Chapter 1414 Uncle Hui
Long Hui somewhat felt ambushed by all the unfriendly gazes directed at him. Lu Zihao looked like he was about to beat him up if not for Long Jinjing holding him back. Iris and Jin Liwei were also present. But, just like before, the couple's gazes on him were cold. Only his other half-sister, Long Jinjing, gave him a welcoming albeit nervous smile.
He wanted to leave, but his excited son pulled him farther into the nursery. A fat, grey cat blocked their path and glared at Long Hui. He remembered this temperamental cat. It was called Ice Cream if he remembered correctly. Sometimes, she would be pleasant and even friendly when in a good mood, but more often than not, she looked like she wanted to claw someone's face off. This cat was the total opposite of the warm and affectionate Popcorn.
Little Jun hugged the glaring Ice Cream and tried to assure his feline cousin that his father meant no harm, just like what he did earlier with the puppy, Gravy. Unfortunately, Ice Cream didn't seem to change her mind and continued throwing a murderous look at Long Hui, but at least she didn't look like she was about to scratch his face off.
As for Little Jun, he was already used to Ice Cream's grumpiness. He was feeling too happy introducing his father to his four baby cousins. Both Little Mochi and Little Matcha were on the carpeted floor while the Lu twins were in their parents' arms. They looked at the stranger with wariness, perhaps remembering what happened with René Alejandro before.
Little Jun was too young to read and analyze the tense atmosphere. His enthusiasm was the only positive aspect in the room at the moment.
"Dada, dis Junjun baby bwoders! Dis Mochi, dis Matcha. Dat Dima, dat Misha! Junjun wuv babies!" (Daddy, these are Junjun's baby brothers! This is Mochi and Matcha. That's Dima and Misha! Junjun loves the babies!)
Long Hui studied his nephews. That was right. All four babies were his biological nephews.
The ones on the carpeted floor were the Jin twins. They didn't look alike at all. One was Jin Liwei's carbon copy, while the other resembled Iris. No, that wasn't entirely accurate. The other one resembled Wei Lan.
As for the Lu twins, they were identical. However, they didn't resemble any of their parents at all.
Little Jun pulled his father and sat beside his Jin cousins on the carpet.
"Mochi, Matcha, dis Junjun dada!" (Mochi, Matcha, this is Junjun's daddy!)
Then he began regaling his baby cousins with his adventures earlier that day, mainly about the animals he saw at the zoo. The adults present couldn't understand most of what he was babbling about. Nevertheless, his baby cousins appeared absorbed in listening to him. The babies' wariness towards Long Hui disappeared as their full attention shifted to their Big Brother Jun instead. [Read official chapters on W e b n o v e l (dot) com. Please stop supporting piracy. Also follow the author on Instagram: @arriacross]
Little Jun seemed to have forgotten about the scary encounter with the ugly female monster who screamed at him at the mall.
Long Hui ignored his discomfort at the current situation. Instead, he only focused on his son and observed his nephews, who he was meeting for the first time. The curious Popcorn sniffed around him before displaying its friendliness by plopping its furry body on Long Hui's lap. In contrast, Ice Cream and Gravy continued looking at him with suspicion. Long Hui happened to meet Little Mochi's eyes. The baby grinned at him, displaying a gummy smile with a single front tooth not fully emerged yet. It was odd.
Long Hui thought that he would despise the baby not only for being that child of his biggest sibling enemy, Iris, but also for resembling the hateful Wei Lan. But contrary to his expectations, he found the baby adorable. He was already smiling back at the baby before he realized what he was doing.
This interaction made him more comfortable. Then, his paternal instincts kicked in, and he began to initiate play with the babies. Little Mochi was the first one to accept his gesture. Unlike René Alejandro, Long Hui didn't even think of teasing the babies. Instead, he just played with them together with his son.
At first, Little Matcha didn't seem interested. But later, he also joined after seeing his twin brother and elder cousin laughing in delight.
The twins' parents, Iris and Jin Liwei, felt complicated while watching the scene. It wasn't only them. Jiang Ying Yue and Lin Yehan also didn't know how to process what was happening right in front of them.
It felt like they were seeing a stranger—a nice stranger—instead of the douchebag, Long Hui.
