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Tang Tang was very quick. She was back within an hour, carrying many big and small bags which made her unable to move smoothly. Her face was also red from the strenuous task.
When Ji Yan saw her, his heart ached and he scolded, “Why are you carrying so many things? Didn’t I say not to hurry? Why do you need to bring everything in one go? It’s so heavy, how can you carry them all!”
“Don’t move! Don’t move!” When Tang Tang saw Ji Yan planning to get up and take the things off her, she hurriedly placed the stuff down and went to support him, “Don’t move. I can carry them. I’m strong enough now.”
“Do you think I don’t know how strong you are?” Ji Yan pulled her hands closer and saw deep red marks on her hands. He couldn’t help but gently massaged them. Honestly, he felt guilty inside. There was no one at home who could give her a hand. She had to do everything herself. How can she endure it if this carried on?
Tang Tang saw a frown and deliberately swayed her hands to distract him, “It’s really alright. Let’s eat now, otherwise, the food will get cold.”
After she finished speaking, she pulled her hands away and set up the small table on the bed with the food she brought.
Tang Tang had made two large cases of food. There was pork ribs soup, cola chicken wings, Chinese cabbage, mushroom with ham and steamed chicken, sweet and sour lotus roots as well as rice and congee.
Rice was for the children while the congee and vegetable dishes were made especially for Ji Yan.
When the food cases were opened, an alluring scent immediately filled the air. The smell appealed to everyone’s appetite. Not only Ji Yan’s nose twitched, even Sun Yi who was at the neighboring bed also twitched his nose. Sun Yi couldn’t help but look towards Ji Yan’s side. When he saw the plentiful dishes on the table, Sun Yi swallowed his saliva even though he didn’t feel very hungry before.
It smells so good. How come the food Ji Yan’s wife brought was so different compared to his?
Firstly, Tang Tang got a bowl and ladle soup, then she got a separate tray and placed a bit of everything in it. After that, she took the bowl of soup and tray of dishes to Sun Yi, “Brother Sun, I made these myself and I made some extra. If you don’t mind, you can also give them a taste.”
Sun Yi didn’t expect he would also get a portion. Even though he was attracted to the food, he wasn’t shameless to steal other people’s food. So he quickly waved his hand, “There’s no need. I also have my lunch. You should eat it yourself.”
Tang Tang simply placed the soup and tray on the small table connected to his bed, “It’s okay, Brother Sun. I intentionally made more. If you don’t eat, we won’t be able to finish it either so you don’t need to be courteous.”
“This …” Sun Yi looked at Ji Yan awkwardly.
Ji Yan smiled, “You don’t need to be polite. Let’s eat together.”
Sun Yi was an easy-going person. Since it was like this, he did not refuse and said, “Thank you, sister-in-law.” When Sun Yi finished speaking, he immediately started eating. He was truly hungry at the moment.
When he had the first sip of soup, Sun Yi couldn’t help but let out an “Mm,” sound. The taste was great. It was totally different from the food at the canteen. As he was thinking that, he finished drinking the soup in a couple of mouthfuls and went to eat the food on the tray. Then he discovered the taste was even better and he simply lifted the bowl of rice on the side and started eating speedily. He didn’t look like a person who was sick. If people were unaware, they would have thought he was at the barracks.
Seeing that he was eating well, happiness filled Tang Tang’s eyes. Then she went back to Ji Yan’s side and lifted the two children who were still sleeping. She patted on their shoulders and said, “Good Bao Bao, wake up now. We are eating now.”
Wen Nuo was still in a daze as she rubbed her eyes. She opened her eyes a little and called out cutely, “Auntie~”
“Ah, auntie is here. Quickly get up and eat, Nuo Nuo.” Tang Tang gave the little girl a kiss and turned to look at Ji Xiao Zhuo. The boy was still sleeping soundly. There were even small snores that made her nip at his chubby cheeks, “Get up quickly otherwise the big bad wolf will eat your face!”
Nuo Nuo, who was beside them, started laughing. Unfortunately, little Ji Xiao Zhuo remained asleep.
For a short moment, Tang Tang was helpless. Then she hardened her heart and shook the chubby child strongly, so much that his chubby body was shaking, as she shouted loudly, “Bao Bao, wake up!”
