Chapter 26: Barley porridge? ! How can I let my child drink barley porridge every day!

“Oh? Is that so?” To the contrary, Jiang Wan gradually calmed down. She was a woman in a completely unfamiliar place, and when the little boy suddenly fainted at home with a fever, she had panicked. She was afraid something serious or even life-threatening might happen to the child.

But now, seeing Fu Jingchuan stand protectively in front of her without a second thought, Jiang Wan smiled and curved her eyes with a mix of comfort and surprise.

It seemed this rough military man, though a straight-laced brute, wasn’t exactly stupid. At the very least, he knew how to protect his woman!

Steadying herself, Jiang Wan thought carefully. She could already guess about eighty to ninety percent of what was really going on with Fu Chen. She raised her soft hand and gently pushed the man’s strong body aside, her voice soft and gentle:

“Jingchuan, don’t stop Comrade Meilin. I, Jiang Wan, absolutely hate being falsely accused. I’d really like to hear — where exactly did you get the idea that I harmed Fu Chen?”

“How did I harm him?”

“Hmph! Ever since you came to the Fu family, you’ve been making things difficult for me and my mother!” Meilin snapped. “You didn’t want us around. Who knows what kind of dirty tricks you’re plotting. Oh, right — my mom even said that you cooked, didn’t you?!”

“Hmph! You cooked and fed the kids, didn’t you? And then Fu Chen suddenly got sick! I bet you put poison in the food!”

“I know about the food,” Fu Jingchuan cut in before Jiang Wan could speak, frowning. “And I ate that food too.”

“W-What?!” Meilin hadn’t expected that Fu Jingchuan would also eat the food cooked by Jiang Wan. She was immediately stunned, her face flushing red, unable to respond.

Jiang Wan was also momentarily surprised. So that food really was eaten by Fu Jingchuan! This man had quite the appetite — she remembered there was still a whole plate of rice and plenty of dishes left over, but when she went back to the kitchen, even the sauce was nearly gone!

Could it be… he wasn’t getting enough to eat at the base?

But a battalion commander, hungry? Impossible.

Jiang Wan pursed her lips and turned her gaze to Fu Chen’s flushed little face. His skin was yellowish, and his skinny arms and legs looked very weak.

Her brows lifted slightly, and she turned to ask Director Wang, “Director Wang, could you please help us do a checkup?”

“Based on my experience, this child is most likely suffering from malnutrition!”

Director Wang had been too shocked to speak up during the earlier commotion, but hearing Jiang Wan now, she quickly returned to herself.

She adjusted her glasses and let out a long sigh. “Comrade Xiao Jiang, you’re absolutely right!”

“I didn’t want to interrupt just now, but you’re clearly experienced. I was just looking for the right chance to tell Battalion Commander Fu… In fact, I don’t even think we need to run tests!”

“Just look at this child — yellow-faced, thin and weak. It’s clearly malnutrition!”

There was a hint of sorrow in her eyes as she looked at Fu Chen’s tightly closed eyes, his long lashes fluttering slightly. She sighed again.

“Battalion Commander Fu, I’ve known about the condition of those two kids in your house for a while now…”

“I didn’t want to say anything before because I was afraid you’d feel guilty or blame yourself! But don’t be too hard on yourself — military men like you tend to be rough by nature, and with how busy you are, it’s understandable if the children slipped through the cracks. You’ve already done a lot for them!”

“… Mal… malnutrition…” Meilin’s face turned deathly pale. She unconsciously took two steps back and muttered the words under her breath, her body twitching slightly as if ready to flee.

How could Fu Chen have malnutrition…?

Sure, they hadn’t fed the kids anything special, but they’d never let them go hungry!

Jiang Wan noticed the guilty look on Meilin’s face. Her eyes narrowed slightly, and a glint of coldness flashed within. She let out a soft, mocking laugh and said:

“Director Wang was only half right!”

“Our Fu Jingchuan is a rough man — but his mistake was trusting the wrong people! He didn’t see that these two in the house have been skimming off the household budget, feeding the kids nothing but corn gruel every day!”

“Hmph! Forget malnutrition — if this keeps up for a few more years, the children might never grow properly again!!”

“W-What did you say?!” Fu Jingchuan furrowed his thick brows, his voice low and gruff.

“W-What?!” Director Wang was also stunned.

“Corn gruel?! How can anyone feed kids only corn gruel every day?!”

“… No, no! That’s not true! Jingchuan-ge, don’t listen to this woman’s nonsense — she’s lying! She’s trying to drive me and my mom out of your house so she can do whatever she wants! Jingchuan-ge, you can’t believe her!!”

Meilin was trembling all over.

But Fu Jingchuan’s eyes — deep and sharp like a beast — stared at her dead-on. There was suspicion and scrutiny in his gaze, and Meilin was so shaken her knees almost buckled.

Panic rising, she began spouting nonsense and tugged at her hair.

“… Dad… cough…”

Just then, the boy lying on the hospital bed, Fu Chen, weakly opened his eyes. His throat was so dry from the fever that even speaking hurt.

Just as he opened his mouth, he coughed twice.

Seeing this, Yuan Meilin was overjoyed! She quickly rushed to the bedside, grabbed little Fu Chen’s hand tightly, and coaxed him:

“Chenchen, Chenchen… hurry up, hurry up and explain to Auntie Yuan!”

“You can’t side with that bad woman, Chenchen!”

“Have you forgotten how kind Grandma Tang and Auntie Yuan were to you and Xiaoyan?!”

Yuan Meilin’s eyes were bloodshot, completely ignoring the fact that Fu Chen was still sick. She shook his small, fragile body roughly.

Fu Chen struggled to keep his dark eyes open, staring at her for a long while, then shifted his gaze to her hand, which was tightly gripping his.

His long lashes trembled slightly.

Suddenly, he felt that Yuan Meilin’s scent was really unpleasant, and her grip was so rough—it actually hurt!

Fu Chen lifted his eyes and looked at Jiang Wan, who stood not far away.

She looked worried, and was even wearing a dress that didn’t seem suitable for going out… Her two fair arms were fully exposed.

He suddenly remembered being carefully held in a warm, soft embrace while unconscious.

That sweet, gentle voice had kept calling his name.

Those warm, tender hands had gently stroked his head.

She had said:

“Fu Chen!! You little rascal!!”

“You’re not allowed to sleep!! Keep your eyes open, ahhh!! Open them!!”

“Ughhh, why is being a damn stepmom so hard, wuwuwu…”