1.4

Aunt Zhang had been hired when Su Mo and Yin Yin got married and had witnessed Dudu's birth. She saw Dudu as her own grandson, treating him with the same care and affection. Despite her own grandson living far away, she doted on Dudu as if he were her own.

Dudu, being both good-looking and well-behaved, often stirred a protective affection in her. However, his gentle demeanor made her heart ache even more. Su Mo, who had once been joyful, now rarely smiled, spending his days at home while waiting for his wife to return. Aunt Zhang felt the weight of this change deeply, loving Dudu as her grandson and Su Mo as her son. She could only hope that Yin Yin would spend more time with them this time.

<<<<<

In the teacher's office, several parents were expressing their frustrations loudly.

"Look, my son has a huge bump on his head. It must be so painful."

"My child has been crying non-stop, his arm is broken."

"He just wanted to play with building blocks. Why was he so cruel? He's only three and he's already so vicious. If he pushes people now, what will he do in the future?"

Amid the commotion, a small boy in denim overalls stood silently. He was shorter and obviously younger than the other children. His curly hair was disheveled, and his clothes were dirty, as if he had been rolling in the sand.

The boy remained quiet, his head bowed, while the parents directed their anger at him with harsh words and accusations.

As Su Mo entered the office, his heart ached at the scene before him. He rushed over and called out, "Dudu."

The little boy finally reacted to the sound of his father's voice. He slowly turned around, revealing a dirty face streaked with tears. Seeing Su Mo, his previously stubborn expression softened into one of distress. He cried out, "Dad."

Su Mo enveloped Dudu in a comforting embrace. "Don't be afraid, Dad's here. It's going to be okay."

Dudu clung tightly to Su Mo, burying his face in his father's arms. The comforting presence was a relief for him.

As Su Mo reassured his son, the room fell into a stunned silence. The parents hadn't expected Su Mo, who was remarkably young and handsome, to be Dudu's father. They were accustomed to seeing the mother handle such matters.

Eventually, one of the parents spoke up. "Mr. Su, it's good you're here. We need to discuss your son's behavior."

Su Mo looked at the other children, noting their defiant expressions. They were clearly older than Dudu and seemed to be the ones provoking him.

Without addressing the parents, Su Mo turned to the teacher. "Can you please explain what happened?"

The teacher, momentarily distracted by Su Mo's striking appearance, composed herself and recounted the events.

"…Since Su Yuanjin hasn't said much, I gathered the information from Lin Hao and his classmates."

According to Lin Hao and his friends, during gym class, they wanted to play with building blocks, but Su Yuanjin took all the blocks. When they tried to retrieve them, Su Yuanjin beat them and pushed Lin Hao down.

The implication was that all the blame was being placed on Su Yuanjin.

Su Mo listened with a neutral expression. He knew his son well; Dudu was not the type to initiate violence. Though he was reserved, he was generally gentle, except when provoked. The other children must have done something to cross a line with Dudu, making him react in anger.

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"I don't know where the building blocks the teacher mentioned are. May I take a look?"

"Certainly," the teacher responded, promptly bringing out the pile of blocks.

Su Mo's lips curled into a faint, sardonic smile as he looked at the familiar blocks. He addressed the children, "So, you say Su Yuanjin stole these blocks?"

Lin Hao and his friends seemed intimidated by Su Mo, but bolstered by their mothers' presence, they regained their courage. "Yes, he took them."

Su Mo's tone grew cold as he replied, "These blocks originally belonged to Yuanjin. Why would he need to steal them? It seems to me that the ones who really wanted them were you."

Lin Hao and his friends shifted uncomfortably, feeling guilty. "Impossible. These blocks belong to the kindergarten. How could they be Su Yuanjin's?"

Su Mo continued, "The kindergarten doesn't have a rule against bringing your own toys. And…" He turned to the teacher. "Could you please examine the largest block?"

The teacher picked up the largest block, noticing the name "Su Yuanjin" clearly written on one corner.

"I wrote that name myself. I labeled all of Yuanjin's toys. If you're still not convinced, you can call the person in charge of purchasing the toys for the kindergarten to verify. I also have the invoice for the purchase. I can have it sent to you if needed."

Su Mo's words effectively closed off any arguments. His evidence clearly showed that the blocks belonged to Su Yuanjin, making it unnecessary for him to lie.

Lin Hao and his friends were left speechless. Some parents, feeling a bit embarrassed, still clung to their grievances. "Even if it wasn't the blocks, my son was still injured."

"And Yuanjin is also injured," Su Mo said, gently opening Dudu's small hands to reveal scratches and bleeding from what looked like sand burns.

Suppressing his own anguish, Su Mo declared coldly, "I believe the kindergarten must have surveillance cameras. Let's review the footage. If it shows that Yuanjin provoked the others, I'll have him apologize and cover the medical expenses. If it's the other way around, then you know what should be done."

The parents looked at their children, who were now avoiding eye contact, and began to question their earlier certainty. They agreed to watch the surveillance footage.

Just as everyone was about to head to the monitoring room, Su Yuanjin, who had been silently clinging to Su Mo, suddenly spoke.

"Don't watch it," Su Yuanjin said.

Su Mo asked gently, "Why not? I want to clear up this misunderstanding. Dudu is not the type to hit others without reason."

Solemnly, Su Yuanjin looked up at Su Mo with tearful eyes. Su Mo felt a pang of empathy and was about to forgo viewing the footage when Su Yuanjin buried his head back in his father's arms.

Reluctantly, the group proceeded to the monitoring room and retrieved the surveillance footage.

As the footage began to play, showing the initial conflict, the room fell into silence.

Su Mo's hands clenched tightly. He was shocked to see that Dudu had fought with the other children after they had taunted him for not having a mother. No wonder Yuanjin had wanted to avoid the footage.

Seeing the child in the video, eyes red and expression resolute, Su Mo's heart ached.

The other parents also watched in stunned silence, their faces reflecting their growing concern. While they were still worried about their children, they couldn't justify the hurtful words their children had used.

"How can you say such things?" one of the parents demanded angrily.

The child, feeling the sting of his mother's reprimand, retorted, "Su Yuanjin doesn't have a mother."

"Who said Su Yuanjin doesn't have a mother?" A clear, icy voice cut through the tension, coming from the doorway.

(End of this chapter)