Chapter 28: Back in the White Tower, Heart Locked, Love Sealed
Xue Yu felt it was still too risky and tried to dissuade him, “Didn’t you say we have to be cautious about everything after having a child? If you show off like this, what if someone with ulterior motives notices something?”
Zhou Siyan thought about it and agreed. Without arguing, he reluctantly changed his nickname back to the original [Zhou Siyan].
Xue Yu gave him a thumbs up. “Bold. As expected of Xue Xiaohai’s dad.”
After making the bed, Xue Yu got out of the car to collect the clothes that were drying outside. She returned and sat cross-legged, folding them neatly.
Zhou Siyan sat to the side, feeding the baby. Xue Yu said, “Zhou Siyan, hand me that plastic bag behind you. I’ll use it to pack the clothes.”
Zhou Siyan handed her the plastic bag, his face stern. “Don’t call me Zhou Siyan.”
Xue Yu’s eyes darted around. Uh, is that too formal?
They had been together for so long, and she had always called him by his full name. He had never objected before.
“Then should I call you Siyan?” Xue Yu tried.
Zhou Siyan’s face was ashen. He didn’t answer.
Xue Yu: “Is Siyan not good? Then what should I call you, Little Zhou?”
The other party still didn’t answer.
“Yan~~”
Xue Yu deliberately raised her tone, her voice strained, twisting and turning in a convoluted way.
Zhou Siyan gave her a disgusted look and remained silent.
Xue Yu’s mind raced, her CPU almost overheating. She finally understood what this new dad wanted and said loudly, “Xue Xiaohai’s dad!”
Zhou Siyan finally reacted. “Mm.”
Xue Yu burst out laughing, doubling over. Zhou Siyan looked at her with contempt. “Xiaohai’s mom, keep it down. Don’t scare the baby.”
The phrase “Xiaohai’s mom” made Xue Yu laugh even harder.
Zhou Siyan ignored her. He finished feeding the baby, wiped her mouth, and kissed her cheek. “Your mommy has gone crazy.”
Xue Yu laughed for a long time before finally calming down.
The two lay down, with Xue Xiaohai sleeping in the middle, hugging her little seahorse. Her round, tender little face was like a white steamed bun.
Zhou Siyan lay on his side, staring at the baby’s sleeping face. He said, “Xiaohai’s mommy, Xiaohai seems to have gotten a lot heavier.”
Xue Yu strongly agreed. She had noticed that Xue Xiaohai was growing very fast, much faster than children on Earth. She had weighed ten jin at birth, and in the past two days, Xue Yu felt that the baby was probably thirteen or fourteen jin.
“She seems to have grown taller too,” Zhou Siyan reached out to Xue Yu. “Xiaohai’s mom, hand me the measuring tape.”
Xue Yu got up and took out a measuring tape from a bag on the side. “Baby’s dad, here you go.”
Zhou Siyan used the measuring tape to measure the baby’s height. She was three centimeters taller than when she was born.
Xue Yu leaned over to look. “Did she grow taller?”
Zhou Siyan: “Yes, three centimeters. Baby is so amazing.”
Xue Yu didn’t know the growth rate of babies on Earth, but Xue Xiaohai had grown three centimeters in just ten days since she was born. It was clearly faster than children on Earth.
She finally understood why people of the same age, like Zhou Siyan and Feng Qizhou, always said she was childish.
You people from the White Tower just develop faster.
It’s not that I’m childish, it’s that you guys are too precocious!
Zhou Siyan handed the measuring tape to Xue Yu and asked her to put it away. “Alright, Xiaohai’s mommy, it’s time to sleep.”
Xue Yu replied in kind, “Goodnight, Xue Xiaohai’s daddy.”
Zhou Siyan: “Goodnight, Xue Xiaohai’s mommy.”
Xue Yu stared at the dark roof of the car, feeling that she and Zhou Siyan were like two big fools.
From this night on, whenever Zhou Siyan called Xue Yu, he would call her “Xiaohai’s mom” or “Xue Xiaohai’s mommy.”
