In the Years When I Was a Father-Chapter 181: The Cool Dad in the Apocalypse (11)

Qi Sheng felt that it had been a long time since he’d heard his son call him “Dad” like that. He couldn’t quite figure it out—how had just one trip out raised his status this much?
Qi Sen naturally turned the car around when he saw Qi Sheng return. Back at home, once everyone was seated together, Qi Sheng finally understood their earlier behavior.
“Bro, you must’ve run into some dumb thugs on the road, huh? You don’t know—today I went over to Songjia Village next door. You know Song Weili, right? He went into the city a couple days ago to stock up on some supplies, but got robbed halfway there. They took everything—car, goods, all of it.”
Qi Sen sat on the sofa, still not fully recovered from the worry. After venting for a bit, he took a breath and continued: “Old Song’s pretty quick on his feet though. When he saw the situation going south, he ditched everything and ran. Still, he lost so much in one go that he wasn’t willing to let it go. So he started asking around, and it turns out—he’s not the only one this happened to!”
With no electricity and no internet, most families were holed up at home trying to stay safe. The lack of information flow meant no one knew about the multiple robberies that had occurred in the county. Qi Sen only found out because he had to make an unexpected trip to Songjia Village today and overheard people gossiping.
He was concerned, but figured he’d just be more cautious when going out next time. He never expected that when he got home, he’d be told that Qi Sheng had gone off alone in the car.
Worried, Qi Sen immediately told everyone about what he’d heard in Songjia Village, and that’s how the whole family ended up scared and anxious.
The old lady glared at her son, relieved but annoyed: “It’s not like we don’t have enough supplies at home. What’d you have to go out for!”
“Well, I’m back safe, aren’t I? But actually, I did run into three robbers.”
“What?!”
The whole family’s hearts skipped a beat. Qi Sen was the first to react—he quickly looked his brother up and down, confirming he was unharmed before asking curiously, “Bro, how’d you get away?”
His brother was such a gentle, scholarly type—how could he possibly fight off armed robbers?
The rest of the family was also dying to know how Qi Sheng had gotten out of it. Under their expectant gazes, Qi Sheng pretended to take a few tranquilizer darts from his backpack and placed them on the coffee table.
“I heard about those robberies while I was in the city. I was worried I might get ambushed on the way back, so I found a guy who makes these and bought a bunch.”
“What are these?”
“Tranquilizer darts.”
“Tranquilizer darts?!”
Qi Sen picked one up curiously and examined it. These kinds of things were tightly controlled by the government and not easy to get under normal circumstances, so he found them quite fascinating.
“Bro, how do you even know someone who makes this kind of stuff?”
“I don’t. After I heard what was going on, I traded a bag of fruit with a guy who’s well-informed for the lead.”
“Don’t flash this stuff around casually, but yeah, it’s good for self-defense. We should practice our aim with regular syringes first.”
Qi Sen was intrigued, but surprisingly, Qi Lei didn’t show much interest this time.
Qi Sheng then told them about everything he had seen and heard in the city, which drew more sighs and exclamations from the family.
“I also brought back a solar generator this time. With it, we can finally say goodbye to the days without power.”
Everyone was overjoyed to hear that. Qi Sen had already calmed down, and now, curious about what Qi Sheng had brought back from his trip, he couldn’t help but ask.
Qi Sheng wanted to cheer everyone up after worrying them so much, so he said, “Lei Lei, Hang Hang, come help Dad unload the car.”
The four of them headed to the garage. When Qi Sheng opened the car’s back door, Qi Sen couldn’t help but let out a small cheer at the sight of the packed supplies.
“Bro, you’re amazing! This much stuff! Didn’t you say food’s super expensive now? How’d you afford it?”
Qi Sheng smiled as he carried things out. “I still had some money saved up, so I used it all to buy these.”
Qi Sen winced. “Bro, they’re saying cash isn’t worth much these days. You must’ve spent a fortune! What if things go back to normal soon? You’ll have taken a huge loss!”
“What does it matter? Our eggplants are already in their first harvest. I’m planning to take some into the city soon and trade them for other foods.”
Thinking about the healthy eggplants growing in their fields, Qi Sen’s eyes lit up. But then he thought of their short shelf life and sighed, “If only eggplants could last a few more months. Then we wouldn’t have to worry about food later this year.”
