Husband, Hungry, Eat! Chapter 130 Part 1

Chapter 130: Extra Story 3

Qi Cheng finally pulled off the 'run away with the ball' trope.

That evening, Bai Zongyin came home from work and didn't see the familiar figure in the house. He asked Auntie Zheng, who said worriedly, "Xiao Cheng left with Fanfan this morning. He didn't come back for lunch, and now it's this late… still not back."

"Maybe they're having too much fun outside," Uncle Quan said.

Bai Zongyin already had a pretty good idea of what was going on. His Chengcheng had finally made his escape. He went to the master bedroom and, sure enough, found a note on the desk. Seeing the little stick-figure smiley face signed at the bottom, he couldn't help but smile.

"Husband, I'm running away with Fanfan. Tell Uncle Quan and Auntie Zheng not to worry about us."

There was a little sun-shaped smiley face, signed by Chengcheng.

Thinking about Qi Cheng's "runaway-with-the-ball plan," Bai Zongyin naturally played along. He dialed the number and put it on speaker. It rang several times before Qi Cheng picked up.

He has good self-control, Bai Zongyin silently praised him.

"Hello? Husband, what's up?"

Bai Zongyin held up the note and said, "I just got home and saw the note on the desk. Where are you and Fanfan?"

"Not telling, not telling — you guess! But don't guess too fast!" Qi Cheng was lounging on a rocking chair, a popsicle dangling from his mouth, already half-eaten. He mumbled, "And don't guess too slow either."

Bai Zongyin: "...Are we playing hide and seek?"

He was handing Qi Cheng an excuse on a silver platter.

"Exactly, exactly! I left you clues," Qi Cheng said, crunching on the popsicle. "But I think the clues have a lot of holes. Since I'm already gone, don't solve it too quickly, or I'll look dumb."

"Okay," Bai Zongyin agreed.

Qi Cheng thought for a moment. "Don't worry, Fanfan and I are perfectly safe. We won't run off and get into trouble." His tone had that "I'm being a good boy waiting for my husband to come get me" vibe.

"Chengcheng is a good boy," Bai Zongyin praised him. Hearing the crunching sound on the other end, he added, "Cold stuff — especially frozen treats — don't eat too much of it. It's late, or your stomach will hurt."

Qi Cheng naturally slipped into a playful whine. "It's all Fanfan's fault — the little greedy cat! He saw someone selling pineapple-shaped popsicles and just had to have one. I'm his dad, so I bought one, let him have a couple of bites, and I'm finishing the rest…"

Bai Zongyin listened to Qi Cheng ramble on over the phone, without a hint of impatience, a smile fixed on his face. He genuinely found it amusing. He could picture exactly how the father-son duo must have reacted when they saw those pineapple popsicles — and how Qi Cheng probably tried to talk Fanfan out of it, but Fanfan gave him those big, pitiful eyes until Qi Cheng gave in.

Chengcheng must have wanted one too.

The two of them were sprawled out somewhere comfortable. Fanfan took the first bite, his chubby cheek tensing up from the cold, and Chengcheng laughed at him: "What, too cold for you?" "Still want more?" "Watch Daddy take a huge bite!" — crunch — and then Chengcheng made the exact same frozen face as Fanfan, clutching his own cheek.

…

Bai Zongyin's gaze softened, a gentle smile on his lips. He waited until Qi Cheng finished chattering, then said, "After you finish the cold stuff, don't fill up too much on dinner. Have some hot soup, and make sure you both cover up well when you sleep tonight."

"I know, husband. Me and the little goose are going to eat now." Qi Cheng was reluctant to hang up. He patted his own belly, then perked up again, beaming. "When you find us, I have a surprise for you."

Bai Zongyin thought about that "surprise." It had been an accident — one he never wanted to put Qi Cheng at risk for again. But seeing how happy and excited he was every day, looking forward to it, the accident had truly turned into a blessing.

His heart softened. He said gently, "Okay. I'll follow the clues and come pick up Chengcheng."

