Chapter 34: Mealtime
The sun hung high in the sky, unleashing its scorching brilliance.
Inside the house, Nuonuo, his little dirty face now clean, sat in his dedicated baby chair, holding a spoon and happily swinging his feet.
Nuonuo hadn’t been using a spoon for long, so his grip was a little awkward. He would scoop up a spoonful of soup, and before he could even lift his little arm, half of it would spill back. By the time it reached his mouth, there was only a pitiful little bit left.
But Nuonuo himself didn’t seem to notice. As long as he got a little bit of soup, he would happily crinkle his little eyes.
Auntie Wu watched from the side, a smile on her lips. She went over to wipe the soup from the corner of Nuonuo’s mouth. “After you finish this, it’ll be time for lunch. How about Auntie feeds you?”
Nuonuo shook his little head and clutched his little spoon tightly. “No, ya. I do it mysewf.”
Auntie Wu was amused by Nuonuo. She could only nod, correct his incorrect way of holding the spoon, and then take a step back, letting him drink his soup by himself.
Sure enough, by the time he finished the bowl of soup, it was time for lunch. Fortunately, Nuonuo hadn’t drunk much of the soup; most of it had been spilled. His stomach was still relatively empty and could fit a hearty lunch.
Just then, Fei Luo also came home from school. Seeing his little brother sitting obediently on the sofa waiting for him, his originally unhurried steps couldn’t help but quicken. “Brother is back!”
Seeing Fei Luo, Nuonuo happily slid off the sofa and ran into his brother’s arms.
Fei Luo’s usually expressionless face also showed a hint of joy. He took his little brother’s hand and, forgetting to even put down his backpack, went to the dining room together.
It wasn’t until today’s shredded chicken cold noodles were served that Fei Luo realized he was still wearing his backpack. Two blushes quickly appeared on his small, delicate face, and he quickly got down from his chair to put his backpack away.
Seeing that Fei Luo still had such a childish side, Auntie Wu couldn’t help but laugh, the wrinkles on her face deepening.
When Fei Luo had put his backpack away, Nuonuo looked at the plate in front of him and pointed with his little finger. “Yiyi, brother has no food, ya!”
Auntie Wu brought over Nuonuo’s practice chopsticks. Hearing Nuonuo’s words, she said with a hint of surprise, “He does. Isn’t Little Luo’s food right in front of him?”
Fei Luo sat back down, the heat on his face having subsided. He nodded along. “Nuonuo, I have food to eat.”
Nuonuo still shook his little head. “No, ya. It’s Eldest Brother who has no food to eat!”
Hearing Nuonuo say this, Auntie Wu’s expression froze for a moment, thinking of Fei Han who had just returned home today. She had almost forgotten that the eldest young master was also at home today.
Hesitating for a moment, Auntie Wu finally spoke with some difficulty. “I didn’t have the chef prepare a meal for the eldest young master.”
Mainly, Fei Han had returned too suddenly, and Auntie Wu had been more focused on Nuonuo, so she had forgotten to tell the chef to prepare an extra person’s meal.
As soon as she finished speaking, Fei Han happened to walk to the dining room entrance.
His hair had just been washed and wasn’t slicked back as usual. Instead, it was scattered across his forehead, adding a touch of casualness to his cold aura. But this didn’t mean he was a good-tempered person. On the contrary, in this hot weather, one could feel the cold air emanating from Fei Han even more.
Seeing Fei Han come over, Auntie Wu’s heart instinctively panicked for a moment, and the smile on her face became awkward, almost unable to be maintained.
But before Auntie Wu could explain, Nuonuo, with his back to Fei Han, held up his little chopsticks and said to Auntie Wu with his little face tilted up, “Yiyi, my food for brother to eat, ya!”
Fei Han’s foot, which was about to step in, paused. He lifted his cold eyes and looked at the little dumpling waving his hand with a hint of surprise.
“I… I have wots and wots of food. For brother to eat!”
Nuonuo had just had a sweet soup and wasn’t hungry at all. But his eldest brother hadn’t eaten anything, so his stomach must be empty!
Hearing Nuonuo’s childish words, a warmth grew in Auntie Wu’s heart, and a hint of doting appeared in her eyes. It wasn’t that she was always biased towards Nuonuo, but the little dumpling’s words were often too heartwarming, and Auntie Wu, being an emotional person, couldn’t take it.
He’s such a well-behaved and soft little cutie. What’s wrong with being a little biased towards him!
Fei Han’s eyes narrowed slightly. He lowered his head, his expression indistinct in the light. After a long while, he finally lifted his leg and continued to walk in. But his previously sharp, sword-like aura was now covered by an invisible soft shell, and it had softened a lot.
Auntie Wu felt it the most clearly. She just felt that the atmosphere was no longer so tense. She smiled and nodded at Fei Han. “Eldest Young Master, I’ll have the kitchen make another portion. Cold noodles are very quick to make. It’ll be ready in a few minutes.”
Although Fei Han’s personality was cold, he didn’t like to make things difficult for others. He just nodded to indicate it was okay. In terms of being polite, the several children of the Fei family were all like Fei Zhiyan. No matter how dark and paranoid they were on the inside, they were still polite on the surface.
Nuonuo also noticed that his eldest brother had come in. He turned his little head to look at him, and if his hands weren’t so small, he would have even wanted to pick up his plate and give it to his eldest brother. “Brother, eat, ya!”
Understanding that Nuonuo wanted him to eat his food, Fei Han’s eyes flickered a couple of times, but he just reached out and gently turned Nuonuo’s little head back. “Sit properly and eat. I don’t need you to worry about me.”
