Yukinoshita's Correction Method

Recalling what the book had said, Yukino Yukinoshita applied a little force and pulled the nipple out slightly, letting the milk fill it again before allowing Dong Yunxi to keep drinking.

Dong Yunxi had been focused on eating, and when the nipple was pulled away, she immediately froze for a moment, her big eyes staring blankly at Yukino Yukinoshita.

And the instant she got to drink again, the little baby broke into an adorable smile, pure happiness blooming between her curved brows and eyes.

"Good girl..." Yukino Yukinoshita's gaze was gentle. "Slowly. There's no rush~"

The corners of her mouth unknowingly lifted into a beautiful curve.

"Oh, right." Dong Yunshan walked out of the kitchen. "Do you like fitness meals?"

The smile on Yukino Yukinoshita's face faded. "What did you say?"

"I'm better at making fitness meals..."

Yukino Yukinoshita easily saw through what Dong Yunshan was implying. "You can just say you only know how to make fitness meals."

"I can make other things too..." Dong Yunshan admitted frankly. "I just rarely do, so they're easy to mess up."

"Take off the apron." Yukino Yukinoshita let out a long breath. "You feed the baby."

Dong Yunshan looked a little embarrassed. "I only just remembered."

"Shut up." Yukino Yukinoshita skillfully tied on the apron and pulled her hair into a ponytail. "You eat whatever I make."

"Got it." Dong Yunshan held Dong Yunxi. "I feed the baby, and you feed me."

"I already told you to shut up." Yukino Yukinoshita did not want to scare Dong Yunxi, so she could not glare at Dong Yunshan. She could only kick him once to vent her anger, then turned and walked toward the refrigerator.

After checking the ingredients in the refrigerator, she chose a few and brought them to the kitchen. Once Yukino Yukinoshita had briefly taken stock of the seasonings, she began preparing the dishes.

First, she set a pot of rice to cook. Then she cut the chicken breast into bite-sized pieces, marinated it in salted cooking sake and sesame oil, added sesame oil to a pan and lightly stir-fried shredded kelp, then added chikuwa cut into small segments, poured in bonito stock and seasonings, and let it simmer...

Salted cooking-sake fried chicken breast, mitsuba with ponzu, simmered baby clams, atsuyaki tamago, meat and potato stew, cabbage salad, miso soup...

Yukino Yukinoshita carried the finished dishes to the dining table and was just about to call Dong Yunshan when she saw that he was focused on feeding the baby, so she walked over and poked him twice. "Time to eat."

"Shh~" Dong Yunshan lowered his voice. "She's about to fall asleep."

Baby Xi had the nipple in her mouth, her big eyes half-lidded as she dozed off.

Yukino Yukinoshita remembered something important, picked up the book beside her, and quickly flipped through it. "Did you pat her?"

"When would I have the time for that?" Dong Yunshan lifted his chin. "My phone's over there. Help me take a picture."

"I meant burp her." While Baby Xi opened her mouth, Yukino Yukinoshita tugged Dong Yunshan's hand and took the nipple out. "Let her lie against your shoulder."

Dong Yunshan sat on the sofa, supported Baby Xi's bottom with his arm, and let her stretch upright against his shoulder, then looked at Yukino Yukinoshita, waiting for her next instruction.

"Gently pat her back." Yukino Yukinoshita guided him. "A little lighter."

Dong Yunshan raised his hand and brushed Dong Yunxi's back ever so faintly.

Yukino Yukinoshita could not even be sure whether he had touched the baby.

"That's too light." Yukino Yukinoshita's delicate brows furrowed slightly. She moved a little closer, brought the five fingers of her fair hand together, hollowed her palm into a cupped shape, and gently patted upward in a continuous motion. "This can prevent her from spitting up, overflowing milk, and bloating, and help with digestion."

Dong Yunshan did not understand. "Can't we wait until she finishes drinking?"

"She's already dozing off. She'll probably fall asleep before she finishes." Yukino Yukinoshita shot him a sidelong glance. "Are you going to wake her up by patting her then?"

"That's true..." Dong Yunshan smiled. When he raised his head, he saw Yukino Yukinoshita's face right in front of him.

On ordinary days, the two of them had only ever been this close when they were arguing, but at this moment, Yukino Yukinoshita's expression did not have its usual seriousness, and her eyes did not have that frightening coldness either.

Warm breath drifted freely, blending their breathing together.

Yukino Yukinoshita's gentle patting grew slower and slower, finally turning into a slow, light caress.

She wanted to avoid Dong Yunshan's gaze, yet was unwilling to show such weakness, so she stared at him as if in warning. But somehow, she always felt that her intimidating presence was not as strong as it had been before.

