Chapter 88: Princess Carry
On a whim, Lin Xia snapped a photo of himself rubbing the White Dumpling’s belly and sent it to Tang Yinlang, subtly hinting that he wanted to touch the big white tiger’s belly.
Tang Yinlang didn’t quite get the hint and replied with a short message.
“Did An An eat too much?”
“…” You’re the one who ate too much! Lin Xia sneered. What an unromantic tiger.
“No, I’m playing with the baby’s belly.” Lin Xia replied anyway. Surely that’s obvious enough, right?
Tang Yinlang stared at the phone screen, wishing the tiger being touched by Lin Xia’s hand was him. “Mine is fun to play with too. Want to play with it when you get home?”
Lin Xia couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Not only did Tang Yinlang finally understand, but he also proactively offered. It was genuinely a pleasant surprise. In a great mood, his fingers flew across the keyboard.
“Sure, I’m going to play to my heart’s content tonight.”
“Mn.” Tang Yinlang agreed readily. The mere thought of being comfortably petted by Lin Xia made him impatient to get home.
“Awooo?” Daddy, are you chatting with Papa? The White Dumpling noticed that the hand rubbing his belly had slowed down, so he opened his eyes and saw Lin Xia on his phone.
“Yes.” Lin Xia lowered his gaze. The light fell upon his long, dense eyelashes, casting a small, shallow shadow.
The White Dumpling’s eyelashes took after his; they were thick and long, making his eyes look particularly spirited.
“Awooo!” An An wants to talk to Papa too! The White Dumpling scrambled up and shimmied over to Lin Xia’s right hand. He wanted to chat with Tang Yinlang too.
“You chat with him then.” Lin Xia left the phone to the White Dumpling and turned to the computer to do his own work.
The White Dumpling sprawled out on the counter, chatting with Tang Yinlang via WeChat. When they got to a happy topic, he would howl excitedly, causing Lin Xia to glance over involuntarily.
Watching the White Dumpling communicate with Tang Yinlang through the phone, Lin Xia felt a mix of sweetness and slight wistfulness. Sweet, because the bond between Tang Yinlang and the White Dumpling was strong; wistful, because even though they were in the same district, work kept them apart from morning till night, leaving them to connect only through a screen.
Thinking of this, Lin Xia felt fortunate that he had chosen to be a freelancer and a small shop owner rather than a corporate white-collar worker. Not only did he have freedom in his work, but he could also be with the White Dumpling at all times. Compared to many parents who had to clock in at an office, he was incredibly lucky.
The White Dumpling was happy too, because his Daddy could accompany him anytime. Although his Papa couldn’t always be there, it was still much better than it was for other kids. Some children’s parents had to work and only came back at night; sometimes, if they returned late, the children were already asleep.
…
The White Dumpling chatted until Tang Yinlang had to go back to work. He put down the phone and ran into Lin Xia’s arms, rubbing against him furiously until his smooth fur was all messed up. But Lin Xia knew this was just the White Dumpling showing his happiness.
“What made you so happy?” Lin Xia amusedly tapped the White Dumpling’s nose. Tang Yinlang must have said something specific to make him this ecstatic. Lin Xia had been too busy with his spreadsheets to eavesdrop.
“Awooo!” Papa said he’s going to buy sunglasses for Daddy and An An! The White Dumpling jumped up, raising a paw in a pose he thought was majestic and domineering. He really envied the people in TV dramas who wore sunglasses; he thought they looked so cool. But since Lin Xia hadn’t visited an eyewear shop, the matter of buying sunglasses had been delayed.
In their chat just now, the two tigers had somehow gotten onto the topic of glasses, and the White Dumpling thought of sunglasses. Brother Meng Zheng and Brother Ziyu had sunglasses, and the Little Hamster brother even got sunglasses when he went to Hainan. Only he and Lin Xia didn’t have any.
It was true that Lin Xia didn’t have sunglasses. Between opening the shop and taking care of the White Dumpling, he rarely had the chance to go on vacations, and since he didn’t need them for daily use, he hadn’t bought any.
