Husband, Hungry, Eat! Chapter 115

Chapter 115 

Qi Cheng's ID was the default one, and he was in such a hurry to reply that he forgot to change it.

—Anyone who's been around here long knows all about the elementary-school kid and his love story. It's true, alright.

—Hahahaha Orange, Sweet Orange from Da Bai's family—hahahaha that matches! The vibe is totally in sync too.

—If it were anyone else, I wouldn't believe they messed up the prize amount because they were being absent-minded. But our elementary-school kid? I believe it. He's just a sweet, naive one.

—Little Orange, why didn't you come back to play later? We big sisters were all waiting to hear your love story with your husband.

—Back in the day, we all had a part in Orange's wedding night.

OP: ??? Who is this?

—OP doesn't even know? Must be a newbie dropping in, newbies break their legs when they drop in.

—Hahahaha that exposed you, OP.

—LOL. Orange was a newbie back then too, but you guys didn't treat him like this. Talk about double standards, clear as day.

—Can this OP be as cute as Orange? Can they bring us a beautiful love story like Orange did? We were all obsessed back then, Orange was our district's mascot.

Qi Cheng: ??? That's not me, I don't claim that, thank you very much.

—I'm starting to feel sorry for Orange. He said just one sentence and flipped his own cover again. Hahahaha I'm dying. Orange, don't be shy, come say a few words. I didn't expect you'd make it big and become a big boss.

—Now I get why OP called the studio a bunch of unmotivated salted fish. Orange is lovesick—given the choice, he'd absolutely spend that time with his husband. Even if the honeymoon phase is over, he wouldn't throw himself into work. But trust me, Orange is reliable, pure, and loves his husband. He won't play favorites with your Xiao Lu. Under Orange, it's clean and pretty laid-back. 

—Agreed with the above.

—Not really trying to expose Orange, but it's clear as day.

—Orange's family must be pretty well-off. At least his husband runs a company, probably making one or two hundred million a year. So a one-million prize draw? Little Orange can afford it.

Qi Cheng: …

Stop, just stop.

He really had nothing left to hide. And then he remembered that everyone in the studio browsed this forum too—which meant...

Aaaaaah, so mortifying.

Qi Cheng had originally wanted to play dead and stay quiet, but everyone kept getting more and more hyped. So he quietly appeared and said: That's me. I've made it official with my husband now. Thank you all for your concern and well wishes. Also, please save me some face—I'm a boss now too. OP, Xiao Lu and I are like brothers. Whatever he wants to do or likes to do, no one has the right to interfere. And finally, I don't think I'm low-class either.

Even though he messed up the prize draw, he still paid it out.

That's pretty honest.

—Hahahahahaha.

—LOL.

—Very Orange-style—I love it.

—Fine, fine, leave the kid some dignity. The little one's a boss now.

Qi Cheng quietly slipped away.

He didn't take the online chatter to heart either; it would die down after a while. Qi Cheng had experience and was used to it by now.

Before he knew it, it was October 1st. The Jiang family got in touch—it was Zhao Jing who called, asking if Qi Cheng and his husband had time to come over for a meal and bring Fanfan along. She also said Jiang Qifeng was back and wanted to see them.

Qi Cheng held the phone and looked at his husband.

Bai Zongyin nodded. Qi Cheng didn't want to go, but he listened and said okay. After hanging up, Qi Cheng thought it over and realized he was being childish. He didn't want his husband to meet Jiang Qifeng because he hated the man, and he was also afraid it would put his husband in a bad mood.

But they couldn't avoid it forever.

From the way the guests acted at Fanfan's birthday party last time, Qi Cheng could sense that something had changed.

October 5th.

It was overcast in the morning. They had agreed to go to the Jiang house today. After breakfast, Uncle Quan reminded them, "It's going to rain today. Drive carefully on the road."

"Okay."

"And don't forget Fanfan's things." Uncle Quan held Fanfan and coaxed him, saying, "Fanfan's going out as a guest today—have fun!"

