Chapter 75: Come Sleep with Me

Chapter 75: Come Over and Sleep Here

By the time the third batch of dumplings was ready, it was finally the children's turn to eat.

Su He placed the dumplings in the middle of their table, letting the little ones pick their favorite flavors.

All the dumplings so far were made by Su He—large and generously stuffed. When the kids took their first bite, their faces lit up instantly.

Auntie Su truly lived up to her reputation—whatever she whips up tastes better than anything they'd ever eaten before.

"Auntie Su, these dumplings are incredible!" Zhuang Zhuang, as usual, didn’t hold back his praise for his auntie’s cooking.

Su He couldn’t help but chuckle at his expression, which seemed to say, "These are so good, I could cry!" She replied, "If you like them, eat as much as you want. There’s plenty to go around."

She then turned to the two men and added, "There’s still more here. If you’re still hungry, you can have the next batch."

Xia Chengan quickly responded, "No, no, that’s enough. Thank you, sis-in-law. Your dumplings are so delicious, I’m already stuffed."

With that, he ate the last dumpling from his bowl. Hmm, this one was purely meat-filled, with a juicy meat filling that was absolutely amazing.

As the Xia family’s young master, he’d eaten all kinds of delicacies, but Su He’s dumplings surpassed even those from fancy restaurants.

Fu Tinghua, on the other hand, had already eaten his fill. Noticing that Su He had been busy serving everyone but herself, he had deliberately saved half a basket of dumplings for her.

Once Su He had a free moment, he placed the remaining dumplings and a freshly prepared dipping sauce in front of her.

Su He was momentarily puzzled. What was this?

"I didn’t finish the last batch, so I saved some for you. Try them," Fu Tinghua explained, even handing her a pair of chopsticks so smoothly that she couldn’t refuse.

Witnessing this, Xia Chengan couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. Was this really the same great Dr. Fu, rumored to be cold toward women? He seemed pretty attentive to his own wife.

Today’s visit had been worth it—if nothing else, he’d gotten some tea.

Su He accepted the chopsticks with a smile and thanked him.

"It’s getting late. Ting Hua, sister-in-law, I should head back now," Xia Chengan said, standing up to bid them farewell.

"You’re—going back to the city?" Su He asked, surprised.

"Yeah, I was basically roped into being his chauffeur," Xia Chengan said with a shrug.

"That’s really kind of you. Aren’t we cutting it close?" Su He asked with concern.

"It’s fine. I often drive at night. Besides, the way I drive, I’ll probably reach the city by nightfall."

Resuming his usual laid-back demeanor, Xia Chengan waved goodbye and drove off.

Watching the car disappear down the road, Su He mused to herself.

Having a car really would make life more convenient—go wherever you want, whenever you want.

Once she had money, the first thing she’d buy was a car.

*Wait, no—a house is more important. Cars lose value, but houses in this era only keep gaining value.*

*Then again, I don’t have any money right now. I’m flat broke.*

Seeing Su He gaze absently in the direction where Xia Chengan had left, Fu Tinghua couldn’t help but frown and cut off her daydreaming.

“What’s wrong?”

Su He said out of nowhere, “If only I had a car, everything would be so much more convenient.”

Realizing what she had just said, she quickly explained, “Just thinking aloud—don’t take it seriously.”

Unexpectedly, Fu Tinghua replied, “Don’t worry, we’ll have a car.”

We?

Will have?

Was Fu Tinghua planning to buy a car? On his paycheck?

Su He truly didn’t know how much Fu Tinghua earned, but she knew cars were very expensive at the time.

When the two returned to the kitchen, a group of kids were excitedly arranging their self-made dumplings onto the steaming tray.

“Make sure you finish what you’ve made—no waste allowed,” Su He reminded them.

“No worries, Auntie, I’ll definitely finish mine!”

The children all promised.

But Niu Niu declared earnestly, “Mom, I want Dad to eat this bunny I made.”

Su He gave Fu Tinghua a meaningful look, leaving him somewhat puzzled.

However, when Fu Tinghua actually tasted the bunny-shaped dumpling Niu Niu had steamed, he finally understood the meaning behind Su He’s earlier look.

Equal parts amused and exasperated, he ate the entire bunny to avoid disappointing his daughter’s sweet gesture.

After finishing it, he managed to say, “Niu Niu, your bunny was delicious.”

When Wu Yanhua showed up, she finally noticed her youngest son had returned.

Yet, he hadn’t even been bothered to go see them or let them know.

“Mom,” Fu Tinghua greeted Wu Yanhua.

Looking at the lively scene in the kitchen, Wu Yanhua was slightly annoyed, but at the same time, she was comforted to see her youngest son’s home finally feeling like a real home.

“Hmm, you couldn’t even be bothered to tell us you were back,” Wu Yanhua scolded.

“It was already late today. I didn’t want to disturb you. I planned to visit tomorrow,” Fu Tinghua explained, knowing his mother wasn’t truly upset about it.

“Mom, these dumplings just came out. Let me serve you a bowl,” Su He jumped in smoothly.

Glancing at the children’s clearly stuffed stomachs, Wu Yanhua accepted Su He’s offer.

She had a steamer of dumplings at Su He’s place before rounding up Zhuang Zhuang and the others to head back to the Fu family home.

Before leaving, she made her youngest son promise to visit them the next day.

At that moment, Wu Yanhua deeply regretted having split them off from the family.

Now that they're reluctant to come back, it's no use regretting it now.

Her youngest son isn't required to be with the military anymore and often returns, but she still doesn't get to see him immediately.

After everyone left, there were just five of us left at home, including Ji Liangchuan.

Even though so many people had left, with three little ones chattering away, the house didn’t feel quiet at all.

"Liangchuan is Zai Zai and Niu Niu’s friend. His grandma dropped him off to stay with us for a couple of days," Su He explained to Fu Tinghua.

No wonder I hadn't seen this boy before—that explained it.

Fu Tinghua gave a noncommittal "Hmm."

Ji Liangchuan politely greeted Fu Tinghua with, "Hello, Uncle."

Fu Tinghua replied with a "Hello" and then stopped paying attention to the kids.

After dinner, Su He began cleaning up the kitchen while the kids went to the living room to play. Fu Tinghua stayed behind to help tidy up.

"I can handle this. You rushed home after work today and must be tired. The bath water's ready—you can go take a bath and rest," Su He said.

Fu Tinghua paused while wiping the table and said flatly, "I don’t sleep that early."

Su He: "......"

"What's the sleeping arrangement tonight?" Fu Tinghua suddenly asked.

What's the sleeping arrangement? Right, with three kids plus her, the bed might be a bit crowded.

But then Fu Tinghua dropped a bombshell: "Let the three kids sleep in one room. You come sleep with me."