Chapter 27

Chapter 27

In the end, Little Bai Nuo was carried off to bed by Bai Sheng.

He still couldn't figure out how things had ended up like this.

Bai Sheng looked at the little bundle lying on his bed and started thinking.

He had agreed to sleep with the little one, but hadn't it only been supposed to be for one day?

The little guy was truly exhausted; he had been dozing off as he curled up in his arms when Bai Sheng carried him upstairs.

Bai Sheng lay down as well, gently poked the little one's cheek, then pulled the little guy closer into his arms.

Funny how habits form.

Less than ten days ago, if someone had told him he'd have a little kid he'd hold while sleeping every night, Bai Sheng would have sneered and told them they were crazy.

But now, staring at the little one's chubby, peaceful sleeping face,

Bai Sheng closed his eyes.

He really was a bit lighter after being sick; he'd have to fatten him up a bit more. Besides, Xu Chuan had texted him: the kid was still young, so he should cut back on sweets.

Thinking that, Bai Sheng also fell into a deep sleep.

The next day.

A lot of details from the previous night's charity gala leaked out—how much was raised and where it would go, which noble families attended, and which families were currently in the spotlight in the Federation.

But the one that grabbed the most attention was unquestionably the Bai family.

Not only had Bai Qian and Cen Zhi attended, but four of the Bai family's heirs showed up.

Among the released photos was one of a tiny child whose face wasn't clearly visible, held by Bai Sheng, and supposedly Bai Sheng's own kid.

The Bai family was so famous that this kicked off a lot of discussion. Though they couldn't see Little Bai Nuo's face clearly, his soft, tiny back view was adorable, along with a photo of him sitting on his father's lap, struggling to raise a small spoon in his hand.

Bai Sheng's trademark sneer—that condescending look—vanished completely when facing the little one, making people go "wow."

"This is the first time I've seen Bai San's expression so soft. I never thought I'd see the day."

"Logically, Bai Sheng should always keep that expression of being at odds with everything. Not long ago, I said that with the Bai family's atmosphere, even if they had a child, it would be a father-son or father-daughter battle royale. How fast the tables turned! Where the hell did you get such a big kid?"

"The Federation put out a statement—it's from those illegal research labs."

"Huh? And the Bai family just accepted him?"

"Gotta admit, that little back view just sitting there is way too cute! Bai San, can you even raise him? Send him over here, let me see."

"Hand over the kid, but I can't raise him—give me Bai San too."

"? What's with the combo deal? [Bai Family Warning.JPG]"

"Would you dare raise a Bai family alpha cub? Remember when Bai Sheng got into chemistry in elementary school, messed around at home, and almost blew up the Bai estate?"

"Haha, I remember back then the Federation was running around frantically checking everywhere, telling parents to keep their alpha kids from dangerous activities."

"But for real, I'm dying to know who the kid's other parent is. Also, is there a frontal photo? Just a back view like this is driving me nuts!"

"Asking to see a photo of a kid that's just a few years old? You got a death wish or what? He's not a child star. Cut the weird demands."

This news was effective. The rumors brewing in dark corners about Bai Sheng not caring for his kid and Little Bai Nuo ending up in the hospital hadn't even had time to blow up before they got replaced by the gala coverage.

At the Liu family.

Liu Dong was, of course, unwilling to let it go. Watching the overseas partners already checked into the hotel and the scandals dissipating before they could take off, he kept trying to spread the news to prove that Bai Sheng wasn't treating the little one well.

But as the news was just starting to pick up—the little omega being rushed to the hospital—the public didn't focus on how Bai Sheng had managed to make the little guy sick just a few days after bringing him home.

Instead, it was all "Wait, this kid isn't an alpha??"

"It's a private hospital under the Bai name, staffed with good doctors."

"Isn't he clinging to Bai Qi? What's the point?" he muttered. "Total waste of resources."

Liu Dong watched a while longer and finally found a comment angle he could work with.

