"She is indeed pregnant." Ke Shaozheng is efficient in his work; the news had already reached the father. Without much thought, Hu Li had already guessed what he might say next.
"Congratulations on becoming a father... Now that there is a child, bring her back to live here." Father Hu sincerely congratulated his son, and he was also looking forward to the arrival of his grandchild. Bringing Hua Yan back to the Hu family was not because he accepted her, but rather because it was the most suitable option from several perspectives.
Firstly, as long as she was outside, the means to control her could not be implemented. Secondly, the descendants of the Hu family were not allowed to be raised by an ordinary woman. Lastly, only by having her under his watchful eye could he truly understand her and thus know his enemy.
Worried that Hu Li would disagree, Father Hu explained, "The Hu family now has unknown enemies, and it's not safe for her to be alone outside while you're not around. Besides, she surely wishes to stay by your side."
Hu Li resonated with his father's later words. During the time apart, he missed them both more and more. Sometimes he could barely resist flying to be with them immediately, even if it was just to look at them, it would make him happy.
But reason told Hu Li that now was not the time to bring them back to the Hu family. He had not yet fully taken over as the head of the Hu family, and the family affairs were not entirely in his control.
During these uncertain times, he would not rashly put them in danger. "For now, it's unnecessary. I have already made arrangements for her safety."
"Since she is going to be the daughter-in-law of the Hu family, how can she always stay out of the picture? Taking advantage of her pregnancy to bring her back can silence the family's gossip. I also promised to remain silent about her issues."
Father Hu's apparent concern for Hua Yan's wellbeing made Hu Li's calm face show impatience. As Father Hu wanted to say more, Hu Li left, saying there was no need to discuss Hua Yan any further.
Father Hu, left with an unpleasant expression, smoked a cigar for quite a while before regaining his composure. He then called Long Er and arranged for her to go inland to find Hua Yan and bring her back.
In the bedroom, Hu Li, who was not sleeping, soon received a message from Hu Da. Seeing that Father Hu had indeed sent someone inland, his eyes darkened. He immediately messaged Hu Er, instructing Hua Yan to be extra cautious.
Having completed her postpartum recovery, Hua Yan had regained her former slim figure through exercise. However, she had gained some weight, which made her look healthier compared to her previously frail appearance.
After Hu Li left, she initially surrounded herself with Hu Chen to ease her endless longing for him. Now she had recovered from that ostrich-like state.
Every day, apart from taking care of Hu Chen, telling him stories, and playing with him, she also tended to the vegetables and sunflowers Hu Li had planted.
At six o'clock in the morning, just after changing Hu Chen's diaper and feeding him, she was about to go back to sleep when she noticed a new email notification. Having not received any messages from Hu Li for many days, she lost all sleepiness and opened her computer to read the email.
Seeing that Father Hu wanted to bring her back was laughable to her. If the rehabilitation base was so easy to find, the end of the world would be near. Hu Er also mentioned that Hu Li did not plan to bring her back to the Hu family yet, citing that it was still unsafe.
Hua Yan was naturally very happy about not returning to the Hu family and immediately replied to Hu Er's email, telling him she would be careful. She also mentioned that Hu Chen was getting more active, could walk ten steps without support, had grown four or five teeth, and sometimes biting her hand hurt.
There were so many things she wanted to say, but she only typed these few details in the email. With a sigh, Hua Yan felt happy again and cuddled with the soft and quiet Hu Chen to continue her sleep.
However, in her dream, she saw Hu Li. She noticed that he had lost weight and scolded him for not taking care of his health.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
After messaging Hu Er, Hu Li's drowsiness disappeared. He worked in the study until two in the morning when his phone suddenly buzzed. He grabbed it, having been waiting for this message deep down.
Seeing Hua Yan's message about Hu Chen being able to walk and having grown teeth made him happy but also miss them more.
A few days later, while Hua Yan was helping Hu Chen practice walking, Lao Qiao suddenly arrived. Hua Yan asked her father and Nanny Chang to play with Hu Chen while she, Lao Yang, and Lao Qiao went to another room.
"According to my people's observations, indeed, there are several groups of people inquiring about your whereabouts, and it’s not just one family."
Both Lao Yang and Hua Yan were startled, initially thinking only Father Hu's people were looking for Hua Yan, but there were others as well.
