Chapter 27: The Solid Food Battle**

Over the next few days, Zhu Jia kept trying to feed Xiao Wen rice porridge. On the second day, Xiao Wen went out for a walk for a long time. He must have been very hungry because he managed to eat half of it. But by the third day, he started to pout his lips and turn his face away.

Every afternoon, Zhu Jia battled Xiao Wen, adhering to the mindset that “any bite is a victory.” She tried various tactics, coaxing and tricking him, sneaking spoonfuls of rice porridge into his mouth when he wasn’t paying attention.

Zhu Jia’s smile stiffened. This couldn’t be a long-term solution. The parenting books and online experts all said that children shouldn’t be fed like this, that they should develop good eating habits early on, enjoy their food fully, and gradually transition to adult food.

Zhu Jia: …Why do the words of parenting experts feel so different from reality?

Sighing heavily, Zhu Jia thought that the priority now was to get Xiao Wen used to this eating method. Maybe after a while, he’d just accept it?

In the following days, Zhu Jia took Xiao Wen to the park for long walks every morning, or let him swim in the small pool in the children’s room. It seemed helpful to burn some of his energy, as Xiao Wen’s appetite improved, and he could eat half a bowl each day.

After a week or so of this back-and-forth, Zhu Jia planned to add some vegetables to Xiao Wen’s rice cereal.

There’s a rule for adding new foods. You can only add one ingredient at a time and should monitor for any allergic reactions.

There’s also a recommended order for adding vegetables—start with root vegetables, then move on to leafy vegetables.

Zhu Jia made a schedule for Xiao Wen, planning to add a new ingredient every three days.

She also planned to make his food more varied, as introducing a range of tastes when young could help prevent picky eating and maintain a balanced diet.

Today, Zhu Jia decided to try sweet potatoes. Aunt Liu had already gone out in the morning and bought some beautiful, fresh sweet potatoes.

Zhu Jia peeled the sweet potatoes with a knife and cut them into small pieces.

She then steamed them for 20 minutes, and the sweet potatoes came out smelling fragrant and tender.

Zhu Jia placed the steamed sweet potato chunks into the food processor, added some warm water, and blended them into a puree. Mixing it into the prepared rice cereal, she made a bowl of light yellow sweet potato rice porridge!

“Ding! 200 points have been credited.”

Seems like this difficulty level of food preparation earns 200 points—quite simple.

Zhu Jia carried the sweet potato rice porridge out of the kitchen and saw that Mo Yichen had come downstairs at some point and was playing with Xiao Wen, who was sitting in his high chair.

Today, Mo Yichen had a rare day off. Zhu Jia had already seen him in the morning, so she wasn’t surprised to see him now.

“What’s this?” Mo Yichen frowned when he saw the pale yellow paste in Zhu Jia’s bowl.

“It’s sweet potato rice porridge. From today, we’re adding vegetables to the rice cereal.”

After Zhu Jia spoke, she raised her head and saw the frown and disdain in Mo Yichen’s eyes. Suddenly, she became irritated. “How can you not even know that he’s starting solid foods now, you father!”

Ever since Zhu Jia started feeding Xiao Wen solid foods, her temper had noticeably worsened, and she would often snap at the slightest thing.

Seeing Mo Yichen’s calm face made her even angrier. “You’re always working, working, working! From morning till night, you’re never around, and you don’t even care about your son!”

With a cold snort, Zhu Jia slammed the bowl onto the table and glared at the two sitting across from her.

Mo Yichen was confused by her sudden outburst, and Xiao Wen, sitting in the high chair, widened his eyes, looking innocent and pitiful.

Zhu Jia sat down next to Xiao Wen, still not in a good mood. She scowled and fed him a spoonful of sweet potato rice porridge. Xiao Wen seemed to be stunned by her attitude, but to her surprise, he obediently opened his mouth and ate the porridge.

Mo Yichen, seeing Zhu Jia’s stern face, said, “Why don’t I try feeding him?”

