Haohao Can Come Play Every Day

The two slept peacefully for two hours.

Gu Zhuoling was the first to wake.

When he opened his eyes, he saw Shen Xinde sleeping quietly with his eyes closed. He might have gotten a little hot in his sleep, because the wisps of hair on his forehead were slightly damp.

Gu Zhuoling carefully wiped the fine sweat from Shen Xinde's forehead. He turned to check the time on the bedside table and realized they had been asleep for a long while.

Grandpa Butler had said that children shouldn't nap for too long.

Gu Zhuoling wanted to get up, but he was afraid of disturbing Shen Xinde.

"Haohao, it's time to get up."

After a moment's thought, Gu Zhuoling leaned close to Shen Xinde's ear and called softly to him.

Shen Xinde moved his lips and mumbled something, but he still wouldn't open his eyes after a long while. Gu Zhuoling looked at his hand, which Shen Xinde was holding tightly. Unable to get out of bed first, he could only sit up.

"Haohao."

Gu Zhuoling poked Shen Xinde's chubby cheek.

It was a little soft. He poked it again.

His finger sank in. He poked it again.

"What are you doing!" Shen Xinde grumbled, a little grouchy from being woken up, and pushed Gu Zhuoling's hand away.

"It's time to get up." Gu Zhuoling wasn't angry. He tugged at the hand Shen Xinde was holding and spoke in a gentle voice.

"Haohao can't open his eyes."

Shen Xinde tried to open his eyes, but it was just too hard. So he took Gu Zhuoling's hand and rubbed his chubby cheek against it as he spoke in a coquettish tone.

"If you sleep any longer, you won't be able to sleep tonight."

Though Shen Xinde was acting cute, Gu Zhuoling stuck to his principles and refused. Still, he couldn't resist giving Shen Xinde's little cheek a pinch.

Shen Xinde scrunched up his nose and slowly opened his eyes, but he still looked at Gu Zhuoling with a rather aggrieved expression.

"Grandpa Butler said he prepared a tasty afternoon tea today," Gu Zhuoling comforted him in a low voice.

"All right."

To comfort Shen Xinde, who was unhappy about not getting enough sleep, Gu Zhuoling got up, took his hand, and led him downstairs for afternoon tea.

"It's yummy, Dolly." When Shen Xinde found something tasty, he really did forget everything else. He just smiled as he ate, swaying his head from side to side.

From time to time, he even stretched out his short little fingers to point at the pastries he liked and asked Gu Zhuoling to have a bite too.

The two children didn't run outside that afternoon. They returned to the playroom and continued working on the puzzle. At around three or four, Xia Wanqing came to pick Shen Xinde up.

Gu Zhuoling stood at the door, watching Xia Wanqing help Shen Xinde put on his little shoes. He seemed to have something to say.

Xia Wanqing looked up and saw Gu Zhuoling hesitating to speak. She smiled knowingly. "Thank you for playing with Haohao today, Zhuoling."

The little boy standing at the door, cosplaying an expressionless, cool kid, shook his head to say there was no need to thank him.

"Zhuoling, can Auntie discuss something with you?" Having gotten Shen Xinde ready, Xia Wanqing remained crouched down and looked gently at Gu Zhuoling. "Auntie might be going to teach at school often from now on, and Uncle Shen usually has to work too. We may have to leave Haohao at home with the servants, so I was wondering if Haohao could come play with you often?"

That was a bit long for Gu Zhuoling to take in, so he needed a few seconds.

After half a minute of processing it, Gu Zhuoling spoke. "Haohao can come play often?"

"Yes. Haohao likes you very much, and he told me today that he wanted to come play with you often from now on." Xia Wanqing smiled.

Gu Zhuoling looked at Xia Wanqing, then at the little boy peeking out from behind her and making faces at him. He couldn't help the corners of his lips curling up.

"Haohao can come play every day."

"Then sorry to trouble you with looking after Haohao, Zhuoling." Xia Wanqing smiled and turned to Shen Xinde. "Haohao, say thank you."

