"Mother, we're back."
Fu Daxing and Fu Erxing's voices were filled with excitement as they held a large handful of rice ears in their hands.
They immediately shared the news with Mdm Fu once they entered the house.
"Father, Mother, look! This is our rice."
Second Fu, who already knew that, was able to stay calm. "Dear, see? I wasn't lying to you."
"That's great! That's great!" Mdm Fu exclaimed, her hands trembling with excitement.
Her family's hardships had finally come to an end.
"Fubao, you're my pride and joy. I've been working the farm for years, but I've never had a successful harvest - until you were born. I'll have to throw a huge celebration for your one-month birthday. You're a lucky charm." Second Fu held Fu Xing'er in his arms, clearly emotional.
Fu Xing'er was sweating,
feeling a sense of familiarity with Second Fu's struggles. She knew all too well what it was like to constantly come out on top in the unlucky stakes.
Not even one successful harvest after decades of farming? No wonder the family was so poor.
It was not easy that they persevered even after so many years.
She had been cursed with bad luck in her past life.
Now, she was part of the Fu family, who were also plagued by bad luck.
Two negatives could make a positive
and they could become lucky together.
Fu Daxing and Fu Erxing automatically handed over the money that they made from selling the firewood. They wanted to use it for the one-month-old banquet for their little sister.
The two brothers looked at Fu Xing'er, as if they were gazing upon a precious treasure.
"Fubao's smile is so beautiful!"
"The milky smell on Fubao smells so good!"
"Fubao's eyes are so round and beautiful!"
"Fubao's hair is so pretty!"
…
In their eyes, she was the epitome of perfection.
Fu Xing'er: "…"
She was only a two-day-old, wrinkled new-born. How good could she look?
They even praised her hair.
Stop it.
Their praises were making her embarrassed.
Moreover, their gaze on her looked as though they were gazing at some sort of extremely rare treasure.
Fu Xing'er couldn't shake the feeling that she was being treated like an altared God of Fortune. They were just short of worshiping her.
"Get lost. Are you going to say that your sister's poop smells amazing too? Are you going to offer to eat it?" Second Fu shooed them, not wanting anyone else to share the attention of his daughter.
Second Fu was determined to be the second person in the world whom Fu Xing'er could recognize, right after her mother.
It didn't matter to Second Fu whether she could recognize her older brothers.
"Father, how could you actually say such disgusting words in front of our cute little sister?!"
"Father, you have to watch your image."
Unhappy with being shooed to the side, the two brothers expressed their strong dissatisfaction in unison towards Second Fu.
Second Fu spat a few times and hurriedly corrected himself. "Fubao, just treat my words just now as a passing fart, okay? I'm a civilized person."
He made a note to not be so vulgar and rude in front of his daughter in the future. He must set a good example.
Fu Erxing pressed on, "Father, you just said the word 'fart' again."
"Young brat, you're asking for a beating!" Fu Erxing snapped as he took off his shoes to hit him. Fu Erxing quickly ran to hide behind Mdm Fu.
How dare he deliberately embarrass him in front of his precious Fubao!
With Mdm Fu's support, Fu Erxing flashed Fu Daxing a victorious smile.
Fu Xing'er held back her laughter.
Sooner or later, she would suffer internal injuries from forcing down her laughter.
This family was hilarious.
Mdm Fu noticed that Second Fu had been monopolizing Fu Xing'er and decided to assert her authority. "Old Man, let Daxing and Erxing have a turn with Fubao as well."
Second Fu knew better than to defy her order.
It was great to see the two brothers to dote on their little sister so much.
If anything happened to Second Fu and her in the future, they could rest assured knowing that Fu Xing'er would be well taken care of by her two older brothers.
Seeing that her husband and both sons were keeping a close watch on Fu Xing'er, Mdm Fu went off to take a shower.
"Fubao, can you give me a smile?" Fu Daxing said.
Fu Daxing's intense gaze that communicated his keen desire for attention made Fu Xing'er unable to refuse him.