“Don’t be noisy, ah ~ I still want to sleep.” Ji Xiao Zhuo moved his body and waved his hand to drive the person away who was disturbing him. Then he turned around and went back to sleep.
Everyone else was speechless.
Tang Tang was vexed as she sighed. The little one didn’t sleep much recently and he now became a sleeping deity to catch up on sleep. He didn’t wake up no matter how loud they yelled.
Seeing Tang Tang so frustrated, Nuo Nuo swayed Tang Tang’s hand to calm her. Then Nuo Nuo slowly placed her hand near the sole of Ji Xiao Zhuo’s feet and lightly tickled him.
“Hahaha, it tickles!” Ji Xiao Zhuo who was just sleeping like a pig shot up immediately. He held his feet as he laughed.
Did he wake up just by that? It was that easy? Tang Tang blinked. She looked bewilderedly at Nuo Nuo.
Nuo Nuo also blinked. A little slyness was in her eyes. She suddenly went close to Tang Tang’s ear and whispered, “Auntie, brother Xiao Zhuo is weak against tickles. He will wake up when tickled.” She also used this method to wake him up at the nursery after their afternoon nap.
Tang Tang was enlightened. She just discovered that her child was weak against tickles. She didn’t even know he would wake when tickled.
When Ji Xiao Zhuo finished laughing, he was fully awake. He looked suspiciously at everyone then he looked at his feet and instantly understood what happened. He pouted as he glared at Nuo Nuo, “Nuo Nuo! You’re not being good again!”
Nuo Nuo smiled apologetically and suddenly gave him a kiss on his cheeks.
I’ll give you a kiss, so don’t be angry.
Ji Xiao Zhuo’s anger was deflated from the kiss. He feigned impatience and waved his hand, “Aiya, you women are troublesome. I won’t bicker with you.”
Nuo Nuo let out a joyful smile.
Ji Yan’s brows lifted. This was his first time seeing his son’s new move. Where did he learn this from?
Tang Tang was too embarrassed to tell him that it was Ji Xiao Zhuo who taught the little girl that method to thank and apologize. She was afraid the little one would get spanked.
Watching the scene, Sun Yi smiled with amusement. He pointed at Ji Xiao Zhuo and gave thumbs up to Ji Yan and said, “Ji Yan, your son has a good future ahead.”
Ji Yan covered his forehead. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Since Ji Xiao Zhuo was awake, Tang Tang gave the children a bowl of rice each so they could start eating. Then, she propped Ji Yan’s bed higher and poured a bowl of soup before sitting by his side, “Dear, you can’t eat oily or greasy food now. You need to suffer a little and drink some soup and eat some congee. You can also have a few from the vegetable dishes. Wait till a few days later, I will make something good for you when you can have something heavier.”
Ji Yan found it funny as he watched her coax him like he was a child, but he felt happy inside. With her looking after him, he was alright with eating congee every day. How was he wronged?
Feeling sweet inside, Ji Yan reached out to take the bowl of soup but Tang Tang stopped him, “Don’t move, what should we do if you made your wound worse? Let me feed you.”
“…. Ok.” Originally, Ji Yan wanted to tell her that it was fine to eat by himself but seeing her looking so worried, he swallowed down those words. Never mind, let her feed him. Even though he would feel a bit embarrassed doing that in front of the children and his comrade, he would just have to thicken his face a bit and everything would be fine.
Tang Tang took a spoonful of soup to test the temperature. It was still a little too hot so she gently blew on it before moving the spoon to his lips.
Her actions were similar to a mother feeding her child who didn’t know how to eat by himself. She was being extremely careful and considerate. But the real children were currently eating their own meal with a spoon, while a thirty-year-old man was being fed.
Ji Yan coughed lightly as his ear went slightly red. From the point he could remember, he never had someone feeding him to eat. He never expected he would experience it when he was in his thirties, and he was being fed by his own wife. Ji Yan did feel a bit embarrassed, but he had to admit he felt blessed.
Who said only women would feel blessed when they are doted on by men, men would also feel the same.
Ji Yan tried to ignore the shocked and surprised expressions from Sun Yi as much as possible. While Sun Yi had a complicated expression that was hard to ignore, Ji Yan opened his mouth to drink the soup with a calm expression on his face.
Tang Tang scooped another spoonful and blew on it, “You need to eat a bit more bland so I put less salt. So put up with this for now.”
