Ch 44

Su Yang could vaguely tell that Zhao Feng was treating him better than before. Whether it was due to a sense of guilt, a form of apology, or perhaps due to some other reason, in short, besides having contact with the outside world, pretty much everything Su Yang asks for is readily granted.

But he no longer dared to be rash. Since he now knows that Zhao Feng's heart only holds that one person, Su Yang himself was at best, only a substitute. There could only be one original, but there were plenty of substitutes. In this sort of circumstance, he was at a clear disadvantage.

But after the incident was over, he was no longer as worried as before. Since Zhao Feng had flown into such a terrible rage because of Qiao Yang, does this not mean that he cares for Su Yang? Although this sort of 'care' was more than a little destructive, he had survived it. As long as he was alive, there was still hope.

When all is said and done, a human's lifespan is long. Liking more than one person is entirely possible.

There was a warm smile on Su Yang's face, with no discernible hint of bitterness or reluctance about it. As the noodles in the pot before him began to soften, Su Yang picked up a pair of chopsticks and hurriedly stirred the pot to prevent the noodles from clumping together.

"Xiǎo Qi, bring the tomatoes."

{T/N : 小 (xiǎo) – little. Little Qi is what Su Yang calls Zhao Qi}

"Oh!" Little Zhao Qi immediately handed over a plate of cut tomatoes.

Su Yang dropped the tomatoes into the pot, then smoothly brought out an egg. 'Pa pa pa', he cracked it and tossed it into the pot as well. He was wearing a white, rabbit apron trimmed with lacy frills, his posture graceful, looking the very picture of homely, domestic bliss.

Little Zhao Qi tugged on the hem of his shirt from behind, ruining the scene. "Gē gē, the eggshells fell in."

Su Yang frowned. "Nonsense. You're so short, you couldn't have seen it."

The little stumpy melon was miffed and jabbed a finger at the two halves of the eggshell on the counter. "There is a huge piece missing here, it must have fallen into the pot!"

{T/N : 矮冬瓜童鞋 (Ǎi dōngguā tóngxié) – basically means short, fat kid. Ai = short. donggua = winter melon. tongxie (children's shoes) = homonym of tongxue (student).}

Su Yang: "..." He couldn't refute it!!

However, to preserve his dignity as an adult, he stirred the noodles with his chopsticks and said, "You definitely saw wrong."

Little Zhao Qi snorted. "I don't eat eggshells."

Su Yang gave a light laugh in response. "It's not for you." He added some seasonings, waited for a while longer, then turned off the stove and covered the pot with a lid.

"We'll be eating what the cook makes. This pot of noodles is for your brother."

Little Zhao Qi was still upset about what had happened that day. He only lowered his head and gave a low 'En' in reply.

Su Yang knew that this little steamed bun had been terribly frightened by Zhao Feng. Even such a wordly-wise person as himself still felt some lingering unease, let alone a five year old child. Not knowing what else to say, he gently stroked little Zhao Qi's little head, murmuring, "Don't be like this. He really cares about you."

"But he treats you so badly," little Zhao Qi said, sounding dejected. "Doesn't he like you? Why would he hurt you? I don't understand."

Su Yang forced out a laugh. "You're still young, do you even know what liking someone means?"

"I do know it. He never used to stay here, but now because you're here, he comes home every day. My teacher said, liking someone means wanting to be together everyday. So this means that Zhao Feng definitely likes you."

Su Yang clicked his tongue. Foreign teachers really were open-minded. He half-knelt infront of little Zhao Qi and said earnestly, "Your teacher is right, but there are also many different types of likes. Take your brother as an example, his best choice is not available to him, so he's just settling for second best."

Seeing the confusion in the child's eyes, Su Yang continued patiently, "In other words, there is a person he wants to be together with everyday, but he cannot have that person, so he chose me instead. For example, Xiǎo Qi wants to go to the amusement park, but the amusement park happened to be closed for the day. Since you can't go to the amusement park, you decided to go to the zoo instead. But in actuality, you don't really want to go to the zoo, it's just that you have no other choice. Do you understand?"

