Chapter 18 SJC
"How is this even possible?!"
Shen Jinnian flipped through the report over and over, making sure he wasn’t so confused that he could no longer read Chinese.
Still skeptical, he called the testing center. The staff pulled up the electronic version of the results, which matched the one in his hands exactly.
His entire worldview crumbled. Logic, reasoning—everything collapsed in an instant.
The child in his arms… was his?
Shen Jinnian pinched his temples, forcing his blank mind to recall everything that had happened last year.
But his thoughts were in utter chaos. The more he tried to grasp at his memories, the more they slipped away—like sand through his fingers.
"Alright, if there's nothing else, just take the child home," the omega officer said, noticing how dazed Shen Jinnian looked. Worried he might get into an accident on the way back, the officer even assigned two colleagues to drive him home.
—
The nanny on the second floor nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw Shen Jinnian returning in a police car with the child.
She hurried downstairs, chasing after the officers with anxious questions. Only after confirming that neither Shen Jinnian nor the baby had been in any danger did she finally relax.
However, Shen Jinnian was clearly in a foul mood.
He said nothing upon entering the house. The first thing he did was book another paternity test at a different facility in the city.
Once his phone confirmed the appointment, he immediately stood up, ready to head out with the child.
The nanny quickly came out of the nursery and called after him, "Mr. Shen, take the baby's formula and diapers too!"
Shen Jinnian stopped in his tracks, took the mommy bag from her hands, and frowned. "Auntie, we won’t be back tonight. No need to prepare dinner for me."
"Oh… Alright, be careful on the road," the nanny replied, not daring to ask where he was going or why.
She stood downstairs with mixed feelings and watched Shen Jinnian get on the car, waving goodbye to the two of them.
The car sped past the downstairs of the community and disappeared at the end of the road in the blink of an eye.
The baby, no longer able to see his nanny, obediently climbed back onto Shen Jinnian’s lap. His tiny hands fumbled with the zipper on his backpack, attempting to pass it to Shen Jinnian.
On his sixth attempt, Shen Jinnian finally noticed.
"What are you doing?"
The baby flopped into his arms with a little plop and his soft little hands grasped one of Shen Jinnian's fingers respectively, and he clumsily led Shen Jinnian to touch his belly..
Hungry.
The round little ball had become a deflated little flat ball due to hunger.
It dawned on Shen Jinnian that the cub hadn’t eaten anything all afternoon. He unzipped the bag and looked inside.
The baby pointed toward the corner.
Shen Jinnian followed his gaze and, to his surprise, spotted a tiny milk bottle tucked neatly inside. The milk had already been prepared at the perfect temperature.
The little one rubbed his belly and blinked his round, shiny eyes. "Cichi!"
Shen Jinnian froze for a moment.
Was it the DNA test messing with his head? He suddenly felt like the baby’s eyes looked a little like his own, even the little expression that was deliberately trying to please him was exactly the same.
Shen Jinnian shook his head, trying to rid himself of the terrifying thought.
The baby saw him shake his head—and immediately copied him.
One big head shake. One small head shake.
They were like a perfect copy-paste.
Shen Jinnian: "…Huh? I thought only puppies copied people."
The baby pointed at him. "Dou!" (Silly!)
Shen Jinnian raised his fist. "Do you want a beating?"
The little boy laughed while holding the bottle: “PaPa~”
“…”
The heavy atmosphere in the car eased slightly. Somehow, the little cub had single-handedly relieved Shen Jinnian’s nerves, if only by a fraction.
When they arrived at the paternity testing center, a staff member guided Shen Jinnian through the sample collection process. To ensure accuracy, they collected both hair follicles and blood samples. He personally watched as the technician placed his sample into the testing equipment—there was no room for error.
The expedited results would take around six to eight hours.
With nothing else to do, the two of them decided to stay at a nearby hotel for the night.
The baby had spent most of the day traveling and was clearly exhausted.
After washing up, he didn’t fuss or cry. He didn’t even ask to hold onto Shen Jinnian’s clothes. Instead, he obediently pulled his little blanket over himself and went straight to sleep.
Shen Jinnian, on the other hand, remained restless, tossing and turning until 3:30 AM.
Unable to hold back anymore, he tiptoed to the balcony and called his older brother.
The call rang for a full three minutes before Shen Huaili finally picked up.
Before his brother could say anything, Shen Jinnian blurted out, “Ge, did I lose my memory?”
The man on the other end of the line sounded breathless, his tone irritable. Without waiting for an explanation, he snapped, “Shen Jinnian, do you have a screw loose? Calling me at three in the damn morning?”
“I wouldn’t call if it weren’t important!” Shen Jinnian clenched his phone, his voice unconsciously speeding up. “Ge, have I ever suffered a head injury?”
Shen Huaili: “Yes.”
Shen Jinnian’s heart clenched painfully, as if someone had grabbed it in a tight grip.
He could hardly breathe.
Three seconds later, Shen Huaili gritted his teeth and added, “You got your head stuck in a door.”
Otherwise, what kind of lunatic calls someone at three in the morning?
“…”
Shen Jinnian was speechless.
Without another word, he hung up and immediately blocked his brother’s number.
He used to think Shen Huaili was the most reliable and considerate person in the family. Turns out, he was nothing but a jerk.
A total dog.
Fuming, Shen Jinnian stormed back to the room and plopped down beside the peacefully sleeping baby. He absentmindedly scrolled through short videos on his phone and noticed an unread message from Gu Yan asking why he wasn’t home.
But his mind was too much of a mess to reply.
It wasn’t until dawn approached that exhaustion finally caught up with him. His eyelids grew heavy, and within minutes, he drifted off.
—
The next morning, before the baby’s cries could wake him, a call from the DNA testing center did.
Shen Jinnian snapped to full alertness. He immediately got up, got dressed, and carried the baby to the sink to wash up before heading straight to the facility.
The little one clutched his milk bottle, his sleepy eyes barely open.
Every so often, he’d peek at Shen Jinnian, as if to make sure his papa was still there. Only then would he relax and murmur, “PaPa…”
The warm little hand grasped Shen Jinnian's index finger and fell asleep peacefully.
Shen Jinnian carefully tucked the sleeping child into his bag before verifying his identity at the reception desk.
His heartbeat thundered in his ears as he received the envelope.
Then he nervously verified his identity and took out his own paternity test.
He didn't even have to wait for the doctor to explain to him. He skillfully turned to the last page.
【Test results indicate that Shen Jinnian is the biological father of the tested individual.】
Even though he had prepared himself for this possibility, his mind still blanked out.
His vision blurred. His ears rang.
He stood frozen for a full ten minutes.
It wasn’t until a passing doctor noticed his dazed state and kindly asked, “Would you like to sit down for a moment?”
Shen Jinnian ignored the question. Clutching the report tightly, he asked, “What are the chances of this test being wrong?”
The doctor shook his head without hesitation. “Genes don’t lie. The accuracy of paternity tests is essentially one hundred percent.”
In other words…
The little chubby baby peacefully sleeping in his bag was, without a doubt—his.
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Thank you for the update . waiting for the next chapterrr ๐
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