Hearing her say that, Shen Wuqiu seemed to feel a little relieved.
After letting out a long sigh, he said, "Never mind, children and grandchildren have their own blessings."
"That's the right way to think." Gu Miaomiao was happy because her wife was happy. "Then, Qiuqiu, can we do some of Miaomiao's spring activities?"
Meow Meow's Spring Event - How did this cat even come up with that?
Shen Wuqiu rolled her eyes speechlessly. "Not in the mood."
Gu Miaomiao asked ingratiatingly, "So, what would it take to put you in the mood?"
Shen Wuqiu said sullenly, "My own daughter doesn't even call me 'Mom' anymore, but she was coaxed into calling me 'Sister' first."
Speaking of this, Gu Miaomiao also felt a little aggrieved.
That evening, the couple had their four children lie side by side on the bed, starting with the youngest: "Call me Mommy..."
Si Mao worked hard all day, and now he's so sleepy, his face is all droopy. His mother is too fierce. He wanted to be cute with his mother, but before he could even pout and turn his face away, his mother gave him a gentle but sharp rebuke: "Baby, be good and call me Mommy."
"..." Simao was really sleepy, and looked like she was about to cry, "Waaah~"
"Mom~ Mom~"
"Wow~"
"You're not a tadpole." Gu Miaomiao rolled her eyes at her little daughter. "Mom~ Mom~, it's so simple."
Si Mao yawned, but before she could even close her eyes, her fierce mother scolded her: "You're not allowed to sleep unless you call me 'Mommy'."
Si Mao pouted, as if he was about to cry.
Shen Wuqiu felt sorry for him, but the thought of the little brat being coaxed into calling her "sister" just because of a piece of candy made her inexplicably uncomfortable. She hardened her heart for once and said, "Baby, how about we call out to Mommy before we go to sleep?"
Simao didn't cry, but she started washing her nose.
"..." Shen Wuqiu couldn't bring herself to be cruel anymore, and quickly pulled the little brat into her arms. "Alright, alright, let's not call anymore. Let's go to sleep, okay? Baby, go to sleep now..."
Simao probably still felt wronged, and after being coaxed like that, she started to cry.
However, this little lazy pig is even lazy when it comes to crying; it falls asleep on its own while hiccuping.
After putting Simao to sleep, Shen Wuqiu started putting Sanmao to sleep next.
Sanmao grew more and more exquisite, with big eyes, long eyelashes, and cherry lips, looking just like a porcelain doll. At this moment, she was looking at something, her big eyes darting around. When she saw Shen Wuqiu pick her up, she immediately grinned at her.
Several children have started to grow their baby teeth, and when they grin, their tiny baby teeth are revealed, which is extremely cute.
"What was our Sanmao baby looking at so intently just now?"
"Awoo~" Sanmao waved his little hands to touch her lips, "Ayi oh yi..."
Shen Wu held her little hand, unable to understand her baby talk, "Can our Sanmao call me 'Mama' yet?"
Sanmao was still babbling in baby talk.
"Mom~ Mom~" Shen Wuqiu taught her using exaggerated mouth movements.
Unfortunately, Sanmao didn't cooperate at all and continued to mutter her baby talk to herself.
After Shen Wuqiu called her several times, not only did she lose patience, but Sanmao also started to fuss and refused to be held anymore.
So, they had no choice but to give up.
Sanmao couldn't do it, so Shen Wuqiu came to teach Ermao.
Er Mao, this grumpy little lion, was even less willing to learn to babble with her. As soon as she was held in her arms, she turned into a kitten and quickly burrowed into the blankets to hide.
In the end, only the well-behaved and quiet Da Mao remained.
Perhaps due to the unexpected circumstances surrounding Da Mao's birth, coupled with her delicate appearance, Shen Wuqiu already felt somewhat indebted to her eldest daughter. Besides, Da Mao was the most obedient and sensible, not only so delicate as to evoke pity, but also so understanding as to inspire tenderness.
Shen Wuqiu really didn't know what else to say about this daughter besides spoiling her.
Therefore, she only had one request for her daughter: as long as she was healthy and safe, she would be satisfied.
As for when I'll start calling her "Mom," there's really no rush.
However, considering her child's self-esteem, she still held Da Mao and gently repeated, "My darling, can you call me 'Mommy'?"
Da Mao looked at her intently.
Shen Wuqiu felt a pang of heartache looking into her glistening eyes, but still, as if teaching her younger sisters, she exaggeratedly mouthed, "Mom~ Mom~"
"Ee~ya~"
It's clear that the eldest daughter is working very hard.
Shen Wuqiu lowered his head and kissed her cheek. "My baby is so great. Don't rush, our baby is still young."
Big Hair's eyelids drooped slightly, "Mmm~ Baa~"
Shen Wuqiu chuckled, "Our baby is so cute, it's Mommy~ Mommy~"
Da Mao's little lips kept twitching, but even as his face turned red, he still couldn't utter the word "Mom".
Shen Wuqiu was afraid that her precocious eldest daughter would get anxious, so she quickly comforted her: "Baby, you're already doing great. We're only seven months old. Your grandpa said that Mommy didn't start calling you 'Mommy' until she was one year and three months old..."
Da Mao pursed her lips and refused to study anymore.
Shen Wuqiu gently patted her back, "Baby, are you sleepy? Do you want to go to sleep?"
Da Mao obediently closed his eyes, and Shen Wuqiu gently coaxed him. Before long, Da Mao's little nose began to breathe rhythmically, and he fell asleep just like that.
