"Aunty, what"s divorce?"Kang Sola almost puked blood at the question of Xiao Lihua. Subconsciously, she exchanged perturbed looks with the Second Young Master who was seated at the couch with his legs crossed like a boss. Instantly, he knitted his brows together at the child"s question.
"Where did you learn that word, dear?" The lady asked kindly, attempting extremely hard to mask her bewilderment.
The little girl pointed at the nannies. "They were talking about it earlier. They said that master and madame Chen shouldn"t have gotten divorced in the first place if they"re going to get married again. Saves them all the suffering, they said."
Her twin brother, Chen Lingtian, with a piece of the puzzle in his chubby hand suspended in the air, also b.u.t.ted in, "They were giggling and excited about something but they suddenly said it was such a tragedy to get divorced. What does divorce mean, Uncle? Is it a bad thing like going to the dentist or taking a shot in the hospital?" The little boy shuddered at his own imagination.
Kang Sola gaped and gawked at the Chen siblings. Her gaze went back and forth from her niece to her nephew, and onto the nannies who looked blanched and pale greenish, as if all the blood in their bodies were drained.
"Ma"am, we were just chatting baselessly this afternoon! In fact, we were wis.h.i.+ng them well. We did not expect them to hear us. We will be more careful next time."
Before Kang Sola could react, a loud bang resonated behind her.
*BAM*
Xue Guangxi hit the side table"s top intensely with his fist.
Both Chen Lihua and Chen Lingtian jerked at the sound and looked at Xue Guangxi"s direction. They were rather astounded, but neither cried from the surprise.
"It"s time for you, little kids, to take a bath." Kang Sola held the tiny hands of the little boy and girl in each of hers. She knew Xue Guangxi would throw a temper, and it would not be wise for the kids to see it.
The young man knew Kang Sola"s stance so he paused first while the trio left the room, and was out of earshot. Then, he erupted.
"What were you doing during your work hours?! We"re not paying you handsomely to talk behind the people who feed you. What"s worse is the fact that the children heard you!" At twenty-three, Xue Guangxi had had enough authority in the household. "Those children are like sponges – they absorb every information that they encounter! They"re smart kids, smarter than all of their age group, and than the ninety-fifth percentile of children at most two years older than them! Divorce?! How can you be so dumb to even mention it in front of those kids?!"
"Second Young Master! We are sorry! This will not happen again!"
"Sure, sure. It will not happen again because you are fired. You may go now. Pack your things and leave."
"But Sir! It was just a mistake! One simple mistake!"
"There"s no room for mistake when it comes to those kids. I"m not going to say anymore regarding this matter. Butler Lee."
"Yes, Second Young Master, understood."
The nannies were asked nicely to leave the house that instance. When they persistently begged, with flowing tears, the security dragged them away. It was ruthless, yes, but Xue Guangxi thought that there wasn"t any better way to deal with the situation.
"Butler Lee, look for more suitable nannies for my nephew and nieces. Qualified ones, please. Make sure they undergo orientation first of the do"s and don"t"s before they meet the kids."
"Understood, Second Young Master."
The nannies in the Chen household were not only responsible for trivialities in taking care of the twins. They also served as teachers, similar to governesses back in ancient times who taught the children about anything under the sun in a homeschooling setup.
He sighed. "What will happen to them here when I leave again? Make sure rules are not broken even if Sola or I am not here. Make sure Sola will not be too soft and forgiving to the next nannies."
"Why don"t you just stay here for good, Sir?"
Xue Guangxi heaved another heavy sigh. "This time, I"m only here for the wedding. I have lots and lots to do for my company, Butler Lee. It"s not the time yet to face my family."
"Your father and mother have been wanting to see you when they heard about your return."
"Maybe I"ll see my mother before going back. As for Father…" He stood up and gazed out of the window. "The time will come for that, Butler Lee. I will make them proud. I"ll make sure of it."
---
During bath time, Xiao Lihua asked her Aunt Sola again, "Aunty, you haven"t answered me yet. What"s divorce?"
"Ahhh, uhhh… It"s hard to explain, darling."
"It"s okay. You can try." The little girl retorted good-naturedly without any signs of letting the matter go.
"Uhm, it"s something that married people get when they want to… stop being married."
Chen Lihua tilted her head as she processed her aunt"s answer. "So that"s what it is. Okay!"
"So, do you and Uncle Guangxi get that too when you stop being married?"
*Cough* *Cough* *Cough*
Kang Sola choked with her saliva. She didn"t see that one coming. "Chen Lihua! Uncle Guangxi and I are not married!"
"But sometimes when we are outside you both act like that, right?"
"We are just playing, dear! Just like you and Ah-Lingtian play house or school sometimes, right? Even adults play that game sometimes. It"s kind of fun, isn"t it?"
"It is." The girl giggled. Her laughter was full of squeals. It was somehow therapeutic to whoever that will hear her. Even Kang Sola whose mind went blank calmed her nerves and indulged in the heavenly squeaks of the girl.
*Phew*
Kang Sola escaped that one unscathed.
"Then, why are my mommy and daddy not here? Did they get divorced?"
The young lady ma.s.saged her forehead with her wet hands. She thought that the episode had somehow ended but she was quite wrong.
"Chen Lihua, I think we should get you out of the tub first. You"ll catch a cold if you stay here longer and play."
"Hmm… Okay, Aunty." The girl"s voice fell because she knew that her aunt will never answer her question even if she obediently follows her instructions.
They never did.
Whenever the question was about their mommy and daddy, no one answered them directly. They already knew it, yet the girl and the boy never stopped trying.
Somehow, the adults were all evading the children"s questions with the unreasonable excuse that they were still young to understand.
As the twins grew older, their questions about their parents grew more and more in number. The adults knew that the time would come when they would have to answer all of their questions truthfully.