In the Years When I Was a Father

Chapter 100: The Abusive Dad (6)

By the sixth day, Qi Yang’s injuries had mostly healed. Although a few areas were still bruised, he no longer felt any pain.

Qi Sheng applied medicine on him again. Seeing the little one lying obediently across his lap, he couldn’t help but turn him over and ask, “Today’s Saturday, Daddy has the day off. Do you want to go to the amusement park?”

Qi Yang immediately perked up. Because of the misunderstanding at lunch yesterday, he trusted Qi Sheng even more now. As soon as he heard they were going to an amusement park, he happily nodded without hesitation. Daddy hadn’t gone back on his word this time either!

Once they decided to go out, they got ready right away. They didn’t need to bring much, so packing was easy. Inside the bag were their swim trunks, the child’s thermos, some tissues, and snacks. Qi Sheng saw the items were a bit scattered, so he packed everything into a backpack.

Hand in hand, the two of them headed to the parking lot and drove straight to Dream Valley, the city’s largest amusement park.

It was Qi Yang’s first time at an amusement park. He had only heard Lin Xuan talk about how fun it was, but he never really had a clear idea of what it was like. Deep down, though, he had always hoped his dad would take him one day.

When they arrived, Qi Yang looked up at the towering Ferris wheel in front of him, staring curiously and a bit nervously at the top. That thing was way too high!

In the distance, he saw the adult rides. Several circular tracks stood out, and a little train-like ride was slowly climbing up one of them. Qi Yang followed its ascent with his eyes. Ahead was a steep downhill track!

Eyes wide, Qi Yang watched the train crawl to the top, and then—

“Aaaaahhhhh—!” Screams from men and women echoed from afar, growing louder as the train suddenly accelerated and spiraled through loops in dizzying circles. So terrifying!

Qi Yang was stunned. Was he going to have to ride that today? He was scared! He’d rather go home and do homework!

When Qi Sheng returned after buying the tickets, he saw Qi Yang staring unblinkingly at the cobra roller coaster and thought the boy was fearless and interested. But since the little guy was still very young, Qi Sheng definitely didn’t plan on letting him ride it.

“Yang Yang, that one’s too intense. You’re still too small for it.”

Qi Yang: We’re not riding that?! The heart that had just risen in his chest dropped back down. Phew, even when I grow up I’m not getting on that!

“Come on, let’s go to the children’s section. The rides there are more suitable for you.”

Since it was a weekend and the park was crowded, Qi Sheng held the boy’s hand the whole time. Qi Yang followed along obediently and never ran off. Having such a well-behaved son made Qi Sheng feel completely at ease. He remembered how chaotic it used to be taking the quintuplets out—even a group of bodyguards couldn’t keep up with them.

They headed first to the land-based area. Qi Sheng took Qi Yang on some milder rides: the carousel, a “Tour the World” ride, and finally bumper cars. Qi Yang drove one by himself while Qi Sheng chased him all over, making the little one scream in mock terror as he was mercilessly “bullied.”

After the first round, Qi Yang was clearly not done yet, so Qi Sheng asked, laughing, “Want to go again?”

“Yes!”

Letting loose like that had really opened Qi Yang up. His wide smile showed as he looked around at everyone else having fun. He even cheered himself on with determination: “Daddy, this time I’m going to beat you!”

Qi Sheng laughed, ruffling his hair. “Alright, let’s see if our Yang Yang can break his limits this round.”

They lined up again, and Qi Sheng nudged him to look around. “Is there anything else you especially want to try?”

Qi Yang obediently glanced around and finally fixed his gaze on the giant Ferris wheel. “Daddy, can we ride that later?”

It was so high—he was really curious!

Qi Sheng looked at it and thought it didn’t seem too intense, so he naturally agreed. They waited for a while and finally got back on the bumper cars. This time, Qi Yang took the initiative and chased Qi Sheng all over the arena.

So the predator of the last round, Qi Sheng, now had to “suffer” and run for his life. But since bullying his son was fun, every time Qi Sheng got cornered, he’d escape at a sharp angle—and always manage to bump into Qi Yang’s car while doing so.

The two of them, full of childlike glee, chased each other around the wide arena until the session ended and the cars stopped automatically.

