Chapter 5.1: Logical Speculations

　　Saturday nights were always family time for the Fu family. After Fu Yue left the office, he just happened to get caught in City B’s evening rush and was stuck in traffic for over an hour.

　　“Where are you, Ah¹ 阿 (ā): It is a prefix used with nicknames, surnames, etc., when you want to express familiarity or friendliness as in, “阿爸 (ā bà) – dad.” It is similar to the commonly used affix, ‘-y’ or ‘-ie,’ such as Timmy, Johnnie, or Tommy. Yue?” Ye Yun’s voice came through the phone, pressing him to hurry home. “Dinner’s ready, and your grandfather’s asking why you’re still working overtime on a Saturday.”

　　“Mum, I was caught in traffic, but I just got to the door.” Fu Yue swung the door open and walked in. “I’m home.”

　　The family’s giant poodle barreled toward the door to greet Fu Yue. He switched into his slippers, then crouched down and gave its head a fond pat.

　　“Well, well, look who’s back!” Old Master Fu turned around with a bright smile. “Long day, huh?”

　　“I’m fine. It’s been a slow week.”

　　Old Master Fu was already well into his eighties, yet he remained remarkably hale and hearty. 

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　　Ekvbswv y eswcv, Ww Zyd bye y casvbla nsxrzlm. Ebld bl pyo vbyv Ww Zwl oyp dsv pyukdt yduvbkdt, bl eyavle shla yde vwttle sd bkp byde. “Jkt Jas, nsxl okvb xl, sjyu? Zsw’al xu qyhsakvl rlapsd kd vbl obszl osaze!”

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　　Tl dseele. “Gzaktbv, cwv cl y tsse csu yde qkdkpb uswa bsxlosaj qkapv. R’zz ts okvb usw sdnl usw’al esdl.”

　　“Yay, yay, yay, yay!” Fu Yan beamed, stuffing his golden python toy into his bag with a big grin. “We gotta bring chocolate too! Big Bro loves it, and so does Jiujiu!”

　　Fu Yue blinked in surprise. “Fu Yan, you invited Jiujiu?”

　　“Uh-huh!” Yanyan bobbed his head. “I told my teacher that I wanna be in the same group as Jiujiu.”

　　Don’t tell me I have to see Gu Panqiu again?

　　Fu Yue’s stomach twisted. He was seriously not up for dealing with him anymore. After all, Gu Panqiu’s antics over the years had already worn him thin.

　　But children’s friendships were so pure and innocent that he could not bring himself to stop them. So, he said nothing more.

　　Besides, Gu Panqiu was tied up with filming. Chances were, he would not show up anyway.

　　“What’s so captivating about Jiujiu, anyway?” Ye Yun’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “Yanyan’s been talking about him nonstop lately, and I haven’t even met this little guy. When will we have Jiujiu over for dinner? I’m curious to meet him.”

　　In her youth, Ye Yun was a famous celebrity with millions of fans. However, after leaving the entertainment industry, she fell in love with cooking. As such, she poured herself into the craft, refining every dish to perfection. Today, she owns more than a thousand Chinese restaurants nationwide—a culinary empire born of love and hard work.

　　Today, she cooked up a few of her signature dishes and even whipped up some strawberry snow skin mochi² 草莓冰皮麻薯 (cǎoméi bīngpí máshǔ): It looks something like this – to sweeten the evening.

　　Fu Yue grabbed a mochi from the table and popped it into his mouth. Ye Yun chuckled at the sight and teased, “You’ve got an even bigger sweet tooth than your brother.”

　　“That’s because you make them the best.”

　　Fu Yue yanked his tie loose and flung it onto the coat rack, then focused entirely on his tea and snacks.

　　The trailer for 5041 was playing on the TV in the living room, and for a brief moment, Gu Panqiu appeared on screen, cradling Jiujiu in his arms as he gently fed him.

　　Fu Yan yelled excitedly, “Mummy, mummy, mummy! Jiujiu was on TV just now!”

　　“Which one?” Ye Yun asked, eyes alight with curiosity.

　　Fu Yan craned his neck, eyes glued to the screen for what felt like forever. Finally, there it was! A moment of Jiujiu petting a kitty showed up in the trailer.

　　“Look, that’s Jiujiu!” Fu Yan beamed, his eyes sparkling. “He’s super-duper cute!”

