The Translator’s Guide to Spoiling His Wife and Raising His Kids

Before marriage, Jiang Yufan and Li Suiyu were the two greatest good-for-nothings in the “hopeless at life” world. Fashion editor Jiang Yufan couldn’t tell the washing machine’s “quick wash” from its “dry” setting, while translator Li Suiyu could cook instant noodles so badly he set the pot spitting sparks. They only managed to keep up appearances because their families were loaded. Then their daughter, Li Nian’an, nicknamed Niannian, was born, and the two were forced to embark on a parenting journey worthy of surviving in the wilderness.

Li Suiyu pored over foreign-language parenting research, only to wrap Niannian in a diaper like a Dragon Boat Festival rice dumpling. Jiang Yufan followed tutorials to make baby food, but somehow turned purple sweet potato mash into something straight out of the Sanxingdui ruins. Now Niannian is two, mischievous enough to turn the house into a playground: snatching her mother’s lipstick to draw on the walls, tearing up her father’s translation drafts to make paper airplanes, and chasing the pet dog all over the house.

By now, Li Suiyu has evolved into an utterly shameless daughter-doting dad. He hides Niannian’s little hair clips during meetings and gets questioned by clients, and never forgets to bring her limited-edition toys when he goes to business meetings. Jiang Yufan has also unlocked the art of sabotaging each other. The couple often bicker over who has to wash Niannian’s dirty clothes, then clean them up together while complaining. This couple can barely take care of themselves, but they’ve turned the everyday chaos of raising a child into a laugh-out-loud comedy.