Chapter 195 Cake
The cake was placed on the table in front of Xiaoman. Gu Xiao lit a candle, and the flame flickered gently.
Xiaoman curiously stretched out her little hand, but as soon as her fingertips touched the flame, she quickly pulled it back and burst into tears.
The adults didn't have time to react; they were stunned for a moment, then they all burst into laughter.
Zhou Anping quickly picked him up: "Blowing on it will make it stop hurting. Auntie will blow on your little hand. Which finger is it?"
Xiaoman, with tears welling up in her eyes, held up that finger and cried out in grievance.
Zhou Anping held his little hand and gently blew on it a few times to coax him.
Nan Zhiyi came over and encouraged her son: "Xiaoman, blow it out yourself?"
The child whimpered and snuggled into Zhou Anping's arms.
In the end, Gu Xiao had no choice but to extinguish the candles himself and start cutting the cake.
He handed the first piece of cake to Nan Zhiyi.
In his heart, this day was a day of suffering for his wife, and he felt that it was not a day to celebrate. However, Nan Zhiyi insisted on celebrating the child's birthday, so he had no choice but to agree.
He took a small piece of the second cake and placed it in front of his son, saying, "Eat up, you little rascal. You can eat cake thanks to your mother."
Xiaoman couldn't understand, but she looked at the cream cake in front of her with curiosity.
Zhou Anping scooped up a little with a small spoon and fed it to him.
The moment it entered her mouth, Xiaoman smacked her lips, instantly forgetting her earlier fright, and started waving her arms and legs excitedly, "Tsk!"
Zhou Anping then began to serve this little darling, even neglecting to eat his own cake.
Nan Zhiyi quietly squeezed Gu Xiao's hand, and the two smiled at each other.
After dinner, Gu Xiao held Nan Zhiyi as they sat on the swing and looked at the stars, the new leaves of the grape trellis rustling in the night breeze.
Anping and Meng Qingshan were playing with Xiaoman in the living room, making her giggle from time to time.
Nan Zhiyi: "Anping really likes children..."
Gu Xiao: "Once they have their own kids, they'll realize that raising children isn't so simple."
"Oh, it seems our Minister Gu finds taking care of children very tiring?"
"It's so tough, even the wives have to be given away!"
Nan Zhiyi reached out to pat his chin, but he grabbed her hand and pressed it against his chest.
"There are only two shots left on the roll of film. I'll take more photos of you and Xiaoman in a couple of days. After that, we can get them developed."
Nan Zhiyi leaned on his shoulder and chuckled, "Master Photographer Gu, are you addicted to taking pictures?"
He lowered his head and kissed her: "I just wanted to preserve as many images of you as possible, so we can look at them slowly in the future..."
"good."
Meng Qingshan carried the drowsy Xiaoman out of the house, and Gu Xiao took his son and carefully carried him upstairs to sleep.
Nan Zhiyi escorted Zhou Anping and Meng Qingshan to the courtyard gate.
"How are the preparations for the performance going?" Nan Zhiyi asked Zhou Anping softly.
Anping's eyes shone: "The premiere is next Wednesday. I'll be dancing the lead role in 'The Red Detachment of Women.' I've been practicing extra hard these past few days, and it's finally paid off."
Meng Qingshan added from the side, "She's been practicing until 9 p.m. these past few days. If it weren't for Xiaoman's birthday today, she'd still be in the rehearsal hall right now."
Nan Zhiyi patted Anping's hand: "Don't overwork yourself, take care of your health."
"Okay!" Anping smiled and took Meng Qingshan's arm. "Let's go, Zhiyi, I'll bring you some show tickets later!"
Watching the two figures disappear into the distance, Nan Zhiyi smiled slightly.
The early summer evening breeze, carrying the fragrance of roses, brushed against her hair.
May passed quickly, and the weather got hot.
As dawn broke, Nan Zhiyi was awakened by the heat.
Gu Xiao hugged her tightly from behind, his body heat making her back sweat.