Who knew that after listening to this, Tang Yinlang would plan to buy them a pair? He promised to take the father and son to pick out sunglasses tomorrow morning.
Knowing this, Lin Xia smiled faintly. Once the sunglasses were bought, his phone gallery would surely be filled with the White Dumpling’s selfies again.
However, he wondered if Tang Yinlang would buy a pair with them. A family of three traveling in matching sunglasses would certainly be eye-catching…
“Awooo…” Daddy, when the time comes, you have to take pictures of An An wearing sunglasses. An An wants to show everyone… The White Dumpling rolled over, tumbling back into Lin Xia’s arms to act spoiled.
“I’m wondering, who did you inherit this vanity from?” Lin Xia chuckled.
“Awooo!” An An isn’t vain, An An is just appreciative! The White Dumpling waved his paws in defense. Brother Meng Zheng and Brother Ziyu said so—this isn’t called vanity; at most, it’s self-appreciation.
“…” Lin Xia laughed despite himself, unable to resist poking the “quibbling” little tiger a few times, making the cub howl playfully.
How could there be such a cute little tiger! Lin Xia exclaimed inwardly, though his hands didn’t stop moving.
The father and son played around when there were no customers and did their own thing when people came in. Soon, the afternoon passed, and it was time to close up and go home.
Tang Yinlang got off work early today and came to pick Lin Xia and the White Dumpling up. He had brought some cured meat (larou) from his grandmother’s house, so Lin Xia planned to make cured meat fried rice for dinner.
They stopped at the market where Lin Xia bought carrots, vegetables, peas, green onions, and the meat the White Dumpling loved.
Seeing the meat, the White Dumpling clapped his paws in delight. So it wasn’t just fried rice! Although fried rice was delicious, a meal without meat would make a tiger depressed.
Back home, the couple worked together seamlessly and quickly whipped up dinner. The White Dumpling ate the fragrant cured meat fried rice, gnawed on large chunks of meat, and drank seaweed and egg drop soup. He was indescribably satisfied.
By the time the White Dumpling finished, his face was greasy, and his snow-white fur was dirty and stuck together in clumps.
Faced with a grimy little tiger, Lin Xia showed no mercy, tossing him into a large basin of warm water to clean him up before allowing him into the bathtub.
After the bath, Lin Xia and the White Dumpling watched a TV drama together. It was Liu Shihuan’s new show, a must-watch for them. Tang Yinlang, after showering, transformed into a giant white tiger sized perfectly for the sofa, letting Lin Xia and the White Dumpling lean on him. This allowed Lin Xia to watch TV while playing with the big white tiger’s belly.
The big white tiger’s belly wasn’t as soft as the White Dumpling’s; beneath the long white fur lay solid muscle. After rubbing it for a while, Lin Xia lost interest. It was too hard; he might as well rub his own. Lin Xia rarely exercised, so he had a little bit of soft flesh on his stomach. It wasn’t flab, just soft to the touch. When the White Dumpling was smaller, he loved to sleep on Lin Xia’s stomach.
Seeing Lin Xia let go, the big white tiger narrowed his eyes, feeling a bit annoyed. Not willing to be lonely, the big white tiger used his thick, long tail to hook around Lin Xia’s arm, refusing to let go.
Since his hands were idle, Lin Xia started playing with the big white tiger’s tail. Unexpectedly, he opened the door to a new world. The tail was fluffy and felt amazing to the touch. Lin Xia couldn’t put it down, and the big white tiger let him do as he pleased.
“Awooo!” Brother Shihuan is so handsome! When An An grows up, he wants to be cool like Brother Shihuan! When the episode ended, the White Dumpling jumped up in excitement and shouted.
“Roar?” The big white tiger felt a sourness in his heart. Isn’t a child’s idol supposed to be his father? What’s this about the White Dumpling liking Liu Shihuan?
