Chapter 71 Wife, Comfort Your Bro

Chapter 71: Honey, Please Comfort Your Husband

To be precise, he started smiling the moment he received Shu Yangkuo’s text—"Missing my wife."

After getting the message, Shi Zai quickly packed up, washed his hands, and rushed home. It was almost quitting time anyway. He knew Wang Wang was going through the "September regression" phase that every child experiences. If the man truly couldn’t calm him down, he wouldn’t have texted at all. What was Wang Wang fussing about this time?

But even when he got back, the little one was still clinging to Daddy, though it did help a little. Shi Zai suggested to his ge that if it got too bad, he could try being a bit stricter—Wang Wang sometimes acted up on purpose these days. But Shu Yangkuo firmly disagreed, saying they just had to get through this phase.

Who knew it would be this tough?

The moment Shi Zai stepped through the door, his first thought was, "How does his husband look like he hasn’t slept for two days after just one afternoon?" Then came overwhelming heartache, followed by shock—when the man turned around holding the little one, Shi Zai was truly stunned. He hurried over, looking him up and down:

"Ge, did someone break into our house? Were you beaten up?!"

"...Who could beat ge?"

"Then what happened to you, boo-hoo..."

Unexpectedly, Daddy started crying. What was wrong? Wang Wang’s lips quivered, and with a "wah," this time he cried for real.

Shu Yangkuo quickly freed one arm and pulled his wife close, soothing him, "Ge is fine, I’ll tell you slowly tonight." Shi Zai immediately wiped his eyes, drying his tears. He couldn’t let the man comfort him at a time like this. He reached out to take Wang Wang and calm him, but the little one stopped crying, turned his face away, and buried it back into Daddy’s shoulder, even making "mm-hmm" sounds as if directing him to go to the kitchen to watch the chef cook.

Shi Zai was truly at a loss. He couldn’t bring himself to force the child away—last night, he’d tried once, and the little one had cried for two solid minutes.

He quickly called Yang Yun and Qin Xihan, asking them to come home early and bring a clinic doctor along. He could hardly describe how terrible the man looked—outside, he was authoritative and stern, but at home, he was gentle and considerate. When had he ever been this disheveled? Both knees were bright red, one of them scraped raw and bleeding. There was a bump on his forehead, with two bright red scratches beside it.

Shu Yangkuo didn’t take Wang Wang to the kitchen—too dangerous. Instead, he went to the living room to look at a touch-and-feel book with him. But the little one wouldn’t let him sit down, bouncing up like a spring—Shu Yangkuo pressed his temples. His stomach ached from being jumped on. He hadn’t slept much for three days straight, and his appetite was poor. He’d thrown up everything he ate at noon, and now his stomach was empty, feeling indescribably awful. Wang Wang started crying again, his strength astonishing as he bounced even more vigorously, slipping in his arms. Shu Yangkuo took a deep breath and stood up to hold him properly, but his vision went dark...

"...Ge! Ge!!"

"Wah—Daddy!"

Loud, chaotic noises rang in his ears. Shu Yangkuo came to, finding himself slumped on the sofa. Wang Wang was struggling in his wife’s arms, reaching for him. He stretched out a hand, and his wife said something. Shu Yangkuo rubbed his forehead, hissing in pain.

Shi Zai was furious and heartbroken. He’d told the stubborn man yesterday to call him home if he couldn’t handle the child alone! And this little one was just as stubborn—couldn’t he see how bad his Daddy looked, still squirming wildly! Shi Zai held him tightly, momentarily panicked. The family cook came over to help hold the child, but Wang Wang cried so hard his whole body was trembling uncontrollably, flailing wildly to avoid being touched, insisting on reaching for his Daddy on the sofa.

He had no idea how his ge had managed these past few days. Shi Zai was so angry he didn’t know what to do.

