Probably no one expected that Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu would keep trying until Yan Bao was in second grade without managing to give him the long-promised little sister.
Over the years, the two had visited doctors numerous times and hired nutritionists to improve their health. They had even made thorough preparations for pregnancy on several occasions. Ji Mingshu even earnestly learned and practiced certain post-intercourse positions, yet there was no sign of the little sister arriving at all.
As days passed and Cen Xiaoyan became an elementary school student, Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu gradually gave up on the idea of welcoming Zhuo Bao. For one, there was nothing wrong with either of their health—the delay in conceiving could only be attributed to fate, which couldn’t be forced. For another, just taking care of Cen Xiaoyan, a single elementary school student, was already enough to give them headaches.
Originally, they thought that since Cen Xiaoyan excelled in cultivating interests like drawing, piano, and violin, his academic performance would naturally be worry-free.
Who would have thought that after starting first grade, Cen Xiaoyan’s exam results consistently hovered in the middle to lower ranks of his class. By second grade, he had even earned the honorable title of a frequent straggler.
Looking at the returned test papers, although Cen Xiaoyan’s handwriting carried a hint of the unrestrained boldness typical of young boys, it was clear he had answered the questions seriously.
But upon closer inspection of his answers, Ji Mingshu was left utterly baffled every time.
"Xiao Hong bought ten new books. After reading three, how many are left? Ten minus three equals seven, right? Why did you answer ten?" Ji Mingshu pointed patiently at a question marked with a bright red cross by the teacher.
Cen Xiaoyan looked up innocently, three strands of hair sticking up on his forehead, and replied confidently, "Books don’t fly away after you read them, so of course there are still ten left."
Ji Mingshu: "But you’ve read three of them…"
Cen Xiaoyan cut in, "Do you throw them away after reading them? That’s so wasteful! Besides, Yan Bao learned an ancient poem: ‘Read a book a thousand times, and its meaning will reveal itself.’ You have to keep a book to read it many times!"
Ji Mingshu paused for a few seconds and glanced at the question again.
Well, the question didn’t explicitly ask how many books were left unread after reading three, so Cen Xiaoyan’s reasoning didn’t seem entirely unreasonable.
Before Ji Mingshu could finish pondering, Cen Sen, sitting on the other side, had already picked up a pen and made a note next to the question, concluding solemnly, "The question is poorly worded."
Cen Xiaoyan looked at Cen Sen with starry eyes and nodded deeply in agreement.
Cen Sen corrected him further, "‘Read a book a thousand times, and its meaning will reveal itself’—‘reveal’ here is pronounced ‘xian.’ Also, this isn’t a poem; you could call it an idiom or an ancient saying."
Cen Xiaoyan rested his chin in his hands like a little adult, thought for a moment, and asked curiously, "Why is it pronounced ‘xian,’ and why isn’t it a poem?"
Cen Sen, unusually patient, broke it down and explained it thoroughly to this curious child, unlike some parents who would dismiss it with a few vague words, assuming children wouldn’t understand.
After Cen Xiaoyan finished his questions, the family of three continued analyzing the test paper. However, Ji Mingshu noticed that for almost every seemingly outrageous mistake, Cen Xiaoyan could offer his own way of thinking, which, in its own twisted way, made some sense.
Moreover, after each explanation, Cen Xiaoyan would lift his little face, looking troubled and confused, and ask her, "Mommy, don’t you also think Yan Bao didn’t do anything wrong? If I didn’t do anything wrong, why didn’t the teacher give me a checkmark?"
Ji Mingshu: "…"This question was truly difficult to answer. Forcing such an active-minded elementary school student to think along conventional lines seemed like a constraint to him, yet if she kept encouraging his leaps of logic, she worried it might foster a stubborn insistence on taking the unconventional path.
As the most talkative person at home on ordinary days, faced with Cen Xiaoyan’s slightly aggrieved inquiry, Ji Mingshu found herself momentarily at a loss for words, even feeling a vague sense of guilt that she was “unfit to be a mother.”
Ji Mingshu had no choice. The elementary school student was staring at her expectantly, so she could only stare expectantly at the student’s father.
The elementary school student’s father looked up in tacit understanding, meeting her gaze for a moment. He suddenly loosened his collar, the corner of his mouth lifting ever so slightly, his eyes seeming to hold a hint of a smile.
After living together day in and day out for so many years, if Ji Mingshu still didn’t understand the hidden meanings behind Cen Sen’s subtle gestures and micro-expressions, she would have been the “Mrs. Cen” in vain.
She silently averted her gaze and, as if nothing had happened, patted Cen Xiaoyan’s head.
Cen Sen saw her tacit approval, and the faint smile at the corner of his lips deepened a little.
Cen Xiaoyan remained completely unaware that his mommy and daddy had just concluded a secret “deal” right in front of him through a few small gestures and glances. He was still lost in the sorrow of not getting a checkmark from the teacher even though he hadn’t answered incorrectly.
Fortunately, his decisive father, after the “deal” was done, quickly chose to stand on his side. He told him he hadn’t done anything wrong and encouraged him to continue interpreting questions in his own way of thinking. Only then did the elementary school student Cen breathe a sigh of relief and stop worrying.
