229 I Almost Forgot
“Zhuang Zhuang.”

“Yes?”

Zhuang Zhuang pulled Xiaoyi to sit on the bed. When he heard XIaoyi’s voice, he tilted his head and looked at him.

“Have you become…” Xiaoyi thought for a moment and used a nicer term to describe it. “Swollen?”

“Huh??”

!!
Zhuang Zhuang bit his lower lip and looked at him in confusion. “Swollen?”

“No, I’m not swollen.” Zhuang Zhuang shook his head vigorously to show that he was not swollen.

Seeing that Zhuang Zhuang didn’t seem to understand what he was saying, Xiaoyi pursed his lips. Zhuang Zhuang might not be happy to hear that he had gained weight. After all, most people didn’t seem to like being called fat.

“Xiaoyi means that you’ve gained weight.”

As soon as she entered the house, Xiaoguo heard Xiaoyi’s tactful words. With her son being so clueless, she had no choice but to get straight to the point.

Zhuang Zhuang’s little heart was hurt by XIaoguo’s direct and cruel words. He looked at her with a hurt expression.

Xiaoguo didn’t even look at him. She put down the bag with difficulty. The weight was manageable, but she wondered what was inside to have filled up such a big bag!

Zhuang Zhuang bit his lip and looked at her aggrievedly, but he did not get the attention of the one who hurt him.

Xiaoyi looked at Zhuang Zhuang and hugged him tenderly. He looked accusingly at the woman who was only focused on drinking water.

“⊙∀⊙?” Xiaoguo had just taken a sip of water when she suddenly felt a chill. She turned around and saw an aggrieved gaze accompanied by another accusing look. What had she done?

“I’m going to cook.”

Xiaoguo found a random reason and ran away. As for telling Zhuang Zhuang that he was fat, she felt that it was better to tell the truth. The boy had to accept reality.

Seeing that Xiaoguo had disappeared, Xiaoyi raised his hand and stroked Zhuang Zhuang’s hair. “Good boy, Zhuang Zhuang, you’re still very cute. You’re round, smooth, fair, and tender.”

“Round? Xiaoyi, you are laughing at my weight too…”

“No, no. I was praising you for being cute!”

Xiaoyi quickly denied it. He really thought that Zhuang Zhuang was chubby and cute. The word “round” was just a modifier, it does not replace the key words.

“Cute? Really?”

When Zhuang Zhuang heard this, he stopped his whiny voice and looked at Xiaoyi with his wide eyes.

“Haha, so you’re not really crying. Stinky Zhuang Zhuang…”

There was no trace of moisture in Zhuang Zhuang’s widened eyes. As soon as he saw that he had been exposed, he immediately regained his composure. He hugged Xiaoyi and reached out to tickle him. This was something he had discovered when they were resting in the same bed. Xiaoyi’s entire body was his ticklish spot.

“Hahahaha, stop fooling around…”

The moment Zhuang Zhuang pounced on him, Xiaoyi surrendered. He had no choice. Zhuang Zhuang knew his weakness too well. He could find his ticklish spot every time. He had to surrender.

“Do you know, Zhuang Zhuang? I haven’t been so happy in a long time!”

Xiaoyi wiped his tears and leaned closer to Zhuang Zhuang.

Zhuang Zhuang tilted his head and asked curiously, “Why?”

“Because no one can be like you. There’s only one Zhuang Zhuang. I only like Zhuang Zhuang!”

Xiaoyi sincerely expressed his love for Zhuang Zhuang. Ever since Zhuang Zhuang left, it had taken him a long time to get used to life without him. The few days he spent with Zhuang Zhuang were his happiest days.

“Really? Didn’t your father find you a new friend?”

Zhuang Zhuang was very touched, but what did Xiaoyi do usually? Who did he hang out with? Didn’t he have any friends who were like Brother Xiaohu and Sister Xiaohua?

“He did, but I don’t like them because they’re too… too…” Xiaoyi racked his brains and thought of a term that his father always used. “What was it called again? Oh right!!”

“Hypocrite!”

Xiaoyi said those two words forcefully, startling Zhuang Zhuang. “Hypocrite?”

