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"I won't be home for dinner tonight. There's a meeting at the store. I'll just grab something to eat outside with them."
Before leaving home, Zhong Wan changed her shoes and left these words for Chu Qinghuai and the children, who were still eating breakfast.
Chu Qinghuai frowned. This was the third time in a week that the other party hadn't come home for dinner. What could be so important that they kept driving? And how could eating out every day be good for their health?
He was worried that Zhong Wan's health might be affected by overwork. Although he was concerned, his words were ambiguous: "I don't understand, is your shop going to go bankrupt without you? You do everything."
His complaining tone annoyed Zhong Wan. After changing her shoes, she stood at the door and said, "Ying Mo has been away for a while, so what's wrong with me helping her manage the shop? Besides, it's not like she's not paying me." Money is so hard to earn these days; it would be foolish not to cherish an opportunity to make extra money.
"But you can't be away from home every day."
“I’m never home. I’m always the first one home after work, okay? That’s just how work is, there’s nothing you can do about it.” She slung her bag over her shoulder and, before turning away, couldn’t resist sarcastically remarking to Chu Qinghuai, “I’ve noticed you’ve been really upset with me lately. All I’m doing is asking you to watch the kids a little longer, is it really that big of a deal? Can’t you be a little more understanding?”
Chu Qinghuai was so angry that she almost couldn't catch her breath. She had no appetite for the freshly made breakfast that morning. So, he thought she didn't understand him?
He was about to say "Think what you want," but felt that it would hurt their relationship, so he restrained himself from speaking impulsively and looked away, saying, "Couldn't you have come back earlier? The children miss you terribly."
Zhong Wan assumed he was using the three babies as a pretext to pressure her, so she casually replied, "No."
Then, with a loud "bang," the door was slammed shut.
The children, munching on their steamed buns, glanced at the tightly closed door and then at their fathers. They could sense how heavy the atmosphere was as their parents argued. They dared not utter a word, and a sense of unease crept into their hearts like vines.
What does a baby know? All a baby wants is for mom and dad to be happy forever.
"Dad," Mumu said.
"What's wrong?"
Is Mom angry?
Chu Qinghuai smiled and said, "No, she's just been working too hard lately, so she's been speaking a bit louder. I hope you weren't scared?"
The three people shook their heads.
They were still children and didn't quite understand what Zhong Wan had said. Judging from her tone alone, they deduced that their mother must be in a bad mood. Oh, it was because of work. Work is really awful.
"Then can Mom not go to work?" she asked expectantly.
"No, that won't do. Didn't I already say that adults have to go to work so they can buy pretty clothes and delicious snacks? You'll all go to work in the future too, and you can buy whatever you like."
"Oh well."
Mumu seemed to understand but not quite.
"Dad, Cai Cai misses Mom a little."
That's what Cai Cai said.
"I'd like to too. Shall we wait for her to come home?"
Sometimes when Zhong gets home late, the children have already showered and gone to bed, greatly reducing the parent-child time they can spend together. The short breakfast break to talk and chat with her is far from enough.
But Zhong Wan didn't realize this problem. The work that originally belonged to Ying Mo in the store now all fell on her shoulders. She was busy from morning to night, and sometimes she also had to go out to negotiate orders or go out to make cakes.
She is no longer just someone who can bake cakes; she wants to learn more and explore more possibilities.
In Zhong Wan's imagination, Chu Qinghuai should understand her tedious work and offer some support, instead of simply criticizing and expressing dissatisfaction.
She didn't know how she could tell the other person was unhappy, but Zhong Wan was quite dissatisfied with him.
That evening, Zhong Wan, on her way home, received a message: "The children and I are going to sleep now."
Chu Qinghuai sent her a photo of the children sleeping peacefully in a dark environment. Zhong Wan saw it and sent an "OK" emoji, saying: [Okay, you guys go to sleep first]
Chu Qinghuai's words revealed no emotion; he wrote: "[When will you be back? The babies didn't see you today.]"
Immediately, immediately, don't rush us, the more you rush us, the worse it is.
The perfunctory attitude is palpable.
So Chu Qinghuai remained quiet, neither replying to messages nor falling asleep, leaving a light on in the living room and the entryway.
He was seething inside, like a resentful husband, unable to bear any further stimulation.
-
Even the smoothest life will encounter setbacks, and even the most blissful marriage will have frictions, not to mention young couples in the prime of their lives, with three lives involved between them.
The day before Children's Day, Chu Qinghuai and Zhong Wan agreed to finish work early the next day and take the children out for a meal to celebrate. This was the first time the three of them had celebrated a holiday for children.
Chu Qinghuai told her that he would pick her up with the children and then go directly to the restaurant for dinner, and Zhong Wan readily agreed.
Neither of them were the type to keep surprises to themselves, and they couldn't wait to tell the three children the good news. Zhong Wan said, "How about Mommy and Daddy take you to celebrate Children's Day tomorrow? We'll buy you toys and clothes, and the mall will definitely be very lively."
Although they didn't really understand the concept of Children's Day, they were all excited to hear the news that they could buy toys. They looked forward to tomorrow and even imagined how fun the new toys would be when they went to sleep.
