28

"Mom, I miss Dad."

Zhong Wan was lying on the outermost edge of the bed. Just as she finished telling the three children a story and was about to say goodnight, Mu Mu blurted out this sentence, and then Cai Cai and Xiao He followed suit and said they missed their dad.

"Dad will be back tomorrow, so you should all go to sleep. Dad is sleeping too, you can't see him now."

Mumu: "When we wake up, will we be able to see Daddy?"

"Hmm—I'm afraid that won't work yet. Dad said we'll be home for dinner tomorrow night."

Zhong Wan patted her little bottom as she lifted it up, "Mommy will make dinner tomorrow, are you excited?"

These past few days, Chu Qinghuai has been away from home, and she has been taking care of three children by herself. Inevitably, she has had to make do with a few meals. Seeing that the children's faces have become thinner, she said with a little guilt, "Mom will cook more meat for you tomorrow."

"Cai Cai wants to eat chicken legs."

Cai Cai didn't hear anything else, he just focused on the word "meat" because it's his favorite food, and just thinking about it makes his mouth water.

"You want to eat chicken drumsticks? Okay, Mom will buy some tomorrow."

Zhong Wan patted him, tucked the blankets around the three of them, and said, "Go to sleep now, goodnight, babies."

"An'an~"

"..."

The moonlight cast a silvery glow on the windowsill.

Zhong Wan opened her phone and left her chat with Chu Qinghuai. He hadn't replied for five or six hours, and she couldn't help but worry, so she sent another message: 【Are you asleep yet?】

【not yet. 】

Chu Qinghuai replied instantly, but then there was no further communication.

Zhong Wan waited for two minutes but still didn't receive any useful information. Her patience wore thin, so she simply ignored it, put down her phone, and went to do something else.

With all three children fast asleep in bed, she changed into her pajamas and reached out to touch Xiao He's forehead. It was no longer hot, and only then did she truly feel relieved.

Only a small nightlight was left on in the bedroom. As soon as Zhong Wan climbed into bed, her phone screen lit up again. She leaned over to look and saw that it was a message from Chu Qinghuai.

Zhong Wan was a little dissatisfied. Why was he not sleeping so late at night? And why hadn't he replied to her for so long?

【I'm home now. 】

Upon seeing the message, she froze on the spot, her hand pausing slightly. Only after realizing what was happening did she put on her slippers and walk out. Because she opened the door too forcefully, she accidentally made a noise. Her gaze guiltily fell on the bed, and finally she carefully retreated.

The living room was empty. Zhong Wan held her breath and peeked out through the peephole. A familiar figure stood quietly at the door, so she opened the door with confidence.

"Why are you back at this hour? Weren't you supposed to arrive tomorrow?"

Zhong Wan told the man to come in quickly, and went to the kitchen to pour herself a cup of hot water.

Chu Qinghuai put his luggage down, changed his shoes and clothes, and replied, "I'll come back after I finish dealing with everything today. There's a cheap high-speed train ticket tonight."

Zhong Wan knew he was trying to save money again, and couldn't help but feel sorry for him: "I was wondering why you weren't replying to my messages. You must be exhausted."

She turned on all the lights in the kitchen and living room, so she could see Chu Qinghuai's face clearly.

He was the same; his face had become noticeably smaller after being away for a few days, and it was obvious he hadn't been eating properly.

Just as Zhong Wan was about to say a few words of reproach, Chu Qinghuai spoke up to inquire about the three children: "Are the babies asleep? How is Xiaohe? I saw your message, but I was signing contracts and didn't have time to reply."

Zhong Wan sat opposite him and told him about the strange things that happened that afternoon. "She only had a fever for a short while, and I didn't give her any medicine. She was fine after a nap."

Chu Qinghuai frowned: "So why did this happen? Are Mumu and Caicai alright?"

"I don't know either, but it must be related to the environment in which the spirits grew up. Mumu and Caicai can eat and drink well, and so far we haven't found anything unusual."

"I'll ask Officer Chen tomorrow and have him inquire about it."

And that Eagle Brother we met before, maybe he has some clues too, but unfortunately Chu Qinghuai doesn't have his contact information, so he has to go through Officer Chen to make connections first.

"Don't send them to the noodle shop this week. I'll take them. It wouldn't be good if they were caught at the noodle shop."

His expression was complex, and a heavy worry showed on his tired brow, fearing that something might happen to the children.

The couple didn't have time for pleasantries, chatting about their child for almost half an hour. Looking into each other's tired eyes, Zhong Wan suddenly stood up, almost forgetting to ask, "Have you eaten? I'll make you some noodles?"

He waved his hand: "No need, I already ate on the way here. I'm going to take a shower, you go to sleep first."

The two went back to their room together.

However, Zhong Wan was far from being able to sleep, and quietly sat on the bed playing on her phone while waiting for him.

The railing wasn't pulled up, and the little ones on the bed were restless. Xiao He almost kicked Mu Mu off the bed again, but luckily Zhong Wan saw it in time. She put down her phone, grabbed her daughter, and comforted the slightly frightened Mu Mu in her arms.

"It's alright, it's alright."

Next, she rearranged the three children's positions. Mu Mu and Cai Cai slept on the small bed connected to the innermost part of the bed, Xiao He slept next to her, and then she left a space for Chu Qing Huai.

When Chu Qinghuai came out of the shower, he saw Zhong Wan gently kissing Xiao He's forehead and muttering something under her breath. He coughed lightly, his eyes flickering, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"cough."

"Finished washing?"

