Chapter 141: Bai Yunqi: Of Course I Choose…

Her eyelashes fluttered beneath her mother’s hand, and the sensation of blinking against the soft palm felt oddly amusing.

Juanjuan couldn’t help blinking a few more times, then asked curiously, “Mama~ what’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Jiang Dai replied without missing a beat.

Juanjuan: ?

You can’t lie to a kid like that!

If nothing’s going on, why suddenly cover her eyes?

“I’ll take my little sister back inside first,” came Third Brother’s calm voice from the side, completely unbothered and not the least bit curious.

Juanjuan: ?

Did Third Brother already see what it was?

Just as Juanjuan was wondering, Third Brother’s inner thoughts floated over.

【It’s just a black dog dragging over a human hand…】

【But if I were really a little kid, seeing that for the first time would be scary too.】

A human hand…

Now that Third Brother had said it, Juanjuan was even more eager to take a look.

Maybe seeing it in person would be scary, but knowing about it and not seeing it only made her more curious.

As her mother’s hand relaxed, Juanjuan stood on tiptoe, trying to sneak a peek at the so-called “hand” from the side.

But just as she lifted her heels, someone pushed her back down and another small hand covered her eyes again.

Bai Yun’an said, “Kids shouldn’t look. You’ll have nightmares.”

Juanjuan didn’t even get a word out before someone dragged her away.

The courtyard door slammed shut behind them, and Bai Yun’an let go of Juanjuan’s hand.

He was immediately met with a pair of wide, curious, and expectant eyes.

Bai Yun’an: 【Overflowing curiosity… she really wants to see it?】

Their eyes met.

“Third… Brother~”

The little girl flashed a sweet, coaxing smile, her eyes crinkling with a hint of cautious hope.

It was like a stray kitten that had finally worked up the courage to rub against you after watching from afar for a long time.

And Bai Yun’an, well, he rather liked the feeling.

Even though he knew exactly what she was up to, he couldn’t help but be a little pleased.

Especially when he saw her Favorability Points tick up to 65—Bai Yun’an smiled outright.

“You want to see what it is, don’t you?” he asked.

“I do!”

Juanjuan nodded eagerly, the little tuft of hair on her head bouncing with the motion.

Seeing her so curious, Bai Yun’an couldn’t help but say, “But…”

Juanjuan looked at him in confusion. But what?

Bai Yun’an lowered his voice. “But it looks like a severed human hand. Aren’t you scared, Juanjuan? You still want to see it?”

【Better to be upfront with kids early on. If she gets scared silly, how am I supposed to guide her later?】

Juanjuan hesitated for a moment, then nodded again. She still wanted to see.

【This little one really is brave. Her curiosity’s no joke.】

Bai Yun’an grinned like a harmless little fox. “Then let’s sneak a peek, just the two of us?”

The two little ones crouched by the crack in the door, peering outside.

Through the narrow gap, they could just barely make out the severed hand. No one dared to touch it.

The adults had already called all the children back inside, afraid they’d be frightened. Even some of the more timid adults had shut themselves indoors.

The braver ones were speculating about what had happened, and a few busybodies had already gone to report it to the authorities.

Who knew whether the dog had eaten someone, or if someone had died and the dog had just found the remains?

It was Jiang Dai’s first time seeing such a gruesome human hand.

She felt like something was wrong with her. Even though she knew looking at it made her uncomfortable, she still couldn’t stop herself from staring.

Her gaze fell on the wrist of the severed hand.

The dog must have carried it over sideways, because there were bite marks on the back of the hand.

But the cut at the wrist was unnaturally clean—definitely not something a dog could do.

“Looks like it was cut off by a person…”

A neighbor auntie nearby overheard Jiang Dai and blinked in shock: ???

She had just been thinking how beautiful, gentle, and delicate Madam Bai looked—how could she say something so chilling?

Then she suddenly remembered the legendary tale of Jiang Dai single-handedly taking down six thugs.

The auntie leaned in curiously. “Cut by a person? I knew it! Xiao Hei’s such a sweet dog, how could he eat someone?”

“What do you mean, eat someone?”

A familiar, curious voice suddenly piped up from below.

Jiang Dai broke out in a cold sweat and instantly turned her head.

That voice…

She quickly looked down and saw her eldest son poking his head around the corner, staring up at her. Then, under her gaze, he turned to look at the severed hand on the ground with wide-eyed curiosity.

Bai Yunqi: “Whoa! Whose hand ran off on its own?”

Neighbor Auntie: ?

Jiang Dai: …

With her uninjured hand, Jiang Dai grabbed the back of her eldest son’s collar and forced a smile at the neighbor auntie.

Then she dragged her son back home.

“Mama, don’t pull! I wanna see!”

“Da Hei brought it over?”

“We definitely gotta report this. Bet the whole body’s been chopped into pieces—”

Jiang Dai couldn’t take it anymore. “Goudan! Shut up!”

Bai Goudan: …

His chattering mouth instantly clamped shut.

He looked at his mother with a wounded expression, muttering under his breath, “You could’ve just said ‘shut up’… why call me Goudan…”

Jiang Dai: “Sorry. Shut up.”

Bai Yunqi: “Okay!”

Watching their mother drag their big brother like a chick being carried by the scruff, Juanjuan quickly tugged Third Brother and ran back into the courtyard.

What else could they do?

Stick around at the door and wait to get caught?

The courtyard door creaked open.

Jiang Dai hauled her eldest son inside, her gaze sweeping over the two kids in the yard.

She gave a quick instruction. “Keep an eye on your big brother.”

Juanjuan nodded. “Got it.”

Bai Yun’an looked at his dragged-in brother and gave a cold, amused snort, once again marveling at his own brilliance.

【With a big brother like this, who’d ever guess he’s been swapped? He’s just like Da Chui from next door!】

Bai Yunqi: ?

【What do you mean, ‘keep an eye on your big brother’?】

Before he could ask, the courtyard door shut in his face.

Bai Yunqi: …

He flared up in indignation. For a moment.

Just as he was about to “recruit” his younger siblings to go watch the excitement with him—

A little head was already leaning against the door crack, and a soft voice invited him.

“Big Brother, wanna watch with us?”

Bai Yunqi: ?

He looked down at his little sister, who was seriously watching the scene outside, then glanced at his little brother, who was also peeking through the crack.

【What the heck? So experienced… Don’t tell me they were already here watching earlier!】

【And Mama just praised them for being obedient and told them to keep an eye on me!】

In that instant, two thoughts collided in Bai Yunqi’s mind.

One: crouch down and join his siblings in watching the show.

Two: shout for Mama and catch them red-handed!

Let her see what her “obedient and well-behaved” little darlings were really up to behind her back!

The two thoughts clashed for only a moment.

Then Bai Yunqi made his choice.

Of course he chose to crouch down and join them.

Because the constables had arrived outside.