MHWFYYTMDF Chapter50

As the final second of the countdown on TV finished, the familiar, lively Spring Festival Gala march rang out, and the holiday atmosphere gradually grew strong.

Besides familiar faces like Neghmet Rakhman and Li Sisi, this year’s hosts included several new ones. Watching them speak animatedly with radiant smiles during the live broadcast, the program had become less and less interesting over the years but leaving the TV on in the background had already become an essential New Year’s Eve tradition in every household.

The He family’s living room was decorated festively and auspiciously. The servants who usually bustled around were given the night off, leaving only a few who were unwilling to go home for the New Year on duty.

On this special day, it was rare for the He family to all gather together. Father He, Mother He, the eldest brother, and He Muyan; the four of them were playing mahjong.

Tingting was lying on the sofa scrolling through Weibo, madly roasting the main blunders of the Gala along with the real-time trending topics. Out of the whole family, she was closest to the TV, not because she liked watching the Gala, but because this year’s show had invited a popular idol she was currently obsessed with. The performance was scheduled quite late, and the young girl was fully pumped with excitement, ready to stay up until dawn.

Song Li didn’t know much about mahjong and wasn’t skilled at it, so he could only watch the hand from behind He Muyan.

Coincidentally, He Muyan was exceptionally lucky today; after playing for half the day, he had won the most. Eldest Brother He was the biggest loser, ultimately shaking his empty pockets pitifully to signal that if he kept losing, he wouldn’t even have a dime left.

Mother He smiled and said, “Don’t look at how shrewd Yunchen is in business; when it comes to playing cards, he really can’t beat Muyan.”

He Yunchen leaned against the back of his chair while playing with a lighter on the tabletop, and smiled along, “Mom, you’re biased with those words. Nowadays, I wouldn’t dare claim to be shrewd in business in front of Muyan. Muyan managed to take his company public in just three years, and what’s most impressive is that its market value is substantial. I couldn’t do that even if I tried.”

As soon as He Yunchen finished speaking, Father He, who was sitting opposite him, snorted, “You two brothers have completely different working styles. Muyan’s company grew quickly because he has a sharp eye for projects, aggressive tactics, and the fearless spirit of a newborn calf. You are different; you’ve done decently enough over all these years taking steady steps forward by guarding such a large business like the He family.”

He Yunchen smiled and nodded, “Dad is right.”

After listening to them, Mother He raised her hand to rub her temples, “I just hate playing mahjong with you men. You can turn anything into a conversation about work; it gives me a headache. Can’t you just play mahjong quietly for a bit?”

He Yunchen raised an eyebrow while looking at his gentle and dignified mother, “Mom, as heaven is my witness, you were the one who brought this up first just now. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Xiao Song.”

Song Li was sitting in the back peeling pine nuts to eat without paying attention to what they were chatting about. Hearing someone suddenly call his name, he looked up at the person beside him in confusion, “What?”

He Yunchen was amused by his bewildered expression and burst out laughing.

Mother He couldn’t help smiling either, reaching out to pat her eldest son, telling him to mind himself and not scare people.

Song Li had no idea what was going on. Holding a pine nut in his fingers, he asked He Muyan in front of him in a low voice, “What is Eldest Brother laughing at?”

He Muyan popped a pine nut into his mouth and shook his head with a smile, “We were just joking around, it doesn’t matter if you didn’t hear it.”

Song Li nodded, peeled another one, and handed it to him.

Noticing the natural intimacy of their small gestures, He Yunchen said with no small amount of envy, “Muyan is truly blessed to meet someone like Xiao Song, who is so thoughtful and attentive to your needs.”

He Muyan held Song Li’s hand and placed it on his shoulder. Hearing this, he looked at him with a smile, “Eldest Brother, you’re only four or five years older than me, you’re right in the prime of your life. What kind of person couldn’t you find? You should also scout around carefully for yourself.”

Not knowing what he had thought of, He Yunchen lowered his eyes and shook his head with a smile, “It’s not as if you don’t know your eldest brother to still be telling me this kind of thing now.”

As soon as he finished speaking, several people at the table fell into silence. Their expressions varied, but their eyes all carried a sense of helplessness and regret.

Song Li glanced at the sorrowful Mother He, feeling a bit of emotional resonance in his heart.

Regarding He Yunchen’s matter, he had also accidentally heard He Muyan mention it before. He said that his eldest brother had suffered a very serious heartbreak when he was young, and from then on, he was unwilling to accept anyone ever again, even swearing to stay unmarried for life. Over this matter, Father He scolded him and raged at him, causing a scene even more severe than when He Muyan had left the He family back then.

Thinking about it, it was quite understandable. After all, he was the heir Father He had personally raised, investing countless efforts in him and placing such high hopes on him, yet now he had the audacity to say such rebellious things about never marrying for the rest of his life.

With the eldest son acting like this and the younger son following suit, the blow Father He suffered back then was truly substantial. Not only did half his hair turn white overnight, but much of the gloomy, ruthless nature of his youth was also worn away by friction.

