Chapter 1552 - 898: Jiang Xiaowai vs. the Little Accident—Mutual Assistance Between Nephew and Uncle? (Part 2)
Chapter 1552: Chapter 898: Jiang Xiaowai vs. the Little Accident—Mutual Assistance Between Nephew and Uncle? (Part 2)
Brother!
"Mr. Cao, I’m sorry, I’m bothering you again." Tang Wan knocked on the door and walked in, looking slightly embarrassed.
"Mom." Jiang Xiaowai hung his head low, his hands constantly picking at the seams of his pants.
Meanwhile, the little rascal from the Huo Family stared at a guy who looked like Zhang Xiao but was actually Huo Qinqi’s kid, and called out, "Sis."
"Teacher, what did they do again?" Tang Wan had a headache.
Ever since the two of them started kindergarten, she had become a regular visitor here due to constant incidents.
"Actually, you can’t really blame them. A girl was swinging, and a little boy purposely pushed her, causing her to fall. Jiang Mutang bravely stood up for her and asked the boy to apologize. They ended up fighting, and then Huo Tinglan joined in as well."
The teacher explained: "Then..."
"They beat the boy until he cried and had a bloody nose."
Tang Wan’s mouth twitched as she glanced at the two little troublemakers.
The place they stayed most frequently was the Huo Family’s, although Huo Qinqi wasn’t often home. But Huo Zheng was there, and he had high hopes for his grandson, taking him out to run and exercise every day.
It’s said that one year during the New Year, Shen Shuci brought the children to visit Huo Qinqi at the base, and the little rascal presented him with a performance of military boxing right in front of him.
It’s rumored that it even made it to the base’s Spring Festival Gala.
They say ’like father, like son,’ but apparently, Huo Qinqi’s expression at the time was quite a sight.
So Jiang Xiaowai hanging around with him naturally learned a few tricks. Although they were just some fancy moves, it was more than enough against kids his age.
This kid would never stand a chance in these two’s hands.
As Tang Wan was leaving with the two kids, she received a call from Shen Shuci. She was at work and busy, so she couldn’t answer the call.
"...Don’t worry, I’ve picked up the kids, we’ll have dinner at your place tonight."
"Alright." Shen Shuci also nodded in agreement, "I’ll cook."
After hanging up, Jiang Xiaowai pouted and asked, "Is Auntie making dinner tonight?"
"What? You don’t want to eat?" Tang Wan laughed.
"Not really..."
Jiang Xiaowai often went to the Huo Family’s place, so he had tasted Shen Shuci’s cooking. To be honest, his great-aunt only made one good dish - braised fish. As for the other dishes, well, let’s just say they’re hard to describe...
"Can you kids behave a little in school? Even if you’re being heroic, you need to know your limits." Tang Wan was genuinely troubled by the two little ones.
"I didn’t even plan to fight. He pushed me first and said I looked like a girl!" Jiang Xiaowai huffed.
Jiang Xiaowai seemed to inherit Jiang Jinsang’s fair complexion, with facial contours like his but features that were strikingly similar to Tang Wan’s, delicate and pretty.
"And Lanlan, what about you? Why did you get involved?" Tang Wan inquired.
The little rascal looked aloof: "I couldn’t just watch him get bullied. Mom said, although I’m the uncle and a bit younger, at kindergarten, we should look out for each other and help one another."
Tang Wan: "..."
You two really know how to take care of each other, always getting into trouble with your so-called help.
Tang Wan made a call to Jiang Jinsang, telling him they’d be having dinner at the Huo Family’s. Jiang Xiaowai then nervously asked, "Mom, did you tell Dad about the fight?"
"Not yet."
"That’s good."
"Don’t worry, he’ll find out sooner or later."
"..."
Jiang Xiaowai was quite afraid of Jiang Jinsang because his dad was the kind of person who can’t be easily swayed. Pleading didn’t work, nor did acting up - he could very well just kick you out.
