Chapter 36 SJC

Back when Shen Jinnian rented this place, he never imagined it would one day be this lively.

Four people, two rooms.

There was no way the auntie would stay with two Alphas.

She’d get her own room. That meant the remaining three would have to squeeze into the other one.

Shen Jinnian didn’t like that idea.

If they let the auntie take the baby, and the two of them shared a room—

Shen Jinnian liked that even less.

So, in the end, he made the final decision. Pointing at Gu Yan, he stated firmly, “You’re sleeping on the sofa.”

That was the only fair arrangement.

And of course, Gu Yan had expected it. “Thanks.”

He hadn’t been hoping for a spot in the bedroom anyway.

Shen Jinnian not grabbing him by the collar and tossing him out the door was already more kindness than he’d hoped for.

The nanny standing to the side looked much more disappointed than Gu Yan. He had waited for this stormy night on purpose to suggest that the couple should stay in the same room—hoping they’d get a little closer and resolve the tension.

Who would’ve thought Shen Jinnian’s heart was colder than thousand-year-old iron?

“I’ll go grab a blanket,” the auntie said and slipped out of the room.

For a moment, only three of them were left in the study.

The little one curled up in Gu Yan’s arms, giggling and clinging to his neck, showering him with kisses one after another. He was more attached than he’d ever been before.

Shen Jinnian was so angry that he couldn't breathe properly.

But he didn’t dare leave. He was afraid Gu Yan would take the chance to whisper things into the child’s ear.

But he was afraid that after he left, Gu Yan would secretly whisper in the child's ear, so he endured this suffocating atmosphere and stared at Gu Yan for an hour with a stern face.

Until the last grain of sand in the hourglass fell.

Shen Jinnian got up immediately, walked over to Gu Yan, and held out his hands toward the child. “Two hours are up.”

Gu Yan was about to hand the baby over.

But the little one stuck to him like glue, arms and legs tightly wrapped around Gu Yan’s neck and waist, refusing to budge no matter what.

Shen Jinnian tried several times to pull him off but failed.

He slapped the baby's butt lightly: "Don't be so embarrassing, you have to go to bed."

The baby didn’t cry or fuss. He just buried his face in Gu Yan’s neck and mumbled, “PaPa… sleep…”

“You want to sleep with Gu Yan?” Shen Jinnian crossed his arms, clearly annoyed. “Is that it?”

The baby didn’t dare answer.

He secretly turned her head to glance at Shen Jinnian, and saw that his father was indeed angry, and quickly hid his little face in Gu Yan's neck with a guilty conscience.

“Wu…”

Shen Jinnian ordered Gu Yan to turn the child around so he could face him directly. Then he asked again, “Are you sure you want to sleep with Gu Yan?”

The baby suddenly lowered his head and didn't dare to speak anymore.

Little daddy is always so strict.

Gu Yan broke the deadlock between the two at the right time, leaned close to the child's ear, and coaxed softly: "You sleep with daddy, and I will play with you after you wake up, okay?"

Tears welled up in the baby’s eyes, sparkling as they filled his lashes.

He looked especially pitiful.

Clutching Shen Jinnian’s sleeve, his tiny hand shakily pointed at Gu Yan, then at Shen Jinnian. “Sleep… PaPa!”

Shen Jinnian was confused for a second.

Gu Yan caught on quickly and asked, “You mean… the three of us sleep together?”

The baby let out a big breath of relief and nodded right away.The three of them used to sleep together all the time.

Every morning when he woke up, Little Daddy would be on his left and Daddy Gu on his right. He could cuddle whichever daddy he wanted, kiss whichever one he wanted.

But now…

Shen Jinnian’s hostility toward Gu Yan had shot through the roof. Forget about sleeping together—even stepping foot into Shen Jinnian’s home cost Gu Yan thirty thousand yuan.

But the baby still wanted to sleep with both his dads.

“You’re already dreaming before you’ve even gone to bed?” Shen Jinnian sneered, pulling the child firmly into his arms. He leaned close to the little one’s ear and whispered, “Don’t push it too far.”

