45
Before they went home, Lin Jiangqian repeatedly told Zhong Wan not to blame the babies, that it was her own fault for twisting her ankle because she wasn't walking properly, and that it had nothing to do with anyone else.
Zhong Wan agreed readily in front of her, but as soon as they got home, Chu Qinghuai cooked, and she sat seriously on the sofa, making the three children stand in front of her in a row.
Chu Qinghuai glanced towards the living room and immediately looked away. The heavy atmosphere seemed to be drifting towards him, and even he himself was a little scared, let alone the child.
On the way back, Zhong Wan's face was no longer smiling. She was heavy-hearted, worried about what would happen if the child really got lost, and angry that they had caused trouble for others.
Although it wasn't intentional, the damage had already been done, and she was furious. Her face darkened, and her expression tightened.
Why are you running around?
"Didn't Mom tell you that you can't leave the sight of your uncles and aunts, and that you can't run out to play without saying a word? What if you get hit by a car and fall down? Do you think you behaved well today?"
The three children remained silent, all looking down at their little feet. Cai Cai's face was flushed, and she looked like she was about to cry.
Xiaohe had her hands behind her back. Even though she didn't want to admit it, she knew that she had really misbehaved that afternoon.
Zhong Wan's gaze swept over the children and settled on Mu Mu: "Your older sister was very good today. She didn't run around and even told your uncles and aunts where Cai Cai and Xiao He were.
“But—” she emphasized, “you two did something wrong.”
Xiao He's eyes, which she had just raised, immediately drooped after hearing her mother's words, as if she were somewhat unwilling.
"Mumu, go play with your dad."
Zhong Wan has always been fair to every child. If something is right, it is right; if something is wrong, it is wrong. For Mu Mu, who is only three years old, her on-the-spot reaction is already quite remarkable. At least she didn't foolishly chase after her younger siblings.
The remaining two little ones are too naughty. I don't know how they could be so bold as to walk alone in a place where big trucks often appear.
She reminds the children almost every day not to sneak away to play, and only one of them listens attentively.
Lin Jiang is still under observation in the hospital. She feels guilty and scared when she goes there, and her mind is full of thoughts about her child. This sense of responsibility makes Zhong Wan feel even more apologetic.
"Where did you go?" Zhong Wan asked with a serious expression.
“Pick up the painting,” Cai Cai answered softly.
“You could have picked up the paintings, but why didn’t you tell your aunt and uncle beforehand? They didn’t know you went to pick up the paintings, and when they saw that Cai Cai was missing, they were very worried, weren’t they?”
"Cai Cai forgot." He blinked his wet eyes, and it wasn't hard to tell that he was about to cry.
Children's brain capacity is limited. They usually have a goldfish-like memory and are good at concentrating on doing one thing well. It's unrealistic to expect too much.
Zhong Wan was very angry when she was in the hospital, but now that she has calmed down and is discussing the matter with the children, her anger has dissipated.
Especially when she saw the children pitifully accepting her lecture and admitting their mistakes, she thought: Oh well, they're still young. They'll grow out of it. At worst, I'll just follow them around every step of the way from now on.
But that's impossible. There are countless safety hazards in life, and someone will always get injured over something very small. Even adults are not immune.
Zhong Wan patiently explained the reasons to them, and no matter how much they listened, she still said, "Next time, please don't sneak out to play by yourself, okay? Your parents will worry, and your uncles and aunts will worry too."
She originally wanted to scare them with bad guys and monsters, but then decided against it, wanting to leave the children's world with 100% kindness and beauty.
“Mom, I promise you,” Cai Cai said.
Zhong Wan nodded, then shifted her gaze to Xiao He and asked, "And what about you?"
"I promised Mom too."
"Yes, you are good babies."
If you don't do well, you will be punished. Zhong Wan still wanted to use this incident, which could be big or small, as a warning and punished Cai Cai and Xiao He by not letting them eat snacks for a week.
The two of them felt as if the sky had fallen upon hearing this.
...
While her mother was disciplining her younger siblings, Mumu stayed by her father's side. Chu Qinghuai gave her a small stool, and she sat on the floor washing cherry tomatoes, splashing her hands in the water and having a great time. She was very clever and knew not to spill water on the floor, so she played very carefully.
Chu Qinghuai was worried about her other two babies, and would look up from time to time to check on them. She couldn't even concentrate on cooking.
He squatted down next to Mumu and emphasized to her, "You did well today. Keep it up next time. Never act alone without an adult's supervision."
His concerns were not unfounded. The children gradually developed their own ideas, and as parents, how could they know what their children were thinking? If they spoke too harshly, they were afraid of hurting the children's feelings and self-esteem; if they spoke too lightly, the children would ignore them.
Being a responsible parent is really difficult.
After dinner, Chu Qinghuai went to the hospital to deliver food, while Zhong Wan stayed home to bathe and put the three children to sleep.
By the time he returned, the children were already fast asleep.
"Going to bed so early today?"
It was more than forty minutes earlier than usual.
"They must have been tired from playing. They shouldn't have gotten sick just because I said a few words to them."
