Chapter 17: A Little Bit Chubbier

“Grandma, wuwuwu… Mom is hurting a lot… wuwuwu…” Ji Dong cried uncontrollably in Mother Qin’s arms. As he cried, his little body curled up, looking like a round, chubby meatball.

Mother Qin patted his back. “Mom is crying because she misses Dongdong. Dongdong, be good. Don’t cry, or Mom will be sad too.”

Ji Dong hiccuped a few times, then quieted down. Even his crying was well controlled, which made Mother Qin feel both amused and helpless.

“Mom… really… misses Dongdong?” Ji Dong raised his little head from Mother Qin’s arms and looked up hopefully.

“Of course. Grandma never lies to Dongdong, right?” said Mother Qin.

Ji Dong nodded without hesitation. “Mm.” His trust in Mother Qin was deeper than in anyone else, after all, she was the one who had raised him.

“This is definitely good news.” Professor Yang had done a check-up on Ning Xin the moment she shed a tear. Although the results were the same as before, it was the first time the subject had cried, which was a new discovery. “Our initial assessment is that the subject may be reacting to external stimuli.”

Yu Qing said, “Professor, I think the same. Otherwise, she wouldn’t cry at the exact time Dongdong came. She must really miss Dongdong too.”

Professor Yang nodded. “So it was the right decision to leave the child behind to determine whether the subject could react to the outside world. Only the child she gave birth to at the cost of her life, whom she has never seen, could be the one she cares most about.”

Hearing their conversation made Mother Qin emotional. She had been visiting Ning Xin for two years too. She had watched Ning Xin’s complexion change from its original yellowish tone to fair over these years. Her skin had gone from rough to smooth. The improvement in appearance was very obvious.

To Mother Qin, even though Ning Xin didn’t know her, she already felt like someone very familiar.

Most importantly, it was her own son who had spoken about Ji Aihua’s incident that triggered Ning Xin into early labor and a coma. If Ning Xin could wake up, it would not only be a great thing for Dongdong, but also a huge relief for her son.

“So does this mean she’s going to wake up soon?” Mother Qin couldn’t help asking.

Professor Yang shook his head. “We can’t say for sure yet, but it’s definitely a good sign.”

…

Leaving the research facility, Mother Qin carried the sleeping Ji Dong in her arms. After crying earlier, the little boy had fallen asleep from exhaustion. Mother Qin held him and took a bus for part of the journey before returning to the compound.

It was the weekend, so the compound was full of people. As soon as they entered, they ran into someone they knew.

“Sister-in-law, taking your grandson out for a walk?” The greeting came from a woman about the same age as Mother Qin, known for her cheerful personality.

Everyone in the compound knew about Ji Dong’s identity. He was the orphan of a martyr. His father had died saving Qin Zhan. But no one knew about Ning Xin. The Qin family had never shared that detail. Even though the medical research itself wasn’t confidential, the Qin family kept their mouths shut.

The people in the compound treated Mother Qin with great respect. First, because Fatber Qin held a high position. Second, all the children of the Qin family were outstanding. And third, Qin Zhan was at the age for marriage, and everyone had their eye on that.

Even though Qin Zhan had an adopted son, no one minded. An adopted son wasn’t a biological one. With the kind of families living in the compound, they could easily accept an adopted child. Besides, Ji Dong wasn’t of an unknown background—he was the legitimate son of a martyr.

“That’s right. I only have one day off each week, so I took Dongdong out for a bit.” Mother Qin replied. She also had a job as an editor at a publishing house. When she was home, she took care of Ji Dong herself. When she was at work, he was looked after by the family nanny, Aunt Zhang.

“Grandma…” Little Ji Dong seemed to have a radar built into him. He had been sleeping soundly on the bus, but once they arrived at the compound, he woke up.

“Aiyo, Dongdong is awake. You’re like a little chubby pig now. Your Grandma can’t even carry you anymore,” the woman teased.

Ji Dong rubbed his eyes and gave her a sweet smile. “Grandma Yang… Dongdong… isn’t a chubby pig.”

The woman kept teasing him. “Really? Then take a look—aren’t you the chubbiest among all the kids in the compound?”

Ji Dong’s round eyes turned as he thought for a bit. Then he realized—compared to the other kids, he really might be the chubbiest.

“Don’t worry. Grandma can still carry you.” Mother Qin smiled and patted his little butt. Then she said to the woman, “We’ll head back for lunch now.”

“Alright. Let’s chat later.” The woman didn’t say more and turned to chat with a few others.

Back home, Aunt Zhang had already finished cooking. Seeing them return, she quickly said, “Finally, you’re back. Time for lunch. The master’s stomach has been growling for a while.”

Unlike many leaders in high positions who were very stern, Father Qin was a kind man. In his fifties, he looked younger than his actual age and carried himself with great dignity. He played along with Aunt Zhang’s teasing. “That’s right. If you’d been any later, I would’ve started eating without you.”

“Then go ahead and start.” Mother Qin didn’t mind at all. She turned to Aunt Zhang and asked, “What did you make for lunch?”

Aunt Zhang said, “I made Dongdong’s favorite—braised pork.”

The moment Ji Dong heard “braised pork,” he quickly slid down from Mother Qin’s arms. “I like… braised pork the most.”

Mother Qin said, “Then let’s go wash our hands first. After that, we’ll eat.”

“Mm, wash hands.”

After they washed their hands and went to the dining table, Father Qin was already seated and waiting for them. Once they sat down, he picked up a piece of braised pork and placed it into Ji Dong’s bowl. “Here, Dongdong, eat some braised pork. It’ll help you gain weight.”

Although Ji Dong was young, he knew that gaining weight meant becoming fat, and being fat meant being a little pig. As soon as he heard that eating braised pork would make him gain weight, he didn’t want to eat it anymore. Grandma Yang said he was so fat that even his grandma couldn’t carry him anymore.

“Grandpa…” But Ji Dong was not willing to give up. He loved eating braised pork the most.

Father Qin: “Hmm?”

“Grandpa, among the kids here… um… who’s the fattest?” Ji Dong asked. If he wasn’t the fattest, then he could eat meat, because he wasn’t the fattest yet, so he still had room to gain weight.

“Hahaha…” Father Qin laughed heartily, “Of course it’s our Dongdong.” In the whole compound, there wasn’t a child better fed than their Dongdong, chubby and so adorable.

Ji Dong blinked… then blinked again. The shock on his face was something only Father Qin, who was proudly smiling, didn’t notice.

Mother Qin glanced at her partner whose brain seemed to have several buckets of water in it, then said to Ji Dong, “Our Dongdong is what you call cute. Children are only cute when they are chubby.”

“Really?” Compared to what others (Grandma Yang) said, of course what his own grandma said was more trustworthy to Dongdong.

“Really.” Mother Qin felt that Dongdong wasn’t fat. He was just a bit chubbier than other children… just a bit chubbier than all the children in the entire compound.

Hearing his grandma say it was true, Dongdong felt reassured. He picked up a piece of braised pork and bit into it with his small milk teeth.

Because children liked eating braised pork, every time Aunt Zhang made braised pork, not only was it cooked to be soft, but each piece was cut small, just the right size for a child to eat in one bite.

Ji Dong was originally a well-behaved child when eating, and with braised pork, he became even more obedient. One bite of rice, one bite of meat, eating very happily, completely unaware that he would gain another pound today.