My College Teacher is My Children's Mom-Chapter 724: No Such Thing as a Free Lunch

"Aaaah!" Si Bao shrieked. "This is outrageous! Just you watch how I deal with you!"

Er Bao and Si Bao often quarreled, but their fights were always just playful squabbles.

"Bring it on! Who’s afraid of you?" Er Bao retorted.

"I’ll have you know, if I can’t beat you, I still have Qin Jiang!" Si Bao shot back.

"Could you have some shame? You’re not even married to him yet," Er Bao teased.

"I don’t care! He’s my boyfriend right now!"

Annoyed, Zhang Yuxi knocked on the table. "You’re all so old and you’re still just playing around. Why don’t you find some time to help us with something?"

Although they were in a hotel, Lin Feng had provided plenty of money to have everything prepared. Later, he would even take the dumplings to the kitchen to cook them.

The dumplings contained six coins, a tradition meant to bring good luck and wish for everything to go smoothly for everyone. Each person would eat twenty, so six people meant one hundred and twenty dumplings. That wasn’t even counting Si Bao, the big eater.

After several hours of work, Lin Feng let the kids take the dumplings to cook themselves.

A little over half an hour later, San Bao found the first coin!

On this joyous occasion, Da Bao’s absence made it feel like a corner of the celebration was missing.

After the meal, it was time for phone calls to bridge the distance. They called friends and family, one by one. Xiao Bao wasn’t idle, either. Besides answering calls, she also phoned her teachers and classmates.

"10, 9, 8, 7... Happy New Year!"

The bells outside rang, ushering in the new year.

Zhang Yuxi sat to one side, sending a message to Da Bao.

Da Bao, we had dumplings today. What did you eat?

No matter how busy or tired you are at work, you must eat well and stay warm. Your health is the most important thing!

We all watched the live broadcast. Your dad and I, along with your younger brother and sisters, are all so proud of you!

Xiao Bao even says you’re her role model!

Happy New Year, Da Bao!

Zhang Yuxi waved for everyone to gather around for a photo to send to Da Bao. They ended up sending a video, with everyone shouting together.

"Happy New Year!"

「Elsewhere.」

At a military base in Xichang, the success of the Kuafu project was a testament to the staff’s hard work.

As one of the chief engineers, Da Bao was the youngest and had the most stamina, so he volunteered to stay on duty. Several of the senior engineers told him to go home and leave the rest of the work to them.

Da Bao shook his head, looking at the string of data on the monitor. "This is my job."

"You haven’t had a proper rest in days," one of them suggested. "Go get some sleep. While you’re at it, give your family and your girlfriend a call. Without their support and sacrifice, how could we be so completely focused on our work?"

Da Bao smiled. "Alright, I’ll go rest for a while."

As soon as he left, the whispers began.

"The Chief has a girlfriend? For real? How have we never heard about it?"

"A guy like him can find a girlfriend? He’s so fierce!"

"If the Chief hears you say that, you’ll see how he deals with you!"

Only a few people knew about Da Bao and Cai Xia’s relationship, but those who did were very supportive of the couple.

Back in his dormitory, Da Bao turned on his phone and found numerous messages and several missed calls. He opened his mother’s message and video, and the sight of everyone’s smiling faces filled his heart with warmth.

He replied to the message, then called Cai Xia.

"Finished with work?" she asked.

"Not yet, still a few more days to go. What about you?"

"I’ll be busy for a few more days, too! Happy New Year!"

"Happy New Year! Do you want me to send you a red envelope?"

Da Bao smiled faintly. "Send 520."

Laughter rang out from the other end of the line. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Lin Dashan, Lin Jiajun, and others couldn’t make it back for the New Year, but red packets were a must. They sent them directly to Xiao Bao’s account. Holding her phone, Xiao Bao accepted the red packets one by one, sending a sweet voice message in reply to each: "Thank you for the red packet, Happy New Year!"

