"Zechen, there are no spare rooms in the house. Why don't you share a room with Mo'er?" Wang Zheng led Gu Zechen to the previous guest room, changed the sheets and duvet covers, and tidied up while speaking.

Gu Zechen helped tidy up the bed before walking over to Wang Zheng's side. He shook his head at Wang Zheng and gestured for a while, but unfortunately Wang Zheng couldn't understand at all. He could only helplessly shake his head and say, "I'm sorry, Zechen, I don't understand what you mean."

Gu Zechen shook his head and looked around. Finally, he found paper and a pen on a nearby table. Although he could recognize characters, he couldn't write many of them. He could only use pinyin as a substitute.

Looking at the paper handed over by Gu Zechen, which had Chinese characters and pinyin mixed together, Wang Zheng's heart was filled with mixed emotions. After reading what Gu Zechen wanted to convey, he felt even more joy at Gu Zechen's ability to recognize and write characters.

"Ze Chen, I never expected you to know so many words!" Wang Zheng patted Gu Ze Chen's head. Due to lack of nutrition, Gu Ze Chen appeared much smaller than children of the same age, both in terms of height and physique.

"Ze chen, come and sit!" Wang Zheng had never treated Gu Zechen as a child. Since knowing that Yimo was essentially raised by Gu Zechen, Wang Zheng felt not only concern but also deep admiration for this child.

Gu Zechen knew that Wang Zheng wanted to talk to him, so he brought the paper and pen in his hand over.

"Zechen, I plan to send you and Meier to school, starting from first grade. What do you think?"

Since adopting two children, I cannot treat them unfairly. Moreover, Wang Zheng knows that Gu Zechen and Yi Mo are good children, and this lifetime of his own will never have his own children.

Gu Zechen thought for a moment, then shook his head. He picked up a pen and wrote the word "Uncle Wang" on the notebook. After some more contemplation, he crossed it out and rewrote the words "dad" instead.

After all these years, Gu Zechen had never imagined that he would one day have a father, or that he would equate his father with another man.

Trembling hands refused to calm for a long time. Gu Zechen took a deep breath and, once his inner emotions were stabilized, continued writing: "Dad, just let Mo'er go to school alone. I won't go."

As Gu Zechen wrote, Wang Zheng watched alongside. By the time Gu Zechen finished writing, Wang Zheng understood the other party's meaning.

"Zechen, I know you're a good child. The tuition fees for you and Mo'er, well... Dad can still afford them. It's just that you're a bit older than your classmates, so there might be some differences..."

Before Wang Zheng could finish speaking, Gu Zechen shook his head and tugged at Wang Zheng's sleeve. Then he wrote: "Dad, I won't go to school. I'll wait for Mo'er to learn and then come back to teach me. I'll help you at the store!"

Wang Zheng looked at Gu Zechen and smiled, rubbing his hair. Without giving a chance for rebuttal, he made a decisive conclusion, saying, "Alright, that's settled then. For the next couple of days, you go help me at the store, and let Mo'er accompany Xiuxian at home. Once I've taken care of the school enrollment procedures, all of you can start attending school."

Seeing that Gu Zechen was about to argue again, he reached out and took the paper and pen in the other person's hand and said, "Now, as the head of the family, you all must listen to me."

After Wang Zheng finished speaking, he didn't give Gu Zechen a chance to say anything and turned around to leave the room. "Alright, you and Mo'er can rest at home today, so you can spend more time with your mother."

When Wang Zheng and Xiao Yang went to the restaurant, Lin Xiuxian had just woken up. She saw Gu Zechen and Yi Mo sitting in the living room, writing and drawing in their books, and she smiled as she walked towards them.

Hearing a sound coming from behind, Gu Zechen turned around and saw Lin Xiuxian approaching them with two cups of water. He quickly notified Yi Mo with a nod, and the two of them ran towards Lin Xiuxian.

Gu Zechen took the water cup over, while Yi Mo helped Lin Xiuxian sit down.

"Mom, look! This is the painting Chen Gege and I drew. Isn't it beautiful?" Yi Mo handed the painting on the table to Lin Xiuxian, tilting up her small face and looking at the other party with a beaming smile, resembling a child who had just done a good deed and was now asking for a candy reward.

Lin Xiuxian laughed and touched Yi Mo's head, his gaze falling on the painting in his hand. Two adults stood on either side, one with short hair and the other with long hair, representing a man and a woman. In the middle were two slightly shorter boys, with the words "father," "mother," "older brother," and "younger brother" written next to them.

As she watched, Lin Xiuxian's eyes became moist. Thinking about her own body, she didn't know how many days she could enjoy such family happiness, and her heart couldn't help but feel a little lonely.

Lin Xiuxian reached out and embraced Yi Mo in her arms. She waved towards Gu Zechen standing on the side and said, "Come here, to Mommy."

Gu Zechen squatted down and rested his head on Lin Xiuxian's lap, feeling clearly the gentle stroking on his back from Lin Xiuxian. "You are all good children. Take good care of your father in the future. He... has gone through so much."

Lin Xiuxian spoke intermittently for a long time, from her marriage with Wang Zheng to her discovery of being sick, and then to now. As Lin Xiuxian continued speaking, sorrow welled up within her: "It's because of me that I've burdened you all. If it wasn't for my condition, our family wouldn't have ended up in this situation!"

Thinking about how energetic and extraordinary Wang Zheng was back in the day, but as for oneself, other than a sick body, there was nothing they brought to him.

The choked voice awakened Gu Zechen. He raised his hand to wipe away the tears on Lin Xiuxian's face. Gu Zechen shook his head, took a piece of paper, wrote a few words on it, and then handed it to Lin Xiuxian.

Mom, Dad loves you very much. As long as you are well, Dad is happy.

Gu Zechen thought about that night when he sat outside the restaurant with Wang Zheng. On that night, Wang Zheng said a lot. Gu Zechen knew that Wang Zheng deeply loved Lin Xiuxian and was willing to give up anything for her.

Gu Zechen wasn't good at comforting others, let alone knowing how to express Wang Zheng's deep affection. He could only hold Lin Xiuxian's hand and repeatedly point at the words on the paper for her to read.

Yi Mo, however, acted like a mother all along, calling out "mom" as if wanting to make up for years of absence. Lin Xiuxian could only respond with a smile, even the lingering trace of melancholy in her heart vanished into thin air. "Alright, alright, I heard you, stop shouting!"

Lin Xiuxian patted Yi Mo's back, her face blushing as she laughed. Ever since falling ill, she had never smiled so brightly.

"You two are truly a pair of mischief makers!" Lin Xiuxian said, smiling, with a much healthier complexion despite the signs of illness still present on her face.

Gu Zechen pulled Yimohme and instructed someone to step down from Lin Xiuxian before handing a glass of water to Lin Xiuxian.

"By the way, are you hungry? What do you want to eat?" Hearing Lin Xiuxian's words, Gu Zechen realized that the sun had already set outside. Thinking that the restaurant was probably getting busy, he volunteered to cook while Yimo assisted him.

After a busy and chaotic commotion, fortunately, it was still cooked.

When Wang Zheng entered the room, he saw three people gathered around a table, happily eating and chatting. Instantly, a warm feeling washed over him, as if all the toil and exhaustion from traveling back and forth was no longer worth mentioning.