Right now, many people were worried that the weather in July and August would be just as scorching hot as it was last year. The current planting season for crops would only last these few months, so people could only rely on that. As for greenhouses, in previous years, this region mainly grew wheat and cotton, and families with greenhouses were rare. But now, quite a few households had started building them.
After moving everything back into the living room, the old lady began sorting the meat and fruit. Once she divided it into roughly three portions, she looked at the piles of food and decided they would treat themselves to a hearty meal today.
Qi Sheng started assembling the solar generator. While he worked, Qi Lei stood silently beside him the whole time, handing him tools and parts.
Qi Sheng glanced at the child’s expression. Seeing that his face was calm and indifferent, he didn’t think much of it. This continued until after dinner, when Qi Sheng finally realized something was wrong.
After the family had finished eating, Qi Lei helped Tian Yue clear the table, then quietly went back to his room alone.
Qi Lei’s feelings were a tangled mess. There was the slip of the tongue today—the word he accidentally blurted out. There was the affection and pampering he’d received from that person lately. And there were all the old wounds, the grievances, the disappointments he’d endured.
He couldn’t even clearly remember when exactly he had first gone to that man’s home in the city. He only remembered going there full of hope the first time, and leaving full of sorrow and disappointment.
There had never been a place for him there. The man who was supposedly his father had never once considered his existence.
At first, Qi Lei had been unwilling to give up. He tried all kinds of ways to fit in. But all he got in return was that man’s disdain and scolding.
He refused to accept it. Even when he was beaten, he stubbornly stuck to his plan—until the last time.
It was a weekend. Qi Lei had long known that his father didn’t really like him, but he still insisted on staying over two days every weekend.
He’d heard people say that love could be nurtured, so he wanted to try building a bond with his father. Grandpa and Grandma loved him so much—this man was his dad too, he should love him the same, right?
He tried so hard to please the man, but all he got was cold indifference, again and again. Meanwhile, his younger brother, Qi Hang—whenever he made some spoiled demand, that man would always smile helplessly and agree.
Qi Lei couldn’t stand the unfair treatment. When he truly couldn’t take it anymore, he would go sit in a daze in the garden at the bottom of the apartment building, until night fell and parents were out walking with their kids—and still, no one came looking for him.
Qi Lei had no choice but to walk home by himself. What he didn’t expect was that the moment he stepped in the door, the man sitting in the living room struck him across the face.
A harsh shout came from above: “You little bastard! You’re already stealing at your age?!”
He instinctively denied it—“I didn’t”—but was met with another slap.
The whoosh of the blow as it landed on his face again triggered all the anger and resentment he’d buried inside.
“I said I didn’t! Why would you assume it was me?!”
“Money’s gone missing from the house. Who else could it be but you?”
“I’m not the only one who lives here! Why don’t you say it was Qi Hang?”
“How dare you try to blame Hang Hang?!”
Qi Lei couldn’t remember the rest of the curses that followed. He only remembered that the final slap knocked him to the floor. Then the man dragged him to the sofa, pinned him down, and the sound of a belt cutting through the air kept coming, along with the same question repeated over and over—“Are you going to admit you were wrong?”
In the end, Qi Lei couldn’t take it anymore. He forced himself up through the pain, crying as he asked, “Are you going to beat me to death if I don’t admit it?”
The belt finally stopped swinging, but the words that came next stabbed into Qi Lei’s heart like a knife.
“Exactly. I’m going to beat you to death, you little bastard. You’re just like your slut of a mother, full of nasty tricks. You think I don’t see what you really are?”
Qi Lei couldn’t stand hearing him talk like that and shot back, “If you hate me that much, why did you even have me?”
“If I’d known things would turn out like this, you think I’d have let you be born? I wish I never have to see you again. You and that whore of a mother of yours disgust me…”
Qi Lei didn’t listen to anything after that. He covered his ears, wanting to get away. But all he heard behind him was the whistle of the belt slicing through the air again.
He didn’t remember what happened next. He later vaguely found out it was Aunt Tian and Qi Hang, who had just gotten home, that stopped the beating. When he woke up again, the ones sitting by his bed were his worried grandparents.
Everyone—his grandparents and Tian Yue—had always thought Qi Lei stopped trying to get close to Qi Sheng because of that beating. But only Qi Lei knew: it was those words spoken that night that would forever be a thorn in his heart.
After returning to his hometown, Qi Lei gradually began to recover. Back then, Qi Sheng even specifically came over to apologize.
