Chapter 212:
If – Child-Rearing Arc: Previous Life’s Zaizai 5
Shen Wen arrived at the small, somewhat dilapidated orphanage and looked up at the building.
The director stood at the entrance, anxiously waiting for the children to return.
The older children who hadn’t gone to the zoo were also there, clustered around her, their eyes fixed on the approaching bus.
Seeing a young man with long, golden hair get off the bus, the director paused, a flicker of surprise in her eyes.
“Who are you?”
Shen Wen didn’t answer immediately, but led Xing Nuo off the bus, ruffling his hair.
“Xing Nuo, go inside.”
Xing Nuo nodded and ran into the orphanage with the other children.
The director, seeing that Shen Wen wanted to talk to her, led him to a quiet spot under a tree, her expression kind and gentle.
“Can I help you?”
Shen Wen stated his purpose directly:
“I’d like to adopt Xing Nuo.”
The director, having guessed his intention, wasn’t entirely surprised, but she still said:
“There are requirements for adoption. And Xing Nuo is a lovely child. He has many potential adopters.”
A couple had just expressed their interest a few days ago.
Shen Wen nodded, but his heart was set. He felt a connection with Xing Nuo, a sense of destiny.
“I understand. My lawyer will contact you this afternoon. I’m planning to donate five million yuan to the orphanage.”
The director, who had been leaning towards the teacher couple, was stunned by his generosity.
They had received donations before, but the largest had been less than a million. Five million was an incredible sum.
With such financial support, Xing Nuo’s future would be secure.
The director, speechless for a moment, then sighed and said:
“Ultimately, it depends on Xing Nuo’s decision.”
During dinner.
Xing Nuo, having eaten a lot on the bus, only had a small bowl of soup, barely touching his food.
The director and a caregiver were looking after the children, and seeing Xing Nuo finish his soup, the director walked over and gently wiped his mouth.
“Xing Nuo, did you like that blond-haired mister today?”
Xing Nuo’s eyes sparkled, and he nodded eagerly.
“Like!”
He touched his curly hair, his eyes shining.
“Mister’s hair…yellow…like mine!”
Seeing his excitement, so different from his reaction to the couple earlier, the director understood.
She nodded, thinking, It’s for the best.
Such a sweet child deserves a good home.
“If that mister becomes your daddy, would you like that?”
Xing Nuo froze, his eyes wide with hope, then he lowered his head, his voice small.
“But…what if…Mister no want be Zaizai’s daddy?”
The director, her heart melting at his innocent worry, ruffled his hair.
“Don’t worry. He likes you too.”
Xing Nuo’s eyes lit up again.
At bedtime.
Xing Nuo, lying in his small bed, neatly tucked in, his little hands clutching the blanket, his mind racing.
Did Gwandma really say…Mister can be my daddy?
Then Zaizai will have a daddy with the same hair color!
The thought made him smile, and he drifted off to sleep, his dreams filled with happy images.
At the Shen family’s old mansion.
Shen Wen returned and saw his father, the family patriarch, having dinner with Shen Yan and Shen Baizhou, two children of his father’s war buddies.
They were currently registered under Shen Wen’s household, calling his father “Grandpa,” making Shen Wen their “uncle,” technically.
Shen Wen sat down, and Shen Yan, a polite and mature young man despite being only seventeen or eighteen, greeted him respectfully.
“Uncle.”
Shen Wen hummed in acknowledgment, glancing at Shen Baizhou, who was shoveling food into his mouth like a starving animal, and announced:
“I’m adopting a child.”
His father slammed his cane on the floor.
“What nonsense are you talking about?!”
Shen Baizhou, also surprised, his eyes wide, asked:
“So, I’ll have a little brother?”
Shen Wen smiled faintly, his lips curving slightly, and nodded.
“Yes. He looks a lot like me. You’ll like him.”
Shen Yan didn’t comment, having been adopted by the Shen family himself. He didn’t mind Shen Wen adopting a child.
But his father was furious, knowing Shen Wen’s sexual orientation, thinking he was deliberately defying him.
But Shen Wen, his demeanor calm but aloof, ignoring his father’s outburst, finished his dinner and left.
The next morning.
The children at the orphanage were having breakfast.
Xing Nuo, holding his small bowl, carefully blew on his hot soup, most of it cooling down and evaporating before he finally took a small sip.
A child next to him, however, was gulping down his soup, spilling it everywhere.
Xing Nuo and the little girl sitting beside him, used to this, took out tissues and wiped his clothes.
But the boy, unfazed by the mess, just shrugged and ran off.
Xing Nuo put the tissue back in his pocket and continued eating his soup quietly.
Shen Wen entered and saw the little one sitting there, eating so neatly, and his heart softened.
Seeing Xing Nuo look up, his eyes bright, he smiled.
“Xing Nuo, come here. Uncle is taking you out today.”
Xing Nuo, overjoyed, jumped down from his chair and ran towards him.
“Mister came to see Zaizai!”
He kept his pwomise!
Shen Wen ruffled his soft curls and nodded, putting a new backpack he had bought on Xing Nuo’s back.
“Let’s go. I talked to the director. I can take you out for the day.”
He picked up Xing Nuo and carried him outside.
Xing Nuo, his vision suddenly higher, gasped, his eyes crinkling into a happy smile.
