Chapter 133: Chapter 85: Mine Can Be Pinched Up, Can Yours?
Chen Yuan nodded, agreeing with her assessment.
Fang Youqing had a kind of sturdy shell, protecting her tightly. It wasn’t easy for anyone to get close.
That faint sense of distance, in particular, made it hard to truly get to know her.
"My philosophy is to make yourself happy first. You can be considerate of others, but they won’t necessarily be considerate of you, so there’s nothing wrong with being a little selfish."
"On that point, we’re in complete agreement."
Before this, she had always seen Chen Yuan as a child.
A university student who hadn’t even left the ivory tower—what could they possibly have in common?
But after interacting with him a few times, she discovered he was more mature than she’d imagined. Some of his ideas aligned perfectly with hers, and she found it easy to talk to him.
When she was with Xiaoning, they would just chat about trivial matters. They couldn’t really connect on other topics, as there was a lot Xiaoning couldn’t understand.
But Chen Yuan seemed different.
’A very impressive young man.’
"I want to ask you a question," Fang Youqing said.
"Go ahead."
"Do you think corporal punishment is an effective form of education?"
"It is."
She looked at Chen Yuan with great interest. "So certain?"
"If this method of education were completely useless, you wouldn’t be asking me. The moment you ask the question, you already have an answer. More often than not, you need to tailor your approach to the child. Different kids with different personalities require different methods."
Now, Fang Youqing was genuinely a little surprised.
What surprised her was the profoundness of his statement.
’The moment you ask the question, you already have an answer.’
Without independent thinking and worldly wisdom, it would be hard for someone to come up with a line like that.
It was like adult social interactions.
Someone else’s hesitation is a form of rejection.
With some questions, the moment you voice them, you’ve already lost the upper hand.
"Did you get hit when you were a kid?" Fang Youqing asked.
"I got my fair share of spankings when I was little, but it rarely happened after I started middle school."
"Then maybe I should step up that aspect of his education in the future."
"I think you could."
Watching the child, the two of them chatted for a while longer about other things.
Things like their views on child education and the problems university graduates face.
Fang Youqing found herself agreeing with all of Chen Yuan’s answers.
For the most part, their thoughts and perspectives were aligned.
He had a clear sense of who he was and a competitive spirit deep down.
She felt she could rest easy if she let him teach her son a few things.
RING RING RING—
After a little while, Fang Youqing’s phone rang. It was a call from Aunt Liu.
She answered, said, "Got it," and hung up.
"Aunt Liu has dinner ready. Let’s go back and eat."
"I made plans to eat with a classmate, so I won’t eat here."
"What classmate? I think you’re just too embarrassed to stay."
Fang Youqing saw right through his excuse. "Xiaoning already told me you don’t have anything planned today. Come back with me, have dinner, and then you can go."
"Alright then..."
The two of them looked over at Zhao Wen Cheng and found him trailing behind two girls, having the time of his life.
"He was just starting to behave better, and now he’s back to being a tag-along behind the girls."
Fang Youqing rolled her eyes, thoroughly exasperated.
"You can’t change a habit overnight. Take it slow."
Chen Yuan waved him over. "Chengcheng!"
Hearing Chen Yuan’s voice, Zhao Wen Cheng turned and trotted over.
"We have to go home for dinner."
"But I’m not done playing yet."
"Even if you’re not done, we have to go. Besides, there’s something Uncle needs to tell you."
Chen Yuan picked Zhao Wen Cheng up and whispered:
"We’re men. We can’t always be following girls around, you know?"
Zhao Wen Cheng’s expression was a little dazed; he couldn’t yet grasp such a profound concept.
"Remember what Uncle said. We can’t let women lead us around. We should be the ones leading them."
Fang Youqing: ???
PFFT—
Fang Youqing couldn’t help but laugh.
’What in the world is he teaching him?’
But then again...
’If he can really have women wrapped around his finger in the future, I guess that’s a talent.’
The two of them whispered quietly up ahead, and Fang Youqing couldn’t quite hear what they were saying.
Still, given Chen Yuan’s values, she found his way of teaching her son acceptable. There was no real problem with it.
When the three of them got home, Aunt Liu found a pair of slippers for Chen Yuan.
"Come on in."
He took off his shoes and entered the house. Three dishes and a soup were set on the dining table.
Aunt Liu went to change Zhao Wen Cheng’s clothes, while Fang Youqing went to her bedroom and changed into yoga pants and an oversized T-shirt.
Once out of her professional attire, her cool and commanding presence softened, replaced by a gentle, homey charm.
"Let’s eat first. Make yourself at home. If there’s anything you want to eat in the future, just let me know ahead of time."
"Thanks, Sister Qing."
Fang Youqing was very warm. Jiang Wanyi had a similar personality, but she was a bit more reserved.
Zhao Wen Cheng had his own plate for meals. Fang Youqing put a little rice on it, then added some vegetables.
"This much should be okay, right?"
"It’s fine. Give him a little fruit after the meal, but don’t give him anything else even if he says he’s hungry. Try to control his intake a bit. A little hunger won’t hurt him."
"Looks like I really have to be a cruel mother this time," Fang Youqing said with a smile.
"Sometimes you have to be. It’s for his own good, after all."
"Mommy," Zhao Wen Cheng said, holding his plate.
"What is it?"
"I want to sit next to Uncle and eat."
"Your uncle is tired. He doesn’t have time to coax you to eat. Sit down and eat properly."
"Okay..."
"It’s okay, let him come over."
Chen Yuan lifted the child to sit next to him, and they began to eat.
Since Fang Youning wasn’t there, the job of looking after Chen Yuan fell to Fang Youqing. She was worried he would be too shy to eat.
After dinner, Zhao Wen Cheng eagerly pulled Chen Yuan away to play with toys.
"Son, Mommy will play with you. Let Uncle rest for a bit."
"I want to play with Uncle."
Fang Youqing put her hands on her hips, at a loss with him.
The three of them sat on the floor mat, with Chen Yuan playing with the child and his toys.
Fang Youqing sat next to her son with her legs curled up. The curve of her rounded bottom was full of a mature woman’s charm.
"You haven’t been taking those supplements for qi and blood, have you?" Chen Yuan asked.
"I finished the rest of them yesterday. I don’t plan on buying any more. I’ll follow your method for a while first."
"Stick with it. Your case is rather severe, so you’ll need to keep it up for a few months."
"Let me see, I’ve been drinking it for four days now. My shortness of breath is much better. It’s not like before, when I always felt like I couldn’t get enough air."
"That means it’s working."
"You know more about this stuff than I do. If I have any more problems like this in the future, I’ll come to you for advice."
"No problem."
"Oh, right. I’ve been washing him every day and applying the medicine like you said. Can you help me see if it’s getting better?" Fang Youqing asked.
"Sure."
Tucking her hair back, Fang Youqing moved closer to her son.
"Son, stand up. Pull down your pants so Uncle can see."
SWISH!
Without a moment’s hesitation, Zhao Wen Cheng yanked his pants down. It was remarkably swift.
This time, Fang Youqing’s handling of it was much more practiced. She retracted it with ease.
As she did so, Zhao Wen Cheng was giggling. He didn’t know what shame was yet and just thought it was fun.
"It’s much better. Apply it one more time today, and that should be it," Chen Yuan said.
"He’s too little, so there aren’t many good options right now. The only thing to do is start with hygiene."
"Mm, I’ll apply it again for him tonight," Fang Youqing said with a nod, no longer as worried.
"Uncle, look!" Zhao Wen Cheng said with a grin.
"Look at what."
Chen Yuan: ???
’Do you even hear what you’re saying?’