Later, seeing that He Yunchen still managed the He Corporation very well for him, he gradually stopped dwelling on it so much. It was just that as time went by, the older generation grew older, and the children reached the age where they should start families, yet beneath their knees, other than these three disappointing children, they still lacked a single grandchild.

Song Li had appeared in the He family’s life at precisely this juncture.

Song Li always felt that the main reason he was accepted by the He family so quickly was largely thanks to the child in his belly at the time.

Thinking carefully about it, the matter still felt somewhat absurd and laughable. Even in the modern society of the 21st century, these so-called wealthy elite families were still trapped in the cage of feudal thinking that recognized a belly but not the person.

Fortunately, during his time interacting with the He family, he could feel their sincerity. Compared to the female celebrities marrying into wealthy families he usually saw in gossip news, he was still a hundred times more comfortable and relaxed.

After all, most of the time he stayed with He Muyan in their own home. Over the past few days, it was only because of the New Year that Mother He had repeatedly invited them, until they truly couldn’t bring themselves to refuse her hospitality any longer, so they brought the child along to celebrate the New Year with them.

The awkward atmosphere at the mahjong table didn’t last for long. Over on the side, Tingting, who was watching the Gala, was having a blast. Unsure if her idol had just taken the stage, she excitedly hugged a throw pillow, shouting “Laogong!” and “I love you!” repeatedly.

Father He scolded her for being noisy and unmannered, but then he pricked up his ears to listen carefully.

“Listen, do you hear a baby crying?”

Hearing him say this, Mother He also listened quietly for a moment before shaking her head, “There’s nothing at all.”

As she said this, she turned to Song Li and asked him, “Xiao Li, you’re more familiar with Niannian’s crying, did you hear anything?”

Song Li’s ears were filled only with the sounds of Tingting screaming “Laogong!” like crazy. He shook his head with a bitter smile, “No.”

Seeing the two of them so tense over this, He Yunchen found it quite amusing and couldn’t help smiling as he said, “I didn’t hear anything either. With the maternity nurse, Xiao Lian, taking care of him, even if the baby starts crying, she’ll know how to soothe him properly, so what’s there to worry about? Dad, I think you just get restless if you don’t see the child for even a moment. We’ve only been sitting here playing mahjong for a short while, and you’ve already heard Niannian crying five or six times.”

Father He lost face from his son’s words, and with a darkened expression, he cursed at him, “You stinky brat, always running your mouth.”

Mother He smiled as well, standing up and pounding her lower back with her hands, “My old back can hardly take any more sitting. Let’s stop playing, let’s stop playing. Since your father keeps fussing over Niannian, let’s head upstairs and take another look at him. Having not seen him for the past two hours, I miss him terribly too.”

“Are we going to see my chubby little nephew? I want to go too, I want to go too!”

Overhearing their conversation, Tingting tossed aside her pillow and came running over in leaps. Her little face was flushed with excitement, and dressed in her pink pig plush pajamas, she looked like a tiny pink dumpling as she threw herself onto Song Li and grabbed hold of his arm.

“Sister-in-law, let’s hurry, let’s go see my chubby nephew!”

Song Li was rocked side to side by her tugging. Before he could say anything, an arm reached out from the side and brushed her away. In the blink of an eye, Song Li, who had just been right in front of her, was pulled into her second brother’s arms.

Tingting crossed her arms in anger, resting her hands on her hips, “Second Brother, you stingy cheapskate, so stingy!”

He Muyan glanced at her, “If you keep mouthing off, you won’t be allowed to see Niannian. You’re far too noisy.”

Tingting refused to listen to him, wrinkling her nose as she ran ahead first, “I won’t wait for you guys, I’m going ahead to take a look myself!”

Looking at her running figure, Song Li said with amusement, “Why do you always take a kid so seriously?”

He Muyan gave an expressionless smile, “She’ll be seventeen after the New Year, yet she’s still so brazened every day. When I was her age, I had already traded stocks on my own and earned enough to buy a house.”

Song Li knew that he was only harsh in his words, but in truth still doted on his only younger sister. He just didn’t want her to be pampered to the point of lacking the ability to protect herself after leaving the family in the future.

The group headed upstairs to the baby room on the second floor in a grand procession. He Yunchen didn’t follow; he claimed that seeing that soft little creature made him dizzy with anxiety, fearing that his own clumsy hands wouldn’t know their own strength and might accidentally break the tiny thing, turning him into a major sinner in front of the whole family.

Song Li felt that the eldest brother’s words carried a touch of a tough guy’s tender heart.

When they pushed the door open, the maternity nurse Xiao Lian was packing away the diapers that had just been changed. Seeing a whole crowd burst in, she was long used to the sight. It was obvious that the young master in the cradle, who was only a few months old, was the whole family’s precious treasure. They would visit eight hundred times a day, nearly wearing down the threshold of the baby room.

Song Li walked over first and glanced at the little guy asleep in the cradle. Xiao Lian whispered to him, “He just drank his milk, got a fresh diaper, and fell asleep.”

