Chapter 79

When the craftsman took the raw stone, he didn’t even bother to inspect it or choose a proper angle before placing it directly on the cutting machine. But now that it was cut open, it revealed a stunning piece of ice-type purple jade.

Under the light, it emitted an especially alluring glow.

The craftsman broke into a sweat the moment the jade was revealed, casually wiping his forehead with the back of his hand.

The stone wasn’t very large, but based on his many years of experience, if the cut hadn’t gone right through the middle, the material would’ve been enough to make a full bangle.

But since he’d sliced it from such an extreme angle, the remaining portion would now need meticulous carving just to be usable. Its value had taken a serious hit.

“Wow~”

Dadan didn’t realize the cutting had been done poorly—he was just thrilled that such a good piece had come from the stone he picked.

Even the previously lazy shopkeeper, who had been lounging in a rocking chair, hurried over wide-eyed.

No way—was there really jade in that pile of trash even he wouldn’t give away?

He’d had every stone in that batch carefully inspected before they got here. Even a hint of green was supposed to be picked out and kept.

Ji Chenbiao squatted beside Dadan and stared at the jade for a long while. The craftsman, realizing what had just happened, quickly pretended like nothing was wrong and carried on processing the jade.

“Master, don’t you think you made the wrong cut on this one?” Ji Chenbiao asked.

The craftsman’s heart sank when he heard that, but he forced himself to stay calm and furrowed his brow in protest.

“What are you talking about? I’m a veteran here—I’ve cut who knows how many stones. And you, an amateur, think you can tell me I’m doing it wrong?”

“First time here, huh? It’s normal for outsiders not to understand. This is just how jade is cut.”

He couldn’t admit fault. In this industry, if a mistake was acknowledged, the loss in jade value had to be borne by the cutter—store policy.

“You clearly cut this wrong,” Ji Chenbiao said, gesturing over the raw stone. “For a piece this small, you should’ve started from the edge, or shaved it down bit by bit.”

He pointed to a few ideal cutting spots with practiced precision, which made the craftsman break into a cold sweat.

“Oh, and what—you say it’s wrong, so it must be wrong?”

Truthfully, even Ji Chenbiao hadn’t expected anything to come out of the stone. He figured the craftsman just wanted to rush through the job and go home. But now that the jade had already been cut, arguing more wouldn’t change anything.

Still, the man’s condescending attitude—obviously trying to fool someone he thought was clueless—rubbed Ji Chenbiao the wrong way.

“Who do you think you’re trying to fool here?”

The craftsman’s temper flared at that. He ripped off his gloves and tossed them aside.

“New guy? Just got here? You don’t even know whose turf this is, and you dare stir up trouble here on purpose?”

Dadan, who had been happily squatting by his raw stone, was stunned by the scene unfolding in front of him. He instinctively stepped back and gripped his dad’s shirt tightly.

Ji Chenbiao wasn’t someone to mess with to begin with—and they weren’t in the wrong, either. He scooped Dadan up and took a few steps toward the door.

The raw stone market was full of people who loved a bit of drama. Even at this hour, there were still plenty of customers around.

Old Zhou had told Ji Chenbiao to head out early because most of the raw stones were already sold.

At the entrance, Ji Chenbiao deliberately raised his voice.

“Yeah, I’m new. So what? I don’t know whose turf this is. But now, questioning your cutting technique counts as causing trouble?”

Most of the people gathered here didn’t know much about jade. They were just here to try their luck, and if there was drama, even better.

Very soon, everyone wandering nearby came over to check out the commotion.

A shop doing business wouldn’t just block customers at the door, so the laid-back boss hurriedly got up.

Seeing the crowd gather, the craftsman rushed to block them, but a few of the more stubborn ones just slapped his hand away.

Even amateurs could tell the stone had been cut recklessly.

“What a waste of such good jade, ruined by your hands.”

Someone in the crowd said this, and it was quickly met with murmurs of agreement.