　　Fu Yan stood transfixed in front of the television, his eyes fixed on Jiujiu. Ye Yun’s laughter bubbled up, amused by her youngest son’s antics. “What a beautiful little boy! Is he one of your classmates?”

　　“Nope, Jiujiu’s one grade below me.”

　　Jiujiu’s cherubic cheeks were irresistibly chubby, his large, beautiful eyes shining with innocent curiosity. Hugging the cat tightly, he stared at the camera with an adorably bewildered expression.

　　Fu Yan looked sideways at Jiujiu, who, at that very moment, turned his chubby little face toward the lens.

　　“Those two kids do look a little alike,” Old Master Fu observed. “Their little noses are quite prominent.”

　　The moment the words left his mouth, Fu Yue, who was sitting nearby, felt a chill run down his spine.

　　This was already the second time someone had said Fu Yan and Jiujiu looked alike. Perhaps the doctor had been mistaken the first time, but there was no way Old Master Fu’s sharp eye for faces could be wrong.

　　Fu Yue cradled Fu Yan’s face, studying his features intently. “Do they?”

　　Ye Yun looked over and chuckled, “Yeah, just a bit.”

　　Baffled, Fu Yue questioned again, “Do they, though?”

　　“He looks just like you did when you were little,” Ye Yun said fondly. “Your hair was light too. Whenever I took you out for tea, the other ladies would always say you looked like a little mixed-race child. This little one’s got that same light hair… Oh my, he really does look like a doll!”

　　Fu Yan beamed at his mom’s words and chimed in, “Yes, Jiujiu does look like a doll!”

　　Like a small whirlwind, Fu Yan skipped and frolicked on the carpet, his laughter ringing out like music. Fu Yue’s brow furrowed as he watched his younger brother’s carefree antics.

　　They did not appear the same at first glance, but their bone structures were somewhat similar.

　　“Yanyan, quit bouncing around,” Ye Yun urged. “Wash your hands now, dinner’s ready. Now, off to the dining room with Grandpa.”

　　“Grandpa! Dinner’s ready!” Fu Yan hollered as he came running up, his little feet thumping against the floor.

　　Unlike his calm and composed older brother, the younger one was a ball of mischief and energy.

　　The old man’s eyes twinkled with tender affection for his two grandsons. “Alright,” he responded warmly.

　　Ye Yun had prepared a lavish spread. Fu Yan ate with childlike glee, but Fu Yue sat still, a deep furrow etched between his brows.

　　He could not stop thinking about what his mother had just said. In his mind, he combed through his memories of that night with Gu Panqiu.

　　If Jiujiu was already three… the dates matched. Uncomfortably so.

　　“What are you spacing out for?” Ye Yun placed some food on Fu Yue’s plate. “No thinking about work during meals. You’ll upset your stomach if you keep stressing over things while eating.”

　　By this point, Fu Yue had completely lost his appetite. His mind was spinning—it felt like he had just stumbled onto something extraordinary.

　　No, no, no.

　　There were plenty of kids with high-bridged noses out there. He and Gu Panqiu had only met once, just once. So what were the odds of that happening?

　　“Impossible,” Fu Yue declared with unwavering certainty.

　　“What do you mean, impossible?” Ye Yun shot back with mock annoyance. “You need to take care of yourself, alright? And don’t go thinking I’m just being a nag.”

　　“Fu Yue, you’re twenty-four this year, and I’m not getting any younger,” Old Master Fu remarked, lifting his heavy lids to look at his grandson. “It’s commendable to be ambitious, but you can’t spend your whole life buried in work. If someone’s caught your eye, bring them home and let us meet them.”

　　Fu Yue gave a faint smile. “Alright.”

　　That night, Fu Yue found himself unable to sleep for the first time, his mind filled with images of Jiujiu calling him “Uncle” with a bashful and timid expression, as well as Gu Panqiu’s eyes arching in a smile.

　　Could it be… that Jiujiu is my son?

　　Even now, the cameras for 5041 were still rolling.

　　Gu Panqiu spent the whole day lounging like a salted fish. While the other guests on the show were busy exchanging sweet nothings and eye contact, he kept mostly silent and ended up eating the most at both lunch and dinner.

　　While the others were upstairs having fun, Gu Panqiu stayed back in the bedroom to bathe Jiujiu.

　　He always fumbled a bit when it came to bathing kids, but Jiujiu was so well-behaved. Even when shampoo got in his eyes, he just whispered a tiny reminder.