Chapter 38: Chapter 38 Dad, are you afraid of me?
After leaving the bedroom, Mad immediately leaned against the door and began his silent weeping.
Damn it...
How could he, as a grown man, not be strong at a critical moment?
He'd faced down thirty-six tough situations, and it was just this shivering he couldn't hold back, actually making a noise while crying!
What a waste of that beating!
"Honey! Why are you just standing at the door? Tingting is still crying, hurry back!"
"Ah! Got it, dear!"
Wiping his nose and his tears, Mad could only encourage himself and look forward.
His daughter's room was next door, and as he got closer, the sound of crying became more distinct.
The crying seemed to hold a grudge of sorts.
Suppressed, to say the least, and it came in fits and starts.
It was as if... as if someone was choking Tingting, not letting her cry out loud...
'Thump, thump, thump~'
He tentatively knocked on the bedroom door.
"Tingting, are you asleep?"
The crying inside stopped instantly when Mad interrupted it.
Good, was it really that simple to make her stop crying?
Of course, it would be best not to have to deal with it himself.
Just as Mad was relieved and about to go back, the crying started again from inside.
This time, no matter what Mad said, it was useless.
The crying not only didn't stop but became even more heartbreaking!
He couldn't delay any longer; Mad gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, and pushed open Tingting's bedroom door.
!!!
Eh?
Nothing unexpected happened?
Mad slowly opened his eyes. The room was normal: no dark fog, nothing eerie, nothing at all.
Mad was certain that Tingting was the source of the crying.
"Daddy, Tingting is scared~"
Her face was already covered with tears, looking at him pitifully.
"Tingting, what's wrong, why are you crying so sadly in the middle of the night~"
Mad sat on the edge of the bed, stroking Tingting's hair and comforting her.
"Daddy, I.. I.. wuuu, I'm afraid that one day you won't like me anymore... wuuu..."
Tingting, while speaking and trying to hold back, started crying again.
Different from Shi Shi and the others, with their elfin beauty.
Tingting looked very frail, giving off an impression that made one feel extremely protective.
Her sobbing was a spiritual critical strike to a middle-aged man like Mad.
"Where did you get that idea? Why would Daddy not like Tingting? Our Tingting is so adorable."
Poor little Tingting looked up into Mad's eyes.
"Really? Daddy will always love me?"
Seeing the teary-eyed little girl, Mad's heart almost melted.
In this moment, he completely abandoned the fact that he was the chosen one.
He just wanted to comfort and cherish Tingting as a father.
"Don't cry, Tingting. Daddy will of course always love you. Hmm, how about Daddy tells you a story to help you sleep?"
"Yay! Tingting loves Daddy's stories, I want a hug too."
The frail girl crawled out of her blanket and buried her face into Mad's sturdy chest.
While he wasn't looking.
Tingting cheekily wiped the tears from her face onto Mad.
Mad smiled indulgently at her, unconcerned with her little antics, and began to tell her the story of The Thousand and One Nights...
One narrated with relish, the other listened with rapt interest.
Tingting occasionally asked some wildly imaginative questions.
Mad continued until Tingting started to yawn constantly before he stopped.
"Tingting, are you tired and ready to sleep?"
"Mhm, Tingting's sleepy, Daddy can go back now."
Mad couldn't help but stroke her hair again, what an adorable little girl.
"Wait a second, Daddy."
Just as Mad was about to leave, Tingting grabbed his sleeve.
"What is it, Tingting? Do you want to hear another story?"
"Nope, I just want to ask Daddy something, or else Tingting won't be able to sleep."
"Alright, alright, just ask."
Mad, with a look of helplessness painted across his face, sat back down on the edge of the bed.
Tingting was like a child with a million questions, having asked him many strange and peculiar stories just a while ago during the storytelling.
Many of which Mad couldn't answer.
Like, what kind of lamp was Aladdin's lamp, really.
Was it electric or kerosene, what did it look like, what was the cooldown period for making a wish?
Or whether Alibaba's act of discovering and taking possession of the treasure of the Forty Thieves constituted robbery?
