"Tanghulu! I want tanghulu, wuwuwu!! Buy me tanghulu, please!!!!!!"
A little boy lay sprawled on the ground, refusing to move, wriggling like a worm as he stared up at the man whose face had darkened, tears bubbling in his eyes.
Ji Nian, exhausted from walking, slumped onto a bench beneath a willow tree. After a moment of catching her breath, she caught sight of the scene and followed the boy’s pointing finger to the tanghulu vendor’s tricycle nearby. Unconsciously, her mouth watered.
Ji Tingzhou, too fastidious to sit, stood with his arms crossed nearby. He took a step back at the sight, as if afraid the boy’s snot might flick onto him, and remarked coldly, "A good spanking would fix that."
There’s no such thing as a spoiled child—just parents who indulge them.
"Big brother, I want tanghulu too."
Passersby turned their heads at the voice, their eyes lighting up when they saw the speaker was a delicate, pretty young boy.
Then their gazes shifted to Ji Tingzhou, and their eyes widened like lightbulbs.
A handsome man standing next to an even more handsome man.
"Look at those brothers over there—they look so alike! It’s like the same face exists twice in this world."
Hearing Ji Nian call him "big brother," Ji Tingzhou scoffed.
It wasn’t entirely wrong—he was only eighteen years older than her, so being her brother wasn’t entirely out of the question.
"Trying to lose your teeth? Do I look like a tanghulu to you?"
Ji Tingzhou remained unmoved, his expression as unyielding as stone.
Ji Nian had no choice but to deploy her ultimate weapon—widening her dewy eyes and staring at him pitifully as she begged, "Please, big brother? Just think of it as feeding a chicken. Gougou da~"
It was like reliving their first meeting.
The difference was, back then, she had been a skinny, dirty child who could barely afford a meal. Now, she had grown into a healthy, rosy-cheeked young girl.
Perhaps recalling how pitiful she had looked back then, Ji Tingzhou clicked his tongue softly and averted his gaze. With a cold expression, he strode toward the tanghulu vendor.
Ji Nian grinned and called after his retreating figure, "Get the strawberry ones!"
The parents of the little boy who had just been silently judged for spoiling their child: ???
"Handsome, buying tanghulu?"
Ji Tingzhou frowned slightly as he looked at the rows of plump, brightly colored tanghulu.
He had craved this treat as a child too, but back then, he couldn’t afford it. As an adult, he found it unsanitary and hadn’t seen it in years.
Who would have thought the next time he’d face this thing would be to buy it for his own child?
"Yeah, for the kid. Three sticks."
He pointed at three strawberry ones.
The vendor handed him a plastic bag with the three tanghulu sticks inside, but Ji Tingzhou didn’t take it immediately. Instead, under the man’s bewildered gaze, he pulled out a bottle of disinfectant and sprayed it liberally over the bag. Only then did he reluctantly reach out—his long, slender fingers encased in black gloves—to take it.
The vendor, now drenched in disinfectant: "……"
By the time Ji Tingzhou turned back, Ji Nian was still sprawled on the bench, yawning and swinging her legs.
Noticing his return from the corner of her eye, she sat up eagerly.
The child he had raised, who shared his blood and bore a face strikingly similar to his, looked at him with youthful innocence, her eyes filled with the kind of dependence reserved only for him.
If there was any satisfaction in raising a child, Ji Tingzhou admitted, this was it.
Under Ji Tingzhou’s disapproving stare, Ji Nian polished off one stick of tanghulu as they walked.
One stick was given to Shen Qingtang at home.
As for the last one…
"Tanghulu!!!"
Wei Yang pounced forward, overjoyed as he snatched the bag from his brother’s hand. The faint scent of disinfectant wafted from it, but he paid it no mind, hastily tearing it open and shoving the plump, sugar-coated strawberries into his mouth.
Ji Tingzhou kicked him. "Did we starve you? Eating like a starving ghost."
This time, Wei Yang didn’t dodge.
The fact that Ji Tingzhou could kick him—healthy and normal—made Wei Yang’s eyes redden.
Ji Tingzhou found it disgustingly sentimental…
The moment Ji Nian returned, after arranging for someone to deliver the tanghulu to Shen Qingtang, she immediately rushed to the lab.
Inside, Bruce had practically been living there for days. When he saw Ji Nian, he shrank slightly and greeted her cautiously, "...Teacher."
Ji Nian looked up at her red-haired student—older than her own father—and sighed.
"Bruce, my expectations for you aren’t high..."
