When Xie Sen woke up in the early morning, his hand instinctively reached for the side, only to find nothing. He immediately opened his eyes.
"It's still early, you can go back to sleep," Maine's voice came from beside the bed.
Xie Sen turned his head and saw Maine sitting on the sofa stool by the bed, holding the baby in her arms, feeding him formula. It had been a week since they returned to the apartment, and Maine's feeding of the baby had gone from tense and flustered to calm and composed.
The baby changed every day; now, at half a month old, he was all white and tender. His hair color was the same as Xie Sen's, but his features were similar to Maine's, particularly delicate—a super beautiful baby.
The baby was quite quiet and very well-behaved while drinking milk, raising his hand to gently touch Maine's wrist, his eyes focused intently on Maine. When he sensed Maine's gaze shifting away from him, he tilted his little head towards the side of the bed.
Maine immediately looked away, her hand moving slightly with the baby's head to prevent bumping into him.
Xie Sen instantly woke up, sat up on the edge of the bed, squeezed the baby's little hand, gently shook it, and looked at Maine: "You're not sleeping anymore, you're already asleep. When did you wake up?"
"Not long ago, the baby woke up first." Maine's voice was unusually gentle. Ever since the baby was born, he had always spoken like this, as if afraid of scaring the baby.
Xie Sen thought to himself, this man is really too good. He got up and said, "I'll cook breakfast."
"I'll cook. You gave birth less than a month ago, you need to rest more." After the baby finished drinking milk, Maine put the bottle aside and carefully picked up the baby to burp him.
Xie Sen leaned down and kissed him on the cheek: "How can you cook while taking care of the baby? I'm recovering well, cooking isn't tiring."
"The baby needs to rest after eating," Maine said. "Go wash up, I'll make breakfast."
Xie Sen sighed: "You're a superhero, you do everything. If you keep doing this, I'll become lazier and lazier."
Maine chuckled: "You won't, just watch the baby for a bit."
Xie Sen went to the bathroom to wash up, and when he returned to the bedroom, the baby was already asleep in bed.
Maine heard him come out and then looked away from the baby: "You watch the baby, I'll go cook."
Xie Sen: "Okay." He walked to the bedside, looked at the baby, and couldn't help but kiss him. Seeing the baby frown slightly, he immediately stopped moving, took a set of loose clothes from the closet, and changed.
Soon Maine finished making breakfast, went to the bedroom to call Xie Sen, and at the same time carried the baby out and put him in the stroller next to the dining table.
Both of them were new parents, and all their experience in taking care of a child came from the internet and doctors. They were very careful, always making sure that at least one person was with the baby at all times.
After breakfast, Xie Sen's memo beeped. He opened it and remembered, "Today is the contracted beast care day."
Maine said, "Okay, I'll contact Sun Mao later and have the caregiver come directly."
Because Xie Sen frequently visited the contracted beasts, after six months of pregnancy, following the doctor's advice, Maine regularly had the top-tier caregivers bathe and disinfect them.
According to the doctor, the baby's body would become very strong after six months, and then such meticulous care wouldn't be necessary.
There weren't many contracted beasts permanently residing in the accommodation area now. Black Panther and Little Spot had returned to the forest but would often come back to visit. Of the contracted beasts brought back from the lab, except for Two Bears who stayed, the rest had all formed contracts.
Therefore, each care session could be completed by three caregivers in three hours.
Before the baby's one-month celebration, Xie Sen's life was like that of a parasite, even more boring than during his pregnancy. At least during his pregnancy, he could occasionally cook and had some activities in the evenings.
From the baby's birth to the one-month celebration, Maine wouldn't let him do anything. He tried to cook several times but was stopped each time. He was also rarely allowed to hold the baby, only allowed to watch while cooking.
During this time, all he could do was go online, read the news, or read books, but no more than two hours at a time.
Feeling incredibly bored, he took the opportunity to read many books on early childhood education. He then learned that children on Brant Star grew faster than modern children.
No wonder he thought the baby was growing so fast; he assumed it was due to absorbing energy.
After the full moon celebration, the baby was much bigger than when he was born, chubby and incredibly cute, with wrists like lotus root segments. Xie Sen couldn't resist kissing him.
The number of guests invited to the baby's full moon celebration was similar to that of the wedding. The baby was very popular, and everyone wanted to hold him, but Maine coldly refused, so they could only look at him.
