Chapter 32 Part 2

“Puppies are so small—they can’t eat big meals like us, just three times a day. They need lots of small feedings.”

“Mm.” Lin Xiaobao nodded, half understanding.

“You were the same when you were little.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” Lin Zao’s smile softened. “Your tummy was tiny back then too—you couldn’t eat much at once. Big Daddy had to rock you awake every night to feed you formula.”

“What? Rock me awake?” Lin Xiaobao was incredulous. “But if I was asleep, why did Big Daddy wake me up?”

Fu Cheng stood just behind the iron door, ears attuned to every move the father and son made.

Hearing the dissatisfaction in Lin Xiaobao’s tone, Fu Cheng’s face darkened instinctively.

Lin Zao explained gently, “You couldn’t talk yet back then. You wouldn’t cry when you were hungry—you’d just pass out from it. So Big Daddy had to wake you to eat.”

Fu Cheng pressed his lips together and cleared his throat.

Right on. Little Zao had nailed it.

The sentence was too long for him to parse anyway.

He just liked the sound of Little Zao’s voice. He knew Little Zao was speaking up for him.

Whatever. Little Zao was right!

“Oh, I see.” Lin Xiaobao thought it over. “If Big Daddy hadn’t woken me, I would’ve passed out hungry.”

He had misunderstood Big Daddy.

Lin Xiaobao turned toward where Big Daddy was and called out, “Sorry!”

Lin Zao chuckled. “Big Daddy won’t be mad.”

The pair turned back to the little dog in its nest.

Ravenous, it suckled relentlessly, cheeks puffing.

Before long, the bottle was empty.

Lin Zao felt its belly and decided against more.

There was still plenty of soup left. After it digested a bit, they could feed it again at dinnertime—no hassle.

Lin Zao set the bottle aside, fetched a towel, dampened it, and gently wiped the little dog down.

Lin Xiaobao squatted on the floor, staring unblinking, utterly absorbed.

It was the first time this little guy had seen a newborn puppy, and he had question after question.

“Dad, is it a little white dog? Its fur is all white.”

“But it has so little fur—nothing like the dogs I’ve seen before.”

“Why won’t it open its eyes to look at me? Is it rude?”

Lin Zao answered each one patiently.

“Not necessarily white. That’s just its newborn fuzz.”

“In a few months, it’ll shed and grow new fur. Then we’ll know its real color.”

“It’s not rude. Its eyes are glued shut with gunk. It’ll take a few days to open.”

Lin Xiaobao cocked his head the other way for his final question. “Dad, am I bigger, or is it?”

“Well…” Lin Zao drew it out teasingly. “It… you…”

Lin Xiaobao fidgeted. “Come on, Dad!”

“You’re bigger, of course.” Lin Zao said. “You’re already three. It’s brand new.”

“Yay!” Lin Xiaobao cheered. “Great! I’m not the baby of the family anymore!”

Lin Zao laughed. “Isn’t being the baby nice?”

“Nu-uh.” Lin Xiaobao shook his head.

“Why not?”

“Just isn’t.” He pondered. “Big Daddy’s the biggest in the family, I’m the smallest, so he always picks me up and carries me around. I wanna try picking someone up too.”

“But I can’t lift Dad or Big Daddy. Only someone smaller than me.”

Lin Zao couldn’t help laughing, but he reminded him, “The little dog’s still too small to pick up. You might hurt it.”

“Okay.” Lin Xiaobao agreed. “I’ll wait till it’s bigger.”

“Mm.”

The father and son busied themselves a while longer.

They wiped the little dog clean, then folded a fresh towel for a pee pad in the nest.

With that done and the little dog asleep in its nest, Lin Zao had Lin Xiaobao help remove their gloves and outer layers. They soaked everything—the towels too—in a bucket of soapy water.

Better safe than sorry.

Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao squatted by the faucet, scrubbing their hands with soap.

“Really scrub them clean.”

“Okay.” Lin Xiaobao worked up a good lather.

“If you want to come down to see the little dog, you do it with Dad. No sneaking down alone, and definitely no touching it on the sly. Got it?”

“Got it!” Lin Xiaobao wiggled his bottom. “Dad, you’ve said it like five times already. You should trust me!”

“Fine, I trust you! A little basic faith between father and son!”

“I think…” Lin Xiaobao paused thoughtfully, “Big Daddy’s more likely to sneak out and peek at the little dog. You should tell him too.”

“Good.”

Fu Cheng’s eyes lit up in the utility room as he looked up.

What? Little Zao had something to tell him?

He was listening! He had been listening the whole time!

This kid with such a complicated name…

Right, Little Bao, you really are a good Bao Bao!

Just then, Lin Zao turned on the faucet, and the water rushed out with a whoosh.

Father and son placed their hands underneath, rinsing away the soap suds.

Lin Zao gave Lin Xiaobao’s little hand one last stroke. “It’s still a bit slippery. Let’s rinse it again.”

“Mm.”

