Chapter 12: Chapter 12 Pang Xiaoyu and Fat Cheese.

Chapter 12: Chubby Fish and Fat Cheese

Will it snow, I wonder?

Song Qinian had mentioned earlier that this year's snow would be late, and Lu Zhishi had been waiting, day after day, with eager anticipation. He had never seen snow before; born in the south in his previous life, and only six months old in this one, he hadn't yet experienced winter's white blanket.

His big, dark, shining eyes fixated on the window. Dissatisfied with his vantage point, his little bottom wiggled, scooting him closer.

Song Father emerged from the kitchen after preparing the formula, not seeing the baby. He searched the living room, calling, "Sweetie."

A rustling sound, and Lu Zhishi's round, little head peeked out from behind the curtain: "Hiyah~"

Song Father bent to scoop him up, intending to carry him back to the living room: "Why did you go over there? It's cold. Let's go back to the living room and watch TV."

Lu Zhishi clung tightly to the curtain, grumbling, unwilling to budge. He longed to see the first snow—Grandma had said it might snow today.

One big, one small; one standing, one sitting. Grandfather and grandson were locked in a silent standoff until Song Mother arrived and immediately understood the situation: "When it snows, Grandpa will call you."

Before Song Father could utter a word, the chubby baby grinned, released the curtain, hugged Grandpa’s leg, and looked up at him with sparkling eyes.

Song Father was a mix of exasperation and amusement. He bent down and lifted him: "You little rascal, you should've said so earlier."

Lu Zhishi babbled, "Abba abba"—how was I supposed to say that?

After two episodes of cartoons, Song Father engaged him with some educational toys, while Song Mother sat on the nearby sofa, knitting.

Lu Zhishi, not being a true human infant, found the simple educational games rather dull.

After patiently playing with Song Father for an hour, Lu Zhishi stuck out his bottom and crawled towards Song Mother, clinging to her knees, wobbling as he tried to stand.

Song Mother quickly put down her knitting and picked him up, cradling him.

Lu Zhishi shook his head, wriggled out of her arms, and settled cross-legged beside her, clutching a round ball of yarn: "Dah…"

Song Mother chuckled, "Are you going to help Grandma wind the yarn?"

Lu Zhishi lowered his head, gathered the yarn ball, then glanced at Song Mother.

Winding yarn meant he could watch TV; playing educational games did not. Lu Zhishi wanted to watch cartoons.

Stealing a glance at Song Father, who was tidying toys on the carpet, Lu Zhishi snuggled closer to Song Mother. He'd play with Grandpa another day; today, he'd keep Grandma company.

Knowing his fondness for "Pineapple House," whether at the Lu family's or the Song family's, the TV would always be tuned to it whenever he visited.

Little children can't see very clearly, almost like they're nearsighted, but even just listening to the sounds brought him joy.

Lu Zhishi was engrossed, yet didn't forget to wind the yarn. His chubby little hands tugged at the yarn twice, then his eyes were glued back to the TV.

Song Mother watched the chubby baby beside her, secretly suppressing a smile. She didn't scold him, simply pulled a few rounds of yarn herself, and continued knitting.

Lu Zhishi, realizing, offered her an embarrassed smile.

Lunch was hotpot. Lu Zhishi watched from the sidelines, drooling, and cast a pitiful glance at Grandpa.

Song Father glanced at Song Mother, and while she wasn't looking, he stealthily used clean chopsticks to dip a little broth for his grandson to taste.

The soft, chubby baby's eyes lit up. He knew this secret couldn't be shared with Grandma, so he kept quiet.

With big, dark, shiny eyes, he gave Song Father a sweet smile, opened his mouth, and sucked on the chopsticks.

After sucking, the sweet smile vanished.

He looked at Song Father with an aggrieved expression—such a big Grandpa, actually tricking his six-month-old grandson.

This was plainly just plain water!

And he had acted so convincingly, making him believe it was real.

Lu Zhishi realized—no wonder Grandma hadn't stopped them earlier; they were all in on tricking the child.

Angrily hugging his milk bottle, Lu Zhishi gulped down his milk, vowing not to speak to them for the next ten minutes.

Ever since this little one started eating solid food, plain water couldn't fool him anymore.

"Mad?" Song Father asked with a laugh, picking him up and rubbing his belly and bottom, soothing softly: "Next year, next year you can have some."

Lu Zhishi hugged his bottle and gulped down the milk, turning his bottom to face another direction.

Song Father was both annoyed and amused, patting his little bottom: "Such a tiny kid, but with quite the temper."

"Hmph~"

"Want some milk pudding?"

"Ah~" Lu Zhishi immediately turned his head, opening his mouth towards Song Father like a little bird waiting to be fed.

Song Father manually closed his mouth. "It's not with me, it's with Grandma."

Lu Zhishi puffed out his cheeks, grumbled, looked up at Grandpa, then turned another direction and opened his mouth again: "Ah~"

The Song couple were utterly charmed by him—they'd never seen such a lively little one.

"Anyone would think we're starving you," Song Mother said, pinching his chubby cheek, and scooped a spoonful of milk pudding to feed him.

Lu Zhishi opened his mouth and took a big bite, chewing with puffed cheeks—so fragrant and sweet. After finishing, he opened his mouth wide again: "Aww, aww."

After finishing a small box, Song Mother felt his belly—it was already bulging.

"Alright, no more."

Full and satisfied, Lu Zhishi didn't pester for more food, but sprawled into a big chubby lump on the living room sofa.

It was time for the evening foot soak, a ritual for good health.

Lu Zhishi leaned comfortably on the little sofa, holding his phone, soaking his feet while making a call.

