15
“We do this every day like we're having an affair.”
"Don't talk nonsense, they are clearly a legally married couple."
Chu Qinghuai pulled Zhong Wan to sit down in the study, and his first words were tinged with a hint of complaint, "No wonder people don't want children. They can't stand the thought of just the two of them being alone."
"Oh dear, don't say things like that, it will hurt the children if they hear it."
This time, Zhong Wan didn't sit opposite him. Instead, she moved her chair next to him, with only a book between them. Zhong Wan reached through his arm to grab something.
It's only a little past eight o'clock now, and most adults' nightlife is just beginning, but children's schedules are different from adults', and they go to bed early, so the two of them naturally don't dare to make too much noise.
Basically, Zhong Wan and Chu Qinghuai take turns putting the child to sleep every day. After they finish, they either watch movies in the living room or chat in the study. They have very little time to themselves.
"What are you going to do tomorrow? Are you really going to bring them along? Won't it be inconvenient?"
Chu Qinghuai pondered for a moment, "It's alright, I'll take them. It just so happens that Ayu wants to see the children."
They definitely wouldn't dare send the three children to daycare anytime soon, especially Xiao He, who is really too young. According to her colleagues, she can't even speak properly yet, so she's bound to be bullied. Besides, they're not pure human babies yet. Zhong Wan is worried that one day one of the little idiots will suddenly reveal her true form and scare everyone around her to death.
Just to be on the safe side, the couple decided to raise the child for a while longer, ensuring that the child wouldn't be separated from their lives for at least the next six months.
Chu Qinghuai is usually busy in the mornings, delivering and packing goods to various places. He is a little less busy in the afternoons, and when he has free time, he does odd jobs to earn extra money.
The noodle shop owner, Ah Yu, is a good friend of mine; perhaps I can bring my child there to have someone look after him in the future.
Zhong Wan also applied for a two-day weekend from the cake shop owner. She didn't care about earning one less day's money; she now believed that spending time with her child was more important.
With the children's future settled, Zhong Wan finally felt relieved. In the end, it was better to raise the children herself.
She yawned and said she was so sleepy, "Why don't we go to sleep now?"
"So early? It's not even nine o'clock yet."
Chu Qinghuai wanted to read for a while longer, and he wanted Zhong Wan to accompany him.
"I got sleepy while I was telling them a story. Come on, stop reading and come to sleep with me."
She dragged Chu Qinghuai back to the bedroom, and the two of them automatically softened their steps and breathing, afraid of waking up Xiao Chengzi, Xiao Qingcai, and Xiao Hehua on the bed.
A faint fragrance permeated the air.
Fortunately, Chu Qinghuai had installed protective covers around the bed a few days ago; otherwise, given how the three children sleep, they would have fallen off several times over.
Zhong Wan quietly went to bed and covered the children with blankets, but accidentally woke Xiao He up because of the large movements. She immediately patted and soothed her daughter's bottom.
Five minutes later, all five members of the family were lying in bed. The distance between Zhong Wan and Chu Qinghuai was indeed epic.
All three children slept in the middle, while the two children, like the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, could only gaze at each other from afar.
Chu Qinghuai clicked his tongue in the dark air, clearly dissatisfied with not being able to sleep with Zhong Wan in his arms.
Although he couldn't be close to Zhong Wan, a soft, sweet baby snuggled into his arms and rubbed against him.
Chu Qinghuai used to be a light sleeper, waking up at the slightest noise. When the baby first came into the family, he couldn't sleep well at night either. Now he's used to it. Sometimes, the baby will inevitably make a little noise while sleeping. If he's next to him, he'll pat him and soothe him.
That's how it is now. Cai Cai, who hadn't fallen asleep yet, unknowingly rolled over to his side. Chu Qinghuai hugged her like a plush toy, pinching the flesh on her buttocks, which felt quite comfortable.
-
Life always takes unexpected turns.
For Zhong Wan and Chu Qinghuai, their once peaceful life is now disrupted again. Their three children are still not independent, and having them by their side every moment is both a sweet and troublesome thing.
In the early morning, when Zhong Wan pulled the children out of bed, all three of them were bewildered, thinking they were going to daycare. Although they didn't like it, they accepted it calmly, ate their breakfast seriously, and listened attentively to their parents talking.
Zhong Wan was in a hurry to get to work, so she quickly finished the porridge in her bowl, wiped her mouth with a tissue, and stood up. "You guys eat slowly, I'm leaving now."
Mumu raised her hand anxiously, "I haven't finished eating yet!" She wanted to go out with her mother.
The other two quickened their eating pace upon hearing this.
"Take your time eating."
Chu Qinghuai was afraid that Mumu would knock over the bowl, so he deliberately put it far away. He explained, "Mom is going to work, you will see her this afternoon."
Aren't we going to daycare?
Mumu blinked, hoping to hear the answer she wanted to hear.
"I'm not going."
"Very good!"
The three answered in unison. Xiao He almost choked on her porridge. Zhong Wan patted her back and said, "You can only speak after you've swallowed everything in your mouth."
Xiaohe said happily, "I don't want to go to that place. I want to stay with my mom and dad."
Cai Cai chimed in, "Me too."
"Alright, alright, if you don't want to go, then you don't have to. Today you're going to work with Daddy. You have to listen to Daddy, don't wander off, eat properly, and sleep well, understand?"
