Chapter 5

Chapter 11: Big Bun Plus Little Bun

The first thing Arisen did after returning home was taking a nap to restore her lost sleep.

After she woke up, she went to the supermarket. She bought the ingredients and side dishes, including beer, for a hot pot.

With her first battle won, she was going to have a hot pot celebration at home!

Eating hotpot alone, it was as lonely as one could get.

At least she was already used to it after being more of a loner all this time.

There was a knock on the door right as she was about to start cooking.

Who was visiting at this time?

Arisen became stunned as pulled the door open suspiciously.

Calyx was standing outside the door dressed in a snappy western suit, with a dark outer coat.

Little bun was being carried in his arms while he was holding a colourful fruit basket.

This... What kind of strange combination is this?

"Mr Lu?" Arisen swallowed in fright, "Why the surprise at this hour? Is there something the matter?"

Calyx"s thin lips let out two words, "Sick visit."

Sick visit?

He personally came to visit this late at night, even bringing little bun along?

It was only a small injury, she"s still alive and jumping.

"Er, you"re being too polite, Mr Lu. Sorry about the mess, please come in" Arisen didn"t have time to react. She simply invited them in, flattered yet stunned. She speedily tidied up the whole room as she removed the junk from the couch and shoved the piles of clothing under the bed.

"Sit anywhere you"d like, do you want to have something to drink? Is green tea or milk okay?" While keeping busy, Arisen was wracking her brains trying to guess why Calyx had come. Unfortunately, she wasn"t able to guess the reason no matter how much she tried since Calyx"s train of thought was too deep

"Sure." Calyx nodded with the expression of a commander replying to a soldier who had just reported on a military situation.

Arisen could only remain confused as she brewed a cup of tea for Calyx Lu and poured a cup of milk for little bun.

Calyx was cramped awkwardly on the narrow sofa in the living room with little bun sitting by his side.

The father and son pair not only looked alike, but their expressions were also exactly the same.

They were expressionless.

Silent.

The scene turned awkward.

Arisen was close to tears while seated opposite them.

Geez, what were these two here for?

At this moment, gurgling sounds came from the pot. The air began to fill with an enticing spicy aroma.

For the sake of breaking the silence, Arisen casually asked, "So, have you guys had dinner yet? I was about to have a hotpot, do you want to eat together?"

Calyx: "Okay."

Little bun nodded.

Arisen: "......."

She was only asking out of courtesy, were they trying to pick a fight by agreeing just like that?

One is a CEO, while the other is a little young master. They had probably tasted all sorts of delicacies before. Why did they run here to have a small shabby household hot pot with commoners like her?

Arisen felt a little embarrassed at the poor offerings.

However, she had already spoken. So she could only bite the bullet and invite them to the dining table, adding two more pairs of chopsticks.

"The soup base I bought is quite spicy, can you take spicy foods?" Arisen asked worriedly.

Calyx: "Yes."

Little bun nodded.

Okay then...

Arisen brought the freshly washed ingredients over.

Calyx did not eat much, he was cooking for them most of the time. On the other hand, little bun loved spicy food as much as she did. He still kept eating despite sticking out his tongue due to the spiciness.

Arisen finally got a little worried, "Is it bad for children to eat too much spice?"

She could not afford the consequences if anything happened to this little prince.

"Not that delicate." Calyx thought her worries were unfounded.

With that, Arisen kept any other opinions to herself.

The silent cool-headed Calyx suddenly took the initiative to speak up, "How was the audition?"

Arisen froze for a moment before reacting.

She replied, "It was fairly smooth, so I made a hotpot as a celebration today!"

Calyx raised his glass, "Congratulations."

She hadn"t really expected that Calyx would be the first person to congratulate her.

Chapter 12: Staying Overnight

Arisen gently toasted his glass with the beer in her hands. She showed a smile that came from the depths of her heart, "Thank you!"

The moment the girl"s smile blossomed, Calyx shook subtly for a moment.

Calyx looked towards little bun at the side, "I"m especially grateful to Little Treasure, I wouldn"t have been able to make it to the audition in time if it weren"t for him! Here darling, let me toast you!"

Little Treasure looked at his cup of milk, then at Arisen and Daddy"s beers. Although reluctant, he finally raised his cup to toast with Arisen. He then downed the rest of the milk in one gulp.

Arisen couldn"t help but laugh at his serious demeanour. He probably knows how to act like an adult drowning their sorrows in drink too?

Calyx went to the balcony to take a call halfway through the meal.