“It’s good, it’s not bland at all.” Ji Yan spoke truthfully. The soup was good. He didn’t need to put up with anything, “Everything you cook is delicious.”
Tang Tang smiled. She was like a shy young lady who got praised. She happily gathered the congee and vegetable dishes over to feed him, “Then eat some more, you will heal faster if you eat more.”
The smile from Tang Tang made Ji Yan suddenly forget about the people around them and he couldn’t help but touch her face. He thought his wife was too easy to coax. She didn’t need anything. Just a praise would make her extremely happy. Why was she so good to raise?
Sun Yi, who was eating at the side and watched the entire scene, was speechless. Wasn’t this how they treated dogs?
Sun Yi suddenly felt he had a bit of indigestion and silently put the bowl and chopsticks down. Then he quietly lied down and pulled up the blanket to cover half of his face. He wanted to block the sight.
He should sleep instead.
On Tang Tang and Ji Yan’s side, one was busy feeding and the other was bust eating so they didn’t notice the situation on Sun Yi’s side. When Ji Yan finished eating, Tang Tang wiped his mouth before bringing over the remaining dishes to eat herself.
Originally, Tang Tang wanted to finish off the remaining congee but Ji Yan stopped her, “Don’t eat the congee. Eat more rice and meat. Look at yourself, you have lost weight.”
Tang Tang looked embarrassed as she looked down at her thin wrist. She sighed gloomily and quietly put the congee back and brought rice over. After putting a few pieces of meat in her bowl, she started to gobble the food down.
She had to eat more too. She looked better before when she finally gained some weight, but it had all gone to vain now, she turned ugly again. If this carried on, she would feel too embarrassed to stay by Ji Yan’s side. She would only embarrass him.
Also, his comrade was probably thinking about why Ji Yan married a wife like her.
No. No. She cannot embarrass Ji Yan. She must gain weight! Thinking up to that point, Tang Tang ate some more meat and purposely chose the fatty meat.
Seeing Tang Tang eating quite a bit of meat in one go, Ji Yan felt a bit relieved. Joy entered his eyes as he just watched her eat.
After lunch, Tang Tang tidied up the plates she brought and lowered Ji Yan’s bed back down, “Take a nap, dear. Sleep is good for your wound.”
Ji Yan glanced at the two children who were squatting on the floor as they built a model and said, “Take the children back with you. There isn’t enough space for them to play and you should go back and rest. I don’t need to be watched over constantly and if anything happens, I can just ring for a nurse. You can bring the children again for dinner.”
“But,” Tang Tang was very worried about Ji Yan. However, the children looked pitiful crouching on the floor to play. Also, it was impossible for children to not make any noise when they were playing which would disturb Ji Yan and Sun Yi’s nap. Tang Tang could only agree to Ji Yan’s suggestion, “Okay, I’ll take them back to rest. I will bring dinner earlier for you later.”
Seeing her looking so worried, Ji Yan rubbed her hand, “Don’t be too early. There’s no need to rush. The nurses come to check on us once every two hours. Nothing will happen to me.”
Tang Tang nodded but her worry didn’t decrease at all. She took his phone and checked if it had enough battery. After confirming it was fine, she put his phone by his pillow, “I’ll put your phone here. If you can’t find a nurse for anything, remember to call me immediately. I will be here very quickly. You can’t exert yourself, okay?”
“Ok, I promise you.”
There was nothing else Tang Tang could say. She looked at him again for a while. Once she confirmed everything was fine, she took the children back to the rented apartment with her.
When the door of the ward finally closed, Sun Yi, who had been covering his face, slowly lowered his blanket. He turned and looked bitterly at Ji Yan.
That was the first sight Ji Yan saw when he moved his eyes away from the door. He asked puzzledly, “Weren’t you asleep?” Didn’t he go to sleep a long time ago?
“It would be strange if I could sleep under those circumstances.” Sun Yi muttered to himself. Then he suddenly spoke to Ji Yan, “I believe you and your wife dated by your own choice now.”
The abrupt sentence made Ji Yan confused. Of course, he and Tang Tang loved each other by their own choice. What was not believable about it?
There was a slight grudge in Sun Yi’s eyes, “I now know why you fell for your wife.” She was too gentle and virtuous, and she loved her husband too much. To think a woman like that still exists?
