Chapter 48: Daddy speaks ill of brother, Zhi Zhi won’t play with Daddy

Chapter 48: Daddy Talked Bad About Brothers, Zhi Zhi Won't Play with Daddy Anymore

In the quiet bedroom, near the large bed, a soft 'poof' sound suddenly broke the silence.

Air squeezed from her mouth, making a noise, the little dumpling's eyes widened, her large eyes filled with disbelief.

Mom said Daddy was a childish dummy.

Zhi Zhi didn't know what a childish dummy was.

She only knew that Daddy had bullied her, hadn't apologized, and was even laughing so hard his whole body shook.

A layer of mist gradually welled up in her eyes. Zhi Zhi, no longer the well-behaved child she was moments ago, sat pouting in Daddy's arms, looking on the verge of tears, waiting to be comforted.

This wasn't the first time Fu Cheng had done something like this.

His eldest and second sons were both quite steady in temperament, more mature than their peers from a young age.

He rarely had the chance to tease them.

When he brought his youngest son home, Fu Cheng noticed the child had a hot temper and immediately took to teasing him, often making him cry until the eldest had to step in and soothe him.

Now, the little dumpling in his arms was also on the verge of tears from his teasing. While Fu Cheng found it amusing, seeing the 'golden beans' (tears) welling up in her eyes, his heart instantly softened, and he quickly apologized.

"Why are you crying? Your three brothers never cried back then."

Awkwardly wiping away the tears at the corners of her eyes with his palm, Fu Cheng, who had little experience comforting children, drew her close into his arms and gently patted her back.

"Don't cry, don't cry. Daddy was wrong. Daddy shouldn't have teased Zhi Zhi and made her make that sound."

"Daddy won't do it again, okay? Daddy will even write you a written promise, how about that?"

In Zhi Zhi's imagination, Daddy was supposed to be the good Daddy who held her little hand and took her to buy candy.

Not the silly Daddy who purposely pinched her cheeks and spoke ill of her brothers.

Pouting, she lowered her head and wiped all her tears on the pajamas over Daddy's shoulder. The little dumpling muttered, "Dummy Daddy."

Fu Cheng, who had only ever been praised for his intelligence, didn't even bother refuting this time.

He nodded repeatedly. "Yes, yes, Daddy is silly. Zhi Zhi, don't cry."

"If your big brother comes in and sees you crying, he'll definitely start lecturing again."

Thinking of his eldest son, Fu Cheng felt both proud of his maturity and responsible behavior, but he was also slightly afraid of his nagging.

Over the years, his hot temper had offended many people, and every time he returned home, he couldn't escape a round of 'guidance' from his eldest son.

Sometimes, even Fu Cheng couldn't tell who was the father—him or Fu Jingyi.

Speak of the devil.

Fu Jingyi, holding a hairdryer, had guessed his little sister might be in their father's room.

But what he never expected was that just as he was about to enter, he heard his father's voice.

Thinking it was a hallucination at first, he walked inside and saw the tall man holding their tiny sister, speaking to her in a gentle, soothing tone. The hairdryer in his hand fell to the carpet with a dull thud.

Hearing the noise at the door, Fu Cheng and the little dumpling both looked up.

The former, upon seeing his eldest son, immediately tried to hide the still-crying little dumpling under the blankets.

Meanwhile, Zhi Zhi, seeing her brother, instantly wriggled free of Daddy's arms to run to him and tell on him.

"Jing Yi."

"Big brother!"

Fu Jingyi didn't even bother picking up the hairdryer at his feet.

He hurried to the bedside, catching his sister as she threw herself at him, instinctively slipping an arm around her while the other hand pressed against his father's forehead.

"Dad, you're awake..."

The young man's eyes reddened suddenly.

Confirming his father's temperature was normal, Fu Jingyi bit his lip, fighting to stay calm.

"Are you feeling unwell anywhere? I'll call Dr. Wang over."

"I'll also get Yu Chen here. Si Yuan is still in class with his mentor, but he should be able to make it back in time."