Fanfan understood "fun" and got so excited he turned into a flappy little goose again.

They arrived at the Jiang residence around ten.

The butler greeted them at the gate. Qi Cheng held Fanfan and asked, "Is Xiao Zhi not home?"

If Jiang Zhi were there, the butler wouldn't be the one greeting them.

"The young master hasn't been home recently," the butler said.

Qi Cheng couldn't read anything from the butler's smiling face, but even a fool could guess that from Fanfan's birthday until now, either the arguments or the confrontations had already happened.

"You're here." Zhao Qing walked over a couple of steps and played with Fanfan, then turned to Jiang Qifeng, who was sitting on the sofa, and said, "This is the first time you're seeing the child. His nickname is Fanfan, and his full name takes Xiao Cheng's surname—Qi Ji." 

Jiang Qifeng stood up. He didn't seem to want to hold Fanfan, but his expression was somewhat gentler as he said, "The name is nice. He looks sturdy too."

Zhao Qing teased, "Kids are supposed to be sturdy. Zongyin has a child now. If your parents were still here, they'd be happy for you too."

Good thing he was holding the little goose, who was flapping his arms and trying to get down to walk, so it blocked his expression, Qi Cheng thought.

Zhao Qing wanted to catch up, but also because last time she saw her son with a man, she was upset. On the way home, she looked into it and found out he was a small-time actor with a bit of a bad reputation. Now, seeing Bai Zongyin settled down with a family and a child, she couldn't help but think of Jiang Zhi, who had stormed out after their argument and still hadn't come back—so she naturally let out a sigh.

"Let's sit and chat. I heard you recently started a tech company," Jiang Qifeng said.

Bai Zongyin hummed in acknowledgment and went over to sit on the sofa. Jiang Qifeng seemed to just notice that Bai Zongyin could walk again. Though he still held a cane, he added, "Your leg healed? Good."

"I heard that after Fanfan came, Zongyin's leg miraculously healed," Zhao Qing joked. But this time, she didn't bring up the sort of thing about Bai Zongyin's parents resting easy. She didn't fully understand her husband, but after so many years of marriage, she could read some subtle expressions.

Her husband didn't like her mentioning Bai Zongyin's parents.

The butler brought tea and snacks.

"You two always talk about work the moment you open your mouths—so boring. Xiao Cheng, let's take Fanfan and not play with them. I bought Fanfan a little car—I wonder if he'll like it," Zhao Qing said with a smile.

Qi Cheng looked at his husband first.

"They say Zongyin listens to Xiao Cheng. Seeing you two today, who actually listens to whom?" Zhao Qing teased.

Before Qi Cheng could answer, Bai Zongyin said, "What they say is right. I listen to Chengcheng."

"…I listen to you too."

Zhao Qing was amused by the couple. After Qi Cheng said that, he could tell his husband didn't mind, so he picked up Fanfan and went to the side hall with Zhao Qing to chat and play.

There really was a little car—electric, with a remote control. Some kids at the villa had played with one before, but theirs was a deluxe version for older children—this one was a mini version.

The car was blue, nicely designed, and open-top.

The moment Fanfan saw it, he waved his arms and babbled, "Ceh-ceh~"

"It's 'car,' not 'ceh-ceh,'" Qi Cheng corrected.

"Ceh-ceh~ Aba aba."

Now not only had "car" not been corrected, but "dad" had also turned into "aba aba." Qi Cheng gave up. He set Fanfan in the car, strapped him in securely.

Zhao Qing handed the remote to Qi Cheng.

"You two father and son drive it."

The side hall was spacious enough for the mini car to move around. Qi Cheng controlled it with the remote—the car didn't go fast, very steady, like an old man's car, starting off at a slow crawl. But Fanfan absolutely loved it. His eyes went round again—he was stunned.

What a little country bumpkin.

His dad roasted him, but he was happy too, playing with Fanfan. Zhao Qing watched from the side, her face full of envy, and said, "If Jiang Zhi could be like you two, I'd be so happy."

