After sending Chaochao back to the Huo family and being invited to dinner, Xie Jingcheng calmly walked through the living room upon returning home, ignoring Xie Yulin's resentful gaze on the sofa.

After Chaochao returned from the hospital this time, Huo Qin noticed something was wrong—

She became obsessed with watching legal education programs, to the point that even the ever-popular Peppa Pig had to take a backseat. For example, she used to watch two or three episodes every night, but now she only watched one episode before picking up the remote and turning on the legal education channel.

Huo Qin sat beside her with his long legs crossed, his fingers fiddling with a page of documents that he hadn't turned for a long time. His gaze lingered between the television screen and Chaochao for a while before he looked away without saying a word.

Even at 8:30, bedtime, Chaochao was still sitting on a small stool next to the sofa, soaking her feet and watching TV intently. When she remembered, she would rub her little feet together in the basin, but as the hot water gradually cooled down, she didn't seem to rub them much.

Suddenly, her view was blocked. Chaochao craned her neck to the side to continue looking, only to hear a very helpless voice: "Don't move."

Huo Qin half-squatted in front of her, the expensive fabric sleeves rolled up to his forearms. He took a towel from Aunt Ning and lifted it up to wipe one of Chaochao's chubby little feet. Just as he was about to lift the other little foot, he caught the one that had just been dried. If he wasn't careful, he would have put it back in the water.

Huo Qin sighed softly, dried her two chubby little feet, and then placed her on the sofa by her armpits. The little girl's gaze remained glued to the exciting plot unfolding on the television screen the entire time.

When he came back after washing his hands, the little dumpling, who was watching TV, had her bare feet dangling off the edge of the sofa. Her pink big toes were so cold that they couldn't help but curl up. She covered her right foot with her left foot, and after a while, she switched to covering her left foot with her right foot.

The main feature is even heating, with alternating periods of freezing.

When Huo Qin passed by this time, Chaochao finally came to her senses. Thinking her little feet were still soaking in the water, she subconsciously rubbed them together a couple of times. Realizing something was wrong, she looked down and exclaimed, "?"

Wasn't she washing her feet? Why is there no basin?

Was washing feet just a dream of hers?

The little dumpling, who had just discovered the paranormal event, fell into deep thought.

She propped her head up with the little hand that had touched her foot.

"..." Huo Qin's eyes twitched slightly, but he still looked away as if he hadn't seen anything.

Never mind, washed feet are clean too.

Two minutes later, Chaochao suddenly felt the urge to urinate. She jumped off the sofa, put on her little slippers, and rushed to the bathroom, muttering, "Hurry, hurry, we'll find out who it is soon..."

Huo Qin glanced at the time; the hour hand had already pointed to the number "9." He picked up the remote and pressed a button, discovering that there was still half an hour left in this episode.

When Chaochao rushed back in a fluster, pulling up her pants, Huo Qin was signing documents with a normal expression.

She sat down on the sofa, full of anticipation, ready for the story to continue, but less than half a minute later she heard the upright TV host say, "To find out what happens next, please listen to the next episode."

Chaochao, whose appetite had been whetted, glared at him: "!!!"

She'd already pulled up her pants, and this is what she gets told to listen to?

At this moment, Huo Qin, who was "always busy with work," said in a gentle voice, "Chao Chao, it's time to sleep. Do you remember what you were like after staying up all night last time?"

The last time I stayed up all night was the night before the banquet held at the Huo family's house. I was so sleepy when I woke up in the morning that I almost ate the pearls instead of sweet rice balls.

The little dumpling let out a long sigh, "Alright~"

She picked up the remote to turn it off, but accidentally pressed a button that opened a program menu.

The moment the dramatic and suspenseful introduction to "Approaching Science" began, Chaochao's feet stopped moving.

"..." Huo Qin rubbed his temples and said, word by word, "Tomorrow, midnight snack."

Snap—

A flash of white light, like lightning, appeared on the large screen.

Chaochao decisively turned off the TV and took Huo Qin's hand, leading him upstairs: "Daddy, you're right. We should go to bed early. Staying up late is bad for our health."

As Huo Qin went upstairs, he glanced back at Aunt Ning. Aunt Ning smiled and nodded in response, then turned on the TV and dragged the progress bar back to its original position.

——

However, it was clear that Chaochao, who had finally gotten her wish and had a late-night snack the next day, started her "slacking off" mode—oh wait, I mean, her "binge-watching" mode—with a satisfied look on her face.

After watching an episode of legal education, I would skip to the next room to watch an episode of "Approaching Science," but Huo Qin eventually dragged me back to my room, shoved me under the covers, and forced me to turn off the TV and go to sleep.

The next day, the garden was bathed in sunlight. Jiang Chi leaned back in the sofa chair in front of the French windows and closed his eyes for a nap. His straight nose blocked a cluster of light, as if covered with a soft halo.

The system had to admit that although Jiang Chi was a bit of a scoundrel, his resources were still quite obvious.

In the days leading up to his return from Inner Mongolia, Jiang Chi stayed at Huo's residence and his original large apartment. After returning to China, he yawned and carried his suitcase to Huo's place today after completing his work schedule.

Normally, work alone wouldn't be this tiring. Jiang Chi squinted and raised her hand to shield her eyes from the sunlight. The host's clear and resonant voice could be heard in her ears. The little dumpling was holding a salad bowl bigger than her head, watching "Why do seven-year-olds always jump like zombies at night?" while picking up a plump, large cherry and feeding it to her mouth.

Jiang Chi walked over and sat next to the little dumpling, watching for a while. He thought about the words his uncle left behind before going to the company—advising Chaochao not to stay up late and to reduce her obsession with TV programs.

But after watching for a while, Jiang Chi felt that the unexpected narrative style, combined with the unbelievable events themselves, would pique the interest of not only a naive three-year-old child, but even a twenty-something-year-old adult like himself.

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