After finishing the daily tutoring session for the elementary school student, it was still early. Cen Sen called the student’s homeroom teacher to offer some suggestions on the rigor of the school’s test questions. At the same time, he engaged in an in-depth discussion with the teacher about encouraging diverse but reasonable answers for certain questions and not stifling children’s imaginative thinking.
Ji Mingshu sat to the side, eating an orange while giving him a sidelong glance, inwardly scoffing coldly.
Putting on a serious face and acting like some once-in-a-century doting father, yet needing to extract some benefit from her just to deign to coax his own elementary school student. Pah! The very embodiment of a skinflint!
As if sensing her thoughts, the very embodiment of Cen the skinflint suddenly glanced at her and pointed to his somewhat dry throat.
Ji Mingshu understood but couldn’t be bothered to respond. She tilted her gaze away and continued happily feeding herself pieces of orange.
But just as a freshly peeled segment reached her lips, her wrist was suddenly grasped.
Cen Sen leaned in close, his voice calm as he offered suggestions to the teacher on the phone, but his eyes were on her. In slow motion, he plucked the sweet, juicy orange segment from her lips.
Ji Mingshu: “…”
Snatching food from the sparrow’s beak!
Utterly heartless!
Even more heartless was that after finishing the call with the teacher, Cen Sen fully lived up to the title of “Cen the skinflint.” He scooped Ji Mingshu up in his arms and carried her back to the room to collect his “benefit.”
Interestingly enough, despite Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu diligently trying for several years, they hadn’t managed to produce a baby to repay Cen Xiaoyan for the “huge debt” he was constantly reminded of. Who would have thought that amid their bickering while collecting a “benefit,” they would accidentally hit the mark in one go.Having had no news for years, Ji Mingshu hadn’t even considered the possibility. Unaware that she was already over a month pregnant, she had personally gone on-site for field surveys, planning the annual public welfare renovation project her studio took on.
On a midsummer afternoon, the sun hung high and glaring. After suddenly stepping out of the air-conditioned environment and spending over ten minutes under the scorching sun outside an old house, Ji Mingshu felt a bit dizzy and lightheaded.
An Ning, being observant, noticed her pale complexion and quickly supported her, asking softly.
Ji Mingshu shook her head, thinking that someone would soon arrive to unlock the door. "I’m fine, just a bit hot."
An Ning, worried she might suffer heatstroke, held an umbrella over her.
An Ning hadn’t studied interior design during her university years. However, when selecting elective modules later, because this particular module was known for its high difficulty and many students avoided it, she ended up being assigned to it by chance due to her late course selection.
Little did she expect that the more she engaged with it, the more interested she became in this elective. Upon graduation, after much hesitation and with Ji Mingshu’s encouragement, she chose to pursue further studies abroad in interior design. After returning to China, she naturally joined Ji Mingshu’s interior design studio for an internship and work.
Perhaps as he grew older, he placed greater importance on the remaining threads of family ties, or perhaps having already fulfilled more satisfying needs, he no longer dwelled so much on past losses. Over the years, Cen Sen himself had softened his attitude toward Chen Biqing and An Ning considerably. He would call them during holidays and tacitly allowed Cen Xiaoyan to call An Ning "aunt" and Chen Biqing "grandma."
As for the elders of the Cen family, they maintained a non-interfering stance of "you don’t mention it, I don’t ask" regarding their interactions.
After waiting outside for another two minutes, An Ning noticed Ji Mingshu’s complexion growing increasingly worse. Before she could speak, Ji Mingshu suddenly staggered, her eyes half-closed as she fell backward.
"Sister-in-law!" An Ning was so frightened that she even blurted out the private address she used for Ji Mingshu. Barely managing to support her, she shouted loudly for help.
Back when Ji Mingshu participated in an interior design variety show, she had once suddenly fainted. Upon waking, she had anxiously imagined herself suffering from some incurable illness.
This time, however, she wasn’t given the chance to let her imagination run wild. As soon as she groggily regained consciousness, Yan Bao stood by the bed, clapping his little hands and announcing the joyous news in a crisp voice, "Mommy, you’re finally awake! You have a little sister in your tummy!"
After making the announcement, he leaned in and gave Ji Mingshu a loud kiss.
"Mommy needs to rest a bit. Call Grandma and Aunt to let them know you’re safe."
Cen Sen, finding him too noisy, picked him up from behind and settled him on the sofa to the right of the hospital bed.
It took Ji Mingshu a while to process what had happened. As she sat up in bed, she asked, "I’m… pregnant?"
"Yes, five weeks."
Cen Sen ruffled her hair and planted a kiss on her lips.
Ji Mingshu was still a bit dazed, but Cen Xiaoyan reacted swiftly, covering his eyes and dragging out his words in mock disdain, "Eww—so embarrassing!"
Though he said "embarrassing," his chubby little legs swung excitedly up and down. Through the gaps between his fingers, his grape-like eyes could be seen wide open and unblinking, grinning like a little cat that had stolen something, revealing a row of neat, clean baby teeth.
