Chapter Eighty-Three: Unexpected Fatherhood

Su Wan Ning heard these words, yet her face showed no delight. She ignored the envious glances from the other mothers around and first looked at Nian Nian.

“Nian Nian, do you like walking the runway?”

Su Wan Ning always respected her child’s wishes.

Nian Nian, though young, understood everything. Remembering how she had just stood in the spotlight, feeling as though she were onstage, she nodded vigorously.

“I like it!”

Only then did Su Wan Ning smile. She turned to Tian Bo Yu, “Could you recommend a few teachers who specialize in teaching children runway modeling?”

“Of course, no problem. I’ll send you their contact information later,” Tian Bo Yu replied readily, and the little episode passed.

After a while, the group settled down and turned off the lights to rest. Su Wan Ning lay in bed, but for once, sleep did not come easily.

She kept recalling her conversation with Sui Sui beneath the starry sky on the grasslands.

And Nian Nian—her singing and modeling talents were so evident, yet the previous Su Wan Ning had never once paid attention.

For the first time, Su Wan Ning felt a stroke of luck at her timely arrival. The two children were still young; everything could still be saved.

She didn’t know how much time had passed before she finally drifted into deep sleep. Early the next morning, she was woken by the sounds around her, still half-asleep.

Su Wan Ning was a little grumpy upon waking. Groggily opening her eyes, she saw the beds around her were already empty.

Naturally, the others were eager for her to be late, so no one bothered to wake her. Sui Sui and Nian Nian, meanwhile, wanted her to have more rest.

When she opened her eyes, she saw Sui Sui helping Nian Nian get dressed.

Su Wan Ning felt no pressing sense of maternal duty. She rolled over and yawned.

“Sui Sui, Nian Nian, why are you up so early?”

“Mama, it’s not early anymore—the sun is already shining on our bottoms.”

Nian Nian crawled over to Su Wan Ning, her adorable little face melting Su Wan Ning’s heart, and the morning grumpiness faded away.

“Oh really? There’s no window here, how do you know the sun is already shining?”

The little one’s eyes twinkled, answering smartly, “The sun is already shining on the calves outside!”

Su Wan Ning laughed at her antics, and the viewers in the livestream were all shouting that they had been defeated by Nian Nian’s “cute” power.

Su Wan Ning sat up. By now, the yurt was nearly empty, leaving just their little family and a few cameramen.

“Where is everyone? Is there an event today?”

Sui Sui spoke up nearby, “The director said there’s a competition.”

“Another competition…” Su Wan Ning muttered, but still got up, washed, and changed at record speed—no more than ten minutes—before heading out the yurt door.

Outside, the other groups of guests had already gathered. Tian Bo Yu was amongst them, his height standing out in the crowd of women and children, dazzling and unmistakable.

Seeing Su Wan Ning emerge, Yu Xin smiled and said, “Here she is, here she is! Miss Su, you’ve finally arrived. We’ve all been waiting for you so long, and now we can finally start the competition!”

Yu Xin’s tone was playful, her face smiling, but Su Wan Ning didn’t reciprocate the sentiment. She walked over with a cold expression and replied with a forced smile, “Is that so? If you were so eager, why didn’t you just wake me up when you got up? Then no one would have to wait for me now.”

Yu Xin: “…”

She had participated in countless variety shows. Even when rivals clashed off-camera, they would still feign closeness on screen. Yet Su Wan Ning was the only one she’d ever seen who showed her true colors without a hint of pretense.

Everyone was used to Su Wan Ning’s attitude—so were the viewers, who had shifted from irritation to finding amusement in her candid remarks.

“Ahem… Well, since everyone is here, I’ll announce today’s competition.” The director cleared his throat to ease the awkward atmosphere. Su Wan Ning paid little mind, standing at the very end of the line with her two children.

“Little Tian has been with us for a day now. I believe you’re all getting familiar with him. Today’s ultimate prize is—him!”

At these words, laughter broke out among the guests.

“Director, are you planning to give us Tian as a gift?”

Feng Rui asked, half in jest.

“Of course not. We’ll confer on Tian the title of ‘Father for a Day.’ Whoever wins today’s competition will get this reward. For one day, Li Xiao Tian will play the father’s role, helping you with the show’s activities and taking care of the children.”

Given how tiring it was to travel with kids for so long, the guests were eager for any help.

“Let’s not waste time, let’s start the competition. Everyone will have a balloon tied to their back. Whoever keeps their balloon from being popped wins!”

The staff tied balloons to everyone’s backs, including the children.

The director’s whistle blew, and the game began.

Everyone took up defensive positions; Su Wan Ning quietly stepped back to the edge of the field.

[Here she goes, the expert at doing nothing starts her defense.]

[I bet she’s the first out—I’ll wager a bottle of sunscreen!]

Netizens mocked Su Wan Ning’s passive approach, but she remained unbothered.

Sui Sui and Nian Nian were so easy to manage that she hardly needed any help, nor did she care to create drama with new guests—who knew what trouble that might bring?

The children made the first moves; soon, Da Xi was eliminated, then Ming Ming…

The adults began their attacks. Yin Shan Shan swiftly popped the balloon behind Feng Rui.

As the mantis stalks the cicada, the oriole follows behind—Yu Xin seized the moment to eliminate Yin Shan Shan.

The tension mounted. Only Yu Xin and Su Wan Ning remained on the field.

Su Wan Ning dodged symbolically a couple of times, then allowed Yu Xin to remove her balloon. Thinking she could now relax, she was caught off guard when the director immediately blew the whistle to end the game.

“The competition is over. The winner is—the Su Wan Ning family!”

Su Wan Ning was startled. Looking back, she realized that Sui Sui and Nian Nian had eliminated all the other children, securing victory by sheer numbers.

Both children’s faces were bright with joy, and even Su Wan Ning managed a stiff smile.

Tian Bo Yu approached, offering his hand with exaggerated formality. “Congratulations.”

“Same to you,” Su Wan Ning replied, her smile more painful than cheerful.

[What is this, winning a father for a day?]

[I wonder if CEO Qin, thousands of miles away, will faint from anger when he sees this.]