The Male Protagonist’s Daughter

Shen Qingruo walked out from the toilet. When she saw her son sitting near the door, she curiously asked, “What are you doing?”

Shen Yan wasn’t willing to explain himself. He unwillingly answered, “There’s something happening.”

Shen Qingruo always felt a sense of respect towards her son. When she noticed that he wasn’t willing to answer her, she decided not to further pressure him for an answer. She gently said, “Then, mommy will go watch TV now. When you’re done, remember to go take a bath and sleep. You need to wake up early for school tomorrow.”

“Mn.” Shen Yan answered, he wasn’t in a good mood.

After Song Wanqing had left, Luo Tianyuan stayed downstairs and had a cigarette.

He used to smoke when he was younger, however, after Xiyue accidentally got pregnant, he stopped smoking. After his daughter was born, he also didn’t touch alcohol and cigarettes, and he only smoked a cigarette or two when he felt frustrated. He always made sure to do it away from his daughter.

He didn’t feel as annoyed after he’d smoked, and he only went back to his apartment when the cigarette smell was gone.

Shen Yan sat near the door for a while. On multiple occasions, he thought Uncle Luo was back based on the sound of footsteps. However, each time he peeped outside his house, he saw his other neighbors instead. He wasn’t sure… ‘Did Uncle Luo really leave Luo Shuyan alone at home and gone to the movies?’ Just then, he heard footsteps again. He promptly plastered his ears against the wall and listened for a moment. He heard the sound of jingling keys.

He immediately opened the door and saw Luo Tianyuan entering his house.

Actually, this had nothing to do with him, yet, this reassurance allowed him to let out a sigh of relief.

Shen Yan and Luo Shuyan were in similar situations. One was living with his mother, and had never seen his father; whereas one was living with her father, and had never met her mother. At this moment, Shen Yan wasn’t sure if his actions were fueled by concern over Shen Yan, or if he was trying to find an answer to a question — Whether a child in a single parent family could be easily thrown aside and forgotten.

–

Luo Shuyan wasn’t in such a miserable state as Shen Yan had imagined. She was in deep slumber, and when she woke up in the middle of the night for some water, she immediately saw her father sleeping at her doorstep again.

The creaking door caused Luo Tianyuan to wake up.

Luo Tianyuan looked at his daughter and hurriedly asked, “Are you not feeling well? Are you hungry or thirsty?”

Luo Shuyan’s heart clenched. She felt like time had turned back to when she was a young child. Back then, she always had fevers, and her father would look after her the entire night.

“I’m thirsty.”

Luo Tianyuan fumbled and clumsily stood up. “Great. Papa will get some water for you. It’s been cold lately, so you’ll be having warm water.”

Right after, he went to the kitchen, with Luo Shuyan following suit.

Luo Tianyuan wasn’t inherently a very detail-oriented person. However, over the years where he’d taken care of his daughter alone, he’s become more attentive towards his daughter’s needs. He mixed the boiled water with room temperature water to make warm water. He passed it to his daughter and said, “Sip it slowly. Careful, don’t choke.”

Luo Shuyan’s throat felt much better after she’d drank half a cup.

She felt more alert after she’d had a cup of water in the middle of the night.

Luo Tianyuan realized that his daughter couldn’t fall asleep right away, so he brought her to the sofa for a little chat. Plus, if she didn’t mind, he was willing to make her a warm bowl of noodles for her.

Luo Shuyan was reminded of the dream that she had.

In the back of her mind, she knew that the dream was real. In her dreams, her father became a powerful man, and she died in an accident for unknown reasons.

Death didn’t seem far from her. Everyone thought that she couldn’t comprehend the concept of death, but she could remember the happenings before her grandparents passed, so she knew about death from a young age.

Luo Tianyun noticed that his daughter was looking down. So, he asked, “Is there something on your mind?”

Luo Shuyan nodded and mustered the courage to ask, “Papa, what will happen if I die?”

A question like this…

Luo Tianyuan was taken aback. By the time he came back to his senses, he smiled and said, “What is going on in that little brain of yours.”

Luo Shuyan smiled wryly. “Papa, I’m scared.”

Luo Tianyuan thought that she had been traumatized by the suicide incident. After all, it wasn’t a surprise for a child to have PTSD after witnessing suicide. He thought about it for a moment and decided to calmly explain, “Don’t be scared, everyone will go through life and death, just like grandma and grandpa. In the future, Papa will die too. But, you don’t need to worry because if you go to heaven, Papa will follow right along with you.”

Luo Tianyuan’s intention was to let Luo Shuyan know that he was definitely going to die first.

‘You won’t be scared if Papa were with you in heaven; you won’t be alone.’

Luo Shuyan totally misunderstood and hurriedly corrected him. She waved her hand and frantically shook her head, “That’s not it, Papa, even if I’m not around, you must continue to live!”

“… That won’t happen. Papa is so much older than you, I’m bound to die earlier than you,” Luo Tianyuan explained.

“No, no, Papa, you must promise me that you’ll continue to live happily even if I’m not round!”

What was happening?

Luo Tianyuan had a headache. He couldn’t comprehend what was going on in his daughter’s head. Usually, he would’ve sat her down and given her a talk, however, since it was already 1 in the morning, his daughter would only become even more energized if they were to continue talking about this. She would fall ill if she didn’t have a good rest.

Thus, he waved a white flag and painstakingly surrendered, “Alright, alright.”

Children had such a weird way of thinking!

Luo Shuyan wasn’t willing to let it go. She reached for her father with her chubby hands and wholeheartedly said, “Papa, pinky promise? You can’t go back on your word.”

“…” Luo Tianyuan was speechless.

— No going back on a pinky promise. Papa, you’ve agreed to my request. Even if I were to die like in my dreams, you must live a happy life for me.