SFBF CH52

After lunch, Gu Huaiyu formally spoke to the cubs about the adoption.

Listening from the side, Shen Qing carefully observed Duo Duo and Ao-zai’s reactions, only to discover… these two cubs basically had no reaction.

It seemed they had known about this for a long time. When Gu Huaiyu brought up that they would go process the adoption procedures tomorrow, and that the cubs would be registered under their names from now on, Gu Duo merely nodded after hearing it and said very simply, “Okay.”

Gu Ao’s expression was slightly more colorful—his large, dark grape-like eyes darted around, first glancing at his brother, then giving an “Oh,” and nodding along as well. Finally, he continued using his little fork to eat fruit from the small fruit platter.

And just like that, the matter was settled.

Shen Qing, who hadn’t needed to say a single word from beginning to end: “…”

Even though he knew the adoption would go smoothly, Shen Qing never expected it to be this smooth…

This process was simply far too concise!

It was just the family finishing a meal, sitting down to eat some fruit and drink some tea, and in a few sentences, the matter was finalized.

But being concise wasn’t a bad thing.

Shen Qing originally hated trouble anyway.

Moreover, although the process was concise, the assets President Gu was gifting the cubs were not simple at all…

Looking at Gu Duo, who was sitting silently to the side with his head bowed, and Ao-zai, who was smacking his lips chewing fruit pieces with his little cheeks puffing in and out, Shen Qing wasn’t sure if they knew they would instantly become multi-millionaires starting tomorrow.

As for why the cubs’ acceptance of the adoption was so high…

Leaving President Gu aside for a moment, Shen Qing felt that given his current relationship with the cubs, it wouldn’t be too much to ask them to call him “Dad,” right?

Thinking of this, he immediately smiled and said, “Then call us Dad a couple of times so we can hear it.”

Hearing what he said, the silent Gu Duo suddenly looked up at him, a hint of unnaturalness added to his expression.

Ao-zai, on the other hand, forgot to chew again. With his cheeks still puffed out, he turned his head and, just like his brother, looked at Shen Qing.

The two cubs first looked at Shen Qing, then simultaneously turned their heads to look at Gu Huaiyu on the other side of the table.

Gu Duo lowered his eyes, his little hands gripping together tightly once more, seemingly conflicted.

Ao-zai asked, “Why do we have to call you Da-Da (Dad)? Is Aunt-in-law Da-Da, or is Uncle Da-Da?”

Shen Qing: “…”

Alright, Ao-zai is genuinely still too young. Plus, he lost his biological father when he was just over a year old. In Ao-zai’s world, he probably doesn’t understand what a father does or what the title implies.

…So the reason this cub had no objections to being adopted, eating and drinking as usual, was because he completely failed to understand what they were talking about, assuming it had nothing to do with him, little Ao-zai.

Shen Qing explained to him: “Because from now on, we will be your and your brother’s dads… How about this: you call your Uncle ‘Big Dad,’ and call me ‘Little Dad.’ That’ll work.”

President Gu was the financial pillar of their family, after all. Shen Qing knew what was good for him and wouldn’t arrogantly compete with the big boss for the top spot.

Proactively abdicating to become the Little Dad, Shen Qing said, “From now on, when Ao-zai speaks, remember to swallow your food first. Be careful not to choke. …Of course, before swallowing, you must chew properly. You need to learn this from your Little Uncle… learn from your Big Dad.”

Reminded by Shen Qing to swallow before speaking, little Ao-zai chewed twice, swallowed the fruit in his mouth directly, and continued blinking his big eyes at Shen Qing: “Why do I have to learn from Da-Da (Dad)?”

Probably because he had his food snatched away both in the Gu family and at kindergarten, Ao-zai loved to wolf down his food no matter what he ate.

Although he didn’t eat fast because his mouth was small and chewing took effort, his entire posture was like a starving cub pouncing on prey. Even if he couldn’t swallow it yet, he had to grab the food with his little hands first, or hold it in his mouth.

After observing for a period, Shen Qing had summarized this pattern.

Even though no one in this house snatched food from him, and Shen Qing had repeatedly explained and emphasized this to Ao-zai before, he had to admit that verbal explanations alone were hard to change a habit a child had formed due to trauma.

