The next day dawned with clear skies, and Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen drove the whole family to the amusement park.
It was the first time Lady Wen rode in a car, and she felt a bit nervous. Yan Su discreetly held her hand and Lady Wen blushed. But when she saw couples holding hands on the sidewalk, her nervousness eased a bit. Gathering her courage, she held Yan Su’s hand back.
Yan Su looked ahead with a smile in his eyes.
Yan Xiaojing seemed lost in thought, gazing at the asphalt road.
Yan Ge’s heart skipped a beat. His father must have noticed the connection between the asphalt and concrete roads here.
Sure enough, Yan Xiaojing spoke up, “Xiao Ge, the roads here seem similar to the ones in Great Han…”
Huangfu Yuchen, who was driving with one hand, patted Yan Ge’s thigh reassuringly and took the lead in the conversation. “Not just the roads, but many things here resemble what Xiao Ge’s master taught him. In fact, both Xiao Ge and I speculate that his master might be from this world.”
Yan Xiaojing didn’t doubt his words. If Yan Ge could travel through time and space, then his master certainly could as well.
“I see.”
Yan Ge scratched his chin, realizing how convenient it was to have a “master.” He hoped Yan Xiaojing wouldn’t have any more questions, as he really didn’t want to lie to him.
It seemed that Yan Xiaojing heard his unspoken plea, as he didn’t ask any more questions and instead looked out the window with the same curious expression as Yan Xiangtian.
Yan Ge introduced each sight to them one by one. Even if Yan Xiaojing had questions, he didn’t give him a chance to ask.
Yan Xiaojing didn’t plan to ask any more questions. Yan Ge had told him that a day here is almost four days in Great Han. He and Yan Su had only taken a two-month leave in Great Han, which meant they could only stay on Earth for half a month. With so much novelty and amusement on Earth, it was better to ask less and observe more.
“Master, look, what’s that?” Madam Yan eagerly pulled Yan Xiaojing’s sleeve and pointed at the sky.
Yan Ge smiled. “Mother, that’s an airplane, a type of airborne transportation. If you’re interested, both Yuchen and I can arrange for you to take a flight.”
Yan Xiaojing waved his hand. “I’m afraid it won’t fly as smoothly as you and… Yuchen’s flying techniques. Let’s skip it. Just looking at other fascinating things already keeps us quite occupied.”
Both Yan Su and Lady Wen nodded in agreement.
Seeing their good spirits, a smile curled on Yan Ge’s lips.
“Second Uncle, I want to ride an airplane.” Yan Xiangtian whispered to Yan Ge.
Yan Ge readily agreed, “We can do that after we reach the amusement park.”
Soon, the car parked at the entrance of the amusement park.
Having booked tickets in advance, they didn’t have to queue up like other visitors and they went in directly.
Yan Ge handed Yan Xiangtian a brochure and introduced the amusement park’s attractions and architectural features: skydiving, high-altitude flights, musical fountains, water screen movies, pirate ships, interstellar cars, bumper cars, and more.
Yan Xiangtian was so excited that he immediately dragged him forward.
Huangfu Yuchen and the others followed a little more slowly. Huangfu Yuchen introduced the various attractions and architecture to the rest along the way.
The Yan family felt like their eyes weren’t enough to take it all in.
After Yan Xiangtian had played for awhile, the group walked toward the amusement park’s fast-food restaurant.
Both Huangfu Yuchen and Yan Su carried several large bags, all filled with toys, souvenirs, drinks, and snacks purchased along the way.
Although Yan Ge was empty-handed, this morning wasn’t any less busy for him than it was for Huangfu Yuchen and Yan Su. He took plenty of photos of the family with his camera.
Lady Wen was initially shy but gradually became more at ease, and enjoyed herself.
Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen didn’t notice that not far away, Yan Jiaqiang was leading his illegitimate son, Yan Lu, forward.
“Ge’er, can I try it?” Madam Yan was quite interested in the camera and reached out to ask Yan Ge for it.
Yan Ge readily showed her how to use it. “Press here to take a photo.”
“Got it.” Madam Yan smiled and held the camera. She wanted to take a landscape photo to see how it turned out. She adjusted her distance, moving back a few steps while aiming the camera at the restaurant entrance. However, she suddenly felt something underfoot.
Shortly after, she was harshly shoved and almost fell but was caught by Lady Wen just in time. At the same time, she heard a sharp female voice exclaim, “Are you blind?”
Madam Yan frowned. She had been worried about stepping on or bumping into someone, so she had purposely looked behind to ensure no one was there before stepping back.
Although Lady Wen was gentle, she wasn’t timid. She immediately retorted, “Are you turning black into white? It’s clear that you bumped into my mother.”
Yan Ge had turned to converse with Yan Xiangtian when he heard the commotion and turned back.
Du Rulan!
Huangfu Yuchen had quick eyes and quick hands, and immediately took out a mask bought by Yan Xiangtian from the bag and put it on his face.
Yan Ge had the same reaction as him and quickly pulled out a mask and placed it on his face.
Both of them let out a sigh of relief at the same time, grateful that Yan Xiangtian had bought masks for everyone.