Instead... it was somewhat like a child's unconvinced pouting.

"Burp~" Dong Yunxi made a faint sound, drawing both their gazes.

"T-that's enough..." Yukino Yukinoshita straightened up. "Burp her roughly every sixty to ninety milliliters. Of course, gently stroking from top to bottom like I just did is fine too."

"Mm." Dong Yunshan began feeding her again. This time, Dong Yunxi was clearly drinking much more slowly. "You go eat first. The food will get cold in a bit."

"She's almost done too." Yukino Yukinoshita sat to the side and sighed softly. "Your parents really do trust you..."

They had actually handed a six-month-old baby over to a high school student to look after.

"With the first child, you raise them by the book. With the second..." Dong Yunshan smiled. "You just raise them however. Maybe it's because I was too easy to raise when I was little, and because I'm so reliable, so they can feel this at ease."

As he spoke, he watched the amount of milk in the bottle.

Before Yukino Yukinoshita could remind him, Dong Yunshan took the nipple out when Baby Xi loosened her mouth and gently burped her.

Looking at how gentle and careful his movements were now, Yukino Yukinoshita really found it hard to connect him with the way he had looked hitting people in the restaurant.

Right.

"You are not allowed to spin the baby!" Yukino Yukinoshita narrowed her eyes slightly and warned him in an icy voice. "A baby's brain development still isn't complete. Violent shaking can cause shaken baby syndrome—" "Come on, no matter what, I wouldn't do that." Dong Yunshan was helpless. "Just what kind of image do I have in your mind?"

"In my heart..." Yukino Yukinoshita gave a soft snort. "You aren't."

"That imagination of yours is almost catching up to Komachi's." Seeing that Dong Yunxi had stopped eating, Dong Yunshan carefully set her down, tucked in a cushion, supported her back, and put on a drool bib, all in one smooth motion. "The baby's done eating, so let's eat too."

"Wash your hands first." Yukino Yukinoshita could glare at him without restraint now, but still habitually gave him a light smack.

"Okay, okay, okay~" Dong Yunshan agreed at once.

"One answer is enough." Yukino Yukinoshita returned to the dining table and served herself a bowl of rice.

Looking at Dong Yunshan's empty bowl, Yukino Yukinoshita pressed her lips together and served one for him too.

"Smells so good~" Dong Yunshan came back after washing his hands, pulled out a chair, and sat down. "This much food?"

"I just made a little something." Yukino Yukinoshita began eating on her own, her gaze flicking toward Dong Yunshan as if by chance.

This was still her first time cooking for someone outside her family. She had no idea whether Dong Yunshan would like it or not... Who cared whether he liked it?

As long as she liked it, that was enough.

Dong Yunshan picked up a piece of chicken breast and ate it in one bite, then followed it with a couple mouthfuls of rice. "Chicken breast can taste this good?"

"You just need to marinate it beforehand." Yukino Yukinoshita realized how unnecessary her earlier thoughts had been. "How do you usually eat it?"

"Boiled." Dong Yunshan finished half a bowl of rice in a few bites, scooped in half a bowl of potato stew with a spoon, then ate another half bowl in two or three bites. "I boil it while working out. After two sets, I take it out and let it cool for a bit. Once I'm done stretching, I dig in. When you're hungry, anything tastes good."

Seeing Dong Yunshan eat a whole piece of thick omelet in one bite and immediately reach his chopsticks toward a second, Yukino Yukinoshita tapped the back of his hand with the tips of hers. "How many times have I told you to chew slowly?"

If it had been before, Yukino Yukinoshita would never have touched him.

But at the family restaurant, she had told him several times already, and Dong Yunshan had shown no intention of correcting himself.

There had been more physical contact today, and combined with the irritation from Dong Yunshan's earlier repeated mistakes, Yukino Yukinoshita subconsciously tapped him.

After doing it, even she froze for a moment.

"..." That tap left Dong Yunshan stunned too. "For a second, I thought my mom had shown up."

"Your mother..." Yukino Yukinoshita remembered the elegant handwriting in the notebook. "Has very pretty handwriting."

"Handwriting? Oh, that notebook. My Bro Yan wrote that. The contents should've been dictated by Sis Jin."

If Bro Yan was his father, then Sis Jin should be his mother.

Yukino Yukinoshita gradually figured out the naming habits in Dong Yunshan's family, then froze. "Hm? Zero four two seven eight?"

"How should I put Sis Jin's handwriting... Pretty much only people in the same profession as her can read it." Dong Yunshan slowed down his pace of eating. "The drawing at the end was hers."

Yukino Yukinoshita remembered.