To protect the baby, the full moon celebration wasn't live-streamed. However, many people who were "waiting for the baby to grow up" remembered the full moon date and left messages and donations in the live stream, even sending private messages begging for photos of the baby.
Despite no pictures being leaked, the baby's full moon celebration inexplicably made headlines, and the comments were filled with replies about teaming up to steal the baby.
That night, Xie Sen watched the news while constantly scoffing, "Trying to steal the baby? Dream on!"
The next day, he began training the plants, exchanging for each one and carefully studying their attack and defense methods.
Maine sat on the sofa against the wall, holding the baby, occasionally giving him hints. The baby watched with open eyes, though it was unclear whether he understood.
Tuan Tuan flew in through the open French windows. Now over 1.5 meters tall, it wouldn't have been able to fly in without the windows.
It folded its wings, walked to Maine's side, stared at the baby, then turned to Xie Sen: "Ah Sen, the baby is so cute!" It couldn't help but spread its wings forward, as if wanting to hug the baby.
Maine's gaze swept over: "Close them."
Tuan Tuan chirped softly, "Chirp~," and obediently closed its wings.
Xie Sen chuckled, comforting him, "Your feathers on the sides are too sharp now. If you touch the baby, it will scratch him."
Tuan Tuan stood still, head down, looking forward, "Then can I touch it with my head?"
Xie Sen laughed, paused the training, walked to Maine's side, took the baby's chubby little hand, and let Tuan Tuan continue walking forward, then let the baby gently touch its white head feathers.
The baby giggled, its five fingers clenching, clutching the feathers and laughing incessantly.
When the baby let go, Tuan Tuan stepped back and raised its head, its voice excited, "The baby likes me very much, chirp~"
Xie Sen smiled and said, "Yes."
The baby absorbed a lot of energy in his belly, and after birth, it had a high affinity, and all the contracted beasts liked it. However, because the baby was too small, he wasn't sure if the baby could understand the contracted beasts' speech.
His thoughts drifted to this question, and he couldn't help but ask Adan in his mind. Adan replied, "Of course he can understand! He has energy in his body!"
Xie Sen gently rubbed the baby's soft cheek with his fingers: "That's good too. The baby can make many contracted beast friends in the future."
In the afternoon, he received a financial report from the farm's finance department. The report was very detailed; even though he hadn't studied finance, he could understand all the income and expenses.
The chili peppers had already been harvested twice during his pregnancy, and the peppers in the field would be ripe in another month. Currently, the farm's mature plants were tomatoes, eggplants, and watermelons.
In addition to the report, the finance department also sent a sales plan. As usual, it would be sold online at set times with limited IP addresses. Xie Sen thought for a moment, signed it, and then replied with a message, asking the employees to reserve two hundred watermelons and four hundred kilograms of tomatoes.
After sending the message, he switched to the live stream and posted an announcement: "To thank our viewers and compensate for the missed meet-and-greet during the streamer's pregnancy, we'll be holding a lucky draw tonight from 8 PM to midnight, selecting 200 viewers to each receive a watermelon and two kilograms of tomatoes!"
Currently, the most abundant foods on the market are rice and chili peppers. The research institute is vigorously promoting rice cultivation, with rice bases established in various districts, striving to ensure everyone can eat white rice as soon as possible .
Chili peppers were the first vegetable produced in cooperation with agricultural companies, and they have many seeds, are easy to grow, and have a high yield.
However, this high yield is only relative to the past and is far from enough for everyone to eat.
As for other plants, especially fruits, the yield is even lower, not to mention watermelons, which have many seeds. Besides eating them, selling the seeds to agricultural companies or the research institute can earn a small amount of money—not a lot, but at least 200 yuan, equivalent to an average person's daily wage.
Of course, most people are unwilling to sell, because whenever there's stock online, even tens of thousands of kilograms can be sold out instantly; if you're slow, you simply can't get any.
As soon as his announcement was posted, the chat was flooded with "Thank you, streamer! You're so generous!"
Xie Sen smiled, closed the streamer panel, and opened the farm's monitoring system to check on the watermelons and tomatoes.
Five employees were driving machines to harvest the fruit. Xie Sen watched for a while; the watermelons were large and the tomatoes were red, growing very well.
