"Son, are you busy?"
"Not too busy. I can talk," Jin Liwei replied. "Is there something you need to speak with me about, Mother?"
His mother hesitated before saying, "Yes."
"What is it?"
Silence.
He sighed. "If it's about the Fans, I won't change my mind. Mother, I know that you're close to them and that our family will become in-laws through Chonglin, but these alone don't give them automatic access to Jin Corporation. I'm the head of the company, so I know that they're not compatible with Jin Corporation. Mother, please stop—"
"Son, I didn't call to talk about the Fans. Even though your decision makes me sad, I trust in your judgment. I don't understand business, so I can't tell you how to run the company."
He felt relieved. "So why did you call, Mother?"
His mother paused again. "Son…"
"Hm?"
Jin Liwei froze, confused. "Mother, what are you saying?"
"Please tell me the truth. Did you father a child?" She sounded upset.
"What child?" Jin Liwei couldn't believe what he was hearing.
He didn't know from where his mother got this ridiculous idea from. He and his baby girl hadn't gone all the way yet, so he knew that she wasn't pregnant. Well, they had Ice Cream and Popcorn but he didn't think his mother would be this distressed for kittens.
"Don't lie to me! Jin Liwei, I know that you're a successful businessman but you're still my son! Why are you hiding my grandchild?! Is it because he or she is illegitimate?! I don't care about that! Your grandmother and I will surely love any child of yours! This is the first time that I feel very disappointed of you! How can you hide your own child from us?! Where's my grandchild?! I want to meet my grandchild!"
He felt utterly confused. What grandchild? "Mother, I don't know what you're talking about. I don't have a child. I have two kittens and I consider them my kids. Are you talking about them?"
"Son, I'm serious! What kittens?! Don't joke around! I'm talking about a human child! Why are you lying to your own mother?! Let me see my grandchild!"
He closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths to calm himself down. He didn't understand what was going on. He was starting to feel annoyed. "Mother, I really am not lying. I didn't father any human child. Where did you hear this from?"
A few seconds of silence.
"Yes."
"You're not lying? You really don't have a child?"
"I'm not lying. I already told you I don't have a child, only kittens."
"Then why did you instruct your butler to buy all those baby clothes, toys, and other baby things? And they're for a one-year-old! I also heard that you're not staying at your house anymore, that you've been living with a girlfriend! Tell me, am I not supposed to think that you have a secret family after hearing all of these?"
Jin Liwei rubbed his temple and sighed. Ah, so it seemed that his mother had a spy in his household. He knew that his butler was loyal and trustworthy. His butler only answered to him and wouldn't betray Jin Liwei's trust even to his mother. He had various suspects in mind, including one of the older maids or the laundress or perhaps even his gardener. These people came from the old house before they transferred to his employment when he bought his Dragon Palace property.
"Mother, yes, it's true that I'm currently living with my girlfriend but we don't have any children yet. I plan to marry her first before getting her pregnant."
He heard his mother gasp.
"M-marry? Really? Who's your girlfriend? Why haven't you introduced her to us yet?! Son, I know that you like doing your own thing and I respect that. But for important things like these, you should tell me. Don't forget that I'm your mother! I have the right to know these things!"
"I'm already planning to introduce her to you and grandmother, but we have to meet with her family first."
He heard whimpering noises.
"Mother? Are you crying?"
"Of course I am! I'm so happy that you finally have a girlfriend. To be honest, both your grandmother and I have been so worried that you're gay. Not that we're against it. We love you even if you're really gay. It's just that we want you to father a child naturally with a wife, you know."
He rubbed his temples once again.
'Why does everyone think I'm gay? I don't understand.'
"So tell me about your girlfriend, son. Who is she? What's her name? What is she like? How did you meet? Is she beautiful?"
"You'll know who she is and what she's like when you meet her in person. And yes, she's beautiful."
"You seem to really like her. You're even living with her."
"Mother, I love her. I want to marry her and build a family with her. I want her to be the mother of my children. She's the only woman for me."
"You'll meet her soon. She's currently busy with her work, but I already told her I want to introduce her to you. She already agreed, so we're just waiting for when she's free. But like I said, we're going to meet her family first before you and grandmother."
"I understand, son." Her voice finally sounded excited. "So what about the baby clothes? Who are they for?"
"For my godson. My girlfriend and I became the godparents of her nephew. He's one-year-old and the son of my girlfriend's older brother," he explained.
"I see. I understand now. So that's how it is." His mother sighed. "I was so shocked when I first heard about it. I really thought that you're hiding a grandchild from me. I felt so excited and upset at the same time. I didn't tell your grandmother because knowing her, she would've already investigated everything. You know what she's like. I didn't want that to happen because I know you wouldn't like it. Besides, I wanted to know the truth from your own mouth and not from a detective."
"En. Thank you, Mother."
Afterwards, the mother and son talked about other things. It was mostly her fretting about him, making sure that he was living healthy. Then as if she couldn't help herself, she brought up the Fans.
"I don't know what the Fans did wrong, but son, can you please be a little more lenient with them? They're really suffering right now because others are making fun of them, saying that we threw them aside. I feel so sorry for Little Luo Luo. She's been crying to me—"
"Mother, please. My decision is final." He gritted his teeth and said, "If Chonglin really wants her as his wife, then it's his freedom to do so. But I see no reason why Jin Corporation should be involved in the marriage. Yes, the company is a family business but please remember that we Jins are not the only ones who have a claim to it. Grandpa Lu is back in the country and as far as I know, he doesn't even know who the Fans are."
His mother sighed. "I know. I don't intend to interfere with the business. I just feel so sorry for the Fans, especially for Little Luo Luo."
Jin Liwei leaned back on his chair, feeling like he just climbed up a mountain and back. However, he also felt like a weight was lifted from his shoulders. Now his mother knew about his girlfriend. He couldn't wait to introduce his Xiulan to his mother and grandmother. He felt nervous and excited at the same time.
As for the Fans, he felt displeased that his mother continued to defend them. He needed to be very careful when dealing with them. It wouldn't be so easy to cut them off without triggering huge emotional bombs.
Jin Liwei decided that he needed to find the time to speak to his younger brother, Jin Chonglin.