"It's been days since he came home without any news. Now that they're saying it's an omega kid, the Bai family puts out info. Is it possible the Bai family only cares about him because he's an omega? I seriously doubt this little one can grow up well in that family. Can the child protection department keep an eye on this?"

But before Liu Dong could heat up this angle, the replies came thick and fast, with many people offering firsthand accounts.

"You think handing Bai San an omega kid would make him play along with a stunt? Bai San's not that good an actor. When has Bai San, who built his market with technology and has never given anyone a decent look, ever done that?"

"I work for one of the Bai companies, with Bai Sheng as the top boss. You can check the Federation's inspection date—before they even confirmed the kid was an omega, Bai Sheng was already carrying the little master to work. And by the way, the little master is super, ridiculously adorable!"

"I don't believe it unless I see it."

"I heard the same, but many capitalists are two-faced. I'm skeptical."

An official post from one of Bai Sheng's companies shut down the discussion for the moment.

'Yes, how do you know our little master is an adorable little omega? How do you know the little master comes to work with the boss? How do you know the little master shares candies with us during breaks?'

"Who asked you?!"

"This is official? Usually, it's all serious data and formal business posts. Seeing this all of a sudden is disorienting. Go back to normal—I can't handle it."

In the end, no matter how much Liu Dong fumed, thinking he had all the advantages of timing and opportunity, he couldn't change the focus of public opinion.

In Bai Sheng's office, Xiaobai Nuo sat obediently on the soft round woolen carpet, dressed in an off-white hoodie with two round little bear ears on the hood. His soft curly hair bounced as he flipped through a picture book, pointing at things and having his little monitoring device read to him wherever he pointed.

Until the little guy closed the book with some reluctance.

The little monitoring device asked, "What would you like to listen to next?"

Xiaobai Nuo blinked his eyes. "No more, thank you, Dou Dou. Nuo Nuo won't listen anymore."

The monitoring device: "Alright. A song called 'No More Listening' by xxx artist has been queued for you. Playing in three seconds."

As sudden music began to play, Xiaobai Nuo looked confused.

The little one: …?

Bai Sheng couldn't help but laugh out loud. Watching the little one trying to correct the AI's nonsense, he took a photo with his phone and posted it on his social feed—a rare move for someone who almost never posted.

Caption: Communication failed with the little AI.

Bai Nuo's half-revealed face, utterly confused, was especially adorable.

Meanwhile, at Bai Jingyun's office building.

Bai Jingyun stared expressionlessly at the Moments post from Bai Sheng.

Looking at the other's subtle showing-off tone, he thought: Why can't Moments have a dislike button?

But despite the thought, Bai Jingyun silently tapped on the image to zoom in, stared for three seconds, then long-pressed on it and saved it.

Bai Jingyun put down his phone with satisfaction and continued working.

A moment later, his phone rang again. He instinctively picked it up to check.

He saw a message from his subordinates about Bai Sheng's recent arrangements. Of course, it wasn't top secret, but at times like this, even though their business areas had little overlap, they would still cause each other some trouble.

Some other noble families were also trying to cash in on the internal competition within the Bai family by reaching out to them.

In the past, Bai Jingyun had been really into stirring up trouble for Bai Sheng.

But now, seeing these attempts to curry favor, Bai Jingyun felt he had somewhat lost interest.

Even the obvious instigations and provocations that he used to find irritating, he now couldn't be bothered to even glance at them. His only thought now was: How can I make that little one understand that Uncle doesn't hate sour foods and has no problem with his sense of taste?

Bai Jingyun scrolled through his contact list for a while and found a fairly close friend who was on a business trip overseas.

Bai Jingyun: What do your sister's kids like?

Bai Jingyun: What do you do when you upset a child?

A series of questions left the other party hesitating for a long time before replying.

'Is this really Bai Jingyun?'

'Do you know what time it is abroad right now?'

Bai Jingyun: Yes, so answer my question.

The other party was clearly taken aback by Bai Jingyun's matter-of-fact tone, and then replied after a moment.