Shen Qing had to try a different approach.

He said, “Because your Big Dad chews every bite of food over thirty times.”

Hearing this, Gu Huaiyu looked at Shen Qing.

Noticing the big boss’s gaze, Shen Qing immediately flashed him a perfect smile, full of flattery—What are you looking at me for? Boss, the way you eat is very educational for the cubs!

Though his true inner thought was: Why does the boss eat everything so slowly? Originally, seeing President Gu chew a piece of cake over thirty times, I thought he was slowly savoring it.

But when President Gu ate plain white rice the exact same way, I couldn’t help but feel uncertain whether he was savoring the food or finding it hard to swallow.

However, he naturally couldn’t voice his true inner thoughts right now. After all, he was currently educating Ao-zai not to rush while eating.

So Shen Qing said to Ao-zai, “Chewing a few more times not only makes you look good and elegant while eating, but it’s also healthy for your stomach and intestines. So you need to chew carefully and swallow slowly, remember? In the future, when you eat, think of your Big Dad and learn from him.”

“Oh.” Hearing this, Ao-zai twisted his little neck to look at Gu Huaiyu. He tried hard to recall his little uncle’s posture and movements when they were eating together just now. Feeling he mostly understood, he obediently turned back, gave Shen Qing a nod, and stated: “Ao-zai, will try, ba!”

When Ao-zai said he would try, he would try. This was the good thing about this kid; if he didn’t agree, he wouldn’t agree, but once he did, he wouldn’t half-ass it.

Shen Qing was very satisfied and added, “Besides, with your Big Dad here, no one will snatch your food either.”

…In the past, when he explained that no one would snatch his food, Ao-zai could never remember. Now, Shen Qing had to try bringing out the big boss, hoping his prestige and innate imposing aura could put this cub at ease.

While focusing on explaining to Ao-zai, Shen Qing didn’t notice that Gu Huaiyu had been looking at him the whole time, his gaze profound.

He said to Gu Ao again, “So there’s no need to rush when eating anything… Think carefully, Ao-zai. Recently, haven’t you been able to eat whatever you want? Has anyone taken away Ao-zai’s yummy food?”

Ao-zai listened carefully to Shen Qing’s words, then adorably scratched his big head, trying hard to recall—

That seems to be true, nu.

Lately, Ao-zai can eat whatever he wants!

In his and his brother’s new room, Aunt-in-law even specially prepared a little cart for them, piled full of yummy foods, including Ao-zai’s favorite little rice crackers and children’s cheese sticks!

Seeing Ao-zai’s eyes light up and his chubby little legs start swinging restlessly, Shen Qing knew this was a signal that the cub felt safe.

He pointed to himself and asked Ao-zai again, “So what are you going to call me?”

Ao-zai: “Little Da-Da!”

Shen Qing: “…It’s Little Dad.”

Ao-zai tried again very seriously: “Little Dad, Da!”

Shen Qing: …Alright then.

Usually, kids learned to call out ‘Dad’ when they were very young. But since Ao-zai hadn’t had a dad to call before, and likely no one trained him, this word he should be very familiar with was instead articulated unclearly.

But seeing as this cub said ‘Little Dad Da’… Shen Qing chose to feel smugly satisfied for a few seconds.

“Not bad.”

Though afterward, he still had to point at Gu Huaiyu and ask Ao-zai, “And what about him?”

Ao-zai: “Da Da Da!”

“? …”

Shen Qing looked up at Gu Huaiyu opposite him. Gu Huaiyu seemed to sense his gaze and looked back.

Shen Qing blinked at the big boss, signaling—I guess it’s fine. Even though Ao-zai didn’t say ‘Big Dad Da’ as planned, at least he keeps saying you’re big.

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

His eyebrow twitched slightly, and then he began to maintain his drooping-eyelid posture.

Then, he turned his gaze to Duo Duo on the other side.

Shen Qing also looked at Gu Duo. This cub’s two little hands were still clasped together, his head lowered.

While Ao-zai was actively practicing calling people and pronouncing the words ba-ba-ba, Gu Duo hadn’t made a sound. He didn’t call out anything, merely keeping his head down.

