18
Having just experienced something at the mall, Chu Qinghuai was a little distracted when bathing the three children. For example, he almost made Cai Cai slip while applying bath gel.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."
Cai Cai groaned as his leg bumped against the edge of the basin. His hair was wet. He looked up, blinked, and asked, "Dad, what's wrong?"
"fine."
Chu Qinghuai naturally wouldn't confide in the child. He quickly washed the child clean, took him out, put him on a bath towel, dried him off, and then placed him with the other two children. The three fragrant and soft little bundles of joy lay on the bed, shaking their heads and wiggling their legs, looking very endearing.
If he hadn't been unshowered, he would have gone to bed right away and cuddled them to sleep.
Chu Qinghuai tidied up the bathroom, dressed the babies in their pajamas, and then skillfully went to the kitchen to make three bottles of formula. When she came back, she found that two of the babies were already rubbing their eyes and yawning, about to fall asleep.
He handed over the baby bottle, pinched a little bit of chubby flesh on each child's face, and said, "Good boy/girl."
After drawing the curtains and turning off the lights, Chu Qinghuai said good afternoon to the children, "After you finish drinking, be good and go to sleep. You'll see your mother when you wake up."
Xiao He kicked her leg excitedly when she heard the word "Mom".
Chu Qinghuai didn't disturb them while they were drinking milk. After they finished, they put away the bottles and left the room together.
Chu Qinghuai was too rushed at noon and missed the children's usual nap time, so he didn't video chat with Zhong Wan. However, Zhong Wan missed the children very much and asked him to take some photos and videos to satisfy her craving.
Chu Qinghuai planned to wait until they fell asleep before going in to take pictures.
He was sitting alone in the living room, using his spare time to work and pay the workers from the morning. When he was interrupted, he forgot about going into the bedroom to take pictures.
After a while, in the study.
After finishing his phone call to check tomorrow's orders, Chu Qinghuai finally had a moment of free time. Sitting in his chair, he picked up a book he hadn't finished reading and curled up there flipping through a couple of pages. But his body and mind were still too tired to rest and calm down, so he clicked his tongue impatiently, though it was unclear who he was annoyed with.
Time slipped by unnoticed. I was so engrossed in reading that I didn't even see Zhong coming home late at night.
The sound of a key unlocking the door jolted Chu Qinghuai awake. He glanced at his phone screen and saw that it was almost five o'clock. He rushed out of the study and met Zhong Wan's gaze as she entered.
"I thought you were sleeping."
As Zhong Wan changed her shoes, she asked, "Haven't you cooked yet?"
"I forgot the time, I haven't done it yet."
"No rush, where are the children? Are they awake yet?"
Chu Qinghuai touched his nose guiltily. He hadn't been inside to check on them for a long time. It seemed the babies were still fast asleep. "They didn't fall asleep until after 2 a.m. today. They must have been tired from playing this morning, so they've been sleeping until now."
As they were talking, he was about to open the door and go in to take a look when he suddenly heard a "thump" sound. Chu Qinghuai and Zhong Wan both heard it clearly, and their hearts skipped a beat.
Immediately, crying broke out.
not good.
Chu Qinghuai went into the bedroom first and saw Mumu lying on the floor. His heart ached as if it were being stabbed with needles. He quickly picked her up and checked where she had fallen and hurt herself. His hands trembled involuntarily.
The two little pigs on the bed were fast asleep and showed no signs of waking up. Zhong Wan glanced at them and said to Chu Qinghuai, who was holding her daughter, "Let's go out first, don't wake them up."
She rearranged Cai Cai and Xiao He's positions, pulled up the safety fence, and quietly retreated.
Upon entering the living room, I asked, "How did it go?"
Chu Qinghuai said apologetically, "I think I forgot to put up the fence."
He took the initiative to admit his mistake, his expression full of self-reproach, "I was wrong, she was crying so pitifully."