The little girl spoke with the air of an elder, yet somehow, it instantly made Bruce straighten up as if receiving an imperial decree, bending forward attentively to catch every word.
Three days later.
Disguised, Ji Nian and Ji Tingzhou visited Madam Yu again.
"Madam."
Ji Nian walked in, cradling a bouquet of lilies.
Seeing the clean, fair-skinned young boy standing at the doorway with dewdrop-fresh flowers, offering her a sweet smile, Madam Yu felt as if her illness had eased slightly.
"You came. Why bring me flowers?"
She motioned for Ji Nian to sit beside her.
Ji Nian deliberately held the bouquet closer, letting Madam Yu inhale its fragrance before explaining, "I saw the field of these flowers outside your window and picked some for you. I’m sorry for taking them without asking."
Madam Yu froze for a moment at the unexpected answer.
Why would someone pick flowers planted right outside her window just to show her?
Because she had been bedridden for years, unable to stand and see the sea of blossoms herself.
"...Thank you."
Madam Yu’s smile softened with genuine warmth as she gazed at Ji Nian.
"Truly, the world cannot do without girls."
She murmured it quietly.
Ji Nian was surprised her disguise had been seen through. "You noticed, huh..."
Finding a vase, she arranged the lilies inside and placed them where Madam Yu could see them just by lifting her head. Then she settled into the chair by the bed.
"The medicine I brought has already been sent for testing. Don’t forget to take it."
Madam Yu nodded.
"Child, talk to me for a while."
Truthfully, if she wanted, a line of people would queue up just to keep her company. But she had no interest in any of them.
Only this self-proclaimed pharmacist’s assistant—with eyes so clear they seemed washed by rain, free of any ulterior motives—could lift her spirits just by looking at her.
"What would you like to hear about?"
Ji Nian played the part of innocence perfectly.
She knew exactly what Madam Yu wanted to see, so she leaned into the mannerisms of a naive child.
"Tell me about your family..."
“That Mr. J is your brother, right? You two look so alike.”
[Wow, if Ji Tingzhou heard that, he’d probably start eating face masks for breakfast.]
She kept Madam Yu company for nearly an hour, only leaving when the woman showed clear signs of fatigue.
Ji Tingzhou waited outside.
Who would have thought the esteemed head of the Ji family would disguise himself as a mere pharmacist’s assistant, sitting there sipping tea as leisurely as if he were at home, enjoying the peace?
"Done?"
He glanced over.
Ji Nian flashed an OK sign, and without hesitation, Ji Tingzhou abandoned the mediocre tea and stood.
Then—
A man appeared at the doorway, so tall his head nearly brushed the frame.
His hair was mostly gray, his presence imposing even when restrained, and the military rank on his left chest was terrifyingly high.
"Ji Tingzhou, since when did you become a pharmacist?"
Even though Ji Tingzhou had disguised his appearance, he couldn’t escape the sharp eyes of Commander Yu.
Facing the deliberate pressure the commander exuded, Ji Tingzhou shielded Ji Nian without a flicker of emotion, lazily lifting his gaze. "Commander, with how busy you are, it’s only natural there are things you don’t know."
Commander Yu’s predatory stare lingered on the person hidden behind him before finally dissolving into a cold snort.
"See them out!"
His blunt attitude showed no regard for Ji Tingzhou’s dignity.
Clearly, a man of his status had no need to be courteous to a mere merchant.
In response to this treatment, Ji Tingzhou’s lips curled in an unreadable smirk.
Half an hour later, Madam Yu woke up. After eating a little, she suddenly remembered something.
"The medicine Ji Nian brought—hasn’t it been tested yet?"
Though she held little hope, she didn’t want to dismiss the effort of someone she cared about.
Commander Yu immediately turned his head and ordered, "Bring it here."
When it came to Madam Yu’s requests, he spared no effort to fulfill them.
The medicine Ji Nian had brought had no strange taste and could be taken orally.
After drinking it like sweet water, she listened to Commander Yu’s voice until, before long, she drifted into a deep sleep.
Half-asleep, she felt someone tucking in her blanket. Recognizing the familiar scent, she sank even deeper into slumber.
That night, she enjoyed a rare, peaceful rest. She dreamed of a soft yellow chick nestled between her legs, its delicate feathers soothing to the touch. Unconsciously, she cradled it in her hands and nuzzled it against her cheek.
When she woke the next morning, she was still reluctant to leave the dream behind.
"...Huh?"
Then, something miraculous happened.
Madam Yu threw off the covers, staring at her legs in disbelief before turning to the equally stunned maid beside her.
"My legs… Did my legs just move?"