Of everyone, Cen Xiaoyan, the elementary school student, was undoubtedly the happiest about Ji Mingshu’s pregnancy.His Chinese and English diary entries suddenly changed in style, evolving from the previous "Today I ate xxx, played xxx, what a wonderful day" to "Today is the xxth day of my little sister sprouting. Mommy had a checkup today, and my little sister is very healthy. I'm so happy!"
The Chinese and English teachers were forced to review Cen Xiaoyan's "Little Sister Sprouting Diary" every day and unknowingly became members of the little sister's growth observation group.
Before Ji Mingshu gave birth, the two teachers called one after another to offer their condolences, repeatedly referring to the unborn little bean as "Cen Yan's little sister."
Actually, during this pregnancy, Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen did not deliberately check the gender. They also corrected Cen Xiaoyan multiple times, telling him that what was in Mommy's belly might not necessarily be a little sister. But Cen Xiaoyan would pout and refuse to listen, calling them both big liars who had owed him a little sister for so long, and he, being kind-hearted, hadn't even asked for interest.
Ji Mingshu even genuinely worried for a few days over this, thinking that if she gave birth to a little brother, would Yan Bao still chase after her demanding repayment?
But pregnancy was truly exhausting. This time, her morning sickness was especially severe—the first few months were simply a living hell. After giving birth to this one, she never wanted to go through it again.
Fortunately, as Cen Xiaoyan wished, Ji Mingshu eventually gave birth smoothly to a baby girl.
When they heard it was a baby girl, both Ji Mingshu and Cen Sen inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.
The feeling of being chased by the little ancestor for repayment every few days over a debt that had been owed for years was truly terrifying.
Even before Cen Xiaoyan was born, Cen Sen had already chosen a name for a girl, so the baby had a formal name as soon as she was born: Cen Zhuo.
Zhuo Bao was a beautiful and adorable little girl, and her personality seemed to take more after Cen Sen—quiet and rarely crying or fussing.
But she also had her own little stubbornness: aside from Mommy, Daddy, and her older brother, she wouldn't let anyone else hold her.
At first, Ji Mingshu worried that Zhuo Bao might be too quiet and whether her intelligence might lag behind. But it turned out that Zhuo Bao was a typical "less talk, more action" type. She mastered basic skills like rolling over at three months, sitting at six months, and crawling at nine months far earlier than Cen Xiaoyan had.
Once surpassed, forever surpassed.
From the moment she could speak, the quiet Cen Xiaozhuo displayed her astonishingly high intelligence, picking up everything she learned with ease.
When Ji Mingshu casually played musicals meant to cultivate children's minds, Cen Xiaozhuo could recite several lines of English dialogue after just one viewing;
When building Lego sets for different age groups with Cen Xiaoyan, she could finish her own and even offer guidance to Cen Xiaoyan when he got stuck;
When Cen Xiaoyan struggled to memorize a classical poem even after reciting it many times at home after school, she could silently mouth the words to remind him during Ji Mingshu's spot checks.
Despite such a stark contrast, Cen Xiaoyan felt no shame but instead took pride in it, boasting to everyone he met about his beautiful, adorable, and highly intelligent little sister.
When Cen Yan was in sixth grade, a bold little girl in his class confessed her feelings to him, declaring that she would attend the same middle school as him in the future.
He seriously rejected her, loftily stating that children shouldn't date too early.
In reality, he was just trying to save face for the little girl. His true thoughts were that she wasn't as outstanding as his own sister, and he was determined to find a girlfriend as exceptional as his sister in the future.When Cen Yan graduated from sixth grade, Mingshui Mansion underwent renovations, and the family temporarily moved to a large luxury apartment in the city center. Ji Mingshu accidentally discovered a completed elementary school diary belonging to the ultimate sister-loving brother, Cen Xiaoyan.
"Zhuo Bao's eyelashes are so long, even longer than Mom's. Is this what they call 'the student surpassing the teacher'?"
"I've never seen a girl as well-behaved and sensible as our Zhuo Bao. Even when Mom cooks something with a strange taste, she can still praise it as delicious. Hmm, should I learn more from Zhuo Bao? But the taste really is strange."
"Zhuo Bao turned two today! I dragged Dad into making a birthday cake for her by hand. But after finishing it, Dad actually made a separate strawberry cake for Mom. He said Mom is also a baby and would get jealous without a cake. When we got home, Mom was indeed a little jealous (though not obvious, my keen eyes noticed). But when the strawberry cake came out, she smiled happily again. Dad is really clever."
...
Ji Mingshu found it both amusing and exasperating.
Suddenly, the familiar scent of fir enveloped her from behind. Seizing the opportunity, she held up the diary and complained, "Look at the nonsense your son has written!"
Cen Sen glanced at it and replied nonchalantly, "The teacher gave it an 'excellent' rating. How is it nonsense?"
Ji Mingshu turned to meet his gaze.
The afternoon sun was warm and pleasant, the children were at school, and the house was quiet.
She suddenly wrapped her arms around Cen Sen's neck and whispered softly, "Will I always be your baby?"
Cen Sen's voice carried a hint of laughter. "Yes."
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