Chapter 86: Family’s Intimate Time
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
This was the happiest day Yuanyuan could remember. With the help of the two older boys, she had seen a big tiger and a small dog, a massive Eyries cactus, Little Fairy, and the bright red, bloodthirsty vine called Little Guaiguai. She had also seen their big, beautiful new home.
The older boys had given her so many delicious things to eat, each one more delicious than the last. For the first time, Yuanyuan’s stomach didn’t burn with hunger, and she finally didn’t have to fight dogs for food.
As she walked across the smooth wooden floors of the house, she curiously looked around at her new home. Just the thought of living in a place this nice made her eyes shine brighter than the stars. With Yuanyuan now living with them, Jiang Rong and Guan Shao were feeling, for the first time, how crowded a home could be.
When the house was first built, it had just been Jiang Rong and his son. Besides their bedrooms, there had only been one guest room; the rest of the rooms were for specific uses. Later, when Guan Shao brought Jiang Hao into the house, Jiang Hao shared a room with Xiaoheng, and Guan Shao moved into the guest room. Everything fit just right.
Jiang Rong had planned to give the guest room to Jiang Hao once the boys were older. But now, with Yuanyuan in the house, they had to clean it out earlier than expected to give her a place to stay. She was small, yes, but she was also a little girl. She deserved her own space.
Guan Shao moved his belongings out of the guest room and into Jiang Rong’s bedroom, smiling as he did. “Finally, no more sneaking around.”
Jiang Rong shot him a sideways look. “When have you ever snuck around?”
To be fair, Guan Shao had only slept in the guest room a few times. Ever since their relationship became clear, he’d spent nearly every night in Jiang Rong’s room. On the rare occasions when Jiang Rong had locked him out, Guan Shao had waited until he fell asleep and picked the lock anyway.
“I always wait until the kids are asleep to go into your room,” Guan Shao said seriously as he opened the wardrobe and began stuffing his clothes inside. “If that’s not sneaking around, I don’t know what is.”
Three little heads peeked around the doorway of Jiang Rong’s bedroom. Jiang Rong turned and immediately saw that Xiaoheng looked like he wanted to say something but hesitated. Meeting his son’s clear, wide eyes made Jiang Rong suddenly feel a bit guilty. Even though he and Guan Shao had been involved for a while, he’d never explained their relationship to Xiaoheng. Now that Guan Shao was openly moving in, it felt like he was coming out in front of his son.
After a moment of hesitation, Jiang Xiaoheng asked, “Daddy, is Uncle Guan going to sleep with you tonight?”
Jiang Rong nodded. “Yeah.”
Xiaoheng’s eyes lit up. “Then Daddy, can me and big brother sleep with you too?” It had been a long time since Jiang Hao had slept with Daddy. Now even Uncle Guan got to sleep with him—so why not them? Jiang Rong was speechless.
“Please?” Xiaoheng pleaded sweetly. “Just one night. Just one night, okay?”
Jiang Rong and Guan Shao exchanged a look and smiled. “Okay, go get your blankets. We’ll all sleep together tonight.” It was also a good chance to keep an eye on Yuanyuan’s sleep on her first night here. The moment Jiang Rong agreed, Xiaoheng let out a cheer and ran back to his room to grab his thin duck blanket. “Yay! I’m going to sleep right between Daddy and Uncle Guan!”
The bed in Jiang Rong’s room was large—plenty of space for two adults. But adding three children between them made it a tight squeeze. Luckily, the weather was warm. Jiang Rong and Guan Shao decided to make a bed on the floor instead.
After laying out thick blankets side by side, a large floor bed quickly took shape. Xiaoheng immediately threw down his little blanket to claim the best spot, rolling around happily. “This is great! Daddy, can we sleep like this every night?”
Jiang Rong laughed and ruffled his son’s hair. “Didn’t we agree it was just for one night?”
Xiaoheng ducked under his blanket, giggling. He loved this bed, and he loved spending time with everyone even more.
Yuanyuan stood quietly beside the floor bed, hugging her cat, staring in a daze. She’d seen beds like this before—in the industrial park mall, where adults would sleep side by side at night. When it was cold, they’d curl up close, fast asleep, and she used to wonder how warm that must feel.
She had wanted to join them, to feel that same warmth, but every time she got close, the adults would yell at her to go away, saying she was dirty.
Yuanyuan looked down at her little dress, then glanced at the patchy fur on her cat. In the end, she squatted down and sat quietly on the floor beside the bedding. If she stayed here, maybe Daddy and the others wouldn’t mind.
Jiang Rong sat down on the floor bedding and tested the softness beneath him. Nodding in satisfaction, he said, “Not bad. Pretty comfortable.” Xiaoheng and Xiao Hao were already rolling around playfully. If the kids liked it, they could do this more often.
After tidying up, Jiang Rong waved at Yuanyuan. “Why are you sitting on the floor, little Yuanyuan? Come on, hop up here and sleep with us.”
Yuanyuan blinked, surprised. She pointed at herself. “Yuanyuan can sleep on this pretty bed too?”
Thinking about all that Yuanyuan had been through, Jiang Rong felt a sour ache in his chest. Just how much had this child suffered to think that a plain, simple floor bed was something beautiful?
He softened his voice. “Of course. This is your home now. You can do whatever you want.”
Yuanyuan blinked, then climbed to her feet and walked toward the floor bed. The moment her feet sank into the soft bedding, her eyes widened with delight. “Daddy, the bed is so soft!”
On her first day at Jiang Rong’s house, Yuanyuan felt like she was dreaming. She lay between her two older brothers, and when she stretched out her arms, she could touch both of their faces. As night fell and the house grew quiet, the boys quickly drifted off to sleep—but Daddy was still awake.
