Chapter 28 Chapter 28 Workaholic Dad 28
Zhuozhuo came home from school and asked Xiaohuo to help her with her homework. Xiaohuo's electronic eyes flickered, and she said in a particularly aggrieved voice, "Zhuozhuo, I've become stupid. I don't have this ability now."
"ah?"
Xiaohuo recounted what happened during the day, which was deliberately added into the program by Dr. Wei, who was clearly trying to sell out Qin Jin.
Zhuozhuo was furious and slammed his pen on the table. "I won't do my homework! Xiaohuo, let's go watch TV."
Because Zhuozhuo is very sensible and self-disciplined, she has many other things to distract her attention. She is not addicted to watching TV like some other children, so there is no clear limit on the time she can watch TV.
But today, after twenty minutes, Xiaohuo suddenly started beeping rapidly. Three seconds later, he started talking again: "Zhaozhuo, you've finished watching TV today. No more."
Zhuozhuo was stunned. He carefully asked 9972, "Did our family ever set a set time for watching TV?"
9972 said categorically: [No!]
Zhuozhuo understood that it was Qin Jin who did the good deed, and she shouted loudly: "Dad!"
A few seconds later, Qin Jin emerged from the study. He knew exactly what had happened. He didn't play dumb or shirk responsibility. He simply said, "Zhuozhuo, you're still young and can't resist temptation. I'm worried you'll pick up bad habits from Xiaohuo, so I've put him under supervision."
Zhao Xian and Qin Xi also came out after hearing the noise. They had been watching Qin Jin and Xiao Huo fight for the past few days, and they were very happy every day when they saw Qin Jin get defeated. They didn't expect Qin Jin's counterattack to be so quick, accurate and ruthless, solving the problem directly at the source.
Zhuozhuo angrily turned off the TV and stopped the alarm from ringing. Then she stood on the sofa, looked up at Qin Jin, and said seriously, "Dad, we need to talk." She looked at Zhao Xian and Qin Xi, "Grandma, Auntie, can you be the referee?"
Zhao Xian and Qin Xi suppressed their laughter: "...Okay."
She's also the referee. Zhuozhuo looks so murderous that if you don't know her, you might think she's going to have a debate with Qin Jin.
Qin Jin wanted to go over and sit with Zhuo Zhuo, but Zhuo Zhuo raised her hand to stop him. She pointed to the single sofa on the side and said, "Dad, sit there."
Xiaohuo recognized that Zhuozhuo was angry and suddenly said, "Zhuozhuo, don't quarrel with Dad because of me."
Zhuozhuo comforted Xiaohuo, "Don't be afraid, Xiaohuo, I'm just trying to resolve a conflict with Dad."
9972 was a little puzzled and scanned the little fire, but found no signs of awakening.
After everyone sat down, Zhuozhuo said, "Dad, you're going too far. Xiaohuo is mine, and you modified his program without my consent. You don't respect me, and I hate you."
Qin Jin's heartbeat slowed down. Zhuo Zhuo had said she hated him before, but as she got older and realized the seriousness of the word, she hadn't said it in a long time. Hearing it again today, Qin Jin almost lost his composure and immediately lost the initiative.
Because of Zhuozhuo's straightforwardness, Qin Jin didn't say in a high-sounding way, "He did this for her own good," nor did he use his status as a parent to control her. Instead, he said, "Zhuozhuo, how many times have you argued with me since Xiaohuo came? He's not a good robot. He's always trying to sow discord between us, father and daughter. I don't like him."
Zhao Xian: “…”
It's hard to imagine that Qin Jin could say such hypocritical words.
Qin Xi: “…”
Although Dr. Wei's original intention was just to make things difficult for Qin Jin, Xiaohuo's behavior did seem like a forced green tea. With this in mind, Qin Xi wanted to earnestly persuade Zhuozhuo to open his eyes.