Such a beautiful piece of jade—it was truly a shame to see it ruined like this.

At this point, even if the craftsman refused to admit fault, the crowd wouldn’t accept it. The shopkeeper realized how serious this was and hurried to smooth things over.

“This was clearly a mistake by our craftsman. As per store policy, we’ll offer compensation according to the market value. Everyone here can bear witness.”

As he said this, the boss shot the craftsman a fierce glare. The craftsman, who had wanted to argue further, immediately shut up.

It wasn’t a huge deal, but if this incident harmed the store’s reputation, the boss would definitely make sure the craftsman couldn’t work in the industry again.

Ji Chenbiao sat down in the craftsman’s seat and used the tools to finish processing the remaining jade.

The purple ice-type jade was elegant and stunning. He displayed the two halves properly, and when brought together, many in the crowd sighed in regret.

“If I remember right, the shop’s policy is to compensate based on market value?”

Ji Chenbiao examined the jade in his hand closely, then glanced over at Dadan, who was contentedly sucking on a lollipop. He couldn’t help thinking this little guy had ridiculously good luck.

“Yes, of course. Everyone, rest assured—if it’s our craftsman’s fault, we will compensate at full market value.”

The boss smiled as he said this and gave the craftsman a look. Even if he was reluctant, the craftsman had no choice but to go inside and fetch a stack of cash. Several bundles were stuffed into a bag and handed over to Ji Chenbiao.

“Calculate the market value and just make up the difference—I’m taking the jade with me.”

Ji Chenbiao didn’t pocket all the money. When he saw how Dadan was eyeing the jade longingly, he decided to go with a compromise.

“Deal.”

Of course, the craftsman was glad to pay less. Their line of work could be lucrative, but every bit lost was from his own pocket. It would be a lie to say it didn’t hurt.

Once they reached an agreement, Ji Chenbiao handed the jade over to Dadan to play with, holding him in his arms as they headed out.

The spectators hadn’t paid much attention to this shop at first, but after seeing that gorgeous piece of jade, they swarmed in, hoping to dig up treasure from the “trash.”

Dadan had already finished his lollipop. He tried to mimic the uncles around him by sticking the stick in his mouth like a cigarette, but Ji Chenbiao snatched it away and tossed it in the trash before he could start.

With both hands wrapped tightly around the jade, Dadan stared at it for a while but couldn’t make much of it, so he simply stuffed it into his dad’s hood.

It was a great rock—just a bit heavy. His little wrists were sore from holding it.

Before Ji Chenbiao could react, Dadan wrapped his arms around his neck and sweetly called out, “Daddy.”

Ji Chenbiao felt the weight of his hat and looked at Dadan, who was clearly feigning innocence after doing something bad, so much so that he wanted to tap his head in annoyance.

It seemed that Dadan had sensed the killing intent coming from his father, as he shrank his head and smiled even more sweetly, acting like a dog who was skilled at reading the room.

The longer Ji Chenbiao spent with him, the more he found it hard to bring himself to act harshly towards him. Even though he knew most of the time Dadan’s “innocence” was intentional, it was still difficult to remain angry.

After returning home, Ji Chenbiao put the piece of jade away. It was a good piece, though not particularly expensive due to its smaller size.

Ice jade was common in this market, especially the purple and green varieties.

It might not appreciate in value if kept at home, but what he cared about was that it was the first piece Dadan had opened, and he thought it would be nice to keep it as a memento.

Mr. Zhou was very concerned about Ji Chenbiao’s adjustment to his new job, and he mentioned it to the supervisor in charge, asking them to look after Ji more.

One day, Mr. Zhou even made a special trip to check if Ji needed anything else.

During their casual conversation, Ji Chenbiao mentioned that Dadan had opened a good piece of jade recently.

“Oh? What kind of jade?”

When Mr. Zhou heard this, he immediately became interested. Given the top-quality jade Dadan had previously opened, he was curious to know what Dadan had found this time.