This time, Mad didn't know what this little girl was going to ask.
"Dad, you say you love Tingting, but why didn't you dare to come in when I was crying for so long at the door?"
Didn't dare to come in?
Mad was stunned, only to see the smiling eyes of Tingting.
"I...I thought, I, yes, I thought I heard wrong."
"Dad, you look like you're lying right now. Our rooms are next to each other, how could you hear wrong? Are you really not afraid of Tingting?"
Tingting was acting very strange now!
Although smiling, her expression sent a chill to Mad's bones!
When he saw Tingting's smile grow wider and wider, until it tore to the roots of her ears,
Mad's legs went weak, and the cold sweat on his forehead kept breaking out uncontrollably.
"Tingting, it's not what you think, listen to Dad, I...I thought you were spooky at first, it's, the rules, it's all about the rules! Dad really loves you!"
Little did he know, as soon as Tingting heard the words "spooky" and "rules,"
Her face lost even the fake smile...
"Dad...I thought you were different...Tingting, is spooky, huh~"
"No, no, no! That's not it, yes! Dad is different from others. Tingting, you have to believe me! I love you! No matter what you are!"
"Mhm, okay, Dad, Tingting loves you too~"
Overjoyed, Mad immediately continued.
"Yes! I can tell you stories, I can…"
'Puchi~'
Tingting's delicate little hand pierced into Mad's heart.
His body instantly stiffened, his face still wearing the relief of a narrow escape.
"Since Dad loves me so much, then let Tingting eat it~"
At this moment, Tingting resumed her initial pitiful expression.
"Dad...I love you so much, you are the first dad who told me stories, the first one willing to touch my head, and the first one to make me feel loved..."
Talking to herself, Tingting's expression gradually turned maniacal.
"But! Why are you afraid of me! I'm your daughter! Why are you afraid of me! Ahh!! I'm asking you why!"
The Lighthouse Country's livestream went dark instantly.
[Lighthouse Country's Chosen One: Mad, challenge (Where's Dad Dead) failed.]
[The entity will arrive in 120 seconds, descending upon the city—Houston, wreaking havoc for 48 hours.]
A deathly silence settled over the Lighthouse Country's livestream.
[Wang Defa?! Mad had already consoled the little girl, why did he still meet a gruesome end! IP: Lighthouse Country]
[Oh God, where exactly did Mad go wrong? He just behaved exactly like a normal father! I swear on my aunt! IP: Lighthouse Country]
These arrogant people of Lighthouse Country were completely oblivious to the fatal rule which Mad had violated!
The Dragon Country folks, who came over not to mock, er, to console them, kindly explained.
[Rule Seven: Please remember at all times that you are a father, you must play your role well within the family, absolutely not showing any fear or slip-ups, revealing flaws to your family members]
[Clearly, the fools of Lighthouse Country managed to do the first part, but failed at the second. IP: Dragon Country]
[Anyone who wasn't blind could see the fear and panic Mad had just shown! IP: Dragon Country]
[That's right, if Mad hadn't been so flustered, Tingting probably wouldn't have killed him yet. IP: Dragon Country]
[Yes, from Tingting's monologue, it's clear she was quite content with this dad...IP: Dragon Country]
But now it was too late for anything.
Dragon Country had just finished mourning for Sakura Country and was now starting preparations for mourning Lighthouse Country.
Wang Defa gave the order: the mourning activities for Lighthouse Country had to be grand and innovative.
It could not be the same as the one for Sakura Country.
Otherwise, it would give the impression to our foreign neighbors that Dragon Country couldn't afford a grand mourning.
"Let's do it again! One for each country!"
...
The brazen style of Dragon Country caused the proud citizens of Lighthouse Country to howl and flood into Dragon Country's livestream.
They all wanted to see the gruesome death of a Dragon Country chosen one at the hands of his own daughter!
Meanwhile, Jiang Xiao pushed open Shi Shi's room door.
In the room, Shi Shi was pouting with her big, watery eyes looking at him.
"Dad, Shi Shi is scared~"
The little girl, too, had just finished crying~