This was the reason Shen Qing suddenly asked the cubs to change how they addressed them.

Unlike Ao-zai, Gu Duo should still have memories of his biological father. Shen Qing also knew he deeply cherished the jade pendant his biological father left him, which Duo-zai still carried with him to this day.

So although he didn’t oppose the adoption, the reason President Gu gave for adopting the cubs was to prevent other people in the Gu family from harassing them later, and to ensure a smooth inheritance of assets… Shen Qing felt that Gu Duo probably didn’t fully understand these reasons yet.

Perhaps he only agreed to what his little uncle proposed because he and Gu Huaiyu treated him well.

But he didn’t understand why he had to call them ‘Dad.’

So it was normal for Duo Duo to feel confused and unable to change his way of addressing them right away.

But changing how they addressed them had to be done early.

Otherwise, it would only get more awkward later on.

However, since they noticed Duo Duo had a mental block about changing the title, neither Shen Qing nor Gu Huaiyu wanted to push him too hard.

After all, Gu Duo was a sensitive, silent, and introverted child.

Seeing the cub’s reaction and realizing Duo Duo had no intention of speaking, the two adults didn’t rush it. Ultimately, neither of them forced him.

It was just that the atmosphere in the living room instantly solidified a bit.

Coincidentally, at this moment, Ao-zai, who was tired from practicing his pronunciation, forked another piece of red dragon fruit to eat.

To prevent the little young masters from choking, Auntie Zhang always prepared the fruit in very small pieces. But Ao-zai’s mouth was too small, and he had so much meat on his cheeks that eating anything gave the effect of him chewing with puffed-out cheeks.

Waiting for him to finish chewing and swallow, Shen Qing raised a hand to wipe Ao-zai’s cheek, trying to clean off the fruit juice that had somehow splashed onto his face.

But one wipe didn’t completely clean it off, and Ao-zai thought Shen Qing was coming to rub his face again.

Having his little cheeks rubbed, Ao-zai remembered he had to rub back to mark himself again.

…He used his chubby little hands to rub and rub, ending up smearing the juice all over his own face, instantly turning into a little painted-face kitten.

Shen Qing was completely charmed by his adorable appearance. He instinctively laughed out loud hahaha and even found a mirror for Ao-zai to look in.

Ao-zai was also tickled by his painted-face kitten look, giggling happily. He stared wide-eyed into the mirror for a long time, then pounced over to Gu Duo, wanting his brother to see.

Facing Duo Duo was a large, chubby, pink face. The skin was smooth and tender, and up close, one could even see fine peach fuzz.

Ao-zai just beamed at his brother with wide eyes, causing the little hands Gu Duo had previously tangled together to unconsciously loosen.

Right at this moment, Shen Qing actually dabbed a bit more dragon fruit juice and smeared it onto Duo Duo’s face.

Caught off guard, three stripes were quickly drawn on one side of Gu Duo’s face.

…Looking just at that side profile, he really resembled a little kitten too. Shen Qing continued laughing hahaha beside them, even laughing until he was bending back and forth because Gu Duo revealed a look of utter disbelief.

Gu Huaiyu sitting opposite: “…”

Looking at the painted-faced Gu Duo… The usually mature and composed Duo Duo wouldn’t get angry over Shen Qing’s harmless joke, nor would he do something like ‘you smeared my face, so I’ll smear yours.’

He just looked at the adult wearing a white shirt before him with shocked helplessness and a sense of habituation, once again feeling that perhaps this person was the real child…

Gu Duo crossed his arms again and sat up straight with his back erect.

Even though his legs couldn’t touch the ground while sitting in the chair, it still didn’t affect his profound expression.

It was just that even Gu Duo himself hadn’t noticed that his previously tangled hands had already unclenched after being interrupted by Shen Qing.

The feelings of embarrassment, shyness, and awkwardness from being unable to utter those two words no matter what had all vanished into thin air.

Noticing Gu Duo’s change, Gu Huaiyu couldn’t help but look at the youth opposite him.

Shen Qing was still laughing.

Ao-zai’s crisp little voice was mixed in with it.

Even while laughing uproariously without any regard for his image, the youth’s eyes curved into crescents, his lips red and teeth white.

