Chapter 131

Chapter 131

Bai Jin walked over and sat down, feeling the little one lean against him just like before, his soft little body pressing close.

It was the kind of feeling that the child himself wasn't even aware of, but that instinctively softened the heart of whoever he leaned against.

Bai Jin had already figured out the solution to the level, and without going back to follow the intended route, this time he smoothly guided little Bai Nuo through to completion. When the victory screen lit up, he heard the little one cheer: "We beat it, Uncle! You're so amazing!"

Bai Jin coughed lightly, unusually modest as he held the controller.

He just had one tiny question.

Who's really the one being comforted here?

Cen Zhi had just walked in, carrying a glass of warm milk which she set down beside little Bai Nuo. She sat down as well, watching the two of them play, watching Bai Jin sit up straight and grip the controller, then glancing at the tiny little kid leaning against him.

Cen Zhi spoke softly: "You finally look like an adult now."

Bai Jin: ?

I've been an adult for months, you know?

Bai Jin shot Cen Zhi a disgruntled look but didn't say anything, starting the next level.

They played for a bit longer, and it was about time for a break. After letting the little one run around for a while, it would be time for lunch.

Cen Zhi had some work that came up and stayed for a bit before heading to the study for a meeting.

Bai Jin controlled his character, trying to look cool in front of little Bai Nuo, then watched helplessly as his character didn't respond to his button presses in time, stuttered for a moment, and then—whoosh—fell off the platform he was supposed to stand on, splatting to his death.

Bai Jin: ...

Little Bai Nuo blinked, looking up at his uncle. With Bai Jin looking slightly awkward and tense, he spoke: "Uncle, the character fell and died."

Bai Jin: ... Uncle saw that. Let's restart!

The little one continued.

"Nuo Nuo already told you—Uncle should go this way."

His big eyes were bright and full of laughter.

"See, Uncle didn't listen to Nuo Nuo. Too bad. How did you fall down like that?"

He dragged out the words "fell down like that" with a singsong tone, barely holding back a laugh.

Too bad?

You're making fun of your uncle, aren't you?!

Bai Jin chuckled, then in one swift move pinned the little one leaning against him down, reaching out to squeeze the kid's cheeks.

"Making fun of your uncle, huh?! Uncle's got you now!"

Now, let's see—which ticklish spot should he start with?

"Hahaha, stop tickling Nuo Nuo—haha!"

The little one squirmed under his uncle's hands. He heard the sound of the door opening, laughed so hard tears were almost streaming down his face, managed to glance at the door, and immediately called for help.

"Big Uncle, Big Uncle, Big Uncle, save Nuo Nuo! Big Uncle is the best! Hahaha, save Nuo Nuo! Little Uncle is mean! Little Uncle is tickling Nuo Nuo, hahaha!"

Bai Jingyun, who had just walked in and suddenly got an "important mission": !

A few seconds later, Bai Jin clutched the back of his head, staring at the little one who had scrambled up and hidden behind Big Uncle.

He was in disbelief.

"Wait, can summoned creatures be swapped out?"

His third brother left, and now his eldest brother is jumping at the chance to take over, huh?

Is your skill to randomly recruit nearby people as your "summoned creatures"?!

Bai Jingyun coughed lightly, still with a stern face, but he crouched down to look little Bai Nuo in the eye, who was wiping away the tears of laughter.

The little one spoke in his soft, babyish voice, still holding Big Uncle's hand and peeking out from behind him: "Thank you, Uncle."

Bai Jingyun: "Mm-hmm."

Bai Jingyun then glanced at the time, then at the game they were playing.

"Let's stop playing games for now. Go feed the fish and check out the flowers. Lunch will be ready in a bit."

The little one nodded, then poked his head out from behind Big Uncle: "Little Uncle, can we play again later?"

His eyes sparkled, and his face was still flushed from laughing and dodging just moments ago.

Bai Jin rubbed the back of his head, looked at him, and finally gave a response.

The little one fed the fish, took Dou Dou for a walk outside, and then it was time to eat.

They'd agreed to go see Anu in the afternoon, and the little one was excited about it. He ate his lunch with gusto and, as usual, kept an eye on Grandpa, who'd come home for lunch, to make sure he ate properly.

