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Two children stood together, with a clear difference in their physiques.
After exchanging the children’s names, Zhao Yu curiously asked Lu Tuan, “How old is Lu Tuan? Over two years old?”
“One month shy of two,” Ji Miandeng replied.
“Not even two yet? He’s so tall.” Zhao Yu was even more intrigued and said, “Kaixin is half a month younger but half a head shorter than him.”
[“Lu Tuan’s two dads are both tall! Lu Dalao and Ji Miandeng both have super long legs!”]
[“I was just about to say, doesn’t Lu Tuan feel scared of heights when Lu Dalao holds him? /confused]
Lu Tuan tilted his head while staring at Kaixin. His big eyes sparkled with some kind of plan before he suddenly turned to hug Ji Miandeng’s leg and sweetly said, “Papa, give the snacks to little brother~”
“Sure,” Ji Miandeng replied, amused by the child’s simple thoughts. He knew Lu Tuan wanted to eat the snacks himself but still teased him with a smile. “All of Lu Tuan’s snacks will be given to little brother to take home, okay? Such a good baby, learning how to share with friends.”
“No, no!” Lu Tuan anxiously shook his little head and raised his face, trying hard to explain, “Lu Tuan is not a ‘good baby’; one for brother, one for me.”
Lu Chen found this amusing. Lu Tuan was definitely not a child who could be easily swayed by excessive praise.
Ji Miandeng squatted down to meet Lu Tuan’s eyes, pretending to be confused. “Giving it to little brother is sharing, but what reason do you have to eat snacks? Papa has confiscated Lu Tuan’s snacks, remember?”
Hearing this, Lu Tuan’s little face fell. His mini-version facial features, so similar to Lu Chen’s, showed an exaggerated mix of surprise, grievance, and urgency.
Ji Miandeng pretended to take out the snack he had retrieved from Lu Tuan’s pocket and was about to hand it to Kaixin when Lu Tuan panicked. An idea popped into his little head, and he raised a short finger, exclaiming, “Lu Tuan knows! Baby is good, so reward!”
Lu Tuan clasped his hands together, making a gesture as if to receive something. His clear, big eyes stared pitifully at Papa, and he softly chanted, “Lu Tuan is good, reward, sharing is good!”
Ji Miandeng was so charmed by the child’s clever and adorable reaction that he gave in and handed over two fish sausages. “Here, share with your little brother, okay?”
Kaixin quietly observed the entire commotion from Big Daddy’s arms. Lu Tuan dashed over and handed Kaixin one of the sausages.
As the fish sausage was held out to him, Kaixin extended his little hand to take it.
Zhao Yu prompted the child in his arms, “Say thank you to your big brother.”
Kaixin obediently replied, “Thank you.”
Lu Tuan, chewing on his fish sausage, waved his little hand happily from where he leaned against the bed. “You’re welcome~”
[“What brand of sausage is this? Can a 288-month-old baby eat it?”]
[“Lu Tuan: Thank you, little brother.”]
[“Lu Tuan probably thinks his little brother is the god of wealth. Snacks confiscated earlier are suddenly available again. Dying of laughter.”]
After getting his snacks, Lu Tuan generously shared his toys with Kaixin, and the two children started playing together.
Meanwhile, Zhao Yu began reminiscing about filming together with Ji Miandeng in the past.
Ji Miandeng didn’t miss the hint of showiness in Zhao Yu’s tone. The two of them hadn’t been particularly close back then; by the time Zhao Yu’s career was rising, Ji Miandeng had already left the industry. Not entirely understanding his intentions, Ji Miandeng casually changed the subject.
Talking about kids was always a safe bet.
Before long, there was another knock at the door.
Zhao Yu paused his conversation and went to open the door, explaining, “It might be Xiao Jing, my husband.”
Sure enough, it was Jing Fan, who had come to fetch Zhao Yu and Kaixin. As soon as he entered, his body language unconsciously leaned toward Zhao Yu, signaling his dependence, and he politely greeted Ji Miandeng and Lu Chen.
His behavior was restrained, and he didn’t fake friendliness toward Ji Miandeng.
Lu Chen silently observed the two.
