Chapter 57: Father-Son Bonding

Jiang Xiaoyu’s mind went blank with heat as he grabbed Ye Qingxu’s hand. Before he could figure out why he’d done it, the man scooped him up and started fervently kissing his cheeks.

Ye Qingxu laughed through his tears, smearing them all over Jiang Xiaoyu’s face. Jiang Xiaoyu stiffened in surrender pose, paws up, held tight in one arm, as he heard Ye Qingxu say, “Daddy’s taking you home for dinner.”

Jiang Xiaoyu stayed frozen like that, brain stalled, thinking: He said he’s Daddy.

Daddy.

The word felt not just unfamiliar to Jiang Xiaoyu, but downright scary. Compared to Jia Muqin, Li Shouping hadn’t hit him that many times or even cut off his tail with scissors, but Jiang Xiaoyu was still more afraid of him.

Because he’d smilingly beaten the little white dog to death, smilingly cooked it up, then tossed the little white dog’s meat in front of Jiang Xiaoyu and said, “Eat it, or you get nothing else tonight.”

Jiang Xiaoyu would rather starve to death than eat it.

He’d lunged forward and viciously bit the hand Li Shouping was using to hold the dog leg bone. That was his first act of rebellion, though it ended with him beaten half to death.

He’d thought parents were just like that—terribly rotten. But sometimes he’d wonder why they treated Li Chenglong so differently from him, with fatherly love and motherly affection, acting like only the three of them were family while he was just a parasite freeloading in their home.

Only now did Jiang Xiaoyu realize he really wasn’t their child—they weren’t his parents.

Ye Qingxu’s embrace was so warm, probably from long-term contact with home design materials, carrying a pleasant woody scent.

Jiang Xiaoyu craned his head to look at him. His skin was a healthy wheat color, warm with sunlight. When he looked down at Jiang Xiaoyu, his eyes were teary, but the emotion was pure happiness—even the fine lines at his eyes seemed to say he was content.

So weird, Jiang Xiaoyu thought. Really so weird.

Once home, Ye Qingxu set the little black cat on the small table in the courtyard. “Sit tight. Daddy’s gonna dish up the food.” Seeing no sign of Jiang Xiaoyu shifting back to human, he recalled what Ye Lian had said about the little guy being more comfortable around people in cat form, so he decided to just feed him like a kitten.

With the man gone inside, Jiang Xiaoyu’s tense body finally relaxed. A cat nearby hopped worriedly onto the table and nuzzled over. “Boss, you okay?”

They’d seen Jiang Xiaoyu bolt out of the house last night and were super worried.

Jiang Xiaoyu nuzzled the cat back twice, then raised a paw to pat the dog head that had reared up onto the table. “Cat’s fine.”

The colorful civet old cat was too old to jump high, so it just crouched quietly on the ground watching him. “Baby, is that human your dad?” Having lived so many years, it knew a thing or two.

Jiang Xiaoyu flopped glumly on the table, brutally honest with the cats and dogs. “Cat doesn’t know.”

The little strays didn’t know either. They had no memory of fathers— in the wild, dads basically didn’t raise cubs. They’d been brought up by their moms for a bit before growing up.

When Ye Qingxu came out with the bowl, he found the cats and dogs clustered around the little table. He felt a twinge of envy, wondering what they were chatting about with Little Yu.

He carefully stepped around the fluffballs underfoot, set the bowl of soupy rice on the table, patted Jiang Xiaoyu’s head, and cooed softly, “Eat up. Have plenty.”

From the allergy yesterday to nearly noon now, he’d only had a cup of milk. He was starving and didn’t bother with embarrassment, just dove in headfirst.

Ye Qingxu smiled tenderly, sat beside him picking chicken from the takeout box. He meticulously deboned it and tossed scraps to the little dogs waiting nearby, then added the meat to Jiang Xiaoyu’s bowl.

Jiang Xiaoyu squirmed uncomfortably, turning his back on Ye Qingxu to keep eating. Ye Qingxu chuckled but just quietly kept adding food to his bowl.

