Chapter 75 – Grandpa’s Surprise Attack
But as Xiao Fang massaged him, he started to find it strange. “I’m helping Fei Yishan. Don’t you have any thoughts on that?”
Fei Xiangnan, who was enjoying the service, leaned his head against Xiao Fang’s chest with his eyes closed. His expression was not the least bit unnatural. Instead, he said quite frankly, “She’s a smart person. Helping her only has benefits and no drawbacks. You didn’t get into any danger today, did you?” President Fei cracked open an eye and carefully scanned Xiao Fang’s body.
Xiao Fang was instantly reminded of his little butt. He subconsciously covered it and shook his head frantically. “No, I saw she was in trouble and immediately called the police. I didn’t get a single hair touched!” Theoretically, that explanation was plausible.
Only then did Fei Xiangnan nod in satisfaction. It seemed that spanking had successfully taught Xiao Fang a lesson. “Fei Yishan isn’t an enemy to me. Her issues will be resolved one day. She’s very capable and will be a great help to the current Fei Corporation. She’s not a fool. One day, she’ll understand.”
Fei Xiangnan wasn’t even thirty yet, but he managed a huge corporation like Fei Corporation in an orderly fashion, considering its many aspects and planning for the future. This was something that couldn’t be achieved with talent alone; it was more about the man’s hard work and strategy. In Xiao Fang’s eyes, Fei Xiangnan was someone who worked harder than anyone else.
“Mm,” Xiao Fang didn’t ask any more questions. Even when two people were together, they couldn’t be completely transparent. There were some things that, if he was willing to say them, he was willing to listen. Just like his own true identity, he would tell Fei Xiangnan when he felt the time was right. To him, Fei Xiangnan was already an irreplaceable existence.
***
“Da-da, Da-da!” Xiao Fang, on his daily baby-caring duty at home, was holding his son and teaching him to speak. Even though his son wasn’t even a month old, Xiao Fang felt that his clever boy could grasp the true meaning from his standard pronunciation.
“Awoo, awoo?” Da Bao no longer looked like a wrinkled newborn. His skin had become milky white, and his big eyes, blinking like black grapes, waved his four little paws slightly as he looked innocently at his father.
“No, not ‘awoo awoo,’ it’s ‘Da-da, Da-da’!” Xiao Fang corrected him again, his face showing no sign of impatience, his whole being radiating a happy smile.
The innocent Da Bao thought his father was playing a game with him and started to giggle, his toothless little gums showing. You could even smell a faint milky fragrance. “Awoo~”
Xiao Fang was immediately charmed by his son’s smile, completely forgetting about teaching him to say ‘dada’. He hugged his son and giggled along with him.
“Meow~” Nuomici, who had been sunbathing on the balcony, came over and called out sweetly. The never-playing-favorites Daddy Xiao picked up his older son as well. Nuomici saw Da Bao lying beside him and very politely licked his little brother. The cat’s tongue had fine barbs, which tickled Da Bao, and his giggling, which had just stopped, started up again uncontrollably. His little chubby hands waved, wanting to play with his older brother, and Nuomici, understanding completely, licked Da Bao again. The baby and the cat played tirelessly.
Xiao Fang was about to join in the fun when his phone rang. He placed Da Bao in the cradle beside him, put Nuomici in with him, and let them play together while he answered the call.
“Fangfang!” His grandfather’s voice sounded as resonant as ever, but the background on the other end of the line seemed a bit noisy, as if he was outside. His grandfather’s small town would never be this loud, even during the New Year. He could vaguely hear some electronic announcements. Xiao Fang’s temples couldn’t help but throb, and he had a bad feeling.
“Grandpa, where are you now?”
“Fangfang, it’s Grandma!” “Hey, stand still. What if someone bumps into you with this crowd? Let me talk. Fangfang, your grandpa is at the train station here. We were originally going to have you come over, but I couldn’t wait to see my great-grandson. Besides, it’s not good to make you come over before the First Month Celebration. You just stay home. Grandpa brought a lot of fresh fruits and vegetables. We’re taking a taxi over now!” His grandfather’s voice sounded very excited, as if he had been planning this for a long time.
This scared Xiao Fang half to death. If something happened to the two elderly people on the way, the surprise would turn into a shock. “Grandpa, don’t move from the train station exit. I’m coming to pick you up!”
“How can we do that? What about my great-grandson? We can just take a taxi!” His grandfather now had a more important person in his heart.
Xiao Fang was dying of anxiety. “No, I’m already on my way out. Don’t call a taxi. I’m not living at home anymore. How would you know my address? I’m coming over now!” Xiao Fang hung up as soon as he finished speaking.
He called the nanny on one hand and ran to the master bedroom to grab the keys on the other. Fortunately, Fei Xiangnan had a few cars in the garage here. Xiao Fang randomly grabbed a set of keys, changed his clothes, and prepared to leave. Just as he opened the door, the nanny happened to come in. For convenience, President Fei had given the nanny a small suite downstairs, and Auntie Chen could sometimes stay there too, which made things much more convenient for them. After giving instructions to the nanny, Xiao Fang ran off to pick them up.
By the time he hurriedly picked them up, half an hour had passed. Xiao Fang was truly frightened by these two old folks. Really, getting old and still loving to play surprise games. Was this the romance of an artist?
“Grandpa, Grandma, please don’t scare me like this in the future,” Xiao Fang said, clutching his frightened little heart. This move was too much to handle.
His grandfather knew his grandson’s worries and laughed it off. The little old man managed to muddle through and started changing the subject, asking about Xiao Fang’s recent situation. Xiao Fang finally understood how President Fei usually felt.
