I Thought This Was a Slice of Life

"Shut up! Don't call me Dad!"

Yuzuki Sasaki's father's face turned black.

"Oh, um..."

This isn't right. Why is he so fierce?

Uesugi Yuichi shrank his head back.

"Go for it, Teacher Uesugi!"

In contrast to him, the corners of Yuzuki Sasaki's mouth curled up wildly. Heaven knows how happy she was when she heard Uesugi Yuichi's words.

Her heart raced, and she almost couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Hearing his daughter say this, Yuzuki Sasaki's father was so angry he stomped his feet: "Yuzuki! You really are!"

"Um, Yuzuki's dad! Actually, I... huh?"

Just as Uesugi Yuichi wanted to speak, a hand suddenly rested on his shoulder.

A familiar voice came: "Good evening, Teacher Uesugi."

Uesugi Yuichi turned his head stiffly and saw that police officer with the very white teeth again.

"I didn't do anything!"

When he shouted, the Sasaki family also stopped talking and looked at the two of them.

"Alright, alright, let's talk about it at the station."

"No, I'm not going!"

Uesugi Yuichi stubbornly clung to the ground.

The police officer simply grabbed the back of Uesugi Yuichi's collar and dragged him away.

Uesugi Yuichi's face turned ashen, and he had no choice but to accept his fate.

He shouted: "Sasaki! I'll be back soon, please watch over Hikari-chan for me!"

"Okay! Take care, Teacher Uesugi!"

Yuzuki happily picked up the obediently sitting Alien Baby Hikari-chan.

Yuzuki Sasaki's parents looked at Alien Baby Hikari-chan: "???"

Confused faces.

What on earth is going on with this kid?!

The Sasaki family stood at the door, faintly hearing Uesugi Yuichi and the police officer talking.

"Teacher Uesugi, do you want to change the sauce for the pork cutlet bowl later?"

"Huh? Oh, sure. That would be a bother."

"Not at all. By the way, I just bought some fried chicken, I'll share a piece with you later."

"Thanks, now that you mention it, I'm actually quite hungry for some..."

Yuzuki Sasaki's parents looked at each other in dismay.

ED insert.

Alien Baby Hikari-chan Episode 11 complete.

When Inoue Hikoo wrote the script, he didn't go for a tear-jerker all the way through, but instead used a relatively relaxed and silly ending to wrap up the episode.

After all, it was positioned for prime time, so it wouldn't do to go too far.

This was just right.

People who were moved were also amused.

Some people laughed while crying, and the scene was hard to manage for a moment.

By the time everyone calmed down and continued eating, the family atmosphere had softened quite a bit.

Rebellious young people were touched, and their attitude toward their parents improved as well.

A truly good animation should have its own philosophy.

Alien Baby Hikari-chan, an animation with a mediocre title, was elevated at this moment.

It made many people fall into reflection.

Even if these reflections might be forgotten as time passes.

But surely—

Surely something would remain in their hearts.

On this day, many families on the verge of breaking apart were able to start over.

Alien Baby Hikari-chan only planted a seed in people's hearts; to let it take root and sprout, ultimately, can only depend on the strength of humanity itself.

But at the very least.

It provided a glimmer of hope.

This is the power of artistic works.

The power to shake the human heart.

As soon as the eleventh episode of Alien Baby Hikari-chan aired, the Japan Administrative District naturally exploded.

At the same time, an event occurred in the neighboring Great Hua Administrative District that would soon cause Alien Baby Hikari-chan to become a massive hit across Great Hua.

The beginning of this event took place in the capital of the Great Hua Administrative District, Tianjing City.

Wu Ping worked as an editor at a very famous newspaper office.

Global Daily.

This was the name of the newspaper he belonged to.

On this day, Wu Ping was still working overtime at the office, checking the manuscripts submitted by his subordinates.

"Sigh..."

He let out a sigh.

"None of these are good enough."

Wu Ping picked up his pen and spent a long time revising and editing before he finally finished the work at hand.

He checked the time and saw it was already ten o'clock at night.

"...Heh."

Well, he had forgotten to go home again.

Wu Ping was thirty-six years old this year, and as his physical health began to decline, working on articles like this continuously left him looking haggard and deathly pale.

But regardless of anything else, his complexion was far too poor.

This was because not only was he busy with work, but his family life had also run into problems.

Wu Ping's wife had died early, and he was raising his daughter, Wu Xiaoyu, all by himself.

It was what one would call a single-parent family.

He worked hard to support the family, and the price he paid was having less time to spend with his daughter.

Gradually, the intimacy they once shared as father and daughter faded away. Now, every time they met, he was either ignored or they ended up arguing.

The only time they spoke was when she needed money.

He never scolded his daughter because he felt it was his own fault.

He had made promises to spend time with her countless times, only to fail to keep them, so being treated this way was only natural, right?

This middle-aged man threw himself even further into his work to forget these troubles, but the result was that he was even less able to accompany his daughter—it was a complete vicious cycle.

Recently, he had even forgotten his daughter's birthday, which led to another round of massive arguments.

Section 43 39 Father and Daughter

Today, Wu Ping was still living the same life; working, working overtime, and heading home late remained the main melody of his existence.

Honestly, he had long been at his wit's end regarding his daughter, and he didn't know how to handle the relationship between father and daughter.

He only knew how to give money.

Whatever his daughter wanted, he would buy it for her.

Occasionally, he wondered if he was just using money to buy affection.

But... what else could he do?

In his heart, money had become the only connection between father and daughter.

Even though he understood that this stuff wasn't omnipotent.

Wu Ping took a sip of his long-cold coffee and, with the satisfaction of having finished his work, leaned back in his chair to clear his mind.

Only at times like these could he forget all his worries and briefly escape into his own world.

He didn't want to go home too early, fearing his daughter might still be awake, which would lead to another argument if they met.

...Tomorrow, I'll give her a bit more pocket money.

After all, that was the only thing he knew how to do.

And the only thing he dared to do.

As for suggestions like going out to play or going out to eat.

He no longer dared to bring them up.

On one hand, it was his stubborn pride; on the other, it was the fear of being rejected.

Wu Ping's parents had died early, and he didn't have many relatives; his daughter was the only family he had left.

As long as he wasn't rejected to his face, he could continue to deceive himself that all was well in the world.

Wu Ping was always known in the newspaper office and the industry for being unyielding, but who would have known about his failure in his family life?

However, this was just a very common problem, wasn't it?

Wu Ping knew that many families had the same troubles as he did.

...Thinking about it this way, he felt a little better.

"Heh, making excuses again."

Wu Ping knew it; these were just excuses.

Only here in this empty office could Wu Ping reveal his vulnerable side.

In the traditional culture of Great Hua, men were never permitted to be weak.

He had completely inherited this aspect of tradition.

He always acted stern in front of his daughter, though in reality, he simply didn't know how to communicate.

In the silence, all sorts of thoughts bit into him like venomous snakes.

Suddenly, a ringtone sounded.

His phone was ringing.

Wu Ping figured it was probably just work-related again.

He lazily picked up the phone and glanced casually at the caller's name.

Xiao Yu.