He immediately had an idea. From his pregnancy to the baby's one-month celebration, excluding trips to the hospital, he could count the number of times he had left the house on one hand. Now that the baby was finally a month old, he wanted to go out for a stroll.
If it was too far, Maine would definitely be worried; a trip to the farm would be perfect.
He turned his head to look to the side; Maine was designing a program, glancing occasionally at the baby in the bed with a particularly gentle look in her eyes. He wrapped his arms around Maine's neck and kissed him on the cheek: "You've become a doting dad."
Maine looked up, pinched his chin, kissed him, and chuckled as he released him: "Jealous?"
Xie Sen: "No, why would I be so bored as to be jealous of the baby? Besides, you haven't been ignoring me." Maine
gently squeezed his hand, looking at the sleeping baby: "Children actually have memories very early. When I was little," Maine paused, "I was always alone in a corner of a dark room. My dad was never there. Back then, I wished my dad would be with me every day."
Xie Sen hugged him, and Maine laughed: "It sounds like a long time ago now, almost unreal." He kissed Xie Sen on the lips, "I hope that in the baby's memory, there will always be someone with him." Xie Sen
: "Yes, the baby will definitely feel very happy in the future."
Only then did he realize that Maine's love for the baby was inseparable from his own childhood. Maine hoped that the baby wouldn't experience any of the bad things he had in his childhood.
And his attitude towards the baby was exactly what he had dreamed of when he was very, very young.
Shesen held Maine in his arms. Maine wasn't muscular, but his muscles were firm and toned, making him a very strong man. But at this moment, he felt sorry for him.
Mei ruffled his hair and pressed her forehead against his: "I've forgotten the past. I'm happy now. Don't look sad, it'll break my heart."
Xie Sen's lips curled up, and he muttered, "Your cheesy pickup lines are getting better and better."
Mei laughed: "These words just come out of my head."
Xie Sen chuckled and kissed him on the cheek: "Alright, it's cheesy, but I like it. I'll cook dinner tonight. I'll go to the farm to pick some vegetables."
"There are still vegetables in the kitchen, or you can have them delivered."
Xie Sen wrinkled his nose: "No, my main purpose is to get some fresh air," he said sternly, "Even if you say no, I'll still go. I haven't been out in ages!"
Mei knew he had been cooped up for a while, and affectionately kissed his nose: "Thank you for your trouble. If you go out, have Tuantuan go with you. Contact me if anything happens."
Xie Sen smiled brightly: "Okay."
He went to the contracted beast activity area, called Tuantuan, and drove the shuttle to the farm. Tuantuan flew alongside the shuttle.
Xie Sen opened the window, and a gust of wind rushed in. He let out a long, cheerful shout, instantly feeling refreshed.
Reaching the edge of the farm, as he prepared to land, he saw four people running away from the right side of the fence. Another person, perched on the wall, hurriedly withdrew his hand from the shuttle, jumped down, and joined the chase.
Xie Sen's first thought was that there were thieves!
He narrowed his eyes and steered the shuttle after them.
Tuan Tuan was even faster, landing directly in front of the leader of the fleeing group.
It was a tall, dark-skinned male. Upon seeing Tuan Tuan, he abruptly stopped, drew a long knife, and looked at it warily. His companions, seeing this, all drew their knives and brandished them at Tuan Tuan.
The dark-skinned male shouted, "We're good people! Don't attack!"
Xie Sen: "..." To actually draw a knife in front of Tuan Tuan, that's courage!
Tuan Tuan let out a short, sharp cry, flapped its wings, and pounced on the dark-skinned male like a black shadow.
The male instinctively swung his hand to chop, but Tuantuan didn't charge all the way. Instead, she suddenly rose higher, and after the knife had swung, she swooped down, grabbed the male's shoulder, lifted him more than two meters off the ground, and threw him to the ground.
Her throw was incredibly accurate; the male landed right in front of the shuttle. Xie Sen opened the door and got off the shuttle.
