He was in a bad mood now as he was under frustration. It felt like something bad had happened – it was similar to last time when Yan Huan went missing. He was afraid that the same incident would occur again and fearful of losing her once again.
It was not easy for them to finally return to their peaceful life so he really did not wish to be involved in any further turmoil.
Their three children must not lose their mother either.
He closed his eyes and exhaled gently from time to time. However, his heart ached along with his breathing, not to mention getting increasingly severe and agonizing with every breath.
As he was almost out of control, a tiny hand grasped his fingers. He opened his eyes and looked down to find Xunxun tiptoeing. She was using all her might to clasp her father's fingers while smiling at him.
Lu Yi crouched down and touched his daughter's little face.
"Are you hungry, Xunxun?"
Xunxun first nodded, then shook her head hard.
"Why, not hungry?" Lu Yi knew his daughter, she was hungry as he could clearly hear the grunting sound coming from her tummy.
"Hungry." Xunxun touched her flat belly.
Then, she lifted her face as she uttered in her childlike voice, "Xunxun wants to eat the food cooked by Mama. Daddy, when will Mama be back?"
She was very hungry but still insisted on tasting her mother's cooking.
Lu Yi held his daughter up, put her on the couch, and waved at his sons, signaling them to walk over. "Xiao Qi and Xiao Guang, come to Daddy."
Both Lu Qi and Lu Guang came over and stood in front of their father obediently.
"Are you hungry yet, my dear sons?"
Lu Yi asked his two sons.
Lu Qi and Lu Guang nodded simultaneously. Xunxun winked, sucking her plum-like finger silently.
Lu Yi took them in his arms, and at this moment he felt an unbearable sense of grievance.
These three children in the family were obedient, especially Xiao Qi and Xiao Guang as they never let others worry about them. After all, they were mere children who were below three years old, yet they would have to bear with hunger. Still, this did not cause them to throw a tantrum.
If they were children in common, they might have started crying or made a nuisance of themselves.
"Let daddy cook you all some noodles, alright?"
The three children shook their heads at the same time.
"I want to eat the food cooked by Mama," Xunxun was persistent. Although Xiao Qi and Xiao Guang did not say a word, they persistently declared their stand. They also wanted to taste their mother's cooking because their mother had promised them and she would certainly keep her words.
Lu Yi stood up and made a phone call to Ye Shuyun, asking her to head over. These three children were here so he could do nothing much. He went into the kitchen, and after a while, he took out three milk bottles, intending to let the three little ones drink it each.
Xiao Qi and Xiao Guang had already grabbed the bottles in their hands while Xunxun was not willing to give in.
"It doesn't matter." Lu Yi placed the bottle on his daughter's hand. "Baby, even if you drink this, you can still eat the food that Mama cooks later."
Upon hearing that, she decided to take the bottle with both her hands and start drinking obediently. All three children were already starving so they managed to finish up the bottle of milk within a few minutes.
Xunxun rubbed her eyes occasionally but she was reluctant to sleep. Lu Yi knew she was looking for her mother, hence he carried Xunxun in his arms and coaxed her.
"Daddy, where is Mama?" Xunxun still did not want to sleep. She had obviously rubbed her eyes until it was red but still insisted not to sleep. She wanted to wait for her mother to come back, wanted her to coax and talk to her.
"Xunxun can take a nap first. Mama will be back soon."
"Really?" Xunxun clenched her father's fingers. "If Xunxun falls asleep, will Mama really come back?"
"Yes." Lu Yi smiled at his daughter. However, he was not sure whether she would actually return home. His heart was experiencing real torture amid the unceasing pain.
He lifted his daughter up as he instructed Lu Qi.
"Xiao Qi, take your younger brother to bed."
Xunxun was sleepy and she was already fast asleep now. Lu Qi and Lu Guang had also done drinking their milk. It was a habit of them to get drowsy in no time after drinking milk.
Otherwise, Lu Yi would not let them drink milk as now was their mealtime and milk powder was not sufficient to satisfy their daily nutrient intake.
"Alright." Lu Qi was a good boy. He grabbed his brother's hand and headed into the room. He turned around and shot a glance at his father. His eyes reddened out of expectation.
Is our mother not coming back anymore? Is she abandoning us?
He felt the urge to cry but he was not brave enough to do it.
He was a precocious boy, the most prematurely developed among the three children. He was considered more advanced than an average child. Hence, he could sense that his father was not in the mood to talk due to sadness.
Is it because of our mother who is not back yet?
Is it because of our mother who failed to cook for us?
In the past, once they returned home, their mother would have done preparing a table full of dishes for them.
"Big Brother, where is Mama?" Xiao Guang tugged his elder brother's sleeve as he asked.
"Once we wake up, Mama will be back." Lu Qi himself climbed onto the bed and Xiao Guang followed suit. The brothers took off their shoes and socks. Lu Guang was already in the quilt as Lu Qi was struggling to pull the quilt to cover his younger brother and himself.
Lu Guang soon fell asleep after yawning.
However, Lu Qi was tucked in the quilt, biting the back of his hand while crying surreptitiously.
Mama does not want us anymore. What can we do now?
What if Mama does not come back again?
I miss Mama.
After a while, the door opened from the outside. Lu Qi stopped crying and inserted his head into the quilt.
Lu Yi placed his sleeping daughter between the two brothers, then he pulled the quilt over her and caressed her daughter's small face. As he turned around, a silkworm baby hiding in the quilt came into view.
He heaved a sigh and stretched out his hand to pull the quilt to find Xiao Qi hiding in it, weeping.
Among the three children, Xunxun was the most clingy child, Xiao Guang was the most heartless, and Xiao Qi was the most sensitive child.
"Don't cry, big boy."
Lu Yi carried his son and wiped his face. He found that Xiao Qi had cried until his face turned red, even his nose was red. He seldom cried and he did not like to shed tears. If he did cry, it must be because of him trying to cry along with his younger brother and sister.
"Daddy." Xiao Qi grabbed Lu Yi's clothes. "Does Mama abandon us again?"
Yan Huan used to disappear once, hence the three children had not mentally recovered from it. They still felt as though Yan Huan would leave them again.. They were afraid that she would leave so they paid extra attention to stop her from leaving them.
