DLRC – Chapter 83 So Many Uncles Want to Be My Dad

The little one had truly been frightened this time. Yu Wei saw that he still had the strength to speak, and both relieved and exasperated, she tapped his nose. “It’s good you know you were wrong—let this be a lesson to remember!”

Huo Mingwang also came around to the driver’s seat and sat down. The sound of the seatbelt clicking into place was followed by the hum of the engine starting. The car slowly began making its way home.

“Mr. Huo, thank you.”

No matter his reasons for helping her, she owed him her gratitude.

Through the rearview mirror, Huo Mingwang glanced at the mother and son, his gaze lingering on Yu Wei’s rain-drenched face. Her hair was soaked and clung to the back of her head, making it appear even darker. Her skin, framed by her jet-black hair, looked porcelain white.

In her arms was his son, the little guy curled up against his mother’s neck for warmth, looking especially pitiful and endearing.

“Mm,” he responded briefly. After turning the key, he finally asked, “How did Yu Hui get blown away?”

The moment he said it, it was like poking at Yu Hui’s emotional wound. The child uneasily wriggled his little bottom and climbed onto his mother’s lap, pressing his face against her damp cheek. “Mama…”

Yu Wei pinched his cheek. “This little rascal didn’t listen and ran outside to check on a dog that had been blown away. In the end, he got blown away himself!”

“Mama…” Yu Hui’s lashes drooped sadly. “Mama, I was wrong. I won’t run out again.”

Not only had he been blown away, but the umbrella broke, and the knitted hat his mother had bought for him had also been blown off. Thinking about it made him feel even worse.

Even though Yu Wei never truly scolded or punished him, his little heart still ached with guilt.

Looking at her wronged and pitiful son, Yu Wei patted his shoulder. “It’s good that you know you were wrong. Mama’s not mad. But next time there’s such a strong wind, you absolutely must not run off.”

“Okay, I won’t run off again.” Though the little dog had looked so pitiful, if he’d been blown away himself, that would be pitiful too—and it would make Mama worry.

That helpless feeling just now, when even his mama couldn’t get to him, left a deep impression. He probably wouldn’t forget it anytime soon.

After understanding what happened, Huo Mingwang couldn’t help but find it amusing. “Lu City’s winters are unstable. On rainy days, you must go out with your mom.”

He steered the car slowly onto a narrow road. There was not a soul in sight, and while the wind still howled outside, it couldn’t reach the warm, cozy interior of the car.

Yu Wei looked up at him when he said that. Without glancing at the mirror, she could only see the back of his head, black and clean-cut.

“Uncle Huo, Huihui won’t run off again,” Yu Hui chimed in, interrupting Yu Wei’s thoughts. “If I do, I’ll get blown away.”

Huo Mingwang chuckled, glancing at the rearview mirror and catching Yu Wei staring at the back of his head.

His lips curled ever so slightly. “Mm. If you stay with Mama, you won’t get blown away.”

When he said the word “Mama,” his gaze collided directly with Yu Wei’s, catching her full attention. The car’s interior glowed softly with a warm yellow light. Outside, the sky was dark and gloomy. For a moment, the atmosphere in the car felt ambiguously warm.

If Yu Hui weren’t here right now, Yu Wei wasn’t sure she’d be able to sit still.

Especially when Huo Mingwang looked at her with that warm, gentle expression—it stirred something in her.

She sometimes thought back to when she first met Huo Mingwang. He hadn’t treated her this kindly back then. Had his attitude changed because he’d come to realize over time that she was a good person?

To Yu Wei, the shift in him was inexplicable.

But what she really couldn’t handle was a handsome man treating her gently—especially when she could sense he might actually be interested in her. Her mind would inevitably start to wander.

Fortunately, she still had a son in her arms. After being well-behaved for a while, the little guy grew restless again, squirming and wiggling so much that her thoughts were thoroughly scattered.

“Huihui, behave. Don’t move around so much in the car.”

“Mama,” Yu Hui looked up at her with misty eyes, “Mama, I feel itchy.”

“Itchy?” Yu Wei frowned and reached into his thick cotton coat to feel his back. “It’s probably because your clothes underneath are all wet.”

She sighed. “Hold on a little longer. I’ll change your clothes once we’re home.”

Right after she said that, she noticed the car speed up a bit. Not long after, they arrived at Jiang Aihua’s little courtyard.

