TFEDLAM 28

Chapter 28

The next day, under Mama Xia’s endless nagging and repeated reminders, the family of three finally set foot in the airport.

Before passing through the security check, Mama Xia even pulled Lu Tingchuan aside again and again to remind him earnestly, “You must work hard, put in your best effort, and try to let our little princess arrive as soon as possible!”

Because Chu Xun and his mother were also returning to the country, the two families decided to travel together.

Neither set of parents knew about Chu Xun’s feelings for Xia Shi. Since the two had always claimed they only saw each other as siblings—open and innocent, without any romantic entanglement—their parents simply regarded their past closeness as childhood teasing and playfulness. Thus, there was no awkwardness between the families.

Throughout the journey, Mama Chu was very enthusiastic, chatting endlessly with Xia Shi about all sorts of things, and constantly complaining that her son Chu Xun still hadn’t found a girlfriend.

Xia Shi smiled lightly, while Chu Xun felt a headache coming on. He tried everything to flatter and appease his mother, finally signing a series of “unequal treaties” before she finally stopped.

At Beijing Airport, while Lu Tingchuan and Xia Shi were still gathering their belongings in the arrivals area, they received a call from Yu Shuo.

“You’ve landed, right? Your flight information got leaked. There’s a group of fans waiting outside for you guys—be careful.”

Mama Chu curiously sneaked a look outside, then hurried back excitedly.

“Oh my, they’re all our little Xuanxuan’s fans! Two-thirds of the signs and banners out there have his name on them!”

Xia Shi and Lu Tingchuan exchanged a glance, and Chu Xun spoke up:

“Considering how popular ‘Where Are We Going, Baby?’ is, this makes sense. Since you’re on a private trip and your manager, assistant, and security aren’t with you, there are too many people outside. Xuanxuan might get scared. I’ll go out first to distract the crowd—you guys use the VIP exit.”

That was indeed a good idea. With Chu Xun’s popularity, even if the fans hadn’t originally come for him, his appearance would draw enough attention.

Lu Tingchuan thought for a moment, then nodded in agreement—something quite rare for him—and said to Chu Xun, “Thanks.”

However, since the broadcast of ‘Where Are We Going, Baby?’, not only had Lu Tingchuan’s fame skyrocketed, but little Lu Xuan’s fans had also exploded overnight. Even inside the secure area, there were fans trying to snap photos.

Lu Xuan, resting in Xia Shi’s arms, was already drowsy—his eyes half-closed, half-open. When he noticed some fans walking behind them, softly whispering “little young master,” he tried to smile politely and wave hello, but before the smile fully appeared, he couldn’t hold on and fell asleep.

But that tiny gesture made the fans squeal quietly, “So cute!”

Lu Tingchuan frowned and waved his hand slightly, pointing to Lu Xuan and putting a finger to his lips. “Shh.”

The fans widened their eyes and nodded vigorously, covering their mouths to keep quiet, even softening their footsteps. Xia Shi couldn’t help but chuckle.

Sometimes, fans really were quite adorable.

Lu Tingchuan loaded the luggage into the car, then reached out his arms toward Xia Shi, intending to take the sleeping Lu Xuan from her.

The little one made an unhappy hum, pouting, clearly irritated that his nap had been disturbed.

Lu Tingchuan adjusted his posture so Lu Xuan could rest comfortably on his shoulder, coaxing softly, “Daddy’s holding you now, go back to sleep. You’re too heavy for Mommy to carry anymore.”

The little boy rubbed his cheek against his father’s shoulder, wrapped his tiny arms around his neck, mumbled a sleepy “Mm,” and drifted back to sleep.

Lu Tingchuan glanced at Xia Shi and remembered how she had looked the last time at the hospital—exactly the same expression. He smiled. Like mother, like son indeed.

The fans’ eyes sparkled with excitement, their hands trembling so much that their phones nearly slipped. They longed to reach out and poke that chubby little cheek—but of course, they didn’t dare.

The family of three finally reached the VIP passage, smiling and waving goodbye to the fans before heading inside.

In this age of instant online information, news spread incredibly fast. Before Xia Shi and her family even reached home, photos and videos had already gone viral online.

“Aaaah! The little young master is so cute! I just want to hug and kiss him!”

“Men, come look at this! Before you start talking about dating or marriage, go hit the gym for a few years first! A real man carries his kid in one arm, pushes the luggage cart with the other, stays totally calm, and still manages to protect his wife from the crowd! Can you do that?”

“So dreamy! Power level MAX!”

“By the way, wasn’t King Chu also returning to the country today? Don’t tell me they were on the same flight?”

“Bingo! I was actually on the same plane as the movie god, the goddess, and King Chu! I was too shy to say hi though… [photos] [photos]”

“Wait a sec—these pictures show Xia Shi chatting with King Chu and Mama Chu, while Lu Tingchuan’s taking care of the kid???”

“This reminds me of the golden boy and jade girl they used to be! Back in the Most Beautiful Voice days, I totally shipped them as a couple. They were stunning and grew up together—I really thought they’d end up together. Who knew things would turn out like this? He’s still golden, but she’s already married to another. Tragic.”

“Tragic +1.”

“How big is the movie god’s heart, seriously? To sit next to his supposed love rival on the same flight and not even fight? I heard Xia Shi and Chu Xun will both be on I Am the King of Singers. Wow, that takes some self-control.”

“Big-hearted +1.”

“+2.”

“+10086!”

At Bishui Pavilion.

After settling Lu Xuan into bed, Xia Shi habitually pulled out her phone and scrolled through Weibo. She couldn’t help but grin, then sneak a glance downstairs at Lu Tingchuan hauling up their luggage.

