He unexpectedly becomes a father at the start of his life, and the mother of his child is a national

Chen Hao sat on the sofa in the living room, the light from his phone screen reflecting on his face.

He aimlessly scrolled through the news, checking out the follow-up discussions sparked by "The Adventures of the Chen Family's Daughter in the Mountains and Seas," and also looking at some related news about the stock market.

But most of their attention was actually focused on their ears, listening to the sounds coming from the doorway.

Time passed by, and the night grew deeper.

The city lights outside the window gradually thinned out, with only the traffic on the distant overpass still flashing intermittently.

I don't know how much time passed; it could have been an hour, or it could have been longer.

Just as Chen Hao was considering whether to take a shower, a faint electronic notification sound finally came from the entryway—

The beeping sound was very soft, but exceptionally clear in the quiet of the night.

That's the sound of the fingerprint verification on the combination lock being successful.

Chen Hao immediately raised his head and looked towards the gate.

The door was pushed open from the outside, and a slender, tall figure flashed in.

She wore a low-key black trench coat, a baseball cap, and a black mask that covered almost half of her face, revealing only a pair of slightly tired but still beautiful eyes.

Even though she was wrapped up so tightly, Chen Hao still recognized her at a glance—Lin Caiwei.

Behind her, her assistant Chen Siqi followed in, pushing two small suitcases.

The two stopped at the entrance and bent down to change their shoes.

Lin Caiwei's movements were somewhat slow, revealing her fatigue after a long journey.

She took off her hat and mask and casually hung them on the coat rack next to her, revealing a face that was unadorned, slightly pale, but still stunningly beautiful.

Her long, black hair was simply tied back, with a few stray strands falling across her forehead and around her ears.

Chen Hao quickly stood up from the sofa and walked over.

Lin Caiwei changed into soft slippers, straightened up, and looked up to see Chen Hao walking towards her.

Their eyes met in mid-air.

For a moment, the air seemed to freeze.

Under the soft light of the living room, Chen Hao looked at Lin Caiwei, who was so close to him and even more vivid and real than on the screen, and his heart raced uncontrollably.

She carried the cool scent of the night breeze, along with a faint, unique fragrance of her own.

Lin Caiwei looked at Chen Hao, the handsome man who was nominally her daughter's father but was still a stranger to her, her eyes filled with complex and unreadable emotions.

There was exhaustion, a subtle sense of relaxation upon returning home and seeing "family," and a hint of something inexplicable... unease?

It was Chen Siqi who broke the brief silence.

She changed her shoes, looked at Chen Hao, then at Lin Caiwei, and asked, "Chen Hao, is Sisi asleep?"

"Ah, right, she's asleep, she's been asleep for a while now." Chen Hao quickly replied, snapping out of his reverie. He looked away from Lin Caiwei's face, then couldn't help but glance back at her.

"Um... should we wake Sisi up? She'll be overjoyed if she knows you're back."

"No, no." Lin Caiwei immediately shook her head, her voice slightly hoarse from exhaustion, but very gentle.

"Let her sleep well, and surprise her tomorrow morning," she said, a gentle expectation on her face.

Chen Hao nodded and reached out to take the suitcase from Chen Siqi's hand:

"I'll do it. You must be exhausted from the journey, Caiwei."

He looked at Lin Caiwei, his tone filled with natural concern.

Lin Caiwei gave a soft "hmm" and rubbed her temples.

"I was constantly rushing around. As soon as the concert ended, I rushed to the airport. I didn't get much rest on the plane."

I'm a little tired. Right now, I just want to take a hot shower and then get a good night's sleep.

As she spoke, she subconsciously moved her somewhat stiff neck and shoulders.

"Shall I run you a bath? A soak will help you relax," Chen Hao suggested.

"No need, I can do it myself." Lin Caiwei waved her hand. She wasn't used to being served like this, especially by Chen Hao.

She turned to Chen Siqi:

"Siqi, it's getting late, you should go home too. You've had a hard day, get some rest."

Chen Siqi did not immediately agree. She looked at Lin Caiwei, then at Chen Hao who was standing to the side with his suitcase. Her brows furrowed almost imperceptibly, and a hint of hesitation and wariness flashed in her eyes.

Although Sisi is the daughter of Lin Caiwei and Chen Hao, this is an indisputable fact.

However, as Lin Caiwei's closest assistant and bodyguard, Chen Siqi always maintained a professional wariness towards Chen Hao, the "unexpected" father of her child.

She had investigated Chen Hao's background and knew that apart from that accident and their daughter, there was no emotional foundation between him and Lin Caiwei.

It's the middle of the night, and only the two of them, adults, are left in the large house. Lin Caiwei is also clearly exhausted, so her vigilance might be lowered...

What if Chen Hao has any ulterior motives?

She didn't necessarily think Chen Hao was a bad person, but protecting Lin Caiwei was her duty, and she had to consider all potential risks.

Lin Caiwei keenly noticed Chen Siqi's hesitation and the scrutiny in her eyes.

She understood what Chen Siqi was worried about, and couldn't help feeling a little helpless, yet also a little amused.

She patted Chen Siqi's arm and gave her a reassuring smile:

"It's okay, Siqi. You should go back now. You've really gone through a lot. I can handle it myself."

Her tone was natural and firm, revealing a certain degree of trust in Chen Hao.

Looking at Lin Caiwei's eyes and then at Chen Hao, who was carrying his luggage and looking calm, Chen Siqi's worries lessened slightly.

Perhaps I'm overthinking it.

Chen Hao's behavior during this period, especially his care for Sisi and his help to Lin Caiwei in music, shows no signs of malice.

Moreover, this is Lin Caiwei's home; Chen Hao shouldn't do anything reckless here.

"...Okay." Chen Siqi finally nodded, then added a final word of advice.

"Caiwei, then you should get some rest. Call me anytime if you need anything."

"Okay, you should go back now," Lin Caiwei said with a smile, urging her on.

Chen Siqi then picked up her small suitcase, nodded to Chen Hao, turned around, opened the door, and left.

The door closed again, leaving only Chen Hao and Lin Caiwei in the room.

The atmosphere seemed to become subtle again, with an added awkwardness of being alone and... a certain indescribable tension.