Chapter 35 I’m His Biological Father, No One Else Gets to Be His Dad

Chapter 35: I'm His Real Dad – No One Else Gets to Call Themselves His Father

"What did you say?"

Shi Ciyan's furrowed brow gradually relaxed, the sinister look in his eyes slowly fading, his gaze becoming clear.

"Three days from now is An'an's first birthday."

"First birthday?" Shi Ciyan stood frozen, not coming to his senses for a beat. He muttered, "Our child... you didn't abort it..." Shi Ciyan never dared to dream that their child could be born safely.

"Yes, I gave birth to him." Yu Wei took a deep breath. "Untie me. He's sick and can't be without me."

"I... I'll untie you now." Shi Ciyan fumbled through the bedside drawer for the key. The ankle chain Yu Wei wore was exquisitely crafted, the keyhole very small. Shi Ciyan held the key but couldn't get it into the lock.

"Move over. I'll do it myself."

Worried, Yu Wei snatched the key and unlocked it himself. As soon as he got off the bed, he stopped, turned back to look at the still-dazed Shi Ciyan, then glanced down at his own bare legs, a surge of inexplicable anger rising within him.

"What are you standing around for? Get me some clothes quickly."

Shi Ciyan came to his senses, guiltily glancing at Yu Wei, and hurriedly got up to find clothes for him.

Yu Wei couldn't easily wear pants with the ankle chain on, so Shi Ciyan simply gave him a top that just covered his thighs.

"Get out. I need to get dressed."

Shi Ciyan didn't dare provoke him and slunk out, quickly straightening himself up while waiting for Yu Wei to come out.

Private jets require at least a day's notice to file a flight plan. Yu Wei couldn't wait that long. The nearest flight to Country D was departing in two hours. Yu Wei and Shi Ciyan arrived at the airport just in time to board.

Yu Wei hadn't slept all night and was in poor spirits. He felt drowsy once he sat down on the plane.

"You should get some sleep. An'an will be fine. Don't worry."

As soon as Shi Ciyan said this, Yu Wei glared at him fiercely. "If you hadn't forcibly brought me back from Country D, none of this would have happened."

"I'm sorry." Shi Ciyan lowered his head, not daring to argue, his hands intertwined, his fingers turning white from clenching.

He now wished he could go back a day and slap himself twice. If he had had a little courage, if he had done even a little research on Yu Wei's situation, he wouldn't have left his not-yet-one-year-old son alone abroad.

During the seven to eight-hour flight, Yu Wei couldn't stay awake and ended up sleeping for two hours. Shi Ciyan stayed wide awake, rehearsing in his mind what expression to make and what to say when meeting his son.

He wondered if An'an, almost one, would call him "Daddy."

When they landed in Country D, it was already past midnight. Without much luggage, they headed straight to the hospital from the airport.

The pediatric ward was filled with crying children at this hour. Yu Wei ran all the way to the fever clinic. Yu An had a low-grade fever. Though they had brought down the temperature with physical cooling, he wouldn't stop crying. Ling Heyu, afraid of any complications, didn't dare take him home, so he admitted him and waited for Yu Wei.

Yu Wei reached the ward, where Ling Heyu and the nanny were taking turns trying to soothe Yu An, but his cries were loud and showed no sign of stopping.

It was almost one in the morning. Normally, Yu An slept regularly, going to bed at eight o'clock.

Yu Wei pushed open the door. The two people inside looked up, relief flooding their eyes, as if seeing a savior.

"Give me the child." Yu Wei walked quickly to the bedside and picked up the baby. When Yu An saw him, he cried even harder, his voice cracking higher.

Yu Wei's heart ached as he stroked An'an's head, cradling him in his arm and gently rocking him. After half an hour of soothing, the crying finally subsided.

"His fever has gone down, but he kept crying and refused his milk." Ling Heyu rubbed the bridge of his nose wearily, handing the bottle to Yu Wei. "Try giving him some milk."

Yu An was well-behaved in Yu Wei's arms, quietly sucking on the bottle with his big round eyes fixed on Yu Wei, as if afraid he'd disappear again.

Yu Wei's heart melted under that gaze. "Daddy won't leave you for so long again."

Only then did Yu Wei remember Shi Ciyan, who had come with him. He turned his head and saw Shi Ciyan standing at the door, as still as a stone statue.

He hadn't made a sound, and Yu Wei had almost forgotten he was there.

"Why don't you come in?"

Shi Ciyan came to his senses. He looked at Yu Wei, then at the baby in his arms. His mind went blank. He walked over stiffly and stood beside Yu Wei, staring at Yu An.

"Who's this?" Ling Heyu's eyes darted between Yu Wei and the stranger, curious. "A friend of yours?"

Yu Wei glanced at Shi Ciyan, whose eyes were glued to Yu An, and mumbled a vague "Mm-hmm."

Yu Wei finished feeding the baby and wiped his face.

"Want to hold him?" he suddenly said to Shi Ciyan.

Shi Ciyan had been fixated on the child since he entered, as if looking at some strange creature, his eyes brimming with curiosity.

"Ah... can I?" Shi Ciyan nervously fidgeted with the hem of his shirt, then wiped his hands on his pants, and asked quietly, "Should I disinfect my hands first?"

Yu Wei was a little exasperated. "Are your hands toxic?"

Shi Ciyan answered honestly, "No."

Yu Wei placed the child in his arms. "Just hold him the way I did."

Shi Ciyan had never held a baby before. He carefully took Yu An, mimicking Yu Wei's hold. Yu An felt light as a feather in his arms, with a faint milky scent.

"Let me go talk to the doctor."

