Baisui

Meng Meng steered the topic toward food, then sent out a lucky bag. After muting a few people whose comments were particularly aggressive, the bullet comments returned to normal.

After Meng Meng's reminder, Su Tingbai introduced him. "Let me introduce our new dining buddy. He's also a friend of my family's longtime acquaintances, Mr. Shen. Everyone can call him An'an. You'll be seeing him for quite a while from now on, so I hope you'll all be more accommodating toward Shen Xia... Shen An'an."

Normally, when Su Tingbai introduced a guest, he would casually say they were his friend and leave it at that. But since it had stirred up controversy this time, he figured he should explain.

He took the phone and read a few comments, then chuckled. "What relationship? You could say we grew up together. He was the kid next door. Childhood sweethearts? That counts too, I suppose."

The more Su Tingbai read the comments, the higher the corners of his mouth rose. In the meantime, he did not forget to recommend the dishes he had made to Shen Rui'an.

Once he moved aside, everyone saw Shen Rui'an. His face was not captured, but his body was. He was a slim, exceptionally fair young man in a black long-sleeved shirt that made him look even thinner and paler, with a slightly oversized coat draped over him and a milk tea in one hand.

Though thin, he had an outstanding temperament. Simply sitting there gave him an air of refined melancholy.

Some viewers in the livestream fixed their eyes on the only part of him exposed: his hands. Perhaps because he was too thin, they looked somewhat smaller than an average man's. His wrists were like frost and snow, his fingers like peeled scallion roots—well-proportioned knuckles, with fingertips slightly red from the pressure of his grip.

The hand enthusiasts were instantly glued to the screen.

[Those hands are seriously gorgeous!]

[Holy crap! I've got hand reference material now!]

[Hand lovers are ecstatic!]

[I really want to lick them...]

Seeing the comments in the livestream grow increasingly explicit, Su Tingbai frowned and returned the phone to Meng Meng. He signaled Little Zhu to move the camera away from Shen Rui'an. It was not for any other reason—he was just afraid those viewers would say things that could not be said on a livestream and get his stream banned.

Little Zhu reluctantly aimed the camera at the grill, and the viewers immediately grew anxious.

[Little Zhu, A-Ming, do you even know what people want to see? If not, let me do it!]

[Point the camera back at him!]

[Do you understand what "a feast for the eyes" means? Turn the camera back already!]

Some people did not even need to show their faces. Just sitting there was enough to make others feel that they were good-looking.

But no matter how loudly the viewers clamored, Su Tingbai ignored them, and Little Zhu and A-Ming did not dare film much of Shen Rui'an. Though they wanted to, their boss's gaze could kill.

Left with no choice, everyone turned their attention to the food.

Shen Rui'an picked up a stuffed green pepper shrimp paste ball and, while Su Tingbai was not paying attention, furtively dipped it into the dry chili seasoning that Su Tingbai had moved farther away. From the viewers' perspective, they only saw a pair of beautiful hands flash past behind Su Tingbai with the shrimp-stuffed pepper, and they burst out laughing.

[Old Su, look behind you. Your childhood sweetheart is sneaking chili behind your back again.]

[Hahaha, I can totally picture a kitten.]

[My little brat does the same thing, secretly dipping his paws into my water cup to drink.]

[I'm dying, Su Tingbai has no clue right now.]

Little Zhu and the others, who were facing Su Tingbai and Shen Rui'an, saw it, but they did not warn him because Shen Rui'an was enjoying his food so much.

It was only when Su Tingbai noticed that Little Zhu, who had been hiding outside his camera shot, looked strange that he turned around. He saw Shen Rui'an startled by him and hastily speed up his eating, only to choke.

"Cough, cough..."

"Have some water." Su Tingbai patted Shen Rui'an's thin back. Feeling the hardness of his spine, he silently resolved to feed Shen Rui'an properly. He was far too thin!

"You're the one who scared me!" Shen Rui'an glared at him unhappily. Su Tingbai raised both hands. "My fault."

He cut the chili in half and placed it in front of Shen Rui'an. "All right, you can have it. It's your first time eating something this spicy, so you need to get used to it gradually."

Having won himself the chance to eat spicy food, Shen Rui'an was quite satisfied. The corners of his lips lifted slightly as he raised his chin and huffed. "That's more like it."

To make up for his mistake, Su Tingbai diligently fed Shen Rui'an. Their actions were so natural that no one around them felt there was anything strange about it.

Even Little Zhu and the others were only briefly surprised before deciding it was normal.

Why did the two of them seem like an old married couple?

Su Tingbai did not notice his double standard. He only felt that Shen Rui'an was a patient. He considered himself someone who pitied the poor and cared for the weak, so what was wrong with taking better care of him? Besides, his family had given him the task of treating Shen Rui'an well, had they not?

Shen Rui'an did not think anything was wrong either. Ever since he was little, he had been the treasured darling of the family and the one everyone cared for. Su Tingbai's behavior seemed perfectly normal to him, and he overlooked the fact that Su Tingbai was not a member of the Shen Household.

Meanwhile, at the Su Household, the family members who regularly watched Su Tingbai's livestream were staring at one another wide-eyed.

Eldest Brother Su said, "Is that really that stubborn mule, the second one?"

Mother Su said, "Could he have taken a liking to little Shen?"

Father Su said, "That can't be, can it? Hasn't the second one always hated taking care of people? Dad, you promised to give him all your retirement savings, right? Otherwise, why would he be so obedient?"

To put it bluntly, he would be scared if Su Tingbai had to take care of him. With Su Tingbai's rotten temper...

Grandfather Su and Grandmother Su exchanged a look. "No. Could he really have taken a liking to little treasure?"

Grandfather Su and Grandmother Su often visited the Shen Household and had occasionally met Shen Rui'an. They liked him immensely. Thinking of Shen Rui'an's face, they felt it would not be surprising if their youngest grandson liked him.

After hearing Grandfather Su and Grandmother Su's analysis, Father Su, Mother Su, and Eldest Brother Su felt it was unlikely.

That was because Su Tingbai had never seemed like the type to bow to beauty. Ever since childhood, were there not plenty of handsome men and beautiful women around him? Yet he had never looked at anyone differently!

The Su family unanimously concluded that Su Tingbai had probably simply had a sudden burst of kindness.

When the Shen Household learned that Su Tingbai was livestreaming, they followed his account when they sent little treasure to Su Family Manor. Seeing that Su Tingbai was taking good care of Shen Rui'an, they breathed a sigh of relief.

"It looks like little treasure has adapted well there. Should we send Baisui over too?"

Eldest Brother Shen opened WeChat. "I'll ask Tingbai. If he agrees, we'll send Baisui over. Little treasure misses Baisui too."

Upon hearing someone mention its name, Baisui lifted its head and whined for a while. Then it obediently bit onto its little ball, lay beside Mother Shen's feet, and gave soft little cries.

Mother Shen stroked its fluffy head. "Baisui misses little treasure too, doesn't it?"

Eldest Brother Shen received Su Tingbai's reply and said happily, "He agreed. I'll drive Baisui over tomorrow."

Early the next morning, Shen Rui'an woke up and got out of bed, only for something to tug at his pant leg.

Looking down, he saw a creamy yellow puppy gnawing at his pant leg and whining, "Woof, woof!"

Baisui stuck out its pink tongue, its little tail wagging so hard it looked ready to take flight.

Shen Rui'an was overjoyed. He bent down and picked Baisui up. "Baisui!"

From the doorway, Su Tingbai saw Shen Rui'an smiling so happily while holding the puppy, and the corners of his own lips rose unconsciously.