Bai Sheng wasn't there, so Cen Zhi naturally took over the job of feeding him.

She smiled as she watched—whatever she put in his bowl, he'd shovel it into his mouth.

He ate everything happily, and after finishing, he'd look at Grandma with sparkling eyes, waiting for her to add more.

It was just too cute.

Feeding little Bai Nuo was kind of addictive—seeing him eat his fill was so satisfying.

At the table, Bai Jingyun ate quietly but his food disappeared fast. He kept watching the others as he ate. Bai Qian cradled his bowl and sipped his soup slowly. Bai Jin, as always, wolfed down his food.

When everyone was mostly done, Grandma lifted little Bai Nuo out of his high chair.

Bai Qian chimed in.

"I'll take him to and from school tomorrow. You guys don't need to worry about it."

Bai Jingyun glanced over but didn't say anything.

Bai Jin had nothing to say either—he was on break at the same time as the little one, but he was busy with classes lately, so of course he had no time to drive the kid around.

"When's Third Brother coming back?"

"At least three or four days? Maybe five, tops."

Cen Zhi said, watching the little one who had been walking off to video call his buddy turn back around. He'd heard them talking about his dad, and although he'd already walked away, he trotted back over, stood behind the chair, and looked up at them.

"Then the day after tomorrow, Nono gets out of kindergarten two hours early—he probably won't be back by then either, right?"

Bai Jingyun cleared his throat and looked up, keeping his face neutral.

They all exchanged glances.

So, who's watching him that afternoon?

"I'll take him to the office."

Bai Qian said calmly.

"He'll be safe there."

"I think you should look after yourself, Dad."

Bai Jingyun also spoke up.

"I can wrap up my work early and take him to an indoor playground."

Then he added.

"It's private and totally safe."

Cen Zhi: ?

"What are you all talking about? Of course Nono will be with me. I'll take him to Dad's place to play with the cats—it's safe and worry-free."

Bai Qian: ...

Bai Jingyun: ...

Bai Jin scoffed and wiped his mouth after eating his fill. He had no time these days, so he couldn't compete anyway.

Hearing this, he wished he had his second brother's knack for stirring the pot, adding fuel to the fire, and egging them on to fight.

But since he couldn't compete anyway, he hoped his third brother would come back a day early and mess up all their plans!

Xiaobai Nuo listened, waited a moment, then handed the tablet his dad had left him to Grandma.

"Grandma, Grandma, Nono wants to talk to Brother Xiao Yan. Can you help Nono?"

"Alright, Grandma will set it up for you."

Cen Zhi smiled, took it, set up the video call for Xiaobai Nuo, and handed it back to him. She watched the little one clutch the tablet, with that little monitor trailing behind him, as he trotted off to his usual spot.

She couldn't help calling out to him.

"Nono, slow down. Don't run right after you eat."

"Okay, Grandma."

Xiaobai Nuo responded.

The video call connected quickly.

Yu Chuyan seemed to have just finished eating too. The background showed the Yu family villa. Little Cool Guy was wearing a light blue short-sleeved shirt and loose white shorts—not a soft style, looking a bit like a little adult, very neat.

When he saw Xiaobai Nuo's face appear, Yu Chuyan leaned in closer.

"Nono."

"Brother Xiao Yan."

Xiaobai Nuo smiled, showing the dimples in his cheeks.

"Did you eat? Nono ate today..."

Since the two little ones had the same teacher, they usually held hands, lined up, and ate together, so they had plenty to talk about.

Especially about food.

Xiaobai Nuo, who came from the apocalypse, had an almost obsessive love for food.

Today, the Xie family had gone on a trip, so they weren't included in the video call.

Yu Chuyan answered on the other end.

After they finished that topic, Yu Chuyan turned to glance behind him—probably toward Yu Chen.

Recently, Old Master Yu had ordered Yu Chen to rest.

Actually, the old master had gone out earlier to visit some partners and friends specifically for this reason. Yu Chen's burden was too heavy; he needed to find trustworthy people to help him, so that if his health gave out, Yu Chen wouldn't be crushed.

But the old master also knew that if he said this outright, Yu Chen definitely wouldn't take it well.

So he hadn't mentioned it to Yu Chen. Who would've thought that before he even got back, he'd learn that something else had happened with Yu Chen.

