Chapter 78: Spare Me, Heroine
Chapter 78: Chapter 78: Spare Me, Heroine
"Brother-in-law, I’m done with my homework! I want to watch Cat and Mouse!"
Lin Xiaoman opened her bedroom door and ran happily into the living room, only to find her sister pinning her brother-in-law down beneath her, the two of them kissing, completely lost in the moment.
Her expression froze. She slapped her hands over her face and turned around, walking stiffly back toward her room like a puppet.
"Xiao Man didn’t see anything! Xiao Man saw absolutely nothing!"
The couple jumped in fright. Their lips parted, and they scrambled up from the sofa.
Lin Yanwan, her face flushed red, shot him a glare. "I really want to hit you."
"Okay, I might have started it, but... but you were the one who..." Jiang Xia said, feeling wronged.
’When it came down to it, he wasn’t the one who’d gotten the most carried away.’
"You... Don’t you dare say it!" Embarrassment flashed in her eyes. ’How could she have been as forward as he was implying? He was completely slandering her!’
Jiang Xia suppressed a chuckle. ’Fine, if she doesn’t want me to say it, I won’t. But seriously, the way she took the lead just now was so captivating!’
"You can go explain things to Xiao Man yourself!" Lin Yanwan muttered poutily. As the older sister, she was too embarrassed to face her little sister right now.
"How am I supposed to explain? Tell her that her big sister was about to suck the soul right out of my..."
Before he could finish, his wife, flustered, grabbed a throw pillow from the couch and hurled it at him. Then she glared at him, her cheeks puffed out in a pout.
’If he hadn’t stolen that kiss, she never would have... ’
’So, ultimately, it was still his fault.’
"Alright, alright, I’ll go explain." Jiang Xia thought to himself, ’Xiao Man is just a kid. She’ll forget about this in a couple of days. What’s there to even explain?’
He took a few deep breaths and knocked on his little sister-in-law’s door.
"Xiao Man, didn’t you say you wanted to watch Cat and Mouse?"
Lin Xiaoman opened the door and slowly poked her head out. Her lip was quivering and she looked like she was about to cry. "Brother-in-law, am I going to get a stye?"
The corner of Jiang Xia’s mouth twitched. ’Looks like my wife was right. This little girl might be young, but she knows a surprising amount.’
"You won’t. It doesn’t count if you see it by accident."
"But... but a few days ago, my classmate Xiao Mei told me that you get a stye if you see grown-ups kissing." His little sister-in-law was still unconvinced.
"She was tricking you," Jiang Xia said, stifling a laugh. "Think about it. You just saw it by accident, right?"
"Mhm! I only took one little peek!"
"Exactly. You only get one if you stare."
"Really?" Her eyes lit up.
"Of course it’s true. So don’t you worry, Xiao Man!"
Jiang Xia suddenly felt like a genius. Not only had he skillfully defused the awkward situation, but with one brilliant bit of misdirection, he had also ensured this little rascal would never think of peeking at him and his wife being affectionate again.
Lin Xiaoman let out an exaggerated sigh of relief and swung the door wide open. "Brother-in-law, I finished all my homework!"
"Tom and Jerry have been waiting for you."
He smiled, ruffled his little sister-in-law’s hair, and led her by the hand to his wife’s room. He plugged in a card reader, opened the newest episode of *Cat and Mouse*, and sat Xiao Man on his lap.
As the familiar opening animation played, his little sister-in-law’s eyes were glued to the computer screen.
That’s how kids are. No matter what just happened, give them something interesting to do, and their attention is instantly captivated.
Hearing her burst into her usual peals of happy laughter, Jiang Xia felt a sudden, urgent desire for *Cat and Mouse* to be released soon. It would be a huge loss if children all over the world couldn’t see this cartoon.
When the short, few-minute-long cartoon ended, Lin Xiaoman, still not having had her fill, wanted to watch it a second time. He smiled, clicked replay, and left his little sister-in-law to watch by herself while he returned to the living room to join his wife.
