In the hospital room, Xu Yan somewhat awkwardly cradled the little one in her arms.
Miraculously, the baby had stopped crying as soon as she took hold of him.
She furrowed her brow and asked, "Mom, what's the little one's name? Have Dad and Ye Jin decided on one?"
Bai Hua held up her phone to show her: "Your dad thought of a few names and discussed them with Ye Jin. They decided on this one."
Xu Yan looked at it and softly read aloud: "Ye Mingyu... What about his nickname?"
Liu Lingxiao, leaning nearby, said lazily, "You can give him a nickname."
Xu Yan's eyes lit up. "Great!"
She gazed at the little one in her arms, pondering for a long while before saying hesitantly, "How about... Xiao Guai? What a cute name!"
Bai Hua's face darkened. "That sounds like a girl's name! Pick another, pick another!"
Xu Yan hummed thoughtfully, then pondered again: "Dai Dai, Tao Tao, Xiao Han?"
Bai Hua and Liu Lingxiao: "..."
Bai Hua sighed, a bit exasperated: "Yan, all these years I never realized you had such a talent for naming. What a shame."
Xu Yan blinked slowly: "Mom, why do I feel like you're insulting me?"
Bai Hua denied it outright: "How could that be? How could Mom insult you?"
Xu Yan started dredging up old grievances: "Mom used to call me a little fool, and a stinky kid, and..."
Bai Hua quickly covered her mouth: "Alright, alright. Let's call my precious little grandson Tao Tao then."
Liu Lingxiao, who had been quiet all this time, had been waiting for the simple-minded Xu Yan to give Ye Mingyu a silly nickname so she could tease her little nephew about it later.
Now she finally spoke up: "So we're going with Tao Tao?"
Xu Yan huffed proudly: "Yes! This is the little one I gave birth to!"
The baby in his mother's arms closed his eyes, seeming to smile contentedly.
After Xu Yan completed her postpartum confinement at home, Liu Lingxiao hurriedly returned to Beijing. Fortunately, Ye Jin was now able to take good care of his son and wife on his own.
With Bai Hua, Xu Yi, and Xu Mo coming to help, the somewhat simple-minded mother and son pair were fed until they were plump and chubby.
Although Xu Yan seemed to have only gotten rounder in the face.
However, as Ye Mingyu gradually grew older, he became more and more attached to his mother.
Ye Jin had no doubt that his son was doing it on purpose. After all, the little one wasn't even two years old yet, but he already seemed to understand many things.
The turning point occurred a few days before Ye Mingyu's second birthday.
It happened to be a weekend, and the carefree couple left their son with his grandparents and went out to eat and drink together.
The not-quite-two-year-old Ye Mingyu sat alone in the living room, playing with his mother's old toys. The chubby-cheeked little boy sat in front of a pile of model toys, a serious expression on his face as he attempted to assemble something.
Bai Hua and Xu Yi sat on the nearby sofa, leaning against each other and cracking sunflower seeds. Bai Hua said with a hint of puzzlement: "Our Yan is so simple-minded, and Ye Jin has such a gentle personality. How did our little Tao Tao end up so serious and aloof?"
Xu Yi didn't understand either: "I know, Tao Tao never acts cute or pampered with us. He only occasionally does it with Yan and Xiao Xiao. This little one is quite clever."
Xu Mo, sitting in the corner, was unfazed: "What's so strange about that? After all, when parents are unreliable, one has to become strong on their own."
Bai Hua narrowed her eyes: "Are you implying something?"
Xu Mo kept a straight face: "Mom, don't overthink it. I'm talking about Yan and Ye Jin, not you and Dad."
Xu Yi was easy-going: "Would you like to consider sleeping on the street tonight?"
Xu Mo: "..."
Just as they were teasing each other, the little boy who had been quietly playing with toys on the carpet suddenly lay down on the floor and started rolling around.
Bai Hua was startled: "What's wrong with Tao Tao? Tao Tao, don't roll on the floor."
The little Ye was red-faced, struggling as he rolled on the floor: "Itchy... itchy! Hurts! Mommy! Auntie!"
Bai Hua was frightened: "Xu Yi, call Yan and tell them to come home. I'll ask Xiao Xiao what's going on with Tao Tao. Xu Mo, come pick up Tao Tao."
The little boy was lifted into the air by his uncle. Xu Mo gently patted his back: "Tao Tao, be good, your mommy will be home soon... Mom! Look at what's happening to Tao Tao!"
Bai Hua was startled by Xu Mo's suddenly raised voice. She frowned and looked over, about to scold Xu Mo, but suddenly froze: "...Tao Tao!"
Xu Yi was in the middle of making a phone call. He looked over at the little one in confusion, but was caught off guard by the sight of a small tail appearing behind the child.
The little tail looked like a dog's tail, fluffy and actually quite cute.
But right now, the people present only felt fear and shock.
Xu Yan had just answered the phone: "Hello, Dad? Why are you calling me? Is Tao Tao causing trouble again?"
Xu Yi held the phone stiffly, at a loss for words for a long moment.
Finally, Bai Hua shouted into the phone: "Yan! Come back quickly! Something's happened to Tao Tao!"
Xu Yan, who was in the middle of her meal, immediately panicked. She pulled Ye Jin along, hurrying to leave: "Mom, what's wrong with Tao Tao? We're coming home right now!"
Xu Mo caught a glimpse of Liu Lingxiao's reply on Bai Hua's phone. He quickly called out: "Mom! Ye Jin's sister replied. She says not to go to the hospital, Ye Jin will know what to do when he gets back."
As he said this, Xu Mo suddenly realized something. He had always known that Ye Jin wasn't an ordinary person, but now it seemed... this dog might not even be human!
Bai Hua fumbled with her phone to look at the message, nearly in tears from anxiety: "What does she mean Ye Jin will know what to do? We're all about to die from worry!"
At this moment, Xu Yi recalled some unusual occurrences from the past. He held Bai Hua's arm: "Xiao Hua, calm down. Let's wait for Ye Jin and Yan to come back before we do anything."
Bai Hua paced back and forth, not knowing what to do. She kept muttering: "Right, right, let's wait for them to come back. They'll know what's going on, they'll know..."
"Mom! What's wrong with Tao Tao?" Xu Yan, who had been instantly teleported back by Ye Jin, burst through the door in a panic.
But as soon as she entered, she froze on the spot: "...Tao Tao?"
The little one, still being held by Xu Mo, was enduring his physical discomfort, but his small tail was still particularly noticeable.
Ye Jin drew in a sharp breath, quickly composing himself. "Yan Yan, you explain to mom and dad first. I'll go help Tao Tao."
Xu Yan nodded nervously, "Alright, you... you be careful."
Ye Jin nodded gravely. He took his son from Xu Mo's arms and headed upstairs.
Bai Hua and the other two watched wide-eyed as the father and son pair went upstairs. They focused their attention on Xu Yan. "A-Yan, what exactly is going on?"
