Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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The next day was Ji Xiaozhuo’s kindergarten end-of-term ceremony. Early in the morning, Tang Tang dragged Ji Xiaozhuo out of bed and chose his cutest outfit for him. But when it came to herself, she was stumped.
She didn’t know what to wear to look even a little bit better. There would definitely be many parents attending today, and she was so ugly; she’d probably embarrass the little guy and his dad.
But she still wanted to try not to embarrass herself.
“Baby, which outfit do you think looks best on Mommy today?” Tang Tang, at her wit’s end, had no choice but to ask the little guy for help.
Seeing this, Ji Xiaozhuo immediately walked seriously to Tang Tang’s wardrobe, carefully examining each outfit before finally choosing a white T-shirt and a denim skirt for her.
“Mommy, wear this.”
Tang Tang picked up the two pieces and asked curiously, “Will Mommy look good in this?” She thought it was quite ordinary.
Ji Xiaozhuo nodded seriously, “It will definitely look great, Mommy, you can trust me.”
Seeing his certainty, Tang Tang became even more curious, “Why do you think these two look good?”
Ji Xiaozhuo pointed to his own clothes and said, “Because these are the same as what I’m wearing. I’m so handsome, Mommy will definitely look good too.”
Tang Tang suddenly realized that the little guy was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, which did indeed have a similar feel to the clothes he had chosen. No wonder he thought they looked good.
Although the little guy’s reason was a bit far-fetched, Tang Tang thought the two pieces were indeed nice, so she decided to let him wear them.
Tang Tang went into the bathroom to change her clothes, and when she came out, she showed them to Ji Xiaozhuo and asked, “How is it? Does it look good?”
Ji Xiaozhuo nodded quickly to show his approval, “It looks good! Mommy is the prettiest.”
Tang Tang was almost drowning in the little guy’s sweet words, even though she knew it was a white lie. She quickly kissed the little guy on the head a few times, then took his hand and went out, “Okay, let’s go, let’s make breakfast.”
When the mother and son came out, Ji Yan had just returned from his run and was stunned for a moment when he saw the mother and son dressed in matching outfits.
Ji Xiaozhuo immediately grabbed Ji Yan’s hand and said, “Daddy, look! I picked out Mommy’s clothes, aren’t they pretty?”
No wonder the mother and son’s clothes looked so similar. Ji Yan didn’t want to discourage the little guy, so he could only nod and say, “Yes, they look good.”
Ji Xiaozhuo’s confidence soared, and he pulled Ji Yan towards the room, saying, “Then Daddy, you go take a shower, and I’ll go pick out clothes for you so you can wear them when you come out.”
Ji Yan had a bad feeling, but he couldn’t dampen the little guy’s unprecedented enthusiasm, so he just let him be.
When Ji Yan came out after his shower, he knew his premonition was right. The little guy had actually pulled out the only white T-shirt and blue jeans in the corner of his wardrobe and handed them to him like a treasure, saying, “Daddy, you should wear these, just like Mommy and me. You’ll definitely look super handsome!”
Ji Yan was silent for a moment, then reluctantly took the clothes and put them on. Now, the three of them were indeed wearing matching outfits. Except for Ji Xiaozhuo, Ji Yan and Tang Tang both felt very awkward.
The family of three’s outfits attracted a lot of attention at the kindergarten, not only because of their matching clothes, but also because of the exceptionally good looks of Ji Yan and Ji Xiaozhuo, the father and son. If Tang Tang were removed from the picture, they would practically be a model father and son. Many young mothers and little girls kept frequently glancing at Ji Yan and Ji Xiaozhuo.
However, when they saw Tang Tang standing beside them, they would all give her a look that was hard to describe, as if to say, “A beautiful flower stuck in cow dung[1].”
Tang Tang: “…” Those stares didn’t have to be so obvious; it was too hurtful. However Tang Tang had no choice but to use her thick skin to pretend she didn’t see those stares.
Ji Xiaozhuo also had a performance today, a group dance, and he was the lead dancer.