'Why are you asking? What does the kid you're trying to appease have any preferences?'

Bai Jingyun: He seems to have a sweet tooth.

The other party immediately sent a few brand names, finding it somewhat amusing.

'Not feuding with your younger brother anymore? Since when do you handle kids?'

...

'Hey, answer me! You Bai people just use people and toss them away?! Ice block!!!'

Bai Jingyun put down his phone expressionlessly.

What was that supposed to mean?

Not feuding with Bai Sheng anymore?

He still found Bai Sheng the same annoying brat, okay?

It's just that he had something urgent to do and needed to go to the mall.

And Bai Jingyun hoped: Grandfather, you'd better keep that grudge going for a long time.

In the afternoon, Xiaobai Nuo was taken home early by his father.

Mainly because of Cen Zhi. Cen Zhi had always wanted to take the little Omega, and if it weren't for the little one liking to stick to his father, she might have snatched him away in the morning. Now that Cen Zhi was done with her work, she called Bai Sheng in a hurry to bring the baby home.

Bai Sheng, who had been leaving work early more frequently during this time than in the last few years combined, had already grown numb to it.

Now back at the main building:

Pastries were baking in the kitchen, and the little one was staring eagerly, having already eaten several pieces.

Hearing a sound at the door.

The little one pattered out of the kitchen on small feet, ready to call out softly: "Welcome home..."

Then the little one made eye contact with his great-grandfather who had just entered.

The little one gulped, and under the great-grandfather's gaze, his little head shrank back.

Sorry, Nono said the wrong thing.

Not "welcome home."

Seeing his grandfather's face darken even more, Bai Sheng, who was sitting on the sofa reviewing documents, turned his head and saw the little one hiding in the kitchen, only one small arm reaching out, trying to gesture to his father to hide with him in the kitchen, as if his great-grandfather were a force of nature and a monster.

Bai Sheng almost laughed.

He stood up slowly, called out "Grandpa," and walked into the kitchen.

Seeing his father come in, the little one quickly stood on tiptoe to examine his father, then obediently wrapped his arms around his father's neck. His eyes were wide open as he patted his own little chest: "You scared Nono half to death."

But the little one who was prickly toward his great-grandfather was especially soft. He patted his chest, thought for a moment, and asked his father in a tiny voice: "Was it bad that Nono didn't greet great-grandfather?"

Nono should have greeted great-grandfather and then hidden. Nono is a polite baby.

"It's okay. Your great-grandfather has been around and doesn't care about that."

Bai Sheng tapped the little one on the forehead.

Outside, Bai Yan clearly heard this too. Finally, with a face slightly darkening, he went upstairs.

His assistant wiped sweat off his forehead, thinking to himself: Third Master, please stop talking. The old master's been in a terrible mood these past few days, and he went fishing with friends but got skunked. He's like a powder keg right now. Don't egg the little master on to light the fuse.

Old Master Bai went upstairs and paused briefly: "Bai Si said she's coming back today?"

"Yes, Miss said she'll be back this evening."

Old Master Bai grunted an acknowledgment, muttered something under his breath, and finally went inside.

The assistant didn't catch the muttered phrase clearly, but vaguely heard something about "holding a grudge."

The assistant knew in his heart that the old master was just too stubborn to swallow his pride. The old master really meant no harm to little Bai Nuo. In fact, because the Bai family had never had an Omega child before, though he said he didn't care, he was inevitably curious. Plus, his old friends today were all curious about the Bai family's little Omega, which only made the old master more frustrated.

If you're so frustrated, why not just say it nicely? The assistant thought.

And clearly, in the entire Bai family, the little master thinks the least of you.

Downstairs, after finishing his whisper with his father, Xiaobai Nuo heard the sound of the door opening again.

The little guy poked his head out to look, and when he saw it was Cen Zhi coming in, his big eyes finally lit up, and he trotted over to his grandmother.

"Welcome home, Grandma."