Arisen immediately pressed close to Little Treasure"s side. She handed her beer over to him, "Heh heh! Curious about the taste? Quickly, taste it while your dad isn"t here! You can only have a small mouthful though!"

Little Treasure"s eyes lit up like stars in the night sky, he lowered his head and carefully took a small sip.

He felt extremely happy even though the taste was horrible.

Arisen immediately sat up when Calyx returned from his call, acting as if nothing had happened.

Little Treasure was even more professional. He slowly drank his milk, completely unflustered.

Calyx looked as if he had not noticed anything, but a glimmer of warmth flashed in his eyes as he sat down with a normal expression.

The three of them had good appetites. They managed to finish everything even though she bought a lot of ingredients.

Arisen was thinking it was time for them so leave as it was getting quite late. Suddenly, lightning flashed across the sky. Shortly after, thunder started booming loudly and fierce winds started to blow outside.....

"I saw that the weather forecast predicted heavy rain and typhoon for tonight....."

Arisen stared at the pouring rain outside the window with a troubled expression. Little bun and Calyx both looked at her.

After getting stared at by the pair, Arisen could only say, "Going back with Little Treasure at this time is a little dangerous since it"s already this late and the weather isn"t looking too favourable. Maybe you could stay over here for tonight?"

She had extended the offer purely out of courtesy, she thought there was no way Mr. Lu would agree. The result being...

Mr. Lu: "Okay."

Little bun nodded.

WHAT!? why did you agree again...

Calyx Lu was way too easy going!

Why did she have a feeling the pair had just been waiting for her to make the offer?

She was going crazy!!!

Just like that, Calyx and Little Treasure were going to stay over in the end.

The apartment that her company had arranged for her was not that large, it only had a living room and a bedroom. The sleeping arrangements were indeed a problem.

"I"ll sleep in the living room for tonight. Mr Lu, is it okay if you sleep with Little Treasure in my room? I"ll go change the bedsheets."

"No, I"ll sleep in the living room, you should sleep with Little Treasure in the bedroom." Calyx stated with a tone that would not accept any protest.

Arisen felt that she was digging holes for herself. Not only had she invited CEO Lu to eat a cheap hotpot, she was even making him sleep in the living room.

She wouldn"t have let Calyx stay if he were the only one here. Especially after what Calyx had said in the day, and it being only the two of them under the same roof.

Out of consideration of little bun however, she didn"t have a choice.

It was too dangerous to let him bring a child back in this weather. It couldn"t be considered a couple left alone together since little bun was here.....right?

Arisen could only resign herself to her fate, "I"ll see if I can find a change of clothes for both of you..."

She was able to find a change of clothes for them after rummaging through her closet.

Chapter 13: It"s Not Easy to Raise a Child

She found a set of child-sized pajamas shaped like a Pikachu that Little Treasure could wear. She had gotten them when she was working part-time and had just casually tossed them in the closet.

It was easier to settle the change of clothes for Calyx since her little brother had left a few sets of clothes with her.

Arisen had felt that she had let down her adoptive parents after reuniting with her biological parents, so did not have the face to meet them. She rarely contacted them and only kept in touch with her little brother Arthur.

Arisen returned to the room to grab a set of new bed sheets and pillow covers after having found the clothes.

The sofa in the living room was not big enough for Calyx to stretch his long legs. She could only move a stool over to add length to the makeshift bed.

She didn"t have to worry at all for Little Treasure. He washed himself in the bath and put on the cute pajamas by himself, then instinctively headed for the bed to lay down.

Arisen finished bathing and changed into a more conservative pair of pajamas. She walked out after checking that she looked decent.

"That... Mr Lu, I"m going to sleep first. Call me if you need anything."

"Yes." Calyx"s gaze lost focus as he looked at the freshly bathed Arisen. The depths of his eyes darkened overwhelmingly.

The girl was wearing the most ordinary pair of pajamas and had her hair tied into a bun. She had a fresh face and her smooth skin held a natural flush from the steam of the shower.

He could tell that Arisen had dressed conservatively. There was nothing inappropriate with her image.

However, the situation inside Calyx"s heart was a little hard to describe. He had discovered that a certain part of his lower body was faintly raising its head.

Arisen entered her bedroom and suddenly saw that her bedroom had an additional cute little creature. She was put into a wonderful mood.

A lot of things had developed beyond her expectations since last night.

"Sleep soon." She switched off the ceiling light and left the lamp by her bedside switched on. She laid down next to little bun.

Little Bun blinked, seemingly not having the slightest urge to sleep.

Arisen started to have a headache.

It seemed like kids needed stories read out to them before they would go to sleep.