Looking at her eldest daughter's well-behaved and quiet sleeping face, Shen Wuqiu felt a strange sense of fullness in her heart.
With Er Mao no longer making a fuss, San Mao yawned and fell asleep.
After settling the three babies into their respective cribs, the couple remembered there was still a little lion cub, Er Mao, under the covers. Lifting the covers, they saw the little lion sleeping soundly on its back.
Gu Lingyu tried to pull her out, but Shen Wuqiu quickly pushed her hand away and gently held the cat in her arms. "They're asleep, so be gentle."
As he spoke, he gently placed her on her own little bed.
After the children were all asleep, the room became quiet.
Shen Wuqiu and Gu Miaomiao lay flat on the bed, with the lights on, quietly lying side by side.
Several minutes later, Gu Miaomiao reached out and hooked Shen Wuqiu's hand, tilting her head to ask, "Qiuqiu, the babies haven't learned to call you 'Mommy' yet. Are you a little disappointed?"
Shen Wuqiu grasped her hand and shook her head. "I wouldn't say disappointed, it's just... I don't know how to explain it, I just feel a little down..."
Gu Miaomiao sat up, turned off the light, and didn't lie back down. She asked her, "So, did you feel better when you heard someone call 'Mommy'?"
The sudden darkness caused Shen Wuqiu to lose her sight briefly, so she simply closed her eyes. "Maybe."
Gu Miaomiao lay down and whispered in her ear, "Mommy."
"..." This is unbelievable. Shen Wuqiu was completely speechless. "What are you doing?"
"Didn't you say you'd raise my daughter..." Gu Miaomiao was going all out anyway, "I called her 'Mom,' so isn't that the same as you calling her 'baby'? So, don't hold it in anymore, okay?"
It's really... both funny and exasperating...
"Gu Lingyu, you really are..."
"What really is it?"
After holding it in for a long time, Shen Wuqiu said, "Shameless."
"Why bother with saving face in front of you?" Gu Lingyu remained unmoved. "My partner's happiness is more important than saving face."
The sweet nothings she uttered so readily, so sincerely and passionately, were utterly irresistible.
Shen Wuqiu subconsciously touched her heart, which was beating like a drumbeat.
She thought that the longer two people are together, the more the feeling of attraction will fade.
That wasn't the case.
After a brief silence, Gu Miaomiao asked her again, "Qiuqiu, are you still feeling down?"
Shen Wuqiu shook her head, "I'm not bored anymore."
Gu Miaomiao's feelings were a little complicated. "So Qiuqiu didn't lie to me. She really does raise me like a daughter. She calls me 'Mom' and..."
"No, I'm not feeling down anymore, it's because there's a little deer singing in my heart." As she spoke, Shen Wuqiu turned her head to look at her again, "Would you like to listen?"
Although it was a question, Shen Wuqiu had already held Gu Miaomiao's head to her heart as she spoke.
"Thump thump thump thump..."
In the quiet night, the simple rhythm of the deer's song sounds particularly uplifting, as if it can resonate with one's own heartstrings.
"Does it sound good?"
Gu Miaomiao hugged her waist and took a deep sniff of her chest. The plucked strings of her heart seemed to want to express a thousand words, but when it came to her lips, they all turned into a simple and plain sentence, "Qiuqiu, I like you so much."
Gu Miaomiao never hesitated to express herself, and she had said this sentence many times before, but Shen Wuqiu seemed to be able to clearly feel the weight of these words only tonight.
No wonder they say that relationships require the right time, place, and people. Today was just an ordinary day, and what this cat said wasn't particularly sweet, but at this moment, she seemed to have suddenly become enlightened.
She felt as if something had stabbed her heart, a pain and a numbness. The world seemed to enter a vacuum at that moment, and everything around her became blurry. It was as if only the person in front of her was clear enough—their breath, voice, appearance… as if magnified many times over, presented with unparalleled clarity in her mind. Every cell in her body seemed to become particularly excited at that moment. She couldn't explain why she was excited, but it just made her feel incredibly relaxed.
In that instant, she became absolutely certain of one thing.
Gu Lingyu really likes her, really likes Shen Wuqiu.
If this world is truly as this cat says, composed of many different timelines, then in different timelines, she might encounter different people who love her.
But she was certain that no one else would ever love her as much as Gu Lingyu did.
That's how certain she was—no one would ever love her like Gu Lingyu did.
After confirming this, Shen Wuqiu felt inexplicably at ease, as if even if the sky were to fall, she wouldn't care.
So, the saying "I only envy the mandarin ducks, not the immortals" is actually true, isn't it?
Shen Wuqiu let out a long sigh of relief and reached out to hug her back. "What does it feel like to really like someone?"
"I just want you to be happy. As long as you're happy, I'm willing to do anything for you, and I feel motivated to do anything..." Perhaps dissatisfied with her own expression, but unable to think of better words, she said in distress, "In short, I just like you so much..."
Shen Wuqiu didn't press her further. "Yes, I like you very much too."
Gu Miaomiao paused, then asked her, "So what kind of feeling does Qiuqiu really like?"
"I hope that when we wake up, we'll be old and gray, so we'll never have to worry about being separated again. I also hope that this life will be long enough for us to experience all the beauty in this world together."
She didn't know what this cat's "love" meant, but she knew that her own "love" was—a mixture of fear and trepidation—a fear that it wouldn't last, yet also a fear that if it lasted too long, something unexpected might happen.