Su Su spent the whole afternoon playing with Zai Zai. He usually had a habit of napping at noon, but today he was too excited to sleep, only getting drowsy around four thirty. Normally he was well behaved, but when sleepy, his temper got bad. Su Su had no experience putting a child to sleep, so she had to let her mother handle it.
Just then, Gu Shao called, and Su Su went to the living room to answer.
She sat cross-legged on the sofa, her slender figure soft and relaxed. Her hair was casually tied at the back, a few loose strands framing her forehead. The corners of her lips lifted slightly, bright and charming, while her eyes carried a gentle warmth.
“Hubby, did you miss me?” When not face to face, Su Su felt no embarrassment saying such mushy words. Imagining Gu Shao’s reaction gave her a strange sense of enjoyment.
Hearing her question, Gu Shao’s mind stalled, and he forgot what he originally wanted to say.
He didn’t know how to respond. It was the first time she had asked him that.
He cleared his throat. “What are you doing right now?”
“Ah, you didn’t answer my question.” Su Su pretended to be upset, but in reality she was covering her mouth, shaking with silent laughter.
Gu Shao sighed inwardly. After a pause, he said softly, “Mm.”
“Mm?”
But he refused to say more. No matter how much he longed for her, knowing she didn’t truly have him in her heart, and that she was mostly teasing, he couldn’t bring himself to be completely exposed before her.
Finally remembering why he had called, Gu Shao smoothly changed the topic. “I have a dinner engagement tonight. I won’t be able to come back to eat with you and Mom. You don’t need to prepare anything for me.”
In Su Su’s memory, there were a few times like this before. The original host never cared, just responded indifferently and hung up.
In her previous life, her father often had business dinners and didn’t come home, but her mother would always show concern and remind him of many things. That was what a normal married couple should be like. She could feel that Gu Shao treated the original host well, and now that she had taken over her body and accepted that kindness, she should respond in kind, at least show some understanding for his hard work.
Recalling what her mother used to say, she smiled. “Work must be tiring. Drink less alcohol and come home early.”
Gu Shao’s grip on his phone tightened. The words slipped out before he could think. “Mm, I’ll drink less and come back early.”
Through the phone, Su Su didn’t notice anything unusual. “Alright. Since you’re not coming back, I won’t go home alone. If you come back early, come pick me up at Mom’s place. If it’s too late, I’ll just stay here tonight. You go home yourself.”
“Mm.”
……
The nanny prepared a simple meal, and Su Su ate with her mother.
After dinner, they sat on the sofa chatting, discussing what to buy for the children or planning a day out.
Su Su suddenly thought of Ning Ke, who seemed close with her mother, and sat up straight. “Mom, are you close with Bai Ningyue and his mom Ning Ke?”
“Yes, we often run into them when I take Zai Zai out. Ning Ke has even visited our home a few times. You were out playing and never met her.” Then she frowned and added, “Look at how she takes care of her child, then look at you.”
“I… well, I have a great mom, don’t I?” Su Su said with a flattering smile.
Recently, she had become quite good at acting spoiled. Qu Qingwei found herself helpless. “Whoever raises the child becomes closest to them. If you don’t put your heart into raising them, they won’t be close to you either.”
“Yes, yes.” Her mother was right. In the book, it was only mentioned that Gu Zai was very afraid of his father, nothing about his attitude toward his mother. As for Gu Wan, there was only a line of resentment toward her mother.
“Mom, when did Gu Zai and Bai Ningyue meet? They seem really close.”
“They met when Zai Zai could crawl. That Bai family boy has a strange temperament, he ignores other kids but only plays with Zai Zai. He’s just a month and a half older, born in October.”
Heh. Su Su smiled to herself. Right now, the baby only plays with Zai Zai. Once they become love rivals, who knows what he’ll do to him.
“What do you think of them, the child and his mother?”
“Ningyue is young but perceptive, seems very smart. His mother is also nice. She recommends useful baby products and has given Zai Zai quite a few small gifts. Unlike you…” her mother shook her head. “When it’s his birthday, you should at least give something in return.”
“Got it, got it, stop lecturing me. I’m the type who improves over time. I’m raising two kids, I’ll soon do even better than her.”
“You don’t need to compete with her. Just don’t dump everything on Gu Shao. He works all day and still has to take care of you when he gets back. Even I feel bad for him.”
Su Su laughed. “Then you must be his mom, not mine.”
“Still talking back?”
Su Su shook her head.
Suddenly, her mother’s phone rang. Seeing the caller ID, her expression changed slightly, and she hung up.
“Who is calling so late?” Su Su asked.
“A spam call.”
Soon, the “spam call” rang again.
Her mother hung up.
It rang a third time.
Su Su said nothing, but clearly it wasn’t just a random call. “Mom, you should at least answer and tell them they got the wrong number.”
Qu Qingwei looked irritated. She picked up the phone and walked out, her back turned to Su Su. “The kids might wake up anytime. Go upstairs and keep an eye on them.”
Su Su responded and went upstairs in slippers.
Seeing the two little ones sleeping, she suddenly felt the urge to draw. She opened her laptop and sketched chibi versions of Zai Zai and Wanwan.