And amazingly, without even trying, he could inject so much vitality into this winter day that should have been lifeless and devoid of energy.

.

In the afternoon, the pajamas Shen Qing had ordered online arrived.

The batch of pajamas he bought were still two-piece sets, but they were thin silk pajamas, so wearing them to sleep upstairs wouldn’t be too hot.

The night passed, and things seemed basically peaceful.

Anyway, when Shen Qing woke up in the morning, he found that the situation of waking up tangled around President Gu like an octopus hadn’t happened again, and his buttons hadn’t been rubbed off either.

This made him sigh once again about the importance of money.

—They were both pajamas, but changing into ones made of high-quality material was just more comfortable to sleep in.

Of course, Shen Qing couldn’t sleep in today because yesterday, Duo Duo’s good classmate, little Xu Weiming, had said he was coming over to their house to play today.

He heard that Xu Weiming had been throwing tantrums at home for several days, insisting on coming to play with Duo Duo. His mother finally couldn’t take it anymore and called Shen Qing to ask if it was convenient.

It seemed that for the entire upper-class circle of Hua City, any place associated with Gu Huaiyu was considered a tiger’s den. Ordinary people didn’t dare approach easily, nor were they allowed to, let alone proactively asking to visit.

Mainly because President Gu was always aloof, straightforwardly cold and ruthless, and never participated in any socializing.

Even if people wanted to visit, they couldn’t find a reasonable excuse, and most of the time, they couldn’t even contact President Gu at all.

Even with two extra cubs in the house, to outsiders, this family remained extremely mysterious… This was mainly because Gu Duo was as profound as his little uncle, and seemed to have inherited Shen Qing’s homebody nature.

Every day was nothing but studying, studying, studying. Apart from little Xu Weiming, no one had ever seen him interact with anyone else.

If Duo Duo was like this, Ao-zai—a cub who spent all day eating, drinking, playing, occasionally studying, and occasionally sleeping—was even less likely to proactively go out and make friends.

So people who wanted to curry favor still had no way in.

It was because Xu Weiming had a good relationship with Duo Duo, plus the fact that President Gu had personally extended an olive branch to the Xu family during little Xu Weiming’s birthday party last time, that Xu Weiming’s mother had a bit more confidence.

Moreover, she had exchanged contact information with Shen Qing at that birthday party, making it genuinely convenient to get in touch. So she just called directly, asking if the two families’ children could play together.

Xu Weiming’s mother said on the phone yesterday: “I’m so sorry, Mr. Shen. Ming-bao keeps clamoring to see Duo Duo and says he wants to play with him. …If it’s inconvenient for you over there, I can send someone to pick up Duo Duo and Ao-zai to come to our house… Oh, you can come along too. Rest assured, I will definitely take good care of Duo Duo and the others.”

Shen Qing naturally didn’t think it was inconvenient. In fact, he was just worrying that the cubs at home had too few friends.

But out of respect for his own cubs, Shen Qing didn’t agree immediately. He just replied: “I need to ask Duo Duo about his schedule first. You know this child has taken on quite a bit of coursework… If Duo Duo agrees, I’ll send someone to pick up Ming-bao tomorrow.”

“Okay, okay, Mr. Shen,” Ming-bao’s mother said. “But you don’t need to come pick him up. If Duo-bao has no objections, just let me know the time, and I’ll have someone drop Ming-bao off…”

“Uncle Shen, do you still remember me, Uncle Shen?” At this moment, a cute, soft little voice came through the phone.

It was little Xu Weiming.

Probably no one could resist this kind of incredibly cute child’s voice. Especially since Xu Weiming was mixed-race, Shen Qing still vaguely remembered his appearance; he had thought he looked very cute when they met last time.

Shen Qing’s voice immediately softened: “Oh, is this Ming-bao? Uncle Shen remembers you, of course.”

“It’s me, I’m Ming-bao,” Xu Weiming said. “Uncle Shen, can I go to your house to play? Ming-bao misses you so much!”

Shen Qing: …

Instantly clutched his chest wildly.

The two cubs in his house—Duo Duo being aloof, and Ao-zai being self-centered—neither were the type of cubs who would act spoiled and sweetly say they missed adults.

…Even though our own cubs are also very cute.