After a bit, with his little belly bulging, Jiang Xiaoyu shook his head to signal he was done. Ye Qingxu eyed the leftovers and asked, “Want a few more meatball?”

Jiang Xiaoyu shook his head again in refusal, then nudged the takeout box toward Ye Qingxu. The man’s face lit up with surprise. “For Daddy to eat?” Jiang Xiaoyu nodded, and he beamed with flustered joy. “Okay, okay. Daddy’ll eat.”

No worries about leftovers—with all these little dogs, one bite each would finish it.

After eating, Jiang Xiaoyu dodged Ye Qingxu chatting with the renovation crew and slipped inside to call Jin Ge. When the call connected, he seemed to hear Lu Wanhui’s voice—who’s that?

Jin Ge casually replied, “Jiang Xiaoyu,” then covered the phone and stepped out of the meeting room. Lu Wanhui scowled deeply. That vixen—taking calls outside? What’s so secret?

A burst of meowing, of course something he couldn’t hear.

Jiang Xiaoyu hesitated, unsure how to start. “Master… someone found out who I am.”

Jin Ge puffed his smoke nonchalantly. “So what? I’ll have logistics draft a confidentiality agreement.” They could shapeshift, but they were human at root. Close ones would eventually notice. They had a dedicated department for it—violate the NDA and you’d face lawsuits.

Even Li Shouping and Jia Muqin had signed one back then. Leak Jiang Xiaoyu’s abnormality to society, and harsher penalties awaited.

Hearing that eased Jiang Xiaoyu’s heart a bit. He remembered to ask, “Did you know long ago? That Ye Qingxu is my…”

He couldn’t say “daddy,” switching to, “Ye Qingxu and me—what’s our relationship?”

Jin Ge snorted. “Obviously. You two look like you popped out of the same mold. Anyone would suspect. Only you with your empty head thought it was coincidence?”

Jiang Xiaoyu bristled. “But there really are strangers who look alike! Plus… Li Shouping and Jia Muqin exist for real.” They were awful parents, but in his heart, they’d raised him. They’d claimed the “parent” spot first, so he’d never imagined he wasn’t theirs.

Jin Ge harrumphed. “That explains why they treated you like shit.” He’d always thought the Li couple rejected Jiang Xiaoyu for being a shapeshifter, but now it all traced back. Regret hit him. “My bad too. Should’ve had you paternity tested early with those two. Might’ve found Ye Qingxu sooner.” And spared Jiang Xiaoyu those extra years at the welfare institute.

“Not your fault,” Jiang Xiaoyu comforted. “Who could’ve guessed?” Jin Ge had lost his family back then, barely holding on—how to blame him for not thinking of Jiang Xiaoyu amid his grief?

The master-disciple pair fell silent. After a while, Jiang Xiaoyu heard the lighter click. He meowed, “Smoke less, it’s really bad for you.”

Jin Ge grinned and inhaled. “All pseudoscience. Plenty of centenarian chain-smokers.”

Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t win, hanging up in a huff. Moments later, Jin Ge’s message arrived: Rest up. Jiang Fei’s case evidence is nearly complete. Minimizing fallout, negotiating with Wan Universe.

Normal procedure—even criminals had privacy rights. Especially a public figure like Yang Guo; screwing up the minor angle could tank public opinion.

Jiang Xiaoyu scrutinized the text. By Jin Ge’s tone, Yang Guo was basically confirmed suspect. But doubts lingered—it didn’t feel that simple. Like he’d missed a crucial detail.

No breakthrough, just a phone ring startling him. Seeing Ye Lian’s name on screen sent his ears flat.

He didn’t know why he sneaked a peek at the courtyard. Ye Qingxu was still directing the crew, so feeling guilty, he pawed the answer button.

“Better? Uncle Chen said you’re home?”

Jiang Xiaoyu fidgeted, left paw on right. “Yeah.”

A light laugh. “And your body? Feeling better?”

“Better.” Still a bit itchy, but no more brain fog.

“Mm. Tomorrow have Mr. Ye take you for an allergen test. Figure out what caused it.”

Jiang Xiaoyu mewed hesitantly. “No need to go to the trouble… Never allergic before in my life. Plus… tests are expensive.”