It was 5:30 in the afternoon. Every household had started cooking dinner. No matter how cold the air outside was, warmth flowed within the homes.

Walking through the stairwell, even the aroma of meals being carried by the wind could be smelled.

The wind had started howling around the time Yu Wei reached the dessert shop, and an hour later, it hadn’t lessened in the slightest.

So when the three of them got out of the car, even with Yu Wei holding her son in her arms, the wind still blew her two steps back—right into a firm chest.

“Let’s go.”

Huo Mingwang held Yu Wei’s shoulder and, with her family’s floral umbrella in hand, led the mother and son steadily into the stairwell.

The worst thing about strong winds is that no matter how big your umbrella is, it’s useless—whatever’s meant to get wet will get wet, and whatever’s not meant to get wet… will still get wet.

So by the time Yu Wei made it into the stairwell with Huo Mingwang’s help, her coat—which had finally started to dry—was completely soaked again.

But the spot where Huo Mingwang had touched her shoulder still seemed to burn. Even though a thick coat lay between them, even though his hand was no longer there, it felt as though his warmth still lingered.

And when she turned her head in his direction, she could still faintly catch the scent of herbal medicine.

She tightened her arms around the little one. Except for his small face nestled against her neck, the rest of him had been soaked by the wind and rain.

Peeking out with just his eyes, he looked at Uncle Huo beside them and thought: Even someone as amazing as Mama needs Uncle Huo’s help to get home…

The three of them quickly reached the third floor. Yu Wei set her son down to unlock the door, but the moment she opened it, a wave of cold air rushed out.

“Hss—” The house had no warmth in it at all. Still, it was better than being outside.

Once they were all inside, Yu Wei immediately scooped up her son and dashed toward the bedroom.

“Mr. Huo, I’m going to change Yu Hui’s clothes. Please have a seat outside!”

Before Huo Mingwang could respond, Yu Wei had already slammed the bedroom door shut. From inside came the little one’s soft, trembling voice.

“Mama, I’m going to freeze to death, my little feet have turned into ice cubes…”

“You’re not cold, you’re not cold. In a bit, we’ll heat some water and give you a nice warm bath. Then you can put on your fluffy little red panda pajamas, and you’ll be all warm.”

Standing by the doorway, Huo Mingwang listened to the conversation between mother and son. After a while, he started walking around the house.

Come to think of it, this was his first time inside Yu Wei’s home. The last time he brought them back, he’d only gotten a rough look from outside. Now that he was actually inside, he realized how warm and cozy it felt, despite its small size.

The place was about fifty square meters, not very big. The living room wasn’t cluttered with random things, just the essentials—tables, chairs, cabinets. It looked very neat and orderly at a glance.

In the corner of the living room sat a birdcage. Inside were two lively pearl birds he’d seen before. Now, they looked noticeably plumper—probably thanks to Yu Hui’s generous feeding. When they spotted Huo Mingwang standing nearby, the two birds opened their beaks and started chirping noisily.

As his gaze shifted, he noticed the wall behind the dining table, covered in sheets of children’s drawings pasted up by mother and son.

They were all probably drawn by Yu Hui. He knew that kid loved to doodle in his spare time.

But seeing this full wall of drawings today gave Huo Mingwang a deeper appreciation for Yu Hui’s artistic progress.

From bottom to top, the lowest row was obviously childish scribbles. As he looked further up row by row, each level showed clear improvement.

Especially the top row—those drawings were genuinely quite good.

But what drew the eye the most were the two identical drawings at the very center. They depicted a countryside scene, with little animals, trees, and a river.

In the bottom right corner of each picture, names were written. The better-looking one said “Yu Hui,” while the more exaggerated and abstract one was signed “Yu Wei.”

Actually, “abstract” wasn’t quite accurate—if one were blunt…

“It’s really ugly.”

Huo Mingwang chuckled aloud, his finger gently tracing the names. The cool texture of the paper glided across his fingertips, yet somehow a warm current seeped through the colors on the page and settled deep in his chest.

So even without him—the “father”—it seemed like mother and son were living quite an interesting life.

It only took Yu Wei five minutes to change her son’s clothes. As soon as the little one was sent out, she shut the door with a bang and went to change herself.

The little guy was now bundled up in fuzzy clothes, with extra-fluffy fleece-lined pants.