Yes, his power level really was MAX—but “big-hearted”?

Hardly. For a man, his heart was smaller than a needle’s eye.

Still, Xia Shi hadn’t expected that what she thought was a harmless post-flight gossip would, overnight, reignite the long-forgotten “golden boy and jade girl” narrative.

The internet was flooded with nostalgic posts, throwback photos, and sentimental comments—pictures of her and Chu Xun as kids, onstage in middle school, and during Most Beautiful Voice. Their old CP fans were back in full force.

By the next morning, the tag #GoldenBoyAndJadeGirl had hit the top of every trending list and forum.

To make matters worse, her cheerful, gossip-loving mother had joined in too:

[Big Baby’s Grandma]: “Ah, I still remember when Chu Xun and Xia Shi used to crawl on the same bed as babies, and he even stole a kiss! But later, he called her a wild tomboy. Didn’t know what a treasure he had!”

Xia Shi nearly covered her face in despair.
The “stolen kiss” story might’ve been true—they were reportedly just a few months old then—but she had no memory of it. As for “wild tomboy,” well… at four or five years old, she did run around with the boys all the time. Chu Xun would chase her shouting “wild girl” every day.

Still…

Mom, could you not bring up ancient history online?

Unfortunately, the replies under Mama Xia’s post were merciless:

“Heh, the queen of fanfiction is back.”

“You’re so confident in your stories I almost believe them.”

“I’ll pretend I don’t see that you’re just showing off.”

Xia Shi burst out laughing, easily imagining her mother’s expression reading those comments.

At that moment, a new notification popped up—

@ChuXunV: “Everyone’s saying we should fight. How about after school, at the gate? @LuTingchuan”

That phrase—“after school, at the gate”—was clearly a joke.

Xia Shi blinked, stunned. When did Chu Xun become this much of a gossip? Joining in himself, at a time like this?

Lu Tingchuan saw her frown and peeked at her screen. Instantly, he understood her thoughts.

“This morning Yu Shuo warned me to stay alert,” he said. “Some netizens are overanalyzing those plane photos—of you chatting with Chu Xun while I was holding the baby. Especially since your first post-return show is I Am the King of Singers, and Chu Xun—who hasn’t done any variety shows in five years—is also joining.”

Xia Shi looked confused. “So? They think that means something?”

Lu Tingchuan shook his head. “Not yet. But we should prevent anyone from twisting it into gossip.”

Xia Shi sighed. “Chu Xun was probably trying to lighten things up—telling everyone you two aren’t rivals or jealous exes, and that he and I are just friends.”

Lu Tingchuan nodded, then pulled out his phone and reposted Chu Xun’s joke:

“As a grandmaster trained in Wing Chun and Baguazhang who can take on a hundred men single-handedly, you think we’re on the same level?”

Of course, he didn’t actually know Wing Chun or Baguazhang—he’d only learned a bit for a movie role years ago—but his caption was hilariously cocky.

Xia Shi tsked and shook her head, reposting his post with a comment:

“Can you be any more shameless?”

Chu Xun reposted again:

“+1 to shameless!”

And just like that, the would-be scandal of the “golden boy and jade girl” dissolved completely in a wave of playful banter.

Honestly, this approach was far more effective than any official explanation could have been. Clarifying too early might have sounded defensive; but by laughing it off before it became a real problem, they’d nipped it in the bud.

Xia Shi scrolled through the cheerful comments under the posts—

“Looks like Movie God Lu and King Chu are actually on good terms!”

“If they can joke around like this, they must be close friends.”

Satisfied, she finally relaxed.

Then, out of nowhere, Lu Tingchuan snatched her phone.

“You’re not going to comfort your wounded husband’s heart?” he asked, voice serious.

Xia Shi turned to look at him. Wounded heart? She could practically taste the jealousy.

But seeing the dangerous glint in his eyes, she wisely kept quiet, wrapped her arms around his neck, and gave him a light kiss.

“Is that enough?” she asked.

Lu Tingchuan looked unimpressed. “Too perfunctory.”

With that, he tugged her into his arms, pressed her down on the couch, and kissed her deeply—what followed was a vigorous, high-efficiency “workout.”

When it was over, Xia Shi let out a helpless laugh. “Lu Tingchuan, look at the sofa! What a mess!”

“Xuanxuan’s at kindergarten, and Aunt Wu’s on leave,” he said casually. “Who cares?”

Xia Shi glared at him. “Are you ever satisfied?”

He chuckled, lowering his voice by her ear. “I’ve got a big appetite. As long as you can handle it, I can keep eating.”

“You’re like a hyperactive puppy!”

He grinned. “Every man turns into one when it’s his wife we’re talking about.”

Xia Shi gritted her teeth, kicked him off the sofa, and stood up to fix her clothes and hair. She shot him a warning glare.

“Clean this up. I’m going to shower. And don’t you dare come in!”

Lu Tingchuan lay on the floor, his peach-blossom eyes lifting slightly as he watched her swaying figure climb the stairs. His throat bobbed, and suddenly he jumped up and followed—

Only to be met with a sharp bang! as the door slammed in his face.

He twisted the handle. Locked.

Laughter came from behind the door—bright and teasing.

Realization dawned.

So that’s why she pretended to fix her clothes but left her dress loose, her jacket barely hanging off her shoulders, showing off her pale back and curves. And that way she walked up the stairs… damn.

She’d done it on purpose—to lure him in!

Lu Tingchuan stared at the locked door, jaw tight.

So she thinks she can get away with this?

If he didn’t make sure she couldn’t walk tomorrow, then his name wasn’t Lu Tingchuan!