Chapter 78

Chapter 78

Perhaps because he’d been walking too much on the “confrontation lane,” faced with Xiaobai Nuo like this, Bai Jin was at a loss for words for a moment.

Just as he was about to speak, suddenly—click!—Bai Jin turned his head sharply and saw a classmate from his youth squad not far away holding a camera, grinning widely with bared teeth at them.

Seeing Bai Jin look over, he even shook the camera: “Free prints, Brother Jin!”

Bai Jin: ...

Oh, right, the “Pepper Imp” had mentioned that this group was taking pictures here.

I’ll deal with you guys later.

Bai Jin gave him a gesture, turned back, and the fleeting feeling from that unexpected eye contact with the little kid vanished.

Just moments ago, facing that little face, he had almost blurted out everything—how he thought the kid might look cute holding that bear, so he took some time to win the bear back, but then because he’d eaten the kid’s rice cake and the gummy bear with its head bitten off, he lost the perfect chance to give it, and still hadn’t dared to present it.

This little guy’s preferences were pretty clear—favorite was strawberries, then various sweets and pastries; in other aspects, it was harder to tell. He mostly just played with puzzles and read picture books, and Bai Jin hadn’t seen him show interest in any plush toys. Of course, it might also be that Bai Jin didn’t spend much time with the kid, so he didn’t know him that well.

But did he actually like little bears?

Bai Jingyun, standing nearby, squinted, seemingly lost in thought.

Meanwhile, Bai Jin had already snapped out of it.

“Mm.”

Bai Jin cleared his throat, bent down, gave a short laugh, and said to the little guy.

“Last time at Chestnut Mountain, I played a few games casually and brought it back. It was just a prize I happened to get. If you like it, I’ll give it to you when we get home.”

That way, he managed to give it away without seeming too eager to give the kid something—perfect!

“Really?”

Xiaobai Nuo blinked his big eyes, looking at Bai Jin.

“Of course.”

“If you like toy bears, we can stop at a specialty store on the way home and pick out a few. I think I saw some shops like that on the way here.”

Bai Jingyun nonchalantly cut in, squeezing between them.

“They’re probably better quality than the prizes from those arcade games.”

Bai Jin turned his head, puzzled: ?

Bai Jin and Bai Jingyun locked eyes, and in that moment of contact, it was as if sparks were flying.

“That bear is a Chestnut Mountain specialty—a woven wicker bear.”

“The ones from specialty stores are softer, perfect for cuddling at night, right?”

“Do you even know what ‘pure handmade craftsmanship’ means, big bro?”

“So what? It’s still a bear at the end of the day?”

Two voices, totally different tones, fired off one after another.

The little kid instinctively reached out his hands but couldn’t get a word in: “Big Uncle, Little Uncle—”

Bai Jin and Bai Jingyun both looked over.

“The wicker bear is a craft piece, nice to display on the nightstand.”

“Nono would prefer a plush toy bear to hug while sleeping, right? Like that giant pink bear over there?”

They both tried to get the kid to side with them.

Bai Sheng, standing behind, reached out and scooped Xiaobai Nuo back into his arms.

“There’s already a Dou Dou doll at the head of the bed, and he sleeps with me. No need to trouble yourselves, got it?”

Bai Sheng held the kid casually, glancing at the two of them.

His expression clearly said, *This is my kid, and you two are already fighting over him?*

Bai Jingyun: ...

Bai Jin: ...

Can’t you just keep your mouth shut?!

In the end, it was settled that each would give his own gift, and Nono liked both, so neither gained the upper hand. Bai Jingyun and Bai Jin backed off.

“I’m gonna go deal with the photos.”

Bai Jin said casually, starting to walk toward his classmate.

“You guys go check in and send me a location. I’ll find you in a bit.”

But Bai Jin had barely taken two steps when he heard the kid’s soft, babyish voice: “Little uncle, little uncle.”

“Hmm? What is it now?”

Bai Jin kept one hand in his pocket, turning to look at the little one.

The little kid raised his right hand, showing his uncle the plush slap bracelet on his wrist.

