Chapter 81

Even those who had initially looked down on Ji Chenbiao couldn’t help but crowd around and stare.

They absolutely refused to believe that a piece of rough stone, clearly meant to fool outsiders, could actually contain jade?

Even Mr. Zhou himself had only planned to use this raw stone as a test—to see whether Dadan really was the so-called “jade person” of legend.

Once the cutting master saw green inside, his movements became increasingly careful. Bit by bit, he revealed the jade to everyone’s eyes.

It was a beautiful green—very translucent, with almost no impurities. Under the lights, its clear glow looked like a hidden beauty that had been sealed away in stone for years, finally revealed to the world.

After Mr. Zhou pulled himself out of his admiration for the jade, he started calmly thinking things through.

In terms of water content, this piece wasn’t as good as that earlier Imperial Green, but Mr. Zhou didn’t feel too disappointed.

If top-grade jade were that easy to find, its price wouldn’t have soared to what it is today.

What mattered most was that this large piece of jade was completely pure. With a skilled jade carver, it could be made into a magnificent display piece and sold at auction—it would definitely attract eager buyers.

Mr. Zhou’s mind raced through possibilities. No matter which route he took, he was bound to make a huge profit. A brilliant smile spread across his face as he said:

“I’ve got a few things to take care of, so I won’t be keeping you all company any longer. Someone will transfer the funds to your accounts shortly, in accordance with industry practice.”

There were matters he needed to discuss privately with his own jade carving team. It was clearly no longer appropriate for these other people to be present.

The expressions on the industry experts’ faces were all equally sour. They were well-known figures in the field, yet they’d just been completely outdone in front of Mr. Zhou by a man none of them had ever even heard of.

This man didn’t even know how to judge raw stones, yet somehow he’d picked the most valuable one at a glance. After grumbling a bit to themselves, they all took their leave.

It wasn’t a total loss—they didn’t walk away empty-handed—but it was a serious blow to their pride. In their hearts, they guessed that Ji Chenbiao had just gotten lucky. A clueless outsider who happened to get it right.

Mr. Zhou’s assistant drove Ji Chenbiao back. He didn’t know anything about the “jade person” rumors and hadn’t thought much about what had happened.

To him, Ji Chenbiao was still the man who had saved the boss’s son—a benefactor.

That alone was enough to earn his respect.

Back at the dorm, Ji Chenbiao helped Dadan wash up and tucked him into the warm bed.

After today’s events, Ji Chenbiao could no longer fool himself into thinking Dadan just had good luck.

Before learning about the jade person legend, he never would have imagined that the pitiful child he’d picked up by chance had so much mystery behind him.

He reached out and held Dadan’s small hand in his palm, feeling his warmth.

Ji Chenbiao wasn’t especially capable or brilliant. He came from a backward, remote mountain village and was barely literate.

When it came to thugs trying to snatch Dadan by force, he could still throw a punch. But if he had to face true power and influence—forces he couldn’t fight—his fists were useless.

He used to think he was pretty tough. But now reality had hit him so hard, he couldn’t even lift his head.

Just then, Dadan, who had been lying obediently in bed, rolled over and ended up right in Ji Chenbiao’s arms.

Ji Chenbiao already knew Dadan was a restless sleeper. That’s why he always put him against the wall—but he hadn’t expected him to be this restless.

Cradling the solid little boy in his arms again, Ji Chenbiao felt a strange sense of responsibility settle on his shoulders. Heavy, yes—but also grounding.

He didn’t know how to protect Dadan and help him grow up safely.

All he knew was: he couldn’t just sit back and do nothing.

…

The next day, Mr. Zhou’s assistant transferred the promised reward money. Jade like that—large, flawless, and transparent—was incredibly rare. Truly priceless.

Mr. Zhou had even brought in a professional to estimate its value, and after that, he added a little extra on top.

Now, even Dadan—who still needed a bottle wherever he went—had earned more money than most people would see in a lifetime.

In the living room, Ji Chenbiao held a bankbook and stared at it like a primary school student, counting each zero with his index finger.

Dadan was sitting on the sofa, his left wrist looped through a baby bottle, and his right hand holding a fork, feeding himself pieces of fruit that Dad had cut for him.

