Rebirth from the Ashes

Chapter 767 They Still Had a Long Road Ahead of them

Lu Zhen froze in Li Yuan’s arms. He then looked at Shen Xi and nodded.

“Are you happy?” Shen Xi followed up with another question.

Lu Zhen bobbed his head again.

Shen Xi said, “Laugh when you’re happy. Cry when you’re sad. You’re a child. It’s a kid’s right to laugh, cry, and kick up a fuss when you want to.”

Following a change of emotions in his eyes, Lu Zhen lowered his gaze to shy away from her. He was without a word.

Shen Xi sighed to herself. Her heart broke for him. The child might not behave like this if he had a complete family from the start.

Hang on. He would not behave like this for sure.

Fu Qingli was the only member to keep to himself while Qingye and Qingxuan were vibrant characters. According to Qingye, Fu Qingli did not exhibit such behavior at a young age.

The change in Fu Qingli came after Shen Xi and Dad went missing one after the other. Picking up the broken pieces of the family, he withdrew into his shell.

Li Yuan knew his fair lady was trying to make Lu Zhen happy and let the little man indulge in the joy a kid his age deserved. Alas, Li Yuan could do nothing to help in this department.

Lu Zhen had his own mind. He was not going to be swayed easily just because someone said something. It could not be rushed. Changing him by planting the idea in his head would take time.

Li Yuan believed the little man would see a personality change after a year or so with a bit of time alone with either him and his fair lady or the Fu family, excluding Fu Qingli of course.

After the bumper ride, Lu Guoguo opened up and went full out on the rides, joining Shen Xi in whatever and pointing out rides she was interested in.

Subsequent to the rides, Lu Guoguo dragged them into a pottery shop. Many children, accompanied by adults, made little creations. The shop provided models and samples, but the kids were free to make anything they liked.

The store oversaw the baking too. The children could retrieve their masterpiece two days later.

Shen Xi was an artist, so this was right up her alley. Anything made by her hands came to life.

Li Yuan was a stranger to handicrafts since he never tried his hands on them before. These little things reminded him of the first snow last winter. His fair lady piled up a snowman that looked just like him.

“What are you going to make, Lil’ Zhen?” Shen Xi became the leader of the children, showing Lu Zhen a catalog of samples. Lu Zhen shook his head. “I’ll make my own.”

Shen Xi stroked the little guy’s head. “Sure. What about Guoguo? What do you want to

make?”

“I…” Lu Guoguo gave it a thought. “I want to make my own too.”

She could not say it out loud. Lu Guoguo wanted to make something for Aunty and Uncle to thank them for bringing her out. She really enjoyed herself.

Shen Xi smiled and grabbed a handful of clay. “I want to make Guoguo and Lil’ Zhen.”

The two kids were adorable, and a model of them would be cuteness overload.

Lifting her head, Lu Guoguo gazed at Shen Xi with sparkling eyes. “Then I want to make one of Aunty too.”

She wanted to create models of Aunty and Uncle to present them as a gift. That was decided!

The two children were only three years old. Hence, their hand-eye coordination was still lacking. Still, Lu Zhen had better motor skills than Lu Guoguo.

Shen Xi sat in between the kids, giving pointers every now and then.

Sitting opposite, Li Yuan looked at the grownup and children with adoration written all over his face. Since the girl was earnestly teaching the kids, Li Yuan was on his own in making a cup.

Shen Xi lifted her chin to find the man burying his head in his work. Her eyes welled up, observing his long lash flutter along with his movements. The next minute, Shen Xi dabbed her finger in black ink and tapped it on the tip of the man’s nose.

Feeling the girl’s moist fingertip on his face, Li Yuan lifted his head. The girl’s finger slid down his face and dragged a long black trail.

Shen Xi burst out laughing.

Lu Guoguo lifted her head and chuckled at Li Yuan.

Lu Zhen could not help but snicker as well.

Hearing Lu Zhen’s laughter, Shen Xi looked over and found the little guy in stitches despite his best efforts to keep his emotions in check. His giggles melted her heart.

See. The boy knew how to laugh after all, and he looked good chuckling too. The kid should laugh more instead of putting on a straight face.

With cunningness flashing past her eyes, Lu Guoguo dabbed on some ink and painted Lu Zhen’s face.

Lu Zhen was stunned.

It gave Shen Xi the opportunity to dab on more ink to rub on Lu Zhen’s face. She then tipped Li Yuan the wink.

Getting the idea, Li Yuan soaked his finger in some ink and wiped it on Lu Zhen’s face.

The different shades of ink on Lu Zhen’s face made him look rather hilarious.

Forget kindness, Lu Guoguo was first to point at him and guffawed.

Shen Xi and Li Yuan joined in on the laughter.

Lu Zhen’s face became stiff while his eyes grew watery. The three of them ganged up on him. Trying to suppress the hurt, Lu Zhen only ended up more upset. It was not as though he did not have a temper. He furiously dabbed on ink and rubbed it on Shen Xi who was closest to him.

Shen Xi was taken aback. She was elated to see the little man finally fighting back. Shen Xi reached out to poke his little face. “That’s what I’m talking about. You’re a kid. Follow your heart and do as you please. Speak up if you’re angry. Get your revenge if we pick on you!”

With rosiness creeping up his cheeks, Lu Zhen locked eyes with Shen Xi. Tears glistened in his eyes as he was caught between tears and laughter. He lifted his head to find his face covered in ink. Lu Guoguo was naughty to make a face at him too. In the end, a case of giggles simply took over him.

Lu Guoguo laughed happily when her brother chuckled.

Shen Xi and Li Yuan exchanged glances and grinned in relief. The boy finally showed some progress. Nevertheless, they still had a long road ahead of them to change the kid’s awkward personality.

Out of the four, Shen Xi was the most efficient. The kids fumbled at first, but they were smart and got the hang of it rather quickly. Their creations were taking shape.

Li Yuan made two cups and drew a comic version of him and his fair lady on each cup.

Shen Xi also molded two Toffeecitos to crouch over the brim of the cups. They could not look more adorable. Lu Guoguo’s eyes lit up at the cups. “Aunty, I want that too.”

Shen Xi inquired, “Who do you want to be drawn on the cup?”

After contemplating for a moment, Lu Guoguo counted on her fingers. “Me, Brother, Mommy, and Daddy.”