"Baby, call me and I'll give you this!" Qu Ling tempted the little meatball with a piece of fragrant chicken.
"Daddy!" Little Meatball called out without hesitation as he looked at the chicken.
Blood spurting out! My poor brother-in-law, your daughter has cultivated to the point where anyone with flesh is her father!
Everyone at the table burst into laughter.
"Baby, call me too?" Mayor Qu hurriedly offered a piece of meat as a tempting treat.
"Teeth!"
"Me too! Me too! Baby, call me!" Not wanting to fall behind his son, Grandpa Qu found an even bigger piece of meat and handed it over.
"Waaah...meaah...meaah..." The baby whimpered for a long time with meat in its mouth, finally staring at the piece of meat on Grandpa Qu's chopsticks and calling out, "Te...yaaah..."
"Oh! Baby is so good!" The three of them, grandfather and grandson, were overjoyed.
I was speechless and sweating profusely. It turns out this whole family was using my meatballs to satisfy their cravings!
After dinner, the three members of the Qu family, grandfather, grandfather, and grandson, were still having fun with her. They took turns holding Rouyuanzi and teasing her, making her seem like their great-grandchild.
"Um, Grandpa Qu, Uncle Qu, Dean Qu, Aunt Lin, Teacher Qu," I called out to a long list of people, which exhausted me. "It's getting late, the rain has stopped, and I should take the baby home." I wanted to take Rouyuanzi back from Mayor Qu, but the mayor showed no intention of giving the baby back to me.
"It's still early, play a little longer!" Aunt Lin placed a large plate of fresh cantaloupe on the coffee table.
So the grandfather, grandfather, and grandson began a new round of seduction games.
Use cantaloupe to entice the baby to call out.
"Call me Daddy!"
"Call me Grandpa!"
"Call him Great-Grandpa!"
"Call her Grandma!"
Aunt Lin also joined.
I was devastated; I'd finally encountered a family even worse than my own.
"Dad, brother, please stop teasing the baby like that!" Qu Zhuguang suddenly snatched the baby away from everyone's arms. "Children shouldn't eat like that. If they get sick, the Su family will come after us!"
The four of them looked at each other and fell silent.
They never imagined that such a cute baby could get sick.
My baby isn't invincible! If he eats this random stuff, he'll definitely be constipated tomorrow! And then I'll be the one suffering!
"Um, thank you for the hospitality, but I really should take the baby home now..." Taking advantage of the silence, I asked to go home again.
“It’s almost eight o’clock, Yuanyuan, you should take the baby home. Children shouldn’t stay up too late.” Qu Zhuguang helped me put on the baby’s coat, then turned to Qu Ling and said, “Go and drive the car to the front door so the baby won’t catch a cold.”
"Okay." Qu Ling nodded, quickly put on her coat, and went out.
"Yuanyuan! Can you bring the baby to play again tomorrow?" Grandpa Qu said reluctantly, pinching the baby's clothes.
"Uh... this..."
"Come and play! Baby loves coming to my house, right?" Aunt Lin stuffed a big orange into the pocket of the baby's little windbreaker.
"Stop like this!" Qu Zhuguang frowned. "Yuanyuan has to go to work too! You're being so willful!"
The car headlights shone on the floor-to-ceiling windows; the car was already parked at the door. I held my baby and said goodbye to the Qu family. Their reluctance to part made me wonder if I was a child trafficker trying to forcibly take someone else's grandson.
After finally getting into the car and driving to the gate, I looked in the rearview mirror and saw that everyone was still standing in the porch watching.
Sigh, what a pitiful bunch of old people who miss their children so much. I couldn't help but look at Qu Ling sitting next to me, focused on driving. He's thirty years old, with a good, even somewhat prominent, family background, and a successful career. Why isn't he married?
Lost in thought, Qu Ling suddenly turned to look at me at the intersection where I was waiting for the red light.
When our eyes met, I almost lost my mind while holding my baby.
It turns out that what those novels say about eyes being able to bewitch a person's soul is true.
