Chapter 28 Part 2

When other doubters clicked into Downy Heavy Snow’s previous Weibo posts, they discovered that she had previously been a toxic solo stan for Han Cheng and Ji Nuo’s number one anti-fan.

She had even posted a lengthy article furiously denouncing Bai Yong when the live stream first launched, bluntly stating she had zero interest in Lu Ao’ao, that chibi knock-off version of Han Cheng, which was completely consistent with her usual style.

With her tacit approval, her solo stan group members even exposed the full story of how the great “Downy Heavy Snow” had arrived on-site, full of righteous indignation, ready to expose the shameless true faces of Ji Nuo and the little brat, only to instantly switch from anti to fan on the spot. She became a complete living embodiment of the “fragrant” meme (tr: “I hate it… but it’s so good!”).

This post also quickly reached the tail end of the trending topics, attracting countless instances of merciless mockery.

At the same time, many people weren’t interested in the slander and its reversal, but were astonished by Lu Ao’ao and Ji Nuo’s ability to attract fans. Harboring attitudes like “Your toxic solo stan resolve, Downy Heavy Snow, was just that weak?”, “Let this old sister see what’s so great about this cub!”, and “I don’t believe it, can a brat really be that extraordinary?” they clicked in…

[Oh shiiii, does the state issue kids like this once you reach a certain age? A tsundere, bristly little pufferfish is doing a wild dance on my heart’s dance floor!]

[Announcing: Ji Nuo, my new internet husband / drools]

[Han Cheng, Ji Nuo, Ao’ao, what kind of divine family combination is this?! I’m totally sold QAQ. Me, who was never interested in kid variety shows, can’t stop my hand from getting a Mangosteen membership…]

Although controlled by the old Master Xu and without large sums of money on hand, Xu Chengyi still had the smaller amounts needed to buy paid trolls and manipulate public opinion. Feeling that Ji Nuo’s trio had stolen his spotlight and caused him to lose face, and under the guise of standing up for a “friend,” he splashed out a seven-figure sum in one go.

It was precisely because of this that the slander post had spread explosively in just a few hours. And this sudden wave of negative attention descending from the sky was perfectly turned around by Cui Xiaoxue’s comprehensive counterattack.

Not only did it bring massive attention to Ji Nuo and Ao’ao, but the always well-regarded leaker “Friend God” was thoroughly savaged by netizens in return. Many even sensed the hidden “praise one, bash another” implication in the post. Connecting it with “Downy Heavy Snow’s” revelation about the Xu Family Hotel laziness—that line “Do you know who my grandfather is?!”—further associations bloomed.

The leaker persona “Friend God” had cultivated over many years was completely destroyed. Just as the operator behind the account was frantically trying to find help, a lawsuit filed from the Internet Court was quietly delivered to his email inbox.

As for the Xu Family, who supposedly “had connections at the top”: back when Kang Feier debuted and had a minor hit, because she faded from the entertainment industry so quickly, most people only knew her husband’s family was well-off, without knowing the specifics. So when this incident erupted, many searched her name out of curiosity:

[Who is Xu Xiaolin’s grandfather? Is he more powerful than me, his working-class grandpa?]

[Just went back and flipped through the post, didn’t notice before. Why so many comments praising the Xu father and son? Could it be the Xu family bought this post?]

[Oh oh oh found it! Xu’s Hengyun Pharmaceutical! Old Master Xu started out as a junket operator in his early years and made a ton of dirty money, right? No wonder Xu Xiaolin talks so arrogantly…]

This was no longer just a boomerang; it was a boomerang scythe, cutting down the leaker first, then slashing at the Xu father and son.

Seeing the tide turning against him, and fearing it would alert the family patriarch, Xu Chengyi suppressed his anger and immediately threw another large sum into PR fees to suppress in-depth discussions related to the Xu family.

The whole storm cost Xu Chengyi a huge amount of money. Far from achieving his goal of destroying Ji Nuo, it resulted in Ji Nuo’s trio gaining a wave of fans thanks to their performance on the kid variety show. He himself was covered in stench for nothing. How could this not make Xu Chengyi hate Ji Nuo and Han Cheng to the core?

But with one failed strike, he could only bide his time patiently for now. Xu Chengyi sheathed his venomous fangs, hidden in the shadows, quietly awaiting the perfect opportunity to pounce.

Unbeknownst to him, the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Han Cheng, however, noticed something unusual in Xu Chengyi’s response strategy. It seemed Xu Chengyi was very afraid of drawing fire onto himself?

This time, Han Cheng didn’t have Xu Li help. Instead, he called his childhood friend, Chu Haohan.

Completely ignoring the time difference and the fact that it was 8 AM on the other end of the line, which for a nightclub prince like Chu Haohan was equivalent to 3 AM for normal people—the sweetest part of his sleep.

But after years of ironclad friendship, Chu Haohan eventually didn’t hang up on him. However, upon hearing Han Cheng’s request, he couldn’t help but erupt a little:

“Are you planning to switch from film and TV to the neighborhood committee back in China? The day before yesterday, you had me investigate whether Lu Hanyang had any illegitimate children with blue eyes. Today, you want me to look into the ex-wives of the Xu father and son. Seriously, I’m done with you!”

Han Cheng didn’t explain his reasons, simply listening quietly to his childhood friend’s impotent rage on the phone. Once the other had ranted enough, he spoke calmly: “Didn’t you always want to raise Akhal-Teke horses without your family knowing?”

Chu Haohan’s voice faltered. He heard Han Cheng stepping right on the seams of his heart: “The land behind the winery in H Country should be quite suitable.”