“It’s an ice jade, purple in color, found in a pile of waste material. It was very beautiful, but the craftsman ruined it during cutting.”

If it had been Ji Chenbiao, he wouldn’t have expected to find jade in a discarded stone, let alone one that had already been sifted through.

However, if it had been him, he certainly wouldn’t have been so lazy as to cut straight through the middle like that.

“How much of it was ruined?”

“If you trust me, how about letting me take a look at it? I remember Dadan is born under the Tiger sign, right? I can have it checked by the company’s jade carvers to see if they can carve it into a tiger for him.”

Mr. Zhou was in the same line of business, and he truly believed in the idea that jade could benefit a person. He always wore jade products himself.

If the opportunity arose, he would recommend jade jewelry to his employees as well.

“Sure, you’re really making it too much trouble for me.”

After Ji Chenbiao agreed, he went to find the original stone. If it had been cut properly, a large piece of ice jade could be made into a bracelet, but since it was ruined this way, it could only be made into a small pendant.

It was just the right size for Dadan.

“It’s no trouble at all, just a small favor. I also heard about you all opening stones that day. Don’t worry, with me around, no one will dare to cause you trouble.”

When Mr. Zhou said this, it was clear he was treating Ji Chenbiao and Dadan as people he would protect, a step up from the usual way he treated employees.

Ji Chenbiao understood the implication behind Mr. Zhou’s words, and he stood up excitedly, about to thank him when Mr. Zhou had already patted his shoulder.

“Chenbiao, there’s something I’ve wanted to talk to you about for a long time.”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Don’t you think Dadan’s situation has always been a bit strange?”

“What’s wrong?”

Mr. Zhou, being a businessman, believed that some people were just born luckier than others. However, encountering a young child like Dadan who had such good luck at such an early age was a first for him.

Ji Chenbiao had never noticed this before, but after Mr. Zhou’s reminder, he suddenly had a very uneasy feeling.

The child had never been in good health. Saying he was disaster-prone would not be an exaggeration. Could it really be that all the suffering in the world had to fall on him alone?

“In our industry, there’s a type of person called a ‘Jade Person.'”

“Jade Person?”

“Yes.”

Mr. Zhou picked up his cup, took a sip of water to clear his throat, and continued.

“A Jade Person is someone born to find jade. Generally, these people have incredibly good luck and can immediately identify the best jade.”

Mr. Zhou had only heard about such people from others but had never encountered one in real life. He even doubted whether it was just a fabricated story. But now, after meeting Dadan, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Dadan might be one of those legendary Jade People.

At such a young age, Dadan had opened top-quality jade, and even when he picked through discarded stones, he could still find something good.

“Does being a Jade Person affect their health or abilities?”

Ji Chenbiao had always believed that the things given to each person were balanced by what they lacked. For example, blind people often had sharper hearing, and deaf people had different color sensitivities.

So, if someone could immediately identify which stones held jade, what might they be losing in return?

“If there’s an effect, can avoiding using this ability prevent it?”

Ji Chenbiao wasn’t interested in the immense wealth that Dadan’s abilities could bring him. He just wanted his son to grow up safe and healthy.

He had already been involved in this industry and knew how much wealth lay behind it.

But compared to Dadan’s health, even if gold mountains and silver mountains were placed in front of Ji Chenbiao, he wouldn’t be moved.

Mr. Zhou was impressed by Ji Chenbiao’s reaction.

There had been a similar child in their circle before, one who, after his jade ability was discovered, was sold off by his father at a high price to a businessman. Under the guise of adoption, the father squeezed out all the value from the child, not caring whether it affected the child’s luck.

“Don’t worry. Rest assured, the Jade Person and the jade are complementary. The jade they open will nourish their body.”

“As long as it’s not overused, the body of a Jade Person will only get better.”

When Mr. Zhou had first learned about this, he had been tempted to exploit it as well. He had researched it in detail and learned quite a bit.

