In the Years When I Was a Father-Chapter 144: The Villain Boss’s Prodigal Father (8)

The first confrontation suddenly made Sun Yuan realize a sense of crisis. Although she still didn’t understand why Qi Ming’an seemed like a different person now, that didn’t stop her determination to win him over.
In her previous life, she had already made a wrong choice once. She thought she had married a prince charming, but in the end, in that broken marriage, she discovered that some loves only look like fairy tales. Fairy tales always end abruptly at the protagonist’s happiest moment—just like her, who once thought marrying the man she loved would mean a happy and perfect life ahead.
But reality was always cruelly ironic. The person she believed would bring her endless happiness was the one who hurt her the deepest. So at the last moment of her life, Sun Yuan finally realized that so-called love was so unreliable.
She closed her eyes in despair, only to open them again and return to the very beginning.
After being reborn, Sun Yuan gave up her longing for love. She thought that instead of letting her happiness depend on someone else, she might as well become independent.
At first, she didn’t think much about Qi Ming’an. But when she set her ambitions, stepping into campus life, she realized that rebirth didn’t guarantee smooth sailing.
She had spent over twenty years as a pampered wealthy lady confined at home, taught all the social etiquette and rules by her so-called mother-in-law, but she was already out of touch with society—just a caged canary kept by men.
Sun Yuan’s only consolation was that she was reborn after entering university. Otherwise, she would have to worry whether she could get admitted again to this prestigious university in Country. Twenty years of leisurely life made it impossible for her to focus on studying seriously. Now she was eager to succeed and, because she knew all too well that gold was everywhere in this era, she urgently needed a lot of money.
Anyone reborn into this time, even without business talent, knew there was a goldmine business in front of them: buying houses, hoarding land!
Sun Yuan clearly understood this enormous opportunity, but the tragedy was that she was no longer a wealthy lady with millions in cash at her disposal. Twenty years ago, she had been just a poor student who had gotten into a top domestic university by working hard, with her only special skill being diligence and good looks.
Unfortunately, twenty years of luxury had completely erased one of those advantages, leaving only the beauty her parents gave her. So Sun Yuan planned to use that beauty to carve out a career.
At first, she wanted to enter the film and television industry. Even twenty years ago, that industry made money much faster than others. But when she actually tried, she found that without connections or backing, her beauty didn’t bring convenience—instead, it sometimes caused trouble.
Having been reborn, Sun Yuan unconsciously carried a sense of superiority. She tirelessly tried to earn profits by selling her body, but without a foundation, success was even harder to come by. It was then she suddenly thought of Qi Ming’an—the business genius who had fallen for her after she had helped him once by chance.
After leaving the library, Sun Yuan started asking around about the relationship between Qi Ming’an and Song Xuan. When she heard they were not a couple, she breathed a little easier.
Reviewing all her interactions with Qi Ming’an, Sun Yuan found that things had indeed changed. Qi Ming’an was still the business prodigy, but no longer the crazed, ruthless man from before. He seemed to have become cheerful and gentle, and deep down, no longer carried the cruelty that had once frightened her.
Thinking this was fate helping her, reborn and with the man who once loved her becoming better and better, wasn’t all this heaven’s way of compensating for the grievances and pain she had suffered?
Confident that rebirth meant unstoppable success, Sun Yuan thought about Qi Ming’an and Song Xuan’s intimate behavior in the library. Though a little upset, she was still full of confidence—if they weren’t a couple, that could only mean they were just friends.
Thinking about Song Xuan, the future strong woman, Sun Yuan decided she must make Qi Ming’an understand what type he truly liked.
So in the next few days, the originally slow-to-seduce Sun Yuan decided to take the initiative—she wanted to kick Song Xuan out of the picture as soon as possible!
Sun Yuan’s first step was a gentle offensive. She remembered that Qi Ming’an had endured a lot of hardships as a child, so his personality was always extreme. But he also craved warmth; otherwise, he wouldn’t have liked her after she gave him such a small help.
Although Qi Ming’an seemed somewhat changed now, a woman’s gentleness was always her greatest weapon. Sun Yuan’s plan was well laid out—during the first few days, she created various “chance” encounters and close meetings. Then, during a study session at the library, Sun Yuan directly sat down beside Qi Ming’an.
“Qi Ming’an, could you help me with something?”