But who could refuse this precious baby who opened his mouth to say he missed you!

Shen Qing wanted to say yes, yes, immediately.

But out of respect for Duo Duo and Ao-zai, he hung up the phone first, then went to ask for his cubs’ opinions.

Having spent the past two days decorating the toy room, Gu Duo felt his mind had gone a bit wild and distracted. He had indeed accumulated a lot of coursework—compared to the study plan he set for himself, he had indeed fallen behind a bit.

So after lunch that day, Gu Duo locked himself in his room to study, skipping his afternoon nap altogether. It made Shen Qing afraid to easily disturb him… So he wasn’t sure if Ming-zai coming over to play would be deemed by Young Master Duo as affecting his study progress.

But Shen Qing didn’t expect that after hearing his relay, Gu Duo actually nodded without a second thought and stated, “He can.”

“Wow.” That actually surprised Shen Qing.

Young Master Duo’s image is that of a cool little guy, and I’ve never seen him pay attention to other kids. Even knowing little Xu Weiming often called Duo Duo, I didn’t expect Gu Duo to agree in one breath!

It seems that little Xu Weiming is truly special…

Gu Duo said, “I promised to help him tutor his French.”

Shen Qing: “?”

Young Master Duo kept his hands in his pockets, his head slightly lowered, looking very cool. “In exchange, he will teach me German.”

Shen Qing: “…”

Right, Xu Weiming is mixed-race. His mother is half-German, and I heard Ming-bao lived in Germany for a few years when he was younger, so his German is very good…

Shen Qing: …As expected of you, Young Master Duo.

You really maximized the use of the limited resources around you.

…

In short, little Xu Weiming would be coming to their house as a guest this morning.

And to welcome him, not only did Shen Qing wake up early, but he also specifically asked Auntie Zhang to prepare some foods that children liked, including but not limited to the carrot cake that both adults and children in their house enjoyed.

Such a healthy food was perfect for entertaining kids.

After breakfast, because Shen Qing had declared there were no rules at the table, Duo Duo and Ao-zai left the table first to hurry back to study.

Leaving the two patriarchs sitting at the table, Shen Qing smiled and said to Gu Huaiyu beside him, “When the cake is done later, I’ll bring a piece up to you.”

Auntie Zhang had gotten up early to prepare. The dining table was very close to the cubs’ back kitchen, so sitting here, one could already smell the aroma of the cake baking.

The scent of eggs blending with milk powder, cream, and being baked wafted through the air. Just smelling it, you knew it would be delicious.

Gu Huaiyu slightly raised his long fingers, tapping them somewhat casually on the armrest of his wheelchair, but said, “No need, you guys eat first.”

Shen Qing said, “It’s fine. I specifically asked Auntie Zhang to bake a big one. There’s plenty, no need to be polite.”

Gu Huaiyu: “…”

Shen Qing added, “By the way, when the Xu family drops Ming-zai off later, do you want to see them? …If you’re very busy, never mind. Anyway, Ming-zai is the main character today.”

The Xu family had once been very snobbish, ostracizing Duo Duo and Ao-zai and forbidding Ming-zai from playing with his cubs. Shen Qing still remembered this.

Honestly, although he liked Ming-zai very much, he couldn’t help but cynically consider what the underlying intentions of the Xu family members behind Ming-zai were in sending him over.

It was said that during Ming-zai’s birthday party last time, the Xu family intentionally wanted to curry favor with Gu Huaiyu. So even though the invitation arrived late, before sending the invitation here, the Xu family actually hadn’t invited any children from other families.

It was only after connecting with Gu Huaiyu that they carefully selected and invited some unrelated children to attend the banquet.

…This sounded very calculating.

Although doing this thoroughly offended the main branch of the Gu family—they never invited any other children from the Gu family until the end, yet specifically invited Duo Duo and Ao-zai…

This could be considered the Xu family expressing a stance.

So Shen Qing couldn’t really pursue it too much further.

Besides, he didn’t understand business matters. He trusted the big boss would make his own judgments.

The reason he brought it up and asked Gu Huaiyu if he wanted to see the Xu family was because when he woke up this morning, he saw a message from Ming-zai’s mother. It said she had to go on an emergency business trip, and Ming-zai’s father was constantly away from Hua City all year round, so Ming-zai would be dropped off today by his uncle.