This time, Mumu was really hurt. She couldn't stop crying and was in so much pain that she couldn't speak. Her eyes, nose, and ears were as red as carrots.
Zhong Wan never expected to experience something like this as soon as she got home. Her usually well-behaved baby, who never shed tears, suddenly started crying a lot. She was extremely worried, so she took off her coat, washed her hands, and took the baby from Chu Qinghuai's arms, saying, "Let me hold her."
When Mumu saw her mother arrive, she immediately stretched out her two little hands.
"Mommy, sob sob."
"Hey, I'm back. Mommy's here to hug you. Mommy knows you're in pain. Don't cry, don't cry."
Zhong Wan gently rubbed her cheek and stood up to comfort her.
Chu Qinghuai examined Mumu carefully and found that there was a red patch on the back of Mumu's hand and a patch of skin on her forehead that was rapidly swelling up. It was a shocking sight. Even an adult would find it unbearable, let alone a three-year-old child.
Mumu's crying was heartbreaking, and she kept calling for her mother.
He took all the ice cubes in the house from the refrigerator, wrapped them in a soft cotton towel to make a large ice ball, and gently applied it to his daughter's wound.
The child's crying wouldn't stop. Chu Qinghuai blew cool air on her head, not caring whether Mu Mu was listening or not. He whispered an apology, closed his eyes in self-reproach. If only he had gone to the room to check on her halfway through. He was so careless. Why didn't he notice that the railing wasn't closed?
Chu Qinghuai was feeling physically and mentally exhausted. He and Zhong Wan sat on the sofa, rubbing their temples, and he told her everything that had happened that day, including how Cai Cai had accidentally eaten chili sauce.
“I thought I was being very serious, but I still can’t be considered a competent father.”
"How could that be? You've already done a great job."
Chu Qinghuai's face was tense. "If I had done a good job, I wouldn't have let them get hurt."
Mumu's crying subsided, and she clutched her mother's clothes, pressing her face tightly against her mother's chest for a sense of security.
Half-asleep, she drifted off to sleep again, but Chu Qinghuai kept his hand on her ice pack, even though his hand was also sore.
Mumu's hair is usually loose when she sleeps, and it's all messy now. The strands of hair on her forehead are damp with sweat. Zhong Wan tucks them behind her ears, takes out a tissue to wipe away her snot and tears, and hugs her, gently patting her back.
Zhong Wan was also heartbroken for her daughter's injury, but she understood that Chu Qinghuai needed comfort more right now, so she shifted her position and told him earnestly, "It's normal for children to bump and bruise. You've already worked hard taking care of three children. This isn't your fault. What's done is done, and the only way to make up for it is to learn from the experience. There's no use in being sad."
She slowly stood up, holding the child, bent down, and kissed Chu Qinghuai on the face.
"Cheer up. When the children wake up and see you're unhappy, they'll be sad too."
"You're not angry with me?"
Zhong Wan laughed when she heard what he said, and really wanted to punch him. "Come on, I'm not that fierce, Chu Qinghuai. Don't you know? I love you the most."
The man's mood finally improved, like ice melting away and a spring breeze caressing his face. He let out a soft sigh, "Alright."
“Try saying that again and see what happens. The most important thing now is to treat Mumu’s injury.” Zhong Wan kicked him with her leg. “Go wake up Cai Cai and Xiao He. What will happen to them tonight if they’re asleep now? You’ll be the one to comfort them tonight.”
"I'll coax him."
Chu Qinghuai got up and went to the bedroom. He had just touched the doorknob when he remembered that he hadn't made dinner yet. He asked Zhong Wan what she wanted to eat.
"Didn't you just have a good lunch at Sister Lin's shop? Let's just cook some vegetable porridge. Mu Mu can't eat anything too oily or heavy in her condition."
"Okay then."
He went into the room and woke up the two children in bed.
-
"Sister, you have a big bead on your head."
Xiao He held a handful of fruit puree in her hand, slurping it up as she stared intently at Mu Mutou, full of curiosity.