“What does ‘not overusing’ mean? Wouldn’t it be best if he didn’t use it at all?”

Ji Chenbiao asked repeatedly. He had already lost his parents and his sister. Now, Dadan was the only one left, and he couldn’t bear the thought of losing him too.

“Not overusing means not exhausting the jade. It’s best if the child opens one stone a week. It’s fine if he doesn’t open any stones, but there would be no benefits either.”

“However, as an outsider, I’d suggest that you let him at least get involved with jade.”

“He’s very suited to this industry, and if you don’t let him do anything, you’re just wasting his gift.”

Mr. Zhou claimed this was his guess, but in his heart, he already had a very clear answer.

“Also, Chenbiao, you should know that generally, Jade People and jade have a special connection. It’s unavoidable.”

Ji Chenbiao’s thoughts were in turmoil. He had never expected that the child he had casually picked up could be involved in so many complicated matters.

Compared to the strange-sounding jade person and talent, Ji Chenbiao would rather his little Dadan be an ordinary child.

“I’ll think about it.”

“Chenbiao, I won’t hide it from you. If you want Dadan to get involved in this industry, why not come to me? Don’t worry, I’ll definitely protect Dadan.”

Mr. Zhou’s business was top-notch in the entire mountain city, and at least no one here dared to offend him.

“As for the jade person matter, I will help keep it hidden. Whether you want it or not, I won’t let it leak. You can trust me.”

Mr. Zhou liked money, and it was true that he wanted to expand his business, but he had never thought of climbing up using dirty tricks. After all, he had children at home, and he worried that any evil deeds might backfire on his own kids.

“Okay, good.”

“If you have any specific ideas, feel free to come and talk to me.”

Ji Chenbiao stood up and personally saw Mr. Zhou to the door. After returning to the room, he went to check on Dadan. After running around outside, Dadan must have been tired, lying there sleeping like a little piglet.

Sitting by the bed, Ji Chenbiao reached out to straighten Dadan’s messy quilt.

Under his watch, Dadan woke up soon. Half-opening his eyes, groggily, he saw someone sitting in front of him, scaring him into sitting up abruptly.

“Ah!”

“Don’t be scared, don’t be scared.”

Ji Chenbiao quickly reached out and patted his back to calm him down. Once Dadan realized it was his father, he sighed with relief, sitting in his father’s lap and quietly complaining:

“You scared me!”

“Dadan, what would you do if you found out you’re not an ordinary person?”

Dadan, who was obediently staying in his father’s lap, showed a hint of confusion in his eyes when he heard this.

“Huh?”

Realizing that Dadan might not even understand what he was trying to express, Ji Chenbiao was a bit speechless. It seemed he had said too much to this little one for nothing.

“I mean, what would you do if you found out you’re not ordinary?”

Dadan seemed to understand a little, though it was unclear whether it was because he had just woken up or if it was simply because Dadan was so confident in himself.

Upon hearing his father’s words, Dadan proudly lifted his chin and patted his chest.

“Dadan, not ordinary!”

At this point, Dadan could not find the right answer. The little one didn’t grasp Ji Chenbiao’s more serious concerns, and instead, he seemed proud, thinking he was indeed special.

Before Ji Chenbiao could gather his thoughts, he needed to go to work.

There were no nannies available to watch Dadan, so he had to take him to his workplace. Unfortunately, the workplace was a bit dangerous, and Dadan’s range of activity was limited to the small break room in the back.

After learning about the situation, Ji Chenbiao had been worried that Dadan might cry or fuss, but to his surprise, he didn’t. Instead, Dadan lay by the glass, curiously looking outside.

He watched customers choose raw stones, which were then sent for cutting. He was completely focused on the process.

Especially when the raw stones were about to be cut open to check for jade, Dadan became anxiously excited, looking more nervous than the customers buying the stones.

