64: An unexpected encounter after eight years

Butler Qin's apology still rang in his ears, and Chen Jun's indifferent response of "I'm used to it" made the old butler break into a cold sweat. He was about to pledge his loyalty again to make up for his mistake by personally escorting Chen Jun into the Jade Washing Studio.

Just then, another cold female voice, tinged with a hint of imperceptible fatigue, came from a path on the other side of the garden:

"Butler Qin, why are you making such a commotion here?"

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice.

They saw a woman dressed in a simple, elegant light green dress, holding the hand of a jade-carved little girl around five or six years old, walking slowly toward them.

The woman's face was beautiful, but her brows were locked in a lingering, inseparable sadness. It was Su Wan.

Eight years had left no mark on her face; the life level of a Planet-level Expert kept her young, but deep within those eyes, much more unspeakable things had settled compared to when she was a teacher on Zhiyuan Star.

And the little girl she was holding instantly attracted everyone's attention!

She wore a princess dress studded with tiny starlight, her smooth, jet-black hair tied into two cute buns. Her skin was so fair it was almost transparent, and her big eyes were like the purest black gems, lively and clear.

Even more striking was the extremely faint, yet incomparably pure, starlight flowing naturally around her, as if she came with her own filter, rendering the surrounding light soft and dreamy.

It was the six-year-old Su Xingyao!

The Innate Star Body that had caused a sensation throughout the entire Federation and was celebrated by all six years ago!

Upon seeing Su Wan and her daughter, Butler Qin bowed again in a hurry, his tone even more respectful: "Lady Su Wan, Young Miss Xingyao! This old servant was rude. A reckless junior from the clan offended a distinguished guest, and I have already dealt with him."

His attitude was even more humble than when he was facing Chen Jun.

After all, in his understanding, Su Wan was a Planet-level Expert and, more importantly, Su Xingyao's mother, holding an extraordinary status!

However, at this moment, everyone's attention, including Butler Qin's own, was actually more drawn to that small figure.

Su Xingyao seemed completely unaware of the conflict just now. Her pure, large eyes first looked curiously at the apologetic Butler Qin, and then, her gaze involuntarily fell on Chen Jun.

A kind of indescribable closeness, originating from the depths of her Bloodline, made her little hand gently break free from her mother's grip. She took a small step toward Chen Jun, tilted her head, and spoke in a milky voice that sounded like a clear spring dripping onto a jade plate:

"You... who are you? I feel... you have such a comfortable, familiar smell on you..."

The little girl's eyes were innocent and pure, carrying a natural curiosity and a hint of naive affection.

At this moment, time seemed to freeze...

Qin Hao, Qin Yuer, and the others, who were just about to leave, stood frozen as if struck by a binding spell. Their eyes widened like copper bells, staring fixedly at Su Xingyao, then looking at Chen Jun in disbelief!

Su Xingyao!

It was actually Su Xingyao!

The little princess who had only been glimpsed once in a Federation-wide broadcast six years ago, hailed by countless people as the future hope of the Federation, the Innate Star Body!

She... she actually appeared here!

And... she actually took the initiative to speak to the man they despised as a "useless person" and a "Mortal"?!

And said something like "such a comfortable, familiar smell"?!

This... how is this possible?!

Qin Hao's mind went blank. His previous anger, frustration, and doubt were instantly replaced by a much stronger, bone-chilling fear!

Even if he were stupid and arrogant, he knew what Su Xingyao meant!

That was an Innate Star Body!

A future, destined Stellar Level giant!

An existence that even his Qin Family Old Ancestor, Qin Pojun, had to treat with courtesy and even deliberately cultivate a relationship with!

The man who could make Su Xingyao feel a natural affection...

Qin Hao suddenly recalled Butler Qin's terrified look and warning just now...

"If you anger him, let alone you, even your ancestral lineage won't be able to bear it!"

A chill shot from the soles of his feet to the top of his head. Qin Hao felt his blood almost freezing. His legs began to tremble uncontrollably, his face turned as pale as paper, and cold sweat instantly soaked his clothes on his back.