“Little uncle, you can’t run around too much, or you’ll get lost.”

He wasn’t gonna get lost on his own campus.

But seeing the kid’s expression, Bai Jin sighed silently.

Even though he often teased Xiaobai Nuo, occasionally he found it hard to handle this kid, especially since the little one was so attentive to his pheromones that were still unstable after his recent change.

Bai Jin had a bad temper, but he knew when someone cared.

“I’m not leaving the campus. I’ll find you guys in a bit.”

Saying this, as if to hide something, Bai Jin quickly walked over to the person holding the camera, slung his arm around the guy’s neck, and dragged him away.

Xiaobai Nuo blinked, snuggled back into his dad’s arms, then looked toward the check-in point not far away. Taking out the stamp card he had just received from his little bag, he said.

“Daddy, I need a stamp! Let’s go stamp it over there!”

The little guy hugged Dou Dou, clutched the booklet, and stayed glued to his dad while telling his uncle to catch up.

About half an hour later.

Inside the activity room assigned to Bai Jin's class.

With Bai Jin keeping an eye on things, the photos certainly wouldn't spread. After arriving here, "Your little nephew is so cute" was repeated so many times that his ears were numb from hearing it.

The guy fiddling with the camera went into the room to edit and adjust the colors, planning to print it when it was ready. Bai Jin glanced at that photo—it was indeed quite good.

When the photographer finished retouching and was about to show Bai Jin for approval before printing, he came out of the room and saw Bai Jin lounging in a chair.

This guy had no proper posture, almost lying back in the chair, his feet propped up, almost resting them arrogantly on the table next to him. He was currently staring at the ceiling, slightly lost in thought.

It was a careless, cocky pose very much in line with his personality.

"Brother Jin? What are you thinking about?"

The person came out with a laptop, leaning in curiously, blocking Bai Jin's view of the ceiling.

Bai Jin's unfocused eyes refocused, and he lightly glanced at the person beside him.

Although he often gets beaten up at home, outside, the top alpha of the Bai family was very dominant in every aspect, without meaning to give people a strong sense of pressure.

Plus, he was still in his pheromone instability period, occasionally letting out an aggressive citrus wine scent—a completely unsweet smell mixed with a subtle fermented booze smell, that unique, bracing sensation instantly making people feel pressured.

Bai Jin straightened up slightly: "I was just thinking, my third brother's little one seems pretty damn cute from every angle."

Bai Jin rubbed his chin as he recalled.

The person holding the laptop: ...

You might be kinda blind there... of course, he didn't dare say that out loud.

"No, you're just realizing that now? 'Pretty damn cute'? He's so cute it makes you want to spin around and ask him what color bag he likes."

That little kid was way too adorable; the group chat was blowing up.

"You don't know jack."

Bai Jin couldn't be bothered to say more, taking the laptop.

"Finished editing?"

"Yeah, Brother Jin, take a look."

In the photo, it was the moment when the little guy lifted the brim of his cap and looked at him with a hint of expectation.

Against the background of the giant bear, Xiaobai Nuo looked up, Bai Jin looked down, and in the photo, Bai Jin's expression had this slight, subtle dazed look. It was indeed very harmonious, no wonder this guy couldn't resist snapping it.

But.

Bai Jin rubbed his chin, looking at Xiaobai Nuo, and couldn't help thinking.

"The eyes seem a bit too dark."

He remembered that when he made eye contact with the little guy, his eyes were especially bright.

"Huh?"

The guy leaned in to look, not understanding.

He thought it looked pretty spot-on—whether in terms of color or mood.

Bai Jin tried to describe it.

"Back then, his eyes just seemed to glow. Do you know what I mean by glowing?"

The photographer: ...

Glowing?

Are you sure?

The photographer took the computer and doubtfully tweaked it again, then hesitated for two seconds and showed it to Bai Jin.

"Brother Jin, is this the kind of glow you wanted?!"

"I can fix anything, bro, anything!"

