Chapter 75
Wei Maomao finished washing the apple by the stove, took a bite, and ran back to Cheng Tingyan.
“Yan Yan, eat, it’s sweet.” Wei Maomao said, taking another big bite of her apple.
“Uncle Wei…” Cheng Tingyan looked at the little chubby bunny’s dad, who was looking at them from afar, and couldn’t bring herself to take a bite.
Usually, she would have just eaten it. But today, wasn’t it the babies being parents and the parents being babies… The little chubby bunny’s dad looked a bit pitiful.
“What’s wrong with him?” Wei Maomao, holding the apple in her mouth, glanced back, she didn’t miss the hint of pity. She said, speechless, “I got him a fruit platter for breakfast, he ate until he was full, I even helped him finish the last two pieces of melon.”
Actually, Wei Maomao could roughly guess why Wei Chengli was acting pitiful.
But if he wanted to be treated the same as Yan Yan for everything… then he would only be hurting himself in the end.
After all… she had already done enough in her previous life.
In this life, everything she had could be Yan Yan’s.
He wasn’t used to it now, but he would have to get used to it eventually.
But despite her thoughts, considering it was the day of the role swap between parents and babies, Wei Maomao felt she couldn’t disappoint the newly appointed baby too much.
At least not today.
The little chubby bunny, taking small steps, ran back to the stove and ordered Wei Chengli to bring her a fruit knife. She cut off a piece from the apple she hadn’t bitten into yet.
Although Wei Chengli was a baby today, he was still obedient in the face of the three-year-old parent. He cut the apple exactly as Wei Maomao instructed.
But he didn’t expect that after cutting off a piece, the little chubby dumpling didn’t take it away.
“Eat it, I’m sharing it with you.” Wei Maomao waved her hand, she was about to run back to Yan Yan, then suddenly turned back. “Ah, this one rolled on the ground earlier, I washed it, you can peel it before eating.”
After saying that, the little chubby dumpling, along with her apple missing another chunk, ran off.
Wei Chengli looked at the apple on the counter. It was a small piece, not very big, but under the little chubby dumpling’s instructions, it was the largest part of the apple that hadn’t been bitten into.
Peel it?
No way.
Wei Chengli picked up the apple piece and popped it into his mouth.
Mmm… Of course he had to eat all of the three-year-old parent’s love in one bite.
Cheng Tingyan didn’t know what the little chubby bunny had run back for, she just saw the two busy by the stove, and just as she was about to go over, the little chubby bunny came back.
The smooth cut on the apple was very obvious among the uneven teeth marks, it was proudly displayed by the little chubby bunny like a trophy.
“Yan Yan’s, Yan Yan eat. Mine, can share.” Wei Maomao said with a firm tone after showing off the apple, she nudged Cheng Tingyan’s elbow with her paw.
Cheng Tingyan felt… something was wrong. But after thinking about it carefully, she felt it made sense.
Relieved of her burden, Cheng Tingyan took a small bite of the apple and said it was very sweet.
Wei Maomao was satisfied.
The apple was delicious and sweet, the little chubby bunny was adorable. But Cheng Tingyan wasn’t distracted by the happiness in front of her, she didn’t forget to ask her question.
“Your dad said you went to find Grandma Zhao, how come it was Grandma Wang who gave you the apple?” Cheng Tingyan asked after swallowing the apple in her mouth. As for her disappointment at not seeing the little chubby bunny when she entered the courtyard, she was too embarrassed to mention it.
“It was Grandma Zhao. She came to give us handkerchiefs, to thank us for preventing her from being scammed last time. You, me, and Yueyue, each got one, Grandma Zhao even embroidered different animals on them.” Wei Maomao pointed her chin towards the house, then continued, “Grandma Zhao left, and later, I remembered that we’re going to the market today, so I wanted to ask if she wanted to go and sell her pillowcases. Grandma Zhao walks very fast, I walked a long way before I found her. Grandma Zhao said it’s not market day today, there’s no market, and asked if we had been tricked. She also said that a few years ago, someone tricked the villagers into going to a newly opened market, and when they arrived, they discovered that the bad guys were trying to trick them into joining some bad… Mmm, doing bad things together.”
