Chapter 113 - 112: Hurry and Pat My Head

Chapter 113: Chapter 112: Hurry and Pat My Head

The aroma of fried eggs filled the air. Jiang Xia took a light sniff, holding his girl’s small hand and asking her in a low voice, "Where’s your dad? I don’t see him."

"He’s been on a business trip for the past two days. I think he had a very important order to discuss," Lin Yanwan said.

"Oh."

Jiang Xia nodded lightly. ’My father-in-law has been pretty busy lately.’

"In your memory, did he manage to close this deal?"

"I forget." Lin Yanwan thought for a moment before saying, "Back then, I rarely paid attention to the family business."

"It’s fine if you forgot. In a little while, I’ll hand over the rights to the super popular Cat and Mouse figurines to my father-in-law while he’s in a financial bind. Wouldn’t that count as an early betrothal gift?" Jiang Xia chuckled.

Lin Yanwan blushed. She just let out a soft hmph, but didn’t refute him.

’In their past life, she had married this guy even though he hadn’t offered much of a betrothal gift. This time, he was offering something so significant. Her dad would probably be too ecstatic to sleep for three days and three nights. This time, her father and his son-in-law wouldn’t need to get drunk and become sworn brothers again, right?’

"What about Xiao Man? Is she still sleeping? I’ll go wake her up. She’s sleeping in even with final exams right around the corner."

Lin Yanwan quickly pulled him back. "You’re the guest, just sit here. I’ll go get her."

’She knew full well that Xiao Man was very clingy with her brother-in-law. The last thing she wanted was to see her little sister cuddling with her husband in bed.’

’Even though Xiao Man was still young, she was a crafty one.’

"Alright, you go then. I’ll check on the cat."

Jiang Xia nodded and squatted down to pet Yuyuan in its cat bed. ’It was so well-fed and carefree now that it had become completely lazy, sleeping most of the day. He figured it wouldn’t be long before it turned back into the little fatty cat from his past life.’

"MEOOW~"

Yuyuan slowly opened its eyes, glanced at Jiang Xia, then lazily stretched its limbs before curling back into a comfortable ball and going back to sleep. A soft purr slowly rumbled from it.

Lin Yanwan pushed open the door to her sister’s bedroom. She saw that Xiao Man had kicked off her blanket again and that a few buttons on her pajamas had come undone for some reason. She breathed a small sigh of relief. ’Good thing she’d been smart enough not to let Jiang Xia come in.’

’It wasn’t that she was jealous; a brother-in-law just shouldn’t be seeing his little sister-in-law’s body.’

"Xiao Man, time to get up! The sun is already high in the sky." Lin Yanwan pulled open the curtains, and blinding light streamed in, casting irregular patches of light right onto the bed.

"...Sis, Xiao Man is so sleepy... Let Xiao Man sleep for just a few more minutes..." Xiao Man squeezed her eyes shut, turned to face the wall, and mumbled indistinctly.

"Your brother-in-law is here."

"Huh?!"

Lin Xiaoman’s eyes flew open. She blinked several times to adjust to the suddenly bright room.

She sat up, her gaze instinctively darting to the doorway. Seeing no one there, she flopped back down with a look of disappointment.

"Sis, you lied to me!"

"He’s in the living room petting the cat. Why would I lie to you?"

"Really?"

A grin spread across Xiao Man’s face. She jumped out of bed, slipped on her shoes, and was about to eagerly run out, but Lin Yanwan yanked her back by the collar.

"You get back here! Get properly dressed before you go out! What will he think, seeing you all disheveled like that!"

"I know, I know. Don’t be jealous, Sis. Xiao Man’s not trying to steal your husband."

Lin Yanwan’s mouth twitched. "...Mom’s home. If you dare say anything like that again, I’ll have your brother-in-law spank you."

’She was fair-skinned and beautiful, and in her past life, she’d watched countless Qing Dynasty court dramas. If she could lose her man to a little kid, she might as well just find a tree and bash her head against it.’