In return, Xue Yu called him “Xiaohai’s dad,” “Xue Xiaohai’s daddy,” “baby’s dad,” “child’s dad”…
Zhou Siyan was very pleased with these titles.
Whenever Xue Yu called him that, he could feel a surge of energy, as if he could immediately go down and plow two acres of paddy fields.
***
The next day, when Xue Yu woke up, Zhou Siyan was already up.
He had finished washing up and was calling Xue Yu from outside the car door. “Xiaohai’s mommy, time to get up.”
Xue Yu shot up and immediately went to shake the baby beside her. “Xue Xiaohai, time to get up! How can you sleep in at such a young age? Get up and play!”
She had developed a habit. The first thing she did when she woke up was to wake up Xue Xiaohai, determined not to let her sleep too long during the day.
The little child hugged her little seahorse and whimpered twice, unwilling to get up.
Xue Yu rubbed her face. “Get up, Xue Xiaohai! Time to get up and drink milk! Time to get up and play with your toys!”
The baby finally woke up, with a heavy case of morning grumpiness, and started crying loudly.
It was Zhou Siyan’s turn. He wiped the baby’s face with a wet wipe, changed her diaper, and then carried her outside for a walk.
“Baby, look, the sun is rising.”
“Baby, look over there. There’s a tree over there.”
“Baby, look quickly. There’s a rock here.”
“Baby, look, Mommy is brushing her teeth.”
Zhou Siyan held the baby and squatted in front of Xue Yu, who was brushing her teeth. The baby looked at Xue Yu’s mouth full of toothpaste foam, and her morning grumpiness finally dissipated. She reached out her two small hands to touch Xue Yu. “Mommy~”
After Xue Yu rinsed her mouth, she was both surprised and delighted. “Xue Xiaohai can say the full ‘mommy’ now.”
Zhou Siyan was also overjoyed. “Xiaohai, then who is Daddy?”
The baby’s head turned, but she still only made one sound: “Who.”
Xue Yu pinched her cheek. “Lazybones, hurry up and say ‘daddy’.”
Xue Xiaohai: “Dad!”
Zhou Siyan was not satisfied. There was still a difference between “dad” and “daddy,” even if it was just one word.
“Dad” meant that the child was habitually repeating the last sound of what others said.
“Daddy” proved that she really recognized her father.
After breakfast, on the way, Zhou Siyan was dedicated to teaching the child to recognize her father.
When feeding the baby, he shook the bottle. “Baby, it’s Daddy who is feeding you.”
When finding toys for the baby to play with, he would hold the toy in front of the baby and shake it. “Xiaohai, this toy is from Daddy.”
All morning, the baby’s ears were filled with “daddy, daddy, daddy”…
So, in the afternoon, the baby held her bottle and called the bottle “daddy.”
She held her toys and called the toys “daddy” too.
Seeing a wild dog run by in the grass outside the car, she pointed at the dog and shouted, “Daddy!”
Zhou Siyan’s face was darker than the bottom of a pot.
Xue Yu, driving on the side, was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down her face. “Baby’s dad, don’t be in such a hurry. You have to eat one bite at a time, and you have to teach a child slowly. Anyway, the child is yours. She can’t run away.”
Zhou Siyan: “Anyway, the child calls you ‘mommy’. Of course you’re not in a hurry.”
Xue Yu laughed happily. “Mother and daughter are connected. Please understand.”
The car drove smoothly, the scenery outside the window whizzing by.
Xue Yu suddenly sighed. “I wonder how Mo Li is doing. Sigh, it’s all my fault for being so useless. If I were a rich person, Mo Li wouldn’t have to take on missions while pregnant.”
Zhou Siyan: “I told him that I would pay for the cost of having the baby.”
Xue Yu glanced at him. “Then what did he say?”
Zhou Siyan: “He said he would save up himself.”
Xue Yu’s heart ached, and her eyes gradually dimmed.
Zhou Siyan comforted her, “Don’t worry about him. Anyway, he’s fragrant and white, praised by all. He’s popular everywhere he goes. He should be doing well.”