Mumu sat in her high chair, eating fruit puree as well. She didn't say anything; she felt she wasn't pretty at all like this.
Cai Cai noticed and asked, "Sister, what's wrong?"
Zhong Wan answered for Mu Mu: "My sister accidentally fell off the bed and got hurt. Please don't touch her forehead, okay?"
"Ah." Xiao He frowned and opened her mouth, "Sister, does it hurt?"
Mumu nodded honestly. She felt a throbbing sensation in her head, but it was bearable.
"Then I'll blow on it for you."
After saying that, she was about to climb onto the chair to blow on Mumu's wound, but Zhong Wan saw this and picked her up, saying, "You eat your food, your sister doesn't need air."
Xiao He only sprays saliva when blowing on someone's wound.
...
Mumu is injured, so tonight she has the right to be fed by her father.
Chu Qinghuai hadn't even eaten yet. He stirred the vegetable porridge in Mumu's small bowl, sprinkled some pork floss and dried shrimp on it, and once the porridge wasn't too hot, he scooped a spoonful and put it into Mumu's mouth.
"Is it tasty?"
She said it was delicious.
Zhong Wan had been observing the injury on Mumu's forehead and casually mentioned, "Remember to apply the medicine to Mumu before bed. I hope everyone can go to sleep early."
But it's highly unlikely. If the children wake up too late from their afternoon nap, they'll probably need to fuss for an hour or two before they can all fall asleep at night.
Taking care of three children of similar ages has its advantages and disadvantages. When they are well-behaved, they are all well-behaved, but when they are naughty, they are all naughty at the same time and cannot be controlled.
Zhong Wan's biggest fear is putting the children to sleep at night. Usually, she has to tell them three stories before they will fall asleep, and her mouth will be dry by then.
Many times she wanted Chu Qinghuai to take care of the babies to sleep, but the three little devils felt that their father's stories were not engaging, so most of the time Zhong Wan would lie in the middle of the bed and have evening parent-child activities with them.
Today is a challenging day to get Chu Qinghuai to sleep. Zhong Wan is already feeling overwhelmed just thinking about it. She wants Chu Qinghuai to prepare in advance so that he can get her to sleep smoothly. If not, she will have to resort to some forceful methods.
"I don't want to eat anymore."
Cai Cai pushed aside the bowl of porridge that was half full, ready to get off the table, and asked her mother to take off her bib so she could go play.
"Eat some more, you'll get hungry if you eat so little." Zhong Wan didn't take off his bib.
"No vegetables."
His little mouth is getting more and more picky. He had a good lunch and has been thinking about it ever since. Chu Qinghuai was speechless and wouldn't let him leave the table. "Eat it quickly. It's not much. You can finish it."
Cai Cai's refusal shows she has a temper.
"Hmm?" Chu Qinghuai tried to threaten him: "Do you want to go to your aunt and uncle's house for a good meal?"
Ultimately, he succumbed to the prospect of more delicious food and began shoving unpalatable spinach into his mouth.
Zhong Wan praised him for being so good and asked the three babies what they had for lunch, but they could only say noodles. They either forgot what the other foods were called or didn't know what they were called, and could only describe them by color.
She only half-understood what she heard, but still provided the emotional support she was expected, pretending to understand: "Oh, I see. Did you enjoy your meal?"
Xiaohe revealed more: "It's delicious! Dad said we want to go again tomorrow!"
"What's the meaning?"
Upon receiving Zhong Wan's gaze, Chu Qinghuai told her about Chen and Lin Jiang helping them take care of the child and asked her what she thought about it.
It would be great if someone she knew well could help take care of the child, but it was precisely because it wasn't a good job that she felt it wasn't suitable.
"That's too much trouble."
"I said the same thing, but they didn't find it troublesome."
Like Chu Qinghuai, Zhong Wan didn't want to owe anyone favors, especially since such favors were hard to repay.
Chu Qinghuai hesitated, then decided to try sending it for one day first and see.
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