Chapter 77 The little dumpling cried like a crayfish

Jin Zhao gently touched his cheek with her fingertips; the touch was warm and soft.

Meng Yanxi's Adam's apple bobbed awkwardly twice. Feeling a little embarrassed, she wanted to raise her hand to quickly wipe away her tears, but her hands were still holding the newborn baby.

The little guy weighed 6 pounds 6 ounces, tiny and soft. He supported the baby's head and neck with one hand and his bottom with the other. He had practiced this position for several months, but when he actually did it, he still used all his strength.

He carefully cradled the baby in his arms, the infant's warmth soothing his chest, making him feel as if his heart was melting. But this position also left him powerless to stop his tears.

Touched yet embarrassed, the person, extremely concerned about saving face, told a lie: "I'm fine, some sand got in..."

Holy crap.

Even his voice was hoarse and nasal, making it impossible for him to tell a single lie.

Forget it, I'll give up.

Jin Zhao struggled to suppress a laugh.

She had just given birth and was still in pain. She wanted to laugh but didn't dare. When she met Meng Yanxi's red eyes, she felt a little sorry for him and took the initiative to finish what he was saying: "I know, you got sand in your eyes."

Meng Yanxi: "..."

Meng Yanxi is quite easygoing. Anyway, this isn't the first time he's lost face in front of his wife; he's done even more shameless things.

With tears still streaming down his face, he sniffed and asked Jin Zhao, "Does it hurt a lot?"

Jin Zhao: "It doesn't hurt, don't cry."

Meng Yanxi: "...Liar, you lied to me again."

During the later stages of Jin Zhao's pregnancy, Meng Yanxi accompanied her to a complete prenatal and postnatal course, learning how to care for a newborn baby and gaining a thorough understanding of the pain women experience during childbirth.

He held Tuanzi in his arms, bent down and kissed Jin Zhao's forehead, and said in a hoarse voice, "We won't have any more children, we'll only have this little Tuanzi."

Jin Zhao smelled the baby's milky scent, which mingled with the faint scent of cold mountain pine mist on him, bringing a sense of peace and comfort to her heart.

She raised her hand and pressed it against his arm, whispering, "Let me see the baby."

Meng Yanxi carefully placed the baby next to her.

Whether it was due to her parents' strong visual filter or the baby's exceptionally good genes, Jin Zhao immediately thought her and Meng Yanxi's baby was more beautiful than other newborns. In her memory, most newborns were wrinkled, with lingering yellow tinges on their skin. But this little one seemed to radiate a soft glow; her round, chubby face was soft and delicate, her eyelashes thick and long. Now asleep, her eyelashes drooped, casting soft shadows.

Jin Zhao couldn't help but touch his little face with her fingertips. The little dumpling seemed to sense it in his dream, and his long eyelashes fluttered slightly.

Jin Zhao's heart is as soft as a pool of water.

This is her and Meng Yanxi's baby.

He was so vibrant and lively that it seemed to give concrete life to the love she had kept hidden and reserved over the years.

She wanted to kiss the baby, but was afraid she couldn't. People always subconsciously become dependent. In the later prenatal classes, because Meng Yanxi studied so diligently, he once again demonstrated his overwhelming strength as the top student in his grade many years later, while she only learned so-so.

Meng Yanxi could often see right through her at a glance, and said softly, "It's okay to kiss, I've already kissed her."

Jin Zhao then gently touched the little dumpling's forehead.

The baby smells so good, she loves him so much, and couldn't help but kiss his little face.

Meng Yanxi felt a surge of heat in her eyes upon seeing this, and almost cried again.

"Have you decided on a name for the baby?" Jin Zhao asked.

Meng Yanxi can be blatantly domineering at times, but also quite humble at others. Because of the nickname "Little Dumpling," when the young couple discussed names later, he generously returned the right to name the formal name to Jin Zhao.

Jin Zhao naturally accepted it without hesitation.

