Madam, Please Behave-Chapter 334: Xiazhi Growing Up

That night,

young Liu Xiazhi grew up a little.

To be honest, even though Liu Changqing felt a little reluctant deep down, he didn't stop An Yuanyao from explaining the biological facts to their daughter.

He knew it was inevitable.

Xiazhi was a bit naïve...

Calling it nicely, she was innocent;put bluntly, she was a little slow.

She was about to turn eleven, and after finishing sixth grade, she’d officially move on to middle school.

She was careless in how she did things, a bit clumsy in her studies, always liked to leave things until the last minute, loved watching TV, easily got addicted to games, and wore her emotions openly — whether it was joy, anger, sadness, or happiness.

She couldn’t lie. Whenever she tried, Liu Changqing could see right through her.

Sometimes she loved to act cute and spoiled, and occasionally she would blurt out something so funny that everyone burst into laughter. She was especially greedy about food, always serious whenever it came to eating...

Thinking about it, Liu Xiazhi had a lot of little flaws that weren’t exactly admirable.

But as her father, Liu Changqing loved this daughter of his very much.

She was adorable.

But...

Children do grow up, don’t they?

Thinking of this, Liu Changqing lifted his head and gazed at the sky.

There was a slight pang of sadness in his heart.

Almost like comforting himself, and almost like talking to someone unseen, he opened his mouth, let out a puff of white mist, and murmured softly:

"I guess... this is what growing up looks like."

After speaking,

standing there on the balcony, Liu Changqing tightened his coat around himself.

"D*mn it’s cold..."

—

Inside the bedroom,

Liu Xiazhi sat with her head lowered. After listening to An Yuanyao’s explanation, she was completely at a loss for words.

Her entire understanding had been overturned.

She had never imagined that the formation of a baby could be so complicated, nor was it anything like the beautiful stories she had read before.

It wasn’t hospitals giving out babies, nor were they picked out of trash cans, and it definitely wasn’t like Haohao said — that you "push them out" when going to the bathroom.

Now that she knew the truth, Liu Xiazhi finally understood.

Why her brother wouldn’t let her watch him when he went to the bathroom...

Why when she tried to sleep with Dad and them at night, she would always be sent back to her own room...

Thinking about all this, Liu Xiazhi slowly lifted her head, her little face blank and lifeless.

She looked at An Yuanyao sitting beside her, and her gaze drifted down — from her face to her belly.

She stared for a while before finally speaking:

"So... there's a baby... in Mommy’s belly right now?"

"Mm, that's right."

"So... I..."

Halfway through her words, Liu Xiazhi suddenly stopped.

She realized...

she wasn’t really An Yuanyao’s biological child.

She was born from Li Wanran. In terms of blood, she had no relation to An Yuanyao — they were basically strangers.

If that’s the case...

If that’s so...

Rubbing her eyes with her small hands, Liu Xiazhi suddenly felt a crushing sadness, like she couldn’t breathe, her chest tight and aching.

Seeing Liu Xiazhi wiping her tears, An Yuanyao immediately panicked.

She hurriedly raised her hand, about to ask what was wrong, when she heard Liu Xiazhi’s teary voice:

"Then... does that mean... I can't call you Mommy anymore..."

Before, Liu Xiazhi had truly believed she was a hospital baby, picked up by Liu Changqing and Li Wanran.

But after learning how babies were actually made, she realized —

she had no blood relation to An Yuanyao at all, yet she had been calling her "Mom."

If...

If one day Dad didn’t want her anymore, would it be like when Mom abandoned her before...

Would she be thrown away again...?

Her thoughts spiraled wildly, leaving her overwhelmed and lost.

All she knew was that something was blocking her heart, making her feel suffocated.

Fear flooded through her little body.

Looking at her daughter crying, An Yuanyao realized something.

Xiazhi wasn't as naïve as she looked.

Deep down, she already understood a lot.

Seeing her crying like that, An Yuanyao’s own heart twisted with pain.

At that moment, a wave of motherly instinct surged through her.

She reached out and pulled the sobbing Liu Xiazhi into her arms, and whispered softly by her ear:

"I am your mommy. From the day you first called me ‘Mommy,’ I became your mom."

"But... but I’m not your real child..."

"That doesn’t matter."

Still hugging her tightly, An Yuanyao’s voice was full of absolute certainty.

"You are... my child."

—

Outside the room,

because of the bitter cold, Liu Changqing had gone back inside and was busy preparing dinner.

Once the food was ready, he pushed open the bedroom door, ready to call the two of them out to eat.

But when he saw the scene inside, he froze on the spot.

At the table, Liu Xiazhi and An Yuanyao were sitting together.

In front of Liu Xiazhi was her homework, and An Yuanyao sat beside her, pointing at a question, seemingly helping her study.

Hearing the door open, both of them quickly turned around and looked at Liu Changqing.

An Yuanyao spoke first:

"Is dinner ready?"

"Yeah."

Hearing Liu Changqing’s reply, the two exchanged a glance. Then Liu Xiazhi got up from her chair and headed out of the bedroom.

When she passed by Liu Changqing, she suddenly stopped.

She lifted her little head to look at him.

Liu Changqing, puzzled, was just about to ask what was going on when his daughter suddenly hugged him tightly.

And along with the hug, he heard her soft, heartfelt words:

"Daddy, thank you for everything."

"......"

After saying that, Liu Xiazhi let go and happily trotted out toward the bathroom to wash her hands.

Watching her small figure disappear into the hallway, Liu Changqing stood frozen for a while before he snapped out of it.

He immediately strode over to An Yuanyao with big steps.

Leaning closer, his face full of confusion, he asked:

"What’s going on? What kind of lesson did you give her? Why’s she suddenly thanking me like that?"

"Isn’t it good? Xiazhi’s growing up."

"But... isn’t the change a little too fast? She was just acting silly earlier, and now she’s all mature all of a sudden? And... didn’t she take her backpack to her room? Where’d these textbooks on the table come from?"

"I went out and got them. You were busy in the kitchen, so I didn’t bother you..."

"Then..."

"Alright, alright... don’t ask so much."

An Yuanyao cut him off, getting up and linking her arm through his.

Her other hand gently stroked her belly as she spoke in a soft, playful tone:

"The baby’s hungry~"

"......"

"Come on, let’s eat dinner!"

Still linking his arm, An Yuanyao led Liu Changqing out of the room. As they walked, she added casually:

"Oh, right — let's have Xiazhi sleep in our room tonight!"

Hearing her suggestion, Liu Changqing simply looked at her.

Although his head was full of questions, he didn’t say anything.

Sometimes, when it came to communicating with their daughter...

maybe, just maybe, it was better left to her.

With that thought, Liu Changqing answered:

"Okay."