Yu An's fever had subsided and he had stopped crying. Yu Wei wanted to ask if they could go home, as he was worried An'an wouldn't sleep well in the hospital.

"I'll come with you." Ling Heyu got up and followed him.

The two walked out of the ward one after another. Ling Heyu thought about the stranger left alone with Yu An and suddenly stopped, uneasy. "Who's that guy? Is it okay to leave An'an alone with him?"

"It's fine. He won't do anything to An'an."

Since Yu Wei said so, Ling Heyu relaxed a little. He peeked through the window into the ward. Inside, Shi Ciyan was still carefully holding Yu An, staring at his face.

"Where have you been the last couple of days?"

Yu Wei had vanished the day before yesterday and only came back early this morning, bringing a strange Alpha.

"I went back home," Yu Wei said directly.

As for why he went back, Yu Wei didn't feel like talking about it, and Ling Heyu didn't push.

He had come out with Yu Wei to ask what had happened in those two days. Since Yu Wei didn't want to talk, he'd try to get information out of that Alpha instead.

Reluctant as he was to admit it, Ling Heyu could smell Alpha pheromones on Yu Wei, exactly the same scent as the Alpha who had just been released.

When Ling Heyu returned to the ward, the Alpha had placed An'an on the bed and was making funny faces that made Yu An giggle.

Ling Heyu curled his lip disdainfully and was about to push the door open when he heard the Alpha say to Yu An, "Baby, call me Daddy."

Ling Heyu had secretly taught Yu An that word many times, but Yu An still only knew how to say "Dad."

"Dad—dy—" Shi Ciyan crouched by the bed, teaching word by word.

But Yu An held his bottle, his big eyes dazedly fixed on Shi Ciyan's mouth, not saying a word.

"Dad—"

Ling Heyu pushed the door open and entered. The Alpha in the room glanced back at him and continued teaching.

"D—a—d—dy—"

Ling Heyu pulled a chair over and sat down, saying casually, "If An'an is going to call someone 'Daddy,' it should be me. Where did you come from, kid? Don't think that because you spent two days with Xiao Wei, you mean something special to him." Ling Heyu sat lazily, acting like the legitimate partner. "I was the one by Xiao Wei's side when he gave birth. I've been with him for a whole year and a half. If there's anyone who gets to be An'an's daddy, it's me, not you."

Shi Ciyan didn't even look at him. While playing with An'an, he replied, "You spent a year and a half with him and still didn't succeed. Is it because you're too chicken, or because Brother Yuwei didn't want you?"

Shi Ciyan's words hit Ling Heyu right where it hurt. Ling Heyu jumped up in anger. "How can you talk like that?"

"Am I wrong?" Shi Ciyan looked up, a smile gradually spreading across his face. "It seems Brother Yuwei didn't want you that way."

When Yu Wei went abroad, he lived so close to Ling Heyu that Shi Ciyan had thought there might be something between Brother Yuwei and Ling Heyu, but now he realized he had been overthinking.

He had figured it out on the plane: if they were really together, why would they live separately? They always went back to their own places, never staying overnight at each other's. The likelihood of them being together was very low.

Besides, when he went to Yu Wei's place, he didn't smell any Alpha pheromones.

In a year and a half, Ling Heyu hadn't been able to make his move during a vulnerable time. He wasn't even a worthy opponent. He didn't need to be taken seriously at all.

Now, seeing Ling Heyu's face red with anger, unable to refute his words, Shi Ciyan chuckled softly and advised, "Give it up."

"Fair competition. Just wait and see."

Shi Ciyan shrugged nonchalantly and continued teaching Yu An to say "Daddy."

Just then, the door opened again. Shi Ciyan knew without looking that Yu Wei was back.

Ling Heyu's eyes lit up when he saw him, and he quickly complained, "Look, he's teaching An'an."

After saying this, he glanced smugly at Shi Ciyan, expecting Yu Wei to scold Shi Ciyan for misleading the child the same way he had scolded Ling Heyu. But Yu Wei said lightly, "An'an can't say it yet. Let him be."

Ling Heyu: "..."

That's not right. When he taught An'an, Yu Wei was unhappy, thinking he was misleading the child. So Ling Heyu only dared to teach secretly or occasionally to gauge Yu Wei's reaction.

Now this Alpha was teaching openly in front of Yu Wei, and Yu Wei said nothing.

Could Yu Wei actually be into this Alpha…

Impossible. This guy was younger than him and hadn't known Yu Wei as long. Even if Yu Wei wanted to find a daddy for An'an, clearly Ling Heyu himself was the best choice.

"Dad… Dad… Dad…"

Suddenly, Yu An babbled a few "Dad"s, and everyone froze.

"Dad… Dad…"

Shi Ciyan was so excited he wanted to hug Yu An but was afraid of hurting him. Instead, he stood up and spun Yu Wei around twice, beaming. "An'an called me Daddy! Brother Yuwei, An'an called me Daddy!"

Yu Wei felt a little dizzy from the spinning. He patted Shi Ciyan's shoulder. "I heard you. Let me go first."

Shi Ciyan obediently put him down and kissed his face twice. "An'an really called me Daddy."

Yu Wei wiped his lips with disgust. "You're making a big deal out of nothing. He's been calling me 'Dad' for a long time."

Despite his words, the corners of Yu Wei's mouth turned up, and he couldn't hide his smile.

Ling Heyu watched them, frozen in place.

"You guys…"

Yu Wei suddenly realized someone else was still in the room and froze, not knowing what to do.

Shi Ciyan took Yu Wei's hand and said to Ling Heyu, "I forgot to introduce myself earlier. I am An'an's biological father. As long as I'm alive, I'm his daddy, and no one else gets to be that."

Ling Heyu's face went pale, then red. "..."