99: child

The scene was quiet for a while before someone finally came forward to smooth things over, "Hahaha, Qinghe and Zhuohua just got married; they're only twenty-one, not even at the legal marriage age, so it really is a bit early."

"Yes, yes, they got married early, but that's much better than my unreliable child, who's already twenty-two and still spends all day at university in some Basketball Club, without even a girlfriend, let alone my precious Grandson."

"Exactly, there's really no rush, it won't be too late to talk about it in a couple of years..."

Everyone cooperated by shifting the conversation to their own good-for-nothing descendants, and Yan Qinghe didn't bother to argue with them anymore.

The food ordered from outside finally arrived. Everyone picked their favorite dishes, found familiar people, and gathered in small groups to eat lunch.

This time, it was Yan Zhuole and Yan Zhuoyan's turn to worry.

A group of troublesome children were at their most energetic and restless age; not a single one was willing to cooperate and eat. The two of them were in a frantic rush, unable to control the lively kids.

Yan Zhuohua burst out laughing nearby.

"You're still laughing! If you don't host them well, Mom will scold you later!" Yan Zhuole took a moment out of her busy schedule to threaten Yan Zhuohua.

"What does it have to do with me? This isn't my job!" Yan Zhuohua shot back, but fearing his mother would catch him watching the show, he quickly slipped away.

Yan Zhuohua ran out of the children's activity area and began peeking around to find Yan Qinghe.

"Over here!" Yan Qinghe patted him from behind.

"Ah!" Yan Zhuohua jumped in fright. "What are you doing? You scared me to death."

"My mistake, my mistake," Yan Qinghe pulled him into an empty room nearby and gently helped him catch his breath. "Don't be angry."

"Fine, I wasn't really that scared." Yan Zhuohua grabbed his hand, which was starting to take liberties. "Where are we eating?"

"Right here. I've already set everything up; they're all your favorites."

Yan Zhuohua looked back; the table behind them was indeed already set with food.

"Hmph, at least you're sensible."

The two of them enjoyed their private world in that room, occasionally feeding each other a bite.

After finishing the meal, Yan Zhuohua habitually leaned against Yan Qinghe. "Do you... really not want a child?"

Yan Qinghe massaged his neck. "If you could give birth, I'd want one."

"I'm asking you seriously! Don't be so flippant."

Yan Qinghe sighed. "I'm not being flippant; I'm very serious. I only want a child that's ours. Since you can't give birth, then I don't want a child."

"Really?"

"Really."

Yan Zhuohua was overjoyed but asked with feigned reserve, "But in the future, no one will be there to provide for you in your old age!"

"A person shouldn't be born just to provide for someone's old age." Yan Qinghe kissed his forehead. "To me, the matter of being cared for in old age is about parents bringing a child into the world, raising them well, and building a unique and deep bond with them in the process. Then, when the parents are old, the child will naturally and voluntarily care for them because of that bond. That's what 'raising children to guard against old age' and 'filial piety' should truly mean. It's not about giving birth to you and letting you grow up just to have a guarantee for the second half of my life. That's unfair to the child."

Yan Zhuohua thought of those children who had never been loved, and then of Yan Qinghe's fifteen years, and nodded in agreement.

Yan Qinghe continued, "So we can be nicer to our Nephews and Nieces in the future; they'll naturally help us. Besides, that's just how ordinary people plan for old age. We're different."

"How are we different?"

"When the time comes, I'll tell them: whoever makes us comfortable and happy, I'll give the Yan Family to them."

Yan Zhuohua giggled at that. "Aren't you afraid this method will pick someone who only knows how to take care of people but doesn't know how to run a company or a family?"

"Are you silly? Can't I filter out a few with decent ability first before letting them take care of us?" Yan Qinghe tapped his forehead with a finger.

Yan Zhuohua threw himself into his arms. "Okay, then it's a deal."

Relatives kept visiting today, so after lunch, they didn't even have time for a nap before having to welcome the next wave.

They were busy until ten o'clock at night. Only after arranging for the last few guests staying overnight did Yan Zhuohua finally get to return to his room to rest.

He was the main force for work and hosting guests today and was exhausted. Back in the room, Yan Zhuohua was incredibly sleepy, not even wanting to lift an arm.

Yan Qinghe naturally felt distressed for him, so he carried him to the bathroom to help him bathe.

Feeling Yan Qinghe's movements, Yan Zhuohua struggled slightly in a daze. "Don't mess around, Qinghe... I really can't today..."

"What are you saying? I'm not a beast; how could I lay a hand on you when you're this tired?" Yan Qinghe didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "I'm just giving you a bath, I promise."

After hearing the explanation, Yan Zhuohua was willing to cooperate with his actions, but he still grumbled: "I don't believe you're not a beast!"

"What are you muttering about?" Yan Qinghe was adjusting the water temperature and vaguely heard him speaking.

"...Nothing."

At least today, Yan Qinghe really wasn't a beast.

He struggled to suppress his desire as he washed Yan Zhuohua and wiped him dry, then tucked him directly into the blankets before returning to the bathroom to take care of himself.

More than half an hour later, Yan Zhuohua was already fast asleep when Yan Qinghe finally came out of the bathroom.

After cleaning up the mess, he got into bed and turned off the lights. Yan Qinghe finally pulled his wife into his arms and followed him into dreamland.

At seven the next morning, Yan Zhuohua was woken up by the alarm clock again.

After eight hours of sweet sleep last night, Yan Zhuohua finally felt fully recharged. He turned off the phone alarm, stretched comfortably under the covers, and habitually rubbed against Yan Qinghe.

Something was wrong! Yan Zhuohua's eyes snapped open, and he reached out to feel himself. Aaaah! Why wasn't he wearing any clothes! Had he really slept naked all night?

Yan Zhuohua's memory was still stuck on Yan Qinghe washing him and carefully drying him. He never expected that after drying him, this person wouldn't even put a single piece of clothing on him! And he had just been rubbing against Yan Qinghe for so long!

"Why aren't you continuing?" A voice full of amusement came from beside his ear.

Yan Zhuohua buried himself in the blankets. "You rogue!"

"Which one of us is the rogue? I didn't force you to rub against me just now, did I?" Yan Qinghe could hardly hold back his laughter.

"Aaaah, shut up!" Yan Zhuohua emerged from the blankets in a fury. "It's all your fault for not putting pajamas on me!"

Yan Qinghe laughed for a while before finding the time to quibble, "Wasn't I afraid of waking you up again!"

"You did it on purpose!" Yan Zhuohua saw through his true nature. "Hurry up and get me some clothes! I need to get up."

The room was once again filled with Yan Qinghe's hearty laughter.

Followed shortly after by a cry of pain from being kicked out of bed.

The morning's farce quickly woke the two of them up, and they went downstairs early to start working.

Unexpectedly, before it was even eight o'clock, a peculiar family of guests arrived.