Lin Wan, seeing that the brat was stubborn and impervious to persuasion, finally threw in the towel and pulled out her mom voice: "Brat, are you really talking back to me? Let me tell you, you're going to do it whether you like it or not. I'm the boss in this case, and there's no discussion about it."
Xu Jiayan's delicate little face tensed up, his expression uglier than ever.
"Have you forgotten that I'm only seven years old this year? You want a seven-year-old kid to help you take care of a child, doesn't your conscience hurt?"
It seemed Lin Wan's conscience really didn't feel a thing.
After all, whether it's herding one sheep or two, it's all herding.
Maybe she got used to it after doing it enough times... right?
Well, now that he mentioned it, she did feel a tiny bit guilty.
But
"It's not all for me that you're doing this." Who knows, maybe it's for your own good!
"What do you mean?" Xu Jiayan keenly sensed there was more to what his mom was saying.
Lin Wan, somewhat impatiently, replied, "It means if you do a good job, I won't let you do it for nothing. Just ask if you need anything."
Does this brat ever quit? Why is it so hard to trick him into doing something?
If she weren't so bad at soothing, she wouldn't dream of letting him take care of the little girl.
"Just like that?" Xu Jiayan felt that wasn't what she meant initially.
Lin Wan: "What else did you think?"
Xu Jiayan: "Oh, well, I don't have any requests, so you'll have to figure it out yourself!"
"…"
Seeing that he wasn't yielding, Lin Wan almost lost her temper, but recalling the crying from a few hours ago, she softened her tone again, "Can you just do mom a favor, please?"
"Impossible!"
Xu Jiayan was uncompromising.
"Either you take care of it yourself, or send it away. Choose one."
Xu Jiayan shifted from holding to pinching the back collar of the little meatball, ready to drop her any second.
Lin Wan, frightened, hurriedly said, "Be careful holding her, you'll want a wife someday."
Xu Jiayan was unmoved.
What did this meatball have to do with him having a wife later?
Also, isn't it too early to worry about him getting married?
How many times did she need reminding that he was still a kid!!!
Lin Wan knew the brat's temper; if she didn't explain it clearly today, he might really throw the baby out. Most importantly, she needed to convince the brat to help her take care of the child... no, to take care of his future wife.
"So, you know Aunt Qingyun, right? She's mom's best friend I've told you about. She's also your Yuanyuan's mom. When we were in college, we agreed that if we got married and had a boy and a girl, we would..."
"What then?"
Xu Jiayan, repulsed by the ugly little bundle in his hand, suddenly had a bad feeling.
Though Lin Wan felt a bit uneasy, seeing the brat ready to throw the little girl at any moment, she quickly steeled herself and said: "We agreed to become relatives by marriage. So, when Yuanyuan was born, we arranged a betrothal for the two of you. Do you remember the pendant I had you wear around your neck? That was the engagement token Aunt Qingyun and I prepared for you two. So, Yuanyuan is your fiancée and she's going to be your wife someday."
Taking care of his own wife seems right!