Cheng Tingyan’s eyes widened as she listened, she even forgot to take another bite of the apple.
“Don’t be scared, Yan Yan.” Wei Maomao chuckled. “Sister Liu Ming explained to Grandma Zhao later, it’s a real market. Grandma Zhao will also be going. The place where we were talking was very close to Grandma Zhao’s house, so I followed her to see her pillowcases. Grandma Wang came later and gave me the apple.”
Wei Maomao explained the situation as simply as possible.
Actually, the situation wasn’t very complicated, but it wasn’t that simple either.
The market they were going to sell vegetables at wouldn’t be a scam, but… it definitely wasn’t the regular market that Grandma Zhao mentioned, the one they had every five days.
Thinking about it, they were live broadcasting, with so many people, if it was a real market, it would be difficult to control the situation.
Grandma Zhao had given them three beautifully embroidered handkerchiefs, clearly handmade with a lot of time and effort. Each one had a different pattern, a little chubby bunny, a small white flower growing from a crack in the wall, and an ancient-style book scroll… It was obvious that Grandma Zhao had asked the program team for information before embroidering them. Not to mention anything else, the one she gave Cheng Tingyan, with the wall and the small white flower, Wei Maomao could tell it was exactly the same as the photo Wei Chengli gave her on the first night.
Although they had accidentally prevented Grandma Zhao from being scammed, this gift… was truly heartfelt.
Wei Maomao felt a bit embarrassed, she wanted to give something in return.
But the three-year-old baby looked around, the house was bare, she touched her pockets, only some Baby Coins…
Truly, her pockets were cleaner than her face.
Wei Maomao had nothing to give back now, and the future was a matter for the future, it couldn’t solve her current embarrassment. So she thought of inviting Grandma Zhao to the market, her pillowcases could get some screen time on the live broadcast. It was like using someone else’s flower to offer to Buddha, getting free advertising from the program team. Who knows… maybe someone with good taste and interest would see it and buy something from Grandma Zhao?
In her previous life, although Wei Maomao didn’t see any villagers, let alone Grandma Zhao, in the final cut of the third season of “Where’s Baby Going,” like other variety shows, the villages they visited experienced a surge in tourism afterwards. Even if no one in the live broadcast room would buy a pillowcase online, it might create an impression and lead to new opportunities during the future tourism boom, right?
Anyway, going to the market together, no one would lose anything, right?
Wei Maomao had a good plan, she even managed to catch up with Grandma Zhao.
But she didn’t expect that the market could be fake.
Just when Grandma Zhao felt that something must be wrong with the market and was about to call the police, Liu Ming rushed over and pulled her aside for a while. When they came back, Grandma Zhao didn’t mention the bad guys at the market anymore, but she still agreed to go together.
Wei Maomao guessed that Liu Ming and the program team had a certain level of credibility in Grandma Zhao’s eyes, but she might still be a bit worried.
So, although the market might be fake, Wei Maomao’s goal of inviting Grandma Zhao to the market… could be considered somewhat achieved.
After finishing her apple, Wei Maomao washed her paws and took out the three handkerchiefs from the house.
A little chubby bunny, a small white flower, a small book scroll.
Wen Jiangyue, touching the exquisite book scroll on the handkerchief, where she could even see two columns of text, was overjoyed, she treasured it and took it to show Wen Qiming.
Cheng Tingyan’s reaction was much more subtle, she liked it, but Wei Maomao felt she kept looking at the one in her hand.
Right!
Wei Maomao turned and ran back to the bedroom, when she came out again, she was holding a photo in her paw.
“My dad asked the cameraman brother to take this, he said it looks like you.” Wei Maomao handed the photo of the small white flower growing from a crack in the wall to Cheng Tingyan and said, “Like Yan Yan, you’re beautiful no matter where you are!”
It was a strong little white flower, resiliently surviving and blooming beautifully in any environment.