The simple illustration was finished quickly. It was so cute she wanted to kiss it. She logged into the original host’s social media account and uploaded it with the caption, “Today’s babies are still adorable, all thanks to the good looks inherited from their mom.”
After thinking a bit more, she put on some makeup, took a selfie, and uploaded it as well.
Less than a minute after setting down her phone, she heard a baby crying. It was Wanwan.
Then Zai Zai was woken up too.
After a lot of fuss, Wanwan fell asleep again, but Zai Zai was wide awake.
Su Su carried him to another room and lay on the bed playing with him.
After he finally fell asleep, she scrolled on her phone for a while. That was when Gu Shao came in.
As he approached, she sniffed, there was no smell of alcohol at all.
Instead of looking at Zai Zai, Gu Shao walked over and pulled Su Su into his arms.
“I thought you were asleep,” he whispered near her ear, his breath brushing her cheek and making her itch.
“No. How was work?” Su Su tried to push him away, but he held her tightly.
“Let’s go home,” he said.
“It’s already so late. Let’s just sleep here. You lie there, I lie here, and Zai Zai sleeps in the middle.”
“…Are you sure you want to sleep here?”
Su Su nodded.
“Then let’s change rooms.”
“…What if Gu Zai falls down?”
Gu Shao sighed, “Kids are such a hassle.” He kissed Su Su by her hair, then went into the bathroom.
She told him to come back early, and he did, yet she still would not keep him company.
Gu Shao felt a little unhappy.
When it was time to sleep, Su Su asked Gu Shao to lie on Zai Zai’s right side. Gu Shao refused, insisting on squeezing in behind Su Su. Left with no choice, Su Su moved Zai Zai further to the right.
Gu Shao could not fall asleep and did not know what to say, so he kept fidgeting behind Su Su, making her feel awkward. Since she was not sleepy either, she turned around to face him.
It was not the first time she had looked at his face from such a close distance, but it was the first time she did so in such a calm, idle state. His features were refined, yet not feminine, instead carrying a strong masculine charm.
Held in his arms like this, gazing into his deep eyes… Su Su swallowed.
Gu Shao suddenly broke into a smile, his eyes shining brightly as if filled with stars. He leaned closer and asked, “Want it?”
Su Su snorted and bumped her forehead against his, “No. I played with Zai Zai all day, I’m tired.”
What she meant was, I am a good mom, right? Praise me.
Gu Shao really did rub her hand, “Mom has worked hard.”
These past few days, whenever it came to the children, Su Su would call Gu Shao “Dad,” like, Dad, go help Zai Zai put on his shoes, Dad, go carry the little princess, Dad, go put a diaper on Zai Zai…
So gradually, Gu Shao also learned to address Su Su that way. It felt intimate, as if the two of them were very close. For the first time, he truly felt that this was his home. He was the father, she was the mother, and they had two very adorable children.
Su Su could not sleep because the matter of transmigrating into the book still weighed on her mind. At night, she tended to overthink, and with so many things bottled up, she felt a faint unease. Now, wrapped in this warmth with Gu Shao, she could not help but speak, of course without mentioning that her soul had taken over someone else’s wife’s body. She only said, “Gu Shao, what if Zai Zai doesn’t grow up well?”
“He will. He’s my son.”
“I mean, what if.”
“You’re overthinking.” While lying beside Su Su, Gu Shao tucked Zai Zai’s blanket in again.
Su Su said, “How about we hire more teachers for Zai Zai, let him learn all kinds of things, keep him busy every day without a break. Then he won’t have time to grow crooked.”
Gu Shao: “…”
Su Su added, “Wan Wan too. Little girls are easy to deceive. We should let her meet more boys, so she knows there are many good boys in the world and won’t fixate on just one.”
Gu Shao thought, can she consider my feelings as a father? His precious little princess was not even two months old, and his wife was already thinking about introducing boys to her…
Gu Shao said, “No. I won’t let some brat trick my daughter away.”
“I think it’s possible. Look at Bai Ningyue next door, he’s so handsome, that’s dangerous.”
“No, no.” The more Su Su spoke, the more uncomfortable Gu Shao felt.
“Are you talking about Bai Xinyan’s son?”
Su Su nodded.
“Speaking of which, Bai Xinyan is my senior. We met while studying abroad, though we weren’t close. But his son is only a little over one year old now, right? How can you tell he’s handsome?”
“Because his dad is handsome,” Su Su said matter-of-factly.
Gu Shao’s face darkened instantly, his eyes turning dangerous.
Su Su gave an awkward laugh and tried to back away, but he still pulled her into his arms. “No, husband, husband, don’t… Zai Zai is still sleeping…”
…
To keep Zai Zai from seeing Bai Ningyue again, Su Su decided to temporarily stop his outdoor activities for a day.
Unexpectedly, Ning Ke came over carrying Bai Ningyue.
Author’s note:
One day in the future when little princess Wan Wan is six years old
Bai Ningcheng: “Wan Wan, your dad is so scary.”
Wan Wan: “No, my dad is great. You’re not allowed to speak badly about him!”