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âFan, letâs compete to see who loses their bait more, or catches a bigger fish first,â Zhao Xiaotian said.
âYouâre gonna lose for sure. After all, Iâve spent more time fishing here than you. What kind of fishing skills could you have coming only once in a while? Isnât this just making it easy for me to win?â Ye Fan retorted, sounding a bit annoyed.
Isnât that the case!
When he had nothing else to do, he would be fishing here.
He knew this place like the back of his hand.
So, this wasnât really fair to Zhao Xiaotian.
âItâs okay, weâre just fishing for fun, to relax a bit, no big deal,â Fang Dajian said with determination in his eyes.
For him, having nothing to do was a perfect chance to laze around and fish; winning or losing didnât matter.
âAll right then, letâs get started,â Ye Fan said with a smile.
It had been a long time since he fished together with Zhao Xiaotian.
He really missed those days.
Back when the kid was still in school, he would often come out to fish with him.
Now, with work and all sorts of things to deal with, he genuinely didnât have the time.
As for Ye Fan, his best buddies, his die-hard friends, were Fang Dajian and Zhao Xiaotian.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
His circle of friends was very small, just these two guys.
But, friends are not about quantity, but about sincerity.
There are many who will add flowers to the brocade, but very few who will send coal in the snow.
Itâs rare to find people who will give you a hand when youâre in your toughest times.
The two of them were fishing, while the kids were playing games on the lawn. Two beauties were sunbathing in the yardâa truly healing scene.
Eventually, Fang Dajian called to say he couldnât make it.
Jennyâs due date was any day now; she didnât dare to run around and always needed someone with her, just in case she went into labor.
Of course, Ye Fan had been through the same and understood, so he was very sympathetic.
It was fine that he didnât come; there would be other times to gather.
As evening approached, Mother Ye called everyone to start dinner.
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately headed toward the house.
Sitting at the dining table in the living room, everyoneâs eyes lit up at the sight of the delicious spread on the table.
It looked so appetizing.
Their stomachs felt very hungry.
âOkay, itâs quite late, and Iâm sure everyoneâs hungry; letâs eat,â Mother Ye said with a smile.
At that moment, everyone picked up their chopsticks.
Ye Fan was the first to pick up a piece of meat and put it into Bai Susuâs bowl.
âXiaotian, I want some too!â Bai Ruoxue turned her head and said to Zhao Xiaotian, watching how Ye Fan cared for his sister.
âSure, sure, wife, try this,â Zhao Xiaotian said, picking up a piece of meat for Bai Ruoxue.
Everyone saw this and smiled.
âOkay, letâs all raise our glasses; weâll drink soda instead of alcohol. Thanks for attending the babyâs one-month celebration. Weâre all family here, so donât be shy; eat and drink your fill,â Ye Fan said, his face beaming with a smile.
âNo worries, weâre here for the childâs one-month celebration, just to join the fun. Anyway, itâs been a long time since weâve come to see you; weâve missed you,â Bai Ruoxue said with a smile.
âYeah, itâs been so long since weâve come over. Iâve been busy lately, but seeing everyone in good health is reassuring,â Zhao Xiaotian added.
âHereâs a toast, thanks,â Ye Fan responded.
âIf you have time, you can always come over; itâs no trouble. Auntie doesnât consider you outsiders; youâre all family,â Mother Ye said with a laugh.
Thatâs rightâZhao Xiaotian was practically watched growing up by them.
And Bai Ruoxue, Bai Susuâs cousin, was no different.
They were all family.
She liked both of these kids; they were very good-natured.
âAunt, Uncle, when we have time, weâll come over to visit. Donât get tired of us, hehe!â Bai Ruoxue said to Mother Ye and Father Ye.
âYeah, I love coming over to your place. It feels like home, so laid-back. So, you can expect us to come bother you in the future,â Zhao Xiaotian said.
âI would love it if you came more often. This is your home. Iâve watched Xiaotian grow up, and Ruoxue, youâre Susuâs cousin. Weâre all family. And I really like that girl Jenny too. Itâs just that sheâs about to give birth and probably wonât be able to get around lately,â Mother Ye admitted.
That girl Jenny, she was very fond of her.
âJennyâs about to have her baby; Iâve heard her due date is in a few days, so sheâs constantly with someone and afraid to go anywhere. Otherwise, Jenny loves the excitement and would insist on coming no matter what,â Bai Ruoxue explained.
