After walking out of the aquarium, Xu Zixi just then realized that her fingers had been tightly intertwined with someone else's. She quickly withdrew her hand and coughed a few times as if to cover something up. Then she said to Yan Yincheng,
"You clearly looked so unhappy in there just now. Why didn't you avoid those people?"
With his hand now empty, Yan Yincheng felt a bit disappointed. He said rather aggrievedly, "You told me to stay put and wait for you to come find me."
So it was because of that remark of hers? Xu Zixi moved her lips, wanting to say something, but the atmosphere at the moment was just too strange, so she decided to put it aside for the time being. Grabbing the other end of his blind stick, Xu Zixi said, "We've seen the aquarium. It's time we went home."
But when she tugged, she found there was no movement behind her. Turning around, she saw Yan Yincheng pointing at the photographer who was shouting to attract customers beside the venue. He said, "Zixi, let's take some photos, okay?"
Thinking of those little girls who had pestered him for a group photo in the polar exhibition area just now, Xu Zixi felt uncomfortable again. She said, "What's the point of taking photos? You can't even see."
"Just take them as a souvenir," Yan Yincheng said. "You've shared your good luck with me. Maybe one day my eyes will really recover, but I don't know how many years that will be. If I can take pictures of this moment, I'll have fewer regrets when I look at them."
Xu Zixi's heart stirred. She looked down at the two kids. They were completely different from when she first came. Their originally thin little faces were now chubby, and they seemed to have grown a bit taller. If they continued to live like this, in a while, they would probably change again.
He was right. Taking this opportunity to leave some images to record the growth of the two kids would be a nice memoir in the future.
Xu Zixi waved to the photographer who was attracting customers and called him over. The moment the photographer saw the looks of the four of them, his eyes lit up immediately. He greeted them enthusiastically,
"Customers, what kind of photos do you want? We have ID photos, family portraits, and individual portraits! The prices are reasonable, and you can get the photos right after taking them!"
Yan Yincheng said, "Take more photos of her and the two kids. I'll pay."
Xu Zixi asked, "Brother Cheng, what about you?"
He shook his head. "Me? I'm just a blind man. There's nothing worth taking photos of. One group photo at the end will be enough."
So, with the Haicheng Zoo Aquarium as the background, Xu Zixi and the two kids served as the photographer's temporary models. There were parent - child photos of Xu Zixi and the two kids, and cute portraits full of childlike innocence of the two kids. When she was being pulled to take her individual photos, Xu Zixi saw from afar that Yan Yincheng was sitting patiently on a park bench waiting for them. Her heart suddenly became extremely soft.
She waved to the photographer to get the camera. From a distance where Yan Yincheng wouldn't notice, she pointed the lens at him and quietly took many photos.
Looking at her masterpieces, she hooked her lips into a smile, looking like a naughty and sly little fox.
When he could see in the future, she must show him what he looked like now. Just thinking of his flustered and shy look made her extremely eager.
Finally, it was time for the group photo. The two kids stood in the middle, while Xu Zixi and Yan Yincheng stood on each side of the kids respectively. After the photographer raised the camera to frame the shot, he felt that something was missing. He said, "Mom, get a bit closer to Dad. Standing so far apart, you don't look like a family at all."
Xu Zixi's face instantly flushed red. "We're not..."
Yan Yincheng directly took a step towards the middle, grabbed Xu Zixi's arm and pulled her to his side. He said, "We're not now, but we will be in the future. My fiancée."
Xu Zixi's almond eyes widened round, and she turned her face sideways and stared at him fiercely. Yan Yincheng, on the other hand, lowered his head and showed her a smug smile. The two kids showed identical smiles and made a V - sign with their hands in front. The photographer pressed the shutter, capturing this moment.
The photos were quickly printed out. To their surprise, they had taken about a hundred photos. Yan Yincheng paid for all of them. Having never seen such a generous customer, the photographer even kindly gave them an album for free.
On the way back, the two kids were vying to hold the album, obviously loving it very much. Since they were happy, Xu Zixi was naturally happy too. His car had been waiting by the roadside for a long time. She carried the two kids into the car. Just as they were about to start the journey home, Xu Zixi's phone rang urgently.
Seeing that the caller was Pei Mingyuan, Xu Zixi glanced at Yan Yincheng, walked a bit further away and answered the call.
"Yuan Xi, come to the company right now, pick up the project materials and come find me at the Haicheng Marine Biology Research Institute, right now!" Pei Mingyuan on the other end of the phone said urgently before Xu Zixi could even say a word.
Xu Zixi was only stunned for a second before she reacted. "Okay, Mr. Pei."
After hanging up the phone, she walked back to the car in a hurry. She said to Yan Yincheng in the car, "Brother Cheng, there's an urgent matter at the company that I need to deal with immediately. You take the two kids back first. Be careful on the way."
Yan Yincheng said, "Where are you going? Get in the car. I'll take you there."
Xu Zixi refused. "No need. I need to go to the company first and then go somewhere else. It'll be too troublesome to go back and forth. And I don't know when I'll be able to finish. You don't have to waste your time with me. I'll just take a taxi there."
After saying that, she neatly closed the door for him and trotted to the back to hail a taxi.
"Hey, where's Mommy going? Isn't she going back with us?" Yuan Xiaoxu lay on the car window, watching helplessly as Xu Zixi got into the taxi and sped away.
Yan Yincheng's face didn't look good. He mumbled in a low voice, "What kind of lousy company is this? Making her work overtime on weekends. Hasn't she told them that she has kids and a fiancé?"
There was a strong sense of grievance in his words, as if he were a wife left behind by her busy - working husband. Wei Shu tightly closed his mouth and didn't dare to say a word while sitting in the passenger seat.
Urged by Xu Zixi, it only took forty minutes to drive from the Haicheng Zoo to the headquarters of the Pei Corporation and then to the Haicheng Marine Biology Research Institute.
Outside the institute, Pei Mingyuan, wearing a suit and a tie, was anxiously waiting there. Seeing Xu Zixi get out of the car, he quickly stepped forward to greet her. "You're finally here. I forgot to tell you to bring the geological report too. I called you just now, but no one answered."
"Don't worry. I've brought the geological report," Xu Zixi said quickly and handed all the materials in her hand to Pei Mingyuan. "I'm not late, am I?"
Pei Mingyuan said, "No, you're just in time! Come on, let's go in and talk first!"
The two strode towards the institute together, their steps surprisingly in sync. The unpleasantness caused by Pei Weiwei's exposure of her background some time ago no longer existed at this moment. They were as tacit as work partners who had cooperated for many years.