প্রথম খণ্ড ষষ্ঠ অধ্যায়: নাবালকত্বের অজ্ঞতা লজ্জার নয়

Qin Yihan stepped out of the living room just as the child was learning to speak.

"Licheng, I am taking Xiao Yingying to the hospital."

Yan Licheng stood up as well. "Uncle Qin, I will go with you."

Qin Yihan nodded. "Alright."

The two of them went to check on Xiao Yingying, only to find that she had vanished.

Yan Licheng: "..."
Qin Yihan: "..."

Both of them had just seen her sitting right by the stone table in the gazebo. Yan Licheng, in particular, had been sitting right next to her. She had disappeared right under their noses.

As if struck by the same thought, they quickly looked to the other side of the stone table. Sure enough, there was Xiao Yingying, hugging the stone pillar, bowing her little head, and tucking her chubby body away.

Seemingly trying to confirm if they had left, the little milk-bun peeked out cautiously. She looked left—no one. She looked right—and saw a pair of long legs.

"Eh?"

They hadn't left yet.

Fine! She would just keep hiding. Even though this position was tiring, it was better than going to the hospital to get poked by needles.

Whether in her life as an orca or in her one month as a human toddler, she had seen doctors in white coats and those long syringes. The first time was when she was young and playing by the sea; she had watched with her own eyes as a baby gray whale was struck by a human's massive syringe and hauled onto a large fishing boat, never to be seen again.

Her clever brain told her that humans were capturing a baby gray whale. She didn't know what happened to that baby in the end. The big ship left the port, and just as she wanted to follow it to see, her mother called her back for a meal.

She couldn't help but mention the gray whale's fate to her mother. Her mother, grandmother, brothers, and uncles all fell silent. Her uncle, in particular, became quite agitated. Usually gentle when speaking to her, he looked fierce then.

"I once saw our own kind being hauled onto a ship with fishing nets, sliced up while dangling from long ropes..."

Her grandmother interrupted, "Alright, Sobi, stop it. You will scare the baby."

She didn't hear any more, but from then on, her family never felt safe letting her go anywhere alone. They almost always followed her, terrified that she would be caught and sliced up by humans as well.

Yet, somehow, she had inexplicably become a human toddler.

After becoming a human toddler, during her month at the orphanage, she witnessed death once more. A thin, silver needle was inserted into the back of a child’s hand, but in the end, that child was gone. Director Zhang told them not to be sad, saying the child had simply fallen asleep. Most of the children believed it, but she knew better.

That child had died. They no longer existed.

Compared to her, an orca, that child was even more pitiful. At least she knew who she was, where she came from, and who her family was. She had three and a half years of being cherished by her mother, grandmother, brothers, and uncles, while that child had been abandoned on the roadside at birth and brought to the orphanage by someone who found them.

It seemed the child was abandoned due to a congenital heart defect. Having finally been raised to five years old, they were still lost. The child had always been frail, reportedly only learning to walk after age three, and had always been thin and small. They had only been in this world for five years.

She remembered seeing Director Zhang secretly wiping away tears on the way back after comforting the children. Her own eyes couldn't help but sting.

Why did she know so much? She didn't know; her subconscious told her. Just like how she knew about certain human habits. It was as unbelievable as transforming from a little Pacific orca into a human. Many things she only knew because she had seen them, but that understanding remained shallow. Whenever she tried to probe deeper, her mind would suddenly become a blur. Sometimes, when she stubbornly pushed to know more, she would end up with a headache. After this happened a few times, she stopped trying.

Shallow is fine. Knowing something is better than knowing nothing. Besides, she was only a three-and-a-half-year-old human toddler. It is not shameful for a toddler to be ignorant!

Qin Yingying’s legs grew sore from squatting, so she simply sat down on the ground. But before she could settle, she was scooped up by a pair of large hands that wrapped around her chubby belly and supported her little bottom.

"Eh!"

Who! Who dares to ambush this chubby tiger! I’ll open my mouth wide and swallow you!

Qin Yingying looked up and realized it was her "zookeeper" father. Her "zookeeper" brother stood nearby, smiling at her.

Qin Yihan held the little milk-bun and asked as they walked, "Xiao Yingying, do you not want to go to the hospital?"

Qin Yingying nodded hurriedly. Those needles were terrifying. They could kill you! Besides, many children at the orphanage said that shots hurt a lot.

Qin Yihan smiled gently. "Is Xiao Yingying afraid of shots?"

Qin Yingying nodded again. Yes! Shots hurt, they hurt so much!

Yan Licheng couldn't help but laugh as he watched the curls on her head almost stand up at the mention of "shots." "Don't worry, Xiao Yingying, we are just going for a basic check-up. No needles."

Five words popped into Qin Yingying's mind: "Don't try to fool me!"

She wasn't stupid! She was incredibly smart! So, she refused to cooperate. No matter what Qin Yihan and Yan Licheng said, the little milk-bun in Qin Yihan's arms struggled fiercely. Her grape-like eyes welled up with tears, and her little mouth pouted in grievance, looking both stubborn and pitiful.

Qin Yihan couldn't take it anymore. "Be good, Xiao Yingying, we won't go, we won't go."

"Don't cry, Xiao Yingying."

Qin Yihan gave up. If she didn't want to go, she wouldn't. He would just have to find another way; he would have a private doctor come to the villa instead. As long as Xiao Yingying didn't feel uncomfortable, he would be at peace.

Yan Licheng hurried to wipe her face with a tissue. "Don't cry, Xiao Yingying. Uncle Qin said we won't go."

Qin Yingying trusted her zookeeper brother more. She glared at him with tear-filled eyes, "Eh?"

Her expression was both fierce and aggrieved. Since she was so young and such a chubby little ball, it was a display of "milk-fury" that was incredibly cute. Who wouldn't want to follow her wishes?

And so, in the second round, the zookeeper father and zookeeper brother were defeated once again. Watching the little milk-bun reach out to Yan Licheng for a hug, Qin Yihan felt a bit sour in his heart. Had he left a terrible impression on Xiao Yingying? He was her father, after all! How could he let her have a bad impression of her father?

So, after Yan Licheng carried her back to the living room, Qin Yihan went to ask the housekeeper for snacks.

The housekeeper looked helpless. "Sir, neither you nor Master Licheng ever eat snacks, so... we don't have any in the house."

Qin Yihan: "..."

"What about toys?"

The housekeeper shook her head again. "None. Master Licheng has always preferred reading, and there are no dolls or toys that a little girl would like."

Qin Yihan: "..."

Fine! The foolish father decided to call Director Zhang to ask what Xiao Yingying liked.