentionally lied.”

Sang Luo was speechless. “Is what you’re saying true?”

“I know perfectly well who this child’s father is. I’m sorry to have troubled you to come all this way for nothing, Madam. If you and the City Lord wish to punish me, I will accept it,” You Hua said, terrified.

Sang Luo looked at her with a complicated expression. “If that’s the case, I won’t ask any more questions. Take these nutritional supplements and use them.”

“Thank you, Madam. I have other things to attend to, so I won’t keep you.”

“Alright. If you run into any other difficulties, you can send someone to inform the City Lord Mansion in Ice-breaking City.”

…

After Sang Luo returned to the city, she told her second son what had happened.

Zhuizui let out a visible sigh of relief. “See? I told you it couldn’t possibly be my child.”

“Stay away from those bad influences from now on. If something like this happens again, you can just wait for your father to kick you out of the house.”

“Mom, I told you, it was really just an accident that day! I was drunk and mistook her for someone else. If she hadn’t appeared right in front of me, and if there hadn’t been anyone else around at the time, I wouldn’t have…”

“Who did you mistake her for?”

Zhuizui’s expression darkened. “The Great Elder’s granddaughter, Fu Rao.”

Sang Luo thought for a moment. “I know that girl. She pursued Little Stone back in the day, but Little Stone wasn’t interested in her.”

Zhuizui’s face grew even uglier. “Yes, she likes my older brother. When she slept with me back then, she even called out his name… I gave her my first time, and she only offered to let me be her second Concubine! On what grounds? How am I any worse than my brother!”

Sang Luo gave a bitter smile. “There are so many ways you don’t measure up to Little Stone. Since you were children, you could never match his studies, you don’t have his talent, and you certainly don’t have his diligence or perseverance.”

“Mom—you!” Zhuizui’s face flushed with anger. He couldn’t believe that even his own mother had always thought this way.

“And the most important point: if Little Stone had encountered this situation, he would have definitely taken responsibility as a father, not shirked it and run away.” Sang Luo looked at her son with a mix of emotions, not knowing what to say. “…I always feel like you haven’t grown up yet. You’re still like a child.”

The young man wasn’t a fool. He naturally understood the unspoken meaning behind his mother’s words. His face flushed red with shame, and he clenched his fists. “If it really were my child, I would definitely raise it. But she admitted herself that it’s not mine! Let’s just consider this matter over. I won’t be like this again in the future.”

“Remember what you said today. If you’re ever this careless again, even I won’t be able to help you.”

…

Sang Luo had thought the matter was over, but unexpectedly, a few months later, she received a piece of news.

—You Hua had committed suicide by throwing herself into a lake.

She killed herself just a few days after giving birth. Rumors were spreading that she had been abandoned by a male and had taken her own life out of heartbreak.

When Zhuizui heard the news, he looked as if his soul had left his body. “I… I didn’t want her to…”

He hadn’t wanted to harm her.

He rushed to the Muta Tribe that same day but didn’t see You Hua’s body. He heard it had been mangled by the fish in the lake, and the tribespeople had only managed to hastily retrieve some severed limbs to be cremated.

She had left behind only a child.

The child was found by the lakeside. Perhaps she had intended to die with the child but couldn’t bring herself to do it in the end, so she left the baby behind.

Zhuizui went to the old village chief’s home and saw the child.

It was an extremely frail little Wolf Pup. Its yellow-gray fur was dry and matted, and it was so thin you could faintly see its skeleton, making its head look enormous.

It had lost its mother just days after birth and had no mother’s milk to drink.

You Hua was an orphan, so she had no family or relatives to look after the child. Only the old village chief, taking pity on the baby, fed it some leftover meat from his home. But the energy this child needed to grow far exceeded that of an ordinary cub in the tribe. It was impossible to feed it enough, and it was suffering from malnutrition.

The very first time Zhuizui saw the child, a tremor rose from the depths of his soul. It was the call of his own bloodline! He was absolutely certain this was his biological child!

His vision swam, his blood ran cold, and a deafening roar seemed to crash through his mind. His strength suddenly gave out, and he collapsed to his knees.

“Young Master, is this… your child?” the old village chief asked hesitantly as he walked over, holding the swaddled baby.

Zhuizui took the child with trembling hands.

The pitiful little Wolf Pup stared blankly at him with its exceptionally large eyes, as if curious about who he was.

“I… I’m your father. I’m so sorry.”

…

That day, a freezing rain began to fall. Zhuizui returned, completely devastated, with the child in his arms.

Sang Luo was waiting for him outside the door, her robes damp with sleet.

“Mom, I brought the child back. It’s my biological child… a little female…” His throat was tight, and it sounded like he might burst into tears at any moment. “I’ve failed this child. She’s nothing but skin and bones. If only I had gone to see her sooner, brought her back…”

He couldn’t dare to imagine it: if he had truly refused to acknowledge the child, his own flesh and blood would have likely starved to death.

“Bring her here. Let me see.” Sang Luo held out her arms.

Zhuizui staggered forward and handed the child to her, his expression desolate.

“This poor child. She’s so thin she’s almost lost her shape. When I gave birth to you all, every one of you was fair and chubby.”

Sang Luo gazed lovingly at the frail little Wolf Pup in the swaddling, and her heartbroken tone made Zhuizui’s own heart pound with fear.

He asked fearfully, “The child will be okay, won’t she?”

“Her life isn’t in danger. This child’s constitution is much stronger than an ordinary cub’s. She’s just too thin from starvation. We’ll have to give her plenty of supplements from now on.” Sang Luo looked at the little Wolf Pup, remembering her own children when they were young. This pup’s eyes looked just like Zhuizui’s. “It’s a shame her innate talent isn’t very strong, but her future achievements won’t be low. Let’s raise her well.”

“Okay.” Zhuizui took the child back and looked at the little Wolf Pup’s round, bright eyes. He looked at Sang Luo with newfound resolve. “Mom, I’m planning to move out. You were right. I’m so far behind my older brother. I just hang around the house all day with nothing to do, only causing trouble. It’s time I was like my brother and third sister, and go out to find a life of my own.”

It was as if he had grown up overnight.

Sang Luo felt both gratified and emotional. “You’re moving out too? It’ll really just be your father left at home now.”

Zhuizui’s eyes showed his confusion. “I… My head is a mess right now. I don’t know what to do. I want to go out and get some peace and quiet, to think clearly about what I really want to do with my life.”

“Alright, go on then. Your father and I will be here. You can come back whenever you want.” Sang Luo glanced inside the house. “Your father is angry with you, but it’s only because he’s disappointed you haven’t lived up to your potential.”

“I’m sorry, Dad. Mom.” Zhuizui looked at the child in his arms, his voice choked with emotion. “And I’m sorry to her, too.”

“You have to look forward, no matter what. The child is still here, so you must bear the responsibility of a father.”

Lan Cang came out with a warmed bottle, took the whimpering Wolf Pup from Zhuizui’s arms, and skillfully began to feed the baby.

As soon as the little Wolf Pup smelled the fragrant milk, it instinctively latched onto the nipple. “GLUG, GLUG, GLUG~” It quickly finished the entire large bottle of formula.

Zhuizui held his breath as he watched, looking completely at a loss.

Lan Cang looked at the little Wolf Pup smacking its lips, still wanting more. His expression was surprisingly gentle. “Don’t be in such a hurry to leave. You have no experience raising a child. Let her stay at home for now. I’ll help you take care of her.”

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