Zhu Jia glanced at him and noticed that there was a hint of appeasement in his usually indifferent expression. She felt a little better. “Can you?”

“Sure, I’ll feed him today.” Without another word, Mo Yichen took the bowl and spoon from Zhu Jia’s hand, turning Xiao Wen’s high chair to face him.

Well, Zhu Jia thought, let him do it. After feeding Xiao Wen for half a month, she was already getting fed up. The points were hard to earn. If Xiao Wen didn’t eat at least half, the system wouldn’t award the 500 points for feeding him solid foods.

Mo Yichen took the small silicone spoon, scooped up a spoonful of sweet potato rice porridge, and placed it in Xiao Wen’s mouth.

Xiao Wen suddenly made a gagging face, pushed the silicone spoon out of his mouth with his tongue, and spat out the food he had just eaten. A glob of yellow mush, mixed with saliva, landed on the bib in front of him.

“Mo Yichen, is your spoon going in too deep? That’s making Xiao Wen uncomfortable,” Zhu Jia pointed at the spoon in his hand.

“Oh… okay.” Mo Yichen sighed and scooped up another spoonful of sweet potato rice porridge, carefully feeding it to Xiao Wen this time. His more gentle approach finally worked, and Xiao Wen swallowed it down.

Relieved, Mo Yichen continued feeding him a few more spoonfuls. Just as it seemed like they might make it through half a bowl smoothly, Xiao Wen suddenly lost patience. He squirmed and tried to climb out of his chair.

Seeing his mischievous antics, Zhu Jia felt a surge of irritation bubbling up inside her.

To her surprise, Mo Yichen stood up at that moment. He wiped Xiao Wen’s mouth clean, removed the waterproof bib, and lifted him out of the high chair.

“He hasn’t finished yet! Why are you letting him down already?” Zhu Jia asked, perplexed.

“Let him play for a bit. We’ll try feeding him again later.” Mo Yichen carried Xiao Wen over to the living room sofa.

Zhu Jia looked at their retreating figures disapprovingly. This was far too indulgent! How would Xiao Wen ever learn to focus on eating if he developed such bad habits?

In the living room, the father and son played with some sensory balls. After a while, Xiao Wen’s attention shifted, and Mo Yichen brought him back to the high chair. This time, Xiao Wen seemed much more at ease. Mo Yichen put the bib back on him, picked up the unfinished bowl of sweet potato rice porridge, and continued feeding.

A frog toy sat on Xiao Wen’s table as he ate and played simultaneously. The feeding went smoothly, with only a quarter of the porridge left.

But then, an accident occurred. Xiao Wen lost his grip, and the frog toy fell to the floor.

Mo Yichen casually placed the bowl on the table in front of Xiao Wen and bent down to retrieve the toy. As he reached for it, Zhu Jia’s startled voice rang out, “Mo—Mo Yichen!”

Just as Mo Yichen began to lift his head, he felt a warm, mushy substance pour onto the top of it. The silicone bowl fell from Xiao Wen’s table, hitting his shoulder before rolling to the floor.

Mo Yichen: …

Raising his perfectly sculpted face—flawless from every angle—he pursed his lips slightly, exuding an air of cold elegance. That is, if one could ignore the strange yellow mush stuck to his hair.

Zhu Jia couldn’t help but clutch her stomach as she laughed to the point of tears. This was just too funny!

Bending over from laughter, Zhu Jia thought how she wished the author of the old-school angsty romance novel that had Mo Yichen as its male lead could see him now. Did the author know that her painstakingly crafted image of an elegant and noble man—a natural-born king—was currently covered in yellow goo?

The sticky porridge was impossible to clean off entirely. Some of it had clumped tightly with his hair, leaving stiff, hardened patches.

Still chuckling, Zhu Jia finally offered, “You should go wash your hair. I’ll clean up the mess.”

Mo Yichen glanced helplessly at the innocent yet adorable Xiao Wen, who seemed to realize his mistake and looked timidly at his father.