Tang Tang was overjoyed, proudly pulling Ji Yan’s arm and saying, “Honey, honey, look! Xiao Zhuo is standing at the very front! He must be the best dancer!” Only the best dancer gets to be at the front.
Ji Yan subtly withdrew his arm, choosing not to engage in the conversation, because based on his understanding of Ji Xiaozhuo, whether he would be the best dancer was still debatable.
Sure enough, after the music started, a group of little ones began to dance, performing various moves. Then—
Tang Tang was surprised to find that Ji Xiaozhuo, who was at the front, always moved differently from the others. Not only was he a beat behind, but he also often moved his hands and feet in unison. The key was that this little guy calmly continued dancing, which amused the adults below, and many people took pictures of Ji Xiaozhuo to post on their WeChat Moments.
Tang Tang scratched her head, somewhat embarrassed, and tried to save face for Ji Xiaozhuo: “Well… maybe the baby is just nervous on stage.”
Ji Yan suddenly laughed, putting his fist to his mouth, and said, “Actually, Ji Xiaozhuo has always been uncoordinated, especially when dancing.”
“Uh…” Tang Tang was speechless for a moment, then asked in confusion, “Then why did the teacher let the baby stand at the front to dance?”
Ji Yan coughed lightly and whispered, “Probably because of his looks.”
“Huh?” Tang Tang was stunned, then took a closer look at the little ones on stage and found that it was indeed true; the three lead dancers were all very cute and pretty babies.
So the teacher didn’t arrange the order based on dance skills? Is that really okay?
The little guy immediately ran from backstage to the front after his dance, his face still sporting his bizarre makeup. “Daddy, Mommy, did I do well?”
Ji Yan coughed and chose to remain silent.
Tang Tang immediately forgot her principles and nodded in praise, “You did a fantastic job, baby! You danced wonderfully!”
“Hehehe… Oh, it was alright,” the little guy said shyly, feigning modesty.
Ji Yan couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
Nearby, many parents were taking photos with their children dressed in performance costumes. Seeing this, Ji Xiaozhuo tugged at Tang Tang and Ji Yan’s clothes, “Mom and Dad, don’t you want to take pictures with me? I’m all made up today.”
Ji Yan glanced at the little one’s rosy cheeks and the beauty mark on his forehead, wondering what the little one would think when he saw his photos like this later. But he immediately took out his phone, “Come on, let’s find a place to take a picture for you.”
Ji Xiaozhuo led the two to the slide in the play area, “Let’s take it here.”
Ji Yan took a picture of the little one first. After taking individual photos, he had Tang Tang stand with the little one and took a picture of the mother and son together with his phone. Just as he was about to put the phone away, Ji Xiaozhuo immediately said, “Dad, you haven’t taken a picture with Mom and me yet! Come on!”
Hearing Ji Xiaozhuo’s words, a parent taking pictures nearby said to Ji Yan, “Let me take a picture of the three of you.”
Ji Yan reluctantly handed his phone to the parent, then slowly walked over under the little one’s expectant gaze, standing on the other side of Ji Xiaozhuo. Ji Xiaozhuo, sandwiched between Tang Tang and Ji Yan, held their hands and smiled happily.
Tang Tang’s face felt a little hot. She quietly adjusted her clothes and hair, revealing her prettiest smile, hoping not to look too bad in the picture. However, with two handsome men, one tall and one short, standing next to her for comparison, Tang Tang still looked particularly unattractive.
Ji Xiaozhuo was quite pleased with the family photo and said happily, “We all look so good! Dad, I want to use this photo as my profile picture. Can you use this one too?”
Ji Yan was silent for a moment, then had to nod, “Okay.”
Ji Xiaozhuo immediately looked at Tang Tang, “Mom, you should use this one as your profile picture too, so our family will be the same!”
Tang Tang shrugged and said apologetically, “But baby, Mom lost her phone. Mom doesn’t have WeChat. You and Dad can just use one profile picture.”
“Mom, you lost your phone?” Ji Xiaozhuo immediately looked at Ji Yan for help, “Dad, Mom lost her phone. Can you buy Mom a new one?”
Ji Yan glanced at Tang Tang but didn’t say anything.
