Chapter 110.2

Not long after seeing off Teacher Du, Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan also woke up.

After sleeping for so long, Xiao Roubao, the big eater, woke up and cried loudly due to hunger. Su Xiaoxiao quickly prepared milk powder used a small pillow to prop up his upper body a bit, and asked Xiao Doubao to help support the milk bottle for feeding.

The little one couldn’t wait and held the bottle with his own two little chubby hands, drinking eagerly at a fast pace.

Xiao Doubao looked anxiously and said, “Xiao Roubao, drink slowly. Brother won’t compete with you for milk. Why are you in such a hurry to drink?”

No one knows if Xiao Roubao understood, but Xiao Doubao still continued, “Okay, okay, don’t glare at Big Brother. Big brother won’t scold you. Do you want me to tell you a story? Once upon a time…”

Su Xiaoxiao hugged Xiao Tangyuan and turned to the other side of the bed to breastfeed her while listening to the cute and amusing chatterbox.

After breastfeeding and changing diapers, Su Xiaoxiao moved the small bamboo bed in the yard to a cooler place, carried the twins, and let them play on the bed.

Su Xiaoxiao was worried that Xiao Doubao would become thirsty when telling stories, so she prepared a small bowl of cereal milk for him to drink, keeping it separate from what she was feeding the younger sibling.

Xiao Doubao sat on a small stool, drinking malt milk while looking at his younger brother and sister, asking them questions and answering their “questions.”

This cute and warm scene amused Su Xiaoxiao.

Taking care of two infants alone kept Su Xiaoxiao genuinely busy. Despite Xiao Doubao being only three years old, having this little helper at home indeed made things considerably easier.

Xiao Roubao was impatient; when hungry, there was no time to prepare the milk. His loud cries could shake one’s heart. Without Xiao Doubao’s help holding the bottle, Su Xiaoxiao couldn’t manage both babies at once.

These days, when Li Yufeng was away, Su Xiaoxiao couldn’t even find time to prepare lunch. Han Cheng would make some noodles when he returned from work. They had plenty of eggs and vegetables at home, making noodle preparation convenient. Seeing this, Yali offered to help with cooking, but Su Xiaoxiao declined. It wasn’t just a day or two; troubling her wasn’t acceptable. So, Yali took Fantuan and Xiao Doubao to her house for dinner.

Today, Su Xiaoxiao quickly cooked the rice when she had time. She first used warm water to make some dried shiitake mushrooms, squid, and scallops.

The taro grown by Li Yufeng was fragrant and powdery. Su Xiaoxiao cut one into finger-sized pieces, fried them in a clay pot until golden brown, sautéed some shredded ginger and scallions until fragrant, added the soaked mushrooms and scallops, then put in the taro and the water used for soaking the seafood. She seasoned it with a mixture of salt, sugar, and soy sauce, covered it, and let it simmer until cooked. Just before serving, she sprinkled some chopped green onions on top.

On another stove, she simmered some mixed-grain rice. Once Han Cheng returned, they could start eating.

Fantuan walked into the yard carrying an earthworm and kept sniffing. “Wow, my mom finally cooked today! I haven’t eaten the food my mom cooked for a long time, it smells so delicious!”

Zhuzi then came in and sniffed along, nodding. “This fragrant smell was cooked by Aunt Su, right?”

Fantuan handed the earthworm to Zhuzi and went to tease his younger siblings on the bamboo bed.

After playing with his younger siblings, he then took a sip of Xiao Doubao’s already cold cereal milk that Xiao Doubao had left before running into the kitchen.

“Mom, why did you have time to cook today?”

Su Xiaoxiao smiled at her eldest son and waved to him.

Fantuan dashed over with a “thud thud thud,” and Su Xiaoxiao hugged his eldest baby, lifted him up a bit, and said, “Xiao Fantuan has grown up; Mommy can’t lift you easily anymore.”

At six years old, Xiao Fantuan, who followed his father to exercise every day, had grown sturdy. He was no longer the skinny monkey that Su Xiaoxiao could effortlessly pick up.

Fantuan hugged his mother’s waist and held her up, but he couldn’t lift her. “Mom, I’ve grown into a big Fantuan now, and I’ll be able to lift you up soon,” 

Su Xiaoxiao ruffled the child’s head. “Yes, our Fantuan has grown up. He’s becoming more independent, hasn’t he? Learning to act first and report later?”

The Clever Fantuan raised his head, blinking innocently. “Mom, did Teacher Du come for a home visit?”