Lin Zao stood up, climbed onto the stool, leaned over the windowsill, cleared his throat, and called out, “Brother Cheng? Brother Cheng, are you home?”

Fu Cheng stood by the door, raised his head, looked toward him, and called back in the same way, “Zao.”

“Little Bao and I are heading upstairs to make dinner. Keep an eye on the little dog, and don’t bully it.”

“Purr—”

Oh.

Got it.

Understood.

And that was it?

The little dog was important, sure, but wasn’t the big dog important too?

In Little Zao’s eyes, was he the type to bully the little dog… like a zombie?

Lin Zao added, “It’s not a pet dog. It’s a country dog. When it grows up, it’ll be able to protect Little Bao and me.”

Fu Cheng tilted his head back and gazed steadily at him, his expression full of understanding.

—So I have one more thing to protect now?

—I’ll protect you, Little Bao, and that little dog.

As if he could read Fu Cheng’s thoughts, Lin Zao burst out laughing. “Thanks for all the hard work. Tomorrow, I’ll stew you some American ginseng soup to build you up.”

The word “soup” reignited that bundle of flames in Fu Cheng’s chest.

Little Zao was going to drug him again.

Lin Zao scrunched up his little face, looking puzzled.

“What’s with that look? Why do you keep staring at me like that lately? You got pinkeye or something?”

Fu Cheng’s eyes widened instinctively. No! He didn’t have pinkeye!

“Then Little Bao and I are going upstairs. We’ll bring some food down for you later.”

Lin Zao hopped down from the stool and turned back to beckon at Lin Xiaobao, whose hands were now clean.

“Little Bao, all washed up? Let’s go.”

“Coming.”

Lin Xiaobao stood, twisted the faucet shut tight with both hands, and scampered over to Dad.

“I’m here!”

Lin Zao took his hand and inspected it, then pulled out a handkerchief to dry it off.

“From now on, wash your hands after petting the little dog, okay?”

Lin Xiaobao asked, “Even if I pet it through gloves?”

“Yep, every single time.”

“Then why bother with gloves? We could just use our hands.”

“Because the little dog hasn’t had a bath yet—it might have germs on it. And once it grows claws or teeth, it could scratch or bite us. The gloves mean it can’t reach our skin.”

“Hm… if that’s how it is…”

Lin Xiaobao tilted his head, pondering seriously.

“Dad, I don’t think we should be the ones wearing gloves!”

“Huh?” Lin Zao blinked, caught off guard.

“Since the little dog will grow claws and scratch us, the little dog should wear the gloves!”

“Huh…” Lin Zao froze for a second.

The more Lin Xiaobao thought about it, the more right it seemed.

“The little dog has claws, so put gloves on the little dog—it won’t be able to scratch us then.”

“And if it bites, just give it a muzzle too.”

By that logic, Brother Cheng was infected with the zombie virus and might scratch or bite people.

So why not put gloves and a muzzle on Brother Cheng? That would control his hands and teeth—no threat at all. Then he could come out.

Why make Lin Zao and Lin Xiaobao, the normal ones, wear gloves?

It was genius!

Lin Zao wasn’t the only one stunned. Fu Cheng in the utility room went still too.

He lowered his head and stared blankly at his broad palms. Then he bared his teeth, fingers brushing his sharp fangs.

Lin Zao flashed Lin Xiaobao a thumbs-up, sighing in genuine admiration. “Little Bao, you’re a little genius!”

Lin Xiaobao planted one hand on his hip, puffed out his chest proudly, and waved the other hand. “Average, average—third best in the family.”

“What a smart kid. Here’s your reward: a piece of meat.” Lin Zao tugged him along. “Come on, upstairs. Dad’ll fish out a chunk of braised pork for you.”

“Good.”

But they had barely taken a step when Lin Xiaobao’s legs buckled. He toppled sideways and flopped right at his dad’s feet.

“Dad, my foot!”

“Your foot? What’s wrong with it?”

Lin Zao dropped to a squat at once, scooping him into his arms for a close look. He gave it a gentle squeeze.

“Isn’t your foot right here? How does it feel?”

Lin Xiaobao burrowed into Dad’s embrace, his face full of woe.

“Dad, don’t squeeze! My foot lost its signal!”

“Your foot isn’t a TV. How could it…”

“It did lose signal! My foot went all black-and-white!”

“You…” Lin Zao caught on. “Is your foot numb?”

“Not numb-spicy.” Lin Xiaobao shook his head vigorously. “No numb-spicy.”

Lin Zao let out an amused sigh and hoisted him up. “Alright, let’s go.”

Lin Xiaobao’s eyes brimmed with tears, his expression utterly pitiful. “Dad, pretty please, don’t turn me into numb-spicy.”

“Okay, okay, no worries. It’ll pass in a minute.”

Little Bao Bao, just three years old, was a pint-sized genius one moment and an adorable little dimwit the next.

After squatting by the little dog’s bed for so long, of course his foot had gone numb.