Xue Yu: “…”
Is this never going to end?
The rest of the journey was smooth. They didn’t encounter any more strange things.
Two days later, they finally returned to the White Tower.
When they arrived, the sky had not yet completely darkened. The two of them deliberately waited until it was completely dark before driving into the city.
The license plate of Zhou Siyan’s off-road vehicle had special privileges, allowing them to enter the city directly without inspection.
The car slowly drove into the city. The towering metal buildings exuded a gloomy and oppressive feeling, a completely different world from the wilderness on the road before.
Xue Yu and Zhou Siyan were both heavy-hearted.
The task of secretly raising a child in the White Tower was too arduous and long.
Zhou Siyan said he would hide the child in his office, taking care of her while he worked, and then secretly bring her home after work.
He said it lightly, but Xue Yu had no clue.
There were too many problems involved.
How would they dispose of the used diapers? They definitely couldn’t just throw them in the trash; they would be discovered.
Although Zhou Siyan worked in an office, it was not impossible for him to go on field missions. What would happen to the child then?
And there was the issue of the child’s education.
When the child grew up, she would have to learn to read and write. Who would teach her language, math, and physical education?
And would the child have to hide in Zhou Siyan’s office for years on end?
Xue Yu’s mind was full of these questions.
Zhou Siyan saw her anxiety and said softly, “There will always be a way to solve it. And, since she’s already born, we can’t stuff her back in.”
Xue Yu: “That’s true. Since she’s already born, we can’t stuff her back in.”
The two first went to Xue Yu’s dorm in the mining district, planning to hide some of the stockpiled formula in her dorm.
Zhou Siyan waited in the car with the baby. Xue Yu moved two large suitcases of formula from the trunk and went to the dormitory building.
She had been away for almost a month, but her dorm was still as messy as before. She had left in a hurry and hadn’t had time to tidy up.
After hiding the formula under the bed, Xue Yu quickly locked the door and went out.
In the hallway, she ran into Zhuang Xinzhang, who was walking her snail.
Seeing Xue Yu, Zhuang Xinzhang waved excitedly. “Xue Yu, didn’t you say you were going to the training grounds to train? It’s been a month. Has your spirit body awakened yet?”
Xue Yu rubbed the back of her neck, not wanting to say it outright. “It should be soon. Maybe in a couple of days.”
Zhuang Xinzhang: “Then when are you coming back to work? I’ll cancel your leave for you.”
Xue Yu: “I’ll see if I can come back tomorrow. If I can, I’ll come find you.”
Zhuang Xinzhang nodded. “Okay, then remember to come and find me to cancel your leave. If you don’t, you’ll be working for free. You won’t get paid.”
“Alright.”
After Zhuang Xinzhang left, Xue Yu went downstairs.
She went to the back of the remote garbage station outside. Zhou Siyan and the baby were sitting in the off-road vehicle.
Xue Yu got into the car. The baby was sitting in Zhou Siyan’s lap. She turned her head to look at her, covered her eyes with both hands, and then uncovered them. “Wow!”
Xue Yu turned to kiss her cheek. “Xiaohai is so good. We’re home.”
The car drove for nearly four more hours, from the mining district back to the Manster Building. It was already past midnight.
Xue Xiaohai had fallen asleep in Zhou Siyan’s arms.
There were still security guards on patrol at this hour.
Their plan was for Xue Yu to wait in the car with the baby. Zhou Siyan would first take the baby’s formula, clothes, diapers, and other things up in a suitcase, and then come down to get the baby.
With that decided, Xue Yu sat in the car with Xue Xiaohai, watching Zhou Siyan go upstairs first.
Zhou Siyan was very fast and came down ten minutes later.
He brought a portable silver safe and said to Xue Yu, “This box is soundproof. If we put the baby in the box and carry her up, even if she cries, the sound won’t get out.”
Xue Yu was very worried. “Won’t she suffocate?”
Zhou Siyan: “This safe is an organ life support box. It has an oxygen supply device.”