The sofa was a bit tall, so his short legs dangled in the air, gently swaying. He looked completely at ease and content.

After finishing counting, Ji Chenbiao walked over and sat next to Dadan, lowering his voice to ask:

“If Dadan made a lot of money, how would you spend it?”

As Dadan chewed on the sweet, juicy fruit, his eyes squinted with delight. He answered with a big smile:

“Give it to Daddy! And find Auntie!”

“All to Daddy? Then what about Dadan?”

“I have Daddy~”

Dadan answered instinctively, not understanding why Dad would ask such a weird question.

If he had money, of course he’d give it to Dad. Dad would never throw him away for money.

“You’re not afraid Daddy won’t want you anymore?”

After leaving that village, Ji Chenbiao had thought a lot. Like how he’d been driven out in such a shameful way—he was determined to succeed and return in glory.

He thought about those two friends he’d helped so many times, only to have them run away when trouble came, while the village chief who barely lifted a finger had done more in the end. He wanted those friends to regret it.

He had a lot of thoughts like that.

But Dadan seemed different. He was so small—barely reached his knee.

In his tiny world, Daddy was the most important thing. No matter how good something was, if Ji Chenbiao wanted it, Dadan would give it up—even half-finished milk.

Dadan tilted his head, leaning against Dad’s chest, and muttered with a pout:

“Daddy would never~”

“That’s right, never.”

How could anyone bear to throw away such an adorable little treasure?

Even when Ji Chenbiao had nothing, and knew treating Dadan’s illness would cost a fortune, he had never thought of abandoning him.

Now that their life was improving bit by bit, he was even less willing.

“Hee hee~”

Before, Dadan always spoke with certainty—Daddy loves me the most and would never throw me away—but deep down, he hadn’t been that sure.

What if Daddy met a cuter, better-behaved kid?

What if that kid knew better how to make Daddy happy?

Daddy had picked him up from the snow. But this habit of picking up kids—once he picked up him, it better stop for good.

After his dad confirmed what he said, Dadan became bolder. He reached out and gently tugged at his father’s sleeve, successfully drawing Ji Chenbiao’s attention to himself.

“What is it, Dadan?”

“Daddy, we can’t pick up children.”

“Pick up children? When did I pick up children?”

The little guy wore his thoughts right on his face, completely unaware of how to hide them. Ji Chenbiao could guess what he was thinking from the worried look in his eyes.

“Why can’t we pick up children? Look, Dadan, if those kids are left out there with no one to care for them, isn’t that really pitiful?”

Dadan nodded at first, then suddenly realized something and shook his head vigorously, eyes wide as he stared at his dad.

Yes, it was pitiful—but still, you couldn’t bring them home. A family could only have one baby.

“If we picked up more kids, you’d have more friends, right? Then Dadan wouldn’t be all alone drinking milk by yourself.”

Dadan instinctively hugged his bottle tighter. He didn’t feel lonely at all. In fact, he thought drinking milk by himself was perfectly enjoyable.

“And look, Daddy cuts up so much fruit, and you can’t finish it all by yourself, right? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a sibling to help you eat it?”

Dadan stuffed the last piece of fruit into his mouth, his little face scrunched up like a grumpy old man.

Seeing that Dadan seemed to take his words seriously, Ji Chenbiao didn’t dare keep joking around. He rubbed his son’s head and said gently:

“Don’t worry, Daddy won’t bring home any other kids.”

Just raising Dadan alone was already a bit of a stretch for Ji Chenbiao. Luckily, Dadan was a hardworking and sensible kid who, even at his young age, already knew how to make money to support himself and his dad.

Ji Chenbiao wasn’t sure he could take care of two kids at once, nor was he confident he could treat them equally.

Raising a child from scratch was exhausting, and he didn’t want to go through that all over again.

“No picking up?”

“Nope, no picking up. The formula you like is too expensive. If another kid needs formula too, Daddy won’t have enough money to cover it.”

If it had been any other time, Dadan would’ve proudly patted his chest and told his dad he could spend his money however he liked. But now, for once, he nodded earnestly like a little chick pecking at rice.

That’s right. Just him drinking formula already cost a lot. There was no way they could afford to raise another one!