Shu Yangkuo took a moment to recover, feeling slightly better. He quickly stood up, took Wang Wang back, and leaned against the balcony railing, gently patting and soothing him. The little one had just been scared. He held Wang Wang against his chest, letting him listen to his heartbeat, and gradually, the child calmed down. Wang Wang wasn’t being unreasonable—he knew he was fussing, but at this stage, he just couldn’t control his irritability.

He pulled a small squeeze toy from his pocket and hung it around his neck. The little one lay sideways against his chest, feeling the warmth of his Daddy’s embrace while squeezing the toy rhythmically. Soon, he looked up and giggled.

Shu Yangkuo kissed the top of his head, then waved for his wife to come over, pulling him close:

"Wang Wang threw the train tracks, and ge accidentally knelt on them while holding him. My knee’s scraped, but it’s fine."

"...!!"

"Wang Wang wanted to climb into the wardrobe. Ge held him up to look, and accidentally bumped my head."

"...!!!"

"That’s all. Really, it’s nothing. It’ll heal in a couple of days. Don’t worry, wife."

Wiping away his tears, Shi Zai glared, pointing at his hands and the scratches near his temple, asking what happened.

Shu Yangkuo paused, then briefly explained about the cactus incident, how he’d lain on the floor, and how Wang Wang, thinking something was wrong, had banged him twice with a broken-cornered toy... Whether it was the first two incidents or the last, it was all his own fault.

Shi Zai was both angry and amused, his eyes reddening:

"Of course it’s your own fault?!"

"..."

"Are you still going to be stubborn, ge..."

"Honey, please comfort your husband."

Before Shi Zai could finish, the man spoke these words. Then, Shi Zai felt a weight on his head and shoulder as the man slid down slightly, leaning against the railing, his hand resting on Shi Zai’s shoulder, even his head leaning against Shi Zai’s...

Exhausted like this, covered in injuries, still holding the child with one arm.

No jealousy, only helpless heartache.

So it wasn’t that Shu Yangkuo was stubborn—even if Shi Zai were home, what could he have done? Just stood by helplessly.

Shi Zai stood on tiptoe, making himself a bit taller to better support the man, and kissed the hand on his shoulder:

"Ge, after Wang Wang falls asleep tonight, I’ll give you a good massage..."

"Ah, ah!"

"..."

Well then, he couldn’t even mention the name now. Such a clever little thing.

Shi Zai sighed softly, touching the man’s face:

"Honey—ah, I don’t know what to say anymore. I called Yan Wei this afternoon. They went through the same phase—it’ll pass. But they said we don’t have to indulge him too much. Comfort him when he’s genuinely crying, but when he’s fake-crying, don’t give in unconditionally. Tell him he has to stop crying to get what he wants, so he learns he only gets things when he’s well-behaved. Also, try to distract him from unreasonable demands... Ah, but talking is easy. When he’s throwing a tantrum, there’s no way... I’m all talk."

As he spoke, Shi Zai lowered his head. Shu Yangkuo was much more patient and attentive—he’d naturally tried all these methods already.

Shu Yangkuo lifted his head, stroking his wife’s ear:

"Ge is much better now. I just exaggerated a bit to make my wife worry."

"...Then you could try talking to the baby, like, ‘Daddy’s knee hurts, can you take it easy on Daddy?’"

Hearing this, Shu Yangkuo couldn’t help but laugh. He’d said something similar, but Wang Wang struggled to sit on the floor and tried to hit the train tracks he’d thrown—the ones that had hurt him. Shu Yangkuo hurried to pick him up, getting hurt again—this was because once before, when a ball hit Wang Wang’s hand and made him unhappy, Shu Yangkuo had let him pat the ball back, as if getting revenge.

The little one was just returning the favor.

But he remembered it. However, the tracks had sharp edges—Shu Yangkuo couldn’t let him hit them with his hand. He’d already thrown them away.

