reignition

Jiang Mian's heart skipped a beat, and she realized that he had indeed not introduced himself.

Lu Bozhou's gaze was always very sharp and intimidating, and it was even colder and sharper at this moment.

Jiang Mian could only bite the bullet and give an explanation, "It was... your son who told me."

Lu Bozhou's cold gaze remained unchanged.

Jiang Mian bit her lip and added, "Besides, the rumors about Mr. Lu and Lin Sisi aren't exactly new news..."

Lu Bozhou chuckled, but it sounded rather cold.

It seems there's no news.

Jiang Mian felt useless; she had already died once, but she was still the same as before.

She felt helpless whenever she faced Lu Bozhou's cold face. It was as if he didn't even need to say anything; she would already be defeated.

This left Jiang Mian feeling both frustrated and angry—this man! He can't even take care of a child!

No wonder people always say that once a biological mother is gone, a biological father becomes a stepfather.

No wonder people always say that once you have a child, you become especially afraid of dying.

What they fear is not death itself, but the mistreatment of their children after they are gone!

Just then, a soft little hand gently grasped Jiang Mian's fingers.

Jiang Mian was stunned. All the anger that had just risen in her heart seemed to vanish in an instant.

Jiang Mian's fingers even trembled slightly.

She didn't care what kind of nonsense those rumors were.

This is her child! This is the precious baby she gave her life for!

Lu Bozhou's gaze slowly moved down and landed on the child's face.

His voice remained cold. "How many times has this happened?"

Jiang Mian heard no joy or surprise in his voice about the child being found again; he was calm... almost indifferent.

The little boy didn't answer; his expressionless face bore the same coldness as Lu Bozhou's.

Jiang Mian blinked. She hadn't noticed before that now, when he and Lu Bozhou were in the same frame.

Only then did I realize how similar his eyebrows and eyes were to Lu Bozhou's.

Lu Bozhou didn't wait for his reply and reached out his hand to the child.

The wrist bones are clearly defined, the finger bones are long and slender, and the prominent veins on the back of the hand extend into the evenly muscular forearm.

Lu Bozhou's hands were very beautiful, but Jiang Mian didn't seem to appreciate them at all.

Her gaze paused for a moment, then fell on the platinum wedding ring at the base of his ring finger.

She put it on herself back then.

Jiang Mian couldn't quite describe how she felt.

Noticing her scrutiny, Lu Bozhou frowned and said to the child in a low voice, "Aren't you moving? Wait for me to invite you."

Jiang Mian had no time to think about his wedding ring or not... How could this father and son get along like this!?

Does it mean that because you have no feelings for her, you also have no feelings for the children she bore?

The little boy frowned, seemingly weighing the pros and cons of Lu Bozhou's words and attitude...

A moment later, he gently released Jiang Mian's hand.

Jiang Mian felt a sudden emptiness in her heart, as if her heartbeat had skipped a beat.

The child turned to face Jiang Mian. Although his little face was expressionless, his eyes were bright and sparkling.

He bowed to Jiang Mian and said to her, "Goodbye."

His round, bright black eyes stared at her intently for a while, his gaze so earnest, as if they really would see each other again.

Then he walked toward Lu Bozhou.

Although Lu Bozhou's expression was indifferent, he still bent down and held the child in his arm with one hand.

"Thank you. My secretary will discuss the thank-you gift with you."

After saying that, he picked up the child, turned around, and left.

A tremendous sense of reluctance exploded in Jiang Mian's heart in an instant!

She glanced into the house; the child hadn't even had a chance to touch the egg pancake yet.

He was well-behaved and polite, and had been sitting obediently at the table, waiting for Jiang Mian to come and eat together...

Jiang Mian quickly said, "The child hasn't eaten yet. He was hungry earlier. Why don't we let him eat before he leaves?"

Jiang Mian was in excruciating pain. If only she had known... if only she had known just now that this was her child.

She will definitely not be afraid of trouble or rush things; she will definitely cook all the delicious food she knows how to make for him.

It won't just be a regular egg pancake.

But it's too late to regret it now. All I can think about is that I can't let my child leave on an empty stomach.

The little boy turned from Lu Bozhou's shoulder to look at her. Although he didn't speak, his eyes seemed to hold expectation.

Lu Bozhou simply said in a calm voice, "No need."

Then she took the child and left.

"Ms. Jiang, thank you so much for today." A man in a suit and tie approached, his voice polite and courteous.

It was Song Xun, Lu Bozhou's special assistant. He had worked under Lu Bozhou for a long time and was very capable. Jiang Mian had dealt with him before.

"You're welcome," Jiang Mian said softly, sounding rather downcast.

"This is a small token of Mr. Lu's gratitude; please accept it." Song Xun handed her an envelope.

Jiang Mian knew without even thinking that there was money inside.

"No need," she politely declined.

Song Xun didn't insist, and simply said, "Then I'll leave you my phone number. You can contact me if you need any help in the future."

Jiang Mian thought for a moment, then handed the phone to Song Xun without refusing.

Watching Song Xun type in a number on his phone, Jiang Mian suddenly remembered Lu Bozhou's question to the child earlier—"How many times has this happened?"

This means that the child didn't get lost, but ran away on his own.

Jiang Mian bit her lip. "I just heard Mr. Lu ask the child how many times this has happened... Does he often run away from home?"

Song Xun handed the phone back to her.

Looking into her eyes, I had a momentary illusion.

It was as if he saw Jiang Mian from the past, looking at him with the same eyes, asking, 'Isn't Lu Bozhou coming back again?'

But his wife had been dead for five years.

Song Xun felt a little reluctant.

"...Not very often, maybe twice."

Twice! Jiang Mian's fingertips dug into her palm, as if the stinging pain hadn't reminded her.

She was afraid she would lose control and question Lu Bozhou about why he wasn't taking good care of the child.

"Is...is no one watching him? How could such a young child run away twice?" Jiang Mian asked, steadying her voice.

She felt bitter, guilty, and defeated—ultimately, it was because she had died too young.

"The young master is too clever. Even with someone watching him, he can find a way to avoid them and sneak out."

Song Xun continued, "He's young, and he just wanted to go to the cemetery to see his mother, so no one had the heart to say anything to him."

Song Xun's words were like steel needles, piercing Jiang Mian's heart.

The child, with so many scrapes on his arms, was squatting alone at the bus stop, looking like an abandoned little animal.

So it turns out it was all to go to the cemetery... to see her?