Su Xiaoxiao tapped his nose and said, “You even know about home visits.”

Finally growing his upper front teeth, while the lower ones began to fall out, the articulate Fantuan grinned widely. “So, Mom, can I stay at home to play with my younger siblings for half a day? I initially thought of going to school every other day, but I find my classmates quite fun. I also want to go to school with Zhuzi every day. Therefore, I plan to choose either the morning or the afternoon based on the day’s schedule to attend school. Don’t worry, Mom, the third-grade lessons are so simple; I could ace them even with my eyes closed.”

Su Xiaoxiao rubbed the child’s smart head and said, “Do you still need Mom’s opinion after you’ve figured it out?”

Fantuan nodded and said, “Yes, that’s necessary. If Dad asks, you have to support me.”

Su Xiaoxiao: “Fantuan, do you genuinely feel happier staying at home for half a day to help Mom take care of your younger siblings?”

Fantuan nodded vigorously and said, “That’s natural. I want to eat Mom’s home-cooked meals every day. That would make me even happier. Although Grandma and Dad’s cooking is delicious, my absolute favorite is Mom’s cooking.”

Su Xiaoxiao understood this sentiment in children—much like how many people, even in their twenties or thirties, having tasted cuisines from around the world, still rank Mom’s simple homemade dishes as the most delicious. Even though Mom’s culinary skills might not be exceptional, her cooking always carries the most delightful taste.

Su Xiaoxiao bent down, kissed the child’s face, and said, “Okay, Mom knows. In the future, I will try to make more time to cook for our family’s Fantuan.”

…….

Out of nowhere, Han Cheng, who had just returned home, heard Fantuan’s wish and said, “You’re spoiling him again. Your mom is already working hard taking care of your younger siblings. How does she have time to cook? From now on, when I come back with food from the cafeteria, let’s see if you’ll eat.”

Fantuan let go of his mom, yelled loudly, made a funny face at his dad, and while walking out, said, “Then I won’t eat. I’ll take Xiao Doubao and go to Aunt Yali’s house for dinner!”

Han Cheng really wanted to catch that naughty kid and spank him.

Su Xiaoxiao shook her head and told Han Cheng about Fantuan’s plan for the morning classes.

Han Cheng was not surprised at all, let alone had any objections: “The older this naughty kid gets, the smarter he gets. The curriculum for third graders isn’t enough for him. He can’t be confined to a classroom when he’s older. Even if we force him to stay at school all day, he’ll just go crazy playing around. It’s better to let him help watch over Xiao Roubao and Xiao Tangyuan at home.”

Su Xiaoxiao nodded and said, “I also think so. He’s not even seven years old yet. We won’t let him skip grades anymore. He’ll just attend classes in the morning. By the time he’s ten or eleven, entering junior high, he’ll probably still be the youngest in the entire school.”

Taking advantage of the kids not paying attention, Han Cheng lightly kissed Su Xiaoxiao’s cheek: “Don’t spoil him too much. If you’re too busy, don’t bother cooking. Xiao Yu eats at the cafeteria every day, and he’s growing up just fine.”

Su Xiaoxiao handed Han Cheng two dishcloths and asked him to bring the taro stew over. Opening the lid, he sprinkled some green onions on top: “I’m not spoiling him. I also want to eat something delicious myself. And there’s also Xiao Doubao. They’re used to what I make. Eating what I make helps with their appetites.”

These days, there aren’t many additives like MSG, and there’s no recycled oil. The ingredients are all naturally healthy. There aren’t any food safety concerns.

Han Cheng couldn’t bear to smell the aroma in the clay pot, not to mention the children, even adding an extra bowl of rice to Su Xiaoxiao’s cooking.

Zhuzi hadn’t eaten Aunt Su’s dishes in a long time. After feeding the chickens, he watered the vegetables in the garden and picked some leaves to feed the chickens. Then, he brought a bowl of food from home, shared some of Yali’s cooked fish with Fantuan and Doubao, had a bit of Aunt Su’s food, washed the bowl after eating, and only then went to play with his younger siblings.

Fantuan and Zhuzi, these two big kids, were used to eating from both households. When Yali cooked something delicious, Fantuan liked to bring a bowl over to exchange dishes with Zhuzi. In his words, it meant he could eat more varieties of dishes in a meal.

Han Cheng seriously considered putting a door in the partition wall so that the two kids wouldn’t have to keep running in and out of the gate.

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T/N: Hello~ Sorry for the late update! Next chapter will be available to read on Friday! Thank you for reading my translation~

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