Jade shrimp, steamed turbot, tomato and eggs, sweet-and-sour ribs, and a pot of chicken soup. Cecilia was in high spirits and ended up making a few extra dishes.

She hadn't expected herself to step forward at that moment, nor that she'd speak so decisively.

Of course, Xavier Fostern was the lucky one—he happily thought skipping work to come home was the best decision ever.

Next time, for sure!

Little Rice Cake* behaved adorably. While his mom and dad ate, he lay quietly in his stroller, amusing himself, his little mouth going da-da-da.

One moment, he was wrestling with his tiny socks; the next, he was gnawing on his tiny fist.

After the recent incident, Li came straight back from abroad, personally picked out new models, and oversaw the new round of promo shoots.

Cecilia didn’t need to be on site anymore; she could rely on Li’s professionalism.

The model named Xifei kept making vague accusations on Weibo and her socials, hinting that the creator of Mu Furong had bullied her during the shoot.

She painted herself as the victim, claiming she was fired without reason by the investors.

Cecilia released the security footage from the manor online.

Turned out, Xifei asked for three breaks and two water stops within half an hour, completely derailing the shoot—thoroughly unprofessional.

And, she was caught on camera mouthing off with extremely poor attitude.

The photographer Li brought in was famous as well, and posted evidence of Xifei’s bad behavior. The modeling community collectively took note and kept their distance.

Xifei’s social media exploded. She didn’t dare post another word after that.

Xavier Fostern watched the footage, raised an eyebrow, feeling proud—his wife was truly impressive.

Without a second thought, he made a call to blacklist the troublesome little model.

Ironically, the scandal brought tons of attention to Mu Furong.

The new spring line for Mu Furong was sold out as soon as pre-orders opened.

Before long, rave reviews and return customer photos flooded the internet.

This collaboration added another feather in Cecilia’s cap—her work’s reputation soared.

——

Life was busy and full. Spring soon passed, and all of Beijing’s streets were cloaked in cherry blossoms.

Little Rice Cake began trying to speak. Every day, Cecilia eagerly coaxed him, "Say ‘Daddy’, say ‘Mommy’."

But the little one only chirped his da-da-das. He understood his mom wanted him to talk, but when he couldn’t, he’d shyly bury his face in his hands.

On weekends, Cecilia avoided the studio and stayed home—painting and spending time with Little Rice Cake.

Sometimes she’d invite Mia Moore and Song Ying for afternoon tea, though Song Ying was usually swamped, so more often it was just her and Mia Moore.

Weekends at home were just Cecilia and Xavier Fostern—she didn’t let Aunt Xu or anyone else come over so they could enjoy rare couple time.

Well, if you don’t count Little Rice Cake.

Late April was already turning hot. Daddy Fu dutifully washed Little Rice Cake’s clothes by hand out on the balcony.

They’d had the terrace pool cleaned and disinfected a few days before; soon, once it got warmer, they could go swimming.

Cecilia hugged Little Rice Cake, watching as Xavier Fostern washed the tiny clothes—his big hands made the baby shirts look like little towels, getting them clean in no time.

"Sweetheart, look! Daddy’s washing your clothes."

Little Rice Cake clapped his hands, smiling wide to show his baby teeth.

"Say it with Mommy: ‘Daddy’."

"Da-da!"

"Haha, not ‘da-da’—it’s ‘Daddy’."

"Puh-puh!"

The more she coaxed, the wilder his answers. Xavier Fostern looked at his son and teased, "Why are you so silly?"

"Puh-puh-puh!" Little Rice Cake quickly realized Dad was talking about him and stared with wide misty eyes, babbling in protest.

"Not silly, not at all. Our Little Rice Cake is the smartest baby, and Mommy loves you the most."

"Huh? Not me the most??!!"

Xavier Fostern finished up washing and hung the little clothes where the sun was brightest.

"Here, let me hold him."

Little Rice Cake was growing fast—Cecilia’s arms tired quickly, so she gladly handed him to Xavier Fostern.

Standing at 189cm, Xavier Fostern hoisted their little bean up and could still keep an arm around his wife.

"Baby, you don’t know how to swim, do you?"

"...No, I don’t."

He looked down at Cecilia, smiling with a hint of mischief. "That’s perfect. In another couple of months, when it’s warmer, I’ll teach you."

Little Rice Cake was sprawled out on Daddy’s shoulder, not understanding a word. The sun was toasting his little bottom, making him drowsy and sleepy.

Xavier Fostern soothed their son, expertly tucking him in for a nap in the upstairs cradle.

They had matching cradles on both floors—a perk of being able to put Little Rice Cake down wherever they were.

With nothing much to do, the couple decided to watch a movie together.

Cecilia picked out a romantic French film, drew the curtains, and started the projector.

They curled up on the sofa—Xavier Fostern working on his laptop, while Cecilia felt perfectly content. Doing their own things, but together—the warmth and peace made her heart full.

With the curtains drawn, the bright spring sun was kept at bay. The room was dim, the movie volume barely audible so as not to wake the baby.

Mellow French murmurs from the film wrapped the room in a dreamy, romantic mood.

The beautiful scenes on screen soon had Cecilia’s head bobbing onto Xavier Fostern’s shoulder. He reached around her neck and pulled her closer, absent-mindedly stroking her earlobe.

The gentle touches made Cecilia sleepy, her eyelids fluttering like a kitten’s.

After Xavier Fostern finished his work, he glanced over—his girl was completely out of it.

He closed his laptop and set it aside, softly asking, "Sleepy? Do you want to nap?"

Cecilia shook her head, eyes bleary. "No, I’m watching the movie."

"Heh, that’s just like Grandma Rivers—sleeping and watching TV at the same time."

Cecilia hugged his waist, turning up to nuzzle him. "Hey, you’re teasing Grandma Rivers. Next time we go home, I’ll tell on you."

"Hmm? Learning to tattle, are we?"

"Yep!" She nudged her brow up with a cheeky little smile; the tiny mole on her nose was just a lovable touch.

Xavier Fostern couldn’t resist and bent down for a kiss. "How about this—if I kiss you, will you not tell Grandma Rivers?"

Cecilia shook her head, grinning. "Nope, no use trying to bribe me."

Not satisfied, Xavier Fostern pulled her into his lap, facing him.

Cecilia barely had time to squeak before his lips claimed hers.

The overbearing kiss swallowed all her words. His hands on her waist tightened bit by bit.

A long moment later, Xavier Fostern let go, looking at her glistening lips with a mischievous smirk. "Since you refuse to nap, and you’re set on tattling, being so naughty... Let’s do something that’ll teach you to behave."

Cecilia instantly caught his drift and tried to scramble away, but he pulled her back.

"No, I haven’t finished the movie and the baby’s still sleeping!"

"That’s fine, he’s out like a little piglet."

The summer sun hung bright and warm.

The gentle romance of the movie faded into the background, replaced by far shyer sounds that lingered for a long, long time.