After hearing this, Shi Zai didn’t know what to say. He could only share some heart-to-heart words, comforting the man to make him feel better and relieve the exhaustion of the past few days. Soon, Yang Yun and Qin Xihan returned, their expressions shifting similarly to his. Shi Zai quickly explained everything, first having the doctor bandage the injuries. Fortunately, they were all superficial injuries and would heal with time.

That night, everyone tried to take turns holding Wang Wang, but none succeeded. Instead, they thoroughly angered him. The little one insisted on clinging to his Daddy, filled with a frustration he couldn’t understand, wanting only to nestle in his father’s arms as if returning to the womb. He didn’t understand why anyone would try to take him away, crying until his face was red, unwilling to let anyone else touch him or even speak to him.

Shi Zai and the two younger brothers had no choice but to give up. They’d already checked everything the past few days—digestive issues, teething problems, and any physiological problems—and ruled them out. They hadn't been restricting him emotionally either, so no one knew why he was so fussy.

Until late at night—Shi Zai, wanting to give the man some relief, took Shu Yangkuo to the small living room, massaging him while whispering comforting words, pouring out all his love and concern. As they talked, they heard faint whimpers from the bedroom. Shi Zai asked Shu Yangkuo to wait while he checked. And what did he find? The little one was trying to climb over the crib rail!

At over nine months old, he was sturdy, using all his might to hoist his little legs, dangling mid-air, trying to escape.

Not making a sound, quietly causing trouble.

Shi Zai quickly lifted him down. Wang Wang pouted, "Daddy..." Well, it turned out that after they fell asleep at night, the little one wasn’t sleeping properly but trying to climb out. Probably, he wasn’t sleeping well, leading to daytime irritability—tired but wanting to play, hence the intense fussiness.

For the first two days, Shu Yangkuo noticed Wang Wang was being particularly fussy and even held him to sleep at night. But once the little one fell into a deep sleep, he didn’t want to be held anymore—he would wriggle around both in arms and on the bed, sometimes squirming so much he'd wake himself up crying. Only after Wang Wang was sound asleep would Shu Yangkuo put him back in his crib.

Who would have thought that in the dead of night, without crying or making a sound, he was actually trying to climb out secretly? It seemed the crib railing needed to be raised higher. Wanting to sleep alone yet also wanting to be near Daddy… what a headache.

For the next couple of weeks, Shu Yangkuo set a vibrating alarm for himself, waking up at the same time every night to check on Wang Wang. He’d pick up the little night-waker and soothe him back to sleep. Gradually, Wang Wang went from waking twice a night to once, and eventually started sleeping through the night again. As a result, Wang Wang was much better during the day. Although he still wanted to be held, he stopped throwing deliberate tantrums, returning to his usual giggly, adorable self.

Shi Zai bought a tricycle and took both of them to the antique market every morning and afternoon. Riding at a leisurely pace, Wang Wang, who had never experienced an outing like this before—completely different from riding in a car—peered around curiously from his daddy’s arms, and was much better behaved. Once they arrived, Shi Zai would go to his studio to work while the two of them wandered through the flower and bird market in the back. Interacting with living creatures like little birds and kittens brought Wang Wang a lot of joy.

Shu Yangkuo stopped just staying home with Wang Wang and instead took him out on buses to parks, crowded squares, and even a three-day parent-child class, allowing Wang Wang to interact with other children while he chatted with other dads and moms. They also installed a large silicone climbing structure in the villa’s yard… As they say, where there’s a will, there’s a way. By striving to meet the little one’s needs on a deeper level and addressing his minor frustrations, Wang Wang gradually stopped clinging for constant holding and throwing tantrums. His eating and sleeping habits improved significantly compared to before.

By May 6th, the Start of Summer and also Dad’s birthday, Wang Wang seized the moment when the adults weren’t looking and sneakily licked some frosting.

