"I’m sorry it’s been so hard on you all while I was away. Your mother told me you did a great job taking care of her and your sister. You showed real manliness and responsibility, and your father is very proud."
The two little boys’ noses stung, and they looked up at him.
"So, Dad, are you leaving again this time? And when you do next time, can you please not hide it from us anymore?"
"Tell us clearly, and we will support you."
"Do you really not even want us to call? Tian Tian and Ge Er cried for you several times when they were trying to sleep at night."
Zhan Bei Jue felt incredibly guilty and hugged them again.
"It was Daddy’s fault. I’m sorry, and I won’t do this again."
"From now on, wherever I go, I’ll tell you and ask for your support immediately, okay?"
This was the first time Zhan Bei Jue had lowered his guard to play with the children at the playground.
One moment he was burying himself in a ball pit, pretending to be a gopher, letting his two daughters find him.
The next, he was pushing them on the swings.
Then, he’d pick one up and carry the other on his back, letting them slide down the slide on him.
He also spent time with his two sons, climbing walls, building with foam blocks, playing with foam puzzles, and playing hide-and-seek together. Five of them were always on the move.
It was as if the entire venue belonged to their family, and all anyone saw was his figure darting back and forth.
Zhou Jin Bei and Jiang Nan Fang accompanied them for a while but were getting tired.
Moreover, with their father present, they were no longer the main attraction, so they retreated to the lounge area for tea.
Most of the people in the lounge area were grandmothers or mothers accompanying their children.
Everyone had been observing Jiang Nan Fang’s family for quite some time.
When she walked over to sit down, several people immediately cast envious glances her way.
"Hello, excuse me, are those four children inside all yours? Did you have quadruplets?"
Jiang Nan Fang was accustomed to being asked this question whenever she went out in public.
She smiled and nodded.
"Oh my, they are so beautiful. The boys are handsome, and the girls are lovely. You are truly blessed."
Everyone began to praise her profusely.
"The best part is how wonderful your husband is. I’ve never seen a father so patient, playing with his children in there for hours."
"Exactly! And he’s so tall and handsome. You’re so lucky."
"Seeing you, I suddenly feel like life is good again and worth looking forward to."
She never expected to give others such feelings.
Besides feeling touched, Jiang Nan Fang also felt deeply fortunate.
Although she had a difficult past and had hated Zhan Bei Jue for a time, she had never regretted having children.
And Zhou Jin Bei… he might seem cheerful, but perhaps he was just as envious as they were deep down.
The children were reluctant to leave, refusing to eat lunch and lingering in the venue.
Jiang Nan Fang, adhering to the principle that skipping one meal wouldn’t kill anyone, let them have their way. They played until five in the afternoon, and only when their stomachs rumbled with hunger did they emerge to find food.
The two girls clung to their father, preventing anyone else from getting close.
Jiang Nan Fang and Zhou Jin Bei each held a boy’s hand as they walked, discussing where to eat dinner.
Unanimously, Rui Rui, Ge Er, and Rui Rui raised their hands and said hot pot.
Before their parents reconciled, they remembered how a hot pot meal had brought them together once.
It was such a fond memory that whenever they talked about eating, they thought of hot pot.
Zhou Jin Bei looked at them as if they were crazy.
"It's the middle of summer, and it's deathly hot. You want to eat hot pot?"
But Jiang Nan Fang understood their intentions.
She smiled and asked the others,
"I think that’s a great suggestion. I want hot pot too. Does anyone object?"
Zhan Bei Jue, with his Chinese stomach, had been in Switzerland for a long time, and frankly, he wanted it too.
They went to Haidilao.
The waiter led them to their seats. As they walked, Jiang Nan Fang kept Rui Rui back to whisper to him.
"No more silly ideas. Your father and I are doing very well now. We don't need to drink to argue. Don't think I don't know what you and Ge Er did last time."
"Alright, children should act like children. Go eat your meal properly."
Rui Rui stuck out his tongue at her and ran ahead to talk to Jing Yu.
Jing Yu asked him,
"What did Mom say to you just now, keeping you alone?"
"She said she's not coming back to sleep with us tonight, she's going with Dad!"
Tian Tian, walking ahead of Jing Yu, heard something vaguely and turned to ask,
"What are you talking about? Who's not coming home?"
Jing Yu: "Mom. Mom's not coming home tonight. She's going to sleep with Dad."
Tian Tian quickly poked her head out from in front of Zhan Bei Jue and told Ge Er, who was walking on the other side.
"Ge Er, Ge Er, let me tell you, Mom's not coming back tonight. She's going to sleep out with Dad!"
The four of them walked and talked, and their conversation was heard clearly by customers along the way.
Everyone looked at the group with amusement and envy.
Zhan Bei Jue was so embarrassed by being sold out that he didn't know what to do.
Did Jiang Nan Fang really need to say this so publicly, even if she was captivated by his good looks?
Was this how she usually educated her children? Wasn't she afraid of corrupting them!
There’s no need to elaborate on how harmonious the meal was.
In short, children who were loved by their father and mother ate their fill, deliciously, and happily.
Zhou Jin Bei, trailing behind, was bombarded with "dog food" and "baby food," unsure whether to laugh or cry.
But that wasn’t the worst of it. After eating their fill, Rui Rui looked at his watch.
"Alright, it’s getting late, and we should go back to sleep. Mom, you go with Dad, don’t worry about us."
Jiang Nan Fang: "Huh?"
Ge Er jumped out and raised his little arm.
"Mom, Mom, before we leave, can I discuss something with you?"
"I didn't say I was leaving… What do you want to discuss with me?"
"Can you have another younger brother for me? Tang Shi Ya in my class has two younger brothers, and her mom always brings them when she picks her up."
"The little one can’t walk yet, he just has two little teeth, and he’s so adorable and chubby. I want one too!"
Tian Tian agreed wholeheartedly when it came to this.
"Yes, yes, I know. Her brother is really cute. I want a brother too, Mom!"
Rui Rui chimed in.
"But I want a sister. Chen Ze Xin’s sister is so small, cute, and soft. She’s so fun to play with, unlike you two."
"Mom, can you have another sister for me!"
"Mom…"
"Mom…"
The children kept rushing to her, describing how cute and fun other people’s siblings were.
Seeing all the surrounding customers looking their way, Zhou Jin Bei had no choice but to step in and take charge.
"Alright, stop talking. We’ll have them, all of them!"
"Tell your mom to have four more in her next pregnancy, so each of you gets a brother and a sister, okay?"
"Don't bother them anymore, hurry them up to go have babies, let’s go!"