Limited by her three-year-old vocabulary, Wei Maomao couldn’t express her complex feelings in detail, she could only try her best to convey them.
Cheng Tingyan took the photo.
The six-year-old Yan Yan, without Wei Chengli’s experience, without Wei Maomao’s past life, could only understand what Wei Maomao had said.
But that was enough.
Cheng Tingyan, who already liked the small white flower on the handkerchief, truly felt its specialness.
In Maomao’s eyes, it was special, special like her, so it was special to her as well.
Wei Maomao didn’t understand the six-year-old Cheng Tingyan’s circular logic, but she saw the faint smile on her lips.
What someone cherished was a treasure.
The special thing in Wei Maomao’s heart was the small white flower, like Yan Yan.
And Cheng Tingyan… was…
Wei Maomao noticed that Cheng Tingyan was secretly looking at her handkerchief again.
This chubby bunny, Wei Maomao unfolded the handkerchief, a chubby white bunny was resting on a watermelon, its left paw holding a small slice of watermelon, and there was a suspicious pink stain on the corner of its mouth.
Wei Maomao reached out and wiped the bunny’s mouth, mmm, as she had thought, it wasn’t a stain, it was intentionally embroidered with pink thread.
Speaking of which… Grandma Zhao must have embroidered this bunny the night before last, before her bed-wetting incident became known throughout the village.
Wei Maomao looked up and saw Cheng Tingyan’s gaze fixed on her finger, which was touching the chubby bunny’s mouth.
“Cough…” Wei Maomao cleared her throat.
Cheng Tingyan quickly looked away, turning her head to the side.
The six-year-old Yan Yan, acting like she was caught red-handed, was so flustered.
Wei Maomao couldn’t help but chuckle, she moved closer and gently tugged at the handkerchief in Cheng Tingyan’s hand. “Yan Yan, do you like the small white flower or the little bunny?”
Cheng Tingyan turned to look at Wei Maomao, pursed her lips, and didn’t answer.
Wei Maomao understood, she didn’t want to lie, but she also didn’t want to cause trouble for others.
It was the six-year-old Yan Yan’s cautiousness and kindness.
“Yan Yan, I like the small white flower, how about we swap handkerchiefs?” Wei Maomao said softly.
Cheng Tingyan’s eyes lit up, but quickly filled with hesitation and conflict.
“Look at this photo, my dad gave it to me on the first night we arrived. I put it under my pillow, afraid of bending it, I put it in my bag, afraid of getting it dirty, in the end, I put it in a book. Look, it’s still flat.” Wei Maomao took the photo from Cheng Tingyan’s hand and showed it to her from all angles, then continued, “I really like the small white flower, I really do. Do you want to swap handkerchiefs with me?”
Of course she did!
Cheng Tingyan, holding the watermelon-eating bunny she had taken a liking to at first glance, gently touched the pink stain on the little chubby bunny’s mouth.
It truly looked like the little chubby bunny from that day, eating watermelon so happily.
It’s just that Maomao couldn’t eat watermelon like that anymore…
Wei Maomao could tell that Cheng Tingyan truly liked the chubby bunny handkerchief.
She truly hoped that they could become closer in the future, that Yan Yan could tell her directly if she liked something.
As long as she had it, as long as she could have it, Yan Yan would have it too!
Wei Maomao carefully folded the small white flower handkerchief in her hand. It was funny, she also liked this one more.
Without any support, using only her two chubby paws to refold the handkerchief, Wei Maomao was afraid of dropping it, so she folded it very carefully. As she folded, Wei Maomao couldn’t help but think about the time when she had just been reborn, she wasn’t used to her three-year-old body yet, she was so clumsy, she even had to practice squeezing a bottle at night by imitating squeezing toothpaste. But after several all-nighters drawing animations, her fingers were calloused, and the dexterity from her previous life gradually returned.
She was grateful for her diligence, now, not to mention peeling beans, even braiding hair was no problem for her, folding a handkerchief with her bare hands was a piece of cake.
As she folded, her mind wandered, and Wei Maomao, lost in thought, missed the look in Cheng Tingyan’s eyes as she watched her fold the handkerchief.