When Shi Zai and Shu Yangkuo finally noticed, their first reaction wasn’t to scold him for eating the frosting but rather…

The living room was crowded and bustling with people, but not annoyingly so. Wang Wang pretended to be annoyed, sitting with his back to everyone for quite a while. A little bird flew away outside the window, and he sneaked a peek behind him. Uncle Qian Xi tried to pick him up, so he quickly straightened his little head. There was a new inflatable castle in the yard—so big and beautiful! Hehe, he couldn’t play on it yet. He sneaked another glance back—Daddy was coming over! He quickly looked up at the sky and sighed.

After a while, the living room grew even noisier. Everyone was singing, and there was the sound of gift bags being torn open. Wang Wang curled his little lips and let out a soft “hehe,” then glanced back again—this was his chance! Scrambling quickly over to the side table, he propped himself up and leaned over—slurp—so sweet!

Hehehehehe.

Oops, he’d been caught. Wang Wang quickly climbed down from the table and tried to run away, run away, run away… Wait, he was standing! And he even took two steps! He looked down at himself—yes, those were his own little legs. Looking up, he saw many people staring at him excitedly. Wang Wang lifted his foot and moved again, then—whoops—he tumbled into Daddy’s arms. Hehe, a little embarrassed, he put his little hand to his mouth and blew a kiss to everyone.

Shi Zai was overjoyed. He picked up Wang Wang and gently gave him a little lift:

“My son can stand and walk!”

“Ha! Haha…”

“Our Wang Wang is so amazing!”

“Hehe, dada…”

“Huh? No, you can’t eat cake yet. You have to wait until you’re one year old, understand?”

“Hmph…”

Wang Wang patted Daddy’s shoulder. If he’d known, he wouldn’t have said anything—he should’ve kept sneaking bites. But the cake had been put away. Still, he wasn’t angry. Daddy said eating cake would make his tummy hurt. Lifting his eyes, he noticed—Daddy had frosting on the corner of his mouth and on his cheek! Wang Wang quickly forgot about the tummy ache and leaned in, nibbling from the corner of Daddy’s mouth all the way to his cheek. So delicious, hehe.

Everyone laughed at him, but he didn’t mind. Hmph.

Shi Zai quickly wiped the drool off his face. Shu Yangkuo took the little one into his arms, and Wang Wang happily wriggled around, kicking and flailing his little arms and legs, shaking his head, his big eyes curved into smiles, his little mouth pursed with a bit of frosting as he giggled happily. He’d already been given two small cookies during mealtime, and now he was this greedy and joyful. Shu Yangkuo couldn’t help but laugh too, leaning down to gently bump foreheads with Wang Wang. The little one reached out to poke his mouth, so Shu Yangkuo showed him there was nothing inside. Wang Wang giggled and opened his own little mouth to show off the bit of frosting… showing off again, the little rascal.

Shu Yangkuo wiped the corner of the little one’s mouth and smiled:

“Wang Wang, swallow it quickly, or Daddy will come eat the frosting from your mouth.”

“Dada…”

“It’s cake.”

“Cake… dada…”

Shu Yangkuo chuckled. The little one in his arms gulped it down, then paused, spreading his hands as if to say, “It’s gone.” The adorable expression melted Shu Yangkuo’s heart. He kissed Wang Wang’s forehead. “Let’s go watch Daddy ride the bike.” Wang Wang hesitated for a moment, then immediately clapped his hands.

He loved sitting on the back of Daddy’s tricycle—way more fun than a four-wheeled car.

Huh? Today it was a two-wheeled bike.

In the villa’s yard, Shi Zai happily hopped up and down twice, even feeling like tearing up. The feeling of being loved and cherished was just too wonderful. Despite how hard life had been, his husband still remembered an offhand comment he’d made early in his pregnancy: “Honey, I still want to learn to ride a motorcycle. Now that we have a baby, who knows when I’ll get the chance?” Back then, he was dealing with morning sickness and just wanted to ride a motorcycle to feel free… And now! He couldn’t stop circling the super cool green motorcycle—it was so awesome, so beautiful! Even without riding it, he already felt that sense of freedom.

