We Have Three Children

The kids didn't quite understand what their father was trying to do, but judging from his expression, they knew he'd been bewitched by that man again today.

Tonight, Tao Qiu told them a bedtime story about a family going on a trip, encountering an accident, and how the parents and children remained calm and wise, helping each other and ultimately escaping danger.

The next day, after getting up, Tao Qiu braided and dressed up the children, and mentioned Lou Yu again.

"Those clothes, toiletries, combs, hair ties, and hair accessories I had before were all things Lou Yu thought I needed, so he brought them for me. He's really thoughtful and cares about me."

During lunch, Tao Qiu said again, "Lou Yu said before that he wasn't a good cook and couldn't learn to cook no matter how hard he tried. But after I praised his teammate's cooking, he specially learned to make desserts for me. It's that cream puff, you guys have tried it, isn't it delicious?"

In the afternoon, while planting, Tao Qiu held up the crops and said, "Every time I give Lou Yu his crops, he eats them all obediently. He's so well-behaved."

Returning from the hunt in the evening, Tao Qiu continued to boast, "A few times I offered to let Lou Yu catch a couple of animals to take back, but he refused, saying he was worried I'd work too hard. He's very considerate."

For the next two days, whenever Tao Qiu had the chance, she would mention Lou Yu. The kids were practically sick of hearing it.

Gradually, the kids figured it out too.

While Tao Qiu was out on patrol, the three kids got together.

Eldest Cub: "Now, Daddy doesn't shy away from showing his relationship with Lou Yu in front of us at all."

Second Cub: "We mentioned before that he seemed to really like Lou Yu, but he always made up excuses to brush us off."

Third Cub: "Dad not only doesn't shy away from it, but it seems like he even wants us to like Lou Yu too."

The Eldest Cub Second Cub children felt the same way.

The Eldest Cub, propping his chubby cheeks up with his hand, said, "Daddy wouldn't want us to recognize Lou Yu, would he?"

Second Cub asked in surprise, "So sudden?"

Third Cub also speculated, "Perhaps Lou Yu has gradually accepted us, and this time he told Dad, and Dad wants us to recognize each other."

Lou Yu has been in this exchange relationship with their family for quite a while now. Maybe before, the father would often tell Lou Yu how wonderful the children were, and after hearing it so many times, Lou Yu's opinion of them changed.

The Second Cub asked in a low voice, "If Dad really thinks that way, would you be willing?"

The Eldest Cub pouted, and said childishly, "Even though Lou Yu is also a father, I still want a father who likes us more than him."

The Third Cub said, "Daddy will also try to take Daddy away from us."

Does this mean that whether they acknowledge each other or not is unimportant? Even if they become father and son with Lou Yu, the previous conflicts will not change, and Lou Yu will still compete with them for his father's affection and attention.

"However," the Third Cub said with a hint of distress, "If we don't acknowledge Lou Yu, won't Dad be sad?"

They weren't particularly concerned about whether or not to acknowledge Lou Yu; what they cared about was Tao Qiu's feelings.

Second Cub: "As long as Daddy is happy to let me recognize Stone as my dad, I'm willing to do anything."

The Eldest Cub Third Cub shared the same idea.

"Well then, let's just cooperate, Daddy." The Eldest Cub cupped his face, looking quite helpless. "Let's just pretend that we gradually come to think that Lou Yu is a good person, a good father, that should be enough, right?"

Second Cub: "We're so sensible, don't you care? Lou Yu abandoned us before, Daddy would like us even more."

Third Cub: "We're better than Lou Yu in this respect, and we're more popular with Dad."

Lou Yu, who was loading supplies onto the truck, was unaware that his three children had already made him their biggest rival in the competition for their father's favor.

That day, he endured the stench and drove back to the base. He didn't encounter any mutated monsters on the way, but when he arrived at the gate, even the soldiers in charge of inspection were covered in their noses by the stench from his car.

He said he accidentally encountered a mutated monster that was good at using foul odor attacks, and luckily he ran fast, otherwise he would have been doomed.

The soldiers didn't suspect him and let him in after a cursory check.

After entering the gate, Lou Yu did not go home immediately, but instead drove to the research institute.

He wanted to quickly give the tomatoes to Zhao Tao while the smell was still there.

As for his two tomatoes, he ate them while Tao Qiu went to get the stinky mud.

Lou Yu met with Zhao Tao alone and, after confirming that there were no surveillance cameras or eavesdropping in the room, took out the tomato that had been hidden in his clothes.

Speaking of clothes, Tao Qiu tore his outer and inner garments when he went out. If he hadn't kept a spare set in the car, he would have had to come back shirtless.

If I really did that, who knows what kind of rumors would spread?

Zhao Tao was initially quite bothered by Lou Yu's pungent smell, but when he saw the two bright red tomatoes, his eyes widened instantly.

His family was of modest means and they were very frugal with food and lodging. In all his years, he had never seen such a beautiful tomato.

