Mosquitoes?

Lin Feng was somewhat puzzled.

What month was it that mosquitoes had already started appearing? He hadn't noticed any in Meicheng these past few days.

Lin Feng went over to take a look and found large welts from mosquito bites on the babies' tender ankles, wrists, and the tops of their feet. Most had three or four bites each. Sibao had even more, densely packed together, which made Lin Feng's heart ache. The babies had such delicate skin; the sight was incredibly alarming and distressing.

Zhang Yuxi was on the verge of tears.

Lin Feng comforted her, "It's not your fault, honey. No one knew there would be mosquitoes outside."

"Go get the first-aid kit. I'll see if there's any ointment we can apply."

Only then did Zhang Yuxi remember what to do. She hurried upstairs to get the kit.

Lin Feng called out to her again, "And bring down a few pairs of baby socks!"

The mosquito bites were incredibly itchy. The babies were so small; how could they possibly control the urge to scratch? Lin Feng quickly tried to stop them, but once he stopped one, what about the others?

Sibao and the eldest, Dabao, were throwing the biggest fits. Sibao, in particular, was crying as if he had been terribly wronged. Though Dabao was the eldest, he couldn't bear the slightest discomfort. He just snuffled with a grim face, wanting to cry but unable to, desperately holding back from scratching. Sibao scratched his little feet, deftly managing the task without letting go of the toy in his other hand. Sanbao clutched her own hand, a look of pure misery on her face.

When their babies were uncomfortable, the parents felt ten, even a hundred times worse. To them, a little pain was nothing, but they couldn't stand to see their babies suffer. They wished they could bear the pain for them.

Lin Feng gently blew on the mosquito bites on Sibao and Dabao.

"Daddy will blow on it, and it won't feel bad anymore… WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH…"

"WHOOSH WHOOSH WHOOSH…"

"Come on, Sibao, let Daddy blow on it…"

Sibao ignored him.

Suddenly, Erbao let out a wail, startling the other babies and Lin Feng.

Zhang Yuxi rushed over with the first-aid kit and quickly moved to comfort the babies. The kit was stocked with essentials for colds and pain relief, but there was nothing for insect bites.

Then, Lin Feng spotted a bottle of herbal liquid, something they had bought last summer to prevent heatstroke. He'd been using the stuff since he was a kid. He checked the expiration date out of habit; it was still good. He began to apply the herbal liquid to the mosquito bites.

Zhang Yuxi asked, "Honey, will it work?"

"Yes," Lin Feng replied, applying it to Sibao first.

The babies were all wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants, but their wrists and feet would become exposed while they played. These were the exact spots the mosquitoes targeted.

"Honey, help Sibao put his socks on," Lin Feng instructed. He then took one of Zhang Yuxi's hair ties, pulled the long sleeves down over the baby's wrists, and secured the cuffs with the tie. The tightness was just right.

Zhang Yuxi picked up Sibao and soothed him, "Be a good boy. It'll stop hurting soon, it'll stop hurting…"

Sibao's tears were still falling, but he stopped crying.

Next was Erbao, who had been crying the loudest. Her cries grew even louder, likely because she had scratched her skin raw, and it now stung. Zhang Yuxi distracted her with a toy while Lin Feng applied the medicine. Erbao had a huge welt on her forehead, so Zhang Yuxi found a hat and put it on her.

After Sanbao and Dabao had been treated, they soothed the babies for a good while longer. Lin Feng held one in each arm; Sanbao and Erbao were particularly fond of their daddy. The two little girls loved to act spoiled, but they did so in different ways. One used actions, the other used words. Zhang Yuxi held Sibao, playing with him to divert his attention.

After all the fuss, the babies were exhausted. The two little girls, however, still refused to get off Lin Feng. Zhang Yuxi went to get warm water to wash the babies' faces and hands, preparing them for bed. After all that crying and commotion, Sibao and Erbao were the first to fall asleep, with Sanbao following soon after.

As for Dabao... I'll just let him play.

Once the babies were asleep, Zhang Yuxi quietly took off their socks to check on the bites.

"Honey, it really worked! The welts are more than halfway gone."

At this rate, they should be fine after a night's sleep. Afterward, Zhang Yuxi went to check the windows, determined not to let any more mosquitoes in to bite the babies. Little did she know, Lin Feng had already activated the "Protective Barrier" skill on them. No more mosquitoes would be bothering them.

After checking the windows, Zhang Yuxi lay back down to find Lin Feng searching online for shops that made window screens. He got up, made a call to inquire, and scheduled an appointment for the owner to come and take measurements the next day.

In the middle of the night, Lin Feng helped the babies use the potty. The mosquito bites on their little bodies had almost completely faded. He couldn't help but kiss their tiny hands and feet. Seeing them sleeping so soundly filled him with a sense of complete satisfaction.

「The next day.」

Lin Feng prepared breakfast. He had learned his lesson this time. He finished his own meal before going upstairs to wake Zhang Yuxi.

The first thing Zhang Yuxi did after getting up was join Lin Feng in helping the babies pee and poop, which they did every morning. She was overjoyed to see that the mosquito welts had disappeared, leaving only faint marks.

"Honey, you go down and eat first," Lin Feng advised. "Otherwise, the babies will see you and want to grab your food."

"Alright, I'll head down then. Thanks for all your hard work, honey!"

"It's no trouble! Go on."