No wonder Shu Yangkuo had encouraged him to get a motorcycle license recently but said they’d wait until Wang Wang turned two to buy one.

So this was why—

Shi Zai rushed over to his husband, stood on his tiptoes, and wrapped his arms around his neck:

“Honey, I love you so much. You’ve made all my dreams come true.”

“It’s you who gave up your carefree life for me, for Yang Yun, and for Wang Wang.”

The little one in his arms looked just like him. Shu Yangkuo lowered his head and smiled:

“Mm, my little husband. Don’t say it’s too late. I’ve set the max speed at 30 km/h. Give it a try.”

“…What’s the speed limit?!”

“Think about what you just said.”

“…I just… Hahaha, I get it. Don’t worry, I’ll be super careful!”

With that, Shi Zai ran back to the motorcycle, put on a bright red helmet… red and green… Well, still better than a green hat. He swung his leg over the bike, inserted the key, and twisted the throttle—Vroom! The motorcycle slowly moved forward.

A warm family, a loving home.

Shi Zai smiled as he rode slowly in circles, the engine rumbling softly. Feeling the wind, he squinted slightly, filled with love for this world, for his husband and son watching him from afar, and for everyone around him.

They lived for each other—sincere, passionate, and fully devoted. It was truly wonderful. Yun Bao had gifted him a porcelain screen that took three months to complete—a two-panel piece. One side depicted him, Shu Yangkuo, and Wang Wang; the other showed Yang Yun and Qin Xihan. It was a gift for him, but also for the whole family—a wish for growing prosperity and happiness.

In his line of sight were his husband and son. Shu Yangkuo wore a constant smile. His husband in the distance tilted his face up to the sun like a warmed-up big dog. Meanwhile, the little one in his arms stood shakily, also tilting his head up to the sun, his big eyes squinting, a slight smile on his lips, looking utterly content—just like his dad.

Vroom—the motorcycle pulled up beside them unexpectedly, startling Wang Wang, who turned and buried himself in Shu Yangkuo’s arms. Shu Yangkuo held his little head and stood up, thinking it was just as well the little one wasn’t too interested in motorcycles. But then Wang Wang stretched out his arms, asking for “Daddy.” And his dad actually reached to take him. Shu Yangkuo had no choice but to hand Wang Wang over to Shi Zai, then climbed on in front to take them for a slow ride.

Shi Zai held Wang Wang and sat behind him, secretly smiling while also feeling a pang of emotion. No one would turn down the thrill of true freedom. He had originally wanted to be the one driving, but his husband had taken the lead… Because carrying Wang Wang and raising him had left almost no room for relaxation over the past year and a half—every day and night had been tense, exhausting… But this man was stubborn; even when exhausted, he’d only admit to a tenth of how tired he really was.

No matter how many times Shi Zai said “thank you for your hard work,” it never felt like enough, and it didn’t really help.

Shi Zai stretched out his foot and gently nudged his husband’s leg—so long. Sitting on the motorcycle felt almost like sitting on Wang Wang’s little rocking horse. After nudging twice, his foot was grabbed and placed back where it belonged. Shi Zai laughed:

“You’ve been working really hard lately, honey.”

“…I said it’s fine. Don’t fuss, dear.”

“Oh, really—”

“Be good. I’m really not tired.”

Shi Zai pouted. This man was clearly exhausted lately. From nine and a half months until now, it was only in the past few days that Wang Wang had finally moved past the “nine-month fussiness” and entered the easier tenth and eleventh months. His husband was finally relaxing, but he was so tired he couldn’t even catch subtle hints.

He held Wang Wang tightly with one arm and wrapped the other around his husband’s waist:

“I think you really are tired—too tired to think about anything else.”

“…”

“You’re not too tired to… are you?”

As he spoke, he gave a gentle squeeze.

