Chapter 63 Terrible Relatives Arrive

Casually tossing the bitter melon into his storage space, Bai Yun’an knew most young people back in the old world would have refused to touch the stuff.

For now, he just left it there.

It was nearly time to head home for lunch anyway.

Only then did Bai Yun’an rise to his feet, timing it perfectly, and start strolling lazily toward home.

When he reached his family’s gate, he narrowed his eyes.

Tsk…

Why was it suddenly so noisy outside his house again?

“Hey! Who’s come to our place this time?”

Dashui had been happily gawking at the commotion when suddenly a hand clapped down on his shoulder. He nearly jumped out of his skin as the voice of Bai Family’s third brother, his next-door neighbor, rang in his ear.

The chubby boy patted his chest to calm his startled little heart.

“That looks like your second aunt. I bet she’s here to stir up trouble.”

“Didn’t a carriage come to your house yesterday? Two of them, even! Everyone in the village says your family’s about to get rich, and that you’ve made connections with some bigwig from town.”

“Though some folks said they were here to cause trouble, others say they had the wrong person… but…”

“No one knows for sure. So of course they came to find out.”

Dashui, ever blunt and straightforward, explained it all directly to Bai Yun’an.

Once upon a time the two of them couldn’t stand each other, but Bai Family’s third brother had mellowed lately. They’d even fought side by side once or twice and forged some brotherly camaraderie.

That’s just how it went with kids sometimes.

Bai Yun’an glanced at the crowd clogging his front gate and suddenly felt his luck wasn’t half bad.

Heh. What were the odds?

Today he just happened to draw a single bitter melon.

And now wasn’t that coming in handy at the perfect time?

Truly, there are no coincidences in this world—only impeccable timing.

When Bai Family’s second uncle and aunt arrived, Juanjuan was in the middle of cooking something her mother had only described to her—something called “Egg Fried Rice.”

Plump, glossy grains of rice were wrapped in golden egg, with bits of diced meat scattered through. The fragrance filled the tiny kitchen.

【It smells amazing! I want to eat this so badly! Juanjuan is incredible—just one description from me, and she managed to recreate it perfectly!】

【Heavens above, thank you for giving me a daughter blessed with full points in cooking! At least when my little girl ends up crossing into another world, she won’t end up like me—alone and half-starved.】

Juanjuan tilted her head and sneaked a glance at her mother.

She saw her mother gazing at the sizzling Egg Fried Rice in near-religious reverence, and the child’s little heart gave a pang.

Her mother really was too pitiful.

“Mother,” Juanjuan vowed solemnly, “from now on, Juanjuan will cook you many, many delicious things!”

Jiang Dai’s eyes lit up at once. “Yes, yes, yes!”

“Do you want to taste it now?” Juanjuan offered with a bright grin.

“I do!” Jiang Dai replied without hesitation.

Juanjuan scooped up a spoonful of Egg Fried Rice, blew on it carefully, then held it out. “Here you go, Mommy. Careful, it’s hot.”

Jiang Dai felt her heart practically melt. She was on the verge of starry-eyed tears.

She bent down, just about to taste the fragrant mouthful when—

“Jiang Dai! Jiang Dai!!”

Bai Tian burst into the doorway of the little kitchen.

Startled, Juanjuan’s hand shook, and the spoonful of rice nearly went into freefall.

“Ahh—!”

Quick as lightning, Jiang Dai snagged it with her mouth before the Egg Fried Rice could hit the floor.

Juanjuan: !

Mommy was amazing!

As her daughter gazed at her like she was a hero, Jiang Dai calmly chewed the rice, then rose to her full height and fixed her gaze on the panicked Bai Tian in the doorway.

“Settle down. You’ll scare the child.”

“You’re right,” Bai Tian agreed breathlessly. “We need to move to the next step!”

Jiang Dai blinked. “What happened?”

“Terrible Relatives have arrived.”

Without a pause, Jiang Dai snapped the wooden lid onto the wok, covering the Egg Fried Rice.

【This Egg Fried Rice must not be seen—one spoonful missing and I’ll cry my heart out!】

“Juanjuan, go wait with your brothers inside.”

Even as she spoke, Jiang Dai tugged her rolled-up sleeves back down.

Just yesterday she’d been mulling over her contingency plans in case these Terrible Relatives actually showed up. Should she go with the fierce, sharp-tongued Plan A—or the delicate, innocent-white-flower Plan B?

And now…

【Since they’ve come right to the gate, of course I’ll go with Plan B.】

Juanjuan didn’t understand, but she was used to that. She tried to make sense of it, failed, and decided not to worry about it.

Jiang Dai herded her three children into the inner room like a farmer driving ducks, giving special instructions on the way. “Goudan, take care of your brother and sister.”

Bai Yunqi frowned. “I—”

“Yunqi, I’m counting on you!” Jiang Dai cut him off.

“…Fine.”

【Hah. Little brat, your big sister’s got you wrapped around her finger.】

The inner room door closed, shutting off the line of sight.

But of course…

“Come on, come on! At least our door has nice big gaps.”

The very same Bai Yunqi who had just promised to take care of his siblings now had his rear sticking out, his face mashed up against the crack of the door to peek outside.

Juanjuan blinked, then instinctively glanced at her second brother.

This didn’t feel quite right…

And to her surprise, after a moment’s hesitation, her second brother crept over and joined Yunqi at the crack.

Juanjuan: ……

She seemed to remember—didn’t Mother once say that Eldest Brother was to take care of Second Brother and her?

Of course Bai Yunqi remembered those words.

Cultivators!

They valued promises above all else. Never deceit, never trickery.

See?

To make sure his younger siblings were looked after, he had even given the widest crack in the doorway to the two little ones.

“Juanjuan, aren’t you coming? Watching the commotion is good for curiosity.”

Bai Yunqi called warmly to Juanjuan.

The four-year-old, listening to the lively noise outside, couldn’t hold back in the end. Step by step, she toddled over to the door and crouched obediently at the very bottom, pressing her face close to peer through the gap.

Inside the room, three small heads stacked neatly from tall to short, all squashed together at the crack in the door, eyes wide as they watched the excitement.

Outside.

Jiang Dai and Bai Tian had already opened the not-so-large courtyard gate.

Standing at the entrance was a plainly dressed couple. The woman was plump, full of good-natured cheer.

The man looked honest and simple, but at the moment his gaze lingered on Bai Tian, who he hadn’t seen for years. When his eyes turned toward Jiang Dai, he very obviously took an extra few looks.

This was the family of Bai Tian’s original body.

Noticing the way his second brother eyed Jiang Dai, Bai Tian’s brows knitted slightly. Without a word, he stepped forward just enough to block his gaze.

Different education, different upbringing, different ages. But a man was still a man.

How could Bai Tian not understand what that look in Second Brother’s eyes meant?

Trash. Absolute trash.

Sensing the tension that was quietly building, the Bai Family’s Second Sister-in-law quickly broke the silence with a laugh. “Yo! Little Sixth, aren’t you going to invite your Second Brother in to sit and rest?”

Bai Tian blinked, giving the couple a quick once-over before smiling politely.

“Come, Second Brother, come inside and rest.”

Honest and sturdy Second Brother stepped one foot over the threshold, and the cheerful sister-in-law followed close behind.

But just as Second Brother set both feet firmly within the courtyard, Bai Tian smoothly extended an arm and blocked the Second Sister-in-law outside the gate.

Second Sister-in-law: ?