At that moment, Long Jinjing also joined the group on the carpet while holding one of her twin sons. Then, she presented the baby to Long Hui. "Eldest Brother Hui, meet my second son, Lu Zhiyuan. We call him Little Dima."
"Jinjing," Lu Zihao said in warning tone. He was displeased by her action. He didn't want his wife and children near the scumbag. It didn't matter if the motherfucker was his wife's biological brother and his children's biological uncle. Lu Zihao acted as if Long Hui was contaminated with an incurable and contagious disease.
Long Jinjing ignored her husband's displeasure. She continued introducing her son to her brother.
Like the others, Long Hui also felt complicated and even confused. He looked at Long Jinjing, the only adult present kind to him. This half-sister of his had always been kind, gentle, and in so many ways, easy to bully. He had never been close to Long Jinjing. Still, he treated her better than their other siblings because of her lack of interest in joining the battle of succession. She was no threat to him, unlike Long Jian and especially Iris.
Since Long Jinjing was trying her best to ease the tension among all the adults present, Long Hui decided to go along and accept her kind gesture. So he smiled at tLittle Dima. The baby looked like he was about to cry at the sight of him, but Long Hui smiled, interrupting the baby. Little Dima seemed fascinated by Long Hui, perhaps because he looked like the baby's elder cousin, Little Jun.
"Would you like to hold him?" Long Jinjing offered. "No way!" Lu Zihao was quick to reject his wife's suggestion. If it weren't for the presence of the children, he would have already cursed at Long Hui and kicked him out of here like a stinky bag of trash. There was a deep, heavy sigh. It came from Iris. She left her husband's side and sat with her twins on the carpet. Long Hui flinched at her close proximity. She ignored his reaction and looked at him straight in the eyes.
"Like what my husband said earlier, this is for Little Jun," she said. "We'll pretend that everything is fine for the sake of my godson but only for tonight. This will be the only time you'll meet your nephews like this. These children are all innocent to the enmity we adults have for each other."
A relieved smile appeared on Long Jinjing's face. Then she offered Long Hui to hold Little Dima again.
Long Hui took one look at the baby and remembered the time when Little Jun was also this small. Without his control, something warm and fuzzy filled his chest. His body also began to move before he could think about his actions. The baby was already in his arms when he returned to his senses.
Little Dima stared at him with innocent and very adorable eyes. The baby was soft and warm—everything that stimulated his paternal instincts.
"Good baby," he murmured. His expression was soft.
A few feet away, Little Misha began to struggle in his father's arms. "Mikhail, stop it," Lu Zihao reprimanded. Unfortunately, Little Misha continued wiggling like a slippery worm. He tried reaching out to his mother's group on the carpet. His twin brother and cousins were all there. Why was he the only one left out? He wanted to join them, too! His daddy was no fun at all. The exasperated Lu Zihao's patience was almost at its limit.
"Stop it, you little—"
"Zihao, please," Long Jinjing said in a pleading tone.
He didn't want to give in, but what could he do when his wife looked at him like that? Sighing, he grudgingly brought their other son to join the group on the floor. But, of course, he didn't forget to continue glaring at Long Hui. Little Misha was still unable to hold his head without support, but that didn't stop the daring baby from wanting to join in all the fun. He waved his little arms and kicked his little feet until his bad-tempered daddy placed him beside his cousins.
"This is Lu Tianyu," Long Jinjing introduced her eldest twin son to Long Hui. "We call him Little Misha."
"Your sons look exactly the same," Long Hui commented. "I can't tell them apart."
Lu Zihao rolled his eyes. "They're identical twins. Of course, they look alike."
Long Hui ignored the man's sarcasm. He didn't remember offending Lu Zihao at all, but the scar-faced man seemed to hate him even more than Jin Liwei did for the sake of Iris.
Never mind what the man thought about him. Every single one of these people, except for the innocent children, were his enemies anyway.
He would just take advantage of this moment to bond with his own son and nephews. This might be the last time that a ceasefire like this would happen. His nephews might grow to despise and avoid him in the future, but that was something he didn't need to worry about right now.
Just for tonight, he would be their Uncle Hui. And that was enough.