Chapter 121

Chapter 121

Xiaobai Nuo looked up at his second uncle like that, his eyes glittering.

It was classic him.

But even with some understanding, Bai Liang still found it hard to predict what this cub would say.

Because this little one's thinking was so different from the Bai Family.

He seemed to be especially good at giving.

Even when asked what he wanted, he could naturally, without any trace of flattery, say that he wanted you to not be sad.

Sadness?

Maybe it had been there all along.

Those chaotic memories and emotions.

But these things were probably different from what this little one understood, yet his keenness always managed to subtly hit a soft spot in others.

Bai Liang didn't really get it, but he could tell why Bai Jingyun had made such a quick shift in such a short time.

When people say they come to 'save' you, you might be on guard and just brush it off.

But faced with a kid like this, no matter how guarded you were, you could only wave the white flag in the end.

Bai Liang squinted and gave a slight shrug. Maybe because he had eased up a bit, those old memories suddenly came back to him.

It was probably from back when he was really small. The tall alpha had squatted down in front of him, just as he was squatting in front of Xiaobai Nuo now.

'An27 genetic disease? Is it a rare disease? Uncle, are you gonna die? Can cousin get your inheritance? Cousin seems a bit slow.'

'What inheritance... It is a rare disease, not even officially named yet, but I won't die that quickly. Someone is researching it, and there are palliative drugs. But you little rascal, it sounds like you're jinxing your uncle.'

'I'm not! Uncle, don't worry. When I grow up, I'll become the best researcher and cure you for sure! Leave it to me.'

'Oh, ambitious. Then I'll be waiting for you.'

'Mm-hmm, it's a promise. Uncle, you just watch. And don't worry, even if you die, I'll help out cousin, since I'm the smart one.'

'Hey! I'll show you 'smart'! Take that!'

'Haha, hahaha, stop tickling, uncle, don't tickle me—Waaah—Bugs! Uncle, if you keep this up, I won't help you!'

Was the sunlight that day as nice as today's?

Bai Liang couldn't remember. He took Xiaobai Nuo's hand once more, lowered his head slightly, and pressed his face against the little guy's hand.

Well, no matter what.

Bai Liang thought.

He gave up resisting, declared surrender. He admitted that the experiment just couldn't compare to this kid.

From now on, there are no normal people in the Bai family.

More or less.

"Your hand is so warm."

Bai Liang muttered quietly.

The little one looked at his own hand, listening to his second uncle's words, and thought for a moment.

"It's summer, so it's naturally hot, so of course my hands are warm. Second uncle, you're a little cold. Did you have the car AC on full blast? Dad says you shouldn't have it on too high up, or you'll get a headache from it."

"Yeah, Nono is right."

Bai Liang half-closed his eyes and smiled in agreement.

"Second uncle, next time you drive, you can't have the AC on that high."

If keeping his distance and resisting had been wrong and out of control, then it was time to switch his attitude and way of thinking.

Bai Liang continued to think.

He couldn't let someone take the kid that was already part of the Bai family.

Wouldn't that be a total loss of face?

But the oldest was right about one thing.

Why did it have to end up being Bai Sheng?

Now he was a little ticked off too.

The little one cocked his head, sensing a slight shift in his second uncle, but before he could puzzle it out, Anu bumped into him, almost making him stumble. Then Xiaobai Nuo looked at Anu.

"Second uncle, Anu is even warmer."

Bai Liang opened his eyes, still wearing a smile. He glanced at the leopard cat, Anu, who was busy rubbing against Xiaobai Nuo, and noticed its cat eyes watching him warily, arching its back slightly.

Bai Liang kept smiling, his face not changing as he reached out his hand: "Really?"

Anu, who was rubbing against Nono, raised a paw and swiped: "Roar!"

Trying to say, not familiar, don't touch.

Bai Liang smoothly withdrew his hand.

Xiaobai Nuo was momentarily confused, looking at his second uncle, then at Anu, and tried to reason with the cat: "Anu, this is second uncle, not little uncle."

Hearing Bai Jin's reputation being dragged again, Bai Liang couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth.