The car arrived at the Huo Family’s, and Shen Shuci was already home cooking. As soon as the two kids entered, they cheerfully ran into the backyard.
"Dinner will be ready soon..." Shen Shuci said helplessly.
"We just want to play a bit." The little rascal pulled Jiang Xiaowai towards the backyard to play.
"Let’s watch them." The Huo Family members laughed as they followed the two kids into the backyard.
Speaking of which, quite a few things had happened in the Huo Family’s backyard.
These two once tried to mess with a horse’s tail and almost got kicked, fell from a tree, chased by a dog...
In any case, they never did anything good!
If you don’t keep an eye on them, more trouble might brew.
...
"I’ll wash my hands and come help you." Tang Wan said, seeing Shen Shuci busy in the kitchen.
"It’s fine, take a break and tell me what happened at kindergarten this time."
Tang Wan summed it up briefly, "Actually, they didn’t mean to cause trouble, they just didn’t know their own strength."
Tang Wan remarked as she looked around the Huo Family house, "With just Lanlan and you at home, the house feels empty. With your daughter gone for days, do you miss her?"
Huo Qinqi and Shen Shuci’s second child was a little girl, and the whole Huo Family treasured her.
Recently, Huo Zheng and Liang Yun, his wife, went to another location for a military exercise. They were special guests, sitting in the viewing area, and the little girl said she wanted to see big airplanes, so they took her along.
Shen Shuci only smiled, "We video chat every night. She’ll be back in a few days."
"A few days ago I heard Grandpa say your uncle is coming back to Beijing? Is it confirmed?" Tang Wan asked.
For years, Huo Qinqi had been away, rarely returning to Beijing. The longest time was almost a year, supposedly carrying out some special mission. There were always rumors about him being reassigned to Beijing, but nothing was ever confirmed.
"It’s confirmed, he’ll be back next week." Shen Shuci smiled, a feeling of unspeakable emotion in her heart.
"It’s good he’s coming back. It’ll reduce your load. When he returns, let’s set a time for everyone to gather."
Shen Shuci nodded in agreement. She also thought that Huo Qinqi returning to Beijing might lessen her burdens, but life rarely goes exactly as you wish.
During dinner, Tang Wan asked the little rascal specifically:
"Are you happy your dad is coming back?"
The little rascal pondered seriously for a moment, seemingly unsure of how to respond.
The relationship between him and Huo Qinqi was actually quite distant...
A father who doesn’t talk much, isn’t expressive, and is rarely in Beijing. It’s hard to claim any deep feelings.
He just knows who his father is, and with Huo Qinqi being non-expressive, the little rascal never really felt any fatherly warmth.
Children tend to feel more attached the longer they are with someone, and perhaps, to him, his real dad wasn’t as important as that red-haired uncle Huo Ran.
"Mom, I want to stay at Auntie’s house tonight, tomorrow’s the weekend." Jiang Xiaowai just wanted to play more with the little rascal.
And most importantly, he caused trouble at kindergarten today and wanted to escape his dad’s "punishment."
Jiang Jinsang raised an eyebrow at him, understanding all too well what he was thinking.
"Let the kids stay here, anyway, it’s not like we have many people." Shen Shuci agreed right away.
Jiang Xiaowai was instantly overjoyed, while Jiang Jinsang pursed his lips:
This kid really thinks he can hide?
How naive.
Jiang Xiaowai knew well that he couldn’t avoid his father’s wrath forever, but he didn’t mind, thinking he could delay it for as long as he could.
...
Meanwhile, an army-green jeep slowly passed the highway toll booth at Beijing’s entrance, neon lights speeding past the window, casting layers of shadow on his stern face.
The changes in Beijing over the years weren’t much, but the people around him had changed a lot, all getting married, establishing careers, having sons and daughters, except...
He let out a helpless smirk; these kids probably hardly knew him.
If he stayed away a few more years, he might even return to find his son and daughter unrecognizable.
"Sir, shouldn’t we inform Madam?"
"No need."
The car drove on towards Hexi...