âRight, when she has her baby, Iâll also go see her, such a lovable girl,â Mother Ye commented.
âLetâs eat!â Ye Fan said with a laugh.
Look, they could talk so much they would forget to eat.
âGrandma, I want to go with you to see Aunt Jenny!â Ye Bing spoke up at this moment.
She also really liked Jenny, who always brought them tasty treats and fun things whenever she visited.
âI want to go too, take me with you.â
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âAnd me too!â
âI want to go as well, donât forget about me!â
One after another, the four little ones started to speak up.
Their looks showed a fear of being left out.
âOh alright, Iâll take you all with me. Donât worry, after your Aunt Jenny gives birth, weâll all go visit her,â Mother Ye said with a smile, reaching out her hand and caressing the head of the second eldest who was sitting beside her.
These kids really have warm hearts.
One by one, they clamored to go.
âYou mean to say, you wonât come to see me after Iâve given birth? Iâm your big aunt, Iâll be heartbroken,â Bai Ruoxue said to the four youngsters, her eyes filled with a hint of grievance.
Her act was so convincing that Ye Fan felt somewhatâ¦
âWeâll go! Weâll wait until big aunt has her baby, then we also want to go!â
âYes, big aunt is very good to us too, of course weâll go see my little sister!â
âBig aunt is having a brother. She can only have a brother, itâs not possible for her to have a little sister!â Thatâs when Little Fourth spoke up.
âXiaoye Jie, how do you know itâs a brother, not a sister?â Bai Ruoxue asked.
The little one had made such claims more than once.
Why was she so certain every time, as if she had seen it for herself?
Nevertheless, Little Fourth had also predicted that Bai Susu was carrying a boy, and her guess turned out to be true.
It was just unknown whether this was a mere coincidence.
If it was just coincidenceâ¦
But could childrenâs words really be so prophetic?
To say what will be born and then it happens?
Bai Ruoxue was still quite skeptical.
âOf course, itâs definitely a boy. Not just big aunt having a boy, Aunt Jenny is also having a boy; youâre all having boys!â Little Fourth Ye Jie stated firmly while she clutched a chicken wing, eating and speaking with utmost seriousness.
âItâs alright, a boy or a girl, I donât mind at all!â Bai Ruoxue said.
Although, she did long for a daughter, having a boy wouldnât be terrible.
They were all her children, to be loved equally.
âThatâs good then, hehe, your baby is going to be very healthy, and will be really smart in the future!â Ye Jie spoke up again.
âThen Iâll take your good words for it!â Bai Ruoxue replied with a smile.
Little Fourth Ye Jie really knew how to speak.
Those words genuinely endeared people to her.
Indeed, she hadnât poured affection on the little girl for nothing back in the day.
âLetâs eat now!â
âYeah, itâs going to get cold soon!â
Mother Ye and a few others chimed in.
Only then did they start to eat their meal with patience.
As soon as they finished eating, Bai Ruoxue and Zhao Xiaotian rested a bit before driving off.
It was getting late, and the sky was darkening.
Ye Fan stood at the doorway, watching Zhao Xiaotian and Bai Ruoxue drive away before he went back inside.
A few of them sat on the sofa, watching TV.
Before long, Ye Fanâs phone began to ring.
Picking it up, he saw it was a call from Fang Dajian.
âHello, Da Jian?â Ye Fan spoke into the phone.
âYe Fan, weâre at the hospital. My wife Jenny is giving birth. Weâre now in the hospital, and Iâm really nervous. What should I do?â Fang Dajianâs anxious voice came through the phone.
Listening to the sound of that voice, Ye Fan could feel what Fang Dajianâs mood was like at that moment.
He hadnât expected the birth to happen so soon!
âWait for me, Iâll be right there!â Ye Fan said and then hung up the phone.
Just then, since Ye Fan had the speaker on, everyone had heard the conversation.
âYou go ahead. Be careful driving, slow down at night!â Bai Susu looked at Ye Fan with concern.
âYeah yeah, donât worry. You all stay at home and behave, no messing around, got it?â Ye Fan told the four little ones.
âDonât worry, Dad!â
âWeâre very good!â
âAlright, Iâm off now!â Ye Fan said as he was about to leave.
âYe Fan, hold on, you should take some things with you. You might need them once youâre there!â Mother Ye called out to Ye Fan at that moment.
âTake what?â Ye Fan asked.
âJust wait a few minutes!â Saying this, Mother Ye hurriedly went upstairs.
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