Ji Chenbiao just sat there, smiling as he watched his son try to talk him out of it with all his might. Dadan, of course, had no idea his dad was just messing with him. He thought his clever reasoning had successfully convinced his dad to give up on the costly idea of picking up other kids.

“Daddy~”

Now confident that his dad wouldn’t bring home any more children, Dadan snuggled over and rubbed against him like a clingy little kitten.

“I’m right here.”

Raising a well-behaved, low-maintenance kid like Dadan genuinely made Ji Chenbiao happy.

He didn’t need to invest too much, yet still gained a lot of emotional fulfillment.

Most importantly, watching the tiny baby who used to only cry grow into a bouncing, mischief-making little boy who could call him “Daddy” filled him with an irresistible sense of achievement.

Lately, Ji Chenbiao hadn’t gone to work at the store, per Boss Zhou’s arrangement.

Once it was confirmed that Dadan was truly the legendary Jade-Seer, to protect his identity, Boss Zhou discussed it with Ji Chenbiao and publicly declared that Ji Chenbiao was the one with the jade-reading ability.

It wasn’t about stealing anything from Dadan while he was still too young to understand, but purely to ensure his safety.

If word got out that a child so young could identify jade, people would scramble to adopt him as their own and squeeze every bit of value out of him.

After all, he was just a clueless kid—easy to manipulate with a few tricks.

Minimum investment, maximum profit—that was exactly the kind of deal businessmen loved.

But if it was someone like Ji Chenbiao, a capable and independent adult, most people’s instincts would lean toward currying favor.

So with the plan to temporarily let Ji Chenbiao take Dadan’s place, he couldn’t keep working at the store. After all, someone who could see through jade wasn’t likely to be doing rough work cutting raw stones.

Worried Ji Chenbiao might refuse, Boss Zhou specifically assured him the salary would stay exactly the same.

For now, Boss Zhou was just as concerned with Dadan’s safety as Ji Chenbiao was—after all, Dadan was basically his lucky charm now.

To make the act more convincing, Boss Zhou even arranged for them to move.

The new place wasn’t exactly luxurious, but it had its own small courtyard, space to plant a few things, and most importantly, it offered privacy and safety.

To keep everything under wraps, the best plan was to have Ji Chenbiao formally hired as one of Boss Zhou’s staff.

Jade-seers were rare in the industry, and the few famous ones usually worked independently, not tied to any company.

When needed, people had to go respectfully invite them in person, and those masters rarely turned down work.

Larger jade merchants all hoped to have someone like that working exclusively for them.

If you could get one jade-seer to stay with your company, you’d treat them like royalty—so really, the terms Boss Zhou offered weren’t excessive at all.

Dadan was once again moved to a new home. As his father carried him, he clung tightly to Ji Chenbiao’s neck, looking around curiously.

For as long as he could remember, it had been move after move—he’d lost track of how many times. But he was always happy, because each new place was nicer than the last.

While Ji Chenbiao directed the movers where to put things, Dadan ran all around inside and out.

Boss Zhou had offered several properties for him to choose from. Ji Chenbiao picked this one because there was a kindergarten and elementary school nearby.

By next year, Dadan would be old enough to start kindergarten. It was only after arriving here that Ji Chenbiao realized kids go to kindergarten before entering first grade.

And the kindergarten here fed directly into the local elementary school—no more school worries for the next few years.

The other properties were nice, but couldn’t beat this one’s education resources.

He was also really pleased with the little courtyard. In the past, the living conditions didn’t allow it, but as someone who grew up close to the land, Ji Chenbiao actually enjoyed planting things.

Even if it was just some scallions and garlic for the kitchen, a pot of soil would do the trick.

Ji Chenbiao bustled around, getting everything moved into their new home. Once the movers left, all that was left was a bit of tidying up.

After running around non-stop, Dadan was finally tired and flopped down on the couch like a pancake.

There was also a store nearby that Boss Zhou ran, with a staff cafeteria. Ji Chenbiao could just take Dadan there for meals.

Sometimes, Dadan would lie through his baby teeth and say his dad’s cooking was actually pretty tasty—but even Ji Chenbiao himself didn’t buy that. He couldn’t stand his own cooking either.