"Kisses for Dolly!" Shen Xinde said, "Oh yeah!" He held two fingers of one hand to his lips and blew Gu Zhuoling two resounding kisses.

The tips of Gu Zhuoling's ears turned red, and he nodded stiffly.

"Your mom also told me that you talk about Haohao at night. If you miss him, you can just come next door and knock. You can come at night too. It's fine for the two of you to sleep together." Xia Wanqing suddenly seemed to remember something and chuckled before adding this.

What?

Why did Mom tell her everything?

Gu Zhuoling turned into a tomato standing at attention in an instant and instinctively looked at Shen Xinde.

Shen Xinde didn't seem to find it particularly strange. Instead, he stared at him with a smile.

The red tomato of a wooden boy continued to nod stiffly.

That evening, both Gu Ruize and Zhou Jingyi were home for dinner, a rare occurrence.

"How was playing with Haohao today?" Zhou Jingyi teased, looking at her son, who was eating with his head down without saying a word.

Gu Zhuoling said nothing and lowered his head even further.

"I heard A-Ling really knows how to look after his little brother. Holding hands, feeding him, coaxing him to sleep..." Zhou Jingyi had no intention of passing up the chance to tease her son.

Gu Zhuoling's ears were already turning red. Zhou Jingyi and Gu Ruize exchanged a smile at the sight.

"Xinde can come play at our house every day from now on. If A-Ling misses Xinde, you can run over to his house to play too. We can get little brother Xinde his own towels and toys here."

Gu Zhuoling nodded. They really did need to get those things ready. Haohao had used a spare towel today, and it hadn't been comfortable. It had rubbed his face red.

"We should invite the Shen family over for dinner another day, so everyone can get to know one another," Gu Ruize added after his wife spoke.

The couple watched their son eat silently without objecting and understood: their son really was getting along very well with the Shen family's child.

The days passed one by one, and Shen Xinde would run next door and knock from time to time. A servant or Grandpa Butler would then take him inside.

After knocking two or three times, Shen Xinde used the phone watch his father had just bought him to add Gu Zhuoling's contact information. Whenever he was about to head next door, he would call Gu Zhuoling.

Then he would run next door to find Gu Zhuoling already standing at the open door, waiting for him.

At dinner that day, Shen Xinde sat happily between his parents, accepting a bite of shrimp from one side and a bite of greens from the other.

"Mommy has to go to work at school tomorrow. Does Haohao want to come with Mommy or go play with Brother Zhuoling?" Xia Wanqing asked, putting some greens in Shen Xinde's little bowl.

It was already late August, and the university where Xia Wanqing worked was about to start its term. Tomorrow was the first day.

"With Mommy." Shen Xinde didn't hesitate.

"Oh? What about Brother Zhuoling?" Xia Wanqing hadn't expected Shen Xinde to choose to go to her school.

"Haohao will bring Dolly." Shen Xinde shook his head. Children didn't make choices; children wanted everything.

"Hahahahaha." Xia Wanqing laughed.

"We'll be very good. We won't cause any trouble," Shen Xinde promised solemnly.

"All right, all right. But Haohao has to ask Brother Zhuoling what he thinks too." Xia Wanqing smiled and nodded, reaching out to play with Shen Xinde's chubby chin.

"No problem!"

"Now that Haohao has a big brother, he's forgotten his daddy. How long has it been since you came to play at Daddy's company?"

Shen Qiming spoke up resentfully from the side, his resentment curling around him like gray smoke.

"Don't cry, Daddy. Haohao will definitely go next time." Shen Xinde reached out with his chubby little hands, hugged his father's head, and gave him a couple of pats as if comforting him.

"You really know how to make empty promises." Shen Qiming bumped his forehead against his son's.

"Haohao knows how to make pies. Haohao likes eating pies."

Shen Xinde nodded as if that were the most natural thing in the world.

"The Gu family invited us to dinner at their house tomorrow evening. Don't forget." Xia Wanqing remembered something and reached out to tap the two drama queens beside her.

"I haven't forgotten, honey. I'll pick you both up tomorrow, and we'll go together."