Bai Jin looked down—he immediately saw that the guy had photoshopped two rays of light into the little guy's eyes.

Bai Jin: ...

"Do you even get what actual eye-beam means?"

Seemingly baffled by this guy's crazy idea, Bai Jin froze for a good three seconds.

Then he kicked out at the overconfident guy beside him.

"I asked you to make his eyes brighter and more realistic, not turn them into freakin' lasers?!"

"Are you nuts?!"

When Bai Jin, holding the printed photo, found Xiaobai Nuo,

the little guy had already collected several stamps on his check-in booklet and was making a DIY kite with his father, holding a paintbrush and drawing on the blank kite.

Bai Jingyun was already holding some souvenirs and snacks, watching from the sidelines.

There were many clubs in the university—basically, if you can think of it, Sheng'ang University has got it.

The little guy really loved all the handmade crafts.

The little guy asked Dou Dou how to make the kite look nice while painting with the brush.

This kind of activity was indoors, so he wasn't in the sun much, and he didn't get sweaty.

The little one had taken off his hat, revealing soft black curly hair. In a neat, cute little outfit, he sat in front of a big table, looking even more miniature compared to the adults.

When Bai Jin arrived, he didn't disturb the focused Xiaobai Nuo, but Bai Jingyun and Bai Sheng both looked over at him.

Bai Jin snapped out of it and walked over: "It's almost lunchtime."

Hearing the word 'food', the little guy immediately looked up, his little curls bouncing, and turned to his father.

"Dad, Dad, it's time to eat. Send a message to Grandpa, tell him to eat his meals well. When Nono goes back, I'll ask Uncle Secretary and check on him! Nono will check!"

The little overseer was indeed very diligent.

Bai Sheng responded, took out his phone, and handed it to the little one, letting him send a voice message to Bai Qian.

Bai Sheng found it quite baffling that his father, whom even his mother couldn't control, was completely wrapped around this little guy's finger.

After sending the voice message to Grandpa, the little kite was finished, and the little one hugged Dou Dou contentedly and followed his father to lunch.

The tiny little guy was carrying a bunch of things, hopping along while holding his father's clothes, looking up to tell him that after lunch, they would go fly the kite.

In the past, the little one had never seen a kite. It was only after Bai Jin walked away that the little one looked up and suddenly spotted a centipede kite flying overhead. Startled, he burrowed into his father's arms, whimpering, and only then learned that it was a kite.

Bai Jin kept one hand in his pocket, not mentioning the photo, and casually asked, "What did you draw on it?"

"I drew a little bird!"

The little one bounced around, then raised the kite high to show his little uncle the pattern.

This little bird was really just a little bird.

The childish drawing style was oddly cute.

But why a little bird?

Bai Jin had originally thought Xiaobai Nuo would draw Bai Sheng or his mother, or maybe Dou Dou.

Bai Jin thought this and asked accordingly.

"Why a little bird?"

"Because there are bugs flying in the sky. Nono drew a little bird to let it eat them up."

The little one pulled the kite back.

"So I don't have to be afraid of the bugs anymore, and Little Uncle doesn't have to hide from them either."

Nono knew that Dad, Uncle, Little Uncle, and Grandpa all didn't like bugs either.

So Nono drew a little bird to protect everyone.

Bai Jin: ... "I'm not afraid of bugs."

It didn't sound convincing, so he added.

"I just don't like them."

There was a hint of overcompensation.

Bai Sheng said, "Oh, just don't like them."

It was just a repetition of his words, but coming from Bai Sheng's mouth, it carried an inexplicable tone of mockery.

Bai Jin: ... You guys don't like them either, right? It's like I'm the only one who doesn't.

Bai Jin finally changed the subject awkwardly.

"I'll ask Second Brother if he wants to come out for lunch."

Bai Jin looked down at his phone.

Bai Liang was still in the lab, but he replied quickly.

He was busy and told them to eat without him.