Even though sometimes teasing Dadan could be fun, it shouldn’t be done like that.

On the first day after moving in, Dadan was clearly very excited. Even after climbing into bed, he couldn’t fall asleep at all. Every now and then, he would reach out to poke his dad and cautiously ask:

“Daddy, are you asleep?”

Having been exhausted all day, Ji Chenbiao obviously didn’t share Dadan’s high energy. Eyes closed, he gave a simple reply:

“Mm, I’m asleep.”

“Daddy’s lying~ You’re clearly not!”

Dadan wanted to sternly reprimand his dad for deceiving a child, but when he scooted over again, Ji Chenbiao was actually asleep.

With no one to play with, and starting to feel a little bored, Dadan eventually closed his eyes and drifted off too.

After making sure Dadan’s breathing had become steady—proving he was truly asleep and not just pretending—Ji Chenbiao finally opened his eyes and adjusted the boy’s blanket.

It wasn’t that he wanted to fake sleep, but with Dadan’s energy, who knew how long the kid would keep going if he didn’t?

The next day, Ji Chenbiao still didn’t have much to do. He had previously agreed with Mr. Zhou that Dadan would only look at one raw jade stone per week.

Even though Mr. Zhou claimed that there was no harm in Dadan seeing more stones—and that the spiritual energy in jade would nourish his body—Ji Chenbiao wasn’t willing to exploit Dadan to gain more than they needed. He trusted himself more than he trusted Mr. Zhou. Too much of anything could be harmful—this truth applied anywhere.

The previous owner had cleared out everything in the yard before moving, so Ji Chenbiao took a hoe and turned the soil.

Mr. Zhou came by late in the morning, just in time to catch Ji Chenbiao working in the yard.

“What’s this? Planning to plant something here?”

It wasn’t just Ji Chenbiao—Mr. Zhou himself was also fond of gardening and had some experience in it.

“Our weather’s warm around here, temperatures are decent too. You can grow just about anything. My wife loves tending to succulents—really cute stuff. If you’re interested, I can introduce you to some varieties.”

Ji Chenbiao was actually intrigued. He had never heard of such plants before.

But then he remembered how Dadan had been trailing behind him that morning with a small hoe of his own, helping him turn the soil. So he didn’t give an immediate answer.

“Dadan, what do you want to grow here?”

Mr. Zhou was already used to Ji Chenbiao asking Dadan’s opinion about everything.

Dadan had been inside, but as soon as he heard his dad call his name, he ran out eagerly.

“Grapes~ Napa cabbage~”

Mr. Zhou had just been mulling over fancy flower types in his head when Dadan’s response made him laugh out loud. But it was perfectly normal. In a child’s world, there was no need for the complexity of adulthood. If you have a plot of land, the most important thing is to grow what you like.

Dadan was clearly giving it serious thought. After a long pause, he softly added, “Carrots.”

He didn’t actually like eating carrots, but he remembered his aunt telling him that carrots could help you grow taller. He wanted to grow up faster.

“Alright.”

Ji Chenbiao agreed to it all. It didn’t matter what they grew—what mattered was that Dadan liked it. After all, they were going to be living here for a long time.

What Dadan said made Ji Chenbiao come to his senses. Given their circumstances, raising delicate, expensive flowers wasn’t very practical. They didn’t have the time to take care of them. But growing cabbage, radishes, and carrots? They could eat those—how nice.

“Mr. Zhou, what brings you over today?”

Ji Chenbiao didn’t believe Mr. Zhou would just drop by for no reason. The man was always busy with work—he wouldn’t waste time on pointless visits.

Mr. Zhou did indeed have business with him.

That piece of jade they opened last time—Mr. Zhou had originally planned to have it carved by his company’s jade carvers before selling it. But the carvers admitted their skills weren’t good enough for such a fine material.

Not wanting to waste the high-quality jade, Mr. Zhou simply put it up for auction. In the end, it sold for much more than he had expected.

The reason for this visit was to personally deliver the portion of the profit that had previously been left out.

“There’s no need, Mr. Zhou. We already agreed on everything before—no reason to go back and redo it.”

That sum was already a lot. Ji Chenbiao wasn’t greedy, nor did he want to tarnish his image in Mr. Zhou’s eyes over money.

