Xiao Xiao, craning her little face as big as a palm, looked at Cao Yuan in awe and surprise, "Uncle, really? Can we?"
Cao Yuan was not good at cajoling children, especially since he appeared rather stern, which scared children sotis. Therefore, he didn’t dare say much but instead, he turned around, took off his backpack, squatted down, and showed her through his actions that he could carry her.
Right then, Xiao Xiao happily climbed onto Cao Yuan’s back, "Thank you, Uncle. I’ve never been carried on soone’s back like how Dad would do, it was always my mom carrying . But I’m afraid she would get too tired, so I didn’t let her carry all the ti. You are so kind, Uncle!"
The girl tilted her head and playfully giggled at Cao Yuan. When Cao Yuan looked sideways and saw her radiant little face, he felt his heart completely ward.
"Good girl, Uncle will take you ho."
Just then, Gong Mingxia turned around and saw this scene. She imdiately wanted to intervene but was stopped by Aunt Wang.
"Silly child, didn’t you hear what Xiao Xiao said? A child craves fatherly love. It’s rare that my son is taking the initiative like this, so let him carry the child and take her ho. It’s not tiring him, so why be so anxious?"
"Auntie, this is too embarrassing, I still—"
Aunt Wang went straight over, took Cao Yuan’s backpack, and handed it to Gong Mingxia, "If you feel embarrassed, then carry his bag for him. After all, Xiao Xiao isn’t much heavier than a backpack,"
Despite saying this, Gong Mingxia still blushed and gave Cao Yuan, who indeed looked quite stern, an embarrassed smile.
"Brother Cao, I’m so sorry. Thank you for your efforts."
Cao Yuan simply nodded faintly at Gong Mingxia and continued walking forward with Xiao Xiao on his back. Gong Mingxia was stunned for a mont but soon she was pulled along by Aunt Wang.
Outside, she didn’t feel anything out of the ordinary, but as they approached the neighborhood, they t more and more acquaintances. She didn’t mind, because she knew none of them, but they all knew the Cao family. With Cao Yuan carrying her daughter and her carrying his backpack, Aunt Wang was affectionately pulling her along, and so everyone greeted them with a smile that carried a hint of teasing.
But Aunt Wang clearly didn’t want to chat much and said straightforwardly, "My son has co ho hungry. I need to rush ho to cook. We’ll chat later, chat later!"
Cao Yuan, not much of a talker, just nodded to the old neighbors and greeted them out loud—Uncle Cheng, Aunt Zhao, and so on. His manners were impeccable though he did not seem very enthusiastic. Of course, that was related to his character, which the old neighbors probably understood and wouldn’t mind these details.
Finally, when they reached the front door of their ho, Gong Mingxia was about to take her child when Aunt Wang quickly said, "What is the rush? Let the child play at my house for a bit. Aren’t you still going to help Cao Yuan with cooking? Be a dear, I’m thanking you in advance. I’ll have him take a shower, and we’ll be over in a bit. It’s good for the child to get familiar with my house, so when you’re busy, just leave the child with . I’ll take care of her."
Gong Mingxia was so moved she almost cried, her voice trembling, "Auntie, you are too kind to , I don’t even know what to say,"
"Silly child, in the future, I’ll need your help a lot. What do we call this? Mutual help, right, Cao Yuan? With Xiao Xia taking care of , can you rest assured?"
The tall man referred to turned towards Gong Mingxia, still carrying the child on his back, and deeply bowed to her.
"From now on, please take good care of my mother. If there’s anything I can help with, just tell , like issues with the child’s schooling."
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