She gently struggled to push him away, but he only held her tighter.
"It's so hot..." she mumbled sleepily, raising her elbow to gently push him back.
Gu Xiao, still half asleep, reached out and touched her forehead, and sure enough, he felt a layer of fine sweat.
He loosened his embrace and checked his watch in the dim morning light; it was not yet five o'clock.
He got up to check on Xiaoman, who was also sleeping soundly with a sweaty face. He gently changed the thin blanket on his son's body into a small towel, then went downstairs to the warehouse to get the electric fan that had been stored away. It had been washed and covered with a cloth last summer, and now it was ready to use as soon as it was uncovered.
He placed the fan two meters away from the bed and turned it on to the lowest setting.
A gentle breeze blows, neither blowing directly at people nor obscuring the air, yet still creating airflow.
He squatted by the bed for a moment to feel the gentle breeze before returning to Nan Zhiyi's side.
"The fan is on, it's cooler now." He kissed her cheek. "I'm going to work."
Nan Zhiyi, still half-asleep, hugged his neck: "Thank you...you've worked so hard..."
Gu Xiao was reluctant to leave, and kissed her lips tenderly for a long while before carefully placing her arm down. He then went to the next bedroom to change into his military uniform, his movements so light they were almost inaudible.
What woke Nan Zhiyi was Xiaoman, who had been asleep for a long time. He was very clever and stood on his crib, calling out "Mom, Mom!"
Nan Zhiyi reluctantly got up, picked up her son, and went downstairs to eat breakfast. She first turned on the ceiling fan above the living room, which hummed and spun, bringing coolness.
As Sister Zhang came out of the kitchen, setting out the dishes, she said, "It's hot so early this year, it's only June. My shirt was soaked with sweat after just one trip to the market this morning."
She specially cooked mung bean porridge and served it with chilled cucumber salad.
Nan Zhiyi watched as Xiaoman drank milk from a bottle, her mouth smeared with milk stains.
She wiped her son's mouth with a handkerchief, while the light green fan above her head spun slowly, filling the room with the aroma of mung bean porridge.
"Yes!" Xiaoman suddenly said the word clearly, pointing her little finger to the steamed bun on the table.
Nan Zhiyi was pleasantly surprised and praised her son, "Xiaoman has learned another new word!" She broke off a small piece of steamed bun for him.
Xiaoman doesn't pick and choose the size of the steamed bun; she uses her few little teeth to nibble at it and eats it with relish.
After breakfast, Nan Zhiyi took her son to the yard to digest their food.
The grape trellis casts dappled green shadows, and the little guy wobbles as he chases after a butterfly.
The courtyard gate creaked open, and editor Lin Yuan stood at the entrance, briefcase in hand, his glasses gleaming in the sunlight.
"Comrade Nan Zhiyi, am I disturbing you?" He smiled gently, his gaze sweeping over the neatly tidied courtyard, inwardly admiring that this young writer was not only a good writer, but also so capable in managing a household.
When Sister Zhang heard that guests had arrived, she put down her work and looked at Xiaoman to make it easier for Nan Zhiyi to entertain the guests.
Nan Zhiyi hurriedly welcomed Lin Yuan into the house: "No disturbance, you are welcome anytime."
Lin Yuan sat down on the sofa.
Nan Zhiyi went to make some tea and brought it over.
Lin Yuan took out two brand-new books from his briefcase: "These are newly printed single volumes. The publisher specifically asked us to send a few copies to the author for review first."
On the dark blue cover, the title is printed in large silver lettering, making it particularly eye-catching. Below it is her pen name, Huaiwei.
Nan Zhiyi gently stroked the cover, her fingertips tracing the textured surface: "It's really beautiful."
"We specially commissioned a teacher from the Academy of Fine Arts to design it," Lin Yuan said, adjusting his glasses. "The first print run is 30,000 copies, and it will officially go on sale early next month. The first batch of royalties will be settled around the end of July."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com