However, naming a child is a very brain-intensive task and not an easy job. She discussed a few with Meng Yanxi, but she wasn't really satisfied with any of them, so she decided to let him think of one.

Surprisingly, this actually suited Meng Yanxi quite well; he already had a favorite character in mind. So much so that he politely declined when Meng Huai and Meng Shixu tried to discuss names with him recently.

When it comes to naming, he will only let Jin Zhao do it.

He asked Jin Zhao, "Is your surname Jin or Meng?"

Jin Zhao was taken aback, then chuckled, "So generous, President Meng?"

Meng Yanxi: "Of course, I promised you I wouldn't fight you for it."

Jin Zhao's eyes suddenly felt sore and swollen.

She was struggling with her own feelings back then, and Meng Yanxi didn't say anything. In the end, he just jokingly said that he wouldn't compete with her for it. Even she didn't take it seriously, but he has taken it seriously ever since.

She thought for a moment and said, "Let's keep the surname Meng."

Meng Yanxi gently stroked her face with his fingertip and said with a smile, "You don't need to accommodate me. No matter what your surname is, you're still my son."

This is what confident people are like.

Jin Zhao shook his head: "No, I just really like the surname Meng."

"Yes, you said that Meng has a kind of refined and unparalleled gentlemanly air about him," Meng Yanxi said without any modesty, "like me."

Jin Zhao: "..."

She was certain that she hadn't said the second half of the sentence; she couldn't possibly have told him to be like him, making him so proud.

“Don’t twist my words,” she muttered.

Meng Yanxi once again took advantage of her thick skin, pretending not to hear, and asked directly, "How about Meng Jue?"

Jin Zhao's attention was immediately diverted: "Meng Jue? Which Jue?"

Meng Yanxi: "The Jue in Juezhen today."

Jin Zhao: "..."

Although the little dumpling was indeed conceived in Jinjue Town during those three days, Jin Zhao was a little annoyed by the fact that the name carried such implications.

She asked impatiently, "So when the little dumpling grows up and asks what his name means, what are you going to tell him?"

“What’s the big deal? Just telling the truth.” Meng Yanxi smiled and gazed at her, deliberately dragging out the last syllable, “Just say that your mother met him in Jinjue Town.”

Jin Zhao was a little overwhelmed by this person's eccentricities and was about to ask him to find someone else when Meng Yanxi gently pinched her fingertip and her voice became serious: "It was also in Jinjue Town that Dad fell in love with Mom at first sight."

Jin Zhao's gaze shifted slightly.

She wasn't the type to ask Meng Yanxi when he fell in love with her. She didn't ask, and he never said anything either. This was the first time Meng Yanxi had told her about his feelings for her.

Ten years ago, in Jinjue Town, I fell in love at first sight.

My heart has been fluttering ever since.

*

Jin Zhao didn't stay at a postpartum care center. Meng Yanxi took Jin Zhao back to her villa by the lake and hired a nutritionist, a postpartum nanny, and a childcare worker to take care of her around the clock.

The restoration was swift.

Although Meng Shixu had some ulterior motives, he was generally a kind person. Thinking that he had only found out about this matter so late because of Meng Yanxi's double-dealing, he felt somewhat guilty towards Jin Zhao. He prepared real estate and jewelry for Jin Zhao overnight to make up for his previous lack of courtesy, and also prepared a trust fund for the little dumpling.

Even so, he was unable to see his grandson in time. His son put on airs and said, "There are a lot of visitors lately, you have to make an appointment, Lao Meng."

Later, Meng Shixu learned from his dreadlocked little cotton-padded jacket that, apart from him, everyone else in the Meng family had already visited Jin Zhaohe, the little dumpling.

Meng Shixu was so angry that he wanted to kick Meng Yanxi, pointing at him and yelling, "How could I have given birth to such a vengeful son? All I gave you was a prenuptial agreement, and you didn't even sign it!"

