Chapter 1310 - Trap 5
whatever it was, he could not push the blame onto someone else as the older brother. he was not a good older brother.
every time he thought about mu zixi, he could not help but blame himself. all these years, it was also this guilt that drove him to treat mu lingtian and mu lingshi much better to the point that even his own son, mu yuchen, was neglected…
however, even so, it could not make up for the regret he felt towards mu zixi.
when it came to this, mu tangchuan could not even compare to his son, mu yuchen. even though mu yuchen was indifferent as a person when it came to these kinds of things, he cherished them very much and took very good care of it…
mu lingshi could see the fatigue gathered between mu tangchuan’s brows, so she immediately said with concern for him, “father, don’t worry. i understand. it’s quite late. you’ve just finished work, so you must be quite hungry. quickly go home for dinner.”
mu tangchuan smiled and looked at her lovingly. “i’m alright. look what i’ve brought you.”
as he said this, he mysteriously lifted his arm, and mu lingshi saw that he held a box of food. she widened her eyes in surprise.
mu tangchuan quickly put the box of food on the table. when he opened it up, a strong aroma filled the air. mu lingshi sniffed it enjoyably and immediately could not help but cry out loudly and happily, “river snails and duck feet in claypot!”
this was mu linghsi’s favorite dish as a child. it was also one that mu tangchuan loved, but zhuang shurong did not let them have it at home because it was not hygienic! in fact, this dish needed to be very spicy for it to be flavorful. however, since mu tangchuan had a slight gastric problem, with the word ‘spicy’ included, zhuang shurong practically banned it.
mu lingshi now thought to herself that it had been quite a few years since she had had this dish.
“your mother’s strict, so i secretly bought the ingredients and borrowed the kitchen in the dining hall to cook this. try and see if it’s flavorful enough. i put quite a lot of chili, but you can handle the spice. try it… my authentic river snails and duck feet in claypot! but don’t tell your mother. otherwise, knowing her, she’ll smack me after this,” mu tangchuan smiled slightly and said as he carefully poured the food out.
mu lingshi watched mu tangchuan and could not help feel her heart go warm. suddenly, she felt something come up in her throat. she did not say anything as she just quietly watched mu tangchuan do his thing. her keen eyes noticed that in between his dark hair were some silver ones, then she sighed to herself.
“come, try this. you haven’t had it for quite a few years now, right? i’ve asked the doctor. it’s fine to have a bit.” mu tangchuan brought the small bowl to mu lingshi.
her heart was filled with even more emotions. she reached out to take it and said with her gaze lowered, “thank you, father…”
“mmm, eat it.” mu tangchuan smiled and withdrew his hands as he sat upright and watched quietly.
she fell silent for a long while and lowered her head to drink a sip of soup before asking softly, “father, since when did you get so much white hair on your head?”
upon hearing that, mu tangchuan smiled. “i’ve always had it. i’m soon to be 60 now, and your brother’s going to be 33 soon too. time waits for no man. in the blink of an eye, i’ve become old.”
when mu lingshi heard that, she was dazed for a while, then she said in a raspy voice, “father, you will always be young to me.”
“i can’t deny that i’m old. the world belongs to you young people right now. you and ah mo, as well as ah chen and your sister-in-law…you can live a full life. lingshi, this world is huge. you have to go out there, or you might think that this is all there is to the world and that life is unchanging. whether it’s work or travel, your time is in abundance, so you have to go out more, understand?”
mu tangchuan had found out about mu lingshi’s situation from mu yuchen and the doctor. he hoped that she would not end up like mu zixi, thus he tried to enlighten her.
mu lingshi picked up a pickled bamboo shoot and stuffed it into her mouth before she muttered, “i know, father…don’t worry, mu lingshi is mu lingshi. i will be like my parents and my brother. i’ll be a strong person. i won’t lean into depression.”
when mu tangchuan heard that, he nodded happily and gently patted her head. “alright, then i won’t go on too much about this. you’re quite like your mother too. she’s such an amazing person. not many people can beat her all these years. it’s good that you’re like her.”
feeling the light touch on her head, mu lingshi felt her heart go soft, and she felt choked up. finally, her eyes could not help but well up in hot tears, and her long eyelashes began to turn wet. she lowered her gaze and blinked hard as she silently nodded, yet she could not say a word…
“is it tasty?” mu tangchuan asked softly.
she then looked up at him and said while a little choked up, “it’s tasty. it’s the tastiest thing i’ve eaten…”
“is it too spicy?” when he noticed mu lingshi’s slightly wet eyes, mu tangchuan quickly poured her a cup of warm water. “come, have some water.”
mu lingshi shook her head. she held back her sobs and suddenly set aside the bowl and chopsticks to hug mu tangchuan while sobbing out loud, “father—”
her soft crying sounded like a helplessly lost little girl as large teardrops slid down her beautiful face. in a short while, it soaked mu tangchuan’s shirt at the shoulders.
mu tangchuan did not say anything. he just took a deep breath. after a while, he patted her shoulders. “don’t be sad. it will all be okay with mother and me and your brother around, okay?”
mu lingshi nodded hard with tears in her eyes. “father, i won’t be so stubborn anymore. i’ll definitely be a good daughter to you and mother. ah mo will be a good son-in-law. our family will always be harmonious. nothing’s more important than our family’s happiness and good health, father…”
upon hearing that, mu tangchuan felt moved too. “good…good…”
“quickly eat. it’s getting cold now.”
“mmm, it’s delicious. father, can you make this for me all the time?”
“of course, but we can’t tell your mother. she seems to be nearing menopause now, so she’s getting stricter,” mu tangchuan could not help but say.
when she heard that, mu lingshi just smiled and lifted a hand to wipe away her tears as she said, “father, you and mother are so loving! i hope that when i grow older, i can be like you and mother!”
“we’re an old couple now. where’s the loving? she’s been complaining about me recently!”