The protagonist shou had been pampered since childhood and never encountered much hardship, but in the matter he cared about most—love—he had always been overshadowed by Ji Miandeng. Moreover, that shadow extended to the protagonist gong’s most important career aspirations as well.
Zhao Yu had often been told, “If Ji Miandeng were still around, you wouldn’t be winning awards,” while Jing Fan was frequently labeled as the “low-budget Ji Miandeng.”
Naturally, when they appeared on the same show, there were unspoken competitive undertones.
In novels that favored the protagonist, even minor details could reveal their unease with Ji Miandeng. For them, stepping over Ji Miandeng’s achievements brought more joy than success itself.
Lu Yan had described Ji Miandeng’s role as a mere cannon fodder, but to the protagonists, he was their antagonist.
Now Lu Chen was starting to understand.
In the original storyline, the contrast between Ji Miandeng’s miserable state and the protagonist’s happiness served as a significant satisfaction point for readers.
The satisfaction was akin to meeting an ex-boyfriend while all dolled up and holding hands with a younger, attractive partner.
However, Lu Chen wasn’t going to give them that chance now.
After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zhao Yu cheerfully suggested, “How about we have lunch together? It’s already 12:30, and the kids must be hungry.”
Lu Chen politely declined, “I still have some work to finish.”
In the original story, during lunch, Zhao Yu casually mentioned Ji Miandeng’s food preferences, which sparked rumors linking the two on social media. Zhao Yu’s persona as an honest, loving husband with a clumsy tongue made people think he was harmless, and instead, the uninformed public criticized Ji Miandeng for crashing their table.
To avoid any risk, there was no need to share this meal.
Ji Miandeng wasn’t particularly eager to join them either. He wasn’t on the show to rekindle nonexistent friendships with former colleagues he barely knew, so he echoed Lu Chen’s sentiment, “We’ll go later. Lu Tuan isn’t hungry right now. You two should take Kaixin to eat quickly.”
The protagonist and his partner left with their child.
Ji Miandeng picked up Lu Tuan, who waved goodbye to his younger brother.
The show Grow Up With You was essentially a slow-paced reality program, naturally documenting the everyday lives of three families. Visiting other families’ homes was optional, not mandatory.
Declining the invitation to eat together was completely reasonable.
On camera, Lu Chen gave the excuse of work and opened his laptop to reply to a few unimportant emails.
Meanwhile, Ji Miandeng and Lu Tuan sat on the bed playing with puzzles without disturbing him.
Since his younger brother left, Lu Tuan had seemed distracted. The little boy wasn’t great at hiding his emotions, and even while playing, his thoughts wandered.
Ji Miandeng pressed a puzzle piece into a corner and casually asked the small figure beside him, “What are you thinking about?”
“Why don’t I have a little brother or sister?” Lu Tuan responded earnestly, sighing like an adult. In his soft, childish voice, he added, “Xiao Shu has a younger sister. Xiao Shu said, if Mommy and Daddy sleep together, there’ll be a younger sibling, but you—”
Before he could finish, Ji Miandeng quickly covered his mouth. Off-camera, his eyes clearly said, Stop talking, but his voice remained gentle as he replied, “One baby in our family is enough.”
【Let Lu Tuan speak! We need this for the drama!】
【Are you saying you and Daddy sleep together but still don’t have a sister? Lu Tuan, tell Auntie quietly if that’s what you meant!】
【Ahhh, Lu Tuan, since you’re already talking, spill it all! Ji Miandeng, this is pure couple goals! If it were me, work wouldn’t even cross my mind!】
【This is the longest sentence Lu Tuan has ever said. His grievance must be deep—cry-laugh emoji—but is he mad they won’t have another sibling or because he has to sleep alone? /doge】
…
The comments spiraled wildly off-topic from Lu Tuan’s half-finished sentence, far from the actual truth.
In reality, from the moment Lu Chen appeared on the show, no one doubted Ji Miandeng’s reasons for leaving the entertainment industry.
With a husband and child like this, who wouldn’t wake up laughing from their dreams?
Is work more important than family?
No. Definitely not.
Once preconceived notions take hold, they can cloud rational thinking.