Inside the house, Bai Jin, who seemed to have heard someone calling him, involuntarily straightened up and squinted suspiciously in that direction.

Was that cub talking bad about him again?

Meanwhile, Bai Jingyun, who was heading toward the door, stopped halfway when he heard Bai Liang speak: "It seems Anu won't let second uncle touch him. It's okay. Thanks to Nuo, second uncle is already very warm now."

Bai Jingyun's steps paused slightly, and his cold face suddenly turned a bit strange.

Wait, what did that Bai Liang kid just say?

It felt a bit...

Bai Jingyun looked over, puzzled.

Oh no, he's being all fake and dramatic!

There's something off about him!

Bro, remember your scholarly integrity? Experiments are your whole life, man! Go to work, I'll handle things at home.

Go on, get out of here.

A while later, with just a couple days left before school started in September. It was cloudy that day, and the sun in Ang City was rarely that gentle.

The Bai family's recent big moves seemed to have settled down. Some families in Ang City breathed a small sigh of relief. Before the heir competition ended, they rarely saw the Bai family this united against outsiders, scared of provoking the Bai family and getting taken out in the process.

The Bai family's old mansion seemed to have returned to its usual calm, at least on the surface.

But everyone could tell, especially the Bai family, that Bai Sheng's anxiety was getting worse every day. Lately, Bai Sheng hadn't been going to work much; he handled most things from home. And it was obvious he was resisting letting the little guy go out for activities, unless he took him out himself—no one else was allowed.

After the last strict crackdown, illegal research institutes in Country Z had basically been swept through one by one. Except for the ones hidden deep in the mountains that never came out, most were destroyed.

Overseas, some of the targets Bai Sheng had his eye on were either wiped out before they could resist, or caught wind of it and bolted.

Like the Saviors Organization Bai Sheng was after. Not a single high-level member was found; only the low-level researchers were handed over to international police. All the core data was taken, leaving nothing behind. The contacts those traffickers had met were still being tracked through various transportation networks.

Even though the other side was quick to lay low and avoid a direct confrontation, Bai Sheng's anxiety only got worse.

Not to mention the institutes Bai Sheng caught off guard. Their data was pretty complete. Although there were no kids like Nono who had been successfully created from stolen genes, there were still experiments on kids. Bai Sheng frowned hard as he looked through them.

Finally, he locked his gaze on a specific experiment from a specific institute.

This was a research institute for specialized drugs. There was a test where subjects were completely submerged in the drug to observe their maximum tolerance level. During this process, things like choking, coughing, and drowning happened.

Drowning.

Bai Sheng's gaze lingered on those two words for a long, long time.

He couldn't help but remember that Xiaobai Nuo wasn't scared of water, but he was scared of fish tanks, ponds, rivers, and lakes that could swallow him up.

When asked why, he'd just think hard and then say in his baby voice that he felt like he'd fall in.

Fall in?

Bai Sheng's fingers unconsciously tightened.

Then the study door was pushed open gently.

"Daddy?"

The little guy, who had just woken up from a nap on the small bed nearby, was holding Dou Dou. The little guy blinked as he poked his head in.

Bai Sheng kept his expression calm. He quickly closed the pages he had open and turned to look at his kid.

"Did you wake up?"

"Mm-hmm."

Seeing his dad reach out, Xiaobai Nuo knew he hadn't bothered him. He ran over on his little legs, got picked up by his dad, and sat on his lap.

For Xiaobai Nuo, the coma wasn't that scary.

Before being swallowed by the darkness, he was focused on that Strawberry Smoothie. When he woke up, he was all groggy and saw his dad. His dad seemed super angry, and at the time, Nono didn't know why.

He didn't see anyone trying to take him away, or any of the arguments that followed.

What Bai Sheng was kind of grateful for was that Xiaobai Nuo didn't end up with any psychological trauma.

Even though the little guy already had enough trauma, that didn't mean it was okay to pile on more.

"Going to see Anu at Great-Grandpa's?"

Bai Sheng looked down and met the little one's eyes.

Before the little one could speak, he blinked and then nodded vigorously.

"Mm-hmm, I want to give Anu a cat treat. Grandma said she and Nono will go see Anu, and Second Uncle said he'll go too."