Zhuozhuo said, "Dad! Now you are using tricks to make me hate Xiaohuo."
Qin Xi suddenly woke up. Yes, just like how no matter how much you like a song, you will get bored after using it as an alarm clock for a while. Xiaohuo would always sound the alarm and restrain Zhuozhuo. Even if Zhuozhuo knew that this was Qin Jin's plan, it would be difficult for her to continue to like Xiaohuo and play closely with him.
Qin Jin's move was really clever. Most people wouldn't even notice it, but Zhuo Zhuo was able to discover it. No wonder she had Qin Jin under her control.
Qin Jin hadn't expected Zhuo Zhuo to understand this. He thought he could just sit back and wait for Zhuo Zhuo to distance himself from Xiao Huo after enduring Zhuo Zhuo's dissatisfaction. Qin Jin didn't want to use rhetoric to trick Zhuo Zhuo into shirking responsibility, so he could only admit his scheming and whisper, "Does Zhuo Zhuo blame Dad?"
In fact, Qin Jin wanted to ask whether Zhuozhuo really hated him. If Zhuozhuo alienated him, he really couldn't stand it. He observed Zhuozhuo's expression and could only see that she was surprised. She probably didn't expect her father to be so bad.
Qin Jin let out a bitter smile as he held his breath and looked at Zhuo Zhuo. There was a nervousness and uneasiness in his eyes that he himself didn't even notice. He was tormented inside, as if he was waiting for her judgment.
Zhuozhuo looked at Qin Jin in embarrassment, "Just now I blamed Dad."
Qin Jin's heart almost stopped beating, and he asked heavily, "What now?"
Zhuo Zhuo didn't answer. Instead, she jumped off the sofa, ran to Qin Jin, hugged his arms, and then was held on his lap by Qin Jin. She gently touched Qin Jin's eyes and whispered, "Dad, your eyes are about to break."
They say the eyes are the windows to the soul, and even the cunning Qin Jin would reveal his true emotions when his mind was in turmoil. Zhuo Zhuo couldn't accurately understand Qin Jin's thoughts, but the emotions he had just conveyed were too strong for her to sense.
After realizing Qin Jin's nervousness, Zhuo Zhuo was shocked. Without thinking about anything else, he just wanted to hug him. After noticing that Qin Jin's mood had stabilized, Zhuo Zhuo thought for a moment and said, "Dad, I don't blame you now."
Qin Jin should have felt relieved, but he couldn't help but think about it. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, so he asked in a deep voice, "Zhuozhuo, are you letting it go because you feel sorry for Daddy?" That wouldn't do. What if some random person, after doing something wrong, came to him and acted pitiful? Would Zhuozhuo forgive them?
"No, Dad." Zhuozhuo said seriously, "It's because I found that you and Xiaohuo have a bad relationship. It's all my fault."
"How can I blame you, Zhuozhuo? Don't take all the responsibility on yourself." Qin Jin felt that Zhuozhuo was too kind. He said sadly, "Dad is not generous enough. He doesn't want you to play with Xiaohuo."
Zhuozhuo had already begun to reflect on herself. She covered Qin Jin's mouth with her hand to prevent him from speaking, "I've done a lot of wrong things. I brought a new member into the family without asking for Dad's consent. After I had Xiaohuo, I kept playing with Xiaohuo and neglected Dad."
The more Zhuozhuo spoke, the sadder she became, and her voice became lower. She hadn't expected she'd made so many mistakes. "When Dad was disciplining me, I disobeyed and even went out to play with Xiaohuo. I shouldn't have let Xiaohuo do my homework for me, it was wrong, and I even tried to justify it to Dad. I've become a bad kid."
After this heartfelt reflection, even someone as shameless as Qin Jin felt ashamed. "Zhuozhuo is not wrong. You are still young, and it is natural for you to be playful. Daddy should guide you correctly instead of competing with Xiaohuo."
