Jiang Si instinctively wanted to reach out to help, but when Mother Huo shook her head at her, signaling her not to intervene, she averted her gaze.
Mother Huo pretended not to notice either.
Jiang Si had assumed the children would throw a fit if left unattended, expecting Zhaozhao, the little crybaby, to burst into inconsolable tears.
To her surprise, the two toddlers merely gave them a confused glance.
The tears that had welled up in their eyes swirled for a moment before being stubbornly held back.
When the two finally wobbled into Mother Huo’s arms,
both Mother Huo and Jiang Si showered them with praise.
Though some of the words were beyond their comprehension,
the phrase "good job" stuck with them.
From then on, whenever they fell, the two would pick themselves up without needing comfort, pushing up with their chubby little hands.
Then they’d gaze expectantly at everyone, waiting for that coveted "good job."
Those words worked better than lollipops.
And naturally, as time passed, they grew steadier on their feet.
Lost in thought, Jiang Si watched as the two toddlers now walked steadily toward Huo Tingzhou.
Just like with Mother Huo,
the moment they threw themselves into Huo Tingzhou’s arms, they wrinkled their noses in distaste.
Accustomed to their mother’s soft, sweet-smelling embrace,
they were less than thrilled by their father’s firm, muscular frame, damp with sweat and far from cuddly.
Yet blood ties were strange—while their disdain for their father was genuine, so was their affection.
In less than two minutes,
they had latched onto Huo Tingzhou’s neck like little koalas.
"Dad~" one cooed.
"Missed you~" the other chimed in.
It nearly melted the tough man into a puddle of paternal mush.
"Alright, go take a shower," Mother Huo urged, noticing the late hour.
Jiang Si took the children from him. "Come here, Mommy’s got you."
"Daddy, fly-fly?" Suisui asked warily as Huo Tingzhou stood up, recalling some less-than-pleasant memories.
"No fly-fly," Jiang Si reassured him, gently ruffling his hair. She had endless patience for the two.
"Daddy’s going to take a bath, then he’ll come back and play with you, okay?"
The toddlers couldn’t yet form complex sentences,
so they mostly spoke in endearing repetitions—
a habit the whole family had adopted.
Clearly, they understood,
because they promptly handed Huo Tingzhou their beloved rubber duckies.
Each of them owned ten of these ducks,
originally bought by Jiang Si to make bath time fun.
Tossing a few into the tub would keep them giggling for ages.
They treasured these ducks fiercely—
losing even one was unacceptable!
Now, at such a tender age, they’d already learned the art of "borrowing flowers to offer to Buddha," using their prized possessions to win over their father.
Realizing this, Jiang Si couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy.
Sure, there was truth to the saying "familiarity breeds contempt,"
but did it have to be this obvious?
She was the one who spent every day with them!
Noticing Jiang Si’s wistful stare at the duck in Huo Tingzhou’s hand, Mother Huo chuckled. "Jiang Si, eat something first."
She set a bowl of freshly cooked noodles in front of Jiang Si, then took the children’s hands.
"Suisui, Zhaozhao, how about sleeping with Grandma tonight? I’ll tell you a story about duckies!"
Normally, the two would’ve jumped at the offer—
they adored stories.
But with Daddy home,
they didn’t hesitate to switch allegiances.
Suisui glanced at Huo Tingzhou. "Want Daddy~"
Zhaozhao clung tighter to Jiang Si. "Want Mommy~"
Their message was clear: they wanted to sleep with their parents.
Well.
Now it was Father Huo and Mother Huo’s turn to feel slighted.
"Dad, Mom, you two go rest," Jiang Si said, understanding her mother-in-law’s kindness. But Huo Tingzhou hadn’t seen the kids in so long—he’d want time with them.
As for the grandparents, there’d be plenty of opportunities later.
"Alright, you all get some sleep too," Mother Huo conceded.
With that, she and Father Huo retreated to their room, leaving the young family of four to themselves.
Huo Tingzhou usually showered in under five minutes, but tonight he took his time.
By the time he finished bathing, ate dinner, and lulled the toddlers to sleep, it was already midnight.
Under the beautiful moonlight, the couple—who should’ve been enjoying a reunion—
were instead preoccupied with the incident from earlier.
Before speaking, Huo Tingzhou instinctively pulled Jiang Si into his arms,
as if only then could he feel at ease.
"Have all the moles in your department been cleared out?" he asked quietly.
Jiang Si didn’t want to lie. "Probably not."
But something else weighed on her mind.
"Did anything strange happen when you came to pick me up today?"
"Yes." His discovery was precisely why he’d asked about the moles earlier.
He’d arrived close to eight. In this era, overtime was rare—most government employees left the moment the workday ended.
"When I signed in, I saw a man," Huo Tingzhou said. "He was wearing dark clothes, walking fast, with a hat pulled low."
None of that was unusual—except for the way the man had subtly scrutinized him in passing.
What the stranger didn’t realize was that, as a pilot, Huo Tingzhou had an instinctive alertness to being watched.
But the man was cautious too.
The second Huo Tingzhou sensed something off, the stranger tipped his hat lower.
Then the guard at the gate distracted him momentarily,
and by the time Huo Tingzhou looked back, the man was gone.
With no concrete evidence, Huo Tingzhou couldn’t justify detaining him.
Once inside the construction bureau, Uncle Chen suddenly emerged from the shadows.
After a brief exchange, Huo Tingzhou learned that Uncle Chen’s earlier absence had been orchestrated by Jiang Si.
Unfortunately, it had been too dark.
With the man’s back turned and his hat obscuring his face, neither Uncle Chen nor Huo Tingzhou got a clear look.
"It’s fine. I already have a guess who it is."
"You know who it is?"
"Yeah."
Jiang Si didn’t hold back, recounting everything that had happened recently.
"We were all fooled before. This person might be the real mole."
Knowing how skilled the man was at disguise, Jiang Si hadn’t expected to catch him red-handed tonight—she’d only wanted to test her theory.
But the man had tipped his hand after all.
Seeing that his wife was planning to play the long game, Huo Tingzhou didn’t object.
He only reminded her, "Be extra careful when you’re out these days."
Though he was back in the capital, after the Mid-Autumn Festival, he’d be leaving for training at the air force base.
"Don’t worry," Jiang Si nodded.
Exhausted from the long day, neither had energy for much else.
Yet their minds were still buzzing with energy, and the couple continued chatting idly, their conversation meandering until the early hours of the morning. It wasn't until 3 a.m. that they finally drifted into a peaceful slumber.