"Mission accomplished!" Jiang Xia said, leaning back on the sofa with his hands behind his head, a smug look on his face.
Lin Yanwan was curious. "What did you say to her?"
"I’m not telling. Let’s just say she won’t be watching us be intimate anymore," he chuckled.
"Who wants to be intimate with you? Don’t flatter yourself."
Lin Yanwan glanced at the time and gave a haughty little sniff. "Aren’t you going home? My mom will be back soon."
"Then Mom will definitely ask me to stay for dinner."
She choked on her words. On second thought, that was probably exactly what would happen. It’s not like he hadn’t shamelessly stayed for dinner before.
Jiang Xia smiled. "Alright, I’ll stop teasing you. I’m heading out now. Babe, can I get a hug?"
"No way. Haven’t you had enough hugs for one day?" Lin Yanwan said, turning her head away.
"We didn’t hug. We were too busy kissing," he said, smacking his lips with a wistful expression.
"You say that one more time!" she threatened, grabbing a pillow and raising it as if to throw it at him.
Jiang Xia’s knees buckled, and he dropped to the ground with a THUD, hands raised in surrender. "Spare my life, oh great warrior! This humble one will never dare again!"
Lin Yanwan couldn’t hold back a laugh. "Get up," she said, exasperated.
"If I get up, can I get a hug from my wife?" he asked with a goofy grin, immediately pushing his luck.
"I’ll smack you!"
"Then I’m not getting up. My knees have gone soft. When Xiao Man sees me like this, she’ll definitely think you’re abusing me."
"I’ve never met such a scoundrel," Lin Yanwan muttered, walking over. She grabbed his arm and pulled gently, and Jiang Xia let himself be half-pulled up, half-pulled her into his embrace.
But the hug lasted only a moment before she quickly pushed him away, her eyes darting toward the bedroom, afraid her little sister would come out and see them.
"You’re all sweaty. You stink," Lin Yanwan said, her face red as she grasped for a random excuse.
"Message received. I promise to go home and get all squeaky clean."
Jiang Xia reached up and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "I’m heading out now," he said softly.
"Okay. Be safe."
He went into the room to say goodbye to his little sister-in-law. Lin Xiaoman immediately stopped watching the cartoon and chased him out of the bedroom, insisting on seeing her brother-in-law off.
"Brother-in-law, will you come pick Xiao Man up from school tomorrow, too?" his little sister-in-law asked, looking up at him with hopeful eyes.
’She liked her brother-in-law the best. He always played with her, bought her snacks, and sometimes even brought her little gifts.’
"Xiao Man, why don’t you just go and be his little sister instead," Lin Yanwan muttered sullenly. ’She was obviously nicer to Xiao Man, but all the little girl ever talked about was her "brother-in-law." So the bond between a brother-in-law and his little sister-in-law was really that strong, huh?’
Lin Xiaoman was about to nod, but then she remembered that her brother-in-law’s mother was Teacher Xia, and she immediately shook her head forcefully.
"No way! If I did that, Teacher Xia would definitely give me lots and lots of homework!"
Jiang Xia nodded with profound empathy. "That’s right. When I was a kid, I had an explosive amount of homework every day!"
Hearing this, Lin Xiaoman looked even more terrified.
"I think I’ll just stay as my sister’s little sister. That way, as long as Sister keeps dating Brother-in-law, I’ll have a brother-in-law and a big brother at the same time!"
"What do you mean, at the same time?"
"When they’re married, he’s my brother-in-law. When they’re not married, he’s my big brother."
The couple exchanged a look, the corners of both their eyes twitching.
"Alright, I’m heading home. Bye, Xiao Man. I’ll come get you when I have time," Jiang Xia said, ruffling her hair as the elevator arrived.
"Okay! Bye-bye, Brother-in-law~"
He smiled, his gaze softening as it met his wife’s. "I’m off."
"Get home safe."
She thought for a moment, then told Lin Xiaoman to turn around. She opened her arms and gently hugged him.
...
(Not feeling great today, coughing my head off. Just one Chapter for now, I’ll make it up tomorrow.)