Bai Sheng: ...

Oh?

That guy suddenly has some free time?

Of course, that thought was fleeting. Bai Sheng didn't have much leisure to guess what other Bai family members were thinking.

"Then change clothes and get ready to go."

Bai Sheng picked up the little one and stood up.

He took Xiaobai Nuo to change clothes.

Cen Zhi sat downstairs.

Across from her sat Bai Jingyun and Bai Liang.

Although the storm seemed to have subsided, the Bai family members had been spending more time at home these days.

Not to mention Bai Sheng.

Bai Sheng came downstairs carrying the little one. The little cub raised his hand to greet them, then was carried into the kitchen by Bai Sheng, probably making some promise to coax the child.

He only turned his head to say "wait a moment" to them.

Cen Zhi smiled as she listened to the little one and his father talk about wanting a small strawberry popsicle, and they would wait until it wasn't so cold and hard to eat. After entering the kitchen, the voice that sounded like coaxing was blocked.

Cen Zhi looked up at Bai Jingyun and Bai Liang across from her.

"Is he keeping Nono a bit too tight?"

It feels like he's a bit too anxious?

"Not surprising."

Bai Liang smiled, pushed his glasses, and said softly.

"After all, school is about to start. San'er was already acting like he had separation anxiety when sending Nono to school."

Now with this incident, Bai Sheng didn't explode. Bai Liang would have to praise him for controlling his temper well recently.

"A few days after school starts, there's the idiom competition. We need to arrange enough personnel for protection."

Bai Jingyun, who was sitting on the opposite sofa, spoke after listening.

It's really no wonder Bai Sheng is anxious.

But—

"Only Nono can cooperate with him like this."

Cen Zhi said softly.

If you tried it with any other kid, they'd be raising hell.

This conversation didn't last long.

The little one, clutching a small box of ice cream, was already being carried out by his father.

The little one had just recovered from a low-grade fever, and as a precaution, he couldn't eat anything too cold for several days. Today, he could finally have some, and as he clutched the ice cream box, his eyes lit up.

Then, the group got up and headed to the old man's villa.

...

The plants inside the old man's villa were still lush and thriving. The green peppers, once considered the old man's pride, had been moved to a spot out of sight.

The little one hadn't even gotten out of the car yet, pressing his face against the window and peering out curiously.

"Hey, Dad, what is Great-Grandpa doing?"

It seemed the old man had another big project going on today, with a large temporary plastic pool set up in front of the house.

Before Xiaobai Nuo could react, Bai Sheng, seeing the pool, instinctively lifted the little one from his car seat, positioning him so he couldn't see the pool without leaning forward, and asked, "Your great-grandpa might be tidying up the ornamental fish pond. Do you still want to go play with Anu?"

Xiaobai Nuo looked at his dad, then tried to peek at the small pool. The water was shallow, only about waist-high on the little one. It held red, white, and golden fish, swimming, their tails swaying. The old man sat on a nearby stool, stroking his chin, lost in thought.

Having been here for over half a year and feeling secure in his routine, the little one bravely looked for a while and decided it wasn't scary or deep.

So Xiaobai Nuo, holding a small spoon and his cup of ice cream, nodded at his dad.

"I want to play with Anu."

"..."

Bai Sheng paused.

"You're not scared?"

The front partition lifted, and the driver had already gotten out, leaving only Bai Sheng and Xiaobai Nuo in the car.

Bai Sheng's usual lazy demeanor faded, replaced by a slight tension, but he tried to relax when facing the little one: "No need to force yourself. We can go back right now."

Xiaobai Nuo blinked at his dad, then hugged his dad's neck and said, "I'm not forcing it, Dad. Nono has been really happy lately."

The perceptive little one had long sensed his dad's tension over the past few days. His sleep was lighter than his dad's, and when his parent woke up startled in the middle of the night, Xiaobai Nuo would groggily wake up too, patting his dad's hand just like his dad did for him.

The tiny little one didn't know how else to comfort his dad. He just thought,

"Does this make Dad feel a bit more at ease?"

"Nono has been training hard. Now I can carry this many picture books."