“Daddy.” Qi Yang hopped off and cheerfully ran to Qi Sheng, grabbing his hand and still excited from the play. “Let’s go ride the Ferris wheel!”

As the tiny cabin slowly rose, Qi Yang knelt on the cushioned seat and leaned on the window, watching the world below. But as they approached the top, not only could he feel how high they were, the whole cabin swayed slightly!

Moments earlier, he had been bravely looking around—but now he immediately retreated into Qi Sheng’s arms and exclaimed, “Daddy, this is way too high!”

Qi Sheng held him close and pointed to the bungee platform nearby. “Yang Yang, look over there.”

Qi Yang followed his gaze just in time to see someone jump down. His little body trembled. “Daddy… um, I want to go down now…”

By the time they had nearly exhausted all the land rides, it was already noon. Qi Sheng took him to the rest area for a big meal and some good rest before preparing to “battle” the water park.

Whirlpools, magic spinning rides, water slides, inflatable rafts with cute animals—many were fun for both kids and adults, and even Qi Sheng had a great time.

Qi Yang got knocked off the raft again by a wave, clumsily stood up, and then laughed as he clambered back on. “Daddy, come up!”

This was already the fifth time he had been washed off and climbed back on again. Seeing how excited he was, Qi Sheng had to sigh—kids really were bundles of energy when they were having fun!

It was summer, so Qi Sheng wasn’t too worried about him catching a cold from being in the water so long. They played until after 5 p.m. before the little one finally began to feel tired.

Looking at his son starting to yawn, Qi Sheng tapped his forehead. “Now you’re tired, huh?”

Qi Yang giggled sheepishly, finally feeling a bit embarrassed. Just a while ago, when Daddy told him to take a break, he hadn’t wanted to stop.

Qi Sheng slung the backpack across his chest, squatted slightly, and gestured for him to climb on. “Come on, Daddy will carry you.”

The little guy’s eyes lit up. Looking at the broad back in front of him, he excitedly climbed on.

“Daddy, you’re the best!”

At that moment, he was so sweet—he didn’t just say it, he acted quickly too. After Qi Sheng hoisted him up, he even gave him a kiss.

“Do you really like it here?”

“Mhm! Daddy, can we come here again in the future?”

“Of course. From now on, Daddy will take you out to have fun every week—Ocean Park, the zoo, and anywhere else you want to go…”

Qi Sheng spoke as he walked, and the little guy lay quietly on his back, listening to the vibrations in his chest as he talked, smiling happily. At that moment, he no longer envied Lin Xuan at all!

Because they’d played too wildly the day before, Qi Yang felt sore all over the next morning. But even so, he still helped Qi Sheng prepare lunch and dinner like usual.

“Yang Yang, a couple of days ago Daddy bought a new house over on Hongbo Street. It’s still being renovated right now, but you can start thinking about how you want to decorate your room.”

Qi Yang, now a bit braver, washed vegetables while following along with Qi Sheng’s thoughts. He couldn’t help but ask, “Daddy, can I put up some anime posters in my room?”

“Of course. You have pocket money on your watch. If there’s anything you want, just pay for it with that. If it’s not enough, call me.”

Qi Yang softly said, “Thank you, Daddy,” and began looking forward to the next day. His daddy was truly better now, and he wanted to share this good news with his friends.

The next day, after being away from school for a week, Qi Yang finally returned to class. Unlike before, this time Daddy personally drove him to school, and his backpack was filled with snacks and lunch prepared by Daddy.

Mmm, he could share some with Xuan Xuan later. His daddy wasn’t just gentler now—his cooking was super delicious too!

When Qi Yang entered the classroom, he was greeted with enthusiastic hugs from his friends. While reciting during morning reading, he couldn’t help but want to talk to Lin Xuan. But just as the break came, before he could say anything, Lin Xuan was called away by a teacher again.

Qi Yang pouted. If he’d known, he should’ve texted Xuan Xuan yesterday.

During the break after the second period, Qi Yang finally caught Lin Xuan and pulled him to a quiet spot to share his happy stories. He was bubbling with excitement, but as he spoke, Lin Xuan’s face got longer and longer.

Lin Xuan muttered, “Yang Yang, you can’t be like this. How are you so easy to fool? It’s only been a few days, and you’re already tricked by the Big Bad Wolf!”

