"Mommy I want my birthday like this!" The daughter of the Minister Of War yelled, surprising the people around her. She had always thought she was above Zhong Yunru but today she was crushed, by her. Not only was her birthday magnificent, but she was the first one that had a birthday party held at Jiang's dinner, and because of this, the owner of the restaurant decided to name the heart cake, the 'Yunru' cake. She was already jealous because of the successful birthday party, and now the cake naming made her explode.
"Yuzhu! Where are your manners?" The Minister Of War was clearly not pleased seeing how his daughter was talking to her mother. His wife looked like she was going to interfere but the guest's eyes made her quiet.
"You don't have to yell. Yuzhu you should as nicely when you want something. Plus your mom is not your only parent. Now try again." The Minister Of War's mother instructed. She liked spoiling her granddaughter, but etiquettes were a must for her. She knew her granddaughter was just jealous of Yunru since her father showed the girl some affection.
"Mommy, Father, can I have my birthday here?" Yuzhu asked with her head bowed.
"Yes, you can," The Minister Of War responded gently.
"I don't see why not," Her mother responded.
"Ok, then we will discuss this matter later," The Minister Of War said to Tang Shushui.
"No problem," Tang Shushui said with a smile. It seems like his restaurant was going to see endless success soon.
After the party ended he had a talk with the Minister Of War and his wife and they made a reservation with him. By the time the party was over it was already seven and he was tired. He was already eight months pregnant and he really was going to take a break this time to focus on his pregnancy. His belly was really big and he could no longer stand up as much. Today really drained him and the moment he was done, Jiang Yanwei took him home to rest.
"Babe, I don't think I will work anymore during my pregnancy. I think I will also postpone the opening of my boutique." Tang Shushui said as he turned to face his husband on the bed.
"I agree with your decision and also don't forget you promised to set up a play date with the classmates of the kids," Jiang Yanwei responded as he pulled his wife into his embrace.
"Right, I almost forgot. Speaking of kids don't you think Liu Qiu is growing a bit distant towards us lately?" Tang Shushui couldn't help but ask. He spent quite a lot of time with Liu Qiu and treated her like his own daughter Jiang Yanwei also showed her great love and care as her father and they were very close, but recently she seemed distant from them and was even reluctant to call him mommy anymore. This made him anxious as he really did love that child like his own.
"I noticed too, I tried talking to her, but she was reluctant to say anything. But after observing her for a moment I think it's because we're expecting a baby," Jiang Yanwei responded. He also was really of Liu Qiu and loved her like his own. He would often brag about his daughter to people so a lot of people knew that Liu Qiu was really close to her adoptive parents, but her behavior these last few days did worry him quite a bit.
"I think you're right honey. We're indeed at fault. She was originally abandoned multiple times and became insecure, but I thought her mental state had gotten better so overlooked this. I even neglected her sometimes. I'm such a horrible parent." Tang Shushui sobbed silently. He knew how it felt to be neglected and insecure but he did it to his child without even realizing it. How could he make his daughter feel this way?
"Honey, we're both new parents and we don't know much about good parenting but we're still doing our best. Parenting is very hard and there will be some mistakes and we just have to learn from it. Tomorrow we'll talk to Liu Qiu and make sure she knows we love her just as much as our unborn children." Jiang Yanwei consoled as he peppered his hair with kisses.
"Should I also tell her about changing her name? Do you think she will like the new name we chose for her?" Tang Shushui said as he looked up at his husband.
"I think she will love it. Anything her mommy does for her she loves it, but of course she makes daddy work twice as hard to please her. What if our newborn daughters are mommy's girls too?" Jiang Yanwei couldn't help but grumble. He spoiled Liu Qiu greatly but the brat still favored her mommy.
"Stop being jealous, don't you have me who loves you?" Tang Shushui loved.
"Again," Jiang Yanwei laughed as he embraced his wife tighter. His new favorite thing was hearing that his wife loved him.
"I love you," Tang Shushui loved to see his foolishly cute face and indulged him.
"Again"
"I love you"
"Again"
"I love you
"Again"
"I love you" Those resonated in the room all throughout the night, before Jiang Yanwei fell asleep with a smile on his face as if those three words were the sweetest lullaby.
The next day after the family woke up and had breakfast, Tang Shushui broke out the news of his break and his family was of course happy with it. So Haohao would be the one in charge while he was gone. After breakfast, both Jiang Yanwei and Tang Shushui called Liu Qiu to have a talk with her in their room.
"Liu Qiu, we have something to ask you," Tang Shushui said to Liu Qiu.
"What is it?" Liu Qiu responded with her head bowed. Were they going to ask her to stop calling them her parent since they were going to have biological children? He had already stopped calling mommy, and daddy frequently to avoid this conversation. He didn't want to hear them utter those words to her.
"Are you mad at Mommy and Daddy?" Jiang Yanwei asked gently.
Liu Qiu was taken aback by her daddy's gentle tone. They were not going to abandon her? Why was he still talking so gently to her? Why was he still the gentle daddy she knew and loved? Liu Qiu was so overwhelmed that she couldn't help but burst into tears.
"Baby, are you okay? You can just tell Mommy and Daddy your honest feelings you know we won't get mad. Just like I told you, just tell us how you really feel so we can solve the problem okay?" Tang Shushui panicked and went over to hug Liu Qiu. Since she adopted Liu Qiu they have been having mini 'therapy' sessions where he would talk to her about her insecurities and help her look past them. Right now he really wanted her to put her learning to use.
"I am mad! I asked Mommy to read me a bedtime story three times last week and you rejected me without even telling me why. I came home a week ago and tried to talk about my day to Daddy and he told me now was not the time and turned. He didn't even say why. Plus you guys keep talking about the babies and barely paid attention to me. I know that I am older and should be understanding but I couldn't help but be mad, and sad. Did you guys not want me as your daughter anymore?" Lui Qiu sobbed into Tang Shushui's chest. This was the first time they saw their daughter cry this hard.
"Baby, I am so sorry. Mommy is new to this. He stumbles and makes some mistakes sometimes. You're my first daughter, so you will have many grievances, but I hope you tell me like this when you're hurt and tell Daddy too. Mommy will try her best to love you and make you happy," Tang Shushui cried, and Jiang Yanwei teared up. The family of three cried for a while before they brought the named topic up.
"Baby?" Tang Shushui called.
"Yes?" Both Jiang Yanwei and Liu Qiu responded.
"Not you, Liu Qiu," Tang Shushui said as he laughed.
"Yes, mommy?" Liu Qiu said.
"I wanted to change your name is that alright?" Tang Shushui asked gently.
"Sure!" Liu Qiu said she didn't really like her name.
"I was thinking between Xinyi meaning extreme happiness because I want you to be very happy, and Jiayi meaning lucky one because I want you to be lucky in everything." Tang Shushui said.
"I like Xinyi!" Liu Qiu responded happily.
"See I told you she would pick Xinyi! Daddy knows you best yet you still love Mommy more hmm?" Jiang Yanwei joked as he carried his daughter on his shoulders.
"Daddy!"Liu Qiu yelled out embarrassingly, causing the couple to laugh. How could they not love such a cute daughter?