Fei Han’s tone was still flat, but if one had been around him long enough, they would know that this tone was already quite gentle.
Nuonuo was still pouting, wanting his brother to eat, but after being glanced at by Fei Han, he could only whimper and sit back down to eat. In terms of aura, Fei Han was definitely not inferior to Fei Zhiyan, and he even had a sharper coldness than him. Nuonuo dared to act spoiled and roll around with his papa, but in front of his eldest brother, he unconsciously became a well-behaved baby.
Fei Luo was the same. He was as nervous in front of his eldest brother as he was in front of his father. His little hands trembled, and he almost couldn’t hold his chopsticks steady. “Eldest Brother, you’re back.”
If it had been before, Fei Luo would have at most said hello and wouldn’t have said another word to Fei Han. But after playing with Nuonuo for so long, he had also been influenced quite a bit and subconsciously asked one more question. After all, every time he came back, Nuonuo would happily pounce on him and ask all sorts of questions, trailing behind him like a lively little tail, his little mouth able to chatter on and on.
Fei Han sat down, the surprise in his eyes widening a little, but he still didn’t show much, just nodding lightly. “I came back after I was done. You skipped school yesterday?”
Perhaps because Fei Luo had made a small talk, Fei Han also returned the favor and showed a little concern. But this concern really hit a sore spot. A hint of embarrassment appeared in Fei Luo’s usually vacant eyes.
The conversation between the two brothers was so awkward it made one’s scalp tingle, instantly reaching a freezing point.
Fortunately, Nuonuo looked at his eldest brother and, pursing his lips, lowered his little head in embarrassment. “It was me who pestered brother. I won’t do it again—”
The little sticky bun very sincerely admitted his mistake. Afraid of making a bad impression on his eldest brother, he even swung his little feet and said eagerly, “I… I really won’t do it again!”
Nuonuo stretched his head, his clear, moist eyes looking at Fei Han very obediently.
Fei Luo also quickly said, “Eldest Brother, I also know I was wrong.”
Fei Han found this development very strange. Wasn’t I just showing concern for my little brother? How did it turn into a confession session?
Frowning slightly, Fei Han could only nod. “I know. Eat first.”
Fei Luo breathed a sigh of relief and quickly picked up his little chopsticks to eat his noodles.
Nuonuo, on the other hand, imitated Fei Luo’s appearance, opened his little mouth, and let out a long breath before happily lowering his head to eat.
This little appearance inexplicably amused everyone present. Fei Luo’s lips curled up slightly, and even the coldness in Fei Han’s eyes unconsciously faded a little.
After finishing the shredded chicken cold noodles, the little egg tarts the chef had specially made were also ready. They were crispy, fragrant, and sweet, which made Nuonuo’s eyes crinkle with joy.
Fei Han originally didn’t like to eat these little desserts, but seeing Nuonuo’s puffed-up cheeks with crumbs on them, he also inexplicably reached out and took one.
The chef had baked them to perfection. The crust of the egg tart was crispy, and the filling was sweet and soft, which made Fei Han, who hadn’t eaten sweets in a long time, eat it all for a rare moment.
“Not bad.”
Looking at the apprehensive chef standing by his side, Fei Han glanced at the adoring Nuonuo and gave a considerable affirmation.
Only then did the chef feel relieved. In this family, the one he was most afraid of was this eldest young master. Fei Han’s aura was simply too cold. One glance from him would make the chef’s heart go cold, and he would quickly reflect on whether he had put too much salt in the food.
After lunch, Nuonuo yawned and was carried upstairs by Auntie Wu for a nap.
Fei Luo also went to school with his backpack. Fei Han, who had just finished a period of experimental observation, had nothing to do and went back to his room to read.
Fei Han’s IQ was extremely high. Although he was only seventeen this year, he had already graduated from Yunzhou’s top university and had opened his own private laboratory. He liked the feeling of being immersed in experiments, the thrill of breaking through a little bit, of breaking human limits with his own hands, was almost irresistible to him. He was even already seeking biological experimental methods to break through the ultimate limits of the human body. That barrier was faintly there, and once broken, it would be the birth of another kind of life.
The afternoon passed quickly. It wasn’t until Fei Jing came back with a grim face and pushed open Fei Han’s door that Fei Han finally moved his gaze away from his book.
“What is it?”
When it came to this spoiled second brother, Fei Han had never had a good face for him.
Fei Jing was the same. His self-destructive personality was not only reflected in testing Fei Zhiyan’s authority, but also in occasionally extending his claws to probe this eldest brother of his.
But today, Fei Jing had not come to oppose Fei Han. He crossed his arms, his delicate features looking even more dazzling under the light. “Fei Han, did you let that woman go? Do you know she wanted to snatch Nuonuo?”
Fei Han’s eyes were still indifferent. He looked up at Fei Jing without a ripple of emotion. “I know.”
Fei Jing’s anger flared up. He hated Fei Han’s face, which was always calm no matter what, and a hint of annoyance appeared in his eyes. “You know? So you deliberately let her go because you don’t like Nuonuo? Just because Nuonuo and Father are both…”
At the end of his sentence, Fei Jing suddenly stopped, frowned, and dropped the topic.
Fei Han looked at Fei Jing and, from Fei Jing’s slightly lowered head, understood that Fei Jing knew about Nuonuo’s merman identity.
Fei Han sometimes had to admire this second brother of his. He was really a little clever. Even though his father had never revealed that he was a merman, he could still guess it from the clues. Of course, it was also possible that he had found out by testing Fei Zhiyan’s bottom line.