"Xiao Man won’t get it wrong. In front of Mom and Dad, I’ll call him Brother Jiang Xia. I only call him Brother-in-law when no one else is around. Xiao Man has it memorized perfectly."

Chattering to herself, the little sister-in-law put on her little dress, then skipped and hopped out of the bedroom. When she saw her brother-in-law, she called out sweetly, "Brother Jiang Xia~"

"Good morning, Xiao Man," Jiang Xia said with a smile.

"Hi, Brother Jiang Xia."

"Go wash your face and brush your teeth. Breakfast will be ready soon." He patted his little sister-in-law on the head.

"Okay~"

Seeing that they were alone in the living room for a moment, a blushing Lin Yanwan stretched her head toward him.

"What’s wrong, babe?"

She wrinkled her nose and huffed haughtily, "Hurry up and pat my head. I have to go wash my face and brush my teeth, too."

Jiang Xia blinked, lifted her chin with two fingers, and quickly pecked her on the lips.

Like a startled kitten, she quickly took a step back. Her eyes widened as she glared at him, her voice a low, angry whisper, "I told you to pat my head, not kiss my lips!"

"Well, I figured a kiss is better than a head pat."

"I haven’t brushed my teeth yet!"

"That’s okay, I have," Jiang Xia said with a grin.

"My mom’s home!"

With that, Lin Yanwan stomped off in a huff to brush her teeth and wash her face. Jiang Xia stroked his chin, pondering the hidden meaning in his wife’s words. ’Does this mean that as long as my mother-in-law isn’t home, I can kiss her whenever I want?’

Two minutes later, Ji Wanqiu’s voice called out from the kitchen.

"Kids, the noodles are ready."

"Oh, coming."

Jiang Xia was the first one into the kitchen. Ji Wanqiu, ladling broth into the bowls, said, "Xiao Xia, the one on the far left is yours. You ate earlier, so I didn’t make you a large portion."

"Thank you, Auntie." He bowed his head and took a deep sniff. "Auntie, the noodles you made smell amazing."

"They smell good, but they might not be to your taste," Ji Wanqiu said with a smile.

"Never! By the way, Auntie, which bowl is for Yanwan? She’s still brushing her teeth, so I can take it out for her."

"The one next to you is hers. Be careful, it’s hot. Take them out one by one."

"Mhm!"

Jiang Xia used his chopsticks to mix the noodles for her. Ji Wanqiu watched these actions and couldn’t help but sigh softly to herself.

’It looks like this boy is dead set on becoming her son-in-law. Although... well, I forget the reasons why not... In any case, I’ve grown quite fond of the kid myself.’

The four of them sat down at the table. Ji Wanqiu’s eyes fell on the university application guide on the table, and she had a thought.

"Xiao Xia, which university are you planning to apply to?"

She had already learned about Jiang Xia’s grades from her daughter. For an art student to have academic scores that ranked 29th in all of Yu Du City was, frankly, outstanding.

"Auntie, Yanwan and I haven’t decided yet." Jiang Xia said "Yanwan and I," making his intention perfectly clear—they planned to apply to the same university.

Lin Yanwan kept her head down. Under the table, she slipped off her shoe and gently pressed her foot on top of his, only for Jiang Xia to clamp it tightly between both of his. Her face inexplicably flushed a rosy red.

"Aren’t you going to apply to the Central Academy of Fine Arts or the National Art Museum? With your scores, you should be able to get in, no problem, right?" Ji Wanqiu asked.

Jiang Xia shook his head. The Central Academy of Fine Arts and the National Art Museum were purely art academies. Even though they were the two top art institutions in the country, Lin Yanwan couldn’t possibly get in, so they were out of the question.

Ji Wanqiu’s expression became a little odd. The reason he wasn’t considering those schools was simple, and it was obvious at a glance: it was for Yanwan. He didn’t want to be separated from her.

’In other words, this kid was a keeper.’

...

*(There will be another Chapter out in a little while, but I suggest not waiting up for it and just reading it tomorrow morning.)*