While the women were chatting, the chef shooed away Jin Liwei and Lin Yehan. The two men grabbed two bottles of sparkling water and sat on the bar stools while watching Little Jun play with his Jin cousins, the dogs, and Popcorn.
The exasperated Ice Cream finally escaped from the horde of little demons and plopped her fat lazy self near her dad.
Jin Liwei stroked her fluffy grey fur, silently comforting her.
Lin Yehan called out to the kids' direction, "Little Jun, don't run too much! You don't want to get sick again, do you?"
"OK, Daddy!" Little Jun replied and obediently sat down on the carpet beside his crawling cousins.
All the noise from the adults stopped.
"Daddy?" Jin Liwei asked while looking between his godson and Lin Yehan.
"Did Little Jun just call Eldest Brother Yehan Daddy?" Iris from the ladies' group asked.
Dom: "OMG!!!"
Long Jinjing and Chen Fei didn't look too surprised. It seemed that this wasn't the first time that they heard the child call his soon-to-be stepfather "Daddy". They arrived earlier than the Jin family, so perhaps they had already heard Little Jun call like this.
"I didn't teach him to call Yehan like that," Jiang Ying Yue explained. "He just began doing it by himself."
"When did he start calling like this?" Iris asked.
Jiang Ying Yue glanced at Lin Yehan.
He answered in her stead. "Last night when I was helping Ying Yue put him to sleep. He told me 'Good night, Daddy'."
Jin Liwei didn't say anything but patted Lin Yehan's back instead.
Iris asked Jiang Ying Yue, "How do you feel about it?"
"I'm happy." Jiang Ying Yue smiled, her eyes gentle as she gazed at her son and soon-to-be husband. "Yehan's so good to Little Jun. Looks like my son finally accepted him fully."
Iris handed Little Misha to Long Jinjing and then waved over at her godson. "Little Jun, come here for a bit, sweetheart."
The little guy trotted over to her. She hugged him and sat him down on her lap.
Then she pointed at Lin Yehan. "Who's that, Little Jun?"
"Daddy!"
"I thought he's your Uncle Han?" Iris pretended to be confused. "How did he become your daddy?"
"Anko Han is Daddy Han!" (Uncle Han is Daddy Han!) He looked at Iris with eyes full of innocence. He didn't understand why his Mama Xiulan was asking something so obvious.
"Oh, I see. You like your Daddy Han?"
"Yesh!" (Yes!)
"How about your Daddy Long Hui?" Iris continued to ask. "Do you still remember him?"
Little Jun blinked his innocent eyes, looking confused.
"Your dada," she clarified.
"Oh! Dada is Dada! Anko Han is Daddy Han!" Then the little guy pointed at Jin Liwei. "Papa is Papa!"
He frowned at his Mama Xiulan. Why was his usually smart and amazing mama asking too many dumb questions today?
Iris chuckled, feeling relieved at his clear answer. "Yes, you're right. My Little Jun is so smart!" She kissed his cheek. "Okay, you can go back and play with your cousins now."
The little guy cheered before hurrying back to his little cousins, dogs, and Popcorn to continue playing.
"I hope you don't mind me asking the child those questions," Iris said to Jiang Ying Yue.
"No, I don't mind." Jiang Ying Yue shook her head. "I understand why you kept on asking Little Jun like that. Although I'm happy that my son is calling Yehan daddy, I still don't want him to forget about his biological father."
Iris nodded. "His biological father might be a scumbag, but Little Jun mustn't forget that he's still a Long."
"Yes, I know."
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They all understood what Iris meant. They knew that she was fighting Long Hui to become the next head of Long Industries for Little Jun.
If it were up to Jiang Ying Yue alone, she wouldn't care much about her son's inheritance from his biological father.
She might not be wealthy but she could still provide her son with a decent life and education, not to mention that her son had an amazing pair of godparents plus very generous and loving aunts and uncles. But even without them, she had always been determined to provide for her son by working as a bodyguard.
Now, however, she learned to fight for her son's rights thanks to Iris and their friends' encouragement.
Another person who helped change her views was Wei Lan. Although most of Wei Lan's principles were crooked, she was actually one of the best in persuading her how to value herself not only as a human and as a mother, but most importantly, as a woman.
It was okay to be selfish sometimes, especially when others were always taking her for granted. It was okay to prioritize herself and not to always give her all to others. And even as a mother, she mustn't forget that she was also a woman who needed rest and self-care to feel confident and beautiful.
Every woman deserved happiness.
Jiang Ying Yue was still learning how to deal with her insecurities and sense of inferiority. But with the encouragement of her friends and the crooked-yet-surprisingly inspiring Wei Lan, she learned how to open her heart again. And now she was on the verge of creating a complete, happy family with her son and fiancé.
Because of all of them, she now had the courage to fight for her son's rights.
Iris was right. Little Jun mustn't forget that he was a Long.
The things that should belong to her son should go to him and not to others. Her status might not compare to Long Hui's, but her son's status shouldn't be disregarded. She would fight for it no matter what.
"As long as you understand," Iris said, patting her hand. She glanced at Lin Yehan. It seemed that he didn't mind her questions to Little Jun either.
Back to the men's side, Jin Liwei clinked his bottle with Lin Yehan's.
"Cheers."
"Cheers, Third Brother." Lin Yehan's gaze softened as he looked at his soon-to-be wife and their son.