Chu Haohan’s tone immediately shifted: “My good brother, what are you saying? Between us, what’s mine is yours! Your business is my business! I’ll immediately arrange for workers to start the conversion at the winery!”

Han Cheng chuckled softly: “Good for nothing.”

The Chu family didn’t control Chu Haohan’s money, but forbade the younger generation from indulging in idle pursuits that corrupted their ambitions. Even as a rogue on the surface, he still had to keep up appearances. But for raising horses, how could one stable be enough?

He’d had his eye on two new purebred darlings for a while now. With Han Cheng, who was temporarily in a “falling out” with his family, willing to provide the venue, it couldn’t be more perfect.

Over here, the two had just settled their terms and hung up when Xu Li pushed the door open and entered, holding a small stack of proposals. Closing the door first, she immediately asked: “Ancestor, level with me. Do you actually have intentions of pursuing Ji Nuo?”

Back at the Yunhu Apartment, in the unseasonably odd mid-afternoon, Ji Nuo and Lu Aotian were stuffed to the gills.

Taking advantage of Sister Li cleaning up in the kitchen, Ji Nuo pulled the cub into the children’s room, preparing to take the opportunity to address the earlier incident where the cub had been hopping mad just because he’d given Han Cheng a piece of beef brisket.

“Today’s meal, Sister Li cooked it very well. We all ate happily, right?” Ji Nuo turned into a gentle preschool teacher, coaxing patiently.

Lu Aotian lifted his eyelids and looked at him coldly, a prescient little expression on his face. Even with the grease from the braised pig trotters he’d been devouring still unwipe from his mouth, the little guy spoke solemnly: “If you have something to say, say it straight.”

Ji Nuo crouched down to the child’s eye level: “Today’s delicious food was provided by Uncle Han Cheng. Shouldn’t we be thanking him?”

Lu Aotian rolled his eyes upward, delivering a massive eyeroll aimed through the air at the absent Han Cheng: “Aren’t you his boyfriend? Does he really quibble with you over such a small amount?” After finishing, he even lightly spat.

Ji Nuo blushed slightly at his words: “That’s not what I meant. He didn’t quibble with us.”

Feeling full and suddenly overcome with food coma, Lu Aotian’s expression eased slightly upon hearing this: “Heh… barely counts as a person, I guess.”

Ji Nuo looked at the cub’s vivid, disdainful little expression, secretly puzzled. How had these two, one big one small, formed such a deep grudge in just their brief encounters?

Ji Nuo realized the indirect approach only led to the cub dragging him off-topic. He decided to state his intention directly: “Uncle actually means, during this variety show recording period, we are a family. Whether it’s food or rewards, we share them, right? The beef brisket before was earned by Ao’ao himself, but Uncle also cooked it, didn’t he?”

He continued, “Just like today, the delicious dishes were all freely shared with us by Uncle Han Cheng. This is what a normal little family should be like. Our Ao’ao is the world’s best behaved baby, so…”

Lu Aotian had intended to wait until Ji Nuo was finished rambling, but upon hearing himself called a “good baby,” he couldn’t help but gag internally: “Alright, alright, I know what you mean. I’ll try to hold back in the future.”

Actually, even without Ji Nuo saying so, the hush money for the bed-wetting incident already included cooperating with Han Cheng. Besides, his anger back then hadn’t stopped Han Cheng from eating a single bite less. And now, he sends his little boyfriend to tell him this? Peh! Trash!

Ji Nuo saw the tuft of stubborn hair sticking up on the cub’s head bob with his body movements and couldn’t help reaching out to smooth it: “Ao’ao doesn’t need to hold back. Uncle just hopes you’ll try to accept new family members. That way, the next two months will be happier for you. Trust me.”

Actually, it wasn’t just these two months. The child was still so young. No matter what, he’d need to integrate into a normal family eventually. This was an inevitable path for little Lu Ao’ao.

Lu Aotian snorted and turned to leave. He felt he couldn’t reason with Ji Nuo. This stinky little brother became utterly useless whenever Han Cheng was involved.

Ji Nuo, however, felt that Lu Aotian not showing strong resistance was a good sign. After Lu Aotian brushed his teeth and washed his hands clean, Ji Nuo found a bedtime storybook and, armed with a matching giraffe plushie, came to tell him a bedtime story as positive reinforcement for the child’s willingness to try and accept the situation.

Lu Aotian furrowed his little brows, highly resistant, but his little strength couldn’t overcome Ji Nuo’s grip.

So Ji Nuo, with one arm wrapped around the fuming cub and a giraffe plushie nearly as tall as the child, forcibly delivered his dose of family warmth.

The cub was almost rolling his eyes in anger, but perhaps the food coma hit, or maybe Ji Nuo’s storytelling voice was indeed soft and pleasant. Fuming away, Lu Aotian soon started snoring softly after a short while.

Ji Nuo adjusted the child’s sleeping position. As his breathing gradually steadied, he tucked the large giraffe plushie into the blanket to sleep beside him.

Ji Nuo had originally planned to leave after getting the child to sleep; he had other things to deal with. But just as he got up, he noticed a little paw, visibly fairer than before, tightly clutching the hem of his T-shirt. Ji Nuo’s heart instantly softened again.

He sat down on the edge, pulled out his phone, pressed the silent button, and took a picture of the cub and the giraffe.

Then he opened WeChat. First, he poked the dialog box with e from seven days ago, wanting to send a final reminder. After all, if the queue for the free trial pack was too long, the other person might have forgotten him. If he directly contacted customer service to complain, this “Orange” nursing assistant might face negative consequences.

[Hello, I applied for the online consultation trial pack seven days ago. May I ask if my turn is up yet?]