Little Zhao Qi asked uncertainly, "Are you the zoo?"

Helpless, Su Yang nodded.

Little Zhao Qi stepped forwards and threw his arms around Su Yang's neck. "Then I won't like amusement parks," he declared solemnly. "I will like zoos in the future."

Su Yang lifted him up and planted a resounding kiss on his tender cheek. "My affections were not wasted on you."

Little Zhao Qi said, "Gē gē, Zhao Feng doesn't like you, but I like you. Wait till I'm grown up, then you marry me, okay? Okay?"

Su Yang patted his little butt and laughed. "You can't grow a hair on your chin, yet you're thinking of such nonsense. Focus on your studies, understand? If you want to woo me, you'll have to wait another ten years at least."

Zhao Feng walked in, handed his coat to the housekeeper and asked, "What are you talking about? Who has to wait ten years?"

Before Su Yang could reply, little Zhao Qi seized the initiative to answer, "Xu gē gē said I can marry him after waiting ten years!"

Of course Zhao Feng would not take offense because of the words of a five year old child, but seeing Su Yang carrying the child did indeed make Zhao Feng feel rather resentful. He hauled little Zhao Qi out from Su Yang's arms and said, "Dad called a few times. School has been open for two weeks now, it's time for you to go back to America. This is not up for discussion."

Little Zhao Qi began kicking up a fuss in his hold as he howled, "I won't go, I won't go! Zhao Feng you bastard, I hate you!!"

"Being wilful won't get you anywhere."

Zhao Feng dropped him without any cares, walked past and pulled Su Yang towards him by the waist. He pressed a gentle kiss to Su Yang's cheek.

"How was your day?"

Su Yang did not pull away from his hold, and replied mildly, "It's been good. I won't get bored with Xiǎo Qi around. We made some tomato and egg noodles for you today, would you like to try it?"

Although he did not say it, Zhao Feng could clearly tell that Su Yang was pleading on little Zhao Qi's behalf.

He looked at Su Yang's obediently lowered lashes, and could not bring himself to flat out reject him. In the end, he said, "Alright, let me try the noodles first. If it tastes good, I'll spare him this time."

The flame of hope which had lit up in little Zhao Qi's heart was immediately snuffed. He recalled how sloppy and haphazard the noodle-making process was, and Zhao Feng has always been a terribly picky eater, fussy enough to anger the gods.

When Su Yang ladled out the noodles with much flair and placed it before him, Zhao Feng looked at the strange, multi-coloured contents in the bowl rather stiffly. Is this thing really edible? But when faced with Su Yang's expectant expression, he couldn't bring himself to ask this. Resigned, Zhao Feng picked up two strands of the noodles with his chopsticks and placed them in his mouth.

Su Yang's hands curled nervously into fists. Little Zhao Qi's throat bobbed as he swallowed, staring at Zhao Feng with anxious eyes. The two of them were decked in the same white, frilly rabbit apron. One man and one child, both wearing the same expressions, holding themselves in the same, tense manner, with hope shining in two pairs of dark, limpid eyes, this picture was cute enough to kill.

Zhao Feng shot them a quick glance and nearly choked. "Not bad, not bad," he said hastily.

—–The taste is irrelevant! Cuteness always triumphs!

One man and one child happily high-fived each other. "Since you like it, you should finish it all," Su Yang said to Zhao Feng. "We cooked up a whole pot."

Zhao Feng nodded agreeably whilst thinking, This is called subsisting on cuteness.

As he worked hard to swallow the noodles without dwelling on the taste, Su Yang and little Zhao Qi enjoyed a sumptuous meal prepared by the kitchens.

Suddenly, Zhao Feng's hand froze. He slowly picked out a piece of eggshell the size of a fingernail from the bowl, his face blacker than the bottom of a pot. Even if he could suffer through a bowl of unpalatable noodles, it did not mean he could eat everything.

"..." Su Yang explained feebly, "I heard that eggshells are highly nutritious."

Zhao Feng: "..."