Yan Su was originally annoyed when he saw his mother being scolded, but when he accidentally saw the two doing the exact same thing at the same time, he couldn’t help but want to laugh.
He quickly walked back to Madam Yan’s side. “Mother, are you okay?”
Madam Yan shook her head.
Du Rulan took off her sunglasses and stared coldly at her.
When Du Rulan found out about Yan Jiaqiang’s affair, he immediately proposed divorce, but Du Rulan strongly objected. They had numerous arguments, and Yan Jiaqiang refused to sever his relationship with the other woman. Du Rulan was furious and spent her days plotting to break up Yan Jiaqiang and his mistress.
Today, when she saw Yan Jiaqiang bringing his illegitimate son to the amusement park and doting on the child, she couldn’t help but think of how Yan Jiaqiang used to dote on Yan Yan when he was little. She also thought about how Yan Jiaqiang was now cold towards both Yan Yan and herself and it ignited a fire of resentment within her. And then someone stepped on that spark.
The woman who turned around appeared quite young. Her skin was fair and smooth, as delicate as a peeled boiled egg. The sense of injustice in Du Rulan’s heart intensified. She lifted her chin, walked up to the woman with an air of authority and scolded, “Do you know how to walk? Can’t you watch where you’re going?”
Yan Ge and Yan Su both frowned.
Madam Yan waved at both of them dismissively and smiled, “It’s true I don’t have eyes behind my back. I can’t see what’s happening behind me. But you, your eyes seem rather big but it turns out they’re just for show.”
Yan Xiaojing chuckled dryly. His wife was not someone to be trifled with.
Huangfu Yuchen’s gaze held a hint of curiosity. He never knew Madam Yan had this side to her.
There were quite a few onlookers nearby. As soon as they heard Madam Yan’s words, they understood the situation and burst into laughter.
Du Rulan had never been so humiliated before and couldn’t control her anger.
Yan Ge held Madam Yan’s arm, comforting her, “Mother, don’t be angry.”
Yan Su’s eyes flashed as a cunning thought came to mind. He held Madam Yan’s other arm and spoke gently, “Mother, getting angry ages you faster.”
Yan Xiangtian was quite clever and guessed his father’s intentions. He immediately pounced into Madam Yan’s embrace, “Grandma, don’t be angry. You’re so young at fifty. If you don’t get angry, you’ll still be young at a hundred!”
The onlookers watched Madam Yan in astonishment, filled with envy. She indeed took good care of herself, she looked no older than thirty!
Upon hearing that the other woman was around her age but looked so youthful, Du Rulan felt even more jealous. She glanced at Madam Yan’s clothes, which were clearly not from any luxury brand, and a scornful expression crossed her face. “You idiot, you dirtied my shoes and even hurt my foot. And you dare to say you’re in the right? Do you know how much these shoes cost? You couldn’t afford to compensate me even if I sold you!”
Yan Ge’s face darkened.
Madam Yan continued to hold onto him, preventing him from speaking. Her smile grew more pronounced, her tone still casual. “Oh, really? I don’t think you’re more of even a million. Ge’er, didn’t you receive a message on your phone yesterday?”
“Yes, right here.” Yan Ge took out the message from his phone and handed it to her.
Madam Yan raised the phone to Du Rulan’s face and, for the benefit of the two onlookers, showed them as well. “See this? It’s a balance reminder message from 95588 that my son received yesterday. There’s over twenty million in my son’s bank account. But even if I threw away this twenty million, it wouldn’t cover the cost of your shoes. Because, you see, with your quality, no amount of dressing up can hide the ugliness in your heart.”
*95588 is the customer service hotline number for the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
Laughter erupted from the crowd and Yan Su strained to hold back a smile.
Du Rulan was trembling with rage. “You, you… bitch!”
She lunged forward, aiming to slap Madam Yan’s face.
Madam Yan remained calm and caught her wrist, pushing her away. She had never trained but had seen her son and grandson practice. Coupled with the fact that Yan Ge gave her everything to maintain her body well, she had strength greater than an average person and reflexes faster than most.
Du Rulan stumbled back. Her feet were unsteady and she ended up sitting on the ground, bumping into a child behind her.
The ice cream in the child’s hand slipped from his grasp and landed squarely on Du Rulan’s face.
“Hahaha…” The onlookers laughed even louder.
Du Rulan seethed with anger and frustration, her face turning beet red. “Damn it, all of you should die!”
“Ge’er, Xu’er, let’s go,” Madam Yan shook her head, linking her arms with her two sons, and left with her head held high.
Yan Ge glanced back at Du Rulan, his heart calm and unaffected. There’s nothing to pity about someone like her. If Du Rulan had tried to reflect on herself in the past, how could she have ended up like this?
Huangfu Yuchen had no sympathy for Du Rulan either. Xiao Ge had not changed his voice when he was speaking, If she had paid him some attention in the past, she would have immediately recognized her son’s voice. He leaned on his lover’s shoulder, signaling him to look ahead, “Tiantian must be hungry.”
Yan Xiangtian waved at Yan Ge from the restaurant’s entrance, “Second Uncle, hurry up!”
“Coming.” Yan Ge smiled slightly and quickened his pace.