At lunch, Ji Chenbiao put a big chicken leg from his bowl into Dadan’s and asked:

“Did you feel lonely by yourself this morning?”

“No.”

“Do you really like watching it?”

“Mm, it’s good~”

Dadan’s mouth was full, so his words were a bit unclear. His cheeks were stuffed with chicken meat, and Ji Chenbiao suddenly had the impulse to poke them.

Dadan kept using his spoon to feed himself, unaware of his father’s mischievous intentions.

“Dadan, do you want to try it yourself?”

Ji Chenbiao casually asked the question, though he was nervously gripping his chopsticks.

He admitted that he wasn’t being a perfect father in this situation. As an adult, he couldn’t make the best decision either.

So, he decided to leave the decision to Dadan. If he wanted to try, he would agree; if not, he would refuse.

“Try what?”

Dadan swallowed a mouthful of food and drank some soup.

The food in the cafeteria wasn’t particularly special to Ji Chenbiao, but Dadan seemed to enjoy it. He wasn’t sure if it was because Dadan truly liked it or if he was just hungry.

“Buy a raw stone yourself, then let Dad open it. If there’s jade inside, it’s all yours.”

Dadan’s eyes lit up. Ji Chenbiao could easily see his excitement. He had prepared himself for Dadan to nod and agree, but his heart was slowly sinking.

After a while, Dadan’s bright eyes gradually dimmed. He frowned while eating a piece of carrot, the one food he disliked the most.

“I don’t want to.”

“If you want to…”

Before Ji Chenbiao could finish his sentence, he realized that Dadan’s answer was different from what he had expected, and he froze.

“You?”

“I don’t want to.”

Dadan repeated his answer, and when he saw that the carrots in his plate were gone, his furrowed brow relaxed.

“Why not? I thought you liked it.”

“Aunt.”

Dadan wasn’t sure how to express his thoughts. The situation was too complicated for him to explain, so he simply mentioned a title.

“Aunt? You want to save the money to investigate Aunt’s matter, right?”

“Mm~”

Growing up in such a complex environment with Ji Chenbiao, Dadan was more sensible than other children. He understood more and knew more.

At first, Dadan didn’t know what the stones were for, but he gradually realized that these seemingly ordinary stones were actually very expensive.

He liked these gray stones, always feeling that each one contained beautiful jade inside. The excitement of this kind of “lottery” attraction was something even adults couldn’t resist.

But later, he thought about how his father had been trying to figure out the matter with Aunt, so he pushed aside all his thoughts.

“Dadan, Aunt’s matter needs to be investigated by Dad, not by you. If you like, you can buy what you like now.”

Ji Chenbiao couldn’t help but reflect, wondering if he had shown too much concern for his sister in front of Dadan, causing the little one to worry with him at such a young age.

“No, Dadan, grow up.”

When he said this, Dadan glanced at the carrots on his father’s plate. Although he really didn’t like them, he remembered the nanny who once took care of him mentioning that eating carrots would help him grow taller.

He took a spoonful and, with a frown and eyes closed, put it in his mouth. He wanted to grow taller, to grow up quickly.

The words he spoke were a bit jumbled, and most people wouldn’t have understood what the little one was trying to express.

But as his father, Ji Chenbiao understood.

At that moment, there was no need for Dadan to give a clear answer. Ji Chenbiao had already made up his mind to agree to Mr. Zhou.

Right now, little Dadan does enjoy picking raw jade stones—he just refuses to admit it because of reality. He wants to wait until he’s grown up before he says anything.

He even eats the carrots he hates most just to grow up faster.

Ji Chenbiao wasn’t sure if his parenting methods were right. He didn’t like doing things the way most parents did—asking their kids to wait, to delay gratification.

He didn’t want to do that.

Ji Chenbiao still remembered how, when he was a child, he’d waited a long time for his father to buy him a pack of snacks, and by the time he finally got to eat them a year later, it didn’t feel the same anymore.