Although she said it was nothing, Zhong Wan still straightened up and touched the foreheads of the three children. None of them were hot, and they had no fever or illness.
"I'll get up a few more times tonight to check," Chu Qinghuai said.
"Can."
Zhong Wan and Chu Qinghuai exchanged glances, and Zhong Wan sensed that he might want to say something. She got out of bed and went out with him.
The temperature is now warm enough to wear a short-sleeved shirt at night, and the two sat on the sofa talking.
"I'll take care of them tomorrow," Chu Qinghuai said directly, getting straight to the point.
Zhong Wan was taken aback. She had no choice but to agree. She would never take leave even if the sky fell, for the sake of the two hundred attendance bonus. Since Chu Qinghuai could make time to take care of the child, that was the best thing.
"Where are you taking them? Don't go to the construction site, it's too dangerous there."
"I'm not bringing anything with me, I'll just stay at home."
"Didn't you say you wanted to finish delivering the goods and get all the receipts signed in the last few days?"
"No, I can't wait any longer. I need to get the fruit shop up and running quickly so I won't have to worry about who will take care of the kids."
Ultimately, all the changes to the plan were for the sake of the children.
"Do as you please. I don't understand these things. Remember to take them to the hospital to see Sister Lin tomorrow. After all, Sister Lin really likes them. She suffered a great loss this time. I'm so sorry to her."
"I know."
The saying "the son pays for the father's debts" is really true. No matter what mistakes one's own child makes, he should be the one to take the blame.
"..."
Do you think I'm fierce?
The two discussed education, and Zhong Wansheng worried that the little incident at home might have been too intense and had a psychological impact on the children.
"Of course I don't think it's fierce."
The implication is that it is ominous for children.
"Why? Do you think they were scared?"
"A little bit. Mumu said she didn't want to make her mother unhappy. Actually, they're not afraid, they're worried about your feelings."
"I thank them, I just want them to be safe." She collapsed onto the sofa, her head unconsciously tilting towards Chu Qinghuai.
"What should I do, Chu Qinghuai? Being a mother is so hard, and being a baby must be hard too. They must think this mother is really annoying and strict."
Chu Qinghuai simply peeled an orange for her to eat, and said with a smile, "How could that be? You are the best mother in the world."
I don't believe it.
“You didn’t take care of them from when they were babies. You’ve only recently adapted to your new role, so it’s really not easy for you to do this much. You’re the one they love the most.”
Zhong Wan took the orange segments he had broken into pieces and put them in her mouth. "Don't try to make me happy. They're just little kids, what do they know about love?"
"They're not stupid, how could they not know?"
Zhong Wan practically clung to him, the two of them snuggling close together. "So tell me, once they find their biological parents and return to that world full of monsters, will they still remember us?"
This topic is too painful and heavy; at least Chu Qinghuai is unwilling to face it now, and he doesn't want to answer it.
"I have no idea."
The mere appearance of those four words essentially foreshadows a future that will be forgotten.
"It's okay, I will always remember them, our baby."
"right."
The two of them shared an orange, then brushed their teeth and rinsed their mouths before finally climbing into bed to sleep.
So much happened in just a few hours, adding endless excitement to their otherwise mundane lives. The couple, used to an ordinary life, couldn't keep up for a moment, but they would gradually get used to it.
-
The next day, Zhong Wan went to work as usual, patiently reminding the children to "be careful and eat well."
"Mom, we understand."
The three children hugged and kissed her, as if nothing had happened yesterday, and said "bye-bye" to their mother as usual, starting a beautiful and fulfilling day.
They continued to have breakfast with their father, and Chu Qinghuai explained the day's itinerary: "Later we'll go to the hospital to visit Aunt Lin, play there for a while, come back at noon and Dad will cook for you, you can take a nap in the afternoon, then go out to work with Dad, and finally pick up Mom from get off work."
"Oh right, Mom said that Cai Cai and Xiao He can't eat snacks this afternoon, and they can't eat them tomorrow or the day after tomorrow either."
Cai Cai and Xiao He: "..." The steamed buns in their hands no longer smelled good.
"ah?"
They only know three days: yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Now it's like they're not getting any snacks every day, and Cai Cai and Xiao He are about to die of misery.
"That's it, this is punishment, so will you not run around again next time?"
"No, never again."
The two made a promise in exchange for snacks.
"Um."
After finishing his porridge, Chu Qinghuai got up to wash the dishes, leaving the three children still sitting in their chairs eating breakfast.
Where he couldn't see, Mumu was making a promise to her younger siblings: "I'll share snacks with you."
Of course, she gets her share.
"Wow, you're so nice, sister." Cai Cai covered her mouth and giggled secretly, with a sense of excitement like she was doing something naughty.
"But you must promise not to make Mom angry."
"Uh-huh."
Anyway, as long as they can eat well, I'll agree to any request they make now.
The three clever girls conspired to devise some ideas when their father wasn't looking, but as soon as he came back, they acted as if nothing had happened and "obediently" ate their breakfast.
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