Cen Zhi beamed and scooped up the little guy, gave him a little toss, then walked inside.

"Grandma brought some delicious little cakes for our Little Nuo Nuo."

The little guy's eyes lit up instantly, and he stared eagerly at the bag in Cen Zhi's hand.

The little one's preferences were far too obvious. He wasn't a picky eater, really enjoyed meals, and especially loved sweets. If you didn't keep an eye on him, he could stuff down a bunch of snacks after his meal. Particularly when the little cub asked softly what something was and whether Nono could have a taste, Bai Sheng could never say no, which even led Dr. Xu Chuan to specifically send a message asking the family not to let him eat too many sweets.

"Mom, he's already had several small pastries today. Dinner is soon, so don't let him have any more."

Bai Sheng followed behind the little guy and walked out of the kitchen.

Cen Zhi was a bit surprised that Bai Sheng came out of the kitchen.

But after hearing Bai Sheng's words, she still nodded.

"Daddy says our baby shouldn't eat too much."

Xiaobai Nuo blinked a few times, looked at the cake bag, then at his dad, and finally spoke obediently: "Then Nono will listen to Daddy."

Cen Zhi laughed. She set the cub down on the floor and took out all the packaging boxes.

The packaging boxes were exquisite. Cen Zhi took out several small palm-sized cakes that could be eaten in one bite. That wasn't too much of an issue. Cen Zhi played with the little guy, and when she took out the delicate cakes, Xiaobai Nuo's gaze followed them. She smiled and took out a few pieces, covered them with the teacups next to her, then covered a few empty cups as well, and mixed up the cups.

"How about we play a game, Nono? Grandma will cover these cakes with small cups, and also cover some empty cups. Nono guesses which cups have cakes. For each one you guess right, you can eat one after dinner tonight, okay?"

The little guy immediately turned to look at his dad.

Bai Sheng had already walked over and sat down. Seeing the little cub's expression as he looked at him, he nodded slightly.

Having gotten Daddy's permission, the little guy quickly nodded and stared at the teacups.

Cen Zhi amusingly moved a teacup covering a small cake and said deliberately: "Are you watching carefully? Grandma is going to start spinning them."

"Okay!"

Before, no one ever played with the little guy. He had never played games like this before, so now he was full of enthusiasm.

Of course, Cen Zhi wasn't just teasing him. After last night, she discovered that this little cub had an amazing memory, and today she wanted to test it.

Cen Zhi placed three small cakes and covered eight cups. She sped up the shuffling a little.

Generally, with so many cups, ordinary adults would get confused, but the little guy just stared intently at the cups. He waited for Grandma to stop before starting to pick.

Cen Zhi left the little guy some time to think, then looked at Bai Sheng.

"Have you seen the online comments?"

Bai Sheng hummed in acknowledgment. Watching the little guy quickly pick out three cups, he raised an eyebrow.

He picked them perfectly.

Cen Zhi hesitated before her next words: "About those online comments saying you only pay attention to Nono because he's a little omega, you don't need to take them too seriously."

Actually, Cen Zhi wasn't sure if she should bring it up at all.

Because her own San'er, from childhood to adulthood, had never seemed to care about anything until Xiaobai Nuo appeared.

Actually, seeing discussions about these words, Cen Zhi felt a bit wronged for Bai Sheng — from the moment he brought the cub home until now, it could be said that Bai Sheng had considered every aspect. In terms of caring for the cub, although he was a newbie dad, he had made more arrangements than even families who had prepared thoroughly.

It had absolutely nothing to do with ABO.

And Bai Sheng never lets his emotions show. Cen Zhi wasn't sure if Bai Sheng would feel uncomfortable because of such rhetoric.

After all, she hasn't found anyone who loves this cub more than Bai Sheng, including herself.

Bai Sheng looked at Cen Zhi, a little surprised.

He was well aware of these remarks. He wasn't entirely unbothered—well, actually he was. Because when he saw those remarks, he just thought those people were idiots.

