Chapter 29: Abandon
A little after seven, when Qin Zelin arrived home, Cen Miao was already waiting impatiently in the entryway, eager to show off his cooking.
“Hubby, you’re back!”
The moment Qin Zelin stepped inside, Cen Miao excitedly threw himself into his arms.
Qin Zelin instinctively reached out to steady him.
“???”
Ever since the little monster confessed to him, he no longer bothered hiding it?
He wanted to hug him and cling to him whenever he had the chance. If Qin Zelin pushed him away and refused to let him hug him, the little monster would probably burst into tears immediately.
And since he had PTSD, crying definitely wouldn’t be good for his condition.
“Cen Miao, let me change my shoes first. You—”
Halfway through his sentence, Qin Zelin met the gazes of Butler Lin and Aunt Wang standing not far away.
…
Unlike their usual smiles, their expressions seemed strange, almost hesitant.
“?”
After changing his shoes, Qin Zelin didn’t even have time to go upstairs and change into loungewear before Cen Miao mysteriously dragged him into the dining room.
“Ta-da-da-da~~~~”
“Hubby! I made you four dishes and one soup!”
Qin Zelin: “…!??”
On the dining table sat four plates and one large soup bowl.
Aside from the chicken in the center bowl, which lay pale-skinned and feet-up as though it had drowned in water, each of the other four plates had its own distinct color.
The only color missing was green.
“…”
The little monster had stopped testing poison on himself.
Now he had started manufacturing it.
Qin Zelin’s head buzzed.
He finally understood why Butler Lin and Aunt Wang had looked so strange.
But…
The little monster had only cooked because he liked him. If Qin Zelin looked disgusted, Cen Miao would definitely feel hurt.
The psychologist had said to make him feel loved.
Now that Cen Miao had found something he was interested in, showing encouragement would probably make him especially happy.
“Mm. It looks wonderful. Thank you.”
Qin Zelin forced out a stiff smile.
Cen Miao immediately raised his chin proudly.
His husband was much better than the husbands in those short videos. He didn’t criticize the food or harshly order him to make dumplings.
Imitating the words from the video, Cen Miao said sweetly, “You’re welcome. This is what I, as your wife, owe you.”
Qin Zelin: “…?”
Did he mean it was what he should do?
As expected, his cognitive impairment was still severe.
He needed even more care.
The two sat across from each other.
Cen Miao was overflowing with enthusiasm.
“Hubby! Hurry and taste it!”
Qin Zelin: “…Mm.”
After tasting a bite of every dish, Qin Zelin concluded that this would probably be the little monster’s last time cooking.
Considering how much Cen Miao loved food, after tasting this himself, he definitely wouldn’t want to eat it a second time.
So Qin Zelin might as well praise him.
Under Cen Miao’s eager gaze, Qin Zelin swallowed the tasteless piece of meat in his mouth—whatever it was—and stiffly curved his lips.
“It’s not bad. It’s quite… good.”
“Really? Do you like it?” Cen Miao looked at him expectantly.
“…Mm. The rice has just the right texture.”
“But Aunt Wang made the rice.”
Seeing his expression immediately fall, Qin Zelin hurriedly added, “The dishes… taste good too.”
The maid standing nearby looked at the food again in disbelief. After exchanging a glance with the pale chicken lying feet-up in the bowl, she began to believe in love.
No wonder people said love could overcome everything.
If it could make someone lose their sense of taste, what couldn’t love accomplish?
Cen Miao looked thoughtful.
He had tasted the food after making it and thought it wasn’t as delicious as Aunt Wang’s. It tasted more like the meals his caretaker daddy used to make.
But he was an easy-to-feed little zombie and wasn’t picky.
As long as it was meat, he wouldn’t waste it.
He hadn’t expected this human to enjoy the flavor.
Since Qin Zelin liked it, Cen Miao could accompany him and eat it too.
After all, he had always finished every meal his caretaker daddy cooked.
And next time, Cen Miao would definitely make it even more delicious!
He swallowed the meat in his mouth, determination shining in his eyes.
“If you like it, I’ll cook for you from now on!”
“?!!”
Qin Zelin’s voice turned strained.
“You still have tutoring sessions. Won’t you be short on time?”
“It’s fine. This is what I owe you.”
Qin Zelin: “…”
The maid beside them shook with the effort of holding back her laughter.
By the end of dinner, Qin Zelin discovered a secret that filled him with despair.
The little monster loved meat.
That included bland, unappetizing meat.
So no matter what he cooked, as long as it was meat, he could eat it.
…
After dinner, Cen Miao sprawled on the sofa watching television.
A short drama caught his attention, and he watched until he finished the latest episode. Only then did he suddenly remember that he still hadn’t memorized the vocabulary his tutor had assigned.
The teacher had said that if he couldn’t recite the words tomorrow, his homework the day after would be doubled!!!
Sigh.
Why did humans have to learn bird language?
With a miserable wail, Cen Miao rushed back to the art studio, carried his textbook and reading pen into the living room, and sprawled across the sofa to cram at the last minute.
A little after ten, Qin Zelin left the study and returned to the bedroom, only to discover that Cen Miao still hadn’t come upstairs.
“?”
Wasn’t he usually finished showering by this time every night?
Puzzled, Qin Zelin left the room and went downstairs.
Inside the living room, a mechanical yet perfectly standardized female voice repeatedly pronounced the same word.
“Abandon.”
“Abandon.”
“Abandon.”
Qin Zelin: “??”
What was that?
Only when he approached the sofa did he see Cen Miao clutching a reading pen and studying diligently.
Qin Zelin frowned slightly.
He didn’t remember the little monster owning one. Moreover, this particular model had only recently been launched by one of Huanyu’s subsidiaries and was quite expensive.
“Where did you get that reading pen?” Qin Zelin asked.
Cen Miao looked up and answered slowly and seriously, “Teacher gave it to me. He said… said… tap wherever you don’t understand.”
“Swoo… swoo one zey.”
Qin Zelin: “…”
“Return it to your teacher tomorrow, all right? If you want one, I can buy it for you. That pen costs more than several of his tutoring sessions.”
“I-It’s that expensive? Then I can’t accept it. I’ll return it tomorrow.”
As Cen Miao spoke, he sat up nervously, his two index fingers fidgeting helplessly against the sofa.
“I didn’t do it on purpose. Teacher said it wasn’t expensive, so I accepted it.”
“Mm.”
Qin Zelin’s heart softened. He gently rubbed Cen Miao’s head and made his voice as gentle as possible.
“I’m not blaming you. I know you only accepted it because you didn’t know how much it cost.”
Qin Zelin could have simply paid the tutor and let Cen Miao keep the reading pen.
But he worried that if someone with bad intentions gave Cen Miao something in the future, he wouldn’t understand their motives and might be deceived.
After all, the little monster was far too innocent, and he was also…
“Still, if someone gives you a gift again and it’s something you really want, come home and ask me to buy it for you instead. Understand?”
“Mm! I understand.”
“It’s late. Go upstairs, wash up, and sleep.”
“But Teacher said that if I can’t recite the words tomorrow, my homework the day after will be doubled.”
The corners of Cen Miao’s mouth drooped, his expression deeply aggrieved.
“It’s fine. I’ll have Assistant Fang speak to your teacher. Go upstairs first.”
“Okay.”
Inside the bedroom, Cen Miao finished showering and changed clothes. Then he ran over to Qin Zelin with the hair dryer, shoved it into his hand, and shuffled over to sit neatly beside the sofa.
Qin Zelin looked at the hair dryer that had been forced into his hand, then at the person sitting obediently on the sofa waiting for him.
“?”