"At most, it's just three families, right?" Hua Yan thought, besides the Hu family, only the Ke family and the Cai family would want to capture her to threaten Hu Li.
However, Lao Qiao shook his head slowly and said, "There are probably four or five families. You'd better stay inside the rehabilitation base for now."
"How can there be so many? Who are the other families?" Lao Yang asked in surprise, knowing that currently, only the German Ke family and the Cai family were in direct conflict with the Hu family. Who could the other two or three families be?
"Right now, we only know about the Hu family, the Ke family, and the Cai family. The other groups haven’t been identified yet... But don't worry too much, Nine Cheng has probably taken the initiative to handle this. With the support of his uncles, it won’t take long to uncover these people’s true identities."
Summer passed and autumn came, and Nine Cheng finally brought the results of his month-long investigation.
He discovered that among the unknown groups, one was the Cheng family, specifically sent by Cheng Xiang.
After some interactions, he learned that Cheng Xiang had recently regained all his memories and knew his family had attempted to harm her several times, so he privately hired people to find Hua Yan to ensure she was safe and well.
"They didn't mean any harm. I took it upon myself to let Cheng Xiang's people go."
"Yes, well done. Have you figured out the situation with the other people?" Hua Yan was happy for Cheng Xiang recovering his memory, but for now, it was best not to contact him.
When the other people were mentioned, Jiu Cheng, who had been relaxed, suddenly became uneasy. After Hua Yan glared at him a few times, he finally said, "We still can't identify the other two groups. We only know that they are employed by two groups from Italy.
Their task is simply to find your residence, with no other requirements. Strangely, the remuneration they were offered is alarmingly high. I asked a senior member for his opinion, and he could only confirm that one of the groups might be from the higher-ups in the Vatican."
"The higher-ups in the Vatican... isn't that just the Pope? Why would religious figures target me?" Hua Yan was completely confused. As someone without religious beliefs, she couldn't fathom why they would focus on her.
"They might not be targeting you, but Hu Li..." Even if Hu Li was the target, Jiu Cheng couldn't understand why an ordinary person like Hu Li would attract their attention. Moreover, Jiu Cheng didn't disclose everything a senior member had said. The senior member warned him not to interfere in this matter, only saying that these people were beyond his ability to handle.
"If they are targeting Hu Li, could it be that the Hu family has become so significant that even the Pope has been provoked?" Unable to figure it out, Hua Yan remembered there was still another unknown group and asked, "What do you think about the other unidentified group?"
"Right now, we don't know if they are friends or foes. This fifth group is even more mysterious. I captured one of them, but no matter what methods I used, I couldn't get any information. They are tighter-lipped than death warriors."
When Hu Li learned of this information, he also fell into deep thought. He vaguely sensed that the fourth group from the Vatican and the fifth mysterious group would pose unforeseen dangers in the future. For this reason, he decided against using certain family powers.
In a room of a five-star hotel inland, two foreign men in their thirties, with blue eyes and pale, almost paper-white faces, were elegantly discussing something over red wine.
If anyone had been near them, they would have heard the name Hua Yan being mentioned.
"Who would have thought Miss Hua Yan had some background," said Ivan, with a gentle smile and lips stained even redder by the wine.
"Anyone our future master is interested in must have something noteworthy. Do you want to add something extra to your wine?" Barlow's cold demeanor was evident, as his words always cut to the point.
"No need, this glass is already flavorful enough. But whether he can become our master depends on whether he can pass that test." As Ivan spoke, he watched Barlow, who was licking his red lips with relish after coming back from the bar with another glass of wine. Smiling knowingly, Ivan said, "Your tastes are getting heavier; be careful our new master doesn't like it."
"Yes, I'll be careful," Barlow didn't refute. Facing an Asian human master, they indeed needed to tread cautiously.
Seeing Barlow's slight melancholy, Ivan patted his shoulder and comforted him, "Don't worry too much. I'll stand by you if anything happens."
"Thanks, I'm fine. How much does the Pope know about our new master? I don't want them ruining things at the last moment."
"Rest assured, they can't yet determine who our real master is. Haven't you noticed the status and number of people they sent inland are two levels lower than those sent to Japan?"
"Could they have mistaken that inferior product we created as our new master?" Barlow asked in surprise.
"Yes, they have. Our new master’s overall ability is so weak at this stage that it's only natural they would be mistaken. But that just makes it more fun."