He said the issue with the missing money had been because he’d remembered the wrong place. He said he had been drinking that night and had spoken some drunken nonsense.
Qi Lei accepted his apology, but he never again took the initiative with him like he used to. The man, it seemed, didn’t take that night’s events to heart either.
In the following six months, Qi Lei never reached out again. And after that man treated him to a meal, he too never initiated contact anymore.
Later, Qi Lei finally came to understand—he would live his life without a father or mother. He thought that was how their relationship would remain for the rest of his life. He never expected that, in the third year after he had given up, the man would suddenly change his mind again.
Thinking back on everything, Qi Lei couldn’t hold back his tears. He was angry at himself for forgiving too easily, and at the same time, he couldn’t stop worrying—what if the man was only treating him well for a while, and would go back to how he was before?
As Qi Lei silently cried and stared blankly into space, a sudden knock on the door pulled him back to reality.
“Lei Lei, open the door. Dad brought you some fruit for after dinner.”
Qi Lei panicked for a moment, then forced himself to calm down. “I’m not eating tonight. Just take it back.”
“This is something Dad prepared just for you. It won’t taste good tomorrow. Be good, Lei Lei, open the door for Dad.”
“I don’t want it. I’ve already gone to bed.”
There was no more knocking after that. Lying in bed, Qi Lei simply pulled the blanket over his head.
Qi Sheng had a nagging feeling that something was off with Qi Lei today, but he just couldn’t figure out what it was.
The next day, Qi Lei was back to normal. But Qi Sheng noticed he still didn’t hear the child call him “Dad.”
Once again feeling like he had somehow fallen out of favor, Qi Sheng sighed—life was so hard—and began thinking of another way to make his son happy.
There was a household in the village whose female dog had just given birth to a litter. Qi Sheng couldn’t help but start thinking about it.
Carrying a small jar of homemade eggplant sauce and some sorghum wine, he headed out, hoping to trade for two puppies to raise.
There were five pups in the litter. The owner could only keep one at most and was fretting over what to do with the rest. Just then, Qi Sheng showed up with his goods.
Seeing that it was Qi Sheng, the dog owner didn’t hesitate and agreed to give him two. The little pups had been nursing well, and all had chubby little bodies. Qi Sheng took one look and was smitten.
All five puppies had similar fur—mostly black on their backs, with soft brown fur on their chests. Qi Sheng picked the two cutest ones and, with the little pups tucked under his arms, returned home feeling quite pleased.
“Lei Lei, Hang Hang, come out and get your gifts!”
Qi Hang dashed out the moment he heard the word “gift,” and Qi Lei followed a little more slowly.
“Ahhh!”
A piercing scream filled the air, followed by Qi Hang’s ecstatic shout: “Dad, I can really have a puppy now? Ahhh! I love you so much!”
He eagerly scooped one up, lifting it to admire it from every angle.
Smiling, Qi Sheng handed the other pup to Qi Lei and said, “Here, this one’s yours. You can give it a name.”
Qi Lei looked at the chubby little thing in his arms and couldn’t help stroking its smooth, soft fur. The puppy had only just opened its eyes and gave a little whimper as it licked him, nudging his hand in search of food.
Qi Lei was charmed by the pup’s soft, cuddly appearance. He thanked Qi Sheng and went off to find something for it to eat.
Although Qi Lei still wasn’t very talkative, Qi Sheng could clearly see that his eldest son was in a great mood—which made him feel like his idea had really worked.
Meanwhile, Qi Hang was still cuddling his puppy, muttering to himself, “What should I call you? Little Black? No, too common! Chubby? Or maybe Meatball?”
“Dad, which sounds better—Chubby or Meatball?”
“I think Lucky sounds nice.”
“…That’s a terrible name!”
Qi Hang decided he’d better come up with the name himself. But after agonizing over it for a while, he still ended up asking Tian Yue. Only then did he finally settle on calling the puppy Meatball.
In his words, the little guy was so chubby and round, it looked like a giant meatball all curled up!
As for Qi Lei’s puppy, he named it Fat Dumpling in the end. Qi Sheng didn’t even need to ask—he knew it had to do with the little thing’s round figure.
Looking at the two puppies his sons had both labeled as “fat” from the get-go, Qi Sheng really wanted to tell them: “They’re just chubby because they’re still babies!”