Chapter 674: Different States of Mind
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Xia Ling looked at them nervously.
In the shadow of the door, a small child also nervously looked at them. Shaohui was afraid that his father would be defeated and silently cheered on him in his heart. However, the battle between the two men reached a stalemate as neither was willing to give in. Shaohui was unhappy, so he went to the dining area to take a look and ran over to pull Xia Ling’s hand. “Sister, I’m hungry.” He said softly.
Xia Ling was quite worried that these two men would start to fight. However, nothing was more important than Shaohui wanting to eat dinner. She gently said to Shaohui, “Are you hungry? Come, Sister will take you to dinner.”
After that, she held the child’s hand and walked towards the dining hall.
Although the two men were glaring at each other, they were very sensitive to her actions. Once they saw they she was leaving with the child, they immediately gave up their fight, viciously glared at each other one last time, and rushed to follow her.
Dining hall.
The table was full of delicious food.
The nanny made many dishes, and a few were dishes that Xia Ling specially instructed her to make. Pei Ziheng sat next to Xia Ling and seemingly unintentionally said, “Xiao Ling, you still remember what I like to eat.”
His tone was elegant and gentle.
But it stabbed Li Lei’s heart.
Even Xia Ling looked up at him as she knew that he was deliberately provoking Li Lei. She bit her lip but did not say a word. It was also good if Li Lei gave up on his own.
However, Li Lei had no intention of retreating. In fact, he did not even follow Xia Ling’s orders and insisted on sitting beside her as well. Shaohui looked at him, then at Xia Ling and Pei Ziheng. He had no choice but to sit opposite of Xia Ling, in the middle of Pei Ziheng and Li Lei.
It was a very strange seating arrangement.
The nanny brought rice over and sets of beautiful china tableware.
Li Lei picked up his chopsticks and looked at the table inadvertently. “Stir-fried lettuce with mashed garlic and charcoal scallops are dishes that I really like to eat. Xiao Ling, I can’t believe you still remember. If you ever visit me, I will make sure to make your favorite dishes and desserts.”
Xia Ling was slightly startled.
If he did not mention it, she really almost forgot that the dining table really had many dishes that Li Lei liked. She did not know when, but she started to eat things he liked during every meal. After a long time, it became a habit. She wouldn’t have noticed it if he had not pointed it out.
Looking at her alarmed expression, Pei Ziheng’s face slightly darkened.
However, Xia Ling was soon back to normal again. She placed a large portion of stir-fried lettuce on Shaohui’s plate and said lightly, “This is your favorite vegetable. Eat more of it.”
Shaohui looked at her wrongfully. When did he start to like this vegetable? He hated vegetables the most. The child’s eyes shined as if he wanted to say something, but Xia Ling glared at him.
Pei Ziheng, who was dressed smartly, elegantly cut the steak on his plate. Seeing that Shaohui liked to eat vegetables, he smiled lightly. “It turns out that Shaohui is the one who likes it. Shaohui, do you like scallops as well?”
As he spoke, he deliberately scooped up a large portion of scallops for Shaohui.
Shaohui actually really liked to eat this dish.
With delicious food in front of him, the child could not avoid the temptation. He glanced at his dad who was sitting next to him and then again at the food on his plate. Sure enough, he made a decisive choice—devour the food.
Li Lei’s expression darkened.
It turned out that Xiao Ling really did not prepare the dishes for herself but for a child she had no blood relations with. He was very upset and quietly ate his rice. He even forgot to eat the other dishes and only ate a large bowl of rice.
Xia Ling noticed it and her heart hurt tremendously.
She initially thought that she could ignore it, but she realized that she could not do it no matter what. She couldn’t help but place a large piece of stir-fried lettuce in Li Lei’s bowl and coldly said, “Eat.”
Li Lei looked at her strangely and was slightly surprised.
However, Xia Ling turned her head away.
Pei Ziheng was not pleased, but on the surface, he maintained a smile. “As Skyart Entertainment’s boss and the heir of the Li Family, I can’t believe you came here to eat white rice. People who don’t know what happened would think that Xiao Ling was mistreating her guest.” As he spoke, he cut small pieces of steak and placed them in Xia Ling’s bowl. “This medium-well-done steak is very soft. Xiao Ling, I remember that you really liked to eat it.”
Suddenly, Xia Ling realized that there were many things in her bowl. She opened her mouth to say something, but in the end, she kept quiet and ate all of it slowly.
Looking at their tenderness, Li Lei choked on his stir-fried lettuce and felt that it was difficult to swallow.
The atmosphere at the dining table became weirder.
Shaohui lifted his head to look at the three adults. Suddenly, he asked Li Lei, “Uncle Li, you said before that you were going to take me to your house to visit Er Mao. Do you still mean it?”
Li Lei came back to reality. Yes, he still had Er Mao!
He could still use Er Mao to win over this cute child!
“Of course, I still mean it.” He said.
However, Xia Ling was unhappy. “Li Lei, stop trying to abduct my child. I remember you said you were going to bring Li Rui here to apologize. Where is he?”
“He will apologize.” Li Lei said solemnly and looked at Shaohui. “I’m really sorry about what happened at that time. I did not educate Xiao Rui well.” He had already figured out what had happened on that day. Shaohui looked for Li Rui to play. However, Li Rui was annoyed, so he scolded him and scolded his sister for using him to deliberately approach Li Lei. He also said that she was too despicable.
Shaohui was furious. That was why he had a fight with Li Rui.
Li Lei, who usually did not interfere, was boiling with anger and asked someone to viciously beat him up by the family law. Now, he could not even get off the bed. Even Su Tang was scared by him and quietly cried as she looked after her child.
Li Lei was unmoved and said to Su Tang, “In the future, I can ignore what happens to Xiao Rui. I’m even willing if I have to support him for a lifetime. However, I won’t allow one thing. He is not allowed to give trouble to Xiao Ling. That’s my bottom line.”
Su Tang cried, “What does this small child know? It’s my fault for not bringing him up well.”
Looking at Su Tang’s devastation, Li Lei could not continue making solemn statements. Anyway, he had already punished the child, so he decided to leave him in the care of his mother to recover. Now that Xia Ling mentioned it, he finally remembered that he still owed Shaohui an apology.
“After some time, I will bring him over to apologize to you in person.” Li Lei said.
“After some time?” Xia Ling sneered. “Since you’re insincere, you don’t have to come.”
“Xiao Rui was beaten by me.” Li Lei said, “Now he is lying on the bed and unable to get up. Xiao Ling, if you don’t believe me, I can bring you and Shaohui to visit him.”
Shaohui looked seriously at Li Lei and then at Xia Ling. “Sister, after some time, can you take me to Uncle Li’s house?” He used his most effective skill and asked very innocently.