President Yue

Li Chen froze. A strange emotion flickered in his eyes as he slowly lifted his head and looked at his daughter.

"What did you call me?" He dazedly asked.

"Huh?" Qing Yue blinked, her mind turning blank.

What did she call him? Did she call him something strange?

Her brows furrowed as she went over her words.

She was certain she hadn't said anything wrong or weird other than...Ah...Dad?

Her eyes widened and she gaped.

She called him Dad...

Was that what he meant by what she'd called him? Did he not like the address?

She shivered and lowered her head again, not daring to lift her gaze lest she saw displeasure in her Dad's eyes.

"Qing Yue, what did you call me?" Li Chen's voice turned colder, his violet pupils fixed on the mane of black as he waited with great patience.

Qing Yue, sensing his burning gaze, felt her heart flutter like a baby bird. The little thing was close to exploding from the extreme pressure and anxiety placed upon it from the tense atmosphere.

'Qing Yue, calm down. It might not be as bad as you think. Maybe...maybe Dad just wants...' Nope! She had no idea what her Dad wanted. Maybe he hated the address and would severely reprimand her? Scold her?

Well, that would be a first.

Her shoulders sunk and a bitter smile appeared on her face. The cracked relationship between her and her Dad was the biggest thorn in her heart.

Li Chen's face fell. His daughter couldn't even call him Dad?

He remembered there was a time in the past, a time when she trailed behind him and cried Dad every few heartbeats.

A time when she would come running to him whenever he returned from work.

So what went wrong? What went wrong for her to stop calling him Dad?

"Forget it if it's too difficult to say." Cold aura radiating off his body, Li Chen focused back on his meal with a gloomy expression.

As he placed a piece of meat in his mouth, the food tasted bland and stale on his tongue.

Qing Yue felt puzzled. For some reason, when she heard her father's voice, her heart ached.

Did she hurt him?

"Da...Dad?"

Her voice was barely above a whisper, more meant for her own ears than his. And yet, Li Chen heard it loud and clear, as if it was a clap of thunder.

Lifting his head in astonishment, his gaze collided with the bright, hesitant eyes of his daughter.

His heart plunged.

When was the last time he looked his daughter in the eyes?

"Hmm...Yei Yi can attend. But your uncles are coming to see you, so tell her to keep her presence minimal. And in the future...you can call me Dad." Li Chen's expression was still cold, but the cold aura radiating from his body had drastically decreased.

Qing Yue on the other hand was shocked silly by her Dad's words.

He...he said I can call him...Dad?

She felt she must be hearing things and scrutinized her Dad's expressionless face.

Yep...she was now hallucinating during the day as well...

With a wretched smile on her face, she lowered her head and continued eating her Lotus Porridge.

Yei Yi huddled on her couch and looked at the two individuals eating in companionable silence with an envious expression.

Their conversation hadn't escaped her ears, and Li Chen's words made her feel lost and lonely.

Dad...?

She looked at the book in her hands in a daze.

Uncle Li allowed me to attend until when Qing Yue spoke.

My existence is as insignificant as an ant's...

A slight breeze blew through the slightly ajar window and made her shiver. Returning to her senses, Yei Yi threw off the blanket and got off the couch, heading directly back to her room.

The peaceful atmosphere was too suffocating and stifling.

Qing Yue finished her porridge and sat down her spoon. Her appetite was small but she still needed to eat more than a bowl of porridge to stay up all night and complete her work.

She lifted her gaze and saw her Dad still eating.

Since I can't leave until Dad's finished, I'll have something else.

Looking at the spread of dishes, she decided to add a fish and vegetable dish to her meal of white rice. They were the closest and looked delicious enough. She scooped the dishes on a clean tray and managing not to spill any, continued her silent meal.

After about half an hour, the jarring scrape of a chair against the marble floor rang out, and Li Chen got out of his seat. He wiped his hands and picked up his digital pen, the WebCom connection set on standby still on display.

Glancing at his daughter, looked at her half-eaten meal with a frown and turned to leave.

"Remember to sleep early. Your uncles will arrive early in the morning." The words drifted back in the dining hall just as his figure disappeared up the spiral stairs.

"Yes, Father." In the empty hall, her timid voice was the only sound.

Qing Yue sighed, her shoulders sagging in relief.

At least the meal concluded peacefully.

Pushing back her chair, Qing Yue followed her Dad's actions and wiped her hands. Then she sat the handkerchief aside and walked around the chair.

Qing Yue called into the kitchen as she passed.

"Aunt Li, we're done!"

"Thank you, dear. I'll take care of it in a bit."

Climbing the spiral stairs, she thought over tasks she had to complete.

Qing Yue entered her room and locked her door. She walked past her bed to her worktable and sat.

Her WebCom purple watch and purple shades, designed to match her eyes like her hover, were in the center of the table.

When at home she preferred to work on her WebCom shades rather than her watch. Her designs and drafts came out better when she worked in the isolated virtual dimension. She picked up the shades, powered the device with her fingerprint, and put them on.

"President Yue, welcome back." The device greeted in its usual robotic tone.

"Thank you, Li Su. Please connect me with President Tian."

"Yes, President Yue."

As the device came on, Qing Yue's surroundings disappeared and her conscious entered the virtual world of the WebCom, her designs and crafts for YueTian Group's new sale launch swirling around her illusionary figure.