Bai Liang really couldn't spare the time at the moment. The investigation was moving fast; he had likely already found the people from surrounding schools who met the criteria. Now, the relevant researchers were temporarily held in the lab, and they were checking suspicious individuals one by one. He heard that a few couldn't be reached, and the Federation was looking for them, wanting to resolve the matter as quickly as possible.

Bai Jin glanced at it twice, then closed the chat without much concern.

Then he couldn't help but look at the album again.

Besides the printed photos, the digital ones were also saved on Bai Jin's phone, and he had even posted them on his Moments.

It was the edited version—the tiny little guy's eyes seemed to hold specks of light, looking up at him obediently, as cute as a little angel from somewhere.

As Bai Jin closed his phone, he thought: Not bad this time.

He completely ignored the fact that some people in his contacts saw the photo and were shouting in the group, not believing he really had such an adorable little nephew.

After they finished lunch, they rested in the designated rest area provided by Sheng'ang University.

It was originally a large lawn, but due to Open Day and the school anniversary, many tents had been set up.

The sun was getting stronger, but there was also a breeze, so it didn't feel too hot.

After the little one's post-lunch rest, he couldn't wait to take Dou Dou and his little bird kite, running along the path through the lawn, holding the kite up. The kite wasn't flown very high.

But the little guy was having a great time.

However, his stamina was lacking, and soon the little one was carried back by his father.

At this time, it was actually the little one's nap time. Xiaobai Nuo was somewhat used to napping at kindergarten.

Bai Sheng had someone set up the area in advance.

The tiny little guy curled up on a soft cushion, yawning sleepily as he flipped through his stamp card, which was already half full of stamps. Naturally leaning against his father, he finished flipping through the book, then looked up, blinked, and saw his uncle and little uncle not reacting.

Bai Jin was playing a game on his phone, seemingly annoyed by his teammates, muttering curses. When he noticed the little one nearby, he naturally moved a bit farther away.

The little one then looked at Bai Jingyun, and with a curious expression, asked, "Uncle, aren't you sleepy?"

Nono could barely keep his eyes open.

Bai Jingyun thought for a moment and replied, "I sleep less."

Bai Jingyun actually slept less at night too. Compared to the rest of the Bai family, he had a bit of insomnia, though it wasn't severe yet.

But aside from occasional bad days, it didn't affect him much.

Then Bai Jingyun heard the little one, nestled in his father's arms, naturally ask, "Is it because Uncle eats too much sour food?"

Bai Jingyun: ... How did he make that connection?

Bai Jingyun even heard Bai Sheng suddenly burst out laughing.

Bai Jingyun: ... "No."

No one would lose sleep because of eating sour food, right?!

And he didn't even eat sour food.

Even though he thought to himself, Lemon Uncle stopped struggling.

He even wondered why his pheromone had to be lemon-scented.

Xiaobai Nuo couldn't understand why grown-ups can't sleep, just like Bai Sheng could never figure out why the kid could get up so early every morning.

The little guy blinked, tilted his head, and seemed to think hard.

Just then, Bai Jin finished his game and came over.

"Oh, there's a swing over there. Want to play later..."

Bai Jin didn't finish his sentence; he paused slightly, seeing the little one all curled up and sleepy.

Bai Jin's pupils seemed to shrink. Watching the little one like this, his hands itched, he really wanted to poke him.

But before he could act, he saw Bai Sheng shoot him a warning look.

He held the little one, as the family's elder, his hand already absentmindedly poking the little guy's cheek, but wouldn't let anyone else poke.

"The swing… let's see it after Nuo Nuo wakes up, Little Uncle."

Xiaobai Nuo's voice dropped low.

The wind felt nice. The little guy tried to burrow deeper into his dad's arms.

Only his little head peeked out from Dad's arms.

Now the little guy was totally out of it, but in Dad's arms, he always felt very safe.

Because back when he felt bad, when he had nightmares, it was these arms that held him.

Bai Jin couldn't help leaning in, mentioning the swing: "Come to think of it, you've never been to an amusement park, right? There's a water park nearby. Not that exciting, but still fun for kids."

"He doesn't like water."

Bai Sheng, who had been silent, holding the little one, glanced at Bai Jin.