That bright joy, even greater than the joy she had shown when receiving the watermelon-eating bunny earlier.
Wei Maomao missed it, she didn’t see it. But the viewers in the live broadcast room, with the close-up shot, saw it clearly.
“Awww~~~ CEO Mao and Yan Yan exchanging customized handkerchiefs, how can they be so cute! The handkerchiefs are cute, the babies are even cuter, awwwww~~~”
“I’m crying! When Director Wei was standing in the corner, staring at the small white flower for a long time, even asking the cameraman to take a picture of it, I thought he had gone crazy after making the mush at noon. Now I realize, it was me who was crazy!”
“CEO Mao truly, the queen of tsundere! On the first night, when Director Wei took out the photo to appease her, to stop her from using the terrifying phrase ‘My dad said…’, CEO Mao said the flower didn’t look like Yan Yan at all. But how come, it turns out she not only thinks it looks like her, she even put it under her pillow, afraid of bending it, put it in her bag, afraid of getting it dirty… CEO Mao, is this the upgraded version of ‘holding it in your mouth, afraid of melting it, holding it in your hand, afraid of dropping it’!”
“Hahaha, I really want Director Wei to hear CEO Mao’s high praise for the photo, he was so annoyed by her lack of appreciation that day. It seems our Director Wei still has good taste, he’s just completely controlled by CEO Mao, hahaha!”
“CEO Mao has good taste, and Yan Yan also has great taste, hahaha, that watermelon-eating bunny is amazing, what kind of master embroiderer is Grandma Zhao! Although the species are different, the essence is exactly the same, that bunny is practically CEO Mao transformed, hahaha!”
“The children’s friendship truly, is this the legendary ‘handkerchief friends’? Both wanting the handkerchief with the other’s likeness embroidered on it, truly, awwwww~~~~ Why don’t I have such good friends, I’m going to drown my sorrows in vinegar!”
“Yan Yan truly… The way she looked at CEO Mao folding the small white flower handkerchief, so gentle, it’s like… It’s like she’s glowing… I don’t know how to describe it!”
“Joy from within! Hahaha, I can’t describe it either. But I understand the feeling, it’s probably like when you give your photo to your best friend, and then you see your friend cherishing it, carefully holding it like a treasure… That feeling of being treasured, of being safely kept?”
“Ah… After reading the comments above, I feel a bit sad. Yan Yan truly, so sensitive and perceptive. Awww~~~ CEO Mao, stop folding the handkerchief, go and hug Yan Yan! (Shouting in CEO Mao’s ear!)”
“Hahaha, a hug is fine, but picking her up… The person above is making things difficult for our short and chubby bunny!”
“CEO Mao truly, a three-year-old child, yet so determined. Who said it on the first day? CEO Mao wrote in her profile that she’s a fan of the show and likes older sisters, everyone guessed she liked Yan Yan. It seems she truly likes Yan Yan, and it’s such a firm liking! And now it’s mutual, I truly… Mmm, am I really watching a parent-child variety show? There’s no ‘parent-child,’ just a bunch of cute babies, sob, sob, sob~~~”
…
Whether the babies were cute or not, it was a matter of opinion.
After Wen Dongyu brought Wen Xiang… Mmm, and the pig to the Wei family’s courtyard, all the babies and dads were present.
The babies were about to set off to the market to sell vegetables and prepare for lunch and afternoon tea, while the dads would stay at the Wei family’s house, participating in the activities arranged by their children.
Before the babies left, the program team, to reassure them, set up the necessary equipment for the dads’ activities.
In one corner of the courtyard, the program team brought a pile of books for Wen Qiming and a fish tank with several goldfish for Cheng Feiying.
Oh, and for Wang Qingchuan, the bed board that had been meticulously cleaned by Wei Chengli was also moved there, along with the stone benches underneath.
