Ling Sheng was playing together with Xiaoqi and the two children on the perimeters. When she saw her grandma teaching someone to dance while her grandfather was standing on the spot like a pillar without budging, she shook her head helplessly and sighed. Since he was already here, who was her grandpa angry with?!
Xiaoqi tugged at her and looked up questioningly. âMommy, whatâs Great-grandpa doing?â
Ling Sheng said, âLooking at your great-grandmother!â
Xiaoqi asked, âWhy doesnât Great-grandpa dance with Great-grandma?â
Ling Sheng said, âYouâre just a child. Why do you have so many questions? Isnât Great-grandma teaching others how to dance?â
âBut for the past few days, Great-grandma always had to dance as a demonstration for others.â As Xiaoqi spoke, he started counting with his fingers. âYesterday was Grandpa Zhang. The day before yesterday was Grandpa Ma. Two days before yesterday was Grandpa Zhao. Three days ago wasâ¦â
Ling Sheng tapped the little fellaâs head and laughed. âOkay, Iâve got it.â
Heâs just a kid but heâs such a smarty-pants!
Huo Xiao was waiting indeed. It was definitely impossible for him to go over and ask for a dance. He wanted to wait for his wife to ask him to dance. However, he had waited for a long time, yet his wife was still giving guidance to others!
A number of old men had appeared beside him at some point in time. The older ones were in their 70s, while the younger ones were only in their 50s. They were all wearing suits and leather shoes, and their faces were aglow while they were in high spirits.
Huo Xiao realized that these old fellows were all staring at his wife. His cold eyes scanned them, itching to dig out their eyes and feed them to the dogs. His tone was displeased. âWhat are you looking at? Have you never seen a good-looking old lady?!â
âArenât you looking too?â Old Zhao looked at the old man beside him. Where had he come from? He hadnât seen him before. He must have heard of Teacher Su and come to snatch her from them.
Huo Xiao sneered. Itâs none of your damn business whether Iâm looking at my wife. I can look at my own wife however I want.
âThatâs right. When we came, you were right here staring at Teacher Su.â Old Zhang spat in disdain. âYou old pervert.â
Huo Xiao sneered in his heart. Youâre the bunch of old perverts!
âTo tell you the truth, Teacher Su is pretty, but she has a husband. Itâs useless even if you stare at her. She still wonât be yours,â Old Ma advised him kindly.
Huo Xiao harrumphed and rolled his eyes at them in disdain. Iâm her husband! Sheâs mine! She belongs to me in life and after death!
âEven if she has a husband, he can still die. I heard that Teacher Suâs husband is already in his 70s. Heâs 20 years older than her, and heâs in poor health,â Old Zhang lowered his voice.
Huo Xiao let out an angry snort. Weâre clearly only 15 years apart! Iâm in great health! I can live a long life! I can live longer than all of you people.
âWhat do you mean his health is poor? I heard that heâs bedridden and paralyzed. Itâs really hard on such a talented woman like Teacher Su to be with a paralytic,â Old Ma sighed deeply, feeling indignant for her.
Huo Xiao held back a mouthful of blood in his throat. Just as he was about to teach this bunch of ignorant old fools talking nonsense a lessonâ¦
Opposite them, Auntie Chen waved at them and shouted, âTeacher Su needs to do a demonstration over here! One of you come be her dance partner!â
Upon hearing that he could finally dance with his wife, Huo Xiao stopped arguing with the group of old geezers. They were just bitter that she wasnât theirs. He couldnât be bothered to get angry with them. He leaned on his walking stick and was about to go over.
However, Old Ma, who was beside him, reached out to pull him back. He looked at his legs. âWhere are you going? Youâre a cripple who just arrived. Can you dance? Itâs all about first come, first served. Today, itâs Old Zhangâs turn to dance with Teacher Su. You can watch from here!â
Hotheaded, Huo Xiaoâs eyes blazed with anger. Unable to help it, the fire he had bottled up for a few days finally exploded. He bellowed angrily, âSheâs my wife! When I dance with my own wife, do I still have to be particular about âfirst come, first servedâ?!â
Look, look, look! What kind of people are these? Theyâre just a bunch of perverts!
When the old men heard the word âwifeâ, they were all dumbfounded and even a little flustered. If this person really was Teacher Suâs husband, then what they had just said⦠Errr⦠They had spoken ill of the person in question right in his face.
Ling Sheng could clearly hear her grandpaâs roar. When she looked up, she saw him arguing furiously with others. Before she could run over, she saw that her grandma had already approached him.
She beamed as she grabbed her son, who was about to run over, and pulled the little fella to her side. âLetâs play by ourselves.â
Upon seeing him lose his temper, Su Xiyin ran over hurriedly and looked at him. âWhy are you being so fierce? If you donât want to dance, go home with Sheng Sheng then!â
Upon hearing his wifeâs words, Huo Xiao felt aggrieved. He looked at her and asked, âAre you dancing with me today or not?â
Su Xiyin said, âWhen did I say I wasnât dancing with you?! You were just standing there by yourself so I thought you simply came to have a look!â
Huo Xiao picked up his walking stick and clasped it under his arm. Then, he raised his other arm and gave Su Xiyin a haughty look. His meaning was very obvious. Hurry up and come grab onto my arm.
Su Xiyin was amused by him. She walked over and held his arm. Upon seeing the old manâs triumphant smirk as he swaggered forward with his head held highâeven his eyes and brows were lifted in a smile, she whispered to him, âFor goodnessâ sake, do you know how old you are this year?â
Huo Xiao tilted his head slightly and whispered in her ear, âEven if I attain immortality, youâre still my wife.â
Ling Sheng looked at her grandparents as they walked into the crowd hand in hand. After smiling at each other, they started dancing. They deliberately slowed down some of their movements to put on a demonstration for the other elders.
At this moment, Grandpaâs legs seemed to have completely recovered. They didnât affect his dancing with Grandma at all. Their gazes met in a lingering show of affection. Every action and every glance perfectly showcased what decades-old chemistry vividly.
Xiaoqi tugged at her hand. âMommy, Great-grandpa is still the best.â
Ling Sheng said, âHow do you know?â
Xiaoqi said, âThey donât dance as well as Great-grandpa. Mommy, Great-grandma laughed really happily today.â
Ling Sheng asked, âDid your great-grandma laugh unhappily in the past?â
Xiaoqi said, âGreat-grandma never laughed when she was dancing with others.â
Ling Sheng could not help but squat down and pinch her sonâs face. âArenât you clever!â
However, Xiaoqiâs eyes suddenly lit up as he pointed to his left. âMommy, itâs Dad!â
Ling Sheng turned around and saw the man standing on the path beside the square.
The streetlamp happened to be right above the manâs head. Warm orange light shone on his face, and his smile was full of warmth. He strode toward the mother-son duo with his long legs, holding two cotton candies in his hands too. A pink one was in the shape of a Hello Kitty, and the other was a handsome Bumblebee.
Xiaoqi had already run over in a hurry and taken the Bumblebee cotton candy that belonged to him. He pumped his short legs to keep up beside him and was as excited as a little bird that had flown out of a cage. His small mouth kept chattering nonstop.