Shen Qing didn’t know who this uncle of Ming-zai’s was, or whether he was a businessman. He also didn’t know what the Xu family meant by suddenly sending him to accompany Ming-zai.

Hearing this, Gu Huaiyu said directly, “I still have things to do. I’ll be going upstairs in a bit.”

That meant there was no need to see them.

The big boss never dragged his feet when speaking.

Shen Qing indicated he understood, but then he raised his eyebrows at the boss: “But if you finish your work and want to come downstairs to play with us, don’t hesitate, just come.”

“…”

Gu Huaiyu subconsciously gripped the armrest of his wheelchair tightly.

Shen Qing’s posture of raising his eyebrows, combined with the look in his eyes, looked very much like…

He was winking flirtatiously.

His eye color suddenly grew much darker, and Gu Huaiyu unconsciously looked out the window.

However, under the bright, intense morning sunlight, the youth’s side profile, beaming with joy, was still reflected on the floor-to-ceiling window.

Shen Qing said, “Really, Boss, you need to come down more and move around, soak up some sun. Look, your complexion is quite good today.”

On the floor-to-ceiling window, the reflection of the youth’s eyes curved into crescents, his thin lips opening and closing.

“…”

Gu Huaiyu turned his eyes back, letting his gaze fall directly on the youth’s exceptionally delicate features, his brow clearing and relaxing considerably.

Perhaps because the boss’s expression really did look relatively mild today, Shen Qing seemed encouraged, and his tone became even more casual: “When the weather gets a bit warmer, how about we take the cubs out to play together?”

…He had long overcome that deep-seated fear of people like Gu Huaiyu. But talking to someone with a pale, expressionless face versus someone who looked relatively pleasant—or at least wasn’t pulling a long face—naturally resulted in a different posture during conversation.

Before, Shen Qing had dared to say whatever was on his mind in front of the stern, cold President Gu. Now, facing President Gu bathed in sunlight, he became even more ‘lawless’: “Then it’s decided. I’ll look for a place later. Speaking of which… Duo Duo seems really eager to see foreign countries. Living in Germany for a while like Ming-zai, wouldn’t that be more helpful for him to learn foreign languages?”

“…Mn.”

President Gu was spacing out for some reason and took two seconds to answer: “Indeed. The environment is the best foreign language teacher.”

Hearing this, Shen Qing narrowed his eyes in excitement—Since that’s the case, I need to hurry up and arrange an eight-country European tour for the two young masters.

Hehe, it’s totally not because I myself have been yearning for an eight-country European tour for a long time.

…Hahaha!

Sitting downstairs for a little while longer, Gu Huaiyu went upstairs to work.

Not long after, the doorbell rang. Shen Qing thought it was little Xu Weiming arriving, but when the butler opened the door, they realized it was actually the children’s onesie pajamas he bought for the cubs yesterday.

Due to being out of stock and requiring a temporary transfer, the cubs’ pajamas arrived a day later than Shen Qing’s.

But the wait was worth it.

Shen Qing had ordered three sets of onesie pajamas for each cub. One was a round, chubby green little dinosaur; one was a gray little shark; and the last was a pure white, soft and adorable little bunny.

They were all cartoon designs. The round little dinosaur was an internet-famous style these past few years; basically everyone who posted pictures of their kids online had them wear this, and Shen Qing wouldn’t allow his own cubs not to have one.

The main feature of the pure white bunny plush onesie was that the two long ears on the hood could stand straight up, and pulling the strings underneath made the ears move. Shen Qing bought it purely for this reason.

As for the big shark, sharks were actually very cute too, just not as much as the first two. Shen Qing just felt this one looked more domineering and suited Duo Duo better.

So once he brought the pajamas in, he took them for the cubs to wear.

Gu Duo was still writing and drawing in the inner room of the playroom, so Shen Qing changed Ao-zai first.

The first one they tried was the white bunny suit. Ao-zai naturally had a two-heads-tall proportion, with short, chubby limbs.

Stuffing him into this bunny suit instantly turned him into a fat bunny.