Right now, when he wasn’t strong enough yet, he still had to rely on Mr. Zhou for help with many things.

“The contract spelled everything out clearly, don’t worry. I’m not the kind of man who would get stingy over a little money. Besides, as long as Dadan is around, I believe he can bring me even more wealth.”

Mr. Zhou was a businessman—he’d never hidden his motives from Ji Chenbiao.

No emotional manipulation, no talk of trust—just laying out the profit clearly and directly.

With someone prone to overthinking, this kind of attitude might make them uneasy. But for Ji Chenbiao, it was reassuring.

“Alright then, I won’t turn it down.”

“Mm. The weather’s getting colder now, but once it warms up again, I’m planning a trip to Myanmar. The raw jade markets over there are way bigger than here. Would you be willing to come with me?”

Delivering the money was just part of the reason. This was Mr. Zhou’s true purpose.

In Myanmar, there were countless large raw jade markets. Every year, stories came out of people striking it rich overnight—or losing everything for a single worthless stone and leaping to their deaths in despair.

Mr. Zhou had always had a steady mindset. He never pinned his hopes on instant wealth. But ever since meeting Dadan, he’d become a bit greedier.

“I heard… things over there aren’t exactly stable?”

Ji Chenbiao didn’t agree right away. Back when he worked in raw jade cutting, he had heard colleagues talk about how poor the public security was in Myanmar.

One colleague’s brother had gone there hoping for an opportunity, but ended up dying. His family didn’t even have the power to seek justice.

“That’s true—the security isn’t great. But with me there, don’t worry. I’ll make sure both you and Dadan are completely safe.”

Mr. Zhou didn’t say anything extra—just gave this one promise.

“Alright. I’ll pack up after the New Year.”

After they’d finished discussing this, Mr. Zhou was ready to leave. As Ji Chenbiao walked him to the door, another important issue occurred to him.

“Dadan’s not that young anymore. Once he starts school…”

Ji Chenbiao was trying to figure out the best way to bring it up to Mr. Zhou so that it would be easier for him to accept. He knew the request was a bit excessive, but he still couldn’t stop himself from saying it.

Mr. Zhou was a smart man. As long as he wanted to, he could ensure that no one felt uncomfortable during interactions.

Before Ji Chenbiao could finish thinking it through, Mr. Zhou spoke first:

“Don’t worry. Once Dadan starts school, let’s keep things to weekends or holidays. How does that sound?”

Ji Chenbiao was very satisfied with this arrangement. Although Dadan’s current abilities were enough to ensure a lifetime of comfort and security, Ji Chenbiao had a more traditional mindset.

As he got older, he increasingly realized that for children from families like theirs, studying was the only way out.

“Okay.”

The small villa with a courtyard was equipped with heating. Even though the weather was starting to cool, the house stayed very warm. Dadan felt hot even wearing just a sweater.

“Dadan, after the New Year, let’s go abroad for a trip, okay?”

“Go abroad?”

“Yeah.”

Having never left the country, Dadan naturally assumed it would be fun and exciting. Without a hint of hesitation, he nodded.

“Okay~ Going abroad~”

…

After the first snowfall, temperatures dropped rapidly. For the past few months, Ji Chenbiao hadn’t gone out to work much; instead, he stayed home and focused on making the radishes that Dadan loved to eat.

He was used to being busy and couldn’t sit still. But now, his identity didn’t allow him to work like he used to.

If he kept at it for too long, it would definitely arouse suspicion.

For Dadan’s safety, Ji Chenbiao didn’t dare to take risks. All he could do was find ways to distract himself.

Maybe it was an innate trait, but just like his dad, Dadan loved growing vegetables. He would bounce along excitedly every time.

Whether it was weeding or loosening the soil, he enjoyed it thoroughly—and most importantly, he never seemed to get tired.

To show how much he valued Ji Chenbiao, Mr. Zhou even sent his assistant over with some New Year’s supplies—luxurious items, all quite expensive.

Ji Chenbiao had been wondering when to brave the cold and take Dadan out shopping, but Mr. Zhou had already taken care of it.

He sorted through the packages—everything they might need was included.

