Chapter 80: Chapter 80: I Want a Child Too

“Oh my, you shouldn’t have! Please, come in and sit down!”

Seeing the items Lu Xiao was carrying, Li Haixin quickly took them and welcomed them in.

Zhang Cui brewed some tea. It was the most common kind, made from tea dust, but it was steaming hot and carried the warmth of home.

Lu Xiao helped Su Tang sit down on a wooden chair inside, then pulled over a small stool for himself, sitting beside her. His long legs seemed to have nowhere to go.

When the topic turned to that day’s events, Zhang Cui was still shaken. Her eyes reddened as she said, “It was all thanks to you, sister, and everyone else… And Brother Lu, I heard you…”

“Just doing my duty.”

Lu Xiao cut her off, his voice calm as if he had only handled a trivial matter.

He picked up the coarse teacup and blew on the steam, his movements steady. But Su Tang keenly noticed that the knuckles of the hand holding the cup had turned slightly white.

Under the table, she quietly placed her hand over his tightly clenched fist.

Lu Xiao’s body stiffened almost imperceptibly.

Then, beneath her soft, warm palm, his tense fist slowly unfurled.

He turned his hand over to grasp hers, his thumb gently caressing the back of her delicate hand in a soothing gesture.

This subtle interaction was noticed by Zhang Cui, who was pouring more water.

She pursed her lips into a smile and didn’t point it out, simply remarking with a sigh, “You’re a lucky woman, sister. Camp Commander Lu looks so stoic, but he really dotes on his wife.”

Su Tang’s face grew redder. She tried to pull her hand back, but Lu Xiao only held it tighter.

He took a sip of tea without a change in expression, as if he hadn’t heard Zhang Cui’s words. He simply kept hold of Su Tang’s hand, resting it naturally on his own leg.

Li Haixin called from the kitchen that the food was ready, and Zhang Cui got up to help.

Only Su Tang, Lu Xiao, and Mai Sui, who was fiddling with her toys, were left in the room.

Sunlight streamed through the small window, casting mottled patterns of light and shadow on the simple cement floor.

Lu Xiao turned slightly, his tall frame enveloping Su Tang in a small patch of shadow.

He looked down at her, his gaze tracing the features of her face, from her smooth forehead to her trembling eyelashes, and then… to her lips, slightly pursed in shyness.

Lu Xiao’s eyes were deep, like a bottomless pool, swirling with emotions only Su Tang could understand.

His gaze made Su Tang’s heart race and her cheeks burn. She instinctively wanted to look away.

“Does it still hurt?”

Lu Xiao suddenly spoke, his voice so low that only the two of them could hear.

His free hand rose with extreme naturalness, his fingertips gently brushing over the fabric covering her side.

The touch was as light as a feather, yet it carried a searing heat.

“It stopped hurting a long time ago…”

Su Tang’s voice was as faint as a mosquito’s buzz. Where his fingertips had grazed, it felt as if a tiny electric current had shot through her, sending a tingling numbness through her body.

“I want Auntie to play with me!”

Just then, Mai Sui’s voice piped up beside them. Su Tang quickly pulled her hand away and went over to the little girl.

Mai Sui held up a faded cloth doll, her chubby little hand tugging on the corner of Su Tang’s shirt. When she looked up, her eyelashes cast a fan-shaped shadow on her face.

Su Tang smoothly crouched down. As her hair fell forward, the ends brushed against the child’s flushed cheeks, making Mai Sui giggle.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Lu Xiao still half-turned, the teacup poised over his knee.

Through the wafting steam, those deep, pool-like eyes were fixed on her back.

“How about Auntie teaches you to fold a paper boat?”

Su Tang pulled a crumpled candy wrapper from her pocket. Her fingertips flew, and a small golden boat quickly began to take shape.

Mai Sui’s attention was captured. She leaned over the wooden table, craning her neck on her tiptoes to watch.

Lu Xiao set down his teacup. At some point, he had moved to stand by the table, his shadow completely covering the small paper boat.

“You have to fold it like this.”

He suddenly reached out, his well-defined fingers closing around Su Tang’s wrist with an irresistible force as he flipped the candy wrapper over.

Su Tang caught the faint scent of soap on him and realized with burning ears that Lu Xiao wasn’t teaching Mai Sui at all.

Mai Sui clapped her hands happily. The candy-wrapper boat was now folded with sharp, distinct corners, glistening in the sunlight.

When Lu Xiao released her hand, Su Tang saw the thin sheen of sweat on his palm.

’And here I thought he wasn’t nervous at all. Turns out he’s even more nervous than I am.’

Just then, Li Haixin’s shout came from the kitchen, announcing that the meal was served.

Lu Xiao took a few steps back, putting some distance between himself and Su Tang.

The four of them ate a joyful meal together. Before they left, Lu Xiao placed some gift money under a teacup.

After leaving Li Haixin’s house, Lu Xiao held Su Tang’s hand tightly.

Lu Xiao suddenly let out a soft laugh. “Seeing how close Mai Sui was with you… I’m a little envious.”

He stopped walking and said to Su Tang in a low, husky voice, “Tangtang, I want a child, too… A child with your eyes.”

His words were like a stone dropped into a deep pool, sending a thousand ripples through Su Tang’s heart.

She snapped her head up, her gaze crashing into Lu Xiao’s searing one.

A suspicious blush crept up the tips of the man’s ears, but he continued to look straight at her.

It was as if he wanted to burn all his secret desires onto her with his gaze.

Sunlight filtered through his eyelashes, casting tiny flecks of light in the bottom of his eyes.

It made his usually stern eyes now brim with tenderness and anticipation.

“Lu Xiao…”

Su Tang opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say.

The heat in her cheeks kept rising. She almost felt the urge to turn and flee.

“You’re teasing me again.”

“I’m not.”

Lu Xiao took a step closer, his warm breath brushing against her ear.

“Ever since you risked yourself to save someone, I couldn’t stop thinking… If we had a child, I’d have one more person to worry about. But I also can’t help but think that if we had a child, they’d be the most adorable little person in the world.”

“They’d sweetly call us ’Mama’ and ’Papa,’ just like Mai Sui.”

’It wouldn’t matter if it was a boy or a girl,’ Lu Xiao thought, ’but I think I’d prefer a daughter.’

’A sweet-smelling, soft little girl, just like Su Tang.’

While Lu Xiao was lost in his blissful fantasy, Su Tang felt mortified that he was talking about such things in the middle of the street.

She quickened her pace for a couple of steps. Just as she rounded a corner piled with junk, a figure suddenly appeared on the path ahead, seemingly walking toward them.

It was Su Xinyao.

She was wearing a slightly worn floral blouse and blue trousers, carrying a small net bag filled with apples.

Seeing Su Tang and Lu Xiao, her steps faltered noticeably. Then, a perfectly measured, surprised smile instantly appeared on her face as she quickened her pace to greet them.

“Su Tang? What a coincidence!”

Su Xinyao’s gaze swept quickly over Su Tang’s face before landing on her side.

“I’ve been on duty at the hospital the last two days and haven’t had a moment to spare. I was just thinking about finding time to come see you. I heard you were injured at the wedding the other day? Was it serious?”

As she spoke, she reached out as if to take Su Tang’s hand, the gesture looking completely natural.

Su Tang subtly shifted to the side, avoiding her hand. A polite but distant smile was on her face. “Sister Xin Yao, I’m fine. It was just a small scrape. It’s already healed.”

’Alarm bells rang faintly in her mind.’

’Su Xinyao appearing here was definitely not a coincidence.’

’There was something about her attitude that was highly suspicious.’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep