Futile Devices Scans

Wang Cheng and the chef worked together to prepare the braised dishes, which received unanimous praise from everyone. Although Old Master Chu didn’t say anything, he ate more than usual tonight—sometimes even eating only the dishes and skipping the rice. Kun Kun was also eating happily. Wang Cheng made him a nutritious mashed potato, served in the large bowl he had just brought out. It was perfectly suited for a two- or three-year-old child like Kun Kun—soft enough to swallow without needing much chewing.

After the meal, the Old Madam announced to everyone that Wang Cheng would be staying at the Chu family for a few days. Only the two elders and Chu Yifeng had known about this beforehand; everyone else was hearing it for the first time. Though a bit surprised, they were mentally prepared, so they accepted the news without much reaction.

The Old Madam had specifically invited Wang Cheng to the Chu household for dinner and even had the guest cook personally. Unless she already regarded Wang Cheng as one of their own, she wouldn’t have done such a thing.

Surprisingly, Jiang Zhuqing, who was most likely to object, didn’t say anything this time. She kept her head down during dinner, lost in thought. Chu Hong, seeing that his wife had no reaction, actually felt relieved. In the past, he had kept silent because he knew the Jiang family was her natal family. But now, the person she was targeting was Wang Cheng, who had already been accepted by his parents. To avoid future conflict and an irreparable falling-out between both sides, he had no choice but to act this way.

Kun Kun seemed especially fond of the mashed potato. At nine o’clock, he still refused to sleep and kept pestering Wang Cheng to make more. At first, Wang Cheng didn’t understand what he meant until Chu Yifeng reminded him. But Wang Cheng firmly refused without hesitation.

“No!”

“Why?” Chu Yifeng asked. The mashed potato seemed quite suitable for Kun Kun.

Wang Cheng gave him a strange look and said, “He already ate a whole bowl during dinner. You can’t eat too many potatoes; eating too much can cause poisoning. That’s common knowledge.”

“Are you looking down on me?” Chu Yifeng saw the meaning behind his glance.

“Yeah. Good thing you noticed—I was worried you wouldn’t,” Wang Cheng said honestly. Then Chu Yifeng slapped him lightly on the back of the head.

Seeing Wang Cheng’s action, Kun Kun copied him and lowered his head.

Wang Cheng lifted his chin, straightened his head, and taught him, “Don’t copy everything.” Then he pulled him onto his lap and pointed at Chu Yifeng, saying, “But you can start learning to dislike your uncle. He’s a bad guy—a bad guy who eats tender little kids like you.”

It was unclear whether Kun Kun understood. His little head turned back and forth between Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng. After a moment, he wriggled out of Wang Cheng’s arms, climbed onto Chu Yifeng’s lap, and plopped down.

Wang Cheng pointed at him with a trembling finger. “So you don’t want mashed potato anymore, huh?”

Kun Kun’s small face immediately scrunched up in conflict, as if weighing which was more important—his uncle or the mashed potato.

“Don’t tease him. He’ll take it seriously,” Chu Yifeng said.

Seeing this scene, Chu Hong and his brother suddenly understood why their mother wanted Wang Cheng to stay at the Chu household. This kid was surprisingly entertaining—he could connect with people of all ages. Listening to him always made people want to laugh. With him around, the house would probably be livelier these next few days.

After returning to their room, Jiang Zhuqing’s phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID, and her expression turned slightly unnatural.

Chu Hong could tell from her expression that it must be someone from the Jiang family again. This time, he didn’t say anything. He took a set of pajamas from the wardrobe and went into the bathroom.

Jiang Zhuqing walked onto the balcony and answered the call. It was her niece, Jiang Yuexin. Ever since trying to create opportunities for her, Jiang Zhuqing had almost become an outsider in her own home. Her husband, son, and daughter-in-law didn’t support her. Meanwhile, her natal family only contacted her about this matter—if things didn’t go well, they blamed her, never caring about her situation in the Chu household. Perhaps her husband was right.

For the rest of her life, her support would be her husband and son. They would also be the focus of her future. If she distanced herself from them for the sake of relatives who only sought benefits from her, it simply wouldn’t be worth it.

“Yuexin, unless it’s something important, don’t call me anymore. As for Yifeng’s matter, I won’t help you again. If you like him, go pursue him yourself. But there’s something I want to tell you—Yifeng’s lover has already gained the approval of everyone in the Chu family. You don’t have any chance anymore. Letting go of someone who doesn’t belong to you is good for both you and the Jiang family.”

After saying this, Jiang Zhuqing hung up without giving the other side a chance to respond. Finally speaking these words made her feel lighter than ever. Without her help, it would be impossible for Jiang Yuexin to get close to Chu Yifeng, and the Jiang family would no longer have any opportunity to attach themselves to the Chu family.