The dark-skinned male rolled on the ground, groaning in pain. After stopping, he turned and saw Xie Sen, exclaiming in surprise, "Xie Shen!" After shouting, his eyes darted around, and he got up from the ground, knife in hand, charging straight at Xie Sen. Xie Sen frowned, summoned vines to bind the man, and contacted the police to catch the thief. "No, no," the male twisted his body, slashing the vines with his knife, and continued charging, "Don't call the police!" Xie Sen continued to summon vines to bind the man, then summoned a potato. The potato fell from a height onto the male's wrist, creating a huge impact that knocked the knife away. The potato rolled backward, and the man's accomplice pounced to snatch it: "It's a potato!" Their eyes lit up, and they summoned two contracted beasts to fight Tuan Tuan, while the other three attacked Xie Sen: "Fight back! Throw potatoes at me!" Xie Sen: Had he encountered a few lunatics? Tuan Tuan cried out worriedly, ignoring the contracted beasts, teleporting from the air to Xie Sen's side, blocking his way: "Ah Sen, you go first!" Xie Sen said, "It's alright." He then summoned the Dragon Claw Locust Tree, using its branches to bind everyone, and then used the potato to knock the knives off the wrists of those attacking with them. He then gave the contracted beasts chili pepper gift packs. The scene instantly became peaceful. Not long after, the police arrived and took the group away. One person tried to pick up a potato as he left, but was kicked by an officer, who then very honestly took the potato away under the pretext of a weapon. Xie Sen went back and told Maine that the farm needed stronger security, otherwise it would be targeted by thieves. Tuan Tuan said, "I'll have my friends keep watch, so anyone who steals will be caught!" This little incident reignited netizens' interest in challenging Xie Sen to a duel. Xie Sen was particularly excited; he was eager to practice, but not yet, as he hadn't finished learning about plants.
Five days later, Xie Sen had studied all the activated plants. Many of them had similar attack abilities, but their attack power and agility varied due to their different appearances.
That day, Xie Sen was playing with the baby blocking the stroller when Long Teng and Bai Jiao arrived.
Long Teng's voice preceded his arrival: "Ah Sen, I've come to see the baby!"
As Xie Sen looked towards the door, Long Teng jumped off the back of the flying dragon beast, carrying Bai Jiao. The flying dragon beast lay at the doorway, craning its neck to greet Xie Sen, and tried to squeeze in to see the baby. Long Teng pushed its large head away: "We just finished fighting, you need to stay away from the baby."
The flying dragon beast opened its mouth, revealing a fierce look, and glanced at the stroller: "I'll come back after I take a bath!" With that, it turned and flew towards the contracted beast activity area, where there was a huge bathhouse.
Long Teng hopped to the car, looking at the baby with delight: "Ahhh, so cute! I'll go wash my hands before touching him."
Mei Yin came over with a baby bottle: "Even after washing, you're not allowed to touch him. You're too strong."
"I can control my strength!" Long Teng smiled and skillfully ran to the guest room to wash his hands and face.
Xie Sen asked Bai Jiao, "Did he just come down from the ring again?"
Bai Jiao nodded, gently shaking the baby's waving little hand: "It seems he's not planning to continue fighting."
Xie Sen raised an eyebrow: "I thought he was going to fight for the rest of his life."
After graduation, Bai Jiao entered the Pharmaceutical Research Institute, but Long Teng wasn't in a hurry to find a job. After getting his diploma, he started sparring everywhere, from Sun City and Moon City back to Star City, constantly challenging masters from all over.
Long Yu and An Ming didn't care, letting him do as he pleased. Long Teng was indeed a battle maniac; for more than half a year, he had been looking for someone to fight every day, enjoying it immensely.
Xie Sen thought he would be fighting for a long time.
Long Teng wiped his hands and face clean and came out of the guest room: "It's no fun playing anymore. I've challenged all the champions in big and small tournaments, official and private sparring matches, and they're all too weak." He smiled, "Main, how about we spar sometime?"
Maine nodded: "Okay."
Long Teng: "Great! I've also made plans with Yan Qi and Zhao Hao. I'll spar with you guys whenever I have time. We'll talk about it when a new champion appears."
Xie Sen chuckled: "When are you ever not free?"
Long Teng said: "I'm starting a business, so I'll be quite busy from now on." Seeing Maine bend down to hold the baby, he eagerly said, "I'll hold him!"
Maine put the bottle in his hand, stopping him, and gently picked up the baby, sat on the sofa, adjusted the baby's position, and reached out.
Long Teng placed the bottle in his hand, squatted down, and stared at the baby. He couldn't resist pinching the baby's chubby little leg that was sticking out: "Haha, so tender."
Xie Sen rolled his eyes at him: "You look like a weird uncle, you know?"
