Free Web NovelChapter 660: Chapter 658: Acknowledging Kin
Su Shuochi glanced at the disheveled old man and chose his words carefully. "He... he might be your grandmother’s younger brother."
"Granduncle? Please, come in and take a bath. We’re about to eat." Unsure if it was true, Gu Jiaojiao decided to be gracious and went along with it.
She then turned and instructed her two sons, "Xuanxuan, take Granduncle to the bathroom. Wenwen, go to Dad’s closet, find a set of clothes, and give them to Granduncle."
"Okay." The brothers replied in unison and split up to do their tasks.
Su Shuochi, however, took his wife’s hand. He didn’t know how to introduce the old man.
When he had first shown her the Jade Pendant, he had told his wife an old man had given it to him.
Later, his wife told him that the Jade Pendant was a pocket dimension. For a while, he thought the old man was the dimension’s master.
But as it turned out, the old man knew nothing special about the Jade Pendant. He only said it was an heirloom of their Ye family, passed down to the daughters for generations.
It had been passed down for several generations, but when it came into Jiaojiao’s hands, the Jade Pendant became a pocket dimension.
Even more incredibly, only his wife and he could enter it.
Even their own daughter couldn’t get in, let alone their two sons.
When the children were newborns, Gu Jiaojiao had tried countless times, but she couldn’t bring any of the three inside.
In the end, she had no other choice but to ask her dad to make three wooden bathing tubs. Then, using her will, she would draw spiritual spring water from the pocket dimension to give the children warm baths.
Aside from drinking the spiritual spring water and bathing in it since they were little, their three children enjoyed no other benefits from the pocket dimension.
But that spiritual spring water was a true treasure. All three children were smarter than their peers.
Susu’s IQ was 140, and she was also incredibly strong. But Wenwen and Xuanxuan’s IQs were even higher, reaching 200.
"Su Shuochi, is there something you want to say?" Gu Jiaojiao asked, puzzled.
"Honey, I’m all sweaty. I’m going to our room to shower first. Why don’t you call Grandpa and ask him to come over for dinner? We can talk tonight!"
Su Shuochi felt he couldn’t explain it in just a sentence or two. Besides, the children didn’t know about the pocket dimension, so it would be safest to talk inside it that night.
"Okay, I’ll make a couple more dishes after I make the call." Gu Jiaojiao then walked over to the telephone and started dialing.
Little Susu appeared to be diligently setting the table, but she was actually watching her parents.
’Dad really can’t be away from Mom for a second,’ she ranted internally. ’He only went to pick up Second Brother, and the moment he gets back, he’s giving her that sappy, lovey-dovey look.’
Xuanxuan came out after washing up. Dressed in the new clothes his mom had bought him, he looked just like a little child star.
His skin had a healthy, honey-colored glow that made him seem full of life, and his short, black buzz cut looked like a freshly mown lawn.
His eyes, like sparkling gems, always twinkled with endless curiosity. "Mom, where’s Dad? And Granduncle?"
"Your dad is in the kitchen cooking, and Granduncle is still washing up," Gu Jiaojiao replied patiently, gazing at her adorable son.
Xuanxuan leaned close to his mom’s ear and whispered, "Mom, Dad said Granduncle hasn’t bathed in a hundred years. Hehe... that bathwater could probably fertilize two acres of fields!"
Susu leaned in too. "Hehe... Probably! Second Brother, how do you even know about fertilizing fields?"
"You two can’t talk about people behind their backs like that. He didn’t bathe because his circumstances didn’t allow for it. Who wouldn’t want to be clean if they had the chance?"
Gu Jiaojiao lectured Xuanxuan and Susu sternly, though in reality, her approach to raising her children wasn’t as strict as other parents.
She was afraid that being too strict would cause them to lose their childlike innocence, but she also worried that being too indulgent would make them grow up ungrateful.
They were patiently figuring out how to raise their children, learning as they went along.
"Mom... we were just talking to you! We’d never say it in front of Granduncle," Little Susu wheedled, sticking out her tongue.
Xuanxuan also immediately apologized. "Mom, I’m sorry. Please don’t blame my sister. If you’re going to punish someone, punish me. I said it first."
Seeing the siblings realize their mistake so quickly made Gu Jiaojiao feel gratified.
She nodded in satisfaction. "Seeing as you both have such a good attitude about admitting your mistake, I won’t punish you."
"Your father just told me that on the way here, Xuanxuan wasn’t bothered at all by how messy Granduncle was, and that’s very commendable. Xuanxuan, what reward would you like?"
"Mom, can it be any reward I want?" Xuanxuan asked, batting his eyelashes.
"Of course. Our Xuanxuan is so sensible. Tell me whatever you want, and I promise I’ll get it for you."
Xuanxuan grinned. "For my reward, can you just cancel out the punishment for the mistake I made?"
"I just told you, because you admitted your mistake so readily, there is no punishment," Gu Jiaojiao said with a smile.
"Mom, does Susu get a reward too?"
"And what did Susu do today that deserves a reward?" Gu Jiaojiao loved to tease her children.
"I... um... Susu can give my favorite cola chicken wings to Granduncle later."
As Susu spoke, she gulped, looking like she really couldn’t bear to part with them.
"Oh, so to get a reward, you’re giving your favorite cola chicken wings to Granduncle," Gu Jiaojiao said in mock realization.
Susu nodded quickly. "Mhm, mhm! Will Mom give Susu a reward?"
Gu Jiaojiao shook her head with a helpless smile. "Yes, yes. A virtuous act from our Little Susu must be rewarded. Go on, what do you want?"
Hearing her mom say that, Susu immediately clapped her hands and cheered, "Yay! Susu is so happy! Susu gets a reward too! I want my reward to be two cola chicken wings."
"Haha... my clever girl. You’re so smart, trading one chicken wing for two." Gu Jiaojiao couldn’t help but roar with laughter.
Her laughter was infectious, like warm sunshine, and it quickly enveloped everyone in a joyful atmosphere.
Xuanxuan, who had been speechless at his sister’s antics, broke into a smile at his mom’s amusement. Just then, Su Shuochi came out carrying a large bowl of hotchpotch soup and started laughing along with them.
Old Man Ye came out after washing up, and seeing everyone laughing, he also let out a hearty laugh.
Although Su Shuochi’s clothes were much too big for him, he looked invigorated.
He wasn’t tall, but not short either. His long, unwashed hair was now clean and combed neatly back.
As Su Shuochi’s family looked at him, he looked back at them. He’d already met the man of the house.
The lady of the house, however, he had only glanced at briefly before. Looking closely now, he saw she was stunningly beautiful and strongly resembled his older sister.
But she was far more beautiful than his sister. In his seventy-plus years, he had never seen such a lovely woman.
Her eyes shone brightly, twinkling with intelligence and warmth, and her lips were slightly upturned as if she were holding back a smile.
"Jiaojiao, we could hear you all laughing from the courtyard gate! What’s so funny?" Grandpa Gu’s voice was as booming as ever.
"Sis... Brother-in-law?" the old man cried out, dashing forward in a single bound to grab Grandpa Gu’s hand.
"Ye Qingzhou, you’re still alive?" Grandpa Gu was utterly astonished.
