Yangcheng. The Shengshi Jiangnan Villa District.
"Halt! You puny little evil spirit, how dare you play tigers at An Bao's own door?! Just you wait and see how An Bao gobbles you up! RAAAWRR!!"
A soft, childlike voice rang out in the small park of the villa district.
There stood a chubby little toddler of about four or five, her hair twisted up into a tiny bun, swathed in an oversized Taoist robe several sizes too big for her small frame. She brandished a peach-wood sword with both hands, charging at the dark, writhing shadow crouched in the corner — her baby voice fierce and shrill as she hollered her threats.
The dark shadow was battered into frantic leaps and lurches, yet it was as though some invisible barrier held it imprisoned — there was simply no way out.
On the locust tree nearby, a colorful parrot was perched, wings spread wide, covering its face in a thoroughly human gesture. "An Bao," it said, "the expression is *showing off before the master* — not 'messing with the tiger.' And that's a *starving* spirit, you can't just… eat it…"
"Mm-mm, mreow, Xiao Fengfeng—can't what? What can't you do?"
The little milk puff gulped down the dark shadow with a chorus of *nom-nom-nom* sounds, then turned its head, wide eyes blinking, and peered curiously at the parrot, asking in its soft, babyish voice.
The parrot sighed and flapped its wings, landing on the little dumpling's shoulder. It waved its wings and patted the child on the head a few times, then fussed aloud: "An Bao, you can't just eat anything you find, you know! If you eat this starved spirit, you're going to be dealing with the aftereffects for a very long time!"
"Your master, honestly! How could he dare let a little milky dumpling like you run amok out here! If something were to—"
"Xiao Fengfeng, did An Bao do something wrong?"
The parrot hadn't even finished speaking when the little dumpling turned those pitiful eyes on it — lips pressed into a tiny pout, big round eyes brimming with grievance, as if golden tears might spill over at any second.
The little milk bun is just too adorable!
That chubby little face looks way too squeezable, doesn't it?
An Bao is only four and a half years old!
What could she have done wrong?
She's still just a child!
At once, the parrot let out a cough, rubbed its head against An Bao's little face, and said: "Ahem, no, no — An Bao did nothing wrong. An Bao put others before herself, willing to suffer the aftereffects just to rid the world of that evil spirit. That is an act of great virtue!"
Little An Bao was young, and upon hearing the parrot's comforting words of praise, she took them to heart at once. She tilted her little face upward, beaming with pride and satisfaction: "Mm-hmm, mm-hmm! An Bao is a good child! When Uncle sees An Bao, he'll definitely like An Bao — right?"
"Of course An Bao is so wonderful — who could possibly not love An Bao? Anyone who doesn't love An Bao, this King will beat them senseless!"
As Xiao Fengfeng spoke, she bounced up and down on An Bao's shoulder a couple of times, flapping her wings with a fierce and imposing air, making An Bao burst into a fit of giggles.
Just at that moment, An Bao's eyes suddenly lit up, and she spun around sharply to stare in a certain direction.
Beneath the dim, amber glow of the streetlamps, a tall and upright figure could be seen leading a group of people forward at a hurried pace.
An Bao's eyes lit up at once, and she hurried after them on her little short legs, brimming with delight.
"Uncle!!!"
"Uncle, wait for An Bao!"
"Ouch…"
Little An Bao was running far too fast. The path ahead sloped downhill, and in a moment of carelessness, An Bao tripped—then went rolling down like a ball, *thump-thump-thump*, all the way to the bottom.
"Ahhhh! Owwww!"
An Bao was so frightened that their little face drained of color. They clutched their small head tight and tumbled downward in a dizzying whirl.
Xiao Fengfeng flapped her wings desperately at the side, frantic to help, but she was nothing more than a parrot now — there was simply nothing she could do for An Bao.
Just as An Bao was about to slam into the great boulder at the dead end, a figure strode forward in quick steps, seized the back of An Bao's collar in one hand, and lifted her clean off the ground.
At that very moment, An Bao felt stars exploding before his eyes, and as he was hauled up, his head was still spinning.
"Whose child are you? Wandering around in the middle of the night?"
A cold, icy voice rang out, like an emotionless robot, yet its timbre was deep and remarkably pleasant to the ear.
An Bao raised her gaze to look at the man holding her aloft before her, his face tinged with a faint air of disdain. She blinked her big eyes once, then broke into a radiant smile.
The next instant, An Bao reached out her little stubby arms and threw them around the man's neck, nuzzling against it affectionately. In her milky, babyish voice she declared: "Uncle! An Bao finally found you!!"
The group trailing behind Mu Yunyi all felt their scalps prickle, one after another, at the sight of their Boss being seized in a hug by a chubby little baby.
Whose child is this?
How dare you hug their BOSS? Do you have a death wish?
Their Boss was the most obsessive neat freak of all — the last person who had dared get this close to the Boss, the grass on their grave was already taller than this little baby!
"*Ahem*, little one, you—you come down quickly, you've got the wrong person, we……"
Yang Li, who served as Mu Yunyi's assistant, couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth as he stepped forward, intending to pull An Bao off of Mu Yunyi.
But the hand had barely reached out when An Bao's little arms, already wrapped around Mu Yunyi's neck, tightened their grip. Those brilliant dark eyes fixed on him with open wariness as she declared: "Bad uncle! Don't even think about stealing my uncle from An Bao!! Xiao Fengfeng, bite him!!"
The parrot that had just been perched on An Bao's shoulder suddenly flapped its wings and thrust its sharp beak straight at Yang Li.
"Hey, hey, hey? Ow! Ow, stop it—stop pecking!"
Yang Li frantically threw up his hands to shield his head, scrambling and leaping every which way as the parrot gave chase.
Mu Yunyi's body stiffened slightly as An Bao held him, his brow unconsciously creasing as he lowered his gaze to the little milk bun nestled in his arms.
The little dumpling was blessed with remarkably good looks — a chubby little face, fair and clean, with two big dimples that appeared whenever she smiled.
Those big eyes gazed at him with such imploring longing that one couldn't bear to refuse anything.
Mu Yunyi pressed his lips together and, for once, refrained from tossing the little dumpling aside. He merely said in a low voice: "You've got the wrong person. I'm not your uncle."
"You are! You're An Bao's uncle! An Bao's mommy is called Mu Yunyao, An Bao is mommy's little baby, and mommy told An Bao to come find uncle!"
An Bao, seeing that Mu Yunyi refused to acknowledge her, explained herself with a touch of aggrievement.
The moment Mu Yunyi heard An Bao's words, the aura around him instantly turned ice-cold.
The next instant, he grabbed An Bao by the back of her collar and flung her off himself, tossing her onto the ground.
An Bao didn't catch herself in time. She plopped down hard on her bottom, then tilted her head up at Mu Yunyi with a dazed look, her voice small and babyish: "Uncle..."
Mu Yunyi looked down at An Bao from above, a cold sneer curling his lips. "Who sent you here? Just because we haven't found Yunyao, you think every Tom, Dick, and Harry can waltz in claiming to be family?"
Mu Yunyi's voice carried a vicious edge, his ice-cold face utterly devoid of any warmth that a human ought to possess.
I had thought this little milk dumpling before me was rather adorable, but now…
Every person has their reverse scale — touch it, and death follows.
"Uncle… An Bao, An Bao isn't some stray cat or dog, okay? Mama gave An Bao a photo before she passed away, Mama…"
"Shut up!"