Even when held in Lou Yu's foul-smelling hands, he could still smell the sweet fragrance of fruits and vegetables.

"Did these come from the Central Base?" Zhao Tao looked at the tomatoes and swallowed.

He had never been to the Central Base, but he had heard others boast that the grains and fruits at the Central Base were tastier and more appealing than those at the satellite base.

Lou Yu said, "Just take it as a favor, right now? Finish it all, not a single scrap left, and don't tell anyone else I gave you this. Nobody can tell, understand?"

Zhao Tao assumed that Lou Yu had kindly invited him to eat fruits and vegetables, but there wasn't enough to share with everyone, and he was afraid that people would feel uncomfortable, so he asked him not to tell anyone.

"This must be very expensive, right?" Zhao Tao asked hesitantly.

Lou Yu said, "I specially got this for you to eat. It's good for your health, so don't be polite with me. You can pay me back when you have money later. Listen to me, eat up."

Upon hearing Lou Yu's words, Zhao Tao's eyes quickly filled with tears.

"Thank you, Captain Lou."

Zhao Tao eventually accepted the two tomatoes, Lou Yu personally watched him eat them all without spilling a single drop of juice before turning to deal with the doctor and the others who had rushed over upon hearing the news.

Chapter 68 We Have Three Children

When the professors asked Lou Yu why he had come, Lou Yu only said that he was worried about Zhao Tao, so he came to check on him.

Zhao Tao was also there to help out. Seeing that neither of them seemed to be hurt, and considering they were still dazed by the stench, the PhD students didn't pursue the matter further, only telling Lou Yu to quickly go back and tidy himself up.

Back home, Lou Yu and his car were both quite smelly and received a lot of criticism from his teammates. Lou Yu took a shower for over an hour before coming out of the bathroom, and they spent a lot of effort cleaning the car.

Regarding Lou Yu to leave again after only two days back, his teammates said they were already used to it, as Lou Quan had previously given him a pass allowing him to come and go as he pleased.

When he went to the research institute to register and retrieve his toolbox for materials, he heard some news.

This year, the invasion of mutated monsters damaged the planting area, which is an important region, causing considerable economic losses.

Afterwards, the reconstruction efforts prioritized the planting area, as it was crucial for feeding everyone at the base for a quarter of the year.

In addition to the damage to the land and buildings, some seeds in the seed bank were also contaminated.

The contaminated crops are all grains that were supposed to be planted this season. The reduction in seeds is already a disaster, but who knew that the seedlings would be infected with diseases halfway through their growth? The yield will definitely be reduced.

This news is currently circulating internally, but it will eventually come out, and there's nothing they can do but wait and see. They can only hope that everyone will be patient for a few months, and perhaps production will return to normal in the second half of the year.

Lou Yu wasn't an expert in this area, and upon hearing this, he could do nothing but sigh.

Knowing that Lou Yu was coming today, Tao Qiu got up early, in an exceptionally good mood, humming a tune as she walked.

After the four of them had breakfast, Black Rabbit arrived. He accompanied the kids during their practice, while Tao Qiu prepared lunch for them.

Tao Qiu prepared Lou Yu's portion as well and put it in the food box, thinking that he could eat it with Lou Yu later.

Seeing that it was almost time, Tao Qiu took lunch down to Black Rabbit and the three little ones, then said she had to go out and left with a large bag of things.

The bag contained his and Lou Yu's lunchbox, a power bank to charge at home, some crops for that guy Zhao Tao, and a cell phone.

Black Rabbit knew that Tao Qiu had dealings with humans. When the cubs were in human form, the cloth they wore was something only found on the human side. He just didn't know exactly what items Tao Qiu and the humans had exchanged, so he wasn't surprised to see Tao Qiu carrying a bag.

However, seeing Tao Qiu's smile brighter than the sun, Black Rabbit quietly asked the children after he left.

"Roar?"

--Did that human come? What rare and wonderful thing did he bring you that made your father so happy?

The kids couldn't very well tell Black Rabbit that their father was happy because he was going to see their other father.

They ate their lunch with their heads down, offering a perfunctory "Chirp chirp."

--We don't know either.

When Tao Qiu went out, Lou Yu hadn't arrived yet, but he wasn't kept waiting too long. A car much larger than the one from last time quickly came into his view.

He flew over, Lou Yu opened the car door, first taking the bag he was carrying before pulling him into the car.

After closing the car door, Tao Qiu transformed into human form, jumped into Lou Yu's arms, and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I missed you so much! Come here, let's kiss."

Lou Yu put his arm around Tao Qiu's waist and returned his kiss passionately. After a moment of tender intimacy, the temperature inside the car seemed to rise a few degrees.

After their intimate moment, Tao Qiu sat in Lou Yu's lap and took out a food box from the bag.

"I made lunch: boiled sweet potatoes, roasted meat, and cold shredded radish salad. Try it and see if you like it?"

The moment the food box was opened, the aroma of the dishes immediately wafted out.