The baby was sound asleep. When they put her in the box and closed the lid, she still hadn’t woken up, sleeping obediently.
Xue Yu asked, “Do I have to go up too?”
Zhou Siyan frowned. “You don’t want to go up?”
Xue Yu: “I mean, I’ll have to come down again anyway. I still have to go back to the mining district. And if I run into a security guard, they’ll have to question me about what I’m doing here.”
Zhou Siyan: “Let’s go up first. You can sleep at my place for a while. I’ll take you down before dawn tomorrow.”
The Manster Building was eight hundred stories high and covered an area of more than two football fields.
Zhou Siyan lived in the residential area on the 102nd floor. He walked ahead with the safe, and Xue Yu followed behind like a little attendant.
As soon as they entered the lobby, a security guard ran over to salute Zhou Siyan. “Good evening, Director Zhou! You’re here again!”
When Zhou Siyan had come up with the suitcase earlier, this security guard had also come over to greet him eagerly.
Zhou Siyan nodded. “You can go about your business.”
The security guard’s gaze fell on Xue Yu behind him.
Zhou Siyan explained, “This is my friend. I brought her here to handle some things.”
The security guard was very vigilant and wanted to check Xue Yu’s resident ID, afraid that she was an Abomination who had snuck in from outside.
Xue Yu showed her ID and said, “I’m Xue Yu, a miner from the Fu’an Mining District.”
The security guard checked the ID, returned it to Xue Yu, and then saluted Zhou Siyan again. “Director Zhou, please have a safe trip!”
The elevator arrived, and Zhou Siyan and Xue Yu just got in.
Before the elevator doors could close, a person in a white lab coat quickly slipped in, holding the elevator door with one hand. “Wait for me. Let’s go up together.”
Zhou Siyan didn’t say anything. He stepped aside, tightened his grip on the handle of the safe, and moved to the side.
Feng Qizhou came in and stood next to Xue Yu. He slowly pressed the button for the 102nd floor. He also lived on the 102nd floor.
“Xue Yu, you’ve made it big?” Feng Qizhou adjusted his sleeves, a roguish smile on his face.
Xue Yu: “Not at all.”
Feng Qizhou: “Then what are you doing here? I thought you were going to become a high-ranking official at Manster.”
Xue Yu: “I’m here to assist Director Zhou in investigating Abominations.”
Feng Qizhou looked her up and down. “Investigating Abominations in the middle of the night? Are you that eager to advance?”
Xue Yu held her backpack with both hands. “What do you want?”
Feng Qizhou was wiping his hands with a tissue. “Old lovers meeting again. Can’t I be concerned about your recent situation?”
Xue Yu muttered and moved a little away from him. “Who’s an old lover with you…”
Feng Qizhou tilted his head to look at her:
“If not a lover, then a beloved? When we were together, what did you say? ‘Oh, I’ve been heartbroken by Zhou Siyan. From now on, I’ll seal my heart and lock my love, and never fall in love with anyone again.'”
“Since you’ve sealed your heart and locked your love, I can’t be your beloved, but I can at least be considered a lover.”
Zhou Siyan stood to the side with the box, his shoulders and back straight, his eyes always on his nose, his nose on his heart, as still as a pine tree.
Xue Yu was mortified. She had indeed been hurt by Zhou Siyan’s breakup at the time.
But at that time, Feng Qizhou had been seducing her every day, causing her to lose her composure. Her heart hadn’t moved on, but her pants had flown off first.
“Are you still sealing your heart and locking your love now?” Feng Qizhou asked again.
Xue Yu said with conviction, “Of course.”
Feng Qizhou: “Then join our extreme sexual conservatives. There are many benefits to joining this faction. You can get promoted faster.”
“I’d rather not.”
Xue Yu didn’t want to have a chip implanted in her body and be electrocuted every time she got horny.
Although she was under a lot of pressure to raise a child now and didn’t have the time to date, she couldn’t guarantee that she wouldn’t meet a good man one day.