In fact, not only Meng Shixu kept the prenuptial agreement in mind, but Jin Zhao did as well. She even took the initiative to propose signing a prenuptial agreement.

Meng Yanxi could joke around with Meng Shixu without being sincere, but he was very bothered by Jin Zhao's initiative. However, he was good at pretending and covered it up with an unserious smile: "This won't do. If you marry me, you won't get any benefits. It will make me look like a heartless and unkind person."

Jin Zhao said earnestly, "I don't need you to give me any benefits; I can work hard on my own."

Ultimately, the signing didn't happen because Meng Yanxi disagreed. But Jin Zhao possessed an independence that made him uneasy; she seemed to have long been accustomed to working hard and striving for what she wanted on her own.

Meng Yanxi could only hope that the arrival of the little dumpling would make her get used to relying on him more in everything.

At this moment, Meng Yanxi said to Meng Shixu in a serious tone, "Dad, let me tell you the truth, I'm not afraid of what Jin Zhao wants from me, I'm afraid she doesn't want anything."

Because of Meng Yanxi's underhanded tricks, Meng Shixu, the grandfather, became the last member of the family to see the little dumpling, which infuriated him. But all the resentment in his heart vanished the moment he saw the little dumpling.

The baby changes every day. Half a month after being discharged from the hospital, he has grown a lot and become much fatter. His chubby cheeks are plump and soft, his skin is pink and moist, with a milky glow, and there are fine, soft downy hairs on it. When you gently touch it with your fingertips, you feel a soft and bouncy texture.

Its little arms and legs were also round and plump, like tender lotus roots, curled up and looked very juicy.

Meng Shixu's heart melted at the sight of such an adorable baby. He washed his hands and was about to hold him when Meng Yanxi stopped him, smiling and saying, "Are you sure you can hold him properly?"

Meng Shixu slapped him away, then retorted with a stern face, "I don't understand. You and your sister raised yourselves?"

The little dumpling is just as clever as his dad, and he's incredibly good at providing emotional support. Even though he's still quite small, he'll babble in his grandpa's arms, making Meng Shixu laugh heartily, like an old child, while the little dumpling giggles along with him.

Meng Shixu boasted to Meng Yanxi, "See? He laughs as soon as I tease him."

Meng Yanxi bluntly retorted, "It has nothing to do with you. He just likes to laugh, and he laughs even if you don't tease him."

The little dumpling does love to laugh. Sometimes when she wakes up hungry at night, she doesn't cry. Instead, she kicks her legs and plays on her crib, giggling and waking up her parents.

Even with many professionals around, new parents can still feel a bit overwhelmed, but their little one's good behavior and cleverness greatly eased their anxiety.

But since it's a baby, of course it will cry.

For example, when he got his first vaccination after his confinement period, the chubby little baby was happily playing with his father in Meng Yanxi's arms. But when the nurse gave him the injection, he froze for a moment, and then burst into tears, crying until his face turned red.

Meng Yanxi was heartbroken and kept kissing and comforting her. Jin Zhao couldn't get involved and found it a little funny, so she secretly recorded a video from the side. Meng Yanxi discovered this and scolded her with her eyes.

Jin Zhao had no choice but to put away her phone, take the baby from Meng Yanxi's arms, and hold her in her arms to comfort her.

The little dumpling stopped crying quickly. On the way back, Meng Yanxi watched the video recorded by Jin Zhaolu and also found his son's crying a bit funny. However, since he had just reprimanded Jin Zhaolu, he couldn't be too blatant, so he pretended to be serious and coughed lightly.

Jin Zhao leaned closer, looked at the screen, and whispered, "Doesn't it look a bit like a crayfish?"

Meng Yanxi struggled internally for a moment.

His son was born with fair skin, and when he cried, his little body turned pink from the effort.

"It does look a bit like a crayfish," Meng Yanxi finally said, going with her gut feeling.

Little dumpling: "?"

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Author's note: It's finished!

There will be a turning point in the next chapter, but it won't be angsty.