After dinner, Dadan rested on the small bed while Ji Chenbiao asked his supervisor to help contact Mr. Zhou.

It just so happened that Mr. Zhou was at a shop nearby, and when he heard the news, he rushed over within ten minutes.

“Have you made up your mind?”

That was the first thing Mr. Zhou asked when they met.

If Ji Chenbiao was planning to reject him, he wouldn’t have needed Mr. Zhou to come over—he could’ve just sent word.

So the fact that he was here now meant he was probably going to agree.

Just the thought that he was about to gain the help of a jade talent made Mr. Zhou’s heart beat faster with excitement.

“Yeah, I’ve thought it through. Can we talk things over in detail?”

“Of course. Let’s head to the conference room.”

Mr. Zhou’s assistant led them to another area. Once seated in the conference room, someone quickly brought over some excellent tea.

The aroma of the tea reached Ji Chenbiao’s nose, but he had no desire to lift the cup and try it.

“I don’t have many conditions, just one thing I hope you can guarantee.”

Before Ji Chenbiao even spoke, Mr. Zhou had already braced himself, ready for an outrageous request. He sat there looking calm, but inwardly he was calculating what limits he could accept.

But then Ji Chenbiao said this, and though Mr. Zhou was surprised, he didn’t let his guard down. He responded seriously:

“Go ahead.”

“I hope that no matter what the circumstances, you can guarantee Dadan’s safety. His existence must not be revealed to the public.”

This was something Ji Chenbiao had decided on as soon as he considered saying yes to Mr. Zhou.

He knew very well what people were capable of for money—so he also knew that someone like Dadan, who was extraordinary in the way Mr. Zhou described, would never be safe if word got out about his abilities.

And Mr. Zhou was the highest-status person Ji Chenbiao could currently reach.

“Alright, you have my word. Even if you didn’t bring it up, I would’ve done the same.”

Not just for Ji Chenbiao and Dadan’s sake, but for the sake of his own business, too.

“Although you haven’t mentioned anything else, we can’t be so careless in how we do things. Regarding the profit split, I’ll have my assistant draft a contract. You can sign it after reviewing it.”

“Okay.”

“Oh, right—if you’ve got time in the coming days, could you bring Dadan along with me to check out a batch of goods?”

Just as Ji Chenbiao was getting ready to leave, Mr. Zhou suddenly remembered a shipment that would be arriving soon. It had just been transported from Myanmar and would be featured at a raw jade exhibition two months from now.

Although it was called an “exhibition,” it was actually a pre-auction.

As the organizer, Mr. Zhou had the right to preview and choose first. His team of skilled jade evaluators would also be there.

Just to be safe, he wanted Ji Chenbiao to bring Dadan along.

This shipment supposedly had another piece of top-quality Imperial Green jade, just like the last one.

And the raw stones in this batch were all quite large. If another exceptional piece could be cut from them, the company wouldn’t need him to worry about business for a while.

“Alright.”

It wasn’t just Mr. Zhou who wanted to see—it was also Ji Chenbiao, who wanted to confirm whether those two previous successes were pure luck, or if Dadan truly was what Mr. Zhou claimed: a jade prodigy.

That afternoon, Ji Chenbiao couldn’t focus on work anymore. His boss noticed he was distracted and gave him time off early.

Opening raw stones was actually quite dangerous, and the supervisor didn’t want any accidents happening under his watch.

Knowing his current state wasn’t right, and that staying at work could be risky, Ji Chenbiao took An’an and wandered around the city’s largest shopping mall.

He really did want to take good care of Dadan—but since he’d lived a rough, solitary life for so long, he wasn’t used to the finer details.

He’d been busy lately, and Dadan’s clothes had gotten a bit small again. Especially around the ankles, where a small gap was exposed—it looked cold just seeing it.

Dadan wasn’t particularly interested in buying new clothes. He wanted to go back and watch people cutting jade through the glass.

