When little Cen Yan was young, Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen didn’t have much awareness of being parents, because even when the baby cried, he just babbled, and in most cases, the nanny could comfort him.

But when Yan Bao was a year and a half old, able to speak in simple, broken sentences, and had become familiar with his novice parents, when he cried, he would call “Baba Mama” with tears in his eyes, sounding so sincere and heart-wrenching.

Simple comforting from the nanny could no longer solve the problem; Ji Mingshu or Cen Sen had to step in personally.

Although comforting a small child was a bit troublesome, as Yan Bao grew day by day, Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen slowly realized that he wasn’t just a little toy to pick up and play with when they had time and ignore when they didn’t. He was an indispensable part that would exist in their lives for a long time, and many things shouldn’t be left to others.

Both Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen came from rather broken original families. They understood how important a complete and warm family was for a child’s growth, so they became increasingly attentive to Yan Bao.

Now, Cen Sen had officially taken up his position at Jing Construction, serving as both the CEO of Junyi and the vice chairman of Jing Construction. His responsibilities were heavier, and his work was busier, but he still set aside two days each month to arrange family outings for the three of them. On days when he didn’t need to travel for business, he would come home earlier to accompany Ji Mingshu and little Cen Yan.

Ji Mingshu’s interior design studio was also on the right track. The studio had five formal designers, including herself, and ten design assistants.

The studio currently only does creative interior design, with clients mostly being art galleries, cafes, private villas, etc. Each year, they would also take on a quota of pro bono interior design projects.

Although the studio charged high fees, people still came in droves, seeking their services. Design services were generally booked three months in advance, and Ji Mingshu herself only took on cases she was interested in.

There was no help for it—she had many social activities, and her little one was very attached to her, so she really didn’t have more energy to spend on projects that didn’t interest her.

When Yan Bao was two and a half years old, the plan to attend kindergarten needed to be put on the agenda.

There were dazzlingly many public and private kindergartens in the Imperial City. Ji Mingshu selected several good ones for comparison, but felt that each had its pros and cons, and couldn’t make up her mind. So she called Cen Sen.

When Cen Sen received the call, he was playing poker with Chi Li and Jiang Che at a club.

Chi Li and Jiang Che were recently interested in collaborating on a new internet platform development project, but the two parties weren’t very familiar with each other, so Cen Sen served as the intermediary for the introduction.

After the call ended, Cen Sen placed his phone aside, then slowly and methodically fanned out the cards that had been placed face-down on the table. He pulled out the Queen of Diamonds, lightly tapped it along the edge of the table, and asked in a calm voice as he played it, “Which kindergarten did Jiang Sizhou attend?”

Jiang Che easily played the King of Diamonds, “Your Cen Yan is going to kindergarten already?”

Cen Sen made an affirmative sound.

Jiang Che continued, “The kindergarten Jiang Sizhou attended was pretty good, but it’s in Star City. Are you sure?”

Cen Sen paused slightly, only then remembering they weren’t in the same city, and then looked toward Chi Li.

Chi Li didn’t even look up, lightly tapping his knuckles on the table, making a pun as he said, “Pass.”

Chi Li was several years younger than them, wasn’t even married, and indeed couldn’t be expected to know anything about kindergartens.

Cen Sen didn’t ask further. When the hand ended, he got up and took his coat from Zhou Jiaheng, “You two talk. I have something to attend to at home. I’ll go first.”

The two sat there, neither trying to keep him.

After he left, Chi Li lowered his eyes and cut the cards, sneering slightly, “Henpecked.”

Across from him, Jiang Che raised an eyebrow but didn’t respond.

Chi Li put the cards down, then suddenly remembered something and laughed dismissively, “Oh, I forgot, Mr. Jiang is one too.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being devoted to your wife.” Jiang Che took a small sip of whiskey, then changed the subject and finally brought up the project.

While Chi Li and Jiang Che continued discussing their collaboration, the self-admitted “henpecked husband” had already returned home to help his wife choose a kindergarten.

Ji Mingshu: “I think this international kindergarten has good environment and teachers, and their elementary school is also good. If he goes from kindergarten all the way to elementary school there, he’ll keep knowing the same classmates and won’t have to adapt to a new environment when he starts elementary school.”

“Overall I think it’s pretty good, though they require a green card or Hong Kong residence permit, but that should be negotiable.”

Ji Mingshu pointed to another one, “This one is also good, has a great reputation, and has been open for many years. But their classes have quite a few children, and the environment is a bit old.”

“And this one… this one doesn’t have any major issues, but the less favorable point is that they only offer full boarding. Little Slob is so young to be boarding full time; I’m still a bit reluctant.”

After the introduction, Ji Mingshu was still torn, “Anyway, these are the options, take a look at all of them.”

Cen Sen nodded and began seriously reviewing the kindergarten materials Ji Mingshu handed him, with the same attention he’d give to reviewing a contract.

Ji Mingshu sat beside him, resting her chin on her hand and muttering, “But why are kindergartens so over-the-top nowadays? It wasn’t like this when we went to school, was it? Every single one of them requires parents to attend interviews.”