Is the baby asleep?
"Hmm?" I looked down and saw Rouyuanzi sleeping soundly in my arms. "Yeah, what a little pig who only knows how to eat and sleep!"
"Hehe, what an adorable little pig! It looks just like you when you were little."
"Huh?" My face flushed red instantly. "I...I didn't..."
“Yuanyuan, you really don’t remember? On the top of Huangshan Mountain, you ate all the food that your sister, Jinshu, and I had stored up. Later, in order to get you a cucumber, I carried someone else’s bag for a thousand meters. You’re so heartless…” Qu Ling shook her head as she spoke, turned around, and just then the light turned green, so she continued on her way.
"Um... Dean Qu, may I ask you a question?"
"Ask away!"
"When...when did you recognize me?"
"Hmm, it must have been that time you and your uncle were in the cafeteria. I know Dean Su's niece works at the academy, and I know that niece is Su Yuanyuan. Speaking of which, if you look closely, your face hasn't changed much since you were a child; it's still so round and cute." Qu Ling smiled as she spoke. "When you were little, you looked like a beautiful doll. I never imagined that in the blink of an eye..."
In the blink of an eye, the doll has grown into a deformed Yang Guifei! I muttered to myself.
"In the blink of an eye, she has grown into a young woman who can hold a baby."
Qu Ling was still giving me face, but I still felt a little uncomfortable. Why does everyone prefer me when I was a child? Why are chubby little kids so lovable, but chubby adults are universally disliked?
"Actually, besides Huangshan, I also took you to set off fireworks one year during the Spring Festival. By the way, you should have a younger brother, right? He's Dean Su's son."
"Yes, his name is Su Tiantian! I also vaguely remember him when we went to watch the fireworks. I think two older brothers took us with them. One of them was especially nice to my older sister. I often heard them talk about him. I think he's the Jin Shu you mentioned earlier!"
"Yes, it's the Book of Jin." Qu Ling suddenly fell silent, and after a long while, he asked again, "Baby is from Su Zhenzhen's family, right?"
"kindness!"
“So cute…” he murmured softly, as if recalling something sad.
"Dean Qu, may I ask you another question?"
"What?" He came to his senses.
"I want to ask you, why did you help me that day?" I mustered up my courage and asked.
Qu Ling glanced at me quickly, then turned back and said calmly, "Since I know you are Su Yuanyuan, how could I not help you?"
"Because of the Su family? Because of my third uncle?"
Qu Ling suddenly smiled, "Because you are Su Yuanyuan. The little girl who rode on my back when she was little and I almost broke her neck, the little one who held my hand and stood with me on the top of Huangshan Mountain shouting into the valley, how could I not help her?"
"Heh...hehe..." I lowered my head in embarrassment, feeling ashamed that I remembered him so vividly, while I had almost completely forgotten the past.
"Thank you……"
Qu Ling reached out and patted my head, smiling, "Be good from now on, okay? Your third uncle has worried a lot about you. If anything happens in the future, just come to me directly and don't bother him."
"Really? Is it really possible?" I could hardly believe my ears. Dean Qu, what a powerful backer he is!
"Of course, that's on the condition that you behave and don't act recklessly. But I believe Yuanyuan isn't that kind of willful child. Back then in my office, I could tell that if I hadn't stopped you quickly, you would have wanted to admit to all your mistakes right away. What were you thinking? Why didn't you make excuses for yourself like most people do?"
"I...I want to protect my third uncle...I don't want him to be caught out because of me..."
"I didn't realize you were so smart, Yuanyuan! You even know how to sacrifice a pawn to save the king!" Qu Ling couldn't help but laugh out loud. "Don't worry, your third uncle may be straightforward, but he's no pushover either. Those people who want to mess with him are a long shot!"
"Really?! That puts my mind at ease!" I stuck out my tongue and patted my chest. "I've already promised Grandpa that I'll dedicate myself to teaching and nurturing students! I'm also going to take the entrance exam for a part-time master's program, and ideally get a doctorate. I absolutely cannot bring shame to the Su family!"