Now almost four years old, Dadan wasn’t as easy to fool as before. Many of the New Year’s goods were eaten well before the holiday even arrived. Luckily, Mr. Zhou had sent plenty; otherwise, it wouldn’t have lasted until the actual celebration.

Mr. Zhou had taken his wife and children back to his hometown for the New Year. Ji Chenbiao didn’t know the neighbors around the villa well. The only person he really talked to was little Dadan.

On New Year’s Eve, Ji Chenbiao kept his promise and bought Dadan a bunch of fireworks kids love.

As usual, Ji Chenbiao made dumplings for the New Year’s Eve dinner. Maybe it was due to past experiences, but he had an unexplainable attachment to dumplings.

This time, the filling was clearly better than before, and Ji Chenbiao even had the mood to hide coins inside.

It wasn’t a custom from his hometown, but it was one from Mr. Zhou’s. At a previous dinner, Mr. Zhou had mentioned that whoever found the coin would have great fortune in the coming year.

Dadan was wearing a new bright red down jacket today. The color made his fair skin stand out, and his delicate features looked exceptionally pretty.

Ji Chenbiao was in the kitchen preparing the meal and wrapping dumplings. He had thought about asking Dadan to help, but knowing how playful the kid was, he figured it was just as likely he’d cause chaos instead of help.

So he decided to do everything himself and got it all done quickly and neatly.

In the courtyard, Dadan was happily building a snowman. He wore leather gloves lined with warm fleece.

After a while, Dadan sneakily peeked toward the kitchen to make sure his dad wasn’t watching—then immediately tossed his gloves aside.

He wasn’t afraid of the cold at all. He started with a small snowball and slowly rolled it into a larger one.

Dadan had never seen other kids build snowmen before, so he did it all based on his own instincts and guesses.

Once he finished a small snowman, he took off his scarf and wrapped it around the snowman’s neck.

Then he tiptoed to the kitchen and peeked in. Seeing his dad still busy wrapping dumplings and with time before dinner, he ran back to keep rolling snowballs.

This time, he was noticeably more serious. The second snowman turned out much bigger.

With one big and one small snowman standing together, Dadan stepped back a few paces and studied them. Then he dashed inside and grabbed his dad’s hat.

Now the small snowman had Dadan’s scarf, and the big one wore his dad’s hat. In Dadan’s eyes, the two snowmen looked just like him and his dad.

By the time he finished, Ji Chenbiao had just about wrapped things up too. As the dumplings went into the pot, he called Dadan over to taste them.

Ji Chenbiao used to think he had no talent for cooking, but after being cooped up at home for so long, he’d slowly figured some things out.

Compared to before, his food now was leagues better.

At least Dadan didn’t treat meals like prison time anymore. Now he ran over with delight, his little legs moving fast as if he was afraid his dad would eat everything if he came too late.

While serving the dumplings, Ji Chenbiao could see the two snowmen through the window.

“Did Dadan make one of Papa?”

Dadan, who had been happily waiting to eat, didn’t want to admit it at first—he had built them in secret, after all.

“…Yeah.”

After thinking it over, he finally nodded. Even if he didn’t want to admit it, he was proud of the effort he’d put into those snowmen and wanted a bit of praise.

“They look great.”

Ji Chenbiao didn’t hold back his compliments. Dadan’s technique was still pretty rough, and if it weren’t for his own hat on the bigger snowman, Ji wouldn’t have guessed what it was meant to be.

But Dadan didn’t realize his dad was intentionally flattering him. He really believed he’d done a fantastic job. His grin nearly reached his ears.

Trying to play it cool, he picked up a dumpling and stuffed it into his mouth.

Caught up in the excitement, Dadan was thinking only about how his dad had praised him—and forgot the dumpling was piping hot. The moment he bit down, he sucked in a sharp breath.

“Hiss…”

“Be careful. You’re a big boy now, aren’t you?”

Ji Chenbiao was a bit helpless. This kind of thing had never happened before.

“Mm…”

Dadan, not sure how to respond, mumbled two fuzzy syllables. Ji Chenbiao handed him a cup of water that had been cooling for a while. After a few sips, Dadan finally felt better.

“How did I teach you before? You must remember to blow on your food before eating it, okay?”

“Mm.”