Even without the hood up, he was exceptionally adorable, white and round, like a white mochi ball.

Immediately making Ao-zai sit on the shag carpet in a heap, Shen Qing took a few photos of him, then couldn’t wait to change him into the little dinosaur outfit.

The little dinosaur was also proportionally scaled down. Not fierce, only cute.

The tail wasn’t long, but when the cub ran, it would wag back and forth behind him.

Additionally, because Ao-zai originally had a chubby little belly, it directly propped up the belly of this little dinosaur, giving it a ‘curves in all the right places’ effect, making him even cuter when he ran.

Shen Qing laughed so hard his stomach hurt, taking many more photos in rapid succession. He then let Ao-zai play by himself while he timed Duo Duo’s break time to go dig that cub out to change clothes.

Actually, starting from yesterday, Duo Duo’s attitude had been a bit strange.

Probably starting from when they asked him to change how he addressed them and call them ‘Dad’.

Gu Duo spent the entire afternoon and evening studying yesterday. Aside from Shen Qing going to ask about the Xu Weiming matter, he had no other interaction with the adults.

When Shen Qing went to call them to sleep at night, the brothers had actually washed up early and climbed into bed. They didn’t need Shen Qing to urge them at all, which naturally meant no conversation took place.

It was the same this morning.

By the time he and President Gu went downstairs for breakfast, the two cubs had basically finished eating.

The morning greetings were still there.

Ao-zai was completely normal. Duo Duo also spoke some words and answered some questions, but throughout the entire time, he didn’t call them anything, not even the previous ‘Uncle’ or ‘Aunt-in-law’.

Shen Qing noticed this situation but tried his best not to be too sensitive about it.

In fact, apart from not addressing him with a title, Gu Duo was still very obedient in other aspects.

When he called Gu Duo up to rest and try on clothes, Gu Duo came over.

It was just that upon hearing they were changing clothes, Gu Duo directly took his clothes, ran back into the inner room, indicated he didn’t need Shen Qing’s help and could put the pajamas on himself, and then closed the door.

Shen Qing: …?

Could it be that my family’s cub is feeling shy?

…

Forget it.

Who asked my cub to be so precocious?

It was also at this time that a servant came to knock on the door, saying little Xu Weiming and his uncle had arrived.

Shen Qing told Gu Duo to change slowly, there was no rush. He himself took Ao-zai, who was still wearing the little dinosaur onesie, to welcome them.

Xu Weiming was wearing a light blue down jacket today. When Shen Qing came out, he had already entered the entryway, and the person beside him was stripping off his little down jacket, revealing a white little sweater over children’s jeans.

Light chestnut hair color, big eyes—when quiet, he looked just like a doll.

He was indeed a very beautiful cub, just as Shen Qing remembered.

Especially since this cub really was quite gentle and quiet, often in a peaceful state, unlike Gu Duo who kept a cool, cold face… Even when quiet, little Xu Weiming had a smiling face.

Anyway, it was a completely different style from their own two cubs.

Shen Qing led Ao-zai downstairs to welcome them.

Xu Weiming sounded sweet on the phone, but seeing Shen Qing suddenly, he was still a bit reserved, unexpectedly not taking the initiative to say hello right away.

Instead, it was Ao-zai, wearing the little dinosaur onesie, who showed ample curiosity upon seeing Xu Weiming.

He first let out an “Ah,” then broke free from Shen Qing’s hand, wagging his tail as he pitter-pattered over. He looked up at this little brother with chestnut hair: “Gege, have we met shomewhere befowe?”

His cheeks were chubby, his overall shape round, sticking out his little belly.

Actually, even Xu Weiming, who had a great personality and made friends easily, was stunned for a moment—This must be Gu Duo’s younger brother.

He’s way, way too cute!

Not only did Ming-zai think so, but the adult following beside him thought so too.

But what really made Xu Yujie stare blankly was the youth who had just led this little dinosaur cub downstairs.

…From the moment a tall, graceful youth with refined manners appeared at the top of the second-floor stairs, Xu Yujie couldn’t tear his gaze away.

When the youth stepped down the stairs one by one and a handsome, elegant face entered his line of sight, Xu Yujie completely forgot to blink!

…He didn’t even react when the youth walked right up to him.