What... what had he just done?!

He almost tried to lay a hand on an existence that even an Innate Star Body felt close to?!

And wanted to force him to his knees?!

Qin Hao wished he could slap himself dozens of times right now!

No!

He wished he could crawl into a hole in the ground, or turn back time!

Beside him, Qin Yuer, Qin Meng, and the others were so scared that their Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, not even daring to breathe, shrinking their necks, wishing they could become invisible.

In stark contrast to the terror of these juniors was Chen Jun.

The moment he heard Su Xingyao's childish inquiry, Chen Jun's calm heart, which had been like an unruffled lake, was like a warm stone being thrown into it, sending ripples spreading outward.

He slowly turned around, his gaze falling on the small figure surrounded by starlight.

This was his daughter!

The daughter of him and Su Wan!

The child born under cold, helpless, and even somewhat humiliating circumstances!

Eight years!

It had been eight years since that night of intimacy with Su Wan!

In these eight years, he had changed from a tool person who was living from hand to mouth and fearing the exhaustion of his lifespan, to a long-lived person who now held eternity and had an extraordinary mindset.

And this little life had also grown from an infant in swaddling clothes to the clever and cute little girl she was today!

A complex, indescribable emotion welled up in his heart—guilt, affection, the natural closeness of a shared Bloodline, and a hint of the feeling that a lifetime had passed...

He crouched down to bring his line of sight level with Su Xingyao, a very gentle, even slightly clumsy smile appearing on his face as he tried to appear friendly, making his voice as soft as possible:

"I... I am called Chen Jun."

He paused, looking into the little girl's pure, innocent eyes, his heart softening, and added: "You can call me... Uncle Chen."

He couldn't yet bring himself to say the word "Daddy," especially in front of Su Wan.

He knew full well the harm that transaction had caused Su Wan.

"Chen... Jun... Uncle?" Su Xingyao blinked her big eyes and repeated softly, as if savoring the name. Then, a brighter and more brilliant smile bloomed on her little face, and she nodded her head vigorously, "Yes! Uncle Chen! You smell so good! Like... like the feeling of stars when they are sleeping!"

Childish words, yet they seemed to contain a certain unique perception.

The smile on Chen Jun's face became more natural. He reached out his hand, wanting to touch his daughter's head, but hesitated, fearing it would be presumptuous.

However, Su Xingyao took the initiative to lean forward, resting her fluffy little head in the palm of Chen Jun's hand, like a kitten seeking affection, emitting a satisfied purring sound.

Feeling the soft, warm touch in his palm, along with the faint but pure stellar fluctuations, Chen Jun's heart was instantly filled with an indescribable warmth.

Is this... what it feels like to be a father again?!

Although it arrived eight years late, and the process was not pleasant, this connection of Bloodline at this moment was so real and moving.

He gently stroked his daughter's soft hair, his eyes so tender they could almost drip water.

...

Standing to the side, Su Wan took in everything.

Her heart was like a spilled bottle of mixed flavors, complex to the extreme.

Watching the natural closeness between her daughter and Chen Jun, her heart felt as if it were being tightly gripped by an invisible hand—sourness, pain, helplessness, and a hint of... relief that she herself was unwilling to admit?

Eight years!

A full eight years!

That mission, named in the name of "Federation Justice" but actually as cold as a transaction, was like a poisonous thorn, deeply embedded in the bottom of her heart, and it had not been pulled out to this day.

She was a Disciple of Qin Qingxuan and had a natural awe and obedience toward her teacher.

When her teacher ordered her to unite with Chen Jun on the grounds of the Federation's future and the need for greater power to resist the Empire, she went through a fierce internal struggle.

Ethics, dignity, personal feelings... everything was crushed in front of that high-sounding "Justice."

She still remembered that specially arranged room, remembered Chen Jun's numb and aged eyes, remembered her own tearful breakdown after the mission was completed, and... the complex mood mixed with huge humiliation and a hint of inexplicable sense of mission when she confirmed she was pregnant afterward.

