Seeing this, Huo Tingzhou rubbed his little buzz cut. He could figure out ways to meet other requests, but this one... truly, even the most capable father can't make bricks without straw!
Fortunately, Suisui was easy to coax.
Just as Huo Tingzhou had finished tying two adorable little pigtails for Zhaozhao and was about to take the two little ones downstairs,
Zhaozhao's small hand had already beaten him to it, pulling open the drawer.
"Pretty smell—" She wanted to put on the scented cream.
After the cream, she wanted the scented powder.
These were all Mama's smells, and she wanted them too!
Dressing them and doing their hair were things Huo Tingzhou had completely mastered, but applying things to their faces, he truly had no idea how.
Besides, a one-year-old baby's skin is as tender as tofu, where's the need for any of this?
But when he looked down and met Zhaozhao's delicate, jade-like little face, so strikingly similar to his wife's, Huo Tingzhou's heart melted into a puddle.
Finally, amidst Zhaozhao's persistent little whimpers, Huo Tingzhou picked up a lipstick and dabbed a little red dot on the center of each child's forehead.
It seemed like children in the residential compound all got one for their first birthday.
It looked rather cute, actually.
Now the two little ones were finally satisfied and obediently followed him downstairs.
The elderly couple were having tea in the living room at the moment. Seeing their great-grandchildren dressed so beautifully and looking so bright-eyed!
The old couple absolutely adored them.
After breakfast, they happily carried the two precious ones out for a few strolls.
When they returned, many guests had already started arriving at the house.
The first batch were all Mother Huo's maternal family, including an aunt from faraway Rongcheng who had specially made the trip back.
Mother Huo was currently holding her elder sister's hand, chatting warmly, with Jiang Si also sitting nearby.
The moment the two little ones saw their mother, they immediately let go of the old master's hand.
"Slow down." Mother Huo's call wasn't alarming in itself, but when the two children suddenly looked up, they discovered there were actually two grandmothers sitting in front of them.
Mother Huo and her sister were identical twins, and they were both wearing the most common Lenin suits of that era.
Even adults would get a bit confused seeing the two of them sitting together, let alone two children.
Luckily, the two little ones were very clever.
Because the scent on their own grandmother was still very familiar to them.
Without even needing a reminder from Jiang Si, they both threw themselves into Mother Huo's arms, "Grandma~~"
The proud expression on Mother Huo's face was beyond words, "So good."
"These children are raised so well," Mother Huo's elder sister said. "Smart and sensible."
"It's all thanks to Si Si and Tingzhou's good upbringing," Mother Huo said tactfully. "Mainly, they take after Si Si, very clever."
Jiang Si felt a bit embarrassed by the praise. "Mom, Aunt, please continue chatting. Tingzhou and I will go outside to greet the guests."
"Go ahead, put on your coats. It's chilly outside today."
Jiang Si nodded.
The two had just been at the entrance of the residential compound for a short while when Master, Master's wife, and President Zhou arrived.
Soon after, Dean Gao, Professor Li, and their group arrived as well.
Glancing at the time, it was almost ten o'clock.
Just as Jiang Si was wondering why Chi Heng and Chris hadn't arrived yet, Huo Tingzhou peered into the distance and said, "They should be here. That's the embassy car."
One had to admit, a pilot's eyesight was truly excellent.
He could even make out the license plate number from so far away.
Sure enough, shortly after, the car pulled over by the curb.
"Phew, just made it. That was so scary just now." The moment Chris got out of the car, she couldn't help but vent to Jiang Si.
Seeing her still visibly shaken, Jiang Si asked with concern, "What happened? Did something occur on the road?"
Chris explained, "Just now, coming from that street, a few children suddenly darted out. Luckily, Chi Heng reacted quickly and hit the brakes, otherwise we would have hit them."
"Were you frightened?"
"Not too bad," Chris said, her tone somewhat helpless. "But the children's family was rather unreasonable. They insisted we had scared their kids, blocked us from leaving, and demanded we compensate them fifty yuan."
"Fifty yuan?"
Hearing this, Jiang Si frowned. Fifty yuan was no small sum.
"Did you give it to them?"
"We had to. They were making a huge scene, rolling on the ground. If we didn't pay, who knows how long they would have blocked us."
It was a joyous occasion, and Chris didn't want to dwell on unhappy things. "Thankfully, we didn't miss the two little ones' Zhazhou ceremony."
"As long as everyone's safe, that's what matters. Come on, let's go inside."
"Wait a moment." Chris turned and signaled Chi Heng to open the trunk.
Soon, she took out two cakes from inside.
One was vanilla-flavored, the other was cream with fruit.
Chris said with a smile, "These are for the two little ones. Happy birthday!"
Looking at the packaging, Jiang Si was surprised. "You made these cakes yourself?"