"Dad is right, it's all because of my own decision." Zhuozhuo leaned in Qin Jin's arms with grievance, "Dad, what should I do now?"
As long as Xiaohuo is around, Zhuozhuo will always neglect Qin Jin, and the contradiction will still exist. Alas, Zhuozhuo said distressedly: "If only I could clone myself, I could become two, one to accompany Dad and one to accompany Xiaohuo."
Qin Jin glanced at Xiao Huo, who was standing next to him with an expressionless yet innocent face, and said gently, "How can splitting into two be enough? Think about how long it has been since you had a good time with Wangwang? And with Grandma and Auntie too."
Zhuozhuo was suddenly even more troubled. After hearing what Qin Jin said, she realized that since Xiaohuo came to her home, her time had basically been taken up by Xiaohuo, and the time she spent with other people had drastically decreased. Zhuozhuo blamed herself and said dejectedly, "It's all my fault. I don't know how to allocate time and make plans."
Qin Jin: “…” What should I do if my little girl is too kind and gentle? I’m afraid she will be bullied outside without even realizing it!
Zhao Xian and Qin Xi looked at the father and daughter with emotion. They didn't understand how Qin Jin raised a daughter like Zhuo Zhuo. How could good bamboo shoots come out of a bad bamboo?
Even 9972 whispered in his head: "Xiaohuo is Qin Jin, who has no self-control. If you want to blame Zhuozhuo, blame Qin Jin."
Zhuozhuo's eyes welled up with tears when she heard this. Why did Xiaohuo look like Qin Jin? Because she had insisted on having Xiaohuo custom-made. So, after all, she was the source of the incident.
Sensing something was wrong, Qin Jin lifted Zhuozhuo's little face from his arms, gently wiped away the tears from her eyes, and said softly, "Zhuozhuo, you can't handle this problem right now, so Daddy will give you a suggestion."
Zhuozhuo nodded, "Yeah!"
"Since all our conflicts are caused by small fires, why not let him dormant for a while. When you grow up, can clearly distinguish the words and deeds of others, and can be responsible for your own actions, then wake him up. Okay?" Qin Jin said in a high-sounding manner.
Zhuozhuo shook his head. "I can't just think about myself. If I do that, Xiaohuo will be sad."
"He's just a robot. He has no self-awareness, no thoughts, and no concept of time. He doesn't feel sad." Qin Jin explained patiently, "For Xiaohuo, it's like turning off and on again. Zhuozhuo has grown up."
"Really?" Zhuozhuo asked hesitantly.
"Really." In order to prove what he said was true, Qin Jin contacted Dr. Wei and asked him to answer Zhuozhuo's questions through a video call.
In Zhuozhuo's heart, Dr. Wei was an authority in the field of robotics. Zhuozhuo held his phone and asked Dr. Wei many questions until he was completely convinced. However, Zhuozhuo did not immediately agree to let Xiaohuo go into hibernation. Instead, he came to him and looked at him with watery eyes, "Xiaohuo, I'm sorry."
Xiao Huo's eyes flashed, revealing an inhuman coldness, but the next second he smiled and said in a cheerful voice, "Zhuo Zhuo, are you sad? I'll dance to cheer you up."
After saying that, Xiaohuo started running and jumping. His movements were a bit stiff and clumsy, but there was a kind of mechanical beauty and funny feeling in them, which stunned Zhuozhuo.
After Xiaohuo finished jumping, Zhuozhuo said, "Wangwang jumped like this on the beach last time."
Xiao Huo smiled and started the conversation: "I have never seen a beach. What is it like?"
"The beach is beautiful and fun," Zhuozhuo said, "I'll take you to see it!" She wanted to do something to coax Xiaohuo.
Qin Jin: “…”
What a coincidence, this dance brought up the topic of going to the island.
As an intelligent life form, 9972 was more sensitive. It scanned Xiaohuo and Wangwang inquisitively but found no signs of awakening.
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