Qi Yang protested, “I wasn’t! This time I can feel it—my dad really has changed for the better. If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you later. He even made me lunch, and he’s an amazing cook. You’ll know once you try it!”

Lin Xuan watched his friend’s cheerful face and thought, Oh no, it’s happening again. My silly, naive Yang Yang has once again fallen for the Big Bad Wolf.

Unconvinced, Lin Xuan felt that his friend was like Little Red Riding Hood blindly trusting the Big Bad Wolf. He couldn’t help but worry—what if the Big Bad Wolf hit people again? What would his little angel Yang Yang do? Remembering how Yang Yang was sad for days once when his mom broke a promise, Lin Xuan patted him on the shoulder with an uncharacteristically mature tone and said, “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you.”

At lunchtime, Qi Yang went with the others to the cafeteria to heat up his lunch box. When he saw Lin Xuan, he cheerfully waved, “Xuan Xuan, I’m over here!”

The two of them sat down together to eat. Qi Yang eagerly promoted Qi Sheng’s cooking again, “Xuan Xuan, want to try? My dad made braised potatoes with beef, and there’s also a super tasty chicken drumstick. Want a bite?”

Lin Xuan glanced at Qi Yang’s lunchbox. He was going to reject immediately, but after hesitating for five full seconds, he turned away with a “hmph.” So what if it looked delicious? He wouldn’t eat anything made by the Big Bad Wolf!

His mom’s cooking was great too!

Seeing that Lin Xuan refused, Qi Yang wasn’t disappointed. He happily dug into the chicken drumstick. Mmm, Daddy is amazing—this is so good!

And so it continued for days. Every day, Qi Yang brought a lavish lunch and some snacks to school. On the first day, Lin Xuan could hold out for five seconds. But as he kept seeing the variety and how everything looked delicious, his resolve began to crumble.

That day, Qi Yang was happily munching on braised ribs when he noticed Lin Xuan had glanced at him several times.

Qi Yang gnawed off one rib and, seeing there were four left, hesitated a bit before continuing to eat. Forget it, no need to offer. Xuan Xuan won’t eat anyway.

Lin Xuan, who hadn’t gotten an offer this time: ??? Yang Yang, why didn’t you ask me today?!

“Yang Yang, I didn’t eat enough earlier…” Lin Xuan said pitifully. He really hadn’t eaten much—because, for some reason, after seeing how Qi Sheng made food for Qi Yang every day, he got caught up in it and asked his own dad to cook. But he’d totally forgotten that his dad’s cooking was barely edible. Sob… I miss Mom’s food.

As soon as Qi Yang heard that, he put down his chopsticks. He was already full, but Daddy always packed a big portion for him, saying it would help him grow. Since his appetite was gradually increasing, he figured it was okay to eat a little less today. So, he pushed the lunchbox toward Lin Xuan: “Xuan Xuan, want some of mine? There’s not much meat left, but there are still lots of veggies.”

Lin Xuan nodded hard. So what if it was made by the Big Bad Wolf—it was Yang Yang’s food now! As long as it’s from Yang Yang, he could eat it. Yep, no problem!

So Lin Xuan picked up his chopsticks and started grabbing food. He liked meat, so his first target was the ribs. Before eating, he still told himself: If the Big Bad Wolf’s cooking isn’t better than my dad’s, I’ll finally have something to mock him for! With that mindset, he took a big bite. Hmph, there’s no way it’s better than Mom’s—wait, why is this so good?!

After the first bite, Lin Xuan’s eyes lit up. He started chewing faster. Sob… why is it even better than Mom’s cooking?!

After the first rib, he eagerly went for the second, and then the third. By the time he wanted a fourth, the meat was gone. Waaah! There were clearly four pieces just now. Why didn’t I ask Yang Yang earlier?!

Still unsatisfied, Lin Xuan stared at the remaining vegetables and lotus root slices in the box. After one second of hesitation, he picked them up too. He… he still wasn’t full.

Mmm, why are even the vegetables so delicious? Lin Xuan, who had initially been reluctant, now looked delighted at the leftover veggies in Qi Yang’s box. These are all mine now!

Meanwhile, Qi Yang, watching his friend devour the food with gusto, widened his eyes. Xuan Xuan must’ve really been starving…