Because Xu Weiming was also stunned by Shen Qing’s critical hit of beauty—During the birthday party last time, he already felt this Uncle was so, so good-looking! Now seeing him again, he was momentarily too shy to say hello.

So his uncle, Xu Yujie, didn’t immediately connect the dots to Shen Qing’s identity either.

Or rather, he completely forgot to think about it.

On the third floor, Tian Yi followed President Gu out of the office, asking somewhat puzzledly, “President Gu, didn’t you say you didn’t need to see the Xu family people?”

—He originally didn’t need to see them. With President Gu’s status, even if there really was a matter, it would have to be the Old Master of the Xu family personally making an appointment to see him.

So Tian Yi didn’t understand. Why did President Gu suddenly drop his documents and come out just after he reported that the Fourth Young Master of the Xu family had brought little Xu Weiming over?

Tian Yi said, “The Xu family probably isn’t here to cozy up to you this time either. It’s said that this Fourth Young Master Xu who came today has been abroad all year round, has never touched the family business, and only knows how to eat, drink, and play all day. He’s a genuine playboy…”

“I know,” Gu Huaiyu said suddenly.

His voice abruptly turned very cold.

Tian Yi: “?”

Looking down, he saw the Fourth Young Master of the Xu family, who had already appeared in the entryway, saying something to their Madam with a blindingly bright smile.

…

Right at this moment, Gu Duo, who had finished changing into his little shark pajamas, also ran down.

The exterior of the little shark onesie looked very much like normal pajamas, except the hood was shaped like a shark’s head. When a human cub wore it, they would look a bit chubby, which was perfectly suited for a scrawny cub like Gu Duo who didn’t have an ounce of extra fat on him.

But upon running down, Gu Duo didn’t give Shen Qing any chance to admire his look at all. He rushed directly between Shen Qing and Xu Yujie, raised his head, and called Shen Qing: “Dad.”

His voice was crisp and clear, neither loud nor soft.

But it forcibly interrupted whatever Xu Yujie was about to say to Shen Qing next.

Xu Yujie: “? …? …What did you call him?”

…Just now, Xu Yujie and this beautiful youth had a vigorous discussion about this cub in the little dinosaur onesie.

The two had a lot to talk about. The youth surprisingly wasn’t as aloof as his appearance suggested; Xu Yujie found that he loved to smile.

And when he smiled, he looked even better than when he didn’t.

Xu Yujie asked himself what traits he had, and the only thing he had always been good at was striking up conversations with beauties.

But he had forgotten one crucial element, which was…

Looking at the cub wearing the little shark onesie, then looking at the beautiful youth in front of him, Xu Yujie froze—

There were only two children in this house, so this kid wearing the little shark onesie must be the Duo Duo that Ming-bao liked so much.

But what did little Duo Duo call this youth in front of him, who looked younger than himself?

D-Dad??! …

Shen Qing was actually stunned too.

Just now, while leading Ao-zai downstairs, Shen Qing had secretly asked Ao-zai about his brother’s thoughts from the side.

Don’t look at how unreliable Ao-zai usually was; he always understood his brother’s intentions very well.

Perhaps it was the telepathic connection between brothers, so after understanding Shen Qing’s question, he answered very straightforwardly: “Gege doesn’t not want to call you guys Da-Da.”

“Gege is… shy, yeah, Gege is shy!”

Hearing President Ao’s analysis, and linking it to how Gu Duo was too embarrassed to even give a gift to Gu Huaiyu personally… Shen Qing basically understood.

He wasn’t in a rush to make the cubs change how they addressed them anyway. Knowing Duo-zai was just too embarrassed to call them that, the weight was basically lifted from his mind.

He originally thought that slowly, Duo Duo would change how he addressed them.

He never expected…

Suspecting he had misheard, Shen Qing looked down at Duo Duo: “What did you call me?”

Gu Duo didn’t notice Shen Qing’s tone at all. He stood squarely between Shen Qing and that strange adult, staring at the other party fixedly and fiercely like a tiger eyeing its prey.

He had seen it all from the stairs just now—the way this Uncle was looking at his Aunt-in-law…

Gu Duo turned back and very simply called Shen Qing: “Little Dad.”

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