Lu Wanqing returned to her room, lowered her voice, got into bed softly, and lay down beside the child to sleep.
Lu Wanqing was actually tired. Lying next to Cui Cui, her weary heart felt much more at ease. She closed her eyes and, before long, fell asleep.
Lu Wanqing didn't know that after she fell asleep, Cui Cui slowly opened her eyes and looked at her.
Cui Cui hesitated for a moment, then very carefully snuggled closer to her mother before closing her eyes again.
This time, with her mother by her side, Cui Cui finally fell truly asleep.
When Lu Wanqing and Cui Cui woke up again, the sky outside had completely darkened. Lu Wanqing checked her optical computer and found it was the early hours of the morning.
She felt a little hungry. She turned to look at Cui Cui, who was still asleep.
Lu Wanqing hesitated for a moment, then finally got out of bed very carefully. She took out her personal space button and found a pair of scissors from it.
Lu Wanqing used the optical computer to turn on a small night light. It wasn't too bright, but it was enough to see clearly. She very carefully picked up one of Cui Cui's hands and gently cut off the child's fingernail with the scissors.
If she remembered correctly, fingernails should also be usable for a paternity test.
After finishing, Lu Wanqing carefully put away the scissors and the fingernail. She then looked at little Cui Cui on the bed, feeling a pang of tenderness.
How could her beautiful Cui Cui have such a difficult life? It shouldn't be.
Lu Wanqing thought, then opened her optical computer again to check the latest news from the Federation and the Empire.
However, the optical computer was quiet, with no messages. Her third brother hadn't contacted her.
On the star network, the major platforms were also silent, with no news of the Emperor's return.
Lu Wanqing felt a slight ache in her heart. She couldn't help but turn to look out the window, an uncontrollable sense of worry spreading in her heart.
No matter how worried Lu Wanqing was now, she had no way of knowing the situation on the bug race's side, and Lu Yang also couldn't send her messages from there.
Cui Cui woke up at some point. The child turned on the light and looked at her mommy with sleepy eyes.
"Grrr." Cui Cui's stomach growled first.
Lu Wanqing blinked and immediately turned to look at Cui Cui.
Cui Cui looked a little embarrassed, her small ears turning slightly red.
"Hungry?" Lu Wanqing asked with a smile.
"No," Cui Cui quickly denied.
"Do we have a kitchen? Mommy will make you something delicious," Lu Wanqing said with a smile.
Cui Cui's eyes lit up, and she quickly nodded, "Yes, we do."
Grandpa and Grandma had anticipated that Lu Wanqing might need a kitchen when she came to take care of her, so they had renovated one in the style of ancient Earth.
"Alright, I'll get up and make something delicious!" Lu Wanqing said with a smile.
"Okay," Cui Cui immediately agreed.
So, mother and daughter got out of bed together.
Although it was already nighttime, their moods were excellent. They quickly went to the kitchen and called for the household robot to bring out some of the ingredients they had.
There were no fresh vegetables left. Interstellar delivery was fast, especially for a wealthy family like the Wei family, who wouldn't eat overnight vegetables. It was already midnight, and the vegetables for tomorrow wouldn't arrive until the early morning.
However, not having fresh vegetables didn't mean they couldn't order some now.
The Wei family's old residence was in the capital of the Federation. As long as they paid extra and chose the special service, the vegetables they ordered would be delivered within half an hour.
Lu Wanqing opened her optical computer and quickly placed several orders on the star network, adding some money and selecting the express delivery mode, so that the ingredients would be delivered as quickly as possible.
After doing this, Lu Wanqing didn't sit idly by. They still had some ingredients at home, like flour. She could start with that. By the time the other ingredients arrived, her dough would be ready.
Lu Wanqing thought, then poured out the flour and began to knead the dough.
Little Cui Cui also didn't sit idle. Her hands were small, but she took a small portion of flour and kneaded it along with her mother.
Lu Wanqing glanced at Cui Cui and felt that the child was exceptionally well-behaved.
They finished kneading the dough together and then put it into the constant temperature fermentation box to wait for it to rise.
"Are you tired?" After putting the dough into the stable fermentation box, Lu Wanqing turned to ask Cui Cui.
Cui Cui shook her head, "Not tired."
Lu Wanqing smiled.
"Do you want to look at the stars, Cui Cui?" Lu Wanqing asked, thinking for a moment.
Cui Cui hesitated, then nodded, "Yes."
Mother and daughter left the kitchen together. Lu Wanqing took out two lounge chairs and set them up in the yard.
"Let's sit on the lounge chairs and wait for the ingredients to arrive," Lu Wanqing said.
"Okay," Cui Cui agreed.
Mother and daughter lay on the lounge chairs. After a while, Cui Cui suddenly turned her head and looked at her mommy.
Lu Wanqing noticed Cui Cui's gaze and looked at the child.
Cui Cui spoke, her voice muffled, "Mommy, when the test results come out, can you tell me?"
Lu Wanqing was stunned. Then, she belatedly realized that Cui Cui must have known when she secretly cut her nails earlier. Cui Cui even knew that she was doing this to get a paternity test done.
"Cui Cui," Lu Wanqing hesitated and spoke cautiously.
Cui Cui blinked, saying nothing.
Lu Wanqing thought for a moment, then carefully asked, "Mommy means, just... what if... what if you and Wei Xingzhou are not biologically father and daughter, would you be sad?"
Cui Cui pursed her lips, saying nothing.
Lu Wanqing sighed softly. She walked over, gently took Cui Cui's hand, and said, "Cui Cui, no matter what the results are, you will always be Mommy and Daddy's daughter. Wei Xingzhou won't treat you badly just because you're not related by blood, and neither will Mommy. You will always be our treasure."
Cui Cui looked at her intently. After a long while, the child asked, "Did Daddy tell you all this?"
Lu Wanqing nodded, "Yes."
Lu Wanqing thought for a moment and decided to tell Cui Cui everything Wei Xingzhou had told her in the study before.
Cui Cui was a very intelligent child. More importantly, her emotions were very sensitive. Any lie would eventually be exposed. If the child discovered that both her father and mother were deceiving her, she would be even more upset and might even overthink things.
"Cui Cui, Daddy is doing this only because he doesn't want you to be sad. And in Daddy's heart, you will always be his treasure. Whether you are related by blood or not, he will always love you and treat you as his most beloved daughter," Lu Wanqing said earnestly, holding the child's hand.
"Really?" Cui Cui asked nervously, her slight hesitation revealing her inner unease.
Lu Wanqing gently stroked the child's cheek and said, "Cui Cui, don't you believe Daddy?"
Don't believe him?
Cui Cui thought for a moment, then shook her head, "I believe him."
She could disbelieve anyone in the world, but Cui Cui believed her Daddy because Daddy was the best person to her in the entire world.
"So, Cui Cui, you must believe Daddy's words. Whether you are related by blood or not isn't that important. As long as in your hearts, you are still the best father and daughter in the world, just like before," Lu Wanqing said.