Chapter 302: Daisy Duck
Caroline turned to look at the person on the bed. Leopold had faint dark circles under his eyes; he must have stayed up late helping her cool down physically.
Though she wasn't running temperature anymore, she still felt weak.
She decided to make breakfast and went into the kitchen, where she found a pot of congee on the stove.
Leopold had worked overtime last night and came home late, yet he still cooked congee and helped wipe her body down to reduce her fever. No wonder he was so exhausted he hadn't woken up yet.
Her fever had gone down a bit, but her throat was hoarse and it hurt when she swallowed.
Caroline finished making breakfast before going to the bedroom to wake him. Leopold was still drowsy and thought he heard a duck quacking by his ear.
He opened his eyes, saw Caroline, and figured he must have been imagining things.
He came out of the bedroom, yawning, "Who told you to make breakfast? Why didn't you wake me?"
Leopold always looked neat and clean in front of her, but today he sat at the dining table with messy hair, completely disheveled.
Caroline handed him a knife and fork, her voice hoarse as she said, "You were so tired you could barely open your eyes. How heartless would I have to be to wake you up to make breakfast?"
"Your voice is hoarse?"
"Yes."
Leopold couldn't help but laugh. "With my eyes closed, I feel like I'm talking to Donald Duck."
Caroline pouted. "You're so annoying."
Her voice was raspy, occasionally cracking, which made it even funnier.
Leopold chewed slowly with his eyes closed, then suddenly reached out his hand toward her. "Daisy Duck, come here, let me check."
Daisy Duck was Donald Duck's girlfriend.
Caroline leaned forward, and he pressed the back of his hand against her forehead. "You still have a bit of fever. Take the day off, don't go to work."
"I can't today. An expert in submarine cables is visiting the office. It's a rare chance to meet a big name in the industry. I have so many questions I want to ask him."
Leopold kept his eyes closed, scooping up a spoonful of congee. "How about you hire me as your translator? With your current voice, I'm worried the expert won't understand you."
"It's not that bad," Caroline said.
Leopold yawned again, "Will you rest or not?"
Caroline: "No."
Leopold: "Then I'm telling Mom."
Caroline panicked. "You wouldn't dare!"
"Don't get worked up. When you get anxious, you sound even more like Daisy Duck." Leopold took a sip of congee.
Caroline cleared her throat. "Is it better now?"
Leopold closed his eyes and propped his head to the side, leisurely picking up some side dishes with his fork. Under Caroline's slightly surprised gaze, the food went precisely into his mouth.
She waved her hand in front of his eyes. Leopold opened them. "Do you want me to tell on you, or stay home and rest?"
Caroline put on a cute expression and pleaded, "Today's opportunity is really once in a lifetime, Mr. Wipere."
"Stop." Leopold opened his eyes and closed them again. "Not negotiating. My physical and mental state right now can't handle sex, so seduction won't work today. Try another day."
Caroline laughed. "I'm all better now."
By the end of breakfast, Leopold still hadn't agreed to let her go to work.
While Leopold was in the bathroom, Caroline secretly changed clothes, grabbed her bag, and ran out the door.
When Leopold came out and noticed the unusual silence in the house, he suddenly realized, "Caroline?"
The shoes by the door were gone. Leopold rushed to the balcony, pushed open the window, and looked down. Caroline had just walked out of the building.
He called out, "Caroline!"
Caroline downstairs instinctively looked up and replied, "What?"
The snow-covered residential area was especially quiet, and her sky-piercing duck-like shout was particularly jarring.
Leopold's mouth twitched.
She drove out of the complex, and immediately after, Leopold called Elysia.
At that moment, Elysia was exercising along with a video. This was the first time Leopold had called so early, and Elysia worried they might have had a fight.
She quickly answered. "Leopold, is something wrong with calling so early?"
Leopold said, "Mom, Caroline is bullying me."
"What?" Elysia paused.
Leopold continued, "Caroline caught a cold and had a high fever last night. This morning her fever just went down a little, and she wants to go to work. I told her to take the day off and rest at home. Tell me, was I right to do that? Wasn't I looking out for her?"
Elysia nodded. "Yes, you were looking out for her."
"But she wouldn't listen to me. While I was in the bathroom, she secretly ran out of the house. Mom, Caroline is so infuriating." Leopold even deliberately thumped his chest. "I'm so upset my heart hurts."
The more Elysia listened, the more disgusted her expression became—disgusted with Caroline.
In other families, it was the wife who complained to the husband's parents, but in their family, it was reversed—Leopold was the one complaining.
"Leopold." Elysia sighed, but she had to comfort him first. "This isn't your fault, it's Caroline's problem. You care about her and think of her, and yet she ran away. I'll call her in a bit. Don't be upset."
Leopold said, "Mom, she was burning up so badly last night she was almost delirious. I wiped her body down half the night to bring down her fever, and then this morning when her fever went down, her voice got hoarse. Don't you think she should rest at home, get better, and then go back to work? What's a few days?"
Elysia closed her eyes. Her son-in-law had done everything right—he was completely blameless. "Leopold, I'll handle this for you. Don't worry, I'll take care of it."
Leopold paused. "Mom, you can't tell her I told on her."
Elysia: "I understand. Hanging up now, I'll call her."
Leopold looked at the darkened screen, holding his phone leisurely as he returned to the dressing room to change.
Meanwhile, on the way to work.
Caroline's car had just stopped at a red light when her phone rang.
Seeing Elysia's number flashing on the screen, Caroline's first thought was that Leopold had told on her, but then she felt he probably wouldn't do something like that.
Caroline pressed the Bluetooth to answer. "Mom."
Elysia couldn't hear clearly. "Why is there a duck quacking?"
Caroline said, "Mom, it's not a duck, it's me."
Elysia had to listen carefully or she couldn't understand what she was saying. "What happened to your voice?"
Caroline was about to say she had a fever, but immediately realized she couldn't answer that way. "I don't know."
Elysia said, "Come over during your lunch break."
Caroline blinked. "Why?"
"How can anyone understand you with that voice? Your throat is so hoarse, you should go to the hospital." Elysia said.
"Mom, is there anything else?"
The light turned green, and Caroline started the car.
Elysia said, "Don't forget to come over at noon, okay?"
Caroline said, "No."
"Hanging up, I can't understand what you're saying anyway." Elysia hung up first.