Before leaving, Zhong Wan reminded everyone again: "Call me if anything happens. Babies, be good, and Daddy, be good too."
Chu Qinghuai found it tedious and pointed to the clock on the wall, "You're going to be late."
"Then I'm leaving, goodbye."
Mumu and Xiaohe waved to her, and Tiantian said sweetly, "Goodbye, Mommy!"
Cai Cai was a bit slow to react; she only poked her head out of the bowl after Zhong Wan closed the door and symbolically said goodbye to her mother.
Chu Qinghuai wiped his mouth and hands, and asked, "Are you full?"
"Uh-huh."
He put down his spoon, got off the chair, and went to the living room to play with Mumu.
Chu Qinghuai stayed at his seat to eat with Xiaohe until the end. She chewed slowly, not because she didn't want to eat, but simply because she was slow. Fortunately, Chu Qinghuai wasn't an impatient person. He said, "You eat yours, I'll go wash the dishes."
"No, stay here with me."
Xiao He took a small bite of the bun, which was only slightly damaged. She saw Chu Qinghuai get up from his seat and say unhappily, "I'm scared to be alone."
Chu Qinghuai said, "Why are you scared again? I'll wash the dishes and be right back."
"No, I'll be scared." Xiao He held the steamed buns in both hands, insisting that Chu Qinghuai sit here and eat with her.
Chu Qinghuai guessed that she probably wanted to say "bored" but didn't know how to express it, so she would say she was scared whenever she encountered something unsatisfactory.
But he's willing to spoil him.
"Alright, I'll stay here with you. Take your time eating."
Chu Qinghuai picked up his phone and texted the workers, saying he would be a little late, and also told the noodle shop owner, Chen Yu, to reserve a few seats for him.
In the living room, Mumu and Caicai were allowed to watch an episode of cartoons, which Xiaohe envied. Just hearing the sound was enough to attract her. But looking at the bowl that wasn't finished, she asked her father, "Can I watch cartoons while I eat?"
Chu Qinghuai thought she was quite clever, already knowing how to enjoy life at such a young age, and asked in return, "Do you think that's okay?"
"I think it's okay." Xiaohe didn't understand what her father meant by asking this question.
Chu Qinghuai pushed the blame onto Zhong Wan, "But Mom said no, you should eat properly when you eat, and watch TV properly when you watch TV. A person can only do one thing well."
Xiaohe pouted: "Okay then."
She felt that eating her fill was more important than watching cartoons, so she continued eating breakfast while swinging her legs.
-
The family only has one car, which is the one Chu Qinghuai usually uses to transport fruit; it can seat several people.
Chu Qinghuai picked them up one by one and put them in the car, fastened their seat belts, and told them to sit still.
He had important things to do in the morning. He originally wanted to leave the children at the noodle shop, but that would be too much of a disturbance to their business. After thinking about it, he decided it would be best to let them stay with him.
Upon arriving at the agreed delivery location with the workers, Chu Qinghuai took the three children down and tied ropes around their bodies.
"Stay close to me and don't wander off."
He saw Cai Cai about to squat down to pick wildflowers, so he stopped her in time, grabbed the rope, and pulled her back.
This child loves flowers and grass. He gets overjoyed every time he sees a flower blooming by the roadside and can't help but pick it.
When Mumu notices this, he will tell him, "Little Flower will feel pain, you can only touch it gently."
Cai Cai said she understood, embarrassed, but she didn't really remember it at all.
Seeing that they were bored, Chu Qinghuai picked up three wildflowers from the ground and put them in their hair. "Okay, they look pretty."
"..."
When the two workers saw that the three children looked exactly like Chu Qinghuai, they exclaimed in surprise, "Brother Qing, when did you have such big children?"
He could tell at a glance that they were his biological children.
"It's been around for a while now." Chu Qinghuai lied without batting an eye.
"So cute! Raising three kids must be tough!"
The worker was a young man who didn't even dare to think about starting a family; in his eyes, that was a luxury and an expensive form of consumption.
"good."
Chu Qinghuai touched Mumu's hair.
...
It's really not easy.
Chu Qinghuai regretted bringing them out.
During the delivery process, it is inevitable to come into contact with many people, and the three children undoubtedly became the focus and the subject of discussion.
Chu Qinghuai didn't have the energy to listen to what the group was talking about, but he was really annoyed that his own children had become the center of attention. He could only remind the three little ones again and again: "Don't run around."
He was really afraid that children who lack self-control would be lured away by a piece of candy.
But Cai Cai and Xiao He are high-energy kids. They can't stay quiet for long before they start running around again. They also like to pick up things from the ground to play with. Chu Qinghuai wishes he could grow ten pairs of eyes to keep an eye on them so they don't get hurt.
He really wanted to say, "Can you learn from your sister?", but he felt that such a thing would hurt his pride, so he didn't say it.
The customer looked at his helpless expression and couldn't help but laugh, "I never thought that someone as calm as you would be at a loss."
"Too naughty." He sighed softly, but his expression was smiling.
The man had three long ropes tied around his waist, and three little children were running around him. The scene looked ridiculous no matter how you looked at it.
After he finished everything and carried the three of them into the car, he pretended to be angry and said, "You guys are so disobedient, there are no snacks for you today."
They couldn't tell if their father was really angry, but they all quieted down and sat obediently.
Chu Qinghuai smiled and drove to his next destination.
Not far away, a middle-aged woman covered her face in surprise as she watched the vehicle leave.
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