After the call ended, Bai Zongyin had just stepped out when he saw Uncle Quan looking worried. "I was just about to find you. I called Xiao Cheng but his line was busy — were you talking to him? Dinner's almost ready, why isn't he back yet? Is something wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong. Chengcheng took Fanfan out for a few days," Bai Zongyin said in a casual tone, making it sound like he'd known all along. If he said Qi Cheng had run away while pregnant, Uncle Quan would panic.

Uncle Quan blinked. "Why so sudden? He didn't say anything." But seeing that Bai Zongyin wasn't worried, he figured it must be safe. "How many days will they be gone?"

Bai Zongyin thought about Qi Cheng's tolerance for being apart. He chuckled lightly. "Less than a week." He hoped Qi Cheng would last a full week, but realistically, he'd probably crack in about four days.

"That's too long," Uncle Quan fretted, though he didn't argue.

At dinner, without Qi Cheng and Fanfan at the table, Uncle Quan barely had any appetite. The house felt so much emptier. Bai Zongyin tried to start a conversation to lighten the mood, But after a couple of exchanges, the conversation died out. Then Uncle Quan suddenly chuckled. "If this were the old days, you'd never have been the one to start a conversation."

"You're right. Chengcheng's rubbed off on me," Bai Zongyin admitted.

Uncle Quan chuckled and shook his head. "Let's eat. You know what? You should bring Xiao Cheng back sooner rather than later. Without him and Fanfan around, even the food doesn't taste as good."

"It really doesn't," Bai Zongyin agreed.

Uncle Quan smiled warmly. He felt that Bai Zongyin had become so much more human now — full of warmth and life.

---

At the summer resort on Mingcheng's scenic mountain. Qi Cheng had booked an entire villa. The hotel was built into the mountainside, with a winding road leading up. The villas were spaced far apart along the mountain ridge, each with a different view. The main lobby was in the center, where guests had to check in first—not as convenient as Zhao Zhuo's hot spring hotel, which came with a personal butler.

For meals, the hotel could provide ingredients for the guests to cook themselves, or the guests could order from their kitchen. The food was average — not great, actually (Qi Cheng had gotten a bit picky about his food).

The upside: the scenery was stunning. Open the window and all you saw were lush green mountains and fresh, crisp air. The downside: the food was mediocre, and there were tons of mosquitoes.

When Qi Cheng made his getaway, he'd brought two large suitcases, packed with all sorts of things — most of them for Fanfan. He was worried Fanfan wouldn't be able to sleep in a new place.

That night, after they'd both bathed and changed into pajamas, Fanfan saw the big bed and his eyes lit up. He asked excitedly, "Daddy, am I sleeping with you tonight?"

"Of course! We're sleeping together these few days, just the two of us." Qi Cheng gave his little goose's bottom a gentle pat and said cheerfully, "Get in bed, cover up, and Daddy will come after his shower."

"Okaaay!" Fanfan obediently climbed onto the bed, burrowed under the covers, and was absolutely delighted.

That morning, his dad had asked if he wanted to go out with him for a few days or stay home with Grandpa. Of course, Fanfan chose to go with his dad!

Qi Cheng quickly showered, threw on his pajamas, and got into bed.

This was his first night on the run, and Qi Cheng was still pretty excited. He didn't notice the electric mosquito repellent the hotel had left out — it just wasn't on his radar. Back home, everything — food, clothes, housing, transportation — was all taken care of by others. Qi Cheng never had to worry about a thing.

"Here I come! Tonight, Daddy's going to tell you a story."

"Yay!"

Both father and son were in high spirits, thrilled by the novelty of being somewhere new. After the bedtime story and a little playtime, they quickly fell asleep.

Qi Cheng didn't sleep well the whole night, but he was such a deep sleeper that even when his arms and legs itched, he just grumbled, scratched in his sleep, and never actually woke up — right through till morning. When he finally opened his eyes, Fanfan was already awake, his little fair face dotted with red, swollen mosquito bites. The father and son stared at each other.