Pampered by Short-Lived Bigshot-Chapter 996 - 591: A Woman’s Love Turns Ruthless—Using Jiangjiang as a Trial Child? (Part 2)
Due to a certain annoying boss, she could only contact him in the evenings, which meant she had plenty of time to do her own things during the day.
If she wasn’t chatting with Tang Wan, she was accompanying Shen Shuci to shop for wedding essentials.
In her social circles, her feed was filled with either workout check-ins or various wining, dining, and entertainment, while Qi Zeyan was busy and dazed recently, with the year’s end approaching, and every department working overtime. The number of times he returned home in a week was countable on one hand.
Since that night, the two hadn’t seen each other until Huo Qinqi returned from work.
By then, there were only three days left until his wedding with Shen Shuci, the weather was chilly, and heating started in Beijing.
When Huo Qinqi returned, there was nothing left for him to worry about regarding the wedding, as everyone had been busy helping out. His way of expressing gratitude was simple and direct.
A dinner invitation.
The location was set at the Huo Family, and they agreed on having a hotpot.
There were quite a few people today, so Huo Qinqi and Shen Shuci went to the supermarket themselves to pick out ingredients. Since Hexi wasn’t that big, they ran into Jiang Yanting’s family of four.
They seemed to be buying some alcohol and desserts to bring along, and upon meeting, they shopped at the supermarket together.
"Dad, I want that." Taotao pointed to some gummies on the shelf.
Jiang Yanting didn’t say anything, he just took one of each flavor for her.
"I want that too." Jiangjiang pointed to a bag of chocolates.
"You can’t have that." Jiang Yanting directly refused him.
Jiangjiang puckered his lips.
"Didn’t you say your tooth hurts recently?"
"..."
Jiangjiang snorted and turned towards Shen Shuci.
Shen Shuci and Huo Qinqi were at a freezer not far away, choosing ingredients for the hotpot. Jiangjiang, not very tall, tried to peer over the freezer but couldn’t see the bottom, so he tiptoed and leaned his head in to look.
Huo Qinqi sized him up...
He neither liked nor disliked children; as long as they didn’t cry or make a scene, he was fine with them.
But, this was an attitude toward other people’s children. If it were his own, he couldn’t ignore them. Just like his mother always advised him:
[You must learn to get along with children.]
He stared at Jiangjiang’s back. Now that it was cold, he was wearing a yellow down jacket, making it a bit cumbersome for him to move, while he was tilting his head talking to Shen Shuci. Huo Qinqi pursed his lips:
Short-legged, short-armed, and fussy.
The only children he had access to were Jiang Yanting’s two little ones, so:
He decided to practice with Jiangjiang!
Jiangjiang seemed to notice someone’s gaze, turned his head and looked at him, "Uncle-by-marriage?"
"What do you want to see? I can hold you up to see."
"..."
Jiangjiang was stunned until he was finally carried by someone, his little head still reeling.
He had known Huo Qinqi since childhood. Although he didn’t know him well, he understood that he wasn’t an easy person to approach. So why was he being so friendly all of a sudden?
Did he have some ulterior motive?
"What do you want to eat?"
Though clearly a question of care, his stern face made it sound more like a threat.
"I... I’d like to eat those meatballs," Jiangjiang tentatively said.
And then he saw Huo Qinqi toss a pack of beef meatballs into the cart.
Jiangjiang was cautious at first, not daring to speak casually, but later he grew bolder, realizing that the other person seemed willing to indulge his every request today.
Shen Shuci watched as Huo Qinqi kept tossing things into the cart, but said nothing. After all, they were things the child liked to eat, and it wouldn’t be appropriate for the elders to say much.
So when they were checking out, the two groups converged, and upon seeing the contents of Huo Qinqi’s cart, Jiang Yanting and Shen Zhixian were somewhat bewildered.
They were well aware of Jiangjiang’s preferences.
"Old Huo, these..." Jiang Yanting frowned.
"Let’s check out together; I’ll pay."
Later, Jiang Yanting pulled Jiangjiang aside to ask what was going on.
Jiangjiang was equally innocent, "I don’t know either. Uncle-by-marriage suddenly wanted to buy me things. It wouldn’t seem right if I refused everything."
"He offered to buy you things? Not the other way around?"
"I didn’t ask!" Jiangjiang shook his head vigorously, "He offered it first."
"He offered?"
"Dad, do you think Uncle-by-marriage was triggered by something, or is he just too happy about his wedding, so he’s spending impulsively? I think if we don’t help him spend some money, he looks upset."
Jiang Yanting remained silent.
Actually, Huo Qinqi didn’t understand how to get along with children. He thought that if he bought stuff, made Jiangjiang happy, their interactions would naturally be harmonious.
Little did he know, in Jiangjiang’s eyes, he was just a "wealthy" "pushover."
...
Tang Wan and Jiang Jinsang arrived at the Huo Family. Preparing hotpot didn’t require too many hands, and since she was heavily pregnant, it was natural she wasn’t allowed in the kitchen.
"Sister-in-law, aren’t Jiangjiang and Taotao here?" Tang Wan glanced at the living room, seeing only Huo Ran and several of the Huo family’s cousins playing cards.
"They’re in the backyard," Shen Zhixian smiled.
When Tang Wan and Jiang Jinsang reached the backyard, they saw Taotao riding a horse, with Huo Qinqi holding the reins and guiding the horse through the Green Plum Forest.
Jiangjiang walked alongside, chatting and laughing.
"What’s up with Brother Huo?" Tang Wan looked shocked.
He generally didn’t like interacting with children. Jiangjiang and Taotao had both been "harmed" by Huo Chichi, so they usually didn’t cling to him. What was different today?
"I’m not sure either," Jiang Jinsang found it odd too.
"Uncle!" Taotao suddenly saw Jiang Jinsang and waved enthusiastically.
Jiang Jinsang merely smiled at her.
Huo Qinqi initially thought he was getting along well with the two kids. But as soon as Jiang Jinsang came, Taotao dismounted and, together with Jiangjiang, rushed towards him...
"Uncle, have you ridden a horse before? It’s so tall, and its fur is bristly," Taotao excitedly gestured to him.
"So happy?" Jiang Jinsang tidied her hair.
"Uncle, Uncle-by-marriage said he would let me and my sister take the cat home for a few days," Jiangjiang grinned wide.
"Let you take Huo Chichi home?" Tang Wan frowned, eyeing the tall figure in the distance leading the horse back to the stable.
What was going on?
Was he getting rid of the cat too?
Wasn’t it the love token between him and his aunt?
Usually, people were hard-pressed to even touch it, nevermind taking it home for a few days.
"Yes, but we need Dad and Mom’s approval. I need to tell them." Jiangjiang said, running back inside, with Taotao following behind.
Jiang Yanting and Shen Zhixian were also quite surprised to hear that Huo Qinqi was willing to let them take the cat home.
At that moment, Huo Chichi was leisurely lying in the cage, licking its paws contentedly.
Little did it know, its male owner had:
Decided to give it away!
**
After the two kids left, Huo Qinqi also walked up to them.
"What’s up with you today? Why indulge them?" Jiang Jinsang asked.
Huo Qinqi clapped his hands and straightforwardly replied:
"Turns out getting along with kids isn’t hard after all."
His tone was relaxed.
"..."
In his heart, Huo Qinqi thought:
The first experiment was... a great success!
But reality would always give him a harsh slap in the face. Brief interactions were always easier, and Jiangjiang and Taotao, being sensible and understanding, made getting along naturally easy.
Dealing with those who don’t understand words, where even threats are ineffective, that’s when it truly gets frustrating.