Ye Lian chuckled at the stingy kitten. “Want uncle to send more money?”

Jiang Xiaoyu flushed. “No need! I’ll pay back those tips too!” Cards on the table now—no taking it for granted.

“Uncle doesn’t want it back. Uncle’s gifts to his little kitty.”

Jiang Xiaoyu fumed. “Said no calling yourself uncle! And the little kitty isn’t yours!”

Ye Lian played hurt. “So sad. My little kitty’s gone.”

Jiang Xiaoyu buried his face in his paws, dying of embarrassment, mumbling, “You’re the worst.” Stirring up his cat heart into chaos.

But he bounced back quick, lifting his head seriously. “I don’t want your money.”

“Why not?”

“Not relatives or friends, so why spend your money?” Little Black Cat muttered.

“How are we unrelated?” Ye Lian’s tone was aggrieved. “Officer Jiang, how can you be so heartless? We’ve seen each other’s bodies, and Uncle even bathed you. How can you say we have nothing to do with each other?”

Jiang Xiaoyu’s ears turned red as if dripping blood. He stubbornly snapped, “You old bastard, what kind of nonsense are you spouting! This cat hasn’t seen your body!”

“Outrageous! Officer Jiang starts things but doesn’t follow through. You clearly saw not only Uncle’s human form but also his tiger form, and now you flip your face and deny it all.”

Jiang Xiaoyu couldn’t outtalk him at all. Both embarrassed and annoyed, he frantically tapped the screen a few times with his paw, finally silencing that explosive voice.

Ye Qingxu happened to walk in just then. Seeing Little Black Cat staring at the phone screen in obvious panic, he asked worriedly, “What’s wrong? Is the phone broken? It’s fine, don’t worry. Daddy will take you to buy a new one.”

It was like having a jackal in front and a tiger behind. Unable to withstand the pincer attack from these two, Jiang Xiaoyu flicked his ears back, tucked his tail between his legs, and fled.

Ye Qingxu curved his eyes in amusement as he watched Little Black Cat scramble away on all fours at top speed. He pulled out his phone and placed an order. “I’ll get one of these too. This one’s nice—it can hold Baby’s lunch. And this one.”

Once a man becomes a dad, he just can’t stop shopping. He bought a whole pile of random stuff. By the time Jiang Xiaoyu noticed, there was no room left in the house to set foot.

But that was a matter for the following days. The next day, once Jiang Xiaoyu’s condition had stabilized, Ye Qingxu took him—now back in human form—to the hospital for a check-up.

Jiang Xiaoyu’s discomfort was still obvious as they sat in the car. Ye Qingxu considerately avoided pressuring the kid too much and kept his behavior restrained. “I’ll go register. You wait here.”

The red rashes on Jiang Xiaoyu’s face hadn’t faded yet. His skin was fair to begin with, so they stood out prominently. Seeing all the people staring at him like he was some rare animal, he didn’t feel like talking much. He nodded haphazardly a couple of times and lowered his head, ignoring the crowd.

It wasn’t really their fault for staring. After all, the two of them were both handsome and looked so similar, and one of them had his face covered in rashes—it was only natural to be curious.

Ye Qingxu ruffled his hair and placed a phone box in his lap. “Perfect timing. You can set up your new phone while we wait.”

Jiang Xiaoyu looked up in a hurry, only to meet the man’s gentle gaze—eyes so similar to his own, yet completely different. He pursed his lips but in the end couldn’t bring himself to refuse. “Thanks…”

“No need to thank Daddy.” Ye Qingxu’s eyes lit up. He turned and headed off to register.

This was the second person who’d told him he didn’t need to say thanks… Jiang Xiaoyu’s ear tips flushed red as he touched the phone box in his hands.

He had to admit that although it was embarrassing to accept such an expensive gift, the phone did manage to pull some of his awkward, uneasy attention back to it.

The phone he’d bought before was pretty cheap, and he’d never used this brand. After fiddling with it for a bit, he’d just gotten it turned on when he heard someone nearby call out to him. “Officer Jiang? What a coincidence?”

He looked up. It was Wan Keyao.