As Zhang Yuxi left, she closed the door carefully. Hearing the sound, Sibao and Erbao immediately started moving toward it, looking for their mother. Sibao was just doing it for fun, but Erbao looked anxious. "Mommy, Mommy…"

Lin Feng, who was helping Sanbao use the potty, craned his neck and called out to them, "Mommy's gone downstairs! She'll be back in a bit."

Usually, Zhang Yuxi was the one who carried the babies downstairs at this time. Today, Sibao looked lost and a little dejected.

After washing Sanbao's bottom, Lin Feng shouted from the doorway, "Honey, are you done eating?"

"Almost! You can bring the babies down now."

The elevator wasn't child-proofed yet, so Lin Feng used a stroller to bring them down to the first floor. Zhang Yuxi wiped her mouth and stepped forward to help.

"Honey, I'm off. The babies are in your care!"

Lin Feng pushed the babies to the door. "Come on, let's say bye-bye to Mommy!"

"Mommy's off to work!"

Every time Zhang Yuxi left for the school, Lin Feng and the babies would see her off at the door.

The little ones waved their tiny hands.

"Bye, Mommy!"

"Bye-bye, bye-bye!" Erbao was the most articulate, already able to string together four-word phrases.

Sibao, a late bloomer, had been motivated by his love for food to unlock his language talent.

"Bye… bye-bye…" Dabao managed.

Sanbao, as usual, just watched her go.

"Mommy, bye-bye!"

Zhang Yuxi blew a kiss to this one and that one, and finally, she kissed Lin Feng on the forehead.

"Thanks for your hard work, honey!"

Lin Feng hugged her. "Come back early."

"Okay."

The May Day holiday was over, and the teachers had meetings, so she wouldn't be back for lunch.

After seeing Zhang Yuxi off, Lin Feng fed the babies their supplemental food. Today's menu was yam porridge. Afterward, they would have some cookies he had baked as a little snack. By the time he finished feeding them, it was almost nine-thirty.

Lin Feng called the window screen contractor. The man had already arrived at Cuihu Villa and was just outside the gate. Lin Feng placed the babies in their play area, took out some building blocks, turned on some soft music, and then went to greet his guests.

The visitors were two middle-aged men with polite, slightly restrained smiles. After opening the door, Lin Feng gave them two pairs of guest slippers.

"Please come in."

The two men entered the living room. The quadruplets in the play area were an arresting sight, and the men stared.

The thinner of the two asked, "Sir, you want screens for all the windows?"

"Yes, please take the measurements."

Because it was a villa, the window screens needed to be custom-made; standard sizes wouldn't work. The two men took out their tools and began measuring, discussing options with Lin Feng as they went—whether each window should have a double or single screen. The babies watched the strangers in their house, sizing them up with curiosity.

After finishing the measurements, the two men sat down to calculate the required square footage. Lin Feng, meanwhile, went to wash the babies' hands and faces. It was time for their yogurt and cookie snack.

Half an hour later, the proposal was ready.

"Sir, here's our proposal," one of them began. "For the first floor, we'll install sliding screens. The living room's floor-to-ceiling windows are large, so we'll custom-make double-opening screens for them."

"For the second and third floors, we plan to use retractable screens. One reason is aesthetics; the other is that children are curious and like to explore."

"Retractable screens can help protect the little ones. We'll install them with a dead-locking mechanism so they can't be opened."

It was a surprisingly conscientious suggestion. Lin Feng nodded in agreement.

The owner added, "I just took a look at the rooftop terrace. Even though the walls are high, I'd still recommend you add a reinforced railing for safety."

Lin Feng asked, "You do railings too?"

"We do. We do all kinds of hardware, windows, and doors."

Lin Feng nodded. "Okay, then calculate it for me. How much for the screens and the railing altogether?"

"Will do."

Ten minutes later, Lin Feng's eyebrows rose slightly when he saw the quote: 50,000. As a layman, he had no idea if this price was high or low.

He started to haggle. "Sir, your price is too high."

The owner looked taken aback, probably not expecting a young man living in such a large villa to care about a few thousand. He quickly explained, "Sir, according to the market rate, a single high-quality screen costs over three hundred, and retractable screens are even more expensive!"

Lin Feng did some quick mental math. "Even so, it doesn't add up to that much."

The owner continued his explanation. "This is a villa. Standard-sized screens are too small, so everything has to be custom-made."

Seeing the owner's earnest expression, Lin Feng persisted. "A little lower."

The owner pursed his lips. "One moment." He scribbled some calculations. "Sir, this is our final offer: 48,000. We can't go a penny lower."

"If you still think that's expensive, we could do it for 35,000."

"But you get what you pay for. The choice is yours."

"And if you still feel it's too expensive after that, then you'll have to find someone else. You're welcome to get other quotes and then decide," the owner said with a frank expression.

Lin Feng took a pen and did some quick calculations himself, roughly guessing their profit margin.

"Fine. You're telling me the quality will be the best."

The owner smiled. "You can rest assured. I've always been straightforward in my business. You have to earn repeat customers, right?"

Lin Feng paid 80% upfront, with the remainder to be paid upon completion.

"Alright, we'll be going now. We'll be back in three days to do the installation."

"We'll work overtime to get it all done for you, sir!"

Lin Feng nodded. "Good."

The shop wasn't far from the school; he had even bought things there before. The owner seemed quite straightforward, and his shop was large, with over a dozen employees.

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