Chapter 114 : I Want a Silver Bracelet  

Fang Xiaoluo prepared beef noodles for dinner.  

When Shen Zheng returned, the aroma filled the room.  

“Is that stewed beef?” Shen Zheng asked while washing his hands.  

Fang Xiaoluo brought the noodles to the table. “Beef noodles. I spent the whole afternoon stewing the beef, the soup is perfect for this.”  

Shen Zheng dried his hands and hurried over to serve the noodles.  

The large chunk of beef atop the noodles looked incredibly appetizing.  

“Why didn’t you rest more today? Cooking like this must’ve been exhausting.”  

Fang Xiaoluo replied, “I left it to simmer in the pot, and my mother kept an eye on it. I managed to nap for a while.”  

Shen Zheng grabbed chopsticks and asked, “Where’s Haiping? How is he doing now?”  

Before Fang Xiaoluo could answer, Shen Haifeng brought Shen Haiping and Shen Jinxia into the room.  

Shen Haiping greeted softly, “Dad.”  

Shen Zheng froze, realizing something was different. He crouched down and looked at his son. Shen Haiping’s gaze was no longer distant.  

“What did you just say?” Shen Zheng asked.  

“Dad,” Shen Haiping repeated softly. “I felt like I had a very long dream. This morning, when I saw my sister, I woke up from it.”  

The chopsticks in Shen Zheng’s hand clattered to the floor as he pulled Shen Haiping into his arms.  

“Good, good… everything will be fine now that you’re awake.”  

The little boy hugged Shen Zheng’s neck in return.  

Shen Zheng took a deep breath, trying to suppress his overwhelming emotions.  

Watching this, Fang Xiaoluo noticed Shen Zheng’s eyes glistening red. She bent down to pick up the fallen chopsticks.  

“First it was your mom smashing bowls in the morning, and now you’re dropping chopsticks. What’s with this house? Good thing you weren’t holding the noodles, or that would’ve gone to waste too.”  

Shen Zheng, still emotional, guessed that his mother had probably reacted just like he had.  

Standing up, he suddenly hugged Fang Xiaoluo tightly, whispering a heartfelt “Thank you” into her ear.  

Shen Jinxia and Shen Haiping stood there wide-eyed, staring at them.  

Quickly, Shen Haifeng pulled the two children aside, turning them around.  

Shen Jinxia kept trying to peek back. “Big brother, what are they doing?”  

Shen Haifeng whispered, “Don’t look.”  

“Why not?” Shen Jinxia asked loudly.  

Shen Haifeng covered her mouth and said, “It’s not something you need to see.”  

Shen Jinxia pushed his hand away. “But I think it’s nice! Daddy is good-looking, Mommy is pretty, too. Oh, and big brother, didn’t you say last time that when Daddy hugs Mommy, Mommy gets excited? That’s love, isn’t it?”  

Shen Haifeng: …  

Fang Xiaoluo broke free from Shen Zheng’s embrace and walked over. She grabbed Shen Haifeng and asked, “Love? Excited?”  

Scratching his head nervously, Shen Haifeng replied, “Mom, that’s not what I meant…”  

Fang Xiaoluo glared at him. “You seem to know a lot these days. By the way, when are your final exams?”  

She caught him off guard. “Next Friday,” he mumbled.  

“Perfect,” Fang Xiaoluo said, smiling. “Use this rare opportunity to get more homework done today.”  

Shen Jinxia blinked her big eyes and leaned toward Shen Haiping, whispering, “Did I say something wrong just now?”  

Shen Haiping didn’t quite understand all of this either, so he could only shake his head.  

The whole family sat down to eat together. The soup was flavorful, the meat was aromatic, the beef was tender and rich, and the noodles were perfectly chewy. It was incredibly delicious.  

Zheng Lanhua placed the beef from her bowl into Fang Xiaoluo’s bowl and said, “You’re still young. It’s harder for me to digest. You eat it.”  

Shen Haifeng also added the beef from his bowl to Fang Xiaoluo’s, saying, “Mom, I don’t want to eat too much meat. It’ll make me sleepy and mess up my homework.”  

Shen Jinxia scooped some beef onto a spoon and passed it to her. “Then I’ll give mine to Mom too. After eating it, you’ll be even more beautiful.”  

Not to be left out, Shen Haiping also pushed his beef to Fang Xiaoluo. “Sister, you eat it.”  

Shen Jinxia corrected him, “Second brother, now that you’re better, you can’t call her ‘sister’ anymore. This is Mom, our wonderful mom.”  

Shen Haiping blushed, hesitated for a moment, and finally gathered the courage to say, “Mom.”  

Fang Xiaoluo smiled warmly. “That’s wonderful. At my age, I have two amazing sons and a beautiful daughter at home. How many people would envy me?”  

Shen Zheng picked up a piece of beef and offered it directly to Fang Xiaoluo’s mouth. “It’s not others who should envy you, it’s us they envy.”  

Fang Xiaoluo ate the piece of beef and said, “That’s true. After all, no one else is as young and beautiful as me, right?”  

Shen Zheng smiled. “Absolutely right.”  

Looking at the pile of beef in her bowl, Fang Xiaoluo passed the remaining noodles to Shen Zheng. “Since you all don’t want to eat, I won’t hold back. Here, have some more noodles.”  

Watching Fang Xiaoluo savor the beef piece by piece, the entire family couldn’t help but smile.  

—

After dinner, Fang Xiaoluo kept her promise to tutor Shen Haifeng and assigned him a lot of homework.  

Meanwhile, Yu Feixu showed up, peering through the window. After staring at Shen Haifeng for a while, he called out, “Why are you so slow? I’ve been waiting forever!”  

Shen Haifeng rubbed his forehead and replied, “You guys go play. My mom gave me a ton of homework today. I’ll probably be stuck with it until midnight.”  

Yu Feixu muttered, “Did you do something to make your aunt mad?”  

Shen Haifeng didn’t respond and simply waved him off. “Just go already.”  

Yu Feixu grinned. “Then lend me your water gun to play with.”  

Shen Haifeng handed him the water gun.  

Yu Feixu shook the toy happily and said, “I’ll bring it back tomorrow.”  

—

Elsewhere, Yu Xiaopang wasn’t out playing that night. After dinner, he stuck close to Han Weiping, following her everywhere she went.  

While cleaning the kitchen, Han Weiping noticed and asked, “Yu Xiaopang, you’re acting strange today. Why aren’t you playing outside? Why are you following me around?”  

Yu Xiaopang glanced cautiously at Yu Xinzheng, who was sweeping the yard outside, ensuring he couldn’t hear their conversation. Then, lowering his voice, he said, “Mom, I want something. Can you buy it for me?”  

Han Weiping wondered what kind of treat her son had in mind. “Tell me, what food have you set your eyes on this time?”  

Yu Xiaopang waved his hands quickly. “No, it’s not food.”  

Now Han Weiping was really curious. “Then what is it?”  

Yu Xiaopang leaned in and whispered, “Mom, can you buy me a silver bracelet?”  

“A silver bracelet?” Han Weiping repeated, confused. “That’s expensive. You’re just a kid, what do you need it for?”  

Yu Xiaopang replied earnestly, “I want to give it to Xiaxia. I need to give it to her as soon as possible. If the first silver bracelet she ever gets is from me, she’ll treasure it for the rest of her life!”