For these eight years, she had poured all her energy into her daughter.

Su Xingyao was her only comfort and the meaning of her life!

She carefully taught her, cared for her, and tried to use maternal love to make up for the flaws caused by her way of birth.

She rarely let her daughter come into contact with the outside world, especially... anything about her father.

She didn't know how to explain it to her daughter.

Should she say, your birth was a mission?

For the sake of the Federation?

Your father was a... tool that was used?

She couldn't bring herself to say it...

Therefore, in Su Xingyao's understanding, she only had a mother, not a father.

When asked occasionally, Su Wan could only be vague, saying that her father had gone to a very, very far place.

She had thought it could go on like this forever.

Until... she learned that her teacher, that high and mighty, rational to the point of being cold, Qin Qingxuan, had actually... followed in her footsteps, united with Chen Jun, and also given birth to a child!

This news was like a bolt from the blue, completely shattering the last bit of filter and fantasy about her teacher in Su Wan's heart.

So, in front of the so-called "Federation Justice," could anyone become a bargaining chip?

Even the teacher herself was no exception?

Then what did her sacrifice back then count for?

A kind of anger and sorrow at being deceived and used almost drowned her.

But at the same time, there was a strange sense of balance...

Look, I'm not the only one; even the teacher...

This thought was despicable, but she couldn't control it!

And today, taking her daughter to visit her teacher who had just given birth, despite her extreme internal reluctance, she accidentally ran into Chen Jun.

Looking at Chen Jun's youthful appearance and ruddy complexion, which were like two different people compared to eight years ago, Su Wan knew that this must be the result of the big shots in the Federation piling up massive resources for "sustainable utilization."

A kind of pity for sharing the same illness, mixed with a sigh for his "tool" fate, arose spontaneously.

However, when she saw her daughter actually showing such natural closeness to Chen Jun, Su Wan's mood became even more complex.

That was the power of Bloodline, impossible to sever.

Should she stop it?

What right did she have to stop it?!

Chen Jun was Xingyao's biological father; this was an undeniable fact.

Moreover, looking at Xingyao's satisfied and dependent little appearance in Chen Jun's palm, looking at the heartfelt smile on her face, Su Wan's heart softened again.

Daughter...

Likes this father...

Perhaps?

Is it not a bad thing for a child to have fatherly love? Even if this fatherly love came in such a twisted way?

At least, the look in Chen Jun's eyes when he looked at Xingyao at this moment was truly gentle, not like a pretense.

Various contradictory thoughts clashed fiercely in Su Wan's heart, making her stand there, silent, looking at the father and daughter who were officially meeting for the first time with complex eyes.

...

"Yaoyao, you cannot be impolite." Su Wan finally spoke, her voice somewhat dry, with a hint of imperceptible trembling.

She stepped forward and gently pulled Su Xingyao back to her side, but the movement was not forceful.

Su Xingyao tilted her little face, looked at her mother, then at Chen Jun, and said in a low voice: "Mom, Uncle Chen is a good person, his smell is very nice."

Su Wan felt a pain in her heart, forced out a smile, touched her daughter's head, and did not reply. Instead, she nodded slightly to Chen Jun, her tone distant and polite: "Mr. Chen, you are here too."

Chen Jun stood up, looking at Su Wan's visibly thinner cheeks and the fatigue deep in her eyes, and sighed in his heart as well.

He had always felt a sense of guilt toward Su Wan.

Although it was Qin Qingxuan who forced it initially, it was ultimately he who consumed his lifespan, while Su Wan bore greater psychological trauma and subsequent rumors.

"Ms. Su Wan." Chen Jun also replied politely, at a loss for what to say for a moment.

The atmosphere was somewhat subtly awkward.

Su Xingyao looked at her mom, then at Uncle Chen, sensitively perceiving that the atmosphere was wrong. She held tightly to her mother's hem, stopped talking, and just curiously sized up the two adults with those big eyes.