The three of them sleeping together again—absolutely impossible.

The baby, stunned by this lightning bolt of a reply, finally let the tears he’d been holding back fall. They dropped like a broken string of pearls, splashing onto the back of Shen Jinnian’s hand.

Clutching Gu Yan’s shirt and refusing to let go, the baby sobbed his heart out. “Pa! PaPa!”

“sleep…”

“He’s not going to sleep with you,” Shen Jinnian said coldly. “Tonight, the wind’s loud, the rain’s louder—cry as much as you want. Scream your little heart out, you won’t be bothering the neighbors.”

With that, he gave the baby no room to argue, scooped him up, and strode out the door toward the bedroom—completely ignoring Gu Yan still standing in the study.

Gu Yan stood frozen in place, exchanging a helpless glance with the nanny who’d been anxiously eavesdropping by the doorway.

“Did you two fight again?” the nanny asked.

Gu Yan rubbed his temples as he sank back into the couch, long legs crossed. “No. He’s just in a bad mood today.”

The nanny pressed, “Didn’t you try to cheer him up a little?”

Gu Yan admitted, “Didn’t work. His head’s all over the place right now.”

He’d already tried to hold back his usual nature today and tried to play nice for Shen Jinnian.

But ever since Shen Jinnian came back from the old man’s place, he’d been anxious and irritable. Probably still couldn’t wrap his head around the baby’s true origin.

He just needed some time.

The nanny wiped her damp hands on her apron, gently closed the door halfway, and sat down across from Gu Yan with a sigh. “I want to talk to you about Xiao Shen…”

Seeing that Gu Yan was actually listening, she continued, “I haven’t been here long, not even a full month yet, so I don’t know what happened between you two. But I do think… he still has feelings for you.”

“Xiao Shen told me before about the child’s father. He said you were good-looking but cold and proud. He even asked me how to win you over.”

Gu Yan frowned. “?”

He praised me? Asked how to win me over?

Did Shen Jinnian hit his head or something?

“Don’t look at me like that, I swear I’m telling the truth.” The nanny raised three fingers in a solemn oath.

She still remembered it clearly.

Shen Jinnian said that although Gu Yan's appearance was impeccable, it was slightly inferior to his. Anyone who could be praised by Shen Jinnian must be very handsome.

Later, Shen Jinnian angrily accused Gu Yan of being arrogant and bad-tempered.

She felt that it was just the personal emotional venting of a young couple when they quarreled. To put it in an objective way, it would be aloof and arrogant.

As for Shen Jinnian trying to win him over…

Although she forced Shen Jinnian to learn, Shen Jinnian learned and used it, so the result was almost the same.

Seeing how serious the nanny was, Gu Yan couldn’t help wavering just a little.

He asked again, incredulous, “You’re saying… Shen Jinnian still has feelings for me?”

The nanny nodded. “You two already have a child together. If he didn’t still care about you, do you really think you’d still be around?”

Gu Yan: “…”

That was… not easy to argue with.

The nanny clucked sympathetically. “Couples don’t always have clear-cut rights and wrongs. You’re an omega who just gave birth—it’s not convenient or appropriate for you to be living alone outside. You need an Alpha to take care of you.”

“Xiao Shen might be a bit stubborn, but he’s a good guy. If both of you just take one step back and stop being so hard-headed, things could smooth out real quick.”

Gu Yan was starting to feel a little dazed from all the nanny’s logic.

But he still felt the need to clarify one thing.

Everything she’d just said… she should really be saying it to Shen Jinnian. He was the one calling the shots between them. He was the one who didn’t want to be with him.

But before Gu Yan could speak, the study door was suddenly flung open with a loud bang.

Speak of the devil.

Shen Jinnian stood there, arms crossed, towering in the doorway as he stared down at Gu Yan.

His expression was cold and serious, but the words that came out of his mouth were clearly meant for the baby:

“Gu Yan. Come sleep in my bed tonight.”

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I scheduled next week's chapters while I'm still free. I'm gonna be busy for a while due to exams!