A Slight Smile is Very Charming (微微一笑很倾城) : Side Story 4

Side Story 4: Baby Xiao……s

As the product of the Computer Science’s Great Master and the Department Beauty, little boy Xiao has expressed his interest in computers ever since he was young.  The way he expresses it is: just when he learns how to crawl, he would crawl to the side of his daddy’s laptop, and then urinate on the keyboard in satisfaction, damaging his daddy’s computer.

Of course, the outcome is that when his young daddy returns from taking a phone call in the living room, he is captured and given a few spanks on his chubby bottom.

When he gets older, he would hug onto his daddy’s legs and won’t let go, “Daddy, buy a little computer for Cong Cong.”

Daddy, “Why do you want a little computer?”

Little boy Xiao says with confidence, “To do work.”

His young daddy feels proud right away because his son will be able to take over his business.  He bends down and picks him up, “What kind of work?”

Cong Cong, “To press ABCD!”

Daddy, “……”


Baby Xiao is named Xiao Ming Cong by his (paternal) grandpa.  Grandpa makes it a big deal and explains the meaning behind the name——”Ming” is the bright sun and moon; the sun and moon, are the spirits of the sky; “Cong” is the object of jade, which is the essence of the earth.

Therefore, our baby Xiao Ming Cong is without a doubt, the spirit of the heavens and earth, and the essence of the sun and moon!

*cough*……

Let’s first not worry about an old man’s self-pride.  Just from the fact that it is for naming a child, calling him essence is not wrong.  His facial features come more from his gorgeous mom; even at such a young age, he has slender eyebrows and big round eyes; beautiful and handsome……and of course, also a little chubby.  His intelligence and reflex seem to take from his dad; he understands big logic well, especially numbers.  However, no one knows whom he inherited his liveliness and desire to break things from.

One night after Wei Wei has finally put Cong Cong to sleep, she pulls Xiao Nai to sit in the living room to help tidy up the toys.  Wei Wei looks at the cracked and broken toys and says feeling vexed, “Whom is Cong Cong like?  I was never such a rascal when I was little.  Some of my toys are well-kept and my mom still keeps them.  Did Cong Cong inherit this side from you?”

“Nope,” Xiao Nai denies while pressing a fallen wheel back onto a toy car, “I never break my own toys when I was little.”

……Uh, so?

“I broke quite a bit of other kids’ toys,” Xiao Nai falls into his own thoughts.

Wei Wei, “……”

Alright, she knows whom her son is like.  But oh Cong Cong, you should learn from your dad!  Don’t break the toys that Mommy and Daddy buy for you.


Little boy Cong Cong is energetic and lively all the time, so he never likes to be alone.  When he hadn’t learned how to crawl yet, he would babble in his own baby language inside his cradle, but he had to have an audience, otherwise, he would twist his body and kick his legs in protest.  When he could crawl, he would roll his bottle with him and crawl everywhere in his diapers.  He has gotten even livelier now that he can walk.

Putting him to sleep is the biggest headache for the whole family.  The little boy really knows how to split up the tasks between his mommy and daddy.  His mom and dad pick him up from his (paternal) grandpa and grandma’s place every day after work.  After they go home, finish eating dinner, he would sit on his daddy’s lap to watch Daddy use the computer.  He would babble to express his recommendations.  Before he goes to bed, he likes to cling to his mommy to play toys with him and tell him stories.  Furthermore, he refuses to sleep unless his mommy accompanies him by the bed.

Wei Wei has just finished putting Cong Cong to sleep today, but she has also fallen asleep without knowing.  After sleeping for a while, she feels her body become weightless; someone has lifted her out of the room and put her onto a bigger bed.

Wei Wei opens her eyelids slightly; she brushes away a certain someone who is unbuttoning her pajamas, “Stop it, I don’t have the energy.”

Only half of the buttons have been undone, but it’s even more tempting when her body is half covered and half exposed.  A certain someone obeys her request and stops unbuttoning them.  Instead, he pulls them straight down.  His hand reaches inside, he lowers his body, and says into her ear, “Wei Wei, let’s not waste time.  Let’s finish having all the kids we need.”

“Huh?” Wei Wei’s breathing becomes unsteady from his fiddling, not understanding his words.

The person on top of her body seems to be a little angry.  He says definitely, “Let’s have one more, and let them go play by themselves.”

If both sides of a married couple are only childs, they are allowed to have two kids according to the policy in City B.  They already have a consensus in this matter; they will have two kids, but Wei Wei never thought that they would have another one so soon.  It’s not that she is worried about work; Wei Wei is quite lucky for inheriting her mom’s physique; during her last pregnancy, she didn’t have any morning sickness, her face was plump and didn’t grow a single pimple.  As long as she is careful in the first three months, she will be able to go back to work as usual.

She’s not afraid of having another child, but what about taking care of it?  Right now, Grandpa and Grandma are the ones who are babysitting Cong Cong most of the time since university professors have more freedom.  They’ve also hired a babysitter to help out at other times, and they are just barely managing.  If they have another rascal like Cong Cong, will Grandma and Grandpa protest and refuse to help them >o<


Xiao Nai mentioned having another baby while they were in bed last time, but he never mentioned it again.  Wei Wei believed that he was just thinking about it out of impulse, so she didn’t take it to mind.  A few days later, Xiao Nai takes his son to the bookstore and comes back with a stack of children’s books.  He sits on the floor where the sun is shining and starts reading them to their son.