Song Li nodded, “Thank you for your hard work. Go ahead and take a rest outside. We’ll call you back if we need anything.”

Xiao Lian nodded, bowed to the people behind him, and softly stepped out.

Tingting leaned over the cradle and stared inside. The little guy had a pacifier in his mouth, occasionally sucking on it a couple of times even in his sleep. His lips were plump and his cheeks were pink and tender. He inherited a set of excessively long eyelashes from He Muyan. It was very warm in the baby room, so he was only dressed in a thin layer of baby blue onesies. His two tiny hands were wrapped in matching little mittens to prevent him from scratching himself, curled up against his chest, remaining obediently motionless.

No matter how many times she looked at him, Tingting couldn’t help but gasp in wonder. She blinked her big eyes and held her hand over Niannian’s small face to measure, “He’s way too small! His head doesn’t even seem as big as my single hand.”

From behind, Mother He chuckled and whispered, “Our Niannian is actually considered quite big. Tingting, when you were born, you were premature. When I gave birth to you, you were less than five pounds, you were much smaller than Niannian.”

Tingting’s eyes widened, “Less than five pounds? That’s not even as big as my Naitang!”

Naitang was a British Shorthair Tingting kept. It was still very small, and even its meows sounded soft and milky.

Mother He thought for a moment, “That sounds about right.”

Tingting found it so magical that she looked down at Niannian again, extending a finger to poke his small cheek. The softness made her heart melt, and she turned to throw herself into Mother He’s arms, “Ahhh, he’s so cute! I really want to squeeze him so bad!”

Mother He didn’t understand what she meant by “squeeze,” but patted her hair and told her to keep her voice down.

The adults gathered around the crib to watch for a long while before Mother He started ushering everyone to head outside. Today was New Year’s Eve after all, and they still had to stay up to see the New Year in.

Song Li had been standing in the back without pushing to the front, and at this moment, he couldn’t help but cover his mouth and let out a yawn.

He Muyan walked up beside him, lowering his head to ask softly, “Are you tired?”

Song Li forced himself to perk up and shook his head, “I’m fine, I can hold out a bit longer.”

Seeing the tiredness on his face, He Muyan reached out to wrap an arm around his shoulders, looking up to call out to Mother He ahead of them, “Mom, Lili and I won’t be joining for the midnight vigil. Don’t stay up too late yourselves either; go to sleep when it’s about time.”

Song Li hadn’t expected him to say this so directly to Mother He and pulled on his sleeve in surprise.

Mother He turned around to look at them and agreed quite readily, walking over to hold and pat Song Li’s hand, “There are so many rules in our family, it must have been really exhausting these past couple of days. That was Mom being inconsiderate. It’s fine, staying up for the vigil is just for everyone to enjoy the atmosphere together. If you’re tired, you don’t need to go down. When Niannian wakes up in a bit, he’ll definitely be looking for his daddy, so just stay here with him and get a good rest.”

Looking at her affectionate eyes, Song Li nodded gently.

Mother He then looked at He Muyan to the side, “Muyan, don’t go downstairs either. With Xiao Li not around, I don’t think you could sit still anyway. Stay here and keep Xiao Li and Niannian company.”

Blushing at Mother He’s blunt words, Song Li felt rather embarrassed and walked to the side to look at Niannian.

Mother He said a few more words to He Muyan, but Song Li wasn’t in the mood to listen, his eyes filled only with his own little baby.

“You’ve been looking for so long, haven’t you had enough yet?” A warm embrace suddenly pressed against his back. Song Li was pulled into a waist-level hug from behind, followed by warm, wet kisses falling on the back of his ear and the nape of his neck.

Song Li nudged him with his elbow, “Is Mom gone?”

“She’s gone.”

Song Li still wouldn’t let him touch him, saying anxiously, “The door isn’t locked yet.”

He Muyan chuckled softly, “What does Lili want to do that requires locking the door?”

Song Li froze, realizing he was doing it on purpose, and turned his head to glare at him angrily, “It was clearly you who… mmm.”

His action of turning his head was no different from actively delivering a piece of juicy meat to He Muyan’s mouth. A light taste of his lips was far from enough; he turned Song Li around and pressed him against the crib behind them.

At first, Song Li was afraid that too much noise would wake the sleeping little guy, but because they had been busy with the New Year holidays over the past few days, they had been abstaining for far too long. Now, they were like two stacks of dry firewood, sending sparks flying crackling into the air the moment they rubbed together.

Not only could He Muyan not resist, but Song Li himself was also overcome with emotion. More than half the buttons on his pajamas had been undone, and He Muyan’s large hand had already slid inside, only to stop abruptly halfway.

Song Li let out a soft hum, opening his misty eyes to look at him, “What’s wrong?”

He Muyan said in a deep voice, “Niannian is watching us.”

A shiver went through Song Li’s body as he slowly turned his head to look back.

The little guy in the cradle had woken up at some point, his little pacifier twitching as he sucked with his dark, grape-like eyes staring straight in their direction.

Song Li: ……

Baby, your daddies are so sorry.