He no longer cared and was unable to do anything about the kind of person that Zijin was or how she would turn out to be in the future.
He was the least bit worried about his life after retirement. He knew that Nan Nan would take care of him.
Once he was certain that he would be taken care of in his old age and did not need to worry about anything else, he would wash his hands off Ding Jiayi. He would not care if she did herself in. He would not be concerned about the Qiao Zijin’s cold-hearted nature either.
He would wash his hands off both of them. He had become a grandfather. It was considered good enough that he could lead a simple and smooth life.
Qiao Zijin made use of her mother and harbored ill intentions toward her. She had no idea that her father who was the bystander could tell what was on her mind. Her father who came around and decided to stand on her side once again had made up his mind to give up on her this time.
Qiao Zijin also did not know that Qiao Dongliang gave a call to Qiao Nan that afternoon. He knew that Qiao Nan must have reached the Zhai family’s residence at the capital. “Nan Nan, there is something that I have to tell you. But given how smart you are, you must already have this in mind. In the future, if anyone from the Qiao family looks for you, regardless of the reasons that she gives you, you can ignore her and refuse her requests.”
Qiao Dongliang’s purpose in making the phone call was not to tell Qiao Nan what she should do if she received a call from Qiao Zijin and how she should react to her requests. Instead, he was telling her indirectly about his change in attitude toward Qiao Zijin.
Previously, Qiao Dongliang wanted to look after Qiao Zijin and hoped that she would find her happiness. He wanted to help his daughter based on his own efforts.
Now, he had decided to wash his hands off her, and he would not allow Qiao Zijin to take advantage of Qiao Nan.
Since Qiao Zijin dared to make use of her mother and harbored ill intentions toward her, Qiao Dongliang wondered if there would be a day where she used it on him.
It was better to spell things out so that they would not have any misunderstanding or cause any irreversible harm. This was also better for both parties.
Qiao Nan, who was holding San Bao in her arms, was quite surprised at Qiao Dongliang’s words.
However, Qiao Nan did not feel or display any signs of happiness.
There had been too many instances where Qiao Dongliang cried wolf. Even though he sounded very determined today, Qiao Nan would not really believe his words or get emotional over his decision.
She had no idea when her father would change his mind again. He might feel that Qiao Zijin was a good daughter and that he had to help her. “Alright, Dad. I understand. Don’t worry. I know what I should do.”
Qiao Nan sounded very calm on the phone. It was as if they were discussing whether it would rain tomorrow. “Dad, I am holding San Bao in my arms. San Bao still couldn’t greet us. But she will make sounds. Listen to her…” Qiao Nan made use of San Bao to change the topic. She no longer wanted to talk about Qiao Zijin who would spoil her mood.
“Ah… Woo…” The little girl looked with curiosity as her mama spoke to the phone. She thought that her mama was talking to her. San Bao, who was cheeky, smiled a sunny smile, and her eyes turned into crescents. She opened and closed her mouth, as if answering her mama.
Qiao Dongliang’s heart melted at the small sounds made by San Bao. “San Bao, this is maternal grandpa.”
Qiao Nan took the phone back from San Bao after she made a few sounds into the phone. “Dad, when the triplets start to speak, I will teach them to say maternal grandpa. By then, I will give you another call. Of course, if you have the time to make a trip to the capital for a few days, I will be more than welcome.” She only welcomed her father. If Ding Jiayi and Qiao Zijin came as well, he must not blame her for giving them the cold treatment.
If her father could not understand her words and continued to be muddleheaded, she would not extend her invitation anymore.
“I… I understand.” Qiao Dongliang felt weary. Nan Nan said that she only welcomed him to the capital.
In other words, if he brought someone else with him to the capital, Nan Nan would be displeased and she would not welcome him. “If I go to the capital, I will definitely go there alone. I want to travel by myself.”
“Sure, Dad. Remember to come.” It was good that he understood her meaning. Of course, if he could make good on his words, it would be all the better.
After hanging up the phone, Qiao Nan wanted to place San Bao in the baby crib and carry Er Bao.
San Bao, realizing that her mama was going to leave her in the baby crib, grabbed hold of her mama’s collar with her chubby arms, refusing to let go. The little girl had a lot of strength and she was very overbearing.
“…” Qiao Nan pinched San Bao’s nose when she realized that San Bao was grabbing at her collar. “San Bao may miss mama, but Da Bao and Er Bao miss mama as well. San Bao must not be so mischievous. You must not keep bullying your brothers.”
Qiao Nan reminded herself that she must treat the triplets equally. She must not allow her children to go through what she had experienced.
The problem was Qiao Nan wanted to be fair to her children and change the order occasionally when she carried or fed them. However, San Bao had a nasty temper and she was very anxious. She could not wait for her turn. San Bao made it such that she was not able to give the triplets fair treatment.
Perhaps Da Bao and Er Bao knew that San Bao was the only and youngest sister. They would always give in to her.
When San Bao threw tantrums and she held her in her arms, Da Bao and Er Bao would not join in to cry. Instead, they would quiet down. When she had pacified San Bao, Da Bao and Er Bao would then make known that they wanted to be cuddled as well.
San Bao felt satisfied that she got to cuddle in her mama’s soft embrace. She closed her eyes, but she did not let go of her grip on her mama’s clothes. She brushed her chubby cheeks against her mama’s chest. She looked so adorable and endearing. Miao Jing and Zhai Hua, who watched by the side, only had eyes for her. “She is indeed the only granddaughter in the family. It is alright for her to be delicate.”
Other families hoped that they would have sons. But when it came to the Zhai family, it was the daughter who was favored.
Qiao Nan gave a light smack on San Bao’s bottom to punish her. She then looked at her mother-in-law and sister-in-law with a helpless look on her face. “San Bao has a nasty temper. Don’t say this in front of her. She is very smart. It is alright that she is delicate, but I fear that she will be ill-disciplined and out of control.”
Qiao Nan had seen it for herself how the Zhai family pampered the babies. On top of that, the Zhu family, the Shi family, and particularly their grand master, who was a baller, doted on them as well.
Qiao Nan had a headache at the thought of this.
She was not exaggerating to say that the babies were the apple of the eye of all the families.
It was good that her babies were doted on by the people around her. But it would spell trouble if they were ill-disciplined and out of control.