Before heading home, Xiao Fang took the two elders to the supermarket and picked out some light dishes. Xiao Fang had wanted to check out the supplements section, but his grandfather stopped him.
“How can you rely on these measured things to maintain your health? Eating some fresh fruits and vegetables is good enough for us. You too, you should exercise more and not always think about these things.” Xiao Fang, who had wanted to be filial to his grandfather, timidly put down his money-spending hand and obediently accompanied the two elders to buy vegetables.
During a spare moment, Xiao Fang secretly sent a message to his old husband: Grandpa and Grandma launched a surprise attack. They’re about to arrive on the battlefield. Come home quickly!
President Fei, who had been planning to work overtime, shot up from his seat.
“I’m going home first. Postpone the meeting until tomorrow,” Fei Xiangnan said, grabbing his bag and leaving without a trace of hesitation.
Assistant Chen, who witnessed all this, thought: A man with a wife! They’re all like this. Hmph!
Xiao Fang took his grandparents up in the elevator. He had thought Fei Xiangnan wouldn’t be back so soon, but when he opened the door, he was greeted by the clear aroma of tea. President Fei had brought out the tea set he had purchased for their small warehouse two months ago, and the tea on the tray was already in its final stage of preparation. Da Bao was lying in the cradle nearby, and the clattering of pots and pans from Auntie Chen cooking in the kitchen could be heard. Everything seemed so full of life, yet in some ways, it perfectly suited the tastes of the old artists.
Looking at all this, Xiao Fang couldn’t help but marvel at his old husband’s deep cunning, giving a big thumbs-up in his heart for his acting skills.
“I didn’t expect you to know so much about the tea ceremony, Xiangnan. Let me have a taste of your skills,” his grandfather said, walking over with great interest. His peripheral vision caught sight of his great-grandson sleeping in the cradle. Between art and his precious great-grandson, his grandfather unhesitatingly chose the latter. This was also part of President Fei’s calculation. His grandfather had arrived too suddenly, and he hadn’t finished memorizing several of his tea classics. If he was questioned in detail, he would be exposed.
In order to create the image of a non-clichéd businessman, President Fei had put in a lot of effort. He finished the last step of the process, placed the teacups on the coffee table without much fanfare, and then walked over to the two elders with Xiao Fang. Seeing such a cute great-grandson, the old folks forgot everything else and started cooing over Da Bao together.
Da Bao was exceptionally receptive. He usually never cried unless he was hungry. Facing two unfamiliar old people, Da Bao was also very obliging. His two small, bun-like hands grabbed his grandfather’s index finger, and he gurgled with laughter.
His grandmother, green with envy, also reached out her hand. Da Bao looked left and right. Both grandmas seemed very nice; he couldn’t show favoritism. So, while his right hand still held tightly to grandpa’s hand, his left hand shot out to grab grandma’s.
“Awoo awoo!”
“Oh, my dear great-grandson. You’re so much better than Fangfang was as a baby. How can you be so well-behaved?” Seeing Da Bao like this, his grandmother’s heart melted. His grandfather wasn’t as obvious on the surface, but he was also smiling from ear to ear. For the rest of the time, besides eating and using the restroom, the two elders’ eyes never left Da Bao.
“Grandpa, Grandma, you should eat first. The nanny is taking care of Da Bao and feeding him,” Xiao Fang said helplessly, placing vegetables on his grandparents’ plates. The freshness was truly something else.
“Alright, alright,” his grandfather said, smiling as he turned back to eat. He saw Fei Xiangnan carefully deboning a piece of fish and then very naturally placing it in Xiao Fang’s bowl. Xiao Fang ate it as if it were a normal occurrence, without any need for a meaningful glance to explain anything.
This was very good. The two elders hadn’t come to see how well Xiao Fang had married or how privileged his life was. The important thing was whether the two of them were compatible. Now, it seemed they were much better off than Xiao Fang’s father and their own daughter.
“By the way, does your father know you’ve already given birth? Why haven’t I seen him come? Or did he come before?” Although his grandfather disliked this son-in-law very much, it was different for Xiao Fang. Such an important event as childbirth, why hadn’t he heard Xiao Fang mention his father? As far as he knew, Father Xiao should have been doting on Xiao Fang all these years.
Xiao Fang’s expression faltered for a moment. Fei Xiangnan quickly answered for him, “He came before. Grandpa, you came so suddenly this time, we didn’t have time to inform him.” He lied with such composure that he didn’t look suspicious at all. As expected of President Fei!
“Mm-hm!” Xiao Fang nodded along, fully supporting the answer.
His grandfather snorted coldly, full of disdain for the man mentioned. “That’s good then. I’ll go see him tomorrow. I haven’t seen him in so many years. Let’s see what kind of man he’s become!”
Xiao Fang looked over nervously. “I don’t think that’s necessary. Dad’s busy with his company, it being the end of the year and all. Grandpa, you can just wait at my place for Da Bao’s First Month Celebration. You’ve already thought of a name, right? We can announce it at the celebration. What do you think?”
His grandfather looked at Xiao Fang suspiciously. Something was not right. The more he thought about it, the more it didn’t seem right. Regarding matters concerning Xiao Fang, although that man didn’t dare to come and see him during the New Year, he would always send messages. He had even sent a message when Xiao Fang improved his ranking by three places in junior high. Though his grandfather had never replied, he knew in his heart. But he had sent his grandson a few hundred in a red envelope as a reward.
Now, he was married and had a child, yet there was no movement from that side?!
“Fangfang, tell Grandpa the truth. Did that scoundrel father of yours not approve of you and Xiangnan being together at all?” his grandfather asked with a serious expression, his tone already quite certain and laced with suppressed anger.