“But speaking of which, will Liu Shihuan really come to Jiang City? He wasn’t just joking, was he?” Lin Xia said with some hesitation. He really hoped Liu Shihuan would come, but he worried it might have just been polite social talk.
“Roar.” I don’t know, but I know him. It shouldn’t be a joke. The big white tiger replied, and the White Dumpling translated.
“Awooo!” Papa says Brother Shihuan should be coming! The White Dumpling bounced happily.
After TV, it was time to go upstairs to sleep. The big white tiger climbed the stairs with the White Dumpling on his back. The scene was incredibly comical, and Lin Xia recorded a video while trying not to laugh.
Lying together in bed, the big white tiger told the White Dumpling a bedtime story using beast language.
“Roar…” Once upon a time…
Lin Xia couldn’t understand, so he sat at the desk to settle the accounts. The income today was average, but there was still a surplus. Currently, the pet shop’s revenue and expenses were stable, so Lin Xia didn’t have to worry too much.
“Doing the accounts?” Tang Yinlang had coaxed the White Dumpling to sleep and, at some point, transformed back into human form. He walked silently behind Lin Xia, watching the pen tip scratch across the paper, leaving behind elegant, neat characters.
“Finished.” Lin Xia capped the pen and closed the notebook. He stretched his neck and hands, relieving the fatigue from sitting so long. “Is it a lot less than what you earn?”
“It is a lot less.” The corners of Tang Yinlang’s mouth curled into a faint arc as he embraced the man from behind. “But what’s mine is yours. It doesn’t matter how much or how little you earn.”
“Oh, come on. Even without relying on you, the baby and I could live very well,” Lin Xia said faintly. Although he said it, his heart felt warm.
But his words weren’t wrong. The money he earned, as long as it wasn’t squandered, was enough to give him and the White Dumpling a comfortable, middle-class life. His demands weren’t high; he didn’t crave a wealthy, aristocratic lifestyle. Living like that was exhausting.
“I’ve always regretted it. If I hadn’t left, we wouldn’t have missed out on each other.” And I wouldn’t have let you suffer… Tang Yinlang rested his chin on Lin Xia’s soft hair, his expression dispirited. He held Lin Xia tightly, terrified of losing him again.
“Don’t be like that.” Lin Xia gently patted his arm, comforting him. “It might not have been a bad thing. The me from back then might not have fallen in love with you; I might have even hated you…”
“You’re right.” Tang Yinlang thought about that scenario. With his personality, he would have forcibly kept Lin Xia by his side. If he had done that, Lin Xia would have hated him, right? Lin Xia seemed gentle, but he was stubborn to the bone. He had his own mind and wouldn’t change easily.
“See? We are mutually in love now. Isn’t that better than ‘forced love’?” Lin Xia smiled and said lightly.
“Forced love?” Tang Yinlang looked a bit confused. What was this new term?
“Uh… that’s not important.” Lin Xia changed the subject; he was embarrassed to explain that term to Tang Yinlang. “Let’s sleep?”
“Mn.” As soon as the words fell, Tang Yinlang scooped Lin Xia up in a princess carry.
“Put me down!” Lin Xia gave a wry smile. What is a grown man doing getting princess-carried? I’m not a little girl.
“I won’t. Let me hold you for a bit.” Tang Yinlang firmly refused to comply with Lin Xia’s request.
“…” Lin Xia felt like a lit match near firecrackers—about to explode.
“Be good.” Tang Yinlang’s voice was utterly doting, sounding so good it felt like an electric current zap, leaving Lin Xia feeling tingly and numb.
“Fine.” Lin Xia was helpless and could only let him be. Although the posture was humiliating, who doesn’t have a bit of an inner princess…
Author’s note: White Dumpling: “Awooo?” Daddy, is An An a little princess? Lin Xia (smiling mischievously): “Of course. Come, put on this little pink skirt first…”
Sorry for the missed update yesterday~ Thanks to Passerby A for the landmine (donation), ^3^ Mwah!
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