Fu Jingyi's eyes were red, and even his words came out slightly disordered.

After his father's accident, a mountain of responsibilities had crashed onto his shoulders, yet he handled each one methodically.

But now, seeing the father whom doctors had said might never wake up again, awake before him—he could hardly hold back his emotions.

Fu Cheng laughed softly and waved him off. "It's late. Don't disturb their rest."

Mainly, Fu Yuchen and Fu Siyuan were like cats and dogs—the moment they were together, they'd start arguing.

Fu Cheng got headaches just thinking about it. He really didn't want to wake up only to see his two 'filial' sons bickering endlessly in front of him.

"Big brother, Daddy said bad things about you! He said bad things about second brother and third brother too! Daddy is silly!"

Hugging her brother's neck tightly, the little dumpling glared at Daddy, her tiny brows knit together.

Her brothers were the best in the whole world—Daddy couldn't say bad things about them!

Fu Jingyi smiled and sat on the edge of the bed.

The little dumpling was still in her nightgown, her hair still wet, yet she'd run straight to their father's room.

It showed just how much she adored him.

But for their father to have just woken up and already strained their relationship—Fu Jingyi could only sigh helplessly as he held his sister and spoke to their father.

"I even suspected someone might be playing a trick on you, Dad. But I've already had a paternity test done. Zhi Zhi really is your biological daughter."

"She's such a good girl. You have no idea—when I secretly came back from overseas, I saw Zhi Zhi standing by your hospital bed. She said she came to make you better."

"Zhi Zhi is the Little Lucky Star of the Fu family. So much has happened in the Fu Corporation while you were away..."

He gave a quick rundown of recent events.

As he spoke, he picked up the fallen hairdryer, plugged it back in, and carefully dried his sister's hair.

Fu Cheng hadn't expected that in just half a month of his coma, so much had changed in the outside world.

His dark eyes darkened, but when he lifted his gaze again and saw his daughter curled up in his eldest son's arms, the corners of his lips curled up involuntarily.

"Zhi Zhi kept saying she wanted to heal you. Every night, she insisted on sleeping beside you, saying she wanted to give you all her good luck."

"Perhaps heaven smiled on us, Dad. You actually woke up."

After finishing drying his sister's hair, Fu Jingyi unplugged the hairdryer and lifted her up playfully.

"Zhi Zhi loves you so much, Dad. Want to sleep with Dad again tonight?"

The sleepy little dumpling, who had been lulled into drowsiness by the noise of the hairdryer, suddenly jolted awake.

She rubbed her eyes with her tiny hands and said in a babyish voice, "No! Daddy's mean!"

"Daddy squeezed Zhi Zhi's cheeks!"

Then, she mimicked all the teasing gestures her father had just made toward her.

With another little 'poof!', Zhi Zhi buried her little head into her brother's chest and mumbled, "Daddy is silly. Zhi Zhi won't play with silly Daddy!"

Fu Jingyi couldn't help but chuckle.

He patted his sister's arm and looked up to find his father's eyes full of hurt.

Just as he parted his lips to ask, his father raised his gaze and asked in a low voice,

"Jing Yi, how do you get Zhi Zhi to stick to you like this?"

After hearing his eldest son recount all the things his daughter had done, Fu Cheng's heart turned to mush.

How did Fu Cheng ever deserve such a sweet daughter?

He had already felt a twinge of jealousy when he heard her constantly defending her three sons.

Now, seeing her cling to her eldest son and outright refuse to play with her "silly daddy,"

Fu Cheng felt both bitter and hurt. If he had known his daughter was this sweet and adorable, he would have treasured her—how could he have teased her like a mischievous child?

"I... Daddy apologizes to Zhi Zhi. I'll write a promise letter, okay? From now on, Daddy will never tease Zhi Zhi again."

Nearly forty and towering in stature, Fu Cheng shrunk like a scolded quail for the first time, cautiously spreading his arms toward his daughter in an attempt to win her favor.