Chapter 19: Words That Startle the World

We always impose our own presumptuous attitudes upon the world of children. Slowly, we come to realize that perception of the world knows no age; often, the world in a child's eyes is purer than we imagine.

Sometimes, a single inadvertent word can warm a person's heart.

Fan Beibei's childish frankness left Zhao Fusheng speechless, because he helplessly realized that the so-called fairy tales in his mind, strictly speaking, had little logic.

Thinking this, Zhao Fusheng gritted his teeth and said, "A tortoise can't outrun a rabbit on land, but in water, the rabbit can't swim as fast as the tortoise. This shows that when we do things, we must do what we are best at."

This story satisfied Fan Beibei. The little girl bit her fingernail, blinked her big eyes, and concluded, "So, Beibei can't compare height with brother."

"Why?" Zhao Fusheng was confused.

"Because brother is taller than Beibei," Fan Beibei said matter-of-factly.

Zhao Fusheng sighed. He felt that in the task of coaxing children, he still had a long way to go.

"Brother, can you sing 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star'?"

"Huh?"

"Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are..."

The childish voice rang out, and Zhao Fusheng suddenly felt his mood calm down.

After finishing the song, the little girl blinked at Zhao Fusheng: "Brother, you sing too!"

Zhao Fusheng, who was tone-deaf, dared not sing for the little girl. After thinking for a moment, his eyes lit up: "Beibei, how about big brother teaches you to draw?"

After all, as an advertising student, Zhao Fusheng was well-versed in various miscellaneous knowledge, especially drawing. Sometimes, when a good idea came to mind, he needed to draw it out. Although his drawing skills weren't professional, they were at least better than most people's.

"Drawing?" Fan Beibei looked at Zhao Fusheng with doubt in her eyes.

Zhao Fusheng chuckled, took out paper and pen, and sketched a few lines on the white paper. A simple portrait emerged: a princess dress, a round face, big eyes, and a smiling face.

"Wow, it's Beibei!"

Fan Beibei was amazed. For the little one, her awesome brother taking just a few minutes to draw a picture was a very impressive feat.

"How about it, Beibei? Is big brother awesome?" Zhao Fusheng asked with a smile.

"Mm-hmm, brother is really awesome!" Fan Beibei clapped happily.

Zhao Fusheng breathed a sigh of relief. He felt a great sense of accomplishment, as it was no easy feat to earn the little girl's admiration.

Their heads together, they began to doodle on the paper. Of course, Fan Beibei imitated Zhao Fusheng earnestly, while Zhao Fusheng guided the little girl.

When Li Yuan and Zhao's mother entered the room, they saw the two of them, one big and one small, playing happily together.

"Mommy." Beibei heard the door open, looked up, and upon seeing Li Yuan, was overjoyed.

Li Yuan's face was still pale. Hearing Beibei's words, she forced a smile: "Beibei, be good. Did you cause any trouble?"

"No, Beibei was very obedient. Brother taught me to draw..." The little girl wobbled over to her mother and began chattering about what she had done that afternoon.

Li Yuan gently stroked her head, then looked at Zhao Fusheng: "Fusheng, thank you for your trouble."

"It's nothing, Auntie, please sit down."

Zhao Fusheng invited Li Yuan to sit, then said to his mother, "Dad went to buy groceries. Didn't you and Auntie Li run into him?"

"He's downstairs playing chess with someone," Zhao's mother said, holding up the vegetables in her hand. "He gave us these."

Zhao Fusheng was now certain that his father was deliberately avoiding babysitting.

"By the way, why hasn't Baobao come back?" Zhao's mother suddenly remembered not seeing Fan Baobao and asked Li Yuan curiously.

Li Yuan shook her head: "She should be home soon."

For some reason, Zhao Fusheng felt that Li Yuan's complexion was even worse than when he last saw her.

He frowned, wanting to say something, but didn't know where to start. After all, he was just an ordinary person. Even though he had a bunch of foreknowledge as his "trump card," matters of life and death were beyond his control.

With a soft sigh, Zhao Fusheng had to hand Fan Beibei over to Li Yuan.

Zhao's mother cooked a big table of dishes herself. Fan Baobao and Zhao's father came upstairs together.

"Come, sit down and eat," Zhao's mother said cheerfully to everyone.

For her, seeing such a warm scene was undoubtedly very pleasing.

"So lavish, it smells delicious," Fan Baobao said happily. Having grown up in front of Uncle Zhao and Auntie Zhao, apart from that guy Zhao Fusheng, she had a really good relationship with them.

"You girl, go wash your hands." Zhao's mother tapped Fan Baobao on the head and said with a smile.

Watching Fan Baobao rub her head and obediently go to wash her hands, Li Yuan's smile grew a little wider. She gently rubbed her younger daughter's head and looked at Zhao's mother: "Baobao has many flaws. You'll have to be more tolerant in the future."

"What are you saying? I've watched this girl grow up. She's no different from my own daughter," Zhao's mother shot a glance at her good friend. "Just enjoy your blessings."

Given the relationship between the two families, such words were fine to say now.

Watching the expression on Li Yuan's face, Zhao Fusheng's heart stirred. He thought of something but didn't speak.

After all, before his rebirth, he was already past forty. Perhaps a young person might not notice certain things, but with his age and experience, if he observed carefully, he could still pick up some clues.

Li Yuan had a health problem!

That was Zhao Fusheng's judgment. Thinking this, he opened his mouth to speak, but Fan Baobao had already returned from washing her hands. Helplessly, he sighed and had to shut his mouth, planning to find an opportunity to remind his mother.

Li Yuan and her two daughters, plus the three members of the Zhao family, sat at the table eating. Occasionally, Fan Beibei acted cute, drawing laughter from everyone.

"Baobao, you'll be on summer break soon, right?" Li Yuan suddenly asked her eldest daughter.

Fan Baobao was startled, then nodded: "In less than a month, I'll be on break. What's up, Mom?"

"After the break, find some time to get your marriage certificate with Fusheng."

Li Yuan said calmly, as if stating something very ordinary.

Pfft!

Zhao Fusheng, who was eating vegetables, immediately choked. Rice grains sprayed out of his nostrils, making Fan Beibei laugh.

But he himself looked at Li Yuan in shock and blurted out, "Auntie, you're not joking, are you?"

"Yeah, Mom, what kind of joke is that?"

Fan Baobao herself couldn't believe it. She stood up immediately, her face flushed.

Zhao's father and mother were also bewildered, looking at Li Yuan in confusion, wondering what was wrong with her.

Li Yuan's expression was very calm. She looked at Fan Baobao and said slowly, "Fan Baobao, sit down."

Fan Baobao was taken aback. In her memory, her mother rarely spoke to her in such a serious tone, let alone call her by her full name. Whenever she spoke like this, it meant she was very serious.

With that thought, Fan Baobao obediently sat down, but her heaving chest still showed that her emotions were very agitated at that moment.

Li Yuan's gaze swept over the people in the room. "Old Zhao, we've known each other for quite a while. Fusheng is a child I've watched grow up; he's a good kid. Baobao, spoiled by me since childhood, has a bad temper, but her nature is good. I feel at ease entrusting her to Fusheng."

"Li Yuan, are you..." At this point, Zhao's mother also sensed something was wrong. Li Yuan sounded like she was giving her last words.

Li Yuan smiled bitterly, her gaze falling on her eldest daughter: "Fan Baobao, if you don't listen to me, from today on, you are no longer my daughter."

As these words were spoken, Zhao Fusheng clearly saw Fan Baobao's eyes turn red.