Chapter 142: The Fate of the Tadpoles |
After Liu Changqing brought Liu Xiazhi home, he didn’t find any trace of Liu Zhiyue. Standing at the door, he froze for several seconds before quickly pulling out his phone to check the time.
20:21.
A sudden sinking feeling hit his heart. Without bothering to change into slippers, he scooped up Xiazhi, who was carrying her little backpack, and rushed downstairs in a panic.
He was extremely worried about his son.
However, after running down just a few steps, Liu Changqing spotted Liu Zhiyue strolling toward him at a leisurely pace.
Liu Zhiyue also noticed his father holding his little sister and continued walking toward them while asking, “Dad, what are you two doing downstairs?”
“You little brat, you scared me to death!”
Saying this, Liu Changqing took two quick steps forward, stood in front of his son, and gave him a light smack on the back of the head.
“What were you doing out so late?!”
“I wasn’t doing anything!”
“It’s past eight! Do you even realize how dangerous it is for a young guy to be out at this hour—”
Mid-sentence, Liu Changqing abruptly stopped talking.
On second thought, a boy coming home at this hour wasn’t exactly unusual.
“I wasn’t even that late! I came back right after dinner!”
Zhiyue reflexively argued back but quickly realized he had let something slip.
Liu Changqing’s sharp eyes narrowed, catching the crucial detail. He scrutinized his son with a probing gaze and asked in a serious tone, “You came back after dinner? Where did you eat?”
“Just a small restaurant nearby. I saw you and Xiazhi weren’t home, so I grabbed a quick bite and had a rice bowl.”
“You’re lying,” Liu Changqing said firmly.
“Even though you don’t look guilty, your eyes aren’t darting around, and your hands aren’t fidgeting, my gut tells me you’re lying.”
“…”
Zhiyue was silent, staring at his father, who, after placing Xiazhi down and holding her little hand, turned toward the stairwell.
“Next time you go to Zhao Xuanwen’s place, let me know beforehand. Don’t just run off without a word.”
“I didn’t go to Zhao Xuanwen’s!”
“Is that so?”
“Her mom’s out of town and was worried about her being home alone, so she sent her to stay somewhere else for the summer break!”
“Ah, I see…”
Liu Changqing stopped in his tracks.
Still holding Xiazhi’s hand, he turned around to look at his son, who had slimmed down significantly due to both dieting and a growth spurt. The once-chubby face was no longer the same; now, he could only be described as sturdy instead of fat.
Slimmer as he was, Liu Zhiyue now looked undeniably more handsome.
Sighing softly, Liu Changqing turned back and continued walking.
“Come home earlier next time. It gets really dark around here at night…”
Zhiyue froze momentarily but quickly replied before catching up.
When the three of them arrived home, Xiazhi excitedly changed into her slippers, then hurried over to the windowsill. She pulled a plastic bottle containing tadpoles out of her little backpack and carefully placed it there.
Noticing her actions, Liu Changqing’s thoughts began to stir.
He called out to her, “Xiazhi, go put your backpack in your room and take a bath!”
“Okay!”
Responding happily, she ran to her room, grabbed her change of clothes, and dashed into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.
Now, the living room was left with just the father and son.
Zhiyue, having changed his slippers, was about to walk past Liu Changqing when his father grabbed his wrist, stopping him in his tracks.
“What’s up?” Zhiyue asked, puzzled.
“Come with me.”
Without further explanation, Liu Changqing dragged his bewildered son over to the windowsill, released his wrist, and pointed at the plastic bottle Xiazhi had just placed there.
Zhiyue followed his gaze and noticed the bottle. Before he could ask, Liu Changqing lowered his voice and asked, “Do you think these tadpoles will turn into frogs or toads?”
“Frogs or toads?”
Repeating the question, Zhiyue gave his father a startled look before focusing on the bottle.
Murmuring to himself, he said, “From what I’ve read before, tadpoles with rounder bodies, longer tails, and lighter coloring are frogs. These two…”
Leaning closer for a better look, he observed the two tadpoles, noting their short tails, dark coloring, and elongated shapes.
Standing upright again, he gave his conclusion. “They’re toads.”
“What kind of weird books do you even read?”
Liu Changqing was baffled by his son’s immediate identification, but when he looked closely himself, he realized Zhiyue was right—the tadpoles were indeed darker in color.
I knew that river wasn’t reliable!
Zhiyue, oblivious to his father’s thoughts, furrowed his brows in contemplation.
“This feels odd. I remember when Xiazhi first brought them home, she said Haohao gave them to her. He mentioned they were some kind of rare imported frogs, really valuable. But now… these don’t look the same as I remember. And the legs—they’ve grown way too fast!”
Liu Changqing fell silent for a moment before speaking.
“To tell you the truth, her original tadpoles already died. I saw them floating when I got up one night.”
“They’re dead?!”
Zhiyue’s voice rose, only for Liu Changqing to quickly cover his mouth.
“Don’t let Xiazhi hear! Imagine how heartbroken she’d be to know her tadpoles are dead. Keep your voice down!”
After releasing his son’s mouth, Liu Changqing sighed dramatically.
“When I saw they were dead, I had no choice but to fish out replacements from the river for over an hour. I must’ve grabbed the wrong kind. Turns out they’re toads…”
“Dad…”
“Haohao had four tadpoles, right? He gave two to Xiazhi, which means he still has two. If he shows up at school with his fully grown frogs, Xiazhi will be crushed!”
“…”
Patting his son’s shoulder, Liu Changqing said gravely, “I’m giving you the task of getting rid of these tadpoles.”
“What?”
“Get rid of them discreetly. Understand?”
“Why me?”
“Can you imagine me doing that?”
“I…”
“I trust you. It’s better to deal with it now than wait for them to turn into toads. Just think how devastated your sister would be!”
Staring at his father, Zhiyue fell into a daze before glancing at the two tadpoles in the bottle.
He could already picture the scene—when those tadpoles fully grew, instead of the pretty frogs Xiazhi had envisioned, they’d be two ugly toads.
Leaning closer, Liu Changqing whispered devilishly into his son’s ear, “Use salt—it’s colorless and leaves no trace…”
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