“Fine, I’ll take a shower.” After wiping Xiao Wen’s mouth with a wet wipe, Mo Yichen headed upstairs.

Feeling much lighter after her hearty laugh, Zhu Jia’s foul mood vanished. She glanced at Xiao Wen, who was now sitting obediently in his chair. There was only a quarter of the porridge left, which she decided was good enough for today.

Having completed his task, Xiao Wen earned an encouraging pat on the head before Zhu Jia lifted him out of the chair.

Not long after, Mo Yichen returned downstairs, fresh and steaming slightly from his shower. He and Zhu Jia sat across from each other at the dining table for lunch.

Mo Yichen was always a quiet eater. He made no noise while chewing, and his movements were composed and precise.

Seeing him reminded Zhu Jia of his earlier mishap, and her eyes twinkled with mirth as she struggled to suppress her laughter.

Noticing her amused expression, Mo Yichen looked up. Her small, pink face, bright eyes, and smiling lips exuded cheerfulness.

He took a few sips of chilled sour plum juice, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed.

“In a few days, I want to invite Liang Sisi over with her family. You’ve met them before—they live next door,” Zhu Jia said, figuring it was only polite to inform him since it was his house.

“Sure, whatever you want,” Mo Yichen replied nonchalantly.

Zhu Jia pouted. “Liang Sisi’s daughter eats so well. When she was Xiao Wen’s age, she was already having two meals of solid food a day.”

Mo Yichen responded earnestly, “Eating too much can lead to being overweight. I think Xiao Wen’s current pace is fine.”

“Hmph. If you think he’s eating so well, then you should feed him from now on.”

Unfazed, Mo Yichen nodded. “Alright, I’ll handle it whenever I’m home.” He fell silent after that.

Seeing that he seemed genuine, Zhu Jia raised an eyebrow, feeling rather satisfied.

If Mo Yichen could take over feeding duties while at home, that would mean she could take a break occasionally.

For now, though, the priority was helping Xiao Wen genuinely enjoy eating and develop a love for food.

A week later, Liang Sisi arrived with her daughter, Yuan Yuan, for a visit. Liang Sisi and Zhu Jia had known each other for almost half a year. It was only recently that she’d learned—thanks to neighborhood gossip—that the cold, reserved man was none other than Mo Yichen, the eldest son of the Mo family, and Zhu Jia was the renowned “Madam Mo” everyone had been talking about.

Not one for celebrity gossip, Liang Sisi hadn’t recognized Mo Yichen. But she was amazed at how low-profile he and Zhu Jia were. She had imagined that high-society families like theirs would be surrounded by a team of bodyguards wherever they went. Yet here they were, down-to-earth enough to stroll in the park with their child like any ordinary family.

Liang Sisi and her husband’s families were both fairly well-off. They currently owned a moderately-sized logistics company, and Liang Sisi herself managed some personal ventures. Their lives could be described as comfortable and stable.

This was Liang Sisi’s first visit to Zhu Jia’s home. The layout of Zhu Jia’s villa was larger than her own, and the décor was both high-end and stylish. However, it was evident that there was a child in the house—visible toys, a stroller, and a baby dining chair gave the otherwise luxurious setting a down-to-earth charm.

Zhu Jia couldn’t resist hugging Yuan Yuan. The little girl was adorably chubby, though Zhu Jia’s arms started to ache after holding her for less than half a minute.

Liang Sisi had brought over a large bag of items. When she unpacked it on the living room sofa, a pile of baby-related items spilled out—all brand-new.

Curious, Zhu Jia inspected the items: soft noodles, broken noodles, butterfly-shaped pasta, numeric-shaped noodles, soft thin noodles, walnut oil, flaxseed oil, avocado oil, baby feeders, freezer trays, steaming molds, an egg steamer, liver powder, baby food spoons, and several sets of beautifully designed baby tableware and ceramic pots.

Glancing at Yuan Yuan, Zhu Jia finally understood why the little girl was such a good eater.