In the remaining, larger part of the courtyard, the program team brought a large wooden table, two sets of brand new Lego, three sets of wooden puzzles, and a stack of board games. In the open space enclosed by three sides of blackout cloth, they set up the giant projection screen again, along with three different game consoles, three boxes of cartridges, five bags of discs, a dance mat, and finally, a karaoke machine…
After the staff finished setting up the majority of the courtyard, leaving everyone dumbfounded, the host stepped forward and gestured with his hand. “The table, the projection, this area, all these things, this is the ‘free play’ area arranged by Parents Wen Dongyu, Shen Zilin, and Wang Zhizhi for their children, Wen Xiang, Shen Jianghe, and Wang Qingbei.”
All the dads except Wen Xiang and Shen Jianghe: “… “
All the babies: “… “
If they had known “free play” meant this, who would have chosen anything else (who would have wanted to go sell vegetables)?
“Okay, our activity areas are all set up, now please take your positions, new children. New parents, you can rest assured, are you ready? We’re going to the market!” The host concluded.
“Wait!” Wang Qingchuan raised his hand.
“Mmm… New child, what’s your question?” The host glanced at the bed board not far from Wang Qingchuan. “Your activity is very simple, just lie down and wait for Parent Wang Zhizhi to pick you up.”
“… “ Wang Qingchuan, speechless, took a deep breath. “Did you forget a child?”
The host: ???
Wang Qingchuan pointed at Wei Chengli.
“Ah, Child Wei Chengli. Parent Wei Maomao arranged the following activity for him: When other children come to play at home, Child Wei Chengli must entertain them well.” The host smiled. “So, his activity is to be a good host and take care of the other children.”
Wang Qingchuan: “… “
Okay, now he understood why Wei Chengli had been so diligently wiping the bed board and even asked him to try it out.
It seemed he had misunderstood… Director Wei wasn’t gloating, he was just… being a good host.
Wen Qiming, also remembering the scene of Wei Chengli wiping the bed board, couldn’t hold back his laughter, he turned his head away from the camera and burst out laughing.
But in this world, there was always joy and sorrow.
The abundance and freedom of the “free play” area made Wen Xiang, who had been increasingly gloomy these past few days, relax a bit, not to mention Jiang Heye, who was already curious about the reality show.
But Shen Jianghe felt a little bit… uncomfortable.
It wasn’t the “free play” area itself, it was just…
“When playing with Lego, if you make a mistake and need to take it apart, use the tool, don’t do it with your bare hands, you might hurt your nails. Check the wooden puzzle pieces for splinters, they’ll hurt if you get poked. The dance mat feels a bit slippery, try wearing socks or shoes to see which is less slippery, it’s easy to fall if it’s too slippery.” Shen Zilin, who had already inspected the “free play” area, said with a serious expression. He glanced at Shen Jianghe, who seemed a bit helpless, and continued, “I don’t know if they’ll give you snacks this morning, don’t eat anything spicy, you had hemorrhoids yesterday… Mmm…”
“Okay, okay, I know!” Shen Jianghe finally couldn’t take it anymore, he covered Shen Zilin’s chattering mouth.
He could say with certainty that among all the parents present, oh, no, the babies, there was no one who acted more like a parent than his son.
He had helped him get his clothes and pants in the morning, even wanted to help him put on his socks… During breakfast, he asked a million questions, “Is this good?,” “Do you want more of that?,” … Then it was, “Eggs are good for you, meat is good for you, vegetables are even better for you, and fruits are a must, right?”… Shen Jianghe barely survived the sock incident, then almost choked to death at the breakfast table.
And on the way to the Wei family’s house, it was even worse…
Holding hands, even helping him watch out for ditches…
This was a role swap between babies and parents, not a dementia simulation!
The only thing Shen Jianghe could be thankful for was that when he got old and had dementia, his life might not be too bad.
But right now, it was truly… a bit too much!
“No, I can do it myself!” Shen Jianghe had just stopped Shen Zilin from continuing when he had to reach out and catch his son, who was about to squat down and pull up his socks for him.
“If you don’t wear your socks properly, you’ll slip on the dance mat.” Shen Zilin said, looking up seriously.
Shen Jianghe wanted to cry but had no tears. “I’m not going to play with the dance mat!”
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