His voice is cool as always, but under the shining light accompanied by the child’s babble, it somehow feels gentle and relaxing.  Wei Wei sits leaning beside him, randomly picks up a cookbook, and starts browsing through the recipes and listening to him reading out the stories at the same time……the more she listens, the more she feels strange about it.

Usually, Xiao Nai would change the main characters’ names to “Ming Ming” or “Cong Cong.”

In the first children’s book, it goes:

“Ming Ming takes his little sister to let the sheep out.  They arrive at the hillside covered with grass……”

The second book:

“Xiao Chong, Xiao Ya, and Xiao Zhu live in the forest.  They are three happy brothers and sisters.”

The third book:

“Big brother Chong Chong and little sister Xiao Zhu……”

Cong Cong feels a bit upset after listening to N stories.  He protests, “Why doesn’t Cong Cong have little sister Xiao Zhu?!”

Wei Wei then hears a certain someone answer nonchalantly, “You will have one soon.”

Wei Wei, “……”

Wei Wei sits up and hits him with the book, “What are you doing ==”

Xiao Nai, “I’m preparing Cong Cong to have the responsibility of being an older brother.”

Wei Wei, “……”

Cong Cong gives his ending statement, “Mommy, Cong Cong wants to take little sister Xiao Zhu to go out and play.”


Therefore, after two years, Wei Wei is pregnant again.  Their parents find out about it first, and are delighted from the news; there isn’t more that they want, they just want to enjoy their lives with many grandchildren.

Wei Wei’s roommates also find out soon after.  They each call her up to express their shock.

Xiao Ling says, “Wei Wei, how come your Great Master is so enthusiastic in having kids?”

Wei Wei, “……he likes to win short battles.”

Er Xi says, “You and your Great Master.  You guys started dating right after meeting.  You guys got married right after graduation.  Right after getting married, you guys had a baby.  It hasn’t even been long since your first baby and now you’re having a second one.  Oh Wei Wei, what are you doing next?”

Wei Wei, “……I’ll go ask him about what’s next in his plan tonight ==”

Si Si, “Boohoohoo……you already have two kids, and I’m still a leftover single woman.  This won’t do.  Regardless of what my next blind date looks like, I’m getting married!”

As for the office, since Wei Wei is wearing clothes that prevent radiation, everyone understands without asking.  But the crowd cries out feeling upset, believing that Xiao Nai is too shameless.  How could someone be like this?  Being ahead a step is okay; two steps are already enough; but he’s now one more step ahead.  He is truly too shameless.

YuGong shouts, “When will I have a kid?!”

MoZhaHim, “You should try to end your virginity first……”

YuGong, “Alright, I know you’ve ended yours already.  You don’t have to show off.”

MoZhaHim feels irritated, “I’ve ended it but it’s not like I can have a baby.  What use is it?!”

Before everyone understands the meaning of his words, the rumored gynophobic colleague named Shuang murmurs, “I don’t want a wife, but I want kids.  How should I do that?”

Everyone starts expressing the challenges to that, “……I’ve only heard of breaking a bull on the other hill, but I’ve never heard of having a baby out of thin air……” (both are impossible and wasted effort.  “breaking a bull on the other hill” is a mythical martial arts move, hitting a person/barrier that defeats others in the surrounding but not the person/barrier)


Wei Wei’s second baby is especially quiet.  Her pregnancy is going even more smoothly than her first; she doesn’t feel any sickness at all.  As a result, everyone believes that it will be girl, so they’ve settled on a name.  She will be called Xiao Ming Yue.

But ten months later when the baby is born, it turns out to be a boy.  Everyone feels a tee bit disappointed due to the unexpected, but they are still overjoyed to welcome the newborn.  They were going to change the name, but the fortune-teller that Grandma knows very well said that based on the time the baby was born and its weight, naming him Xiao Ming Yue would be the best.  They must not change the name.  Therefore, although it’s a boy, he will be called Ming Yue (lit. bright and clear pearl, a rather girly name in Chinese).

Baby Ming Yue is a calm and quiet baby.  The thing that he does most is to sleep; otherwise he is in deep thought inside his cradle.  If someone comes to see him, he will lie quietly in the cradle, stare at the person, and after he has finished studying the person for a while, he will turn his head, close his eyes, and continue sleeping.

They can’t tell whom he takes his qualities from at the moment, but Wei Wei feels that he is more like the Great Master.  But then again, even the Great Master isn’t this dull.

Sigh~~~

Wei Wei feels perplexed.  How come the two boys she has: one is extremely mischievous, and the other is extremely calm and quiet?  Can’t their personalities be more balanced?  How were their qualities divided?!

Wei Wei, who’s extremely bored from maternity leave, passes time by thinking about this problem.


After his little brother is born, Cong Cong has become much less energetic.  He often stands on a little stool and hover over the cradle to watch his little brother.  He talks to him, strokes him with his chubby hands, and gives him a pinch, but Baby Ming Yue isn’t bothered by him.

Ming Cong is singing him a song that he learned from the TV.  The little baby who is deep in its own thoughts listens for a brief while, and then he turns his chubby body, uses his bottom to face him, and starts sleeping.  The little big brother doesn’t like to sing towards a chubby bottom, so he stops.  After feeling disappointed for half a day, he runs to the side of his mom’s bed and says with worry, “Mommy, little brother seems to be a bit dumb.”

Wei Wei chokes on the chicken soup that she happens to be drinking.

Ming Cong worries about his little brother being dumb for many days.  It’s not until he started kindergarten that he feels relieved.  The first day he comes back from kindergarten, he tells his mom excitedly, “Mommy, it’s okay for little brother to be dumb.  The children in kindergarten are all very dumb.”

Wei Wei, “……”