She smiled at him.
"Look, look! My little sister is smiling at me."
Her smile was so sweet!
Fu Daxing felt as though he had fallen into a pot full of honey.
Seeing this, Fu Erxing wanted to try too.
"Fubao, can you smile for me too? You can't be biased. I dote on you too."
His tone sounded extremely aggrieved, like he was about to cry.
Fu Xing'er frowned slightly. How could they be jealous of each other over something like this?
She shrugged in exasperation.
She opened her mouth and grinned widely.
"Fubao smiled at me too. She likes me too!" Fu Erxing was overjoyed.
Second Fu was furious with jealousy.
What was there to be proud of?
His daughter smiled at him a few times every day.
Not willing to be left behind, he quickly joined the competition.
"Come on, Fubao, give me a smile. Yeah, that's it! Now give me two!" Second Fu clapped his hands and played with her.
No matter what, he had to outdo them.
He would show them who Fubao's favorite was.
Fu Xing'er grinned. She stopped, then smiled again.
Second Fu was delighted. "Look, Fubao likes me the most."
"Come on, Fubao, give your big brother some love with three smiles," Fu Daxing challenged, eager to show off his charm.
Heh!
Heh!
Heh!
That's three times.
Seeing that Fu Daxing got what he asked for, Fu Erxing immediately followed. "Fubao, give your second brother four smiles!"
Ha!
Ha!
Ha!
Ha!
But Second Fu wouldn't be outdone. "Don't listen to him, Fubao. Give me eight!"
Much more than they had asked for.
There was no end to it.
Were they treating her like some sort of toy?!
Fu Xing'er could no longer smile. Her entire face was nearly cramping.
How old were they exactly?! They were acting like childish little kids!
The old adage that no matter the age of a man, he was a little child at heart proved true.
Is this what they mean by 'doting' on her?!
They were clearly messing with her.
One unreliable dad. Two unreliable brothers. She didn't want any of them.
She desperately needed her mother's comfort.
Fu Xing'er burst into tears.
Mummy! Save me!
Hurry up and come out! Teach them a lesson!
"Why is Fubao crying?!"
Her tears frightened the three of them.
"Fubao, don't cry," the two brothers were overwhelmed with worry.
Tears as large as pearls slid one by one down Fu Xing'er's face, making their hearts ache.
"Father, what do we do?! What do we do?!"
"Move aside. Don't disturb my train of thoughts."
Having gone through the traumatic experience of almost dropping Fu Xing'er yesterday, Second Fu appeared much calmer now.
"Fubao, what's wrong?"
Second Fu immediately checked Fu Xing'er to see if she had pooped or peed, but there was nothing.
"Could Fubao be hungry?"
"That's impossible. She just ate a while ago."
Unable to figure out what was wrong, Second Fu hurriedly turned to Mdm Fu, who had just stepped out of the toilet, for help. "Dear, come quickly and see what's wrong with Fubao!"
Mdm Fu took Fu Xing'er into her arms and reprimanded them angrily, "It's because of you guys. You three kept forcing her to smile. Even an adult's face would grow tired and cramp after smiling so many times, let alone a child."
If it weren't for the fact that she couldn't come out halfway through her shower, Mdm Fu would have come out and taught them a lesson way earlier on.
She didn't know what to say about them.
Fu Xing'er stopped crying in Mdm Fu's arms.
She gazed at Mdm Fu aggrievedly and complained silently about the actions of those three childish men.
"It's alright, Fubao. You're safe now. Your father and brothers were being annoying, mummy will scold them for you."
Fu Xing'er blinked her teary eyes. 'Mummy's still the best.'
"How could you call yourselves fathers and elder brothers?! Your two sons were acting like complete morons, and you were following suit?!"
Mdm Fu's reprimand was harsh and encompassed everyone. She didn't let anyone off the hook.
The three grown men stood in their spots like guilty children who had done something wrong, not daring to make a sound.
Fu Xing'er smiled in satisfaction.
She smiled till she grew tired and fell asleep again.