The Sweetness of the Seventies
Chapter 633 - 602: The Art of Coddling_1

Chapter 633: Chapter 602: The Art of Coddling_1

The two returned home to find the children giggling.

He Tiantian and Huo Yingjie looked at each other and felt completely at ease, Grandma Wang truly excelled at soothing children.

With her wealth of experience, it seemed she could guess the children’s needs with just a little stir from them.

Ever since Grandma Wang came over, the children’s cries had become less frequent while their laughter had grown louder.

Grandma Wang teased the children while she picked through Chinese chives but did not cook.

This arrangement had been made clear by He Tiantian with Grandma Wang before, that the cooking would be done by Tiantian when she got back from school.

"Grandma Wang, thank you for your hard work," He Tiantian smiled, feeling extremely grateful in heart.

"Hehe, it’s no trouble at all; when you get older, you enjoy spending time with little kids," said Grandma Wang. "These two are easy to look after and not troublesome at all."

Tiantian took the chives Grandma Wang had prepared and washed them, starting to cook.

Huo Yingjie helped out, and in just half an hour, the steaming hot meals were ready.

Tiantian went to feed the children before she started to eat.

After the meal, Tiantian took the children for their nap.

Huo Yingjie went to wash the diapers.

Seeing Huo Yingjie wash the diapers, Grandma Wang hurriedly came over and said, "You’re a man, how can you wash diapers! This task should be mine to do."

Huo Yingjie laughed, "Grandma Wang, you just need to help us look after the children, don’t do anything else. Tiantian and I are young, we can handle these tasks."

"But..." Grandma Wang had rather traditional views and felt that these were women’s tasks, but since Tiantian was already worn out from taking care of two children, cooking, and attending school, she did not demand that Tiantian do these as well.

However, she did not think it was appropriate for Huo Yingjie to do such tasks.

"Grandma Wang, this is a new society now, and these are my children too; even if it’s dirty, it’s still a father’s duty," Huo Yingjie said, not minding these minor details.

They were his children, and he did not find them repugnant.

Upon hearing this, Grandma Wang felt very comforted and thought to herself, "No wonder the Old Madam and the old master keep praising Huo Yingjie in private as the most outstanding one. With this devotion to his children, Yingjun simply can’t compare to Yingjie."

She remembered an incident when Huo Yingjun was once splattered with his son’s feces, and he went a whole day without eating; in fact, he never changed or washed his child’s diapers.

Huo Yingjie’s actions, rather than being effeminate, showed an even deeper maternal instinct.

"Alright, this is your love as a father, so I won’t interfere," said Grandma Wang with a smile, realizing only those who personally take care of children can appreciate the hardships involved.

At the same time, having kids makes young people truly mature, taking on more responsibilities and burdens.

Once Huo Yingjie had finished washing, he went back to take a nap.

In the afternoon, after waking up, Huo Yingjie rode his bicycle to the black market in the nearby suburbs, where he bought some eggs and more greens. He had also wanted to buy a couple of old hens, but he was too late and didn’t manage to get them.

The market was now busier than before.

People from the countryside would bring things from their homes to sell for cash, all of which were grown or raised by themselves, serving as an extra source of income.

In the past, such activity was regarded as speculative profiteering, but nobody paid attention to these matters this year, hence more people brought items from their homes to sell. This greatly enriched the material lives of the people, especially those in the city who relied on rationed food supplies.

Because to buy anything you needed coupons, and without them, even with money, you couldn’t buy goods at the state-run supply and marketing cooperatives. Unlike the countryside, where money sufficed, albeit at a price somewhat higher than in the cooperatives but the goods were fresher and better.

In the evening, after Tiantian had lulled the children to sleep, she took out her textbooks from her bag and began to preview her lessons.

This was Tiantian’s habit; since she was studying, she made sure to do the preparation and review work. If she didn’t understand something, she would ask the all-knowing top student for answers, and she always obtained correct and better ones.

Under the light, Tiantian was studying diligently.

Huo Yingjie, wearing only his boxer shorts, walked past He Tiantian several times, trying to catch her attention.

But to no avail, He Tiantian’s focus remained on her book, her eyes glued to the textbook, and she murmured softly to herself.

Huo Yingjie felt somewhat aggrieved and plopped down on the bed, sprawling out in a spread-eagled position, staring at the ceiling.

Alas, they were young people, how could they waste their youth like this!

"Tiantian, I’m a bit thirsty," Huo Yingjie whispered, trying to divert He Tiantian’s attention, hoping she would notice him.

"There’s water on the table, pour it yourself," He Tiantian didn’t look up, continuing to read.

Pour it myself?

Humph, I won’t drink it then!

"Tiantian, my back is itchy, can you scratch it for me?" Huo Yingjie was not willing to give up, surely she would pay attention to him now.

This time He Tiantian looked up, pointed to the backrest at the edge of the bed, and said, "There’s a back scratcher there, scratch it yourself."

After saying that, she went back to her book.

He didn’t need a back scratcher to scratch his own back!

Tiantian didn’t care about him anymore, and Huo Yingjie felt a bit affected.

"Then I’m going to sleep," Huo Yingjie turned over, his back facing He Tiantian.

"You go to sleep first, I’ll read for a little while longer," He Tiantian didn’t look up, continuing to read.

Huo Yingjie was angry.

It wasn’t until He Tiantian had finally previewed the first lesson of several subjects, stood up, stretched, washed up again, fed the baby, and then turned off the light to go to sleep.

He Tiantian lay on the bed, feeling a bit uncomfortable, as if something was different from before.

At that moment, He Tiantian realized that Huo Yingjie wasn’t holding her to sleep like he usually did.

He Tiantian was sure Huo Yingjie wasn’t asleep; she knew that if he was ignoring her now, it meant he was angry.

In the middle of the night, what’s there for a grown man to be angry about!

He Tiantian felt puzzled and wondered what she did wrong.

She suddenly remembered that while she was reviewing, Huo Yingjie kept trying to make conversation, and she hadn’t paid much attention to him; it must have been because of this.

Alas, after coaxing two little children, now she had to coax a big child.

She didn’t have many techniques to cajole a man, but what she had was just enough to handle Huo Yingjie.

"Brother Yingjie, my eyes hurt..." He Tiantian spoke in a sweet, delicate voice.

Huo Yingjie didn’t make a sound.

"Brother Yingjie, my ears are itchy..."

Huo Yingjie was somewhat yielding now.

"Brother Yingjie, my stomach hurts..."

Huo Yingjie turned over and glared at He Tiantian, saying, "Enough, stop pretending to hurt here and there, you little liar."

"Hehe!" He Tiantian giggled, "I was reading just now and ignored you. Don’t be mad, okay? It won’t happen again."

"Alright, I’ll forgive you today," Huo Yingjie said, "You already know that knowledge; why work so hard? Why exhaust yourself!"