Chu Qinghuai took a few pieces of clothing and walked out of the room. "I'm going to hang the clothes up to dry."

Zhong Wan reminded him, "Don't forget to blow-dry your hair."

"Um."

He agreed verbally, but returned in less than three minutes. He took off his shoes and got into bed, smelling of shower gel. He pretended to trip and fell on Zhong Wan, rubbing his head against her lower abdomen.

"Tsk, move aside, your hair isn't even dry yet, it's so damp."

"No, the wind hurts my eyes."

Chu Qinghuai's hair wasn't very short; it felt smooth to the touch and sometimes flowed freely, softening his sharp features and making him appear less aloof.

He looked up at Zhong Wan's pupils, which were as bright as stars, shimmering with a warm light that was captivating.

After not seeing her for several days, he missed her the most. He longed to do nothing but gaze at each other and embrace all night.

Then his cheek remained pressed against the other person's lower abdomen for only three seconds before Chu Qinghuai supported himself on the bed with his arms and lay down on the other side.

"You're sleeping inside?" Zhong Wan asked.

He closed his eyes, gave a soft "hmm," and a delicate fragrance wafted into his nose, relieving his great fatigue.

"No, you sleep outside, I want to sleep next to the children."

She tried to pull him up, but he wouldn't budge.

"I don't feel safe, you'll sleep outside tonight."

Chu Qinghuai, fearing she might disagree, added, "Is it okay?"

Who are you being affectionate with?

Normally, getting Chu Qinghuai to say a soft word is harder than climbing to heaven, let alone using such a high-pitched voice to act coquettishly. Zhong Wan couldn't help but curl up her lips, glanced at the sleeping children, boldly touched his chin, and joked, "You've become a coward after going out? Do you still need me to protect you?"

"Yes, you protect me. Hurry up, you can turn off the lights now. I want to sleep holding you."

Chu Qinghuai's eyelashes fluttered like charming little fans. Strangely enough, Cai Cai's eyes were very similar to his, with exceptionally long eyelashes and exceptionally large eyes.

Zhong Wan stared at him, getting closer to look, feeling she could never get tired of looking at him, and secretly hoping he could maintain this level of good looks until he grew old.

"Go to sleep."

Chu Qinghuai finally relaxed when he got home. He smelled Zhong Wan's unique and pleasant fragrance, put one foot on her leg, and couldn't help but touch the soft flesh on her stomach.

Don't take advantage of me.

Zhong Wan slapped away his hand that was gradually moving upwards and grabbed his wrist. "Don't move. Go to sleep."

"I'm sleeping."

Chu Qinghuai enjoyed the process of her holding his hand, and moved a little closer, pressing his body tightly against hers, as if only in this way could he feel safe. Afterwards, he fell asleep in a pleasant mood.

Zhong Wan had gotten used to coaxing the child lately, and she didn't resist his affectionate touches. She generously let Chu Qinghuai sleep in her arms all night, and woke up the next day with a sore chest.

-

As usual, it's the day the baby wakes up before the parents.

The children felt the bed was cramped as soon as they opened their eyes. They didn't really want to sleep on the makeshift bed, so they all rolled onto the big bed. Xiao He rolled around and bumped into a body that wasn't as soft as her mother's. She got up, grabbed the other person's arm, and looked up to see her father's face. She then waved for her older brother and sister to come over.

"It's Dad! Dad, get up quickly!"

The three of them were very excited. They could see their father as soon as they opened their eyes, even though they were not used to seeing him at night. Their voices were a little loud, and they could not hide their joy.

Chu Qinghuai was exhausted after so many days, and a few hours of sleep wouldn't be enough to catch up on her sleep. So she didn't respond to the three children immediately, keeping her eyes closed as if she were half asleep. She didn't get up even when she heard the children's voices. Zhong Wan was even less likely to wake up, because it wasn't her biological clock time yet.

Clearly, the three babies were already used to it. Mumu said, "Shh, Caicai and Xiaohe, let's not disturb Mom and Dad's sleep. Let's go out."

Xiaohe disagreed: "I want to stay in bed."

Cai Cai also said that she misses her father and wants to stay with him.

If Chu Qinghuai heard these words, he would be incredibly moved.

Mumu thought for a moment and compromised: "Okay then, we'll stay in bed and wait for Mom and Dad to wake up."

Unaware of the long wait ahead, they had no concept of time.

She is a polite and good child who knows not to make loud noises, so she kept telling her younger siblings not to make any noises, and the two younger ones kept covering their mouths with their hands.

Xiaohe was bored, so she whispered, "Sister, I want to take the Barbie princess and play with it."

Mumu shook her head: "No, Mom said toys can't be brought to bed, they're too dirty."

She also felt it was dirty and believed that bacteria were the most terrifying thing in the world.

Xiaohe had no choice but to listen to her sister, so she lay in bed and thought about all sorts of wild ideas.

...

Although Chu Qinghuai didn't sleep until late morning, it was already well past breakfast time, and the three hungry babies had to call for their father, which eventually woke him up.

Good morning, babies.

Before he even opened his eyes, three limp children were lying on him. He held them with both hands to prevent them from falling.

"dad!"

Three voices rang in his ears at the same time, completely driving away Chu Qinghuai's drowsiness. He still couldn't get used to this grand drama that took place every morning.

"Keep your voice down, keep your voice down."

The children's first words weren't "I miss you," but "Daddy's so hungry," giving Chu Qinghuai the illusion that he had never left home. He thought the three children didn't miss him at all, and each of them said "You little ingrates." Dragging his slightly sore legs, he continued to work as a dutiful househusband.