"Doctor? Hehe, take your time. Yuanyuan is very smart, she'll definitely be fine."
"Thank you, Dean!" I was certain that Qu Ling had good intentions towards my family, and that he was so tolerant and gentle towards me.
It seems I vaguely remember that back then, on Mount Huang, he was just as tolerant and gentle.
I hate my stupid brain! How could I have forgotten such an important memory? No! I must remember it quickly!
When I was almost home, I called my dad and asked him to come and pick me up.
The baby woke up before getting out of the car, and clung to Qu Ling in a daze, repeatedly calling, "Daddy! Daddy!"
Qu Ling gently kissed her rosy cheeks, then sighed and said, "I wish I had such a lovely daughter too!"
"Then you should get married and have a baby soon!" I blurted out.
Qu Ling paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "Write your self-criticism carefully, and remember to hand it in to my office next Monday!"
Ugh, look at my jinx! I've definitely touched on something people don't want to talk about again!
As Qu Ling's car drove away, I couldn't help but wonder if he had some unspeakable flaw.
OMG! My incredible imagination!
Su Yuanyuan, you idiot! Don't you dare have any wild thoughts about your benefactor! Go home! Go home!
Holding the baby, I pushed open the courtyard gate.
"Yuanyuan is back safe and sound!"
My whole family lined up in the yard to welcome me and the baby. Did I go to some kind of den of dragons and tigers? Why were they all so nervous!
"I'm back!" I breathed a long sigh of relief after handing the baby to my dad.
Su Yuanyuan's suffering
Once inside, she was inevitably subjected to a thorough interrogation by her family. When she mentioned that she had been taken to the Qu family by Qu Zhuguang, her mother and grandmother exchanged a glance and said, "We heard that the Qu family's daughter is still unmarried..."
"Such a good girl, how come she can't get married?" Grandma said with a look of disappointment.
"Perhaps her standards are too high. Think about it, she's the daughter of a military district commander and the mayor's sister. There must be a line of men wanting to marry her that stretches all the way to the other side of the canal. She's over thirty and still not married, so she must not have found anyone she likes!" Mom's analysis was quite logical.
Grandpa didn't care about these gossips; he just asked me if Grandpa Qu seemed to be in good health. I told him that Grandpa Qu was in excellent health and could eat a whole bowl of braised pork in one sitting! Upon hearing this, Grandpa immediately frowned and said somewhat angrily, "He has high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and high blood sugar, and he still dares to eat so much meat!"
I was surprised to learn that my grandfather was quite knowledgeable about the situation. Clearly, my family and the Qu family weren't as distant as they seemed on the surface. I was incredibly curious about the true nature of the relationship between our two families.
I wanted to get to the bottom of things, but Rouyuanzi had been running around outside all day and was fussing in my arms, so I had to carry her upstairs to take a bath. The adults, however, remained in the living room, continuing their conversation about the Qu family. Before leaving, I vaguely heard my father say to my grandfather, "Although the Qu family has been incredibly good to our family, we have never thought of taking advantage of them. Why do you always try to draw a line between us?"
"Qu Ba saved my life several times; we're sworn brothers. But his family..."
I didn't hear what Grandpa said after that; his voice was very low, almost inaudible even if you strained your ears.
What exactly happened to the Qu family?
That night, I, who usually fall asleep the moment my head hits the pillow, actually took forty minutes to fall asleep. The first ten minutes were mainly spent checking if the diaper under Rouyuanzi's bottom was on properly, and the last thirty minutes were spent thinking about what happened that afternoon, about the Qu family, and about Dean Qu.
I never imagined that the handsome guy sitting next to me at the teachers' mobilization meeting would turn out to be the dean, let alone that Dean Qu and I had such a connection from so long ago. I've forgotten so much from that trip to Huangshan back then. If I could, I wish I could travel back in time to see that boy and girl walking hand in hand on the mountaintop.