"Why would I care what a bunch of not-so-smart people say?"

Cen Zhi: ...

Fine.

She shouldn't have said that.

Then she turned to look at Xiaobai Nuo, who had already chosen his cups.

At that moment, the little cub was looking at his dad.

The little guy had also heard Grandma's words. The cub didn't really know what the netizens' comments were about. He was well protected by his parents and was slowly healing from past wounds and growing up healthy, but Daddy had already explained this to Nono.

Daddy cares about Nono just because Nono is Nono.

The little guy pursed his lips, his cheeks puffing slightly: How can anyone be so dumb? Nono could see it, but they couldn't.

"Baby, did you make your choice?"

Cen Zhi looked over and asked with a smile.

"Mm-hmm."

Xiaobai Nuo hadn't spoken yet, but upon hearing Grandma's question, he quickly nodded and pointed at the three cups overturned in front of him.

Little cakes! Little cakes!

"Okay, so these three cups are Nono's, and the remaining five are your daddy's."

Cen Zhi pushed the remaining five cups over to Bai Sheng.

The little guy blinked, let out a soft "Huh?" in his baby voice, looked at the cups on his daddy's side, then at his own — are these for Daddy?

"Then Grandma is going to uncover them."

Cen Zhi lifted each one one by one.

And she enthusiastically went "Wow!"

"Baby, you're so good! You got them all right."

The little one watched as one beautiful little cake after another appeared before him, like tiny surprises, and his eyes lit up over and over.

Then he saw Grandma flip over the cups on Dad's side.

Cen Zhi smiled warmly.

"Oh dear, Dad's luck is so bad—not a single one. Baby, want to share one with Dad?"

Having three cakes by himself in the evening was still a bit much for the little guy.

Cen Zhi did some mental math, then glanced at Bai Sheng—hmm, could you, kid, outshine a little cake in Xiaobai Nuo's heart?

Cen Zhi tentatively pushed one of the little one's cakes toward Bai Sheng.

But Xiaobai Nuo's hand blocked it.

Huh?

Cen Zhi was a bit surprised: "Not giving one to Dad?" That's fine too.

Then she felt a bit amused, looking at Bai Sheng with a teasing expression: You're not even as important as a little cake to the baby.

But the next second, Cen Zhi paused slightly as she watched the little one pick up the cup again, cover several different-looking cakes, spin them around a few times, choose one, and push it with hopeful eyes toward his dad: "Dad, Dad."

With a soft, sweet little voice, as Bai Sheng looked slightly stunned, the little one held the cup with both hands, lifted it, and showed Bai Sheng—Look! A surprise!

While Grandma was wondering if the little cake outweighed Dad's importance, the little one was thinking about how to give Dad the same sense of surprise he had gotten.

The little one's eyes curved, showing not a hint of reluctance for the little cake.

It wasn't about giving one to Dad; it was that Dad deserved to have one in the first place.

And, Nono knew that the adult world was complicated—he was still too small to fully understand it: why some people hate others for no reason, why they hurt others without a second thought, why the same kinds of people are labeled as protagonists and antagonists. But in Nono's eyes, it was okay if Dad wasn't that strong—Nono would grow strong and protect Dad.

Then Xiaobai Nuo climbed up, toddled over, and hugged Bai Sheng's neck. Bai Sheng gently raised his hand to steady the little one's small body—he was so tiny and frail that even moving made people worry he might fall.

But Bai Sheng heard this tiny, fragile little thing whisper in his ear in a sweet little voice: "Nono loves Dad the most. Nono knows Dad is the best. Dad, don't listen to the nonsense others say. Dad is the best dad in the world."

Author's note:

Xu Chuan: Boss, don't let the little young master eat too many sweets...

Bai Sheng: Check this out—I ask you, who can resist this?!

Kid: "Handled."

Great-grandfather's dreams are filled with: "He doesn't welcome me, he doesn't welcome me, he doesn't welcome me—"

Bai Jingyun: Grandpa, hang in there!!!