Arisen shrugged helplessly, "I don"t know how to tell stories. What if I sing a song for you?"

Little Bun became filled with anticipation as he nodded.

Thus Arisen gently patted Little Bun"s back as she started to sing softly:

In the warm and cold autumn days,

Staying close by your side,

Quietly watching time fly by.

Those red leaves amongst the wind

Caused my heart to be at peace.

Between wakefulness and drunkenness,

Resisting the urge to smile.

Let me be like the snow in the clouds,

Raining cold gentle kisses on faces

With endless feelings of lingering,

Flows endless love in humanity.

Welcoming the thousand changes of life.

Ning Xi suddenly paused in her singing since the next line was "Having sex with a lover".

Yikes! Weren"t these lyrics a bit inappropriate for the young?

She should switch to another song.

Arisen coughed once, "Auntie will sing another song for you since auntie forgot the next line!"

Little Bun nodded obediently.

Arisen wracked her brains to think of a more child-friendly song:

Jack and Jill went up the hill

To fetch a pail of water.

Jack fell down and broke his crown,

And Jill came tumbling after.

Up Jack got, and home did trot,

As fast as he could caper,

He went to bed to mend his head,

With vinegar and brown paper.

It was only after singing three times that she heard sweet snoring start from her side.

It wasn"t easy to raise children!

She suddenly felt admiration for Calyx Lu as a single dad.

She wondered who little bun"s mother was. Why did she give birth to little bun and leave Calyx?

Was it because her status was too low for the Lu family to accept?

Was it because Calyx had some unseen complications?

Arisen slowly fell asleep while going off into wild flights of fancy.

At midnight, Arisen was shocked awake by a sudden muffled sound from the living room.

Chapter 14: It"s Easy to Lose Control

She carefully moved off the bed to see what had happened since little bun was sleeping very soundly.

She saw Calyx pouring some water to drink after pushing open the bedroom door. One hand was covering his stomach and his face looked pale.

Arisen hurriedly went over, "Mister Lu, are you ok?"

"Nothing big."

"Hmm, does your stomach hurt?"

Calyx didn"t reply.

Arisen knew that she had guessed right.

Calyx actually couldn"t eat spicy things. Yet why would he attempt to eat anyways?

"Wait a bit, I"ll get you some stomach medicine."

Fortunately, she had the most common medicines at home.

Arisen hurriedly brought over the stomach medicine, "You have to eat both pills."

"Thank you." Calyx took the pills from her palm. His slightly cold fingers grazing lightly on her palm felt as if they were grazing the tip of her heart. It suddenly made her feel weak.

In the still quiet of the windy and stormy night, it was too easy to lose control with this kind of beauty in front of her!

Arisen silently chanted the digits of Pi until she could calm her heart down.

Looking at Calyx eating the medicine, she accompanied him for a while since it wasn"t polite to leave immediately.

"Are you a little better now? Do you need to go to the hospital? I"m sorry, I didn"t know you couldn"t eat spicy foods..."

Originally she was worried about little bun. In the end nothing happened to little bun, but something happened to Calyx instead! What would this be called.

"Not your fault, it"s just an old problem."

Calyx suddenly opened his mouth after the two were silent for a bit: "The reason for intruding on your hospitality tonight was because Little Treasure wanted to see you."

Arisen wasn"t sure if he"d made a slip of the tongue, "Little Treasure wanted to see me?"

"Little Treasure had suffered a big fright in the warehouse. He"s very reliant on you now since you saved him." Calyx explained.

Arisen found that as long as Little Treasure was nearby, or if someone brought up questions regarding Little Treasure, the piercing cold atmosphere around Calyx would weaken a lot. He wasn"t as scary as was earlier during daytime.

"So it was like this..." Arisen nodded her head.

This kind of night was easy to cause people to let down their defenses and reservations. Arisen asked a question that had been bothering her for a while, "Umm, taking the liberty to ask. Does Little Treasure not know how to speak?"

Even up until today, she had never heard Little Treasure utter a single word. The little fellow would only nod or shake his head.

"More so than not knowing how to talk, he doesn"t want to talk." Calyx answered.

"Then it"s a problem of the heart?" Arisen frowned.

"Little Treasure is a bit closed off. He tends to shut himself away." Calyx didn"t hide anything.

"It"s like this..."It was pretty much what she had guessed.

As to why Little Treasure would shut himself away, this kind of rich family"s secret, she naturally would not dare to ask about more deeply.

"Miss Ni." Calyx suddenly focused his gaze on her. Those eyes were bright, cold and calm. Yet it gave her a feeling of being so fiery that it would burn a body into ashes.

