Chapter 2, The Records Before 18 Were Fake

"Nicola Duncan, this is the limited-edition positioning watch that Xiaoxi wanted. He hasn't been in a good mood lately, so I searched many places to find it."

Stepping past Shen Beiyi, Nicola Duncan stood before Channing MacArthur, her delicate brows furrowed, clearly worried about Gordon MacArthur.

Seeing her expression, Shen Beiyi was even more confused. This woman seemed to care for Gordon MacArthur, but as a stepmother, shouldn't she be resentful?

Or was she just overthinking it?

"You spoil him too much!" The coldness in Channing MacArthur's eyes was replaced by indulgence as he spoke.

Taking the box from her, the tenderness on his face vanished when he turned to look at Shen Beiyi, and he said coldly, "Take it to him."

After saying that, he grabbed his coat from the sofa and draped it casually over his arm.

"Weren't we going to look at wedding suits?"

Pulling Nicola Duncan along, he brushed past Shen Beiyi.

The faint scent of tobacco made Shen Beiyi frown; she didn't like men who smoked.

Nicola Duncan, now standing behind Channing MacArthur, glanced back at Shen Beiyi. Her “ordinariness” did not deter her. With a smile, she nodded at Shen Beiyi, warm and graceful.

"Little Master is awake, come up..." A maid called out to Shen Beiyi from upstairs.

Shen Beiyi had been at the Ning residence for a while, but Gordon MacArthur had been napping. Hearing the maid's words, she felt a sense of urgency.

Biting her lower lip, she tried to hide the mist in her eyes.

Her son... the son she had thought about for five years!

Her steps, involuntarily, became unsteady.

Although the child had arrived so suddenly back then, and although she had given up her hard-earned university admission for him, and although her once promising life might never recover because of him, the ten months of pregnancy, his movements, his fuss, were all etched deeply in her heart.

So, no matter what, she still missed him, yearned for him like crazy. It was just that her mother never mentioned him, leaving her clueless and delaying their reunion.

"Go in!" As soon as Shen Beiyi reached the door, the maid inside called out, seemingly relieved.

Shen Beiyi stood at the doorway, her gaze fixed on him. He was wrapped in a blanket, only his head visible, with slightly curly, messy hair, looking very cute.

She had only seen him briefly after giving birth before he was taken away. She had imagined his appearance countless times...

But she never expected him to be so "delicate." Indeed, if not for the obvious male features, he looked like a girl, exceptionally beautiful, or rather, he looked a lot like her.

This realization filled her with both sorrow and joy. Her mother hadn't lied; this was truly her child, without a doubt.

Her hands tightened, suppressing the urge to hug him.

"I'm Shen Beiyi, and you're Gordon MacArthur, right?" She greeted him, her voice trembling.

Gordon MacArthur didn't respond to her question. Instead, he turned and pulled out a tablet-like device from under his pillow, then quickly typed something on it.

"Type your name in here." Gordon MacArthur turned the tablet towards Shen Beiyi.

The screen was filled with blue numbers and letters, resembling some kind of programming...

Shen Beiyi swallowed hard. Wasn't this child only five years old?

She had thought he was watching cartoons.

Was this... some kind of program?

She didn't know what the little boy was up to, but she typed her name in pinyin.

About a minute later, Gordon MacArthur put the tablet aside, knelt on the bed, and folded his arms, staring at Shen Beiyi seriously.

"Aunt, all the information about you before you were 18 is fake."

He said it with certainty, and Shen Beiyi froze.

Back then, her mother had spent a lot of money to clean up the mess, to prevent any future troubles.

When she interviewed for this job, even Lisa Hamlet hadn't found anything, but this child...

"Aunt, did you alter your records to seduce my dad?"

Gordon MacArthur continued his analysis, but by now, he had already skillfully dressed himself in a shirt, jacket, and pants, and was putting on his slippers as he asked.

His self-reliance amazed Shen Beiyi.

But hearing his words, she let out a silent sigh of relief.

Still, "Aunt"? She frowned.

"Xiaoxi, don't be impolite."

the servant, carrying a tray, stood at the door, watching the interaction between the two, a flash of helplessness in her eyes. She placed the tray on a small round table, which held several bowls of food.

"the servant." Shen Beiyi straightened up and politely nodded at her. She had met the servant earlier outside.

the servant smiled warmly at her and adjusted Gordon MacArthur's collar before speaking.

"Xiaoxi has an IQ of 190. At four, he could read and write in three languages... Recently, he's been studying some kind of program. I don't understand it, so, Miss Shen, I'm sorry if he scared you."

the servant spoke calmly, but Shen Beiyi was stunned.

Goodness, the child she and Channing MacArthur had conceived in such a way was a genius!

This... was completely unexpected.

"Do you think someone as outstanding as your father would look at someone like me? I altered those records to get a job!"

Shen Beiyi tried to stay calm, speaking slowly.

Hearing this, Gordon MacArthur finally looked up at her, sizing her up. What she said was true. The twenty or so women who came before were all prettier and more fashionable than her.

Thinking this, he put the bowl back on the table.

"Women are good at pretending!"

the servant, who was folding the blanket, chuckled and shook her head, but as she tried to stand, her legs gave way, and she fell onto the bed.

"Grandma, are you okay?" Gordon MacArthur rushed over, grabbing her arm with both hands, looking anxious.

Shen Beiyi hurried to help, supporting the servant.

"the servant, are you alright?"

In just a moment, the servant's face had turned pale, and beads of sweat were forming on her forehead.

Seeing this, Shen Beiyi frowned. This situation...

"It's nothing, I'm just old and useless." the servant supported herself on the bed and got up, smiling faintly.

"Grandma, you’re not old!" Gordon MacArthur clung to the servant's hand, his face showing stubbornness and distress.

From what she had learned from other maids in the past few hours, the servant was Channing MacArthur's childhood nursemaid. After Gordon MacArthur was born, she took care of him too. Though she was a maid, everyone in the Ning household respected her, and Gordon MacArthur called her Grandma.

Recently, due to her age, she couldn't take care of him anymore, which was why the Nings were looking for a new nanny. But this young master had reportedly chased away dozens of nannies.

"Xiaoxi, Grandma is old. If you keep chasing people away, Grandma will be exhausted."

the servant wiped away her tears, and her tears clearly upset Gordon MacArthur. He still held tightly to her, head lowered, and after a while, he said softly, "Then let her stay."

the servant looked up, winking at Shen Beiyi in a direction where Gordon MacArthur couldn't see.

Her playful gesture, unexpected for her age, surprised Shen Beiyi, who then nodded gratefully.

"How is the servant?"

On the top floor of a skyscraper, a tall figure stood by the window, overlooking the distance, extinguishing a half-smoked cigarette with his fingers.

"It seems she accepted it!"

On the other end of the phone, the servant sighed in relief, glancing upstairs. Laughter could be heard, warming her heart. It had been so long since there was laughter in this house, but her eyes showed deep reluctance.