Ji Yan raised his brows. He finally understood Sun Yi’s meaning. Ji Yan couldn’t help smiling. There was pride in his smile.
Sun Yi felt his eyes hurt from looking at the smile. Silently, he turned around and faced his back towards Ji Yan. After all, what the eyes don’t see, the heart doesn’t grieve.
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Tang Tang was taking the children home. But when they just left the hospital, Ji Xiao Zhuo suddenly pulled on her trousers to stop her. Under her questioning gaze, he pointed at a Land Rover that was parked nearby, “Mummy, that’s great grandpa’s car.”
Tang Tang blanked. She looked at the car that he was pointing at. The car was big and tall and it was all black. Even the windows were tinted dark. From the outside, no one could see what was inside.
“Bao Bao, how do you know that is great-grandpa Ji’s car?” He wasn’t mistaken, right?
Ji Xiao Zhuo was certain, “There’s no mistake that is great-grandpa Ji’s car. Six five’s, it’s so easy to remember.”
Tang Tang had just noticed that the number plate on the car was a clear row of five’s. It seemed the little one really didn’t make a mistake.
Tang Tang felt a bit hesitant. She didn’t know if she should go and give a greeting as they had never interacted before. They couldn’t even say they knew each other. Also, Ji Yan didn’t interact with them either. Logically, she shouldn’t interact with the old man when she was unaware of the circumstances. But she couldn’t help but remember the night when Ji Yan was injured. The dignified and imposing old man suddenly became a different man outside the door of the surgery rooms. He looked like he suddenly aged a lot more in a flash. No matter what, he could not hide the anxiousness in his profound eyes.
She could tell from his eyes that the old man still deeply loved and cared about Ji Yan.
When Ji Yan was in ICU, the old man would sit on the bench outside every day before the sky was bright. He didn’t sit far, but he never went closer to them. Even when he had a lunch box, he would only eat two bites and then carry on sitting there quietly. She knew the old man was watching over Ji Yan just like them.
That type of elder made Tang Tang feel hesitant.
Seeing her hesitating, Ji Xiao Zhuo pulled on her hand and looked up at her, “Mummy, let’s go and give great grandpa a greeting. In the past, great-grandpa frequently brought toys and delicious food for me secretly.”
Tang Tang finally nodded after hearing that. Giving a greeting was not a big deal.
She went towards the car with the children and knocked on the car window. The car window immediately came down and revealed a young face. Tang Tang recognised him. He was the elder’s guard.
The guard was shocked to see Tang Tang’s group. He immediately got out of the car. Since he thought something happened to Ji Yan, he asked anxiously, “Is something wrong with Ji Yan?”
“No. No.” Tang Tang knew he misunderstood and quickly explained, “We saw the elder’s car was here so we wanted to greet him. Is grandpa not here?”
The guard sighed in relief and took a glance at the back seat before replying quietly, “He is here but he just fell asleep. He hasn’t slept well recently and his body can’t really handle it.”
“How can he sleep here? You should take him home to sleep. How can he sleep well in the car.” Even though she didn’t know what happened between him and Ji Yan, she could see the old man had exhausted himself for Ji Yan. She couldn’t just stand by and watch the elder suffer like that.
The guard looked helpless, “I also wanted to take him back home to sleep but he’s too stubborn. He won’t go back no matter what is said. He’s only willing to take a rest in the car. Also, he hasn’t been eating well recently. He has only taken two bites at every meal and he has lost weight. If this carries on, we don’t even know if his body can handle it.”
“Ah,” Tang Tang frowned with worry, “He isn’t young anymore, how can he handle it?”
“Who doesn’t understand?” The guard sighed, “But he’s too worried about Ji Yan.”
Tang Tang smoothed her lips and hesitated again before saying, “How about letting him rest at my place? I’ve rented an apartment nearby. He would be able to get a better rest there.”
“This,” the guard was a bit surprised and wanted to agree but when he remembered the elder’s stubbornness and his pride, the guard deflated. The elder was prideful. He wouldn’t be willing to lower his head to Ji Yan and he wouldn’t be willing to accept goodwill from Ji Yan’s wife.
Looking at the guard’s expression, Tang Tang understood a little. She bent down and quietly whispered something by Ji Xiao Zhuo’s ear. One second later, Ji Xiao Zhuo nodded and got into the car when Tang Tang opened the car door.