Xiaoyi nodded vigorously. The playmates that his father had found for him would lower their heads and bend their backs when they saw him. They would not dare to speak ill of him. If he were to point at something black and say that it was white, they would not refute him. They went along with him unconditionally. At first, he felt that it was fun and interesting, but gradually, he got tired of it. Those friends were no different from a puppet who could only nod and smile.

Therefore, during that time, he missed Zhuang Zhuang especially. He missed how he treated him as an equal. He missed how Zhuang Zhuang would scold him when he made a mistake. He missed how strict he was. He really missed Zhuang Zhuang too much!

With this thought in mind, Xiaoyi pounced on Zhuang Zhuang again. He hugged his friend, who was still in a daze, and rolled around on the bed. He was so happy!

—-

In the kitchen, Xiaoguo was cutting the vegetables. No matter what, Xiaoyi was an important guest. Moreover, he was here to celebrate Zhuang Zhuang’s birthday. She should make a few more dishes. Besides, Zhuang Zhuang’s birthday was not over yet. It would not be appropriate to put up a shabby dinner.

Although Xiaoyi had come in a carriage, he had been traveling for a few days after all. He must not have gotten much rest. In addition, the weather was cold, so XIaoguo decided to make a pot of soup for him to warm his body and calm his mind.

After covering the soup pot with a lid, Xiaoguo continued to prepare the other dishes. With one adult and two little ones, it would be a waste to prepare too many dishes. Therefore, in addition to the soup, she prepared stir-fried meat in sauce, a plate of scrambled eggs, and stir-fried bok choy. She also heated up five large steamed buns.

It was a simple meal with meat, vegetables, and soup. That should be enough for them.

As Xiaoguo cooked, she could hear the laughter of the two children in the house. With this special background music, Xiaoguo was especially motivated. After a while, the food was ready.

The two of them arrived at the same time when the food was ready. Just as Xiaoguo was scooping out the dishes, the two kids arrived at the kitchen together.

“Mother, we’re here to serve the dishes!”

Zhuang Zhuang pulled Xiaoyi to stand beside Xiaoguo and aimed at the steaming dishes beside the stove.

“How fragrant…”

Xiaoyi took a deep breath like Zhuang Zhuang and sighed.

The series of actions made Xiaoguo laugh. This child was still so genuine. She liked it…

“Alright, bring the dishes over.”

Xiaoguo handed the scrambled eggs to Xiaoyi and the meat to Zhuang Zhuang. The scrambled eggs were cooler, and the meat dish was slightly hot since it was fresh out of the pot.

As Zhuang Zhuang was used to serving the dishes at home, even though he was small, his hands were steady and he could handle the heat. However, the same could not be said for Xiaoyi. If he got scalded or hurt, it would be hard for her to explain herself. In addition if she was charged with insubordination, she could not imagine the consequences.

The boy’s father had given her so much trust by sending the child over. If she didn’t take good care of him, his father may vent his anger on Zhuang Zhuang or Jiang Danhe. If that happened, she would be done for.

Seeing that the two children had successfully reached the table, Xiaoguo felt relieved and brought the remaining dishes over.

They had dinner in the kitchen and did not return to the main hall. Although the stove was only two steps away from the table, she let the children do their jobs without interfering, so long as they were able to achieve a sense of accomplishment from the little tasks.

After putting down the casserole, Xiaoguo left the task of setting the table to the two kids. Having the children help with some manageable chores would also help to improve the family atmosphere.

The few of them finished their meal happily. Xiaoguo chased away the two kids who wanted to stay and help. She decided to clear up by herself and asked the children to go back to the room to play.

She quickly cleaned up the dishes and sealed the stove. After all, she wouldn’t be coming back to this room after dinner. It would be useless and wasteful if she stayed here any longer. She only turned on the stove when she was cooking and when she leaves the kitchen, she will seal the stove. This will keep the stove hot and help to save on charcoal. She was killing two birds with one stone.

When he returned to the house, Xiaoyi felt like there was something he had not done yet. However, perhaps because he had just eaten, his mind was in a daze and he could not remember anything. Since he was small, his brain capacity was limited. After thinking for a while, he decided to stop and focused on playing with Zhuang Zhuang instead.

When Xiaoguo entered the house to make the bed, Xiaoyi saw the bag that he was carrying on his back earlier and suddenly remembered what he had forgotten!