"Is Brother Yu Chen okay now?"

Xiaobai Nuo blinked.

Hearing the little one's voice, Yu Chen struggled to poke half his head into the frame that his younger brother was hogging.

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Nono, don't worry."

Yu Chuyan shoved his brother away with a huff.

"The brother who didn't take his medicine on time today doesn't get to talk to Nono."

Yu Chuyan pressed his little body against the phone, as if trying to wrap Xiaobai Nuo up in his arms and block Yu Chen from seeing.

Yu Chen: ... "I was just a little late, it wasn't on purpose."

Yu Chuyan shifted his little body: Still no.

Yu Chen finally left, looking deflated.

Not far away, he smiled as he listened to the Two Little Ones keep chatting.

This was their post-meal rest time, and the two little ones were passing the time together.

After talking about what picture books and stories they'd read recently, Yu Chuyan looked at Xiaobai Nuo.

He thought about how the little one had almost been taken, and how his brother had been targeted. Suddenly, he sat up straight, serious.

"Nono."

"Mm?"

Little Bai Nuo blinked his eyes.

Seeing Brother Xiao Yan across from him getting serious, the well-behaved little guy also sat up straight to match him.

"What's up?"

"In the future, I'm going to become really strong, so strong that the bad guys won't dare mess around in Z country."

Yu Chuyan said it seriously, his eyes glowing with determination as he spoke of the future.

— A villain's future.

Little Bai Nuo looked at him, thought for a second, then nodded.

"Brother Xiao Yan can definitely do it. Nono will help."

After Yu Chuyan finished speaking and heard the little one say that, he got a little shy. The little cool dude cleared his throat, his eyes darting around before looking back at Little Bai Nuo. "Also, I wanna learn how to cook good food. I can make some for you."

Little Nuo Nuo really loved all kinds of yummy food. If he ever had to go to school far away, he could take care of Nuo Nuo.

But Little Bai Nuo hadn't thought that far ahead.

He was still a little kid who really missed his dad.

"Okay, then Nono will wait. Nono will help you in the kitchen later. The kitchen uncle always says Nono is a big help."

Little Bai Nuo beamed, his eyes crinkling.

Yu Chuyan: "...Mm."

In the background, Yu Chen's voice came through: "...Making good food? What good food? Wait, you little punk, you're not gonna use your big bro as a guinea pig, are you?"

Yu Chuyan didn't reply.

But the answer was obvious—he totally would.

They talked a bit more, then Yu Chuyan had to head to his afternoon training. He waved at Little Bai Nuo, his eyes shining. "Nono, see ya tomorrow."

"See ya tomorrow, Brother Xiao Yan."

Little Bai Nuo waved goodbye and hung up.

Everything went quiet again. The little guy looked at his tablet, then glanced over at Dou Dou.

Dad still had four days until he came home.

Little Bai Nuo reached over and picked up Dou Dou.

He hadn't called Dad today yet. Little Bai Nuo pressed his face into Dou Dou, his cheeks puffing out a little.

He wanted to talk to Dad, but Dad was probably busy working, so he couldn't bother him.

The tiny little guy hugged Dou Dou tight, thinking to himself.

He had to wait until Dad was free to talk to Nono.

Whenever the little guy got quiet, he'd pick up Dou Dou and wait silently, not making a peep.

Behind him, Bai Jin was leaning in the doorway, watching for a bit. Bai Jingyun and Bai Qian had already headed off to work one after the other, leaving him and Cen Zhi there. After watching, he suddenly walked in and scooped Little Bai Nuo up.

"Eek!"

The little guy automatically grabbed his uncle's neck, eyes wide.

"Little Uncle?"

"Didn't you wanna see the kittens? Come on, Uncle'll take you to play."

Bai Jin said, carrying the little guy out while yelling into the house.

"Ma! Ma! Ma!!"

"What? Why you yelling like that? I heard you."

Cen Zhi stuck her head out from upstairs. Seeing Bai Jin holding Little Bai Nuo, who was obediently clinging to his neck, she was a little surprised.

Then Bai Jin continued.

"His rest time after eating is over. He needs to move around a bit before his nap. I'll just take Nono to Grandpa's to play."