Jiang Rong sat on the floor, his back resting against the bed, flipping through documents. As he turned the pages, he spoke quietly to Uncle Guan. “Tomorrow, we’ll stop by the school and see if we can find a tutor for Yuanyuan.”
She was still very young, and Jiang Rong wasn’t sure how much of an educational foundation she had. If they just tossed her straight into school and she couldn’t keep up, she might end up hating it.
Guan Shao didn’t have experience raising kids, so he usually followed Jiang Rong’s lead on these matters. “Alright, whatever you say. We’ve still got Xiaoheng’s old textbooks around here somewhere. I’ll find them tomorrow for Yuanyuan.”
Jiang Rong nodded. “We’ll also need to get her some clothes. She’s a little girl—we can’t dress her like a boy. Oh, and we should go see Hanyu to get some medicine for Lai—er, Mimi. That cat’s lucky to have made it this far with her. Now that they’re with us, we’ll take good care of them.”
Guan Shao nodded. “Got it. I’ll take care of that. It’s getting late—let’s get some rest. We’ve got plenty to do tomorrow.”
Jiang Rong smiled and closed the book in his hands, glancing sideways at Guan Shao. “Think you’ll be able to sleep?”
Normally, this time of night was when the two of them would, well, deepen their connection. But tonight, with three kids between them, there was no chance of anything like that.
Guan Shao pulled up a light blanket and tucked it over the sleeping children. His eyes smoldered as they met Jiang Rong’s. “Nope. Let’s go stretch our legs a little. I’ve got some new techniques I’d like to show you.”
Jiang Rong’s lips twitched. He looked down at the kids, who were all breathing steadily, fast asleep. Guan Shao lowered his voice and teased, “What, is Captain Jiang scared?” Then he quietly climbed off the bedding, his eyes gleaming with mischief, like hooks tugging lightly at Jiang Rong’s heart. Jiang Rong’s breath hitched, his voice turning husky. “Not at all.”
The bedroom door opened with a gentle creak, then softly closed again. Inside, the three children slept sweetly. Outside, the spring night was full of warmth and promise.
*
Three days later, Yuanyuan walked through a gate holding Daddy’s hand, a brand-new backpack slung over her shoulders. As soon as they stepped inside, Jiang Rong held out his hand. “Hello, Teacher Yuan.”
The man inside was Yuan Qingquan, a friend of Jia Yuanqing. Since arriving at the Spark Base, Jia Yuanqing had been given an important position—he was now responsible for hosting and coordinating supporters from the Peace Base. Yuan Qingquan, formerly a professional educator, had been selected as a teacher at the Spark School.
Jiang Rong had listened to him give a lecture before and had been impressed by his patient, encouraging teaching style. He thought Yuan Qingquan would be the perfect tutor for Yuanyuan, which was why he’d brought her here today.
When Yuan Qingquan saw them enter, he lit up with excitement. “Captain Jiang! Hello, hello, please, have a seat. And this must be Yuanyuan? I’ve heard everything. Don’t worry—I’ll take good care of her.”
Jiang Rong smiled. “No pressure, Teacher Yuan. Just teach her like you teach your other students. Her learning style is a bit different, so if she does anything inappropriate, I hope you’ll help correct her.”
“Of course, of course. You can count on me,” Yuan Qingquan nodded eagerly. Without Captain Jiang and Jia Yuanqing, he didn’t know how long he would have survived. The fact that Jiang Rong was trusting him with his child meant a lot—and he would teach Yuanyuan with everything he had.
Yuan Qingquan had converted one of the rooms in his house into a small classroom. Inside, seven or eight children were already attending extra lessons. While Daddy and Teacher Yuan talked, Yuanyuan stood curiously at the door, peeking inside. Then she heard her name being called.
“Jiang Yuan, Jiang Yuan.”
Jiang Rong didn’t know what Yuanyuan’s original name had been, so after bringing her into the family, he had given her a formal name: Jiang Yuan. It was a name meant to stay with her for life. Unfortunately, she still wasn’t used to it.
Yuan Qingquan called her name several times, but she didn’t respond. Finally, Jiang Rong gently reminded her, “Yuanyuan, the teacher’s calling you.”
She blinked, snapped out of her daze, and answered quickly, “Here!” Daddy had told her: when a teacher called your name, you had to respond.
Yuan Qingquan smiled warmly. “Jiang Yuan, would you like to come to class with me?”
She instinctively looked up at Jiang Rong. He smiled and nodded. “Be good in class, and Daddy will come pick you up after, alright?”
Jiang Yuan nodded seriously. “Okay~”
Watching her disappear into the classroom with Teacher Yuan, Jiang Rong felt a twinge of anxiety. He lingered at the door, watching as she sat down properly with the other children. Only then did his heart finally settle.
It wasn’t the first time he’d dropped a child off for class, but every time, it still made him nervous. Maybe that was just what people meant by “the more you care, the more you worry.”
Just then, Jiang Rong’s phone rang.
Ever since Spark Base had set up a signal tower, people in the base had been able to use their phones again. He picked up the call, and Chu Qiang’s voice came through.
“Xiao Jiang, the Peace Base just released a death notice—Meng Liang is dead. Want to guess who’s taken over leadership?”
Jiang Rong’s voice turned serious. “Liu Heng?”
Chu Qiang smacked his leg on the other end. “Knew you’d guess it! You’re too sharp. Are you free now? If so, come by the conference room. We need to talk.”
Jiang Rong gave the classroom one last glance, then strode toward the exit. “On my way.”
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