Chapter 176: The Smart Ones Redirect Problems

Faced with his suspicious mother and two equally astute brothers, Bai Yun’an maintained an exceptionally calm demeanor.

He had anticipated this situation long ago, so why wouldn’t he be calm?

Looking at his mother, he shook his head calmly. “Why would I have something like that?”

Jiang Dai stared at him. Really? Why does it still feel like something’s off? Is she being overly suspicious? Or has there been a glitch because too many people have transmigrated?

Jiang Dai’s gaze shifted to her eldest son. “Gou…”

Bai Yunqi raised an eyebrow at his mother.

Jiang Dai quickly corrected herself. “Yunqi, didn’t you mention last time that you sensed a strange fluctuation near our house? Could it be that someone else besides our family has transmigrated?”

Since the topic had been brought up, Bai Yunqi’s gaze once again fell on his younger brother.

His dark eyes fixed on Bai Yun’an, not missing any slight reaction.

“Last time, when the black dog brought back a severed hand and the neighbors, Tiezhu and his group, went exploring, I actually marked each of you to track your movements.”

“So when he left home to visit the manager of Zhenxiu Restaurant, I knew and followed him. That’s not strange. What’s strange is…”

Bai Yunqi looked at his younger brother. “When you returned home, the mark on you disappeared. Did you encounter someone unusual?”

Are they settling accounts now?

Bai Yun’an sighed inwardly in resignation. Who would have thought this family was so perceptive? Had he known earlier, he would have been more cautious.

However, when faced with Eldest Brother’s inquiry, Bai Yun’an’s response was perfectly normal.

“No, I didn’t!” He looked at Eldest Brother with puzzlement. “Eldest Brother, what did you leave on me? How could you know where I went?”

Encountered someone? No, he hadn’t met anyone, nor did he know how the supposed mark on him disappeared.

Such an answer was actually more believable. After all this time, he hadn’t mentioned meeting a stranger. Bringing it up now would seem contrived.

It was better to say he hadn’t met anyone and didn’t know how the mark disappeared.

Inadvertently, he let his mother and Eldest Brother attribute all inexplicable events to that “mysterious” person.

Only a fool would exhaust themselves with explanations. The smart ones just redirect the problem.

…

The move was a bit rushed, but with Mu Zhaoyuan’s help, it was surprisingly easy.

They sorted through their belongings, leaving behind anything unnecessary.

The journey was long, so traveling light and fast was the priority. Possessions and money were secondary.

Once they reached Jingcheng, they still had enough money to buy some essentials.

Perhaps having experienced a move before, Juanjuan wasn’t as nervous or reluctant as the first time.

This time, they weren’t cramped together in an ox cart but were riding in a carriage Juanjuan had only seen a few times.

Sitting in the carriage was indeed more comfortable than the ox cart, with a soft cushion beneath her.

Juanjuan sat on the cushion, intently admiring its pattern.

“The pattern on this cushion is really beautiful,” she thought. “It would make lovely clothes.”

“Juanjuan, what’s wrong? Why are you so still? Is there something about the cushion?”

Juanjuan looked up at her mother, a bit embarrassed. “The flowers on this cushion are so pretty. They’d make beautiful clothes…”

Jiang Dai hadn’t expected the little one to be thinking about that.

“When we get to Jingcheng, I’ll work hard to earn money and make beautiful clothes for our Juanjuan, okay?”

Juanjuan nodded at her mother, then hesitated. “Mom, earning money is hard. The clothes I have now are already nice!”

“I don’t mind playing in them, but if I wore such beautiful clothes, I wouldn’t dare play, and it wouldn’t be as fun.”

Juanjuan knew that moving to Jingcheng put pressure on her parents, who were constantly thinking about what to do once they arrived.

But Juanjuan felt that as long as she could stay with her current parents, she’d be happy even without money.

She didn’t need fancy clothes, delicious food, or a big house. As long as her parents loved her, she was content.

Seeing such a sensible child who made a good point, Jiang Dai chuckled softly. “Juanjuan makes a good point, but your parents love you and want to give you the best!”

“When you have only one piece of clothing like this, you might be too careful to play freely. But if all your clothes were like this, you could play without worry.”

“Just like…”

Jiang Dai handed a small piece of mung bean cake to Juanjuan. “If you only have one piece of mung bean cake, would you share it?”

Juanjuan replied, “I’d give it to Mom and Dad, and my brothers. If it were Da Chui… I’d split it in half!”

Hearing the little one’s unhesitating willingness to share, Jiang Dai smiled indulgently, clearly pleased with the answer.

“But if you had many pieces,” Jiang Dai said, giving Juanjuan the remaining mung bean cakes, “would you still only give Da Chui half?”

Juanjuan looked at the many pieces of mung bean cake in her hand and honestly shook her head.

“I’d give Da Chui two, three, even four pieces.”

Jiang Dai nodded. “That’s the point. Juanjuan now finds this fabric beautiful and precious because she doesn’t have enough of it. Once you have plenty, you won’t be so reluctant.”

Juanjuan looked at the mung bean cakes in her hand, pondering for a moment before speaking.

But before she could, her Eldest Brother’s voice came from outside.

“If I had that many mung bean cakes, I’d eat one and toss one!”

The next second, his Second Brother smacked him on the back.

“Don’t waste food!”