At first, Dadan strictly followed everything his dad taught him, but later on, once he figured out how to eat on his own, he pretty much forgot all of it and just relied on his own instincts.

“Tasty~”

While chewing, Dadan gave his dad a thumbs-up. That little gesture of approval from his own son made Ji Chenbiao very happy. All the busy work that afternoon felt completely worth it now.

“Didn’t you say before that Dad’s cooking wasn’t good?”

Dadan selectively pretended he didn’t hear that. After all, he hadn’t been wrong back then—his dad’s cooking really wasn’t good at the time.

After dinner, Dadan realized he should help out and stacked the bowls together before carrying them into the kitchen.

“Come on, help Dad wash the dishes, and afterward, I’ll take you out to set off fireworks!”

“Okay~”

Dadan had been eyeing those fireworks in the room for a long time, but his dad kept telling him they were only for New Year’s.

That was part of the reason Dadan was so looking forward to the New Year.

By the time they finished cleaning the kitchen, the sky outside was already completely dark. Two large red lanterns hung by the door, casting a beautiful glow over the snow-covered ground.

“Fireworks~”

When Dadan saw his dad bringing out all those fireworks, he jumped up in excitement, clapping his hands non-stop.

“Wow, Dad! So many fireworks!”

Ji Chenbiao let Dadan pick whichever ones he wanted. After all, they were for him to play with—if he intervened too much, it would take away the fun.

The first fountain-style firework startled Dadan when it was lit. He instinctively ran back to his dad and tightly hugged his dad’s leg with both hands.

“Don’t be scared, it’s really pretty.”

Ji Chenbiao squatted down and wrapped his arms around Dadan. That warm embrace gave Dadan a strong sense of security. He looked like a little kangaroo curled up in its mother’s pouch, cautiously poking his head out.

The fireworks really were beautiful in the night sky. Dadan was completely mesmerized. When the first one finished, he was a little reluctant to let go and quickly grabbed another one just like it.

This time, he didn’t miss a single second.

His courage grew with each moment. Now thinking he had mastered the art of setting off fireworks, Dadan even wanted to try lighting one himself.

But he was still a bit too young, and Dad didn’t let him do it on his own just yet.

“Next year. When New Year comes around next year, you can light the fireworks yourself.”

“Next year? That’s still a long time from now.”

Dadan started counting on his fingers, trying to figure out how long it was until next year. But no matter how he counted, he couldn’t get a clear answer. Instead, the cold wind made his little hands chilly.

Unwillingly, he tucked his hands back into his coat pockets and let out a soft sigh.

“It’ll be here before you know it.”

“Mm.”

That night, Ji Chenbiao prepared a good amount of New Year’s money for Dadan. He usually let Dadan manage his own allowance and red envelope money. Dadan even had a special little box just for stashing his pocket money.

It was very fancy, and even had a lock on it.

One of Ji Chenbiao’s favorite things to do was ask Dadan to lend him money, just so he could watch him carefully open his treasure box with a key, then dig through it to find the money to lend him.

In the end, Dadan would wave it off generously, saying, since Dad was his dad, he didn’t need to pay it back.

When Dadan received his red envelope, he was already so sleepy that it took all his effort to keep his eyes open.

Even so, when his dad handed him the money, he still summoned every bit of willpower he had to put it into his treasure box.

Before going to that room, he even turned his head warily to give his dad a sharp look and reminded him softly:

“You can’t look.”

“Okay, I won’t.”

Another year passed. As the clock struck midnight and the sound of fireworks echoed outside, Ji Chenbiao instinctively glanced at Dadan, who had grown noticeably taller.

Mr. Zhou had said before that they’d need to head to Myanmar soon after the New Year, since many people over there didn’t celebrate the holiday.

Ji Chenbiao was already prepared for that, but he didn’t expect “soon after the New Year” to mean leaving on the second day of the new year.

It was Dadan’s first time flying, and he slept through the whole trip. When he got off the plane, his face looked a bit pale, and he drooped like a frostbitten eggplant in late autumn.

Ji Chenbiao bought him a cup of hot milk tea. Just as he handed it to Dadan, someone passed by them—and that familiar side profile made Ji Chenbiao freeze on the spot.