| TBBOTOF | 296
Wei Dong took his son to have a hot bath to ease the soreness in his legs. After the bath, his son looked as fresh and soft as a little dumpling.
During dinner, Tang Xu intentionally observed him, worried that he might not have enough strength, but to his surprise, the chubby boy ate an extra bowl of rice compared to usual.
“You must have been starving," he commented.
The chubby boy laughed, "Hehe, I sure was!"
"You, huh... Tomorrow, you won't be laughing anymore," Old Wen said, pinching the chubby boy's cheek. He was dissatisfied with Wei Dong for making the child walk so much, and had already scolded him before dinner.
The chubby boy swung his legs back and forth, not believing a word of what they said would come true.
But before the next day even arrived, by the time he woke up from his afternoon nap, the chubby boy couldn't get out of bed.
Lying on his back, the soft and sore chubby boy wailed loudly.
"Dad!!! Dad!!! It hurts so much!!! Waaahhh!!!"
Tang Xu was outside slicing wild apricots with a small knife. Startled by his son’s loud cries, his hand slipped, and the knife jabbed into his palm.
Blood gushed out immediately, but he couldn't care about the pain. He quickly shook his hand, grabbed a cloth nearby to press on the wound, and rushed inside.
Er Bao and Xiao Bao were sitting on the bed, anxiously watching their brother. Xiao Bao was so scared by his brother's pitiful state that his eyes turned red, biting his lip to hold back tears.
Er Bao leaned over the bedside, pouting his lips and blowing softly at his brother. "Pain, pain, fly away~"
The chubby boy whimpered and tried to roll over, but he couldn’t manage it.
He actually wanted to cry more, but with his two younger brothers watching him, he felt a little embarrassed.
Tang Xu rushed into the room to find the three of them either lying, sitting, or leaning on the bed. He walked over and asked, "What’s going on? Why are you wailing?"
"Big brother can’t move!" Xiao Bao jumped off the bed and ran toward Tang Xu, throwing himself into his arms.
Tang Xu caught him and set him aside. Glancing at the wound on his palm, he saw blood still seeping out. He pressed the cloth back against it and then bent over to pinch the chubby boy's plump arms and legs. "Does it hurt?"
"It hurts!" The chubby boy sniffled, trying hard not to cry.
Tang Xu couldn’t help but feel both amused and distressed. He pinched his son’s cheek and said, “I’ll ask your Grandpa Wen to come over later and give you a massage. That should help a bit. But seriously, why are you trying to act so tough? If you’re tired, you should have let your father carry you!”
Although he was scolding lightly, his movements were gentle. It was clear he felt deeply sorry for him.
Wei Dong came in from outside. Seeing the situation in the room, he let out a scoffing laugh, but his expression changed when he noticed the blood-stained cloth in Tang Xu's hand. His brows furrowed immediately.
He took two quick steps forward, grabbed Tang Xu’s hand, and inspected it. The wound on the palm wasn’t large but was quite deep—clearly caused from the tip of a knife. “How could you be so careless?”
Tang Xu gestured toward the chubby boy with his chin and said helplessly, “He let out such a loud yell it startled me. I wasn’t paying attention and jabbed myself. It’s nothing; the bleeding’s almost stopped.” He reached out to pull Er Bao, who was about to climb onto Wei Dong, back to his side.
Then he nodded toward his partner. “Take Da Bao to Grandpa Wen. Let him give a massage.”
Wei Dong glanced at Tang Xu’s hand. Tang Xu raised a brow in challenge.
Ultimately, Wei Dong didn’t say anything further. He turned, bent down, and picked up his son.
While doing so, he muttered pointedly, “Didn’t I tell you you wouldn’t be able to get up after a nap? But no, you wouldn’t believe me. Why are you so stubborn?”
The chubby boy pouted and whimpered softly. Even being picked up hurt so much he couldn’t stand it.
The father and son went off to Grandpa Wen’s house, where they received a stern lecture along with the massage.
Back in their own house, Tang Xu comforted the two younger ones. “Your big brother’s just worn out. Er Bao, you have to be careful in the future, okay?”
Er Bao looked at him in confusion, tilting his head. “Be careful of what?”