The little one gestured as he spoke, and seeing the ice cream about to melt, he quickly popped the last few bites into his mouth.

Nono is strong!

Imitating how his uncle used to show off, Xiaobai Nuo tried to flex his little arm, letting his dad squeeze the soft, chubby arm.

The little one pulled Bai Sheng's hand to squeeze his little arm. His instinctive tension seemed to subside, and he couldn't help but laugh, reaching out to hug the little one.

How strange—he had become 'timid' himself.

Finally, Bai Sheng carried Xiaobai Nuo out of the car.

He saw Bai Liang standing beside the old man, who was holding a fishing rod he'd gotten from somewhere, muttering, "At this density, there's no way I can't catch something, right?"

This shouldn't be happening. It can't be. It's impossible.

"Give it a try, Grandpa. You said these are the first batch of cycling fish in the new setup. Maybe you'll finally shake off that 'ace pilot' title," Bai Liang said with a smile.

"Of course, Grandpa, Bai Jin told me about that title. He went to school early today and mentioned that you, the ace pilot, haven't gone fishing in a long time."

Bai Yan: "..."

"That brat. I told you, it's not about not catching anything—it's the resources! It's all those people who fish with electricity!"

The old man huffed, his eyes wide.

Bai Liang nodded in agreement, then turned at the sound behind him.

"Coming down?"

"Great-Grandpa!"

The little one called out cheerfully.

"Mm."

The old man responded reservedly.

"Anu was napping just now. He should come out as soon as he hears the car."

Just as he said that,

From the cat house next to the old man's building, a swift figure shot out, climbed a tree in a few bounds, and seemed to want to show off with a parkour move. But on the way down, it slipped on the main branch in the dense leaves, stumbled, and fell. Anu landed gracefully, and amid Bai Liang's sudden laughter, it chose to lick its fur.

What are you laughing at? What do you know?

It was all planned.

Then it stood up, walked a couple of steps toward Xiaobai Nuo, and started meowing.

Xiaobai Nuo tossed away the empty ice cream box, took a cat treat from a nearby servant, and sat on the grass with Anu, squeezing the treat out for him to eat, making Anu purr with delight.

Meanwhile, the rest of the Bai family gathered around the small pool.

They watched the old man cast his line, but no fish came to bite.

The old man, who had been brimming with confidence just moments ago: ...

"I think the bait's off. It should be mixed like this."

Bai Jingyun rubbed his chin.

Bai Liang chimed in: "No, no, no, I think it should be like this."

Cen Zhi sat next to the little guy, watching him play with the cat. She couldn't help glancing at the group over there, and spotted Bai Qi's car pulling up in the distance. After saying hi to the little guy and handing over the gift she'd brought, she got pulled into the argument.

The three of them were going at it. Bai Sheng kept quiet, but he grabbed a rod and cast his line too.

The Bai family's competitive streak always popped up in the weirdest places.

Cen Zhi couldn't help but laugh.

"What's this whole crew here for?"

And since nobody in the family liked fishing except the old man, she hadn't realized—was this "skunked" thing hereditary? Is your Bai family DNA seriously that ridiculous? Your genes are way too on the nose!

The little guy watched curiously too. After about half an hour, a bunch of skunked fishermen sat scattered around the makeshift pond, looking totally baffled.

Anu was bored of watching too, curled up next to the little guy, tail swishing, body stretched out like a long noodle beside Xiaobai Nuo.

Bai Jingyun muttered, confused: "At this density, you could snag one with a hook, right?"

Bai Liang was squatting by the bait, frowning as he studied the ingredient list on every pack, analyzing on his phone what flavor these fish liked—going way overboard with it.

Bai Sheng had already lost patience and was trying to snag one to end this, but he wasn't that familiar with it, and the fish were quicker.

Bai Qi, stubborn as ever, sat there rigid, staring at the float without budging.

The old man, especially, went from totally confident to a face full of question marks. Besides not catching any fish, the cloudy weather gave just the right amount of sunlight, making it feel pretty chill.

Xiaobai Nuo watched his dad whip the rod around, trying every angle. The little guy shuffled a few steps closer, then pulled his tiny feet back, too scared to go near his dad. He went over to his great-grandpa, peeked curiously, also full of curiosity and that competitive streak.