Dong Yunshan's mother was a doctor, and doctors had their own way of writing.

Yukino Yukinoshita nodded. "So you're going to apply to a medical university in the future?"

"Medical university?" Dong Yunshan reacted. "Because my mom's a doctor?"

"If you become a doctor in the future too, the resources available to you in every respect would be better." Yukino Yukinoshita thought of a possibility. "You don't like the profession of doctor?"

"I'd say I'm not suited for it." Dong Yunshan explained further, "Doctors are supposed to solve problems that have appeared before using established methods, but I prefer using my own methods to solve newly appearing problems—you wouldn't want to end up with a doctor like me either, right?"

Yukino Yukinoshita said, "...True."

"As for the resource issue you mentioned..." Dong Yunshan paused, choosing his words. "If I decided the direction of my future life just to obtain those resources, then it wouldn't be me using those resources for convenience. It would be those resources using me to continue themselves."

Yukino Yukinoshita's gaze focused slightly as she looked thoughtfully at Dong Yunshan, who was eating with great relish.

Dong Yunshan raised his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Yukino Yukinoshita lowered her head and continued eating.

When they had eaten about enough, Yukino Yukinoshita looked at the dishes left on the table and reminded Dong Yunshan, "This can be reheated and eaten for another meal. This one shouldn't be heated again..."

Dong Yunshan cut her off. "Are you done eating?"

Yukino Yukinoshita vaguely sensed something. "Mm."

"Then I won't hold back." Like a storm sweeping away clouds, Dong Yunshan finished off all the remaining food without leaving a single thing. "That hit the spot... It's been ages since I had a cheat meal at home."

He actually ate it all... Yukino Yukinoshita had even deliberately made extra.

But in that case, there was no need at all to ask whether he liked it or not.

Though Yukino Yukinoshita had never intended to ask in the first place.

Dong Yunshan carried the plates and bowls into the kitchen. Only then did he discover that the kitchen, where so many dishes had just been made, had already been cleaned up by Yukino Yukinoshita, as if it had never been used.

"Well then, I'll head back first." Yukino Yukinoshita glanced at the sleeping Dong Yunxi. "I'll organize some materials later and send them to you."

"Thanks for all the trouble. You really helped a lot today." Dong Yunshan felt a little embarrassed. "I'll practice properly for a couple days. When you have time, come over again, and I'll make you a whole table of food."

"Your main task right now is taking care of her." Yukino Yukinoshita took one last look at Dong Yunxi, who was still sound asleep. "We can talk about the rest later."

After leaving Dong Yunshan's home, she took a car in the direction of her own place.

She got out, walked into the building, entered the elevator, and pressed the button for the fifteenth floor.

She walked out of the elevator and came to the door without a nameplate.

Cold unlocking sounds rang out one after another, and the front door opened completely.

Compared to Dong Yunshan's home, this apartment was even more spacious.

At a glance, three bedroom doors were visible. On either side of the hallway were the doors to the bathroom and washroom, and farther down the hall was the living room, which also served as the dining room.

From the living room, the outward-extending balcony could be seen, and through the window, one could leisurely enjoy the scenery outside.

The furnishings in the living room were quite plain: only the bare minimum of daily necessities, simple functional furniture, and a warm, milky-yellow fabric sofa. In front of the sofa was a small storage cabinet.

What stood out more was the large television, and in the TV cabinet below it sat a whole row of panda plush toys.

Yukino Yukinoshita changed into slippers and suddenly felt a little dazed.

She had clearly only left from here that morning, yet now that she was back, it felt strangely unfamiliar.

After changing into more comfortable clothes, Yukino Yukinoshita placed her laptop on the glass table in the living room and began searching for knowledge related to childcare.

After sorting through things for quite a while, she reached toward the edge of the table out of habit, only to realize she had forgotten to make tea.

She got up and walked into the kitchen. While waiting for the water to boil, Yukino Yukinoshita folded her arms and looked out the window.

Had home always been this quiet?

By now, Dong Yunxi should already be awake.

She wondered whether Dong Yunshan was playing with her.

At this stage, a baby's body was undergoing important changes. Aside from having their basic needs of eating enough and sleeping well met, they would also begin seeking attention from family members and actively exploring the outside world.

As their body grew, babies obtained more and more information from their surroundings, and the world in their eyes gradually became richer and more colorful.

It was necessary to maintain interaction with the baby, helping develop each of the baby's abilities while also allowing the baby to experience more enjoyment.

Games were the best method. Not only could they deepen one's bond with the baby, they could also better promote the baby's development.

Whoosh—

Hearing the sound of the kettle, Yukino Yukinoshita came back to herself, got up, and walked toward it.