Even a meaningless passing glance could be edited into a couple moment, so finding sweet moments in the life of an actual married couple was practically the audience’s specialty.
Lu Tuan took his little dad’s words quite literally. He stopped worrying about siblings and threw himself into Ji Miandeng’s arms, his eyes sparkling as he said, “Little Daddy only loves me~”
As long as the topic of siblings didn’t come up, Ji Miandeng hugged him with one arm and nodded, “That’s right.”
“And Big Daddy only loves me too!” Lu Tuan added, shaking his little head for emphasis.
“Yes, that’s absolutely correct,” Ji Miandeng affirmed.
Lu Tuan kicked his little feet happily, floating in his own bubble of joy.
Well then… maybe there’s no need for a little brother or sister after all.
【Tuan, don’t believe your dad’s lies! Your Big Daddy loves your Little Daddy the most, and your Little Daddy loves your Big Daddy the most. /doge】
The room wasn’t large, but even though they kept their voices low, their conversation still clearly reached Lu Chen’s ears.
So this was how Ji Miandeng raised his child—no wonder Lu Tuan could get along with the CEO.
Lu Chen thought to himself as he shut down his computer and turned to the father and son, asking, “Shall we go eat now?”
“Okay.” Ji Miandeng glanced at the closed computer and after a brief pause, asked, “Are we coming back after eating? I found out there’s an animation performance at two o’clock. I want to take Lu Tuan to see it. Do you want to come?”
When Lu Tuan heard about the performance, he clapped his little hands.
The trip was originally just for playing with Lu Tuan.
Lu Chen replied, “We won’t be coming back.”
Ji Miandeng knelt up and said, “I’ll pack up Lu Tuan’s things.”
The lunch at the hotel was surprisingly good. The kids’ food was cute and thoughtfully prepared. Lu Tuan held his spoon and ate earnestly. The director might have noticed Lu Tuan’s eating talents, as they had a special camera angle just for him while he ate.
Unlike in the original story, this meal was a pleasant one for the three of them, and the comments were full of praise for the hotel.
In the theme park, there were places everywhere where they could borrow baby strollers. Since Lu Tuan couldn’t walk for long distances, his dad put him in the stroller and pushed him along.
The sunlight was warm today, and the theme park buildings looked somewhat dreamy in the sunlight, making everyone feel relaxed.
Lu Chen pushed the stroller while Lu Tuan lay back casually, looking around. Ji Miandeng, seeing Lu Tuan gazing lazily, turned to the camera and said, “I’m so curious about what Lu Tuan can see from his perspective. It must just be legs, right?”
Lu Tuan’s point of view.
Lu Chen felt a stir in his heart and said to Ji Miandeng, “We should get a camera for Lu Tuan so he can see things from his perspective.”
Ji Miandeng didn’t expect him to respond and glanced at him in confusion, asking, “A camera?”
“A mini camera attached to a pendant. It can capture the baby’s perspective,” Lu Chen raised an eyebrow. He’d seen videos like that before, even before coming here.
By the look on Ji Miandeng’s face, this place hadn’t seen anything like that yet.
【Baby’s perspective? That sounds interesting!】
【Is there really a CEO who spoils his wife and kids this much? I’m crying!】
【An immersive look at Lu Tuan’s life? @Grow Up With You, please make this happen!】
Ji Miandeng looked Lu Chen up and down for a few seconds. He wasn’t sure what he was thinking. Lu Chen, thinking Ji Miandeng had noticed something strange about him, casually glanced downward and said in a CEO-like, nonchalant tone, “What’s wrong?”
“It sounds good, actually. It seems interesting,” Ji Miandeng smiled slightly. After looking away, he furrowed his brows in confusion.
When they arrived at the performance venue, the show was about to start. Lu Tuan was held by Lu Chen, his big eyes wide open as he looked around.
During the performance, Lu Tuan was highly focused. When other children began to make noise, he wrinkled his little nose but remained unaffected.
After the performance ended, recalling the children’s noisy chatter, Lu Tuan tilted his little chin up and said, “Lu Tuan is good!”
Lhaozi[Translator]
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