"Hiyah~"

"Miss Daddy? Daddy and your brother will be home tomorrow," Song Qinian said, reaching through the screen to touch his little one’s chubby face.

"Pfft~"

Nodding, Lu Zhishi also waved his hand, his round, chubby little head trying desperately to squeeze into the screen.

Seeing the child’s adorable little face pressing so eagerly towards the screen, Song Qinian felt a warm glow—the little one really missed him.

Before he could speak, Song Mother interjected: "Chubby baby means you’re blocking his view of Ting’an."

Lu Zhishi gave an emphatic nod, letting out a hearty "Mm!"

Song Qinian: "..." His heart just broke.

Behind him, Lu Tingan wiped his hair with a towel and smiled faintly, coming over to take the phone from Song Qinian. "Pang Bao, did you eat well today?"

"Ang~" Lu Zhishi's eyes happily curved, his smile super cute, his soft, chubby little face filling the screen.

Lu Tingan broke into a wide smile. Song Qinian picked up the hairdryer and began drying his hair for him.

Lu Zhiyu crawled out from under the blankets and clambered onto Lu Tingan's lap. "Was Little Brother good at home? Did you miss your big brother?"

Lu Zhishi made another "Mm!" sound, babbling cute baby talk no one could understand.

Lu Tingan gazed at him with laughter in his eyes, his expression full of tenderness and love. He reached out to stroke the child’s giggling round face and hair through the screen.

His hair seemed longer, and his face looked a little chubbier. No one knew how much he weighed now. Song Qinian often said he was chubby and solid to hold, a little one who loved to eat and sleep. He hadn’t been sick these past few months and was always crawling around, sometimes wandering off to sit in corners where no one could find him...

Lu Tingan watched quietly, a soft smile on his lips, but Song Qinian could guess exactly what he was thinking. He leaned in close and whispered in his ear, "We’ll be able to hold him again soon, don’t be sad, okay?"

"Mm." Lu Tingan lowered his gaze and ruffled Lu Zhiyu’s hair where he sat in his arms.

Their foot-soaking video call ended quickly. Lu Zhishi hung up reluctantly and let Father Song dry his feet before tucking him into bed.

He hadn't been sleepy at first, but he didn't know what lullaby Song Mother was humming—as he lay there, his eyelids grew heavy, and he drifted off without even realizing.

Late at night, when all was quiet, social media was buzzing.

Some determined entertainment paparazzo, braving the freezing cold and snow instead of resting at home, was hiding in the grass to stake out the set.

Unexpectedly, they managed to snap photos of Song Qinian bringing their child to visit the film set and successfully published the entertainment news.

Lu Tingan had plenty of fans, and since this actor often disappeared into filming without a trace, rarely showing his face or posting on Weibo (China's Twitter-like platform), the moment these photos surfaced, fans rushed to save them.

"How come you only brought Chubby Fish? Where’s Little Fat Cheese?"

"He’s too little, they definitely wouldn’t bring him out. Probably at home with Grandma and Grandpa."

"Huff huff, my idol is still so handsome—crazy screen-licking.jpg"

"...Did the person above just lick their whole family of three?"

"@BigGlassesEntertainment, hurry and shout at the set for Brother Lu, tell him to post on Weibo when he has time—his fans are starving!"

"It’s freezing winter—wonder if Brother Lu brought heat patches for his aches? Hope his foot isn’t hurting."

"Can’t we go visit the set? Brother Lu’s partner got to go, why can’t we?"

"Reply to above: No. The set is closed and tightly guarded during filming, no one gets in. Paparazzi have to hide in the grass outside to sneak pics."

"@Song Qinian*, Song Chacha, quick, take some photos of Lu Tingan for us to see!"

"@Song Qinian"

"@Song Qinian"

"@Song Qinian"

Online, things were hopping, while Lu Zhishi slept soundly.

...

Lu Zhishi had waited all day yesterday but saw no snow. It finally started falling in the early hours, just a light flurry, not heavy, but the temperature was bitterly cold.

After breakfast, Lu Zhishi plastered himself against the floor-to-ceiling window, staring unblinkingly at the light snow outside.

He licked his lips, wondering about the snow's taste. If only he could try some—then he could call himself an "ex-southerner" who’d tasted snow.

Song Father turned and saw him licking the window. He was speechless for a second, then hurried to the kitchen to get him something to eat.

"Poor little thing, stop licking the glass. Come eat your rice cereal." Song Father coaxed him over, holding a small bowl ready to feed him.

Though a bit confused, Lu Zhishi opened wide and took a big "Ah!" bite as soon as the food reached his mouth.

After finishing, he let out a little burp and crawled back to the living room rug to rest, spreading out like a little starfish—so still that even when Song Father poked him, he didn’t move.

Song Mother brought her yarn to the living room. Without her even calling, the little roly-poly heard the noise, rolled over, sat up, and automatically went over to help her wind the yarn.

And also to watch TV.

"SpongeBob!"

"Patrick!"

"Giggle giggle!"

What was that mixed in there? It was the adorable, chubby Zhishi.

Song Father chuckled softly, sitting nearby sipping hot tea. Song Mother smiled as she knitted with her needles, occasionally poking the round basket beside her so he could pull out more yarn.

Outside, the sky was gloomy and the wind blew cold—without checking the time, you’d lose track of it.

After feeding the baby lunch, Song Qinian called to say they’d be back in the afternoon, home in time for dinner.

Song Mother reminded him, "Okay. It’s snowing here, drive carefully. Make sure you and the little one dress warmly—don’t catch a chill."

Lu Zhishi was still awake nearby. Hearing Mother’s words, his face lit up.

They wouldn’t arrive until the afternoon, but he was already looking forward to seeing Daddy and Brother from this very moment.