Qi Ming’an frowned as he glanced at the beautiful girl in front of him. Why was it her again? Rubbing his nose, he was used to the smell of alcohol since childhood and found the scent of lotion on her a bit unfamiliar. He thought to himself, Song Xuan was better—she never wore perfume.
He wasn’t eager to have much close contact with the girl, so he directly refused: “Sorry, I can’t. I’m busy.”
Sun Yuan was not discouraged by his rejection. She smiled gently, looked at the book in his hand, and said, “You’re studying economics by yourself? So am I. Why don’t we discuss it together?”
“Sorry, I like to read in silence.”
Rejected again so bluntly, Sun Yuan’s perfect smile wavered a bit. This was the first time she had actively pursued a guy, and the first time she had been rejected. But she didn’t want to give up so easily. With a touch of coquettishness, she said, “Then I’ll just bother you for five minutes. Can you explain the meaning of ‘scope economy’? The explanation in the book is too abstract, and I don’t quite understand it.”
The soft, somewhat coy tone caught Qi Ming’an’s attention. He recalled the several chance encounters they’d had over the past few days and secretly wondered if this girl was trying to pursue him now.
He discreetly glanced at Sun Yuan and said, “I don’t understand it either.” Saying that, he used changing books as an excuse, walked to the bookshelf, and left the library.
Left alone in the library, Sun Yuan bit her teeth in frustration but pretended nothing had happened, smoothed her hair, and followed after him. The first day’s efforts ended in failure. Sun Yuan planned to change tactics. She remembered Qi Ming’an used to like the meals she made, so she specially went to a local classmate’s house and personally prepared a lunchbox filled with love.
When they met again, Sun Yuan did not even bother to be subtle this time. She went straight up to Qi Ming’an, looked into his eyes, and said, “Ming’an, this is a meal I personally prepared for you. Will you accept it?”
Qi Ming’an was stopped once again. He looked at the girl in front of him. She had changed into a long dress, still so gentle and graceful. Her gaze was soft and warm. Qi Ming’an thought he might feel touched, but his first reaction was, “What exactly is this person doing?”
The gentleness and warmth were real, but Qi Ming’an felt something strange. He thought of Zhang Jinghui’s sister-in-law’s eyes when looking at Big Brother Zhang—completely different from this girl. If he had to compare, Qi Ming’an vaguely thought of Granny Wang, who had always been very fond of him.
So what exactly did this girl want? He wasn’t lacking love—why was she looking at him with such a tender, almost maternal expression?
“Sorry, I’ve just eaten. Thank you for your kindness.” After rejecting her, worried she might do something inexplicable, Qi Ming’an added, “I already have a girlfriend. No matter what you think, I think it’s better for us to keep our distance.”
Sun Yuan did not expect Qi Ming’an’s refusal to be so direct. After all she had done, the outcome was nothing like she had hoped. She was not willing to give up and stopped him before he left: “You said you have a girlfriend—that’s Song Xuan, right? But I’ve asked around; you two aren’t dating. Qi Ming’an, are you deliberately lying to me?”
“No. I like her. I just haven’t confessed yet.”
After saying this, Qi Ming’an quickly walked around Sun Yuan and hurried off, but not far before he ran into Song Xuan, who was riding a motorbike speeding over.
On the way to the library, Song Xuan had overheard gossip about the two of them and immediately turned her vehicle around, heading there with no hesitation. On the way, she had thought, “That little devil actually dares to steal my man right under my nose!”
She came with a fierce momentum, ready to fight to the death, but when she arrived, she found Qi Ming’an had already separated from the little devil?
From a distance, Song Xuan looked at the lunchbox in the girl’s hand, then at Qi Ming’an’s empty hands, confused—had he rejected it or already eaten?
Luckily, Song Xuan’s intelligence had not completely left her. She noticed the girl’s expression was not one of joy, and finally breathed a sigh of relief. She stopped her bike and said to Qi Ming’an, “Are you going home? I’ll go with you.”
Riding home together, Qi Ming’an was ahead, and Song Xuan deliberately kept two bike lengths behind. She blew the stray hairs off her forehead, looked at the back of the person in front of her, and clenched her teeth silently. No way—today she would make sure Qi Ming’an was hers!