On his feet were red panda slippers, and his head was bare because his knitted cap had been blown away. Now only a round little head remained.

He was bundled up tightly. Huo Mingwang guessed that beneath that plush jacket were layers of clothing—he looked like a puffy ball. Quite a funny sight.

As Yu Hui waddled toward him, Huo Mingwang was just about to crouch down and reach for him when the bedroom door opened again.

Yu Wei came out carrying a newly exchanged portable space heater and set it down by the dining table, plugging it in.

“Mr. Huo, come warm up by the fire.” Once it was plugged in, the small heater automatically adjusted to a usable power setting. With a press of the switch, warm golden light filled the little home instantly.

“Huihui, you come warm up too. Didn’t you say your feet were cold?”

Yu Hui padded over in his fluffy slippers and crouched curiously by the heater. The light was a bit harsh on the eyes, but it felt wonderfully warm.

“You two warm up out here for a bit. I’m going in to change.”

With that, she returned to her room, and the living room went quiet again. Huo Mingwang lowered his gaze to the little guy crouching beside the heater, his round face full of contentment.

He glanced at the tightly shut bedroom door, then crouched down beside the child as well.

Honestly, this little thing really was warm—he’d seen a lot in his life, but he had no idea where she’d gotten this device. From Port City, maybe?

Without thinking too hard, Huo Mingwang stretched out his long arm and pulled Yu Hui close, half-hugging him.

“Yu Hui.”

“Uncle Huo?” Yu Hui turned to him curiously. Seeing that Huo Mingwang was staring at him without speaking, he found it a little strange and turned back to study the “little sun” heater.

Looking at the little guy’s chubby cheeks, Huo Mingwang couldn’t resist reaching out to pinch them.

“Uncle Huo?”

Yu Hui turned his head with a pout, only for Huo Mingwang to bring over his other hand and pinch his cheeks again.

His little face was squished red, distorted by the man’s fingers. Uncle Huo was smirking, clearly teasing him—Yu Hui could tell!

“Uncle Huo!” Yu Hui huffed in embarrassment and irritation. With a wave of his little hand, he actually managed to push Huo Mingwang’s arm away.

“Yu Hui,” Huo Mingwang said, amusement in his eyes. Yu Hui thought his smile looked very gentle, very warm. His gaze reminded him a little of Mama’s, but with a slightly different… something more.

“Uncle Huo, why are you calling me?”

They remained crouched on the floor for a long time before Huo Mingwang finally spoke.

“Yu Hui, why don’t you have a father?” He wanted to know how Yu Wei had explained it to him.

Yu Hui didn’t like this question—but since it was Uncle Huo asking, he hesitated for a few seconds before replying, reluctantly, “I just don’t have a dad.”

He and his mom had never talked about “dad” before. And honestly, so what if he didn’t have one? Living in their little home with Mama was still happy.

He’d never envied other kids’ dads, because he had a great mom—and that was more than enough.

But Huo Mingwang wouldn’t give up. “Do you want a dad?”

This time the little one answered instantly—without a moment’s hesitation. “Nope!”

Huo Mingwang frowned slightly, puzzled. “Why not? Everyone else has a dad—don’t you want one too?”

Yu Hui shook his head honestly.

“Then… don’t you ever feel jealous that other kids have dads, and you don’t…”

Yu Hui didn’t know why Uncle Huo was asking this, but one thing he was sure of:

“I’m not jealous of other people’s dads. I have Mama—that’s enough!”

Yu Hui was a smart little thing. The moment Huo Mingwang asked those two questions, he faintly sensed what this man was getting at—he wanted to be his dad!

Not only was the little one clever, he was bold too. Right in front of Huo Mingwang, he asked the question he’d kept to himself for a long time:

“Uncle Huo, do you want to be my dad?”

Huo Mingwang nearly choked on his own spit. He hurriedly grabbed Yu Hui’s shoulders and coughed lightly to cover it up.

Yu Hui thoughtfully reached over to pat his back.

“Uncle Huo, don’t be nervous. I know—a lot of uncles want to be my dad.”

Meaning: No need to be shy, he understood.

Huo Mingwang coughed even harder, the veins in his forehead bulging. He stared at the bold little guy, voice hoarse.

“A lot of people want to be your dad?” His face changed suddenly. Thinking of that young worker who always stopped by Yu Wei’s shop, he gritted his teeth. “Who?”