Cui Cui nodded, "Mm!"
Lu Wanqing smiled and reached out to stroke the child's dark, long hair.
Cui Cui's hair was very black, very thick, very long, and very beautiful.
After watching for a while, Lu Wanqing finally picked up the comb and carefully smoothed the child's hair, then began to braid small pigtails on both sides of her temples.
The hairstyle was not complicated, but Cui Cui was very beautiful. With this hairstyle, her temperament instantly shone through.
"All done," Lu Wanqing said with a smile, holding the child's shoulders and lowering her head to look at the child in the mirror. "Cui Cui, what do you think?"
"Beautiful!" Cui Cui exclaimed.
Lu Wanqing's eyes curved, and she couldn't help but open the wardrobe. After a selection, she finally chose a white fairy dress.
"How about wearing this dress today?" Lu Wanqing asked.
"Does Mommy like white?" Cui Cui asked.
Lu Wanqing laughed, "I just think Cui Cui would look incredibly, extraordinarily beautiful in this dress, the super stunning kind!"
"Okay," Cui Cui agreed with a smile.
Lu Wanqing handed the dress to Cui Cui.
Cui Cui took the clothes and quickly went to the fitting room to change.
When Cui Cui came out, she was still a little shy. Lu Wanqing's eyes, however, lit up. How beautiful!
Lu Wanqing's astonishment was too obvious. Even without any words of praise, Cui Cui knew she looked beautiful now.
Cui Cui pursed her lips, feeling a little happy.
"Very beautiful!" Lu Wanqing finally spoke the truth.
"Mm," Cui Cui nodded.
Lu Wanqing also needed to get ready. Thinking of her child, she suddenly thought of matching outfits.
Sometimes, an idea would strike, and she would want to act on it. Lu Wanqing did just that. She sat in front of the mirror and began to style her hair the same way as Cui Cui's, then took out a similar white long dress from her spatial storage and put it on.
"Mommy, we're dressed alike!" Cui Cui said happily after seeing her mother's attire.
"Yes, can this be considered a parent-child outfit?" Lu Wanqing said with a smile.
"Yes!" Cui Cui immediately replied happily.
"Mommy, can we take a photo together?" Cui Cui asked again.
Lu Wanqing was surprised, then quickly nodded, "Of course."
So, Lu Wanqing and Cui Cui took photos and recorded videos, creating precious memories before they stopped.
With the video recorded, it was time to prepare breakfast.
However, upon reaching the kitchen downstairs, Lu Wanqing discovered that Wei Xingzhou was already there, and the kitchen was filled with a rich aroma.
Lu Wanqing's mood was undeniably good because Wei Xingzhou was genuinely good to Cui Cui.
"Shrimp dumplings," Wei Xingzhou said.
After speaking, Wei Xingzhou saw Cui Cui and added, "Cui Cui's favorite."
Cui Cui pursed her lips, happy.
Lu Wanqing was also happy.
Wei Xingzhou had already done most of the work. The wrapped shrimp dumplings were cooked for a few more minutes and were ready.
Lu Wanqing took out a large bowl and scooped the shrimp dumplings from the pot.
The housekeeping robot came over and took the shrimp dumplings away.
The rest of the Wei family had also woken up: Wei Xingzhou's parents and Sisi with her mother.
The moment Sisi and her mother appeared, Lu Wanqing's heart sank. She lowered her eyes to Cui Cui and noticed that the smile on Cui Cui's face had unconsciously disappeared.
Breakfast that morning was unusually quiet, with no one speaking.
It wasn't until after breakfast that Wei Xingzhou spoke, saying, "Dad, Mom, Cui Cui still needs to go to school. If there's nothing else here, Cui Cui and I will head back this afternoon."
As soon as Wei Xingzhou said this, Wei Liang's expression changed slightly, and he quickly looked at Sisi and her mother.
Sisi, who was also only eight years old, was nervous. "Daddy..."
Wei Xingzhou looked at the girl. His hand, resting by his side, twitched, but he didn't know what to say.
"Zhouzhou, what about Sisi?" Wei Xingzhou's mother asked tentatively.
"Why don't we let Sisi go there to study too? You are her biological father, and according to federal law, you have an obligation to support her," Wei Xingzhou's mother said.
Lu Wanqing: "..."
There was no way to refuse this, nor should she. According to interstellar juvenile law, this was the regulation. Otherwise, irresponsible parents would be arrested and jailed. When Lu Wanqing first woke up, the scientists had explained similar laws to her, which was why she had visited each of her children in rotation. But she hadn't expected something like this to happen to Wei Xingzhou.
"Perhaps it's best to just go along with it," Lu Wanqing said hesitantly.
Cui Cui loved her father so much, and Wei Xingzhou treated Cui Cui the best. She believed no one would want to see Wei Xingzhou end up in prison for failing to fulfill his parental obligations. That would only make Cui Cui more distressed and wouldn't benefit Wei Xingzhou at all.
Wei Xingzhou looked at Cui Cui.
Cui Cui also glanced at her mother, then at her father, and finally at Sisi.
"Mm." After a long silence, Cui Cui nodded.
Cui Cui disliked Sisi, this girl who had suddenly appeared and was possibly her father's biological daughter. She really disliked her. But Cui Cui, who had waited for her mother for so many years, was also well aware of the interstellar laws protecting minors. She knew that if her father refused to take care of Sisi, he would be arrested and jailed. She couldn't let that happen.
Since Cui Cui had agreed, there was nothing more to say. The matter was decided.
In the afternoon, everyone packed their belongings and left the imperial capital for the Ancient Earth Film City.
It was also on the spaceship that Lu Wanqing learned the names of the child and her mother: the child was named Zhang Sisi, and the mother was Zhang Qiong.
However, Lu Wanqing only knew their names. She didn't have much interaction with Zhang Qiong and Zhang Sisi. Lu Wanqing didn't want to upset Cui Cui.
The spaceship traveled for several days before reaching the Ancient Earth Film City. As they disembarked, Lu Wanqing's light brain vibrated. She had received a message from the Empire.
Earlier, she had secretly cut Cui Cui's and Wei Xingzhou's nails and sent them via express delivery to Xavier, who was in the Empire, to have them tested.
She was afraid of tampering in the Federation, as the Wei family controlled genetics. If the person behind the scheme could deceive even Wei Xingzhou's parents, any test in the Federation would be unreliable. The only place she could trust for testing was the Empire.
As it was an international delivery, it took a long time for the nails to reach their destination, so the test results had only just arrived.
But after reading the test results, Lu Wanqing's heart sank.
Cui Cui... was indeed not Wei Xingzhou's daughter.
Lu Wanqing looked at the message from Xavier. After a moment of silence, she quietly closed her light brain, not wanting to see it anymore.
She couldn't quite understand it. The Wei family was most skilled in gene editing. Wei Xingzhou, who had used gene cultivation for his child, should have had the fewest problems. Yet, among these fathers, it was Wei Xingzhou who had encountered an issue.
However...
There was also a possibility.
It was precisely because the Wei family was in this line of work that it would be easier for someone within the family to tamper with things.