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This absurd thought disappeared after ten minutes. Zhong Wan admitted that her brain had been stuck together like glue, but now it had returned to normal, as if it had been washed with saline solution and was even more clear.
Resigning is not advisable. It will not only bring you self-gratification but also cause the family to lose an income for no reason.
As for who will take care of the children, Chu Qinghuai had something to say: "It's still a long time before they go to kindergarten, so it's best if we raise them ourselves."
"Isn't what you're saying obvious? But it's not realistic at all. Neither of us has time to take care of it during the day."
Zhong Wan felt envious when she thought about how some of her colleagues' children were being cared for by their parents. Their babies not only had the love of their parents, but were also the darlings of the whole family. But it didn't matter. She and Chu Qinghuai would give their children enough love and happiness so that they would feel that the world was a beautiful place.
Therefore, she will work even harder to create better conditions for her growth.
"Next month I'll see if I can discuss with Yingmo about adjusting my work hours, so that I can at least rest on Saturdays and Sundays and spend more time with the children."
Chu Qinghuai sat on the edge of the bed, lowered his head slightly, and let Zhong Wan dry his hair. When no more water dripped down, he said, "It's done," and took the towel. "No need for all that trouble."
He replied, "I thought it through a while ago, and I'm not going to work as a supplier anymore."
"Huh? What are you going to do?"
Zhong Wan was quite surprised. She never expected that the man she ate and slept with would have such strong opinions; she had no idea.
Chu Qinghuai currently works as a fruit supplier. Unlike wholesalers, he has contracts with several restaurants, and the amount of fruit they need varies each month, making it somewhat unstable. Moreover, he doesn't receive payment until the following month, which often leads to cash flow problems. Furthermore, unlike other goods, fruit can have various quality issues, and he has to bear all the consequences himself. If the goods don't arrive on time, he even has to pay a penalty. The pressure on him is considerable. If it weren't for the few months of the year when he earns exceptionally much, he would have already considered switching to another business.
Today's events were the trigger; he had told Zhong Wan his thoughts beforehand, and her reaction was within his expectations.
"Compared to your job, mine is too unstable, it's not good."
Zhong Wan's cake shop has always been doing well, with a steady stream of customers every day. It will only expand and will not go out of business. So, if someone really has to quit their job to stay home and take care of the child, it will definitely be Chu Qinghuai. These days, nothing is more important than stability.
"But what can you do? There aren't that many good jobs for us to choose from." This is the common worry of ordinary people.
Chu Qinghuai held her hand and patted it twice. "Don't worry, even if the sky falls, I'll hold it up. Anyway, as long as you have hands, you won't starve. My initial plan is to open a fruit shop."
Zhong Wan was surprised by how quickly he planned things out. "Did you already have this in mind, or was it just something you said offhand?"
"I've been thinking about this for a while now, and this is the best fit for me."
She sighed worriedly, "But it would require a lot of initial capital."
Opening a shop is not like setting up a stall; one wrong step can lead to heavy losses.
"I know what I'm doing, I'll tell you when I've thought it through."
"OK."
"..."
The two stayed in the bedroom for a long time, almost forgetting about the three children outside. Zhong Wan said, "Let's go out to eat. I saved some for you."
"Have you got a meal yet?"
"No, I don't have an appetite. Just give me a couple of bites from your food later."
Zhong Wan and Chu Qinghuai walked out of the bedroom together.
"Mother."
Mu Mu called out to her from the dining table, and Zhong Wan responded, asking if she had finished eating.
"I've finished eating, but Cai Cai and Xiao He haven't."
After finishing her meal, Mumu didn't run around. She sat quietly in her high chair and even acted as a little judge for her younger siblings, because the two of them had just been arguing again.
Zhong Wan noticed that Cai Cai's rice in the three small bowls was barely touched, and there were still vegetables and meat. It was exactly as it was when she left. Moreover, the little green vegetable baby was sullen and gripped the spoon tightly with her right hand, as if she was holding her breath.
"What's wrong now? Did Xiaohe steal her brother's food?"
She asked the question skillfully, clearly having encountered this situation more than once. Chu Qinghuai pulled out a chair and sat down, ignoring it. Usually, he wouldn't make a sound to interfere with her educating the child.
Cai Cai remained motionless, extremely irritable, refusing to eat or speak. Zhong Wan placed a piece of meat in his bowl, saying, "Eat quickly, it's getting cold."
He remained motionless, while Xiao He, pretending to be silly, ate with great gusto, repeatedly exclaiming "yummy, so delicious!" to stimulate Cai Cai's sense of smell and hearing.
"Xiao He, tell me, what exactly happened?"
She snorted. Her mother was right; she had indeed taken a piece of meat from Cai Cai's bowl.
"Why? There's still plenty left in the bowl. If you need more, you can get some from the bowl."
"No, it was Xiao Qingcai who knocked the meat out of my bowl onto the floor first." So it wasn't unreasonable for her to eat a piece of the other person's food.
Zhong Wan was taken aback and couldn't refute it for a moment.
"You can't do that. If Cai Cai did it on purpose, then you can do it, but if he didn't do it on purpose, he'll be sad if you take his meat away from him."
