Chapter 419 - 418: Extra 14: Giving Him a Small Bear 1 (Mu Tangfeng)

Chapter 419: Chapter 418: Extra 14: Giving Him a Small Bear 1 (Mu Tangfeng)

"Fofu, come here. Let Grandpa and Grandma give you a hug."

Shi Lan and Mu Tangfeng had brought their son to the Mu Family home for dinner that day. The moment they saw Fofu, Mr. and Mrs. Mu broke into wide grins, squatting down with their arms outstretched to welcome their little grandson.

Fofu walked between his parents, holding both their hands. The little one was wearing a new, adorable bird costume today, complete with a pair of small yellow wings on the back.

Perhaps because he had been a crybaby when he was younger, Fofu’s eyes always looked dewy. His dark, round pupils seemed to sparkle as if bathed in a clear spring, making him utterly endearing—especially to Mr. and Mrs. Mu, who had often been woken in the middle of the night to help soothe him.

Fofu was delighted to see his grandparents. He immediately let go of his parents’ hands and scurried over on his short little legs. "Hello, Grandma! Hello, Grandpa!"

He hugged Mrs. Mu first, then Mr. Mu, and both of them joyfully kissed his cheeks.

Mrs. Mu shot her husband a triumphant look, boasting, "See? I was right. I told you our sweet grandson would hug me first."

Mr. Mu was in no mood to argue with his wife. He only had eyes for his little grandson.

Mu Tangfeng, holding his wife’s hand, cleared his throat discontentedly. "Mom, Dad, is Fofu the only one you see? Don’t you care about me anymore?"

’He realized his status in this family was sinking lower and lower.’

Mrs. Mu rolled her eyes at her son. "Don’t be silly."

Then she warmly took Shi Lan by the hand. "Lanlan, come on in and have a seat. The food is all ready."

"Thank you for going to all this trouble, Mom and Dad."

Shi Lan smiled. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Mu Tangfeng’s lips purse into what looked like a pout, and she squeezed his hand tightly.

His eyes brightened, though almost imperceptibly.

Mu Tangfeng often felt that ever since he’d had a son, his parents no longer doted on him. But when he saw the dining table was laden with his favorite foods on one side and Shi Lan’s on the other, he felt a sense of comfort.

’He knew it. He was still his parents’ favorite son.’

As for Fofu, his tastes were similar to theirs, and he wasn’t a picky eater like Mu Tangfeng, so Mr. and Mrs. Mu didn’t have to worry about making anything special for him.

After the sumptuous feast, Mr. Mu took Fofu by the hand and led his son to the study for a man-to-man chat.

In truth, Mr. Mu was still worried about his son’s situation in Shi Lan’s household. He worried that Tang Feng couldn’t hold his own against Shi Lan’s other Beast Husbands, that he might fall out of favor with his wife, and that, ultimately, his son would be wronged.

But knowing Mu Tangfeng’s personality, Mr. Mu figured he wouldn’t just bottle it up if he were truly unhappy.

After the three men left, only Mrs. Mu and Shi Lan remained in the living room downstairs.

Mrs. Mu led Shi Lan to the family’s back garden. The Mu Family’s garden was quite distinctive; many of the plants were trimmed into the shapes of various small toys, giving the entire space a whimsical feel.

Fofu loved it and always talked about bringing all his brothers and sisters over to see it.

The weather on the Capital Star was always lovely. A housekeeping robot brought out tea and dessert. Seeing Shi Lan admiring the garden again, Mrs. Mu smiled. "Lanlan, have I ever told you why we trim the plants in our back garden this way?"

Shi Lan shook her head, her eyes filled with curiosity. "No?"

Mrs. Mu took a slow sip of her tea. Through the curling steam, her eyes grew nostalgic. "You know, Fofu is so happy and lucky to have so many brothers and sisters."

"Unlike Feng’er. He was our only son, so he was always lonely as a child and didn’t have any playmates."

"As the only son of the Mu Family, even though we often made time to play with him, the lack of same-age playmates has a big impact on a young one. That’s why I often took him to Du Yi’s house to play with Xiaxia."

’No wonder Jiang Xia and Mu Tangfeng have such similar personalities and are always bickering. They’ve known each other since they were kids.’

Mrs. Mu continued, "But Du Yi and I were in different situations. She had two sons, so Xiaxia had an older brother, but Feng’er didn’t have any siblings. My hope was that he would make friends with other children, but Feng’er still wasn’t happy. In fact, the very first time they met, they got into a fight over a rag doll Du Yi had given him as a welcome gift."

Jiang Xia was upset that his mother was giving a gift to another kid, while Mu Tangfeng believed that a gift given *to* him was *his*.

Their first meeting was complete chaos. Although Mu Tangfeng got the doll in the end, and Mrs. Mu bought him many more afterward, she could still tell that her son wasn’t truly happy. He was even envious that Xiaxia had a brother.

But when it came to having more children, there was nothing Mrs. Mu could do.

"Feng’er was so lonely without any siblings to keep him company, so while we did our best to spend as much time with him as possible, we also specially designed this garden."

"All these toy-shaped topiaries are things Feng’er loved as a child, especially the little bear in the center wearing a pink flower wreath. He would sometimes fly around with it in his mouth."

’All this time, Shi Lan had only known about Mu Tangfeng’s fondness for vases. She never would have guessed he had such a childlike side to him. No wonder he bought their son so many fluffy rag dolls and other stuffed toys.’

"So what happened to his little bear?"

Mu Tangfeng was very good at preserving the things he cherished, like the vintage blue vase he used to hide in for hide-and-seek. When Fofu was a toddler, he was a handful, and a lot of furniture suffered, especially when he was just learning to fly.

To protect his beloved ’cuddlebee’ from the same fate, Mu Tangfeng had long since tucked it away safely in his Space Chain, terrified his son would break it.

Mrs. Mu sighed regretfully. "He lost it."

"He was taking his little bear out for a flight, as usual, when a Hovercar suddenly rushed toward him. It gave him such a fright that his mouth fell open, and the little bear dropped right into a storm drain. We never knew where the current took it."

Of course, Mrs. Mu was just thankful her son was okay. She bought him several new teddy bears to replace the lost one, but Mu Tangfeng didn’t like any of them.

Of course, Mu Tangfeng had memorized the Hovercar’s license plate number and eventually found out it belonged to the Second Prince.

So, it makes sense that the grown-up Mu Tangfeng beat the Second Prince so severely over a single feather; that old childhood grudge must have played a part.

Shi Lan smiled, her eyes softening as she sighed. "Tang Feng really is a very sentimental person."

’To anyone else, that teddy bear was probably just an ordinary toy. But to the Mu Tangfeng of back then, it might have been his best playmate.’

’That’s why, even when he got new ones, they could never replace the one he knew so well.’

"That’s right. Feng’er is incredibly steadfast. It’s the same with his heart—once he falls for someone, it’s for life."

"Oh, and it might have something to do with them being from the Paradise Bird Clan. Feng’er’s father once told me that their feathers changing color, their courtship dances, allowing their heads to be touched... all of that is reserved for their mate. A Bird of Paradise chooses only one partner for its entire life."

"So, Lanlan, you are Feng’er’s one and only, his most faithful choice."