Xu Tingyu quickly realized what he meant.
The rumors on the internet, every word and every incident, had placed Youyou in a humiliating position.
But this was clearly a child born out of love and expectation.
As a mother, she should shield her child from the storm, not bring it to him.
First, if Qi Ye found out that she had contact with Youyou, how would he react? Would he do something to Youyou?
Second, if they were photographed or discovered and it spread on the internet, what kind of turmoil would it cause?
So now, after she retrieved her lost memories and sorted out her life, at least when she could take responsibility for her own life, it wouldn't be too late to have an open and above - board relationship with her son.
She raised her head and said to Qi Shifeng seriously, "I will protect Youyou well. I will do it right."
Qi Shifeng's gaze softened. He reached out and stroked her head. "I know, Tingyu. You've always done a great job."
After their conversation, they returned to the bedside.
Youyou still maintained the same position as before. When he saw them coming back, he immediately stretched out his hands and said to Xu Tingyu, "Mommy, I want a hug."
Almost the moment he stretched out his hands, Xu Tingyu reached out too.
Hearing this, she picked him up and spun around.
Qi Shifeng was startled and quickly stopped her. "You're pregnant. How can you carry him? He's almost fifty pounds already."
Although Youyou was not yet five years old, he was already 1.3 meters tall and could reach Xu Tingyu's waist when standing.
It was just nonsense for her to carry a child and spin around while being pregnant.
Xu Tingyu was actually fine carrying Youyou at first. As a dancer, she was not a frail person.
But she was startled by Qi Shifeng's words, and her face immediately changed.
She had forgotten to mention that she shouldn't tell Youyou about her pregnancy.
At least not at this moment.
Youyou had been ignored by her for so long. He had just met her, and if he learned that his mother was having another child, how would he feel?
He would be disappointed, scared, and sad.
He might even think that his mother didn't come to see him because of this baby.
After all, a five - year - old child was just a kid.
Xu Tingyu didn't expect him to be overly sensible, nor did she need him to be.
Because being sensible often meant suppressing his own emotions.
However, before she could stop Qi Shifeng, Youyou suddenly widened his eyes and said excitedly, "Pregnant? Does Mommy have a little baby?"
He was taken from Xu Tingyu's arms by Qi Shifeng and placed steadily beside the bed, almost at eye level with Xu Tingyu.
Xu Tingyu looked at him with a pale face, but she didn't see the slightest bit of unhappiness or disappointment in the child's eyes.
On the contrary, his eyes were full of joy and excitement.
"I made a wish to Mommy before that I wanted a little sister. Now Mommy has fulfilled my wish, right?"
"Mommy, you're so nice. I really love you, Mommy. Can the little sister hear me now? Can I say hello to her?"
He lowered his head, looking at Xu Tingyu's belly one moment and her face the next.
Not getting an answer from Xu Tingyu, he then said remorsefully, "Oh no, I didn't bring a gift for my little sister. What should I do?"
"I'm the older brother, you know. Dad, can you lend me some money? I want to buy a gift for my little sister."
He then looked at Qi Shifeng excitedly.
Qi Shifeng smiled indulgently and said, "Dad doesn't have cash either, but I'll transfer money to Uncle Zou Yu and ask him to take you to buy it tomorrow."
"But you have to pay me back when you get home, because this is a gift you want to give to your little sister. You have to pay for it yourself."
Youyou nodded crisply. "Of course. I'll pay for it myself. I can share everything in my safe with my little sister."
Then, as if he remembered something, he said, "No, everything in my safe is for Mommy first. If there's anything left, I'll share it with my little sister."
He loved this little sister he hadn't even met yet, but what he loved most was still his mommy.
Qi Shifeng tapped his nose and teased, "What about Dad? Does Dad get nothing?"
Youyou shook his head seriously. "Of course you do, Dad. You already have so much of my love."
He was very smart and knew that there were a lot of nice things in Dad's safe.
He used to transfer some of them to his own safe whenever he could, planning to save them all up for Mommy.
Later, Dad found out.
Dad said that taking things without asking was stealing. If he wanted to give gifts, he had to earn the money himself.
So he would do some things for Dad to earn money to buy jewelry, antiques and such.
Come on, what he had earned so hard from Dad, of course he wouldn't give it back. He could only give Dad a lot of love!
In simple terms, it meant a lot of love but no money!
Qi Shifeng tapped his little nose again. "You're just so sweet - talking and good at flattering."
Xu Tingyu had been observing the interaction between the father and son.
It was obvious that Youyou really loved Qi Shifeng. When he looked at Qi Shifeng, his eyes were full of trust and love.
It showed that Qi Shifeng had taken great care of him and spent a lot of time with him.
He was such a busy man, yet he could spare so much time for his child. It showed how much he valued this child.
So, back then, when they had Youyou, they must have both been willing.
Just as she was in a daze, Qi Shifeng's phone vibrated. It was a message from Du Jiran.
Qi Shifeng didn't avoid it. He directly clicked on the voice message in front of Xu Tingyu.
"Where are you? Should I go to the restaurant first or wait for you?"
Du Jiran's voice came from the phone.
Xu Tingyu thought that this voice sounded different from when she spoke to Qi Shifeng in person.
It lacked a lot of tenderness and instead had a kind of business - like aloofness.
Qi Shifeng replied to her, "I'll go by myself."
The other side didn't send anything else.
Xu Tingyu listened quietly. After he put away his phone, she said, "Can I leave the event early and come back later?"
She was reluctant to part with Youyou like this. After all, she could stay up all night just to watch Youyou.
But Youyou was a child and definitely needed to rest early.
She still wanted to interact with Youyou for a while longer.
Qi Shifeng didn't refuse this time. He looked at the time and said, "We'll set off in twenty minutes. Then you can come back early."
"You can sleep with Youyou tonight. If you can find a chance to come out alone tomorrow during the day, I'll ask Zou Yu to take Youyou to find you."
Xu Tingyu felt a warm feeling in her heart when she heard that he seemed to have already planned everything.
He actually didn't have to do this at all.
As the one who had raised the child carefully, it was already an act of great kindness for him to bring the child to see her.
He could even stand on the moral high ground and coldly watch her struggle in guilt and uneasiness.
But he didn't, and he didn't show any sign of it at all.
He acted very naturally throughout, as if this was just an ordinary vacation for their family of three.
As if she had never left Youyou.
And he had even taught Youyou to love her so much.
It wasn't that she was good. It was him.