"Go to sleep, it will be Children's Day when you wake up."
Patting the three babies' bottoms, Zhong Wan put the picture book aside and said to Chu Qinghuai, who had just gotten into bed, "Tomorrow is Friday, and the store has several orders lined up. I might be a little late. I said, oh, I said 'might'."
Chu Qinghuai slowly pulled back the covers and said quietly, "I won't allow that possibility to happen."
"There are only a few holidays throughout the year when we get more cake orders, you know that too, and our bonuses will be higher then."
“Those children…”
"Don't worry, I will definitely make sure they have a good holiday."
The two said goodnight to each other, and Zhong Wan asked Chu Qinghuai to turn off the light before falling asleep quickly.
-
The next morning, Zhong Wan left home early. There were so many cakes to make that day, and if she didn't hurry up and start, she wouldn't have enough time.
While whipping the cream, she told her colleague, "I need to leave early this afternoon; my kids are waiting for me to celebrate the holiday."
My colleague waved her hand and said, "Sister Wan, you can go now. It's a small matter; we can handle it."
"..."
She spoke too soon.
If time could turn back, Zhong Wan would definitely glue her mouth and her colleague's mouth shut.
Half an hour before closing time, two customers came into the shop, both wanting to order cakes for their children to celebrate Children's Day. However, they hadn't placed an order in advance, meaning there were no cakes available. Zhong Wan told them to come back the next day, but they refused, saying they were relatives of the owner and insisted on taking a cake home. A few minutes later, Ying Mo even called, saying it would be best to accommodate these two customers. What could Zhong Wan say? She reluctantly agreed.
Her heart sank. She watched helplessly as time slipped away like water, realizing that breaking her promise to have dinner today was a last resort. She would be late for a long time, and a wave of guilt washed over her, mixed with anger and helplessness.
The failure of something you were full of hope for is a disastrous result, and Zhong Wan didn't want to face it. When she said "Happy Children's Day" to other people's children time and time again, she would think about whether her three little ones at home were also waiting for her to come home for the holiday.
She wanted to make up for the regret, so she explained the real reason to Chu Qinghuai on WeChat and asked him to take the children to eat without waiting for her. After sending the message, she went back to work and didn't have time to check if she had received a reply.
...
Meanwhile, Chu Qinghuai was also extremely busy, not taking out his phone all day, and didn't even have time to drink water. He also accidentally silenced his phone and didn't hear Zhong Wan calling him.
"Brother Qing, there are still five boxes of apples to be delivered to the western suburbs. The order just came in. Should you go or should we go?"
"Oh dear, I need to go there to get an invoice. You guys can stay in the warehouse and help me count the goods. Write the quantities down on paper; I need to report it at the party tonight."
"Okay."
Chu Qinghuai had to drive to the other side of the city, which would take at least two and a half hours round trip. He knew he wouldn't be able to pick up the children and Zhong Wan on time. He wanted to send a message to let them know so they wouldn't worry, but his phone happened to be out of battery. He left it in the car to charge for a while, but soon forgot about it.
-
Mumu, Caicai, and Xiaohe are all smart babies. They may be naughty, but they listen to their parents. For example, yesterday Zhong Wanchu and Qinghuai said they would take them to buy toys, and the three of them talked about it all day long. They even shared the good news with Lin Jiang.
After their afternoon nap, they would simply drink some water and sit quietly in a row waiting for their parents to pick them up; even snacks didn't interest them.
Mumu said, "We're going to eat something delicious, not cookies."
The little one already knew that cookies were filling his stomach. He covered his rumbling tummy with both hands, turned his head to one side, and shook his head to refuse the cookies Lin Jiang offered.
Cai Cai and Xiao He couldn't resist the temptation, and because they were hungry, they each took a piece to fill their stomachs.
"I wonder if your parents are still coming. The sun is almost setting. What kind of Children's Day is this?"
Lin Jiang sat with the children at the table by the door, eagerly waiting. It was past the usual time when Chu Qinghuai would come to pick them up, but he still hadn't arrived.
Children's world is pure; they don't understand what breaking a promise means, they only know that their parents didn't come to pick them up for Children's Day.
Three pairs of bright, expressive eyes could practically see a hole through the window.
The sky changed from azure to pure white, and then to a clear yellow, like several cotton candy clouds, making you want to reach out and touch the silky, comfortable clouds.
Where are Mom and Dad?
Cai Cai sat on a chair taller than himself, swinging his legs, his little hands in his pockets. Nothing could tempt him now; he just wanted to see his parents as soon as possible.
Lin Jiang initially tried calling the couple several times, but couldn't get through. It wasn't until the light shining on the ground outside gradually turned golden that she finally got through to Zhong Wan.
"Hey Sister Lin, is there anything I can help you with? I'm still busy."
"Xiao Wan, I heard you were going to take the kids out to play, but we haven't seen them yet. The three kids have been waiting for a long time."
Taking advantage of a break from slacking off, Zhong Wan answered the phone, glanced at the sky outside the window, and couldn't quite maintain her polite smile before slowly saying, "Huh?"
"The child hasn't been picked up yet? Chu Qinghuai didn't go?"
Lin Jiang: "Yes, the three children are having a very difficult time now."
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