But sensing that Dad seemed a bit serious today, Dadan didn’t dare say anything. He just slipped his little hand into Ji Chenbiao’s palm and walked with him through the streets aimlessly.

Ji Chenbiao randomly chose a store and walked in for a look. The children’s clothing inside was all quite stylish, and as soon as they entered, a very enthusiastic sales assistant greeted them.

“Hello sir, here with your child to look at clothes? We’ve got all the latest styles.”

“Mm.”

Dadan reached out to touch one of the garments. The material felt good, and the color would hide dirt well—no matter how naughty he was, he probably wouldn’t get scolded.

“You like this one? Go try it on, then.”

“Yes, little one, come here—let Auntie help you try it on.”

As the sales assistant spoke, she helped Dadan out of his coat. When she saw the little vest he was wearing underneath, she took the opportunity to recommend a down vest from the store.

It was light on the body and very warm.

Maybe it was because Dadan had been abandoned in the snow as a baby—he seemed more afraid of the cold than other kids. Even though the weather was gradually warming up, he still wore more layers than his peers.

“Bring them all over, let me take a look.”

Another sales assistant noticed a big customer had arrived and helped pick out a few nice outfits, placing them on a nearby bench for Dadan to try on one by one.

At first, Dadan was quite happy. He tried hard to contain his excitement, slipping his arms into the sleeves, then standing in front of the mirror with his chin slightly lifted—like a proud little peacock.

But after trying on more and more outfits, he started to wilt a bit, gradually turning into a little doll sitting there and letting people dress him however they liked.

Watching from the side, Ji Chenbiao felt genuinely happy, even breaking free from the emotions that had been weighing him down.

“That one looks great. Let’s buy it.”

“That one too—Dadan’s fair skin really suits it.”

“This one’s nice as well. Warm and perfect for wearing in the mornings and evenings.”

He didn’t even need the sales assistants to pitch anything. Ji Chenbiao was rattling off all sorts of reasons why each outfit was worth buying. The assistants looked like they were about to grin their faces off.

“Oh right, sir—I noticed your child seems a bit sensitive to the cold. Would you like to get some masks too? These are cotton, windproof and very warm.”

“Sure. One yellow and one orange.”

Ji Chenbiao didn’t even look at the price tags—he just told the assistant to pack everything up.

After trying on clothes for what felt like forever, Dadan finally finished and rushed over to his dad, eyes wide as he caught the tail end of that whole exchange.

“Daddy!”

“Hm? Is there anything you really like, Dadan? If there is, we’ll get that too.”

Ji Chenbiao pinched his nose affectionately as he asked. Buying clothes for Dadan was one of the few things he genuinely enjoyed—it made him happy to see Dadan in all sorts of new outfits.

“Daddy, bargain!”

Dadan knew that if he said anything else, his dad wouldn’t listen. Whenever Ji Chenbiao decided to buy him something, nothing could stop him—not even nine oxen pulling in the opposite direction.

So he could only swallow his pain and try to remind his dad to haggle a bit when buying.

“Don’t worry, little guy,” the shop assistant chimed in, “Your dad’s buying so much, of course we’ll give you a discount.”

“Oh, by the way, sir—how old is your child? My kid looks about the same age and still drinks formula. Want to take a look?”

As she spoke, she pulled a can of formula off the shelf. Ji Chenbiao glanced at the big number “3” printed on it, then looked down at Dadan, who still wasn’t quite three yet.

Dadan didn’t notice his dad watching him. That shop assistant wasn’t as careful as his dad when helping him change, and something hadn’t been adjusted right. It was itchy and uncomfortable.

He was focused on fixing his clothes, tugging and adjusting them carefully. While he was busy doing that, he had no idea that Ji Chenbiao was quietly watching the top of his fluffy little head.

Just as Dadan finally finished adjusting his outfit—breathing heavily from the effort—he suddenly heard his dad’s voice from above:

“Dadan, wanna drink some milk?”