Cen Zhi thought for a second. She figured Bai Jin wasn't that unreliable, and the post-differentiation stabilization period was over, so she waved him off.

"Go on. Nono, go with Uncle first. Grandma will come over once she finishes this bit of work."

That instantly got the little guy's attention. He remembered Anu the cat, who he hadn't seen in days, and quickly grabbed onto his uncle's neck.

"Let's go see Anu, Uncle! Hurry, let's go see Anu!"

The Bai family's villa.

Bai Zhize had been watching for a while.

He'd definitely noticed that the Bai family wasn't paying attention to him anymore.

That made things a lot easier.

Bai Zhize stood at the third-floor window with a glass of corn drink, staring outside with a blank face.

Find the right chance to get out of here, plan to leave Ang City ASAP, or even better, get out of Z country early and settle somewhere else.

A lot of things were hard to do while they were still under Bai Qian's watch.

Some stuff would have to be handled by Bai Wan—those ways of reaching out to the outside world without the Bai family knowing—Bai Wan was good at that.

Bai Zhize took a sip of his corn drink, closed his eyes, hummed, and then suddenly laughed.

He couldn't help thinking back to a long time ago.

He remembered his second brother saying that the eldest brother's power was suffocating, like a huge net hanging over their heads. If Bai Zhize couldn't feel it, that meant he was still naive and foolish.

Bai Zhize opened his eyes. "Naive and foolish?"

Bai Zhize sneered. "Second brother, you think you're so smart, but your crazy, twisted thinking is the real stupidity, isn't it? At least no matter what I do, I won't end up destroying myself."

And it wasn't like he was out of options.

Even if his abilities weren't as impressive as the eldest brother's, he was still a top Alpha of the Bai family.

Not to mention, this son of his...

Bai Zhize turned his head toward a spot in the courtyard, thinking: Bai Wan does have some good qualities—

Then Bai Zhize froze, staring at the empty spot in the courtyard.

Wasn't he just here a few minutes ago? Where the hell is he now?!

His naive, foolish, trying-to-sneak-red-wine-into-my-corn-drink big idiot of a son?

Where'd he go now?!

—Did he run off to steal Grandpa's green peppers again?

At that moment, Bai Wan wasn't stealing green peppers.

Because he'd already picked and stolen them that morning.

No wait, if Grandpa authorized it, you can't call it stealing.

This is called planned, purposeful harvesting.

He was currently observing from afar.

Bai Jin had arrived with Bai Nuo over ten minutes ago. The leopard cat Anu—which Bai Wan had been tailing them for so long without getting close to—had somehow bounced out from who knows where and was now rubbing against little Bai Nuo, meowing.

Bai Wan's blue eyes stared straight at the scene, analyzing and observing carefully and rigorously.

Then he pulled the green pepper he'd selected from his pocket. Based on his recent experience collecting so many green peppers, this one was clearly thick-fleshed, sweet, and crisp—truly top-tier.

Bai Wan had even tied a little ribbon bow around the pepper's stem, like he was presenting a gift.

He watched little Bai Nuo for a while, then shifted his gaze back to Bai Jin, hesitating slightly as he weighed his options.

—This alpha seems like someone he could try to take on?

But he didn't make any sudden moves.

Bai Jin watched as Anu bumped the little one over, then ate freeze-dried treats and cat strips from his hands, meowing happily. The sound was so sweet and clingy it was practically screaming "aren't I just so good at being cute" without even saying it.

This cat really does love this little one.

Bai Jin stroked his chin, thinking, then glanced behind him in a certain direction, as if confirming something.

Bai Jin raised an eyebrow, wary of this cousin he'd never interacted with, who seemed pretty unsettling.

Bai Jin thought for a moment, then couldn't help turning to little Bai Nuo and instructing: "You've been reading a lot of fairy tales lately, right? Your great-grandfather said he's making you a fairy-tale themed playroom. It's still being worked on, but you can go check it out later. Then stay here to play. Don't wander off too far, got it?"

"Anu, Anu, your fur's so soft, so cute."

And little Bai Nuo was completely absorbed in sniffing the cat.

He didn't hear a single word his uncle said.

Bai Jin: ...

"Nono?"

Little Bai Nuo held Anu's little cat face and planted a big kiss right on his forehead.