In an alley near the Qi family home, the two were unusually quiet, not chatting as usual. Qi Ming’an was still thinking about the conversation with Sun Yuan earlier. When he heard she said he and Song Xuan weren’t dating, he felt somewhat uncomfortable. He was beginning to understand his own feelings, but thinking about Song Xuan, who usually treated him as a close friend so casually, he wasn’t sure what to do.
Qi Ming’an secretly agonized over his budding feelings, not noticing that the girl who was usually hard to keep quiet around him hadn’t said a word all day.
When the two arrived home and parked their bicycles, Song Xuan called out twice for Uncle Qi in the yard. Hearing no reply, she finally mustered the courage to block Qi Ming’an just as he was about to turn around.
“Ming’an, I—I have something to tell you.”
“What is it?”
“Well, I…” Halfway through, Song Xuan suddenly got stuck. The person was right there in front of her, but how exactly was she supposed to say this? Oh gosh, today was just too sudden—she hadn’t even prepared!
The person in front of her still looked at her with confusion. Song Xuan steeled her resolve. Since the words couldn’t come out, she’d express herself with actions instead! So she stepped forward, grabbed him, and kissed him. As their eyes met, she thought, If Qi Ming’an dares to push me away, then I’ll… what was it she’d do again?
Before she could figure out her next thought, the sudden arm around her waist turned Song Xuan’s usually clear mind into a fog. She stared blankly, and up close, suddenly noticed how long Qi Ming’an’s eyelashes were!
The two of them kissed, both feeling a bit dazed, when Qi Sheng walked in. At first glance, he saw his son holding his future daughter-in-law and kissing her. Moving swiftly and quietly, he slipped out the door again without making a sound. Qi Sheng, proud of his stealth under the doorframe, thought to himself, Hopefully I didn’t interrupt my son’s good deed!
After Qi Sheng left, Qi Ming’an finally reacted. He had felt a bit embarrassed, but seeing his dad slip away so suddenly made him silently cringe. However, now was not the time to think about his father. He released Song Xuan, and their eyes met once more. The two, usually so bold, suddenly became shy.
Fortunately, Qi Ming’an now understood the feelings of his beloved. Without hesitation, he quickly stole another kiss and then confessed: “Song Xuan, I like you.”
Suddenly confessed to, Song Xuan—who had imagined this scene countless times—was momentarily at a loss. She stared at the handsome face before her and blurted out, “I like you too.”
After their mutual confession, they smiled foolishly at each other. After a while, Qi Ming’an remembered his father behind the door.
He quickly pulled Song Xuan behind him. With her confused gaze upon him, blushing, he said to Qi Sheng outside, “Dad, you can come in now.”
Qi Sheng came in cheerfully, smiling at the shy and blushing Song Xuan. He found it amusing—this girl could actually get shy? But since she was his future daughter-in-law, thinking of his son’s happiness, Qi Sheng showed no unusual reaction.
He naturally asked, “Shall we go out to eat?”
The freshly minted couple silently nodded together. On the way to eat, the three of them got into the car. Song Xuan had already returned to her usual generous and lively self.
Thinking about what happened this afternoon, she grabbed Qi Ming’an’s hand and secretly bit it where Qi Sheng couldn’t see. When she realized the owner of the hand just smiled and awkwardly withdrew it, she said,
“I’ll cook for you tomorrow!” A lunchbox filled with love? No big deal!
Qi Ming’an raised an eyebrow. “You can cook?”
Qi Sheng also looked curious. “Xuan, what made you suddenly want to cook?”
Hearing Qi Sheng’s question, Song Xuan, who had been holding back a lot, finally opened up: “Uncle Qi, you don’t know, today someone almost stole my man right from under my nose!”
Seeing Qi Sheng’s curious expression in the rearview mirror, she started gossiping: “There’s a little beauty at our school chasing Ming’an. Today she even made him a lunchbox with love. Hmph, if I hadn’t hurried over back then, who knows if that guy might have wavered!”
Qi Ming’an heard this and couldn’t help but laugh and cry. This one even knew how to snitch! He quickly explained, “Dad, don’t listen to her. I didn’t accept anything.”
“Not this time, but who knows next time? These days, I’ve heard Sun Yuan’s been hanging around you all the time. Good thing I acted fast today.”
“If you hadn’t acted fast, the guy wouldn’t have run away either…”
The fresh couple began bickering like before, but when Qi Sheng heard the name Sun Yuan, he raised an eyebrow. Was this name just a coincidence?