Jian An'an recalled nervously, "You said... you said the soup I made was good..."
"And?"
"You asked me... to be your personal chef..." After Jian An'an finished speaking, she saw that Li Shaoting did not object, and her heart skipped a beat. "Mr. Li, do you really want me to be your chef?"
"Mm..." Li Shaoting replied indifferently.
"But..." Jian An'an hurriedly waved her hands. "My culinary skills are only average. I can only work as a kitchen assistant in a restaurant..."
Li Shaoting coldly interrupted her, "Either you pay back the money, or you work as my chef."
"I..."
"Work as my personal chef for three months, and our debt will be wiped clean. Furthermore, I will pay you an extra salary; the compensation will be better than that of a head chef at a restaurant," Li Shaoting continued.
Jian An'an’s heart stirred at these words. Better compensation than a head chef? She needed a lot of money, and there seemed to be no reason to refuse.
"Fine, I agree." Jian An'an nodded.
The expression on Li Shaoting’s face softened slightly. "Then it’s settled."
As they spoke, they had arrived at a Maybach. Li Shaoting took out his car keys and said, "Get in."
Jian An'an was taken aback. "Huh?"
"Come back and make me a late-night snack." Li Shaoting opened the car door. "I only had the soup earlier; I’m not full."
"Okay..." Just as Jian An'an was about to agree, her phone suddenly rang. She pulled it out and saw that it was actually Xiaoxin calling.
"Mr. Li, I need to take this call." She turned to look at Li Shaoting, and after he nodded, she walked to the side with her phone to answer.
Once the call connected, she asked softly, "Hello, Xiaoxin, what’s wrong?"
Xiaoxin’s voice was soft and sweet on the other end. "Mommy, I miss you."
Hearing Xiaoxin say he missed her, Jian An'an’s heart felt like it was melting. She held the phone and coaxed him gently, "Be a good boy, Xiaoxin. I’ll come to see you in a little while, okay?"
"Mommy, can you sing the 'Little Rabbit, Be Good' door-opening song?"
"Okay, I’ll sing it, and then you open the door for me, alright?"
"Mm."
Li Shaoting waited patiently for her to hang up. Seeing she was finally finished, he asked, "Ready to go?"
Thinking of Xiaoxin’s words, Jian An'an said with a guilty look, "I’m sorry, Mr. Li. I have something to take care of at the hospital, so I can’t make your late-night snack today."
"Mm..." Hearing that she was heading to the hospital, Li Shaoting didn't make things difficult for her. He gave an affirmative sound to show his agreement and then said, "Get in."
Jian An'an looked at him in confusion. Hadn't he already agreed?
"I'll take you to the hospital," Li Shaoting said with some impatience. "I don't like it when people reject me."
Seeing that Li Shaoting would take no for an answer, Jian An'an climbed into the car and said gratefully, "Mr. Li, thank you. You’ve helped me so many times; you really are a good person."
"Hmph..." Li Shaoting scoffed at the term "good person."
The Maybach performed excellently, and in no time, it had brought them to the hospital.
After getting out of the car, Jian An'an bowed to thank him again.
Li Shaoting gave a nonchalant grunt and was about to turn the car around when he caught a glimpse of Jian An'an's retreating back.
That figure was damnably familiar! His heart skipped a beat, and he immediately pushed open the door and called out to her, "Stop!"
Jian An'an paused, clutching her bag as she turned around, looking at him in confusion. "What is it?"
Li Shaoting strode over and gripped her shoulder with surprising strength, his eyes turning deep and unfathomable.
Jian An'an felt a sting of pain and couldn't help but let out a soft cry. "Mr. Li?"
Why had his expression changed so strangely? Hearing her voice, Li Shaoting suddenly snapped back to reality. Looking at the simple, innocent face before him, he let go, reverting to his boss-like posture. "Come to Dijing Shangdu tomorrow morning to cook for me."
Jian An'an couldn't help but laugh when she heard this. "I'm glad you reminded me."
As she spoke, she took out her phone and handed it to him. "Mr. Li, could you leave me your number? It would be easier to contact you."
Li Shaoting had initially wanted to refuse, but looking into her bright, warm eyes, he felt compelled by some unknown force to take her old-model phone and enter his private number with his slender fingers.
Afterward, he handed the phone back to Jian An'an. Watching her lower her head to meticulously add "Mr. Li" as the contact name, he suddenly felt a strange itch in his heart.
Suppressing his emotions, Li Shaoting turned and drove away. Jian An'an also turned and entered the hospital to visit Xiaoxin in his room.
After singing a few lines of "Little Rabbit, Be Good" outside the door, Xiaoxin’s thin, weak voice drifted from within. "Mommy, come in."
Jian An'an pushed the door open and saw Xiaoxin sitting on the bed with a pale face. Her heart ached instantly. She hurried over, pulled her son into her arms, and said gently, "Xiaoxin, I'm sorry. Mommy has been too busy to spend enough time with you."
"But you’re here now, aren't you, Mommy?" Xiaoxin was happy to see Jian An'an. He leaned into her arms and soon fell asleep.
Looking at her son’s thin little face, Jian An'an felt another wave of heartache.
Xiaoxin was a premature baby born from her own malnutrition; his immune system was very weak, and he had been born with a congenital illness. The pain had kept him much thinner and frailer than other children his age, with no "baby fat" to speak of.
He couldn't go outside, couldn't engage in strenuous exercise, and couldn't get hurt...
His entire childhood had been spent in a hospital bed.
Thinking of this, Jian An'an clenched her fists tightly, resolving that no matter what it took, she had to find that man. He might be Xiaoxin’s only hope for recovery!
Jian An'an sat in the corridor outside, lost in thought and feeling heavy-hearted. Just then, the nurse who always looked after Xiaoxin walked over and asked with concern, "Ms. Jian, why are you still sitting here so late?"
Jian An'an looked up and gave a weak smile. "It's nothing. I was just thinking about Xiaoxin."
The nurse asked in surprise, "Thinking about Xiaoxin? Haven't you already found Xiaoxin’s father? When I came for my shift change, I saw him drop you off at the hospital. Is he unwilling to donate bone marrow for Xiaoxin?"
Jian An'an was confused for a moment, but she soon realized the nurse had misunderstood.
She quickly explained, "That man isn't Xiaoxin’s father. He’s just my new boss who gave me a ride on his way here."
The nurse patted her shoulder in comfort, though she looked completely bewildered. "Is that so? He’s really not Xiaoxin’s father? But when I saw him, I felt that Xiaoxin looked so much like him! At first glance, I honestly thought he was the boy's father!"