When Chu Hong came out after his shower, he noticed that his wife seemed brighter than ever. The faint worry that used to linger between her brows had disappeared. The firm lines of his face softened unconsciously. He had always known that the woman he chose would never disappoint him.

Jiang Zhuqing also noticed that her husband’s tone toward her had become gentler than before. She realized she hadn’t seen this side of him in a long time. Only then did she understand that she had truly been wrong before—she had missed so much for the sake of her natal family. The more she thought about it, the more certain she became that her decision was the right one.

Wang Cheng didn’t have an easy time on his first night staying at the Chu family.

Kun Kun seemed to have grown attached to him or Chu Yifeng. Even past nine o’clock, he still refused to sleep. The nanny put him onto the small bed and tried to coax him to sleep, but the little guy actually pretended to be asleep. After the nanny left, he climbed down from the bed by himself. The bed wasn’t very high—when it had been bought, it was designed with him in mind, so the end of the bed was shaped like a slide.

However, the pretending-to-sleep Kun Kun forgot one thing—the door of the room couldn’t be opened by him. He struggled inside the room for quite a while until Wang Cheng heard faint noises and came over to check.

The little guy had pushed a small stool over by himself. After standing on it, he tried to open the door. Wang Cheng hadn’t expected him to be behind the door, and just as Kun Kun was about to fall, he caught him in time. Even so, it gave Wang Cheng quite a scare.

“You little rascal, do you have to make such a fuss even just to sleep?” Wang Cheng lifted him and placed him back onto the small bed. Kun Kun obediently sat in the middle of the bed, tilting his little head up to look at him.

“Kids need to sleep early. Only if you behave will adults like you. Disobedient kids aren’t liked by anyone. And you can’t do such dangerous things either. If the one opening the door today hadn’t been me—if it were the nanny—she wouldn’t have my quick reflexes. You would’ve fallen, and then boom, landing on your butt. Your two little cheeks would turn into four—how painful, how embarrassing that would be.”

As Wang Cheng spoke, he lightly patted his little bottom. The softness and elasticity were remarkable—children’s skin really was tender and smooth.

When Chu Yifeng noticed Wang Cheng hadn’t returned, he came out to look for him. He found him in Kun Kun’s room, seriously lecturing the child. If not for hearing what he was actually saying, one might think he was explaining some profound principle. Yet the child listened just as seriously. The scene of one big and one small together had an indescribable harmony. Glancing at the clock on the wall, Chu Yifeng had no choice but to interrupt.

“What are you two doing? It’s already ten—why aren’t you sleeping?”

“Oh, you’re here. It’s because this little troublemaker won’t sleep. When I came over, he was even trying to open the door and go out,” Wang Cheng said. “Is he always like this?”

“I’m not sure, but at least he doesn’t cry and make a fuss like other children when he refuses to sleep,” Chu Yifeng replied.

Wang Cheng stroked his chin. “That’s true.”

There was a child living next door to his home, and whenever bedtime came, the crying was like a piercing noise that went straight into the brain—crying at the slightest thing. Compared to those children, Kun Kun was much better. Throughout the entire day, even when he fell, he didn’t cry. Even without his parents around, he was the same. However, it was said that he had already started learning to sleep alone from the age of one.

In the end, Wang Cheng only left after coaxing the little guy to sleep. He wasn’t as easy to fool as the nanny—he could tell at a glance whether the child was truly asleep.

Wang Cheng covered his stomach with a thin blanket. The weather in July was very hot, but children shouldn’t be exposed to too much air conditioning, so it wasn’t turned on in the room. The air felt somewhat stuffy and warm. Even if Kun Kun slept restlessly and liked to kick off the blanket in the middle of the night, catching a cold in this weather would really be bad luck. He remembered that before he went up the mountain, his older brother often said he used to kick off his blanket while sleeping too. Summer was simply too hot—without a blanket and without a fan, it felt unbearably warm.

Out of empathy, Wang Cheng turned on a small fan for the little guy. The wind speed was set to the lowest level and placed a short distance away to blow gently. Since he didn’t know whether the child slept restlessly, he didn’t dare place it within reach.

“Have you taken care of children before?”

Chu Yifeng noticed how attentive Wang Cheng was in caring for a child—it seemed like he had plenty of experience, which surprised him. Wang Cheng didn’t particularly like children, and there wouldn’t be any on the mountain, so he shouldn’t have had the opportunity.

“No,” Wang Cheng replied. He gently pushed Chu Yifeng out of the room and softly closed the door before turning back and saying, “Isn’t taking care of children like this just common sense?”

Chu Yifeng looked at him. “I’d say it’s more like you’re naturally gifted.”

If it wasn’t natural talent, how could someone learn it so effortlessly without a teacher? Before, he had thought Wang Cheng’s dislike of children was simply because he found them noisy. Now it seemed he just found them troublesome.

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