Witty Wife, Better Life

Chapter 291: Chapter 281 Taxue’s Spoils of War

Shen Yunfang left Commander Wu’s house and hurried back to her own. Upon arriving, she immediately poked at the stove to stoke the fire. Then, she cracked the door open to ventilate the place, ensuring the air was fresh and the room was warm, before she began to unwrap the small quilt from around her child.

Little Pangpang was quite displeased, protesting to his mother with a series of grunts and ultimately raising his tiny fists indignantly.

"Did you have a hard day, son? Wait until mommy makes you something delicious tonight," Shen Yunfang kissed her son’s little cheek with affection.

Pangpang was restless inside the quilt at Commander Wu’s house, constantly wriggling and kicking, trying to escape from his confines. He had never been bound hand and foot for such a long time, at least not while awake, and therefore was quite unhappy about it.

It was only after Shen Yunfang firmly held him did he settle down for a bit. Seeing her son on the verge of tears, she quickly took her leave and headed home.

Luckily, having been kissed by his mom, little Pangpang cheered up with wide eyes, babbling away as if to chat with her.

Seeing her son’s happiness, Shen Yunfang wasn’t in a hurry to cook. She took off her shoes and laid down next to him, gently teasing and talking to him intermittently. Although she hadn’t had children in her previous life, she knew a bit about child-rearing.

For example, talking to a baby often is extremely beneficial for their development of language skills. Each sentence spoken by an adult can have a profound impact on a child’s brain cells. While she didn’t know how advanced her child would eventually become, since such practices were known to be helpful, as a mother, she was certainly going to do her utmost to provide for him.

So, when Li Hongjun arrived home with a weather-beaten face, he saw the large and small figures on the Kang bed. The larger was babbling about something, and the smaller responding with earnest ’ah ah’, creating an indescribably harmonious and warm atmosphere.

Shen Yunfang heard the door open and, looking up, saw Li Hongjun enter. "You’re back," she then lowered her head to her son and said, "Son, Daddy’s back, isn’t he? Mommy was right, wasn’t she? Say hello to Daddy." She picked up her son’s little paw and waved it in Li Hongjun’s direction.

Pangpang obligingly let out a loud ’ah’, as if he was indeed greeting his father.

Li Hongjun was amused. This truly was his son, who recognized his own dad at just over a month old. Thinking so, he walked over to the Kang to give his eldest son a kiss, just like his wife had.

"Hey, what are you doing? Don’t come so close with all that cold on you. Hurry up and take off your outer clothes," Shen Yunfang swiftly intercepted Li Hongjun’s movements. Although her son, having taken Essence of Life, was definitely strong, it was still better to be cautious.

Li Hongjun glanced at his worn military overcoat, quickly took it off, and warmed his hands and face by the stove before approaching the Kang with a charming smile. He first planted a kiss on his wife’s lips, and then lowered his head to kiss his son’s little cheek.

Shen Yunfang blushed a bit from the kiss in front of their son and playfully scolded him, "You’re not acting your age."

"You’re wrong about that. I am a real man, loving towards my wife and child," Li Hongjun boasted unapologetically. Of course, his actions followed his words, as he took off his heavy cotton shoes and squeezed onto the Kang.

"All you know is sweet talk," Shen Yunfang threw him a coquettish glance.

"Look at this, look at this. Are you even being reasonable anymore? You criticize me even when I’m practical, and you don’t believe me even when I show heartfelt loyalty. Come here, I’ll show you what it’s like without any smooth talk." Li Hongjun said as he reached out to embrace his wife.

Shen Yunfang wouldn’t let him succeed. He was the same before marriage, and it hadn’t changed after. Once they had a child, he had become even more different—of course, she was referring to how Li Hongjun acted at home, in front of her. Outside, he still maintained a very steady and experienced façade.

"Don’t start with me now. It’s perfect timing that you’re back. Chat with your son for a bit. I’m going to cook. I promised your son that I’d make him something delicious today." Shen Yunfang dodged Li Hongjun’s arm, got down from the Kang, put on her shoes, and got ready to light the fire and cook.

"Son, your mom’s ignoring us two, but dad’s here for you, right? Come on, daddy will keep you company. What shall we chat about? You start." The silly dad began to natter to his son.

Shen Yunfang listened to Li Hongjun’s tone-deaf monologue, pondering what to cook for father and son that evening. Of course, her own son couldn’t eat yet, so she’d have to eat his portion on his behalf.

No sooner had she stepped out the door when she saw Taxue standing in the middle of the path, tongue lolling, wagging its tail incessantly at her, and most importantly, with something bloody and unrecognizable in front of it.

"Wuu wuu..." As soon as Taxue saw its mistress come out, it eagerly nudged the thing on the ground toward her, whining and whimpering incessantly.

"What is this?" Shen Yunfang wasn’t scared; Taxue in her home had standards, always catching things worth catching while at home, like frogs or sparrows. As for things that repelled people, like mice, it never ate those—or at least she never knew if it did in private.

"Wuu wuu... woof..." Taxue nudged the thing on the ground again, staining its relatively clean head with specks of blood.

Seeing Taxue’s dirty appearance, Shen Yunfang couldn’t help frowning; it was quite a sight—just one outing and it returned in such a sorry state, like a messy little child.

However, now wasn’t the time to talk about that; as its owner, she needed to be considerate of Taxue’s feelings.

Shen Yunfang crouched down and carefully pulled apart the bloody mess on the ground to reveal two large ears, only then realizing it was a rabbit, albeit one Taxue must have bitten rather savagely—it wasn’t immediately recognizable.

"Li Hongjun, what’s the deal with this dead rabbit Taxue brought?" Shen Yunfang shouted into the house.

Smart as Taxue was, it was still a dog that couldn’t speak. If she wanted clarity, she had to ask the person who accompanied it.

"That’s the one Taxue caught by itself in the mountains. I said it was its first prey here, no need to hand it over to the family, let it deal with it itself." Li Hongjun shouted from inside the house, actually because he disapproved a bit; Taxue didn’t hunt often, so it didn’t know its own strength. A perfectly good rabbit ended up mauled beyond recognition. Hmm, next time he’d have to train it, otherwise it would be a waste of a rabbit.

On hearing that Taxue had caught it itself, Shen Yunfang reached out to pat its big head to encourage it, but her hand paused mid-air as there was no clean place to touch—its head was still smeared with rabbit blood.

"Taxue, good job." Shen Yunfang could only offer verbal praise.

Taxue, with its tongue hanging out, panted as it frantically circled around Shen Yunfang and the dead rabbit, not knowing how to show off, as the old folks would say.

"What do you mean, you’re giving it to me?" Shen Yunfang tentatively asked, seeing Taxue’s behavior.

Taxue attempted to snuggle against her, but she promptly braced her hands to keep Taxue at bay. "Hold on, don’t rub against me, you’re filthy. I’ll boil some water in a bit and have your doggy daddy give you a good bath."

Understanding her words, Taxue whimpered, tucked its tail between its legs, turned and ran off, hiding in its own little nest to lick its wounds. They were all meanies, and it was never going to be nice to them again.

Shen Yunfang couldn’t help but laugh at its tail-tucked, scurrying bear-like run; guessing a bath must be Taxue’s Achilles’ heel.