Tang Dou had some basic knowledge of pediatric medicine. He stepped forward, leaned close to Su Youli, and said in a relaxed tone, “It’s okay, he’s just asleep.”
Shen Lin didn’t believe him. “He just woke up not long ago.”
Tang Dou explained, “That’s how young children are. When they’re tired, they sleep. Youyou had a long flight today, the people he’s close to aren’t around, plus what happened earlier- his emotions have been through a lot. It’s perfectly normal for him to fall into a deep sleep.”
Shen Lin held Youyou, looking at the little one’s rosy cheeks and soft forehead hair. He really did look like he was sleeping soundly.
“Let me take him. He must have worked up a sweat playing. I’ll change his clothes and put on a sweat towel.”
Before Shen Lin knew it, he had handed the little one over to Tang Dou, watching as the man carried Youyou away in a position that looked effortlessly comfortable for the child. Tang Dou took the child to his room, gently placing him on the bed. He wrung out a clean towel, wiped away Youyou’s sweat, put in a fresh sweat towel, and even when the little one started to stir, a few soft soothing words combined with gentle patting worked like magic to settle him back into a peaceful sleep.
Shen Lin gave a mental thumbs-up and exchanged glances with Shen Minyan and Shen Yan, who also looked impressed. This male nanny, they’d hired well. Very well indeed. After Tang Dou finished placing the sweat towel and checked the room’s thermometer, the temperature was just right for a child to sleep. He pulled the little blanket over Youyou. When he turned around, he saw the three Shen men standing side by side at the bedside, arms crossed, gazing tenderly at the peacefully sleeping little one.
Knowing the little one had gone through some emotional turmoil before falling asleep, Tang Dou didn’t leave. He sat by the bed, and whenever Youyou stirred or showed signs of waking, he would immediately and gently pat his little body. Shen Lin relaxed his tense expression, looking somewhat awkward as he tried to speak to Tang Dou.
Tang Dou chuckled softly. “No need to be so nervous. Normal conversation won’t wake Youyou.”
Shen Lin let out a breath and said sincerely, “Brother Xiao Tang, you’re really impressive.”
Not only was he patient and knew children’s habits inside out, but more importantly, he looked like a fresh graduate, yet he was so skilled at taking care of a little one.
Tang Dou ignored the change in Shen Lin’s address for him and beckoned him over. “Come here.”
If there was anything Shen Lin was afraid of, the first was his mother’s tears, and the second was a sleeping baby. Seeing how stiff he looked, Tang Dou took his arm and placed his hand on Su Youli’s little belly. Beneath his palm, he could feel the steady rise and fall of the tiny tummy. It was so soft. Shen Lin felt a wave of tenderness and didn’t dare move his hand.
“Like this. Pat gently. Keep your palm hollow, and you can slow down the rhythm.”
Tang Dou was teaching him how to soothe a child to sleep. A few minutes later, Shen Lin had gotten the hang of it. When his little brother stirred and turned, he tried soothing him and succeeded.
Tang Dou smiled. “Well done. I saw in Youyou’s file that he hasn’t been sleeping separately from adults yet. If he has trouble sleeping at night, you can soothe him like this.”
Hearing this, Shen Minyan and Shen Lin realized that the little one had been napping alone in his room that afternoon. No wonder he had only slept for half an hour.
“I got it, Brother Xiao Tang.”
Tang Dou nodded. He couldn’t be by Youyou’s side 24/7. Besides, having family members care for him would also help bridge the gap and help Youyou adjust to his new environment more quickly. Su Youli was shy around strangers. It would be best for him to get familiar with the Shen family as soon as possible. After the three Shen men had all learned the soothing technique, Tang Dou shared many other things. Much of this information was in the file Zhang Shun had sent, but Shen Minyan and Shen Lin didn’t seem like the type to read through it carefully.
“The weather and temperature in Nancheng and Beicheng, as well as dietary habits, are quite different. It would be good to take him for a check-up another day,” he said, glancing toward the bed. “Youyou is a bit short for his age.”
This was also clearly noted in the file. Su Youli’s care information had been compiled by Qin Kun and Su Siwen, and every detail showed how well they knew their child.
“Youyou’s two adoptive fathers raised him very well.”
The little one was fair and chubby, smiled at everyone, was shy, but could understand reasoning. He was an exceptionally well-behaved child. The children’s room, painted a sunny egg-yolk yellow, had a special corner designed just for the little one. In that colorful area, there was a collection of Su Youli’s favorite Stitch dolls. At that moment, the three Shen men were sitting cross-legged on the Stitch-themed carpet, engrossed in flipping through the materials.
Shen Lin rested his chin on his hand, looking at the “parenting manual” before him. For the first time, he applied all his intelligence, focusing without distraction, and memorized every bit of information in the file completely. Tang Dou sat nearby. Before starting the job, he had looked up some information about the Shen family online.
The Shens were untouchable even in high society. There were countless news stories speculating whether Shen Minyan would leave his fortune to his steady, mature eldest son, who chose to be in the entertainment industry, or to his unruly second son, who stayed by his side. Tang Dou never imagined that the three people, often portrayed in the news as being at odds with each other, with little family affection among them, would now sit together calmly because of a three-year-old, working on something as one.
It seemed the news wasn’t always accurate. Maybe it was because he had used up so much energy during the day, or maybe Tang Dou’s soothing had given the little one a sense of security; this nap lasted a full three hours. The three Shen men had taken turns checking on him several times, but the little one didn’t wake up; he was sleeping soundly.
Shen Lin didn’t have much sense of how long children should sleep. He was a bit anxious. “Why is Youyou sleeping so long? Could he be sick?”
Tang Dou shook his head, explaining, “I looked at Youyou’s medical report from today. His health is pretty good. He won’t get sick.”
“He’s just tired.”
Shen Lin paused, reassessing his understanding of children’s sleep patterns. “Okay, then.”
Half an hour later, after sleeping for three and a half hours, Su Youli finally opened his eyes. Everything was blurry. The little one shifted and instinctively reached for someone beside him, calling out in a sleepy, milky voice, “Kunkun~”
“Daddy~”
No one answered. The little guy’s long lashes fluttered. Then he remembered Kunkun and Daddy weren’t sleeping with him. His eyes reddened, and a pitiful whimper escaped his throat.
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