"Great-grandpa, can Nono try too?"

"There's a little rod over there too," the old man said.

It was something he'd bought a long time ago, for taking the little guy out to play.

But an adult had to help hook the bait on.

Xiaobai Nuo looked curiously at the bait the adults picked.

It smelled gross.

The little guy thought for a second, fished around in his pocket, and quietly pulled out a gummy candy.

"Can Nono use this to fish with?"

The old man stared at the candy for a solid moment.

But Bai Liang glanced over. He'd been forced to learn a ton of fish stuff when he rescued fish before, so he answered: "Yeah, you can. These omnivorous fish like sweet stuff, but it's not usually recommended as the main bait."

As he answered, he wondered—was fishing really this hard?

Though he could guess the reasons: low oxygen in the water, the fish adjusting to a new environment, not in the mood to bite, stuff like that.

But the old man had already cut the gummy candy for the little guy and hooked it onto his tiny hook, and watched the little guy drop it in. The curious little guy sat on a tiny stool next to him, staring without blinking at the little float.

The old man looked down at the little guy on the stool, then looked away, quietly pulled out his phone, snapped a pic, and happily sent it to the group chat.

Yeah, that's right, this was the feeling.

...

Meanwhile, in the distance, two people who'd been staring in confusion for a while had no idea what was going on.

The Bai family had been making some moves lately, and Bai Zhize was keeping tabs on them, but today he just couldn't figure them out at all.

Bai Zhize turned to Bai Wan, who was chomping on a green pepper with loud crunches.

"What are they doing?"

Bai Wan swallowed the pepper, his blue eyes fixed on the scene. "From what I can tell, they're fishing. Of course, given the catch situation, they might just be sunbathing."

Bai Zhize: ...

No.

"Are they nuts?"

Bai Zhize let out a "Ha," snatched the half-eaten green pepper from Bai Wan's hand, and crunched into it too.

"Ha, and seriously, fishing in a pond like that for almost an hour and not catching a single one? A bunch of useless losers!"

Bai Wan: ...

He looked like he had something to say.

Bai Zhize looked over: "What do you want to say?"

Bai Wan: "There's an eighty percent chance you won't want to hear it."

Bai Zhize didn't care, still grumbling about the Bai family over there, and asked without thinking: "Huh?"

Bai Wan said flatly: "If you're so capable, go pick one yourself and eat it."

Bai Zhize: ...

Eighty percent chance he wouldn't like it? It was a hundred percent. Don't sugarcoat yourself.

"Don't talk."

Bai Wan stared at the gone, crispy green pepper, still expressionless but with a hint of grievance: "Alright."

At the same time, over by the pond, the group of skunked anglers, each showing off their tricks, suddenly got lively.

The little one, who had just joined not long ago, suddenly stood up holding his tiny rod.

"Hey... wow, it's, it's a fishy! Daddy! Daddy! Great-grandpa! Grandma! Look! Nono caught one! Fishy likes candy!!! Ahhh, Daddy!!!"

Instantly, one, two, three, four, five heads leaned in to look.

With Granny's help, the little one put the small fish into a little tank nearby. He held up the tank like a trophy, showing it off to everyone.

Cen Zhi watched the other members of the Bai family, their eyes nearly frozen in a 'Dou Dou' stare, and was almost in stitches.

When it came to wanting to win, Xiaobai Nuo was a true Bai through and through.

Bai Sheng put away his fishing rod, Bai Liang set down the bait bag, and Bai Qi, who was sitting the farthest away—having been skunked himself before—couldn't help but come over to observe.

Meanwhile, the great-grandfather picked up the little one's leftover soft candy, lost in thought.

He was probably thinking about those big bags of bait.

Was this... right?

The little one held the fish tank high, pitter-pattered over to his dad, and exclaimed excitedly, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!"

He tried to express his joy, his little head thinking hard, then suddenly pointed toward the direction of the old Bai family mansion, likely referencing an idiom story he had seen before, and said, "Fan Jin passing the imperial exams!"

Then he pointed at himself: "Nono catching a fish!"