“What do you think they’ll ask us in the interview? Do we need to prepare resumes or something? I don’t think it’s necessary… it would be best if you could have someone put in a word so we don’t have to interview. Except for college interviews, I haven’t interviewed for anything in so many years.”

Cen Sen listened to Ji Mingshu’s chatter while seriously comparing the kindergarten data.

Just then, the newly promoted general manager of Junyi suddenly called him, saying they were planning to have a meeting with the Australian branch and asking if he had time to participate.

He directly replied, “No time, at home,” and the general manager immediately understood, politely ended the call, and tactfully didn’t disturb him further.

When he returned to relay the message to the executives in the meeting room, the general manager simply said, “President Cen is at home,” and everyone exchanged knowing glances.

Cen Sen’s level of family devotion in these two years was well-known throughout the group, and even outside circles often joked about it.

In the few years since he had returned from Australia, Jing Construction’s business empire had expanded considerably. With the help of the Cen family, the Ji family was gradually recovering to its former glory, especially with Ji Mingshu’s second uncle quickly rising through the ranks, at a speed that left people tongue-tied. In the imperial city, the unbreakable in-law relationship between the Cen and Ji families could be said to be known to all.

The reason it was called unbreakable wasn’t just because of the intertwined interests of the two families. In these years, outsiders could also clearly see Cen Sen’s obvious and subtle love and respect for Ji Mingshu.

The most direct manifestation was that Ji Mingshu’s status among socialites and wealthy ladies was as stable as a mountain.

Cen Sen rarely accepted financial media interviews, but when he did, he never failed to mention his wife and son at least once or twice, albeit in a restrained manner.

Moreover, in these two years, when attending social engagements, not only did he not bring female companions himself, but his business partners couldn’t bring them either.

Previously, there was someone who didn’t know better and tried to set him up with a woman. Somehow, a cooperation that was almost finalized ended up falling through. At first, the other party didn’t know what had happened, but after careful inquiry, they learned it was because the woman-pushing incident had displeased Cen Sen. Over time, this became an unwritten rule at Cen Sen’s place.

In addition, there were often rumors in the industry that Mrs. Cen would make a phone call and President Cen would immediately leave a drinking party, or that to give President Cen a gift, one must give something that Mrs. Cen and the little prince could use to truly match his heart’s desire, and so on. During private leisure time, there were quite a few who joked about his family matters.

After all, in today’s society, men who had money, power, youth, and wealth were rarely faithful. Those who didn’t cheat were already considered a rare species. Being family-oriented and single-minded, it wasn’t too much to call him “henpecked.”

While Cen Sen was discussing the kindergarten issue with Ji Mingshu, little Cen Yan woke up from his nap and, under the nanny’s care, came “pitter-patter” down the stairs on his short little legs.

Two-and-a-half-year-old little Cen Yan was adorably cute, with a soft little fringe resting on his forehead, bouncing with each step he took, so cute it made one’s heart flutter.

As soon as he came down the stairs, he rushed over and gave Ji Mingshu’s cheek a “smooch,” then gave Cen Sen’s face a “smooch,” calling out in a crisp voice, “Mama! Baba!”

Cen Sen easily gathered little Cen Yan into his arms and placed him between himself and Ji Mingshu, saying, “Dad and Mom are choosing a kindergarten for you.”

A question mark appeared in little Cen Yan’s mind: “What is kindergarten?”

Ji Mingshu took him onto her lap, pinched his little cheeks, and held his little hands to do some stretching exercises while patiently explaining, “It’s a place where many adorable little friends like you play together.”

Little Cen Yan innocently asked, “Will my little sister be there?”

Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu both paused simultaneously, then exchanged a glance.

Little Cen Yan continued asking, “Why do Great-grandma and Great-grandpa often say I have a little sister, but I haven’t seen her yet?”

Cen Sen asked casually, “Would you like to have a little sister?”

“Yes, yes!” Little Cen Yan nodded continuously like a pecking bird, counting on his chubby little fingers, “One, two, three, four! With a little sister, we’d have four people, and I wouldn’t be the youngest in the family anymore! I could take my sister to play at kindergarten!”

Ji Mingshu controlled his chubby little hands, raising them high, and put on a fierce face, saying sternly, “No, you can’t! Stinky Little Slob!”

Little Cen Yan pouted, turned his head to look at his mother with a pitiful expression, and said in a tiny voice, “Yan Bao isn’t a Little Slob, Yan Bao can do it!”

Cen Sen laughed lightly, almost imperceptibly, his voice mild, “You wanting a little sister isn’t impossible, but it requires your mother’s cooperation.”

Upon hearing this, little Cen Yan blinked his bright, round eyes expectantly at Ji Mingshu, “Mama, you cooperate quickly!”

“…”

“Do you think your mother is a scallop?” [Translator’s note: This is a pun in Chinese, as “cooperate” and “scallop” sound similar]

Little Cen Yan still couldn’t understand, and his face was full of confusion.

Cen Sen crossed his legs, leaned back on the sofa, flipping through the materials, and said casually, “Ask your mother if she wants to eat braised spare ribs tonight.”

Little Cen Yan tugged at Ji Mingshu’s arm, “Mama, do you want to eat braised spare ribs tonight?”

Ji Mingshu remained expressionless, “Mama doesn’t want to eat. Mama refuses.”