Yesterday, she had wanted to order cakes for the two little ones, but there were very few Western pastry shops in Capital City. She had run to four or five places in a row but couldn't find any for sale. She never expected Chris to have made two and brought them over.
It was really very thoughtful.
"Yes," Chris nodded. "I made these fresh this morning. It's just that the available ingredients were limited, so they might not look the best, but the taste should be okay."
Moved and still a bit surprised, Jiang Si asked, "When did you learn to make cakes?"
She hadn't heard her mention it before.
"Yesterday."
Seeing Jiang Si's wide-eyed look, Chris quickly clarified, "I mean, yesterday was when I finally succeeded. Before that, either the cake turned chocolate-brown from being burnt, or the cream just wouldn't whip up properly."
"Oh, and I also baked some cookies. Take a look."
Jiang Si glanced and immediately gave a thumbs-up. "They look great."
"Of course, I picked through them for a long time," Chris accidentally let the truth slip. "I baked several trays and only picked out this many."
Huh?
Jiang Si was puzzled. "What happened to the rest of the cookies?"
"Chi Heng took them away to... dispose of."
Chris lowered her voice. "He said in China, you can't waste food. If someone found out, we could be called to the public security bureau for questioning. Is it really that serious?"
Noticing Chi Heng's slightly awkward expression, Jiang Si saw through it but didn't say anything, just smiled and said, "Yes, he's right."
As they spoke, the group had already arrived at the old house.
By now, Mother Huo had arranged the items for the Zhazhou ceremony on the red woolen cloth spread on the living room floor.
For Zhazhou, it's all about good omens, so things like writing brushes, abacuses, seals, Ruyi scepters, coins, books, and the like are usually placed.
These were all prepared by Jiang Si herself, not many, just ten items in total.
But now, at a glance, there were clearly more than ten extra items.
Upon asking, they learned that earlier, Huo Tingzhou had added a model airplane he made himself. Then, after Grandmother Huo and the maternal uncle arrived, they added a longevity lock.
Then the aunt added a harmonica, and the uncle added a key.
And so it went, one adding something, another adding something else. Now, several more items were already placed on the red cloth.
Right at that moment, the old master, who had been silent all along, placed his military merit medals on the cloth.
Not just one, but a whole boxful!
Afraid that his great-grandchildren might not see it, the old man deliberately opened the box and placed it in a spot where the two children could see it at a glance and reach out to touch it.
It just goes to show, the older ginger is, the spicier it is.
After seeing this, Third Granduncle slapped his thigh in regret, thinking, if only he had waited a little longer before putting his offerings down!
The two little ones were still a bit confused, not understanding why the adults had put everything on the floor. What if someone stepped on them?
So, pulling their usual small toy baskets, they said to Jiang Si, "Mommy, put~"
Ah, this...
Wouldn't this be a bit too greedy?
Jiang Si was both amused and exasperated.
But then again, with so many things, not only were the two little ones dazzled by the choices, even she herself didn't know which one to pick.
However, before she could speak, everyone around started chiming in with suggestions—some said they should grab the big stack of money, others said they should go for the ruyi scepter.
But no matter what they said, the two little ones just sat there obediently, waiting for their mother's instruction.
It wasn't until they heard their mother say they could take whichever one they liked.
Almost without any hesitation, Suisui made a beeline for the box of military medals in front of him.
Jiang Si wasn't surprised by this. Children at this stage have practically zero resistance to the gold-and-red color scheme of military medals.
But unexpectedly, after getting the medal, Suisui immediately picked out a First-Class Merit Medal, raised his little hand high, and insisted on stuffing it into his own father's hand.
Everyone was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter.
Goodness, it's the first time they've seen someone pick something during the Zhuazhou ceremony and then immediately use it to 'spur on' their own dad.
Huo Tingzhou, however, crouched down at that moment. He solemnly took the military medal his son offered and responded with utmost seriousness, "Alright, Daddy will work hard!"
Suisui didn't know yet that because of his innocent act of sharing, Huo Tingzhou would later go all out in his missions, pushing others to their limits.
Compared to Suisui's decisiveness, Zhaozhao was a bit more conflicted.
Her big eyes blinked for a good while before she finally picked out an abacus from among all the items.
"Your daughter is just like you," Huo Tingzhou said, leaning over as everyone offered their auspicious words, his gaze gentle. "You also picked this during your Zhuazhou ceremony."
If he hadn't mentioned it, Jiang Si would have almost forgotten.
So he was there at her Zhuazhou ceremony too.
The originally warm and loving scene took a turn when Jiang Si teased, "Who knows, maybe our future son-in-law will be just like you, able to personally witness both his wife's and his daughter's Zhuazhou ceremonies."
Huo Tingzhou's mood instantly became less pleasant.
And he wasn't the only one whose mood soured. Just as everyone was chatting and laughing, preparing to head to the banquet hall, the guard from the gatehouse came looking for them—