"Yes?" Arisen gave a slight start at the gaze.

"Have we met somewhere before?" Calyx asked.

If these words were spoken by someone else, Arisen would definitely think the other side was trying to strike up a conversation. Using an obsolete/old way at that too. But the person speaking was Calyx Lu, the bewilderment in his eyes were real.

"We probably haven"t. Even if I had seen Mr. Lu before, there"s no way I wouldn"t have an impression...but is there some problem?" Arisen's tone was still considered firm. With her status, she couldn"t have met a person at Calyx's level. That would be the case even when she was still the Ning family"s young miss.

"Nothing." Calyx shifted his gaze, his eyes reflecting the deep color of the night outside the window. He seemed a bit lonely.

The atmosphere seemed to be going a little bad as they continued to interact like this!

"Mister Lu, if you don"t have anything else, then I"ll go to sleep first?" Arisen carefully said.

It seemed as if Calyx had seen through her. He raised his hand, "No hurries, sit."

Not in a hurry?! She was in a very big hurry, ok!

Chapter 15: You Want to Sleep with Me and Shirk the Responsibility?

Arisen sat down obediently like an elementary school student. Her face looking like she wanted to cry.

Calyx held his head in one hand, "You"re scared of me?"

In the dark of the night, Calyx seemed even more devilishly dangerous compared to his cold self in the day.

Arisen shook her head vigorously, then nodded carefully, "There"s probably not a single person who isn"t scared of you in the capital, right?"

Calyx"s slender fingers played with the cup in his hands as he slowly said, "So you"re scared of me because others are afraid of me? Then why don"t you marry me since other women want to as well?"

This question frightened Arisen to the point that she almost slid off her chair.

She had just thought that she had escaped this trial in the day. Clearly she had really been too naive.

How was she supposed to answer such a loaded question?

Arisen trembled as she raised her hand, "Before answering this question, can I ask another one?"

Calyx, "You may."

"Why me? Is it because Little Treasure is reliant on me? I think that it"s only temporary. He"ll be fine once his emotions have stabilised. Even if he is always like that, you don"t have to... you don"t have to inconvenience yourself in this manner..." Arisen painstakingly persuaded him as if advising a young girl that had strayed off the right path.

Calyx put down the cup and raised his eyes to look at her, "I thought I made it clear the first time Miss Ni. I don"t mind saying it again if you still don"t understand. I am going to repay you with my body because you saved Little Treasure."

It"s exactly because of this reason that I can"t accept this okay!? Arisen roared in her heart.

Arisen felt that she wasn"t able to communicate any further with him on this point. She could only make an apologetic expression, "Mr Lu, I"m extremely grateful for your good intentions. I"m absolutely against marriage though, so..."

Calyx raised a brow, "So, you only want to sleep with me? Yet you don"t want to take responsibility by marrying me?"

"Yes, that"s exactly righ-wait! No no no no... that wasn"t what I meant!" Arisen was about to kneel for him. Could he be any more terrifying with his words?

"Unfortunately, I can"t accept premarital sex."

"Who would believe that...." Arisen could not help mumbling under her breath after hearing that.

You"ve already gotten someone pregnant before marriage, okay?

Calyx"s expression was a little unfocused as looked out the window, "Little Treasure was an accident, I don"t know who his mother is."

"......" Why did this sound so terrible?

"Then you"re minding that I have a son?" Calyxsuddenly asked.

"That"s impossible!" It"s as Calyx said, all the women in the capital were wracking their minds to be Little Treasure"s stepmother. How could she mind that he had a son!

"Then why?"

Judging by the way things were going, Calyx would not be letting her off unless she provided a satisfactory answer.

Arisen held her forehead helplessly. She said after taking a deep breath, "Mr Lu, marriage is not a game. Regardless of whether it"s for the sake of repaying a debt or other reasons, we just met. Do you understand my personality? Do you know my past?"

"The one I want to marry is the present you. Your past has nothing to do with me." Calyx"s answer was overbearing as expected.

Arisen"s expression cooled down, "However, to me, my past is also a part of me. I have no way of cutting off my past to marry you. Mr Lu, we are travelling on different paths. I sincerely suggest that you take back your absurd idea."

Following that was a thick silence.

Arisen thought that the other would start throwing a huge temper due to the humiliation of being rejected again.

Calyx spoke up with an even tone, "Understood."

Arisen"s tightly wound nerves finally relaxed, "Then I"m going to sleep, good night."

"Good night."

The man looked at that frail back, his gaze was as unfathomable as the ocean depths. The only thing that didn"t change was the heat that came from the seabed.

To be continued...