「The first day of the new year.」

It was time to start visiting relatives and friends to extend New Year greetings. The family became busy. The first stop was naturally Lin Jie’s home. The family of six arrived all at once, and Lin Jie and his wife bustled about, hosting them.

With the system’s help, Lin Feng appeared to be in his early thirties, even younger-looking than Lin Jie. However, he had the mindset of a man well over fifty—he enjoyed tea, old movies, and old songs, among other things.

Upon arriving at Lin Jie’s house, he sat on the sofa and chuckled. "We’re all family here, no need for formalities. Just make yourselves comfortable."

The younger siblings had each brought bags of all sizes, which soon piled up on the dining table.

Wen Xiaoya asked, puzzled, "Big Brother, what is all this?"

Si Bao introduced the items one by one. "These are some cured meats Dad made. There are pig’s feet, ribs, pork head meat, and pig tails! These are sauces, all beef-based, and these are Dad’s dried goods. These are cowpeas, and, let me see, these are dried radishes..."

There was enough food to last their family for a long time. Wen Xiaoya was a bit of a foodie herself and used to eat whatever she wanted. After having children, however, her diet became much lighter, as she was afraid to eat anything with flavors that were too strong. She had been eating that way for many years and still cooked lightly; otherwise, the children would easily get agitated and unwell.

When she would visit for the New Year, she could never resist the cured meats Lin Feng made. One year she couldn’t make it back, and she craved them terribly. Her cravings were only satisfied after Lin Jie secretly called Lin Feng and asked him to mail some over. When Wen Xiaoya found out, she was so embarrassed she declared she would make it herself. But her attempt was mediocre at best and couldn’t hold a candle to Lin Feng’s craftsmanship.

In the presence of her husband’s older brother, Wen Xiaoya always felt restrained and a little tense. Looking at a man as flawless as Lin Feng, she could only admire him from afar, a sense of awe growing in her heart.

Lin Jie laughed heartily. "Big Brother, thank you for bringing us so much."

Lin Feng glanced at him. "Your beer belly has gotten bigger."

This was a sore spot for Lin Jie, and the comment stung. He looked helpless. "I can’t help it. I feel like I gain weight just from drinking water. Brother, do you have any solutions?" He sidled closer, his eyes pleading with unconcealed hope. "You’re skilled in medicine, aren’t you? Could you give me a checkup?"

In that moment, Lin Jie looked up at him just as he did when they were children.

How long had it been since the two brothers had a real heart-to-heart? And how long had it been since Lin Jie had shown such a childlike expression?

Lin Feng sighed, his voice laced with resignation. "Come here, let me have a look."

After a moment, Lin Feng frowned at Lin Jie. "Your condition..."

Lin Jie’s face filled with dread. "I... I haven’t caught some terrible disease, have I?"

Wen Xiaoya scolded him from the side. "Stop talking nonsense. How long ago was your last full-body check-up?"

Lin Jie grunted in acknowledgment and forced a smile. "Brother, is my problem serious?"

Lin Feng patted his shoulder. "Nothing major. I’ll prepare some herbal medicine for you to drink. If you follow my instructions, you’ll definitely get better."

Lin Jie was overjoyed. "Thanks, Brother! You’re the best. I owe you one."

But Lin Feng’s next words wiped the smile right off his face.

"You need to watch your diet—smoke less, drink less, and avoid staying up late. You have to eat a balanced diet and avoid overeating. In addition to that, you need to exercise regularly and maintain a consistent schedule! Otherwise, no matter how effective the medicine I prescribe is, it will only treat the symptoms, not the root cause. All our efforts would be for nothing."

Lin Jie’s face fell. "Ah, but..."

Lin Feng shot him a look. "You want to lose weight, but you don’t want to exercise? There’s no such thing as a free lunch."

Wen Xiaoya chimed in, "Exactly! There’s no such thing as getting something for nothing in this world. You complain all day about being ugly, fat, and weak, but what good is talking without doing anything?"

Lin Jie silently wept tears of misery. "Alright," he choked out, "I’ll do my best."