"? Isn't Xiao Zhi the same as us?" He had a boyfriend—Yu Qingshi.

As in, a gay couple.

Zhao Qing could guess that her son wouldn't hide his relationship from Bai Zongyin. She didn't mind that Qi Cheng knew, but then she caught herself and said, "I meant having a child—"

At Fanfan's first-birthday banquet, everyone was curious about how Fanfan came to be, but they'd never ask outright. For a gay couple who wanted a child, there were plenty of ways—once they acknowledged it, that was enough.

"It's not about the child, is it?" Qi Cheng hesitated and said.

Zhao Qing was using the child as an excuse to express her dissatisfaction with Jiang Zhi and Yu Qingshi dating. When Qi Cheng asked that, she said, "You've met that actor before. Didn't you cover for him back then? Putting that aside—he has a bad character and his private life is messy."

"?"

Qi Cheng would bet his own hairline on Yu Qingshi's integrity. Besides, he'd read the original novel—if his character were bad or his private life tainted, how could he be the male lead's love interest!

"Auntie Zhao, you're going in with preconceived labels and looking at Qingshi through that lens—you can't see clearly. Qingshi's show was a hit recently, and with fame comes gossip. The entertainment industry is complicated. I run a small studio that just shoots videos, and sometimes the stuff online sounds awful—they say me and Xiao Lu have an improper relationship. But only the people who actually spend time together know the truth."

Zhao Qing didn't like Yu Qingshi and didn't want to hear Qi Cheng say nice things about him. If Qi Cheng had said bad things, the conversation could have continued. But Qi Cheng spoke bluntly, his eyes bright, so Zhao Qing could only change the subject.

"Fanfan, do you want some milk?"

Qi Cheng tactfully dropped the subject, but he thought to himself that he'd tried his best. The "evil mother-in-law" conflict wasn't something an outsider like him could fix. He sighed.

Hang in there, Erha!

Soon it was lunchtime. When Qi Cheng and Zhao Qing came over, the atmosphere in the living room was a bit odd. Qi Cheng checked on his husband first—his expression hadn't changed, and he didn't seem upset—so Qi Cheng felt relieved.

That meant Jiang Qifeng was the one stewing unhappily. Great.

So at lunch, Qi Cheng actually had a good appetite at the Jiang house for once and ate two bowls of rice. The couple acted like they were just guests there for a meal. Jiang Qifeng, on the other hand, ate only half his meal before getting a phone call and heading to the study.

"Don't mind him. Your Uncle Jiang has been busy with who-knows-what lately, running off abroad every day," Zhao Qing said, her tone carrying a hint of complaint.

Her son wasn't listening to her and was dating a male actor, and her husband was always traveling abroad—and hadn't even asked about their son when he wasn't home. Zhao Qing felt a vague anger rising inside her, though she knew the real reason.

Her dislike of Yu Qingshi was just displaced anger. What she really disliked was that her son—once her pride, who always listened to her—now had his own ideas and wouldn't just follow her wishes anymore.

Her husband, her son—she couldn't control or understand either of them.

The visit ended early that day. After lunch, Zhao Qing wasn't feeling well. Bai Zongyin took the chance to say that with the rain, he and Qi Cheng wouldn't disturb them further.

Zhao Qing saw them out.

Little country-bumpkin Fanfan flapped his arms to remind his dad about his car.

"Oh right, take the car for Fanfan. It was meant for him anyway. There are no other kids in the house, so there's no point keeping it." As Zhao Jing said this, her frustration grew even stronger, and she almost let it show on her face. She was already set on getting rid of that "fox spirit" actor Yu Qingshi.

Qi Cheng sensed Zhao Qing's unhappiness.

He immediately scooped up the little goose and had the butler load the car into their car—and made a run for it!

Today's visit to the Jiang family: Jiang Qifeng and Zhao Qing both seemed unhappy. As for the couple themselves? They had a meal, got to go home early, and scored a free car.