"Why?"

Bai Jin didn't understand.

The little one was completely defenseless, speaking softly: "Because in the water, Nuo Nuo sinks."

Nuo Nuo doesn't like sinking, doesn't like that feeling. If he sank here again, he wouldn't get to see Dad.

"...No, you won't."

Bai Sheng pinched his child's cheek.

"Daddy will pull Nuo Nuo out."

Daddy will pull Nuo Nuo out...

The little guy's brain was barely working.

After getting his cheek pinched, he hid deeper into Dad's arms. He was almost asleep when he suddenly jolted awake, forcing his eyes open, this time looking at Uncle.

Bai Jingyun looked over: "What's wrong?"

"Nuo Nuo asked Dou Dou the other day what to do if you can't sleep. Dou Dou said counting makes you sleepy. If Uncle can't sleep—you can count like Nuo Nuo."

The little one mumbled sleepily.

"One, two, three..."

The adults didn't hear "four." When they looked down, they found, to their amusement, the little one had fallen asleep after counting to three.

Bai Jingyun first reacted, then couldn't help thinking: What kid falls asleep at the count of three!

Bai Jingyun found it both funny and exasperating.

But… the wind really was nice. Bai Jingyun rarely relaxed this much because of this kid, and he felt a little sleepy too.

But unfortunately, Bai Jingyun looked at his cute little nephew, then at the stinky little brother holding Xiaobai Nuo, and didn't want to lie next to that stinky brother.

So Bai Jingyun asked, serious and calm: "Are your arms tired from holding him?"

Bai Sheng cuddled the child in his arms a bit more, like a dragon guarding its treasure.

He didn't even bother lifting his eyelids.

The little one played a lot in the morning, so when he woke up it was already a bit late. He'd played on the swing at home before, so he only played for a short while before continuing to follow the adults along the route. They ate various snacks, got many souvenirs, and reached the last stop on the stamp card—at the other main gate of Sheng'ang University. If they didn't plan to attend other events, they could leave from here.

Here, students from the food club had made various fruit-shaped mini ice-cream cakes as small gifts, each palm-sized. Only those who completed the whole stamp card could take a draw.

And it wasn't a boring lottery method. For fun, they made it into a board game with a map, moving a token by rolling dice. If you rolled a six, you got an extra little prize.

This created a problem: there were more than six types of cakes, and depending on where the previous players landed, some designs could never be rolled.

But this was just a little bonus the club added for fun, so most people didn't mind which one they got.

But Xiaobai Nuo stared at the fruit-shaped ice-cream cakes in the freezer—they were tiny and delicate, not much bigger than his hand. He stared without blinking at the little strawberry one.

Then he started searching the map.

Bai Jin knew these people. He followed closely behind the little one, picked up the large dice, spun it in his hand, turned to look at the little one behind him, and asked: "Between one and six, what number do you want?"

The little one blinked his big eyes, eagerly counting on the map, then looked up and said firmly to his little uncle: "Seven, Little Uncle, I want seven!"

Nuo Nuo wants the little strawberry!

Seven, okay— wait a minute.

Bai Jin looked at the six-sided dice in his hand, then at the little one who firmly wanted him to roll a seven.

How can there be a seven?!

Xiaobai Nuo, wearing a cap, pinched the brim and nodded emphatically. Usually such a well-behaved kid, when facing his little uncle, was like a stubborn little mushroom: "Little Uncle said any number is fine."

Little Uncle said so.

Bai Jin: ...

The students sitting behind the table also chuckled. They checked with someone in back, and Bai Jin first put the dice back.

Taking advantage of Bai Sheng being far away and others rolling, Bai Jin suddenly lifted the little one up. They were now outside the school gate. Bai Jin held the kid to one side, where municipal workers were tidying up greenery.

As Xiaobai Nuo let out a little yelp, he stressed: "A six-sided die doesn't have a seven!"

You little rascal, you're so dazzled by the little strawberry!

Don't give me that expression like Little Uncle can't deliver on his promise!