Shu Yangkuo took a sharp breath, stopped the motorcycle, and tightly pressed his wife's hand, his ears slightly red:

"Stop messing around, the whole place is full of people."

"...But we're not doing anything, hehe."

"Tonight."

"Hahaha, you should save your energy, bro."

"..."

Hearing this, Shu Yangkuo fell silent for a moment, stopped the bike, and took Wang Wang away, letting his wife who's asking for trouble laugh heartily behind him.

They hadn't been as intimate lately, all because Wang Wang was always fussy. But whenever they did, he always satisfied his wife completely, and she always ended up falling asleep because of him. He had been taking care of one person and serving the other day and night—wasn't that enough? Fine, he wasn’t tired; if she wanted to tease him, so be it.

Shi Zai laughed uncontrollably—he had been deliberately teasing him, all for the surprise in a couple of days, hehe.

Just look at the man, walking away without looking back, putting on the "wronged husband" act, hahaha.

The consequence of pushing him too far was that Shi Zai was properly taken care of all night long. He fell asleep twice and woke up each time wishing he could pass out... Besides, this wasn’t his intention at all. He had meant to pamper the man, but somehow ended up being the one pampered. In the end, Shi Zai couldn’t help but say all sorts of sweet things, like "Big..." and "You made me so...", and even begged tearfully, "Please, bro, let me go," while praising the man as if he were the best in the world, before finally being let off.

When he woke up in the morning, still groggy, his last memory was—he had peed, while it was happening.

Since Wang Wang wanted to go out in the morning, Shi Zai still rode the tricycle, taking them all to work. Once they arrived, the two of them played with two electric "croaking" toys in the open space outside the door. Before getting busy with work, Shi Zai snorted:

"No touching for ten days."

"..."

"You animal, you big meanie."

"...Honey, I—"

"Stop talking! Just endure it!"

After saying this, Shi Zai smiled to himself and started working.

Unexpectedly, he had teased him too much yesterday, and today he had deliberately been too harsh. The man spent the whole day looking guilty, rushing over to massage his waist whenever he saw him resting. In the evening, he did nothing else, spending an hour every night massaging and pressing for him.

This man, all day long he only thinks about him and Wang Wang.

On the morning after Wang Wang turned ten months old, before Shi Zai had even said anything, he saw workers pushing the motorcycle—which had been gone for two days, supposedly for repairs due to some issues, according to Shu Yangkuo—through the gate. From afar, Shi Zai was overjoyed—they'd added a sidecar to the motorcycle!

It was meant to make it easier for him to take the man and the little one out.

Shi Zai turned around and suddenly jumped to wrap his arms around the man’s neck:

"Bro, how are you so good at sweeping people off their feet?"

"..."

"Hahaha..."

While laughing, he exchanged a look with Yang Yun and Qin Xihan, who were coming down the stairs carrying the baby bag.

After Shu Yangkuo kissed him, Shi Zai pulled away from his embrace, leaned against the man’s arm, and said to the two younger brothers:

"Hubby, enjoy these next two days!"

"Big bro, enjoy these next two days!"

"..."

Shu Yangkuo was momentarily stunned, then lowered his head and smiled, profoundly touched. He finally understood why his wife had been acting unusual these past few days, and why the two younger ones had said they were taking the day off... He held Wang Wang with one arm and pulled each of them close with his other arm.

He really didn’t feel tired—just happy. Even if he hadn’t slept for a day and a night, his heart felt sweet and swollen with happiness.

Still, no one dislikes being pampered and cherished.

Seeing his man like this, Shi Zai’s heart softened. Time to deliver the surprise! Qin Xihan drove, and along the way, Shi Zai and Yang Yun took turns playing with Wang Wang, one beside him and one in front. By the time they arrived, the little one was already tired, hehe.

An hour and a half later, at the hot spring resort, in the most secluded outdoor spring nestled in the woods, Shi Zai looped his arms around the man’s neck:

"Hubby boss, today let me take care of you..."