Bai Jiao chuckled, patted Long Teng's shoulder, and pointed to the sofa opposite them: "Sit down for a while. If you keep an eye on the baby here, he'll get distracted while drinking milk."
Long Teng obediently sat on the sofa and continued to stare at the baby from a distance.
Xie Sen was speechless. All the men here were like baby-watching maniacs. Not to mention how attentive Mei Yin was to the baby, even the deep-thinking type like Zhao Hao and the roguishly handsome type like Mu Lin, every time they came to his house, they would stare at the baby non-stop.
Xie Sen sat down next to Maine and joked, "You like kids so much, why don't you have one yourself?"
Long Teng paused, looking down at his stomach, "Can I have one?"
Xie Sen couldn't help but laugh. Bai Jiao twirled a strand of white hair between her fingers, sighing helplessly, "You're so stupid."
Long Teng looked up and glared at Bai Jiao, "Ah Jiao, you're saying I'm stupid? I'm very smart!"
Bai Jiao: "Really? Then what did Ah Sen mean just now?"
Long Teng scratched the back of his head and laughed, "He meant for me to get married and have children."
Bai Jiao chuckled, "Not too stupid."
Long Teng leaned closer to Bai Jiao, his eyes... Looking at Bai Jiao with sparkling eyes, Long Teng asked, "Then will you marry me?"
Bai Jiao avoided his gaze and pushed his shoulder, saying, "Back off, don't joke around."
Long Teng backed away with his push until his back was against the sofa, still looking at him, "I'm not joking! I'm always thinking about you, I'm happy when I'm with you, and I want to be close to you when I see you. You said that's what love is. I like you and want you to be my partner."
Bai Jiao sighed, his face slightly flushed. He really didn't understand why Long Teng could say such things in front of others. He felt embarrassed, but his expression remained calm.
He decisively changed the subject: "Didn't you ask Ah Sen for help with your startup?"
Long Teng stared at him, not very happy. Bai Jiao said, "Let's get down to business first."
Xie Sen sensed Bai Jiao's awkwardness and smiled as he continued, "What kind of startup are you planning to do?"
Long Teng's gaze left Bai Jiao, and his expression instantly brightened: "I want to open a restaurant and sell food! Didn't you say before that you weren't planning to open a big restaurant, but only develop dishes? I'll buy your ingredients and sell them in the restaurant."
Xie Sen said, "Okay, if you don't have a supply channel, I can sell you the vegetables from my farm as well."
Long Teng smiled: "That's something I was planning to ask you for help with too."
Xie Sen said, "Have you talked to Uncle Long about it?"
"Yes, I have. The restaurant location has been chosen, and I plan to design and decorate it myself. You, Mei Yin, and the baby must come when it opens," Long Teng smiled, "I'll arrange a private room for you, so no one will find out."
Xie Sen thought for a moment. He couldn't stay at home every day after the baby was born and not go anywhere. The decoration and opening preparations would take at least a month: "Okay, just let us know when the time is set. I'll write down the recipes I remember when I have time."
"Thanks, Asen." Long Teng smiled brightly.
Xie Sen thought of something: "You've sparred with many people, do you have any good sparring venues to recommend?"
Long Teng thought for a moment: "Yes, there are a few good multi-purpose training halls. They have rings specifically for guests to spar."
Xie Sen laughed: "Send me the addresses."
Long Teng: "Okay." He opened his bracelet and sent the addresses, then sent two to him before suddenly looking up, "Are you going to find someone to spar with?"
Xie Sen nodded: "Yeah, just to practice. I'm not very good at real combat."
Long Teng's eyes immediately lit up: "Want to fight me? I'm very careful with my strength." "I'll stop short of it."
Xie Sen thought for a moment: "Okay, I'll practice my defense then."
Author's Note:
Thank you for your support (づ￣3￣)づ╭?～
Long Teng: Disappointed _(:з」∠)_ I can't give birth. Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution~
Thank you to the little angels who threw [grenades]: Bei Ai Bei Ying 1;
Thank you to the little angels who threw [landmines]: From Mars, Jinxiu Meng, Hongyi 1;
Thank you to the little angels who watered my plants with [nutrient solution]:
Si Ning Ya Luo 10 bottles; Gu Yu 6 bottles; baekhyunee 5 bottles; 11 3 bottles; Hongyi, Ji Li Ji Li, My Taste is Heavy 1 bottle;
Thank you all so much for your support, I will continue to work hard!