With a soft creak, Zhao Ling pushed open the door and walked in, a broad smile on his face.
"Dong'er, Yin'er, is it really okay for you two to push your husband back and forth like that? You'll break my heart, you know."
Upon hearing that, Bibi Dong and Ah Yin froze, their expressions turning awkward.
They hadn't expected their husband to overhear them tossing him around like a hot potato. If Zhao Ling decided to "get revenge" for that… they wouldn't even have the right to complain.
"Hubby, that's not what we meant… We were just, um, just…" Ah Yin turned to Zhao Ling with a sweet smile, trying to explain, but couldn't come up with a good excuse.
What was she supposed to say? That her husband's physique was so terrifying that she couldn't handle it? She still had some pride, after all.
Bibi Dong quickly jumped in, "Yeah, hubby, we didn't mean it like that, we were just…"
But she, too, didn't know what to say and was momentarily at a loss for words.
Zhao Ling didn't tease them. Instead, he calmly pushed the food cart into the room and took out a table and chairs from his storage space.
"Alright, if you can't come up with an excuse, just let it go. Come eat. People are iron, and food is steel—skip a meal, and you'll feel awful."
Once the table and chairs were set up, Zhao Ling took the food out of the cart and arranged it neatly.
Seeing this, Ah Yin happily took a seat, while Zhao Ling walked over to Bibi Dong, knowing full well that she probably wasn't in any shape to move today.
So, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the bathroom to help her wash up.
Just as Zhao Ling was about to carry her out of the bathroom, Bibi Dong blushed and said shyly, "W-Wait, hubby… I need to, um, use the bathroom…"
"…!" Zhao Ling had completely forgotten about that. He quickly placed her down near the toilet and turned his back to give her privacy—he didn't want her thinking he was trying to sneak a peek.
He ignored the faint rustling behind him until Bibi Dong said she was done. Then he helped her wash her hands and carried her back to the table.
Looking at the now-familiar breakfast on the table, Bibi Dong pouted, "Milk and bread again? And butter… and salad… I'm so sick of eating this stuff."
Zhao Ling glanced at the food and understood.
Douluo Continent incorporated many Western elements, so it wasn't surprising that breakfast habits leaned Western too.
But now that Dong'er had expressed her boredom with things like milk and bread, he figured he'd start making different food for her himself.
Things like steamed buns, meat-filled dumplings, pancakes, fried dough sticks, and steamed dim sum.
Back during his 15 years living alone in the wilderness, he had made these foods based on his memories of his past life. He had done a pretty good job of recreating them too—should be good enough to satisfy her.
Thinking of this, Zhao Ling smiled and said to the two women:
"Dong'er, Yin'er, from now on, when I have the time, I'll make breakfast for you myself. No more bread and milk. Just wait—you'll see."
"Hehe, really? I'll be looking forward to it, then," Bibi Dong's eyes lit up with excitement.
"I'm looking forward to it too. I didn't know you could cook, hubby!" Ah Yin beamed, clearly delighted at the thought of eating breakfast made by the man she loved.
After breakfast, Bibi Dong went back to bed to catch up on sleep—she hadn't rested at all the night before. Right now, she just wanted to sleep; she didn't want to do anything else.
Zhao Ling originally wanted to stay and keep her company, but she practically pushed him out of the room—clearly afraid that if he caught sight of her seductive figure again, he'd lose control and pounce on her like a starving wolf.
After being shooed out, Zhao Ling decided to take Ah Yin for a stroll around Spirit City to pass the time.
But unexpectedly, Chrysanthemum Douluo showed up: "Demon-Suppressing Douluo, His Holiness the Pope has summoned you to the Pope's Palace."
Zhao Ling furrowed his brows in confusion and asked in a low voice, "What for? Didn't I just meet him yesterday?"
"I'm not sure either. His Holiness just said he wants to see you," Chrysanthemum Douluo shrugged, clearly unaware of the reason himself.
After a moment of thought, Zhao Ling turned to Ah Yin. "Yin'er, why don't you head back to the side palace for now? I'll go check in at the Pope's Palace."
Ah Yin nodded and tiptoed up to give him a kiss on the lips before turning to leave.
Zhao Ling then followed Chrysanthemum Douluo to the Pope's Palace.
Upon entering, he saw Qian Xunji seated on the pope's throne. Zhao Ling gave a slight nod in greeting.
"Your Holiness, may I ask why you summoned me?"
Qian Xunji furrowed his brows, feigning displeasure. "Still calling me 'Your Holiness'? With your relationship with Dong'er, wouldn't it be more fitting to just call me 'Teacher'?"
Zhao Ling's mouth twitched. He couldn't help but summon his diary system and begin ranting internally:
[Diary Entry]Screw you, old man Qian Xunji. Why are you so obsessed with being called 'teacher'? Clearly you just enjoy taking advantage of me.Fine, if you wanna take advantage, I'll let you—for now. It's not like I'm losing anything.But I won't forget this little grudge. I wonder if Qian Renxue will still be born like in the original story…If she ends up being your daughter again, don't blame me for being 'immoral' when she grows up.Wait, no—you won't blame me. You'd probably prefer being called my father-in-law over being my teacher, right? Mwahahaha…
After finishing his mental rant, Zhao Ling hit "upload" on the diary. The system rated his entry as Grade C, rewarding him with +1 Handsomeness and +10 Charm.
The reward made his eyes light up—his looks were finally getting close to breaking past 90. It wasn't easy.
As for the "Charm" stat, aside from the mysterious question marks, he finally gained a new title: "Ladykiller Lv.1."
Back in the Pope's Palace, Qian Xunji noticed Zhao Ling hadn't responded and raised his voice slightly, "What's the matter? Is it really so hard for you to call me 'teacher'? Or… do you not want me to personally officiate your engagement?"
At that, Zhao Ling quickly put on a smile and said, "Of course not, Teacher. You're Dong'er's mentor and raised her like your own daughter. Not only would I gladly call you 'teacher,' I'd even call you 'father-in-law' without hesitation."
Qian Xunji nodded, clearly pleased. "No need for the father-in-law part. Just call me 'teacher' like Dong'er does. I did raise her, but I'm not actually her father."
"Got it," Zhao Ling replied with a smile—then muttered under his breath, "No worries. Sooner or later, I'll have the chance to call you father-in-law. And when that day comes, you won't be able to deny it, even if you want to."
"…What was that?" Qian Xunji frowned and raised a brow, puzzled by the faint muttering.
He didn't catch exactly what Zhao Ling had said… but somehow, he had a bad feeling about it.