Xiao Bao lay on Er Bao’s back, mimicking the tilt. With his big eyes blinking, he also stared at Tang Xu, clearly not understanding a word.
Tang Xu was amused by the adorable expressions on the two little ones. After pinching their cheeks one by one, he stood up and waved at them. “Come on, let’s go catch bugs to feed the chicks.”
The vegetable garden was full of bugs, and they needed to be caught regularly; otherwise, the leaves would get ruined.
Especially the big green caterpillars on the grape trellis—they were plump and juicy, the chickens, ducks, and geese loved them.
The two little ones lit up with excitement as soon as they heard about bug-catching.
To explain, usually, the kids weren’t allowed into the vegetable garden. Even though they understood not to pull at the leaves, the soil was loose, and if they lost their balance and fell, squishing the vegetables would be the least of their problems.
The real worry was that they might hurt themselves by bumping into the frames or getting scratched or poked.
So being allowed into the garden to catch bugs and feed the animals was a big treat for the two little ones, and they were overjoyed.
In the yard, Sun Yang was watching over his younger brother as he practiced walking. Little Goudan could now stand steadily, though his steps were still wobbly.
Over the past month, he had put on a bit of weight while staying here. Though not exactly sturdy, he no longer looked as scrawny as before.
Tang Mei and Tang Li were sitting on small stools nearby, slicing wild apricots and removing their seeds. They chatted intermittently as they worked.
Seeing Tang Xu come out with the two little ones, Tang Li asked, “I saw my brother-in-law carrying Da Bao to Old Wen’s place earlier. Is everything okay?”
“It’s fine, he’s just sore,” Tang Xu replied, casually tossing the blood-stained cloth onto a small table. He glanced at the wound on his palm, now scabbed over.
Tang Mei chuckled. “At lunchtime, Da Bao seemed perfectly fine. Who would have thought a nap would leave him unable to get up?”
“Ah Dong wanted to teach him a lesson, so he’ll learn to pace himself,” Tang Xu said with a light snort, glancing at the two large bamboo trays nearby.
They were neatly lined with halved wild apricots, their pits removed. “I’m taking these two to the garden to catch bugs. The apricots can wait for a couple of days; there’s no rush.”
“We’ll handle it; it’s not that much trouble,” Tang Mei replied with a smile, waving him off. “While it’s overcast and cool, we might as well take advantage of it. Looks like it’s going to rain later.”
Tang Xu raised his head and glanced at the sky. The heavy clouds hung low, but without the sun blazing, the weather was indeed pleasant.
While Tang Xu took the two little ones to the vegetable garden to catch bugs, over at Old Wen’s house, the chubby boy was lying on the kang bed. His father had set him down, and the old man was massaging his arms and legs.
The chubby boy clenched his face and bit his lip. Even though the massage hurt, he refused to cry out. He was afraid others might hear and laugh at him—how embarrassing that would be!
For someone so young, he sure had a lot on his mind.
Old Wen noticed his tense expression and couldn’t help himself. He pressed a little harder on purpose.
“Ahhh!!!”
“Ow ow ow ow ow!!!”
“It hurts!!!”
“Father!!!”
The chubby boy couldn’t hold it in anymore and started yelling at the top of his lungs.
Wei Dong leaned against the cabinet with his arms crossed, watching him cry, while using a cloth to wipe the tears off his face. “The pain will pass.”
Old Wen snorted, “Now you know it hurts, huh? Let’s see if you’ll try to act tough again in the future!”
The chubby boy sniffled and whimpered, his lips quivering as he broke into a sorrowful sob.
Old Wen sighed and eased up on the pressure, his movements becoming much gentler. After a few minutes, he helped the chubby boy sit up and told him to get down and try walking on his own.
The chubby boy wobbled as he took his first steps but soon found his balance and started walking more smoothly.
Delighted, he looked at his father and then turned to Old Wen. “I can walk now!”
Old Wen chuckled and gave him a light tap on the forehead. “Take it easy for the next couple of days. Don’t go running or jumping around, or you’ll end up back on the bed, unable to get up. It’s funny, really—so young, and you managed to tire yourself out to the point of collapse.”
The chubby boy pouted and grumbled but nodded. He’d learned his lesson—this time, for real!
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