Ji Xiaozhuo thought his father was hesitant because a phone was too expensive, so he quickly said, “Dad, can I take out my New Year’s money to buy Mom a phone? Is my New Year’s money enough?” Ji Yan had always kept Ji Xiaozhuo’s New Year’s money in a piggy bank for him to save, so the little guy knew he had New Year’s money, but didn’t know exactly how much.
Ji Yan didn’t know how to answer well; buying Tang Tang a phone really didn’t seem like something he was suited for.
Tang Tang immediately felt embarrassed and quickly waved her hand at Ji Xiaozhuo, “Baby, Mom doesn’t want a phone. Mom can use a tablet with you. Phones aren’t fun at all, we don’t need to buy one.”
Ji Xiaozhuo hesitated for a moment, pursed his lips, and didn’t say anything.
At this moment, the performances on the stage ended, the dean gave a speech, and the end-of-term ceremony concluded. The children were about to begin their two-month summer vacation.
Ji Xiaozhuo was very excited, chattering excitedly with Tang Tang about where they were going to play tomorrow. Here Ji Yan interrupted, “We won’t go to those places tomorrow. Daddy is going to see your Uncle Chang’an and Uncle Zhuo Ji. They miss you and asked me to take you to meet them. Do you want to come?”
Ji Xiaozhuo’s eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly, “I want to go! I miss Uncle Chang’an and Uncle Zhuo Ji too!”
Tang Tang didn’t know who Uncle Chang’an and Uncle Zhuo Ji were, but she guessed they were people who were close to her husband, maybe even good friends, otherwise her baby wouldn’t like them so much.
So, would her baby and husband not be home tomorrow? Then she could be home alone and clean the house properly, and make some dumplings to put in the refrigerator so she could make steamed dumplings for the little one in the mornings.
Tang Tang had already planned out what to do the next day, but Ji Xiaozhuo tugged at her clothes and said, “Mommy, come with us!”
“Huh?” Tang Tang quickly glanced at Ji Yan in front of her, waved her hand, and said, “No, no, no, Mommy won’t go. Mommy’s legs aren’t working well. Mommy will wait for you to come back at home.”
Tang Tang knew her place; given her relationship with her husband, he definitely wouldn’t want to take her out to play. She decided to refuse to avoid putting him in a difficult position.
Ji Xiaozhuo pouted, “Why? Mommy, don’t you want to come with me?”
“No, no, it’s because Mommy’s legs aren’t working well. I can’t play if I go with you, so why don’t you and Daddy go? Mommy will cook something delicious for you and Daddy at home, and you can eat it when you come back.”
Ji Xiaozhuo frowned, looking unhappy. He really wanted his mother to come along.
Ji Xiaozhuo’s unhappiness continued into the evening. So after taking a bath, he didn’t rush to Tang Tang’s room but instead climbed onto Ji Yan’s lap and sighed sadly.
Ji Yan asked, amused, “What’s wrong? Why are you sighing?”
Ji Xiaozhuo, resting his chin on his hand, asked Ji Yan, “Dad, can we bring Mom along? Mom will be scared home alone. We can’t leave her alone.”
Ji Yan remained silent.
Ji Xiaozhuo grabbed Ji Yan’s hand and shook it, “Dad, don’t mind that Mom is slow. Mom’s leg will get better, and then she won’t need to use crutches anymore.”
Ji Yan couldn’t explain his relationship with Tang Tang to Ji Xiaozhuo. He had never brought Tang Tang to any of his gatherings with his brothers, and Ji Xiaozhuo had never asked to bring Tang Tang before, but this time he did.
Ji Yan hesitated for a moment. In his mind, those he could bring to meet his brothers were just his partner and child, but although Tang Tang was his partner in name, he didn’t feel that way about her in his heart. Should he really bring her to the gathering?
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[1] It is used (often with regret, humor, or mild mockery) to describe a mismatched romantic relationship or pairing where a remarkably attractive, talented, or high-value person (represented by the flower) is with someone who is considered plain, unattractive, or much less impressive (represented by the cow dung).