"Anu, so cute, Anu."

Bai Jin: ...

"Hey!"

At least acknowledge your uncle!

"Huh?"

Little Bai Nuo snapped to attention, holding Anu's head and turning to look at Bai Jin in confusion.

Bai Jin rubbed his forehead.

"Forget it. Just don't leave your uncle's sight, and you can play with whatever you want."

Bai Jin didn't think being two or three years younger than Bai Wan made him any weaker than this mixed-blood cousin.

As he spoke, he rummaged through the big cat gift bag beside him.

He'd never owned a cat, and he was a bit curious—why were there so many things? Meat-flavored cat strips? Freeze-dried chicken breast? Multivitamins? Hairball paste?

What were all these?

Bai Jin picked up the hairball paste, opened it curiously to look and sniff, and frowned slightly. The smell was a bit weird.

But he'd heard that giving this to a cat could help them get rid of swallowed fur?

Bai Jin was just reading the ingredient list when he looked up and saw little Bai Nuo lying on top of Anu, sniffing him all over, while the cat kept rubbing against the little one.

Bai Jin: ...

Bai Jin looked at the hairball paste in his hand.

"Maybe you should eat some hairball paste too?"

Little Bai Nuo looked up, giving his uncle a blank look: ?

Bai Jin held up the hairball paste: "It sheds a lot. Don't hug it like that."

Little Bai Nuo snuggled with Anu, and upon hearing this, looked from his uncle to Anu.

Anu twitched the tips of his ears, raised his tail, and let out another sweet meow.

So little Bai Nuo thought for a moment: "No shedding. How could our Anu shed? Nono didn't see Anu shed. Anu just doesn't shed."

Anu snuggled in closer.

Our cat is super clean, no shedding!

Anu puffed out his chest: "Meow~"

Bai Jin was almost laughed out of frustration by this little cub.

He reached out and pinched the kid's cheek.

Then he thought—Bengal cats are short-haired, so they do shed less, so it was acceptable.

"Alright, go play with Anu. Uncle's got his eye on you from here."

Bai Jin took out his game console, occasionally glancing up to check on Bai Wan, then watching Xiaobai Nuo play in the yard with Anu using toys like a feather wand.

Bai Jin's hands kept moving, his game character gliding through battles smoothly with flashy special effects turned all the way up—on any gaming guide site, it would be the kind of gameplay people fawn over. But honestly, he was distracted and a little confused.

The main question was: what was Bai Wan doing over there? Why wasn't he moving at all?

Bai Jin couldn't make sense of it.

Or rather, Bai Jin had never really understood the Bai family. He figured each of them had their own brand of crazy.

About half an hour went by.

Bai Jin, sitting on the soft mat in the yard playing games, glanced at the kid and the cat, both clearly worn out from playing.

It had poured yesterday, and today it was cool and cloudy with mild sun—just right, warm and cozy.

Was it about time for the little guy's nap?

Bai Jin paused mid-move, just as he was thinking this.

He saw Xiaobai Nuo wash his hands, grab a pillow from the chair nearby, set it down beside him, look up, and ask softly, "Uncle, can Nono take a nap?"

Take a nap?

Where...? Not upstairs?

Bai Jin looked at the little pillow and realized belatedly—the kid also needed someone around to nap.

Bai Sheng wasn't there, so the little one instinctively gravitated to the person he knew best.

Bai Jin's movements paused slightly. He hummed in response, turning his head to watch the little guy happily rest his head on the pillow, his body pressed against Bai Jin's side. Anu also lazily padded over and flopped onto his side, pressing against the little one's other flank.

Xiaobai Nuo yawned, obediently closed his eyes, and mumbled to his uncle, "Uncle, good afternoon."

"...Good afternoon."

Bai Jin froze for two seconds. The character on the screen had already been sent flying by the boss, a total defeat.

But Bai Jin didn't look at the game screen. He looked at the little one breathing evenly beside him, instinctively grabbing the jacket nearby and draping it over Xiaobai Nuo.

The small child naturally snuggled close to you, treating you as their source of security—it was a bit adorable.

Bai Jin thought, unable to resist reaching for his phone.

As he opened it and fumbled to find the camera button, Bai Jin began to think: Third brother, maybe you should just not come back for now.