She only vaguely understood what she was hearing.
Chu Qinghuai was eating on the side when he saw his daughter's curious expression and couldn't help but interject, "Not everything is right or wrong. We should learn to be generous. If you break a piece of meat, just take another one. There's no need to snatch it from others."
Compared to Mom, Dad's words were really unpleasant.
Zhong Wan reminded him not to say that, "Don't listen to your dad's nonsense. Being generous isn't always the best thing to do. Politeness is more important. There's nothing wrong with being generous or not. People like any personality, but we shouldn't make the people we like sad."
She put more vegetables and meat back into the bowls of her two little ones and said to them, "Next time, if you feel uncomfortable or dissatisfied with anything, you must tell Mom and Dad first. Arguing won't solve the problem, but Mom and Dad can resolve your unhappiness, understand?"
They nodded.
"The food in their bowls is just so delicious." She knew that no amount of reasoning would work at this moment; it would just go in one ear and out the other. So she said a few words as a token gesture. It was not surprising that the three children would sometimes fight over a broken toy.
With two extra pieces of meat in his bowl, Cai Cai finally "forgot about the past" and wolfed down his food with his little spoon. His little mouth chewed like a squirrel's, chewing and chewing, averaging twenty chews per bite before swallowing. Then he would continue to fill his mouth with a big mouthful of rice. Watching him eat could really whet one's appetite.
Chu Qinghuai observed Cai Cai's expression, from initial displeasure to now only knowing how to eat. Chu Qinghuai wanted to laugh, but he had no way to deal with his dramatic little girl. He teased her, "Aren't you ashamed? You're being so stingy with your little sister."
"Cai Cai didn't." He practically buried his head in the bowl, refusing to admit it no matter what.
Any time, any place, any two kids, they start arguing every time they yell "woof!" What's even funnier is that Cai Cai and Xiao He can never beat Mu Mu, and the two younger ones don't dare to team up against her.
After eating and drinking her fill, Mu Mu pushed her chair next to Zhong Wan and leaned against her. Thinking that her mother's words were true, she nodded in agreement: "Delicious, delicious."
Her younger siblings couldn't compete with her for food, but she could steal theirs. Mumu grew the fastest and is now taller than a five-year-old. Zhong Wan was very satisfied, but every day Zhong Wan would still say, "Baby, eat more."
...
This is Zhong Wan's first time raising children, and she's raising three at once. But she can't treat them like triplets because they are different in age, personality, and appearance. Their future growth trajectories will likely be different as well. So she and Chu Qinghuai thought they should let nature take its course and treat the three of them as three separate individuals, which has resulted in the current situation where they communicate with each child in a different way.
However, it can be completely guaranteed that the parents' love for their children is consistent.
When it was time to take a shower at night, for some reason Cai Cai didn't want to shower. When asked if he felt uncomfortable anywhere, he said no. Even after I took off all my clothes, I still managed to get him to escape from the bathroom, running and giggling as if he were playing a game.
Mumu, who was taking a bath, sat on the bed, puzzled. He asked Caicai what was wrong, and she replied, "I don't want to take a bath. Little green vegetables can't take baths."
Where did this fallacy come from?
Zhong Wan, who was splashed with water, stood up and rushed out to catch him, saying, "I'll count to three, then come and take a shower."
"one."
"Mom, Cai Cai doesn't want to take a bath."
He still refused, his upper body bare, his skin appearing even more delicate and fair under the light, so bright it hurt Zhong Wan's eyes.
"Why not wash? Children who don't bathe are all dirty and can't sleep in bed. They'll turn into smelly garbage."
This wasn't just a scare tactic; if Zhong Wan, who has severe mysophobia, found that a child hadn't bathed for several days, she would definitely have the urge to throw him out.
Over the past few months, her standards have been dropping drastically as she spends time with the children. Sometimes she doesn't even mind bringing several living room toys onto the bed. Isn't that enough?
Children's ideas can be respected in other matters, but not in personal hygiene. They must brush their teeth twice a day and do so carefully. They must use hand sanitizer to lather their hands before meals and wash their bodies and change into clean pajamas before going to bed.
The babies had been doing well before, but for some reason, Cai Cai and Xiao He have become a bit lazy lately and don't even want to take a bath anymore. I can understand Mu Mu not wanting to brush her teeth, since she can't spit out water yet, so it won't be a problem if she takes her time.
...
Zhong Wan stood in the middle of the living room, staring at Cai Cai who was hiding behind the curtains. "Hurry up, if you don't wash, I'll go wash your sister, and then you won't be sleeping with us anymore."
"Cai Cai is a little green vegetable, she doesn't take a bath."
"You're a child now, so you need to take a bath."
"No, I won't wash it."
"I need to wash it."
Chu Qinghuai was doing laundry when he heard the noise and poked his head out. Seeing the two of them locked in a stalemate, he naturally had to help his wife. So, without saying a word, he quietly walked to the balcony when Cai Cai wasn't paying attention, grabbed her, and with a "Ah!" Cai Cai pouted and complained, "No, no!" Chu Qinghuai simply picked up the baby and carried her to the bathroom.
"Time to wash the vegetables."
Zhong Wan met his gaze and gave him an approving look.
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