The elevator reached the 102nd floor. Xue Yu thought Feng Qizhou would say a few more sarcastic words, but he didn’t.
He seemed to be in a hurry. As soon as the elevator doors opened, he ran out like the wind.
Xue Yu and Zhou Siyan also got out and went to Area A5, Zhou Siyan’s home.
He pressed his fingerprint and password to unlock the door.
As soon as they entered, Zhou Siyan locked the door and hurriedly opened the box.
Xue Xiaohai had woken up long ago. Finding herself in a small, dark box, she was crying her eyes out.
He held the baby in his arms and kissed her again and again. “Daddy is here. We’re home. Don’t cry.”
Xue Yu squatted by the sofa and made a funny face at the baby to amuse her. “Baby, look at Mommy. Isn’t Mommy funny?”
The baby finally broke into a smile.
Zhou Siyan handed the baby to Xue Yu. He squatted on the floor, opened the suitcase he had brought, and hurriedly mixed the formula.
Xue Xiaohai finally quieted down after getting her bottle.
Although Zhou Siyan’s apartment was only a two-bedroom, one-living-room, it was not small and was considered a luxury apartment in the White Tower.
The baby looked around curiously. She had been spending her nights in the small off-road vehicle these past few days. Now, seeing such a house, Xue Xiaohai was very excited and started to not want to sleep again.
After changing into her pajamas, she crawled and rolled all over the bed in Zhou Siyan’s bedroom.
Zhou Siyan found a set of his own pajamas for Xue Yu. “Go take a shower first. I’ll watch the baby.”
“Okay.”
Not long after Xue Yu went into the bathroom, Zhou Siyan was still playing with the baby.
He received another anonymous message: Director Zhou, did you bring back the package I asked you to get for me? I saw that you’re back in the White Tower.
Zhou Siyan stared at the screen for a moment and replied, I brought it back.
The other party: Are you free? Can you give it to me now?
Zhou Siyan: Where should I give it to you?
The other party: 102nd floor, Area A3, No. 8 recreation area. Just leave the package there. I’ll get it myself.
Xue Yu came out of the shower. Her figure was much smaller than Zhou Siyan’s, and his pajamas were loose on her. The pant legs were rolled up and bunched at her knees.
Zhou Siyan said, “You watch the baby. I’ll be out for a few minutes. I’ll be right back.”
“Oh.”
Zhou Siyan picked up the package he had gotten in the South Continent, went out to the No. 8 recreation area in Area A3. The corridor was deep and dark, the metal floor gleaming coldly. There was no one there.
He placed the package in the corner, turned back, and went around to the pillar behind.
After waiting for more than ten minutes, he saw a white, red-eyed fox come out, pick up the package, and leave quickly.
Zhou Siyan knew what was going on and turned around.
When he returned home, he saw Xue Yu lying in the bedroom, dozing off, her hand loosely around the baby.
Xue Xiaohai was lying on her mother, pinching Xue Yu’s face, pulling her ear, and continuing to crawl forward. Her small fingers were about to pry open Xue Yu’s eyelids. “Mommy.”
Xue Yu replied with her eyes closed, “If you keep making trouble, I’ll find you a job tomorrow…”
Zhou Siyan went over and picked up the baby, grabbed the little seahorse that was floating in the air, and put it in the baby’s arms. “Be good. Mommy is too tired. Let Mommy sleep.”
He carried the baby to the living room and lulled her to sleep before bringing her back to the bedroom and placing her next to Xue Yu.
He sat by the mother and daughter, watching for a long time. He kissed Xue Xiaohai, then leaned over and kissed Xue Yu’s cheek.
The moment his lips touched Xue Yu’s cheek, the chip in his body generated a huge electric current, causing him to tremble all over and let out a muffled groan.
The stronger the pleasure, the stronger the electric current generated by the chip.
He was surprised himself. Could a kiss on the cheek cause such great pleasure?
Am I that sexually repressed? Zhou Siyan couldn’t believe it.
He opened the bedside table, took out the injection kit, and gave himself a shot of libido suppressant before he could lie down peacefully.