Chapter 44: He is My Daddy! You are the Bad Guy!

When the doorbell shattered the quietness of the room, Lu Xiaoman's fingertips were still buried in the folds of her palms.

She had yet to recover from the shock of her son's words: "I want Shang Linyuan to be my daddy."

The moment she pulled the door open, the morning light happened to spill over Shang Linyuan’s shoulders, casting a soft glow onto his charcoal-grey haute couture suit.

The crisp fabric exquisitely outlined his broad shoulders and narrow waist, while the watch chain peeking from his cuff flashed with subtle, cold brilliance in the light, making the line of his wrist appear all the more sharp and clean.

He lowered his gaze slightly, his long eyelashes casting faint shadows across his eyelids. The bridge of his nose was as high and distinct as if carved by a master, his thin lips pressed into a natural curve, and his jawline tensed into cold, hard, yet sexy angles.

The bouquet of blue plumbago in the man's arms was dotted with morning dew, the delicate blue-purple petals brushing against the collar of his snow-white shirt. A cool fragrance, mingling with the crisp scent of cedar emanating from him, made Lu Xiaoman forget to breathe for a moment.

When he lifted his eyes, his deep pupils seemed to hold shattered stars. His gaze lingered on her face for a brief moment, carrying an unperceived warmth, before a low voice slipped from his throat: "For you."

Before his voice faded, his fingertips gently brushed against her palm. The moment he handed over the bouquet, the light calluses on his pads grazed her skin, leaving behind a trace of slight, tingling numbness.

Lu Xiaoman looked down at the blue plumbago before her, the delicate petals still stained with morning dew, looking remarkably like the patch she had personally tended in the Shang family's garden years ago.

Her heart skipped a beat fiercely, and Lu Xiaoman instinctively clenched the hem of her shirt.

Blue plumbago was her deeply hidden favorite. Back at the Shang family villa, she had always loved cutting dewy flower branches in the early morning to put in vases; even the household servants might not remember it so clearly, so how could he...

"Just passed by a flower shop, thought the color suited you," Shang Linyuan said in a low voice.

Lu Xiaoman took the flowers, her nose surrounded by the crisp floral scent, but her cheeks grew uncontrollably hot. She stammered, "Thank you, please come in."

Just as she turned sideways, a tiny figure rushed over with rapid, pattering steps.

Looking up and seeing Shang Linyuan, Lu Mingxi's eyes instantly lit up like stars, and two words popped out of his mouth without warning.

"Daddy!"

The air instantly froze.

The gentle smile on Shang Linyuan's face stiffened. He looked at Lu Xiaoman in astonishment, ripples stirring within his deep eyes.

Lu Xiaoman's face turned completely red in a flash, as if splashed with boiling dye, her earlobes burning as well. Flustered, she pulled her son behind her, her voice tinged with panic.

"Xiaoxi, what are you nonsense... You must be missing your daddy, shouting blindly without looking at who it is."

"Oh..." Pulled by his mommy, Lu Mingxi wasn't scared at all; instead, he blinked mischievously at Shang Linyuan.

Shang Linyuan also blinked back at the little fellow, as if there was a tacit understanding between them.

His gaze lingered for a few seconds on Lu Xiaoman's pink-tinged face, carrying a penetrating quality that made her heart beat even faster.

Yet in the end, he didn't say anything, merely letting out a faint "hmm" as he changed his shoes and stepped inside. Yet this brief awkwardness left the atmosphere filled with an indescribable, ambiguous undertone.

Just as Lu Xiaoman was searching for a topic to break the silence, a sharp, angry shout suddenly echoed from outside the door.

Chu Yan had appeared in the hallway at some point.

She had clearly witnessed the scene just now, especially Lu Mingxi calling Shang Linyuan "daddy" and their ambiguous glances, and the jealousy burning in the depths of her eyes was almost palpable.

"Lu Xiaoman! You bitch!"

Charging forward like a madwoman, she raised her hand to slap Lu Xiaoman across