Had her little dumpling really been bribed with a bag of snacks this easily? The answer was clearly yes. She moved a chair a little closer so she could keep an eye on everything and also because she was still half worried her daughter might get embarrassed by how quickly the child had attached herself to Bai Li. But what could she do? The snacks had done their work. Children were simple in some ways and terrifyingly effective in others. Yan Laojin watched the whole thing and frowned in a mild, amused way, then said nothing for the moment because Bai Li had already shown enough patience to deserve a little trust.

Yan Laojin watched the whole time, stunned. Had her little dumpling been bribed with a bag of snacks? She was a little worried about her growing up and being easily swayed and moved a chair over to watch.

"Wait a minute, I’ll go get the first aid kit," Yan Cijin said with a smile to Bai Li.

"Okay, thank you." Bai Li thanked her politely again.

That sentence came out almost automatically from Bai Li now. She had a habit of being polite even when she did not need to overdo it, and Yan Cijin noticed that. The little girl, meanwhile, had noticed the gauze on Bai Li’s hand and had already leaned over to inspect it with serious interest. Children often became very curious the moment they saw anything wrapped, bandaged, or different from normal. Lili had no real idea what a wound looked like in detail, but she knew enough to ask. Bai Li answered gently and did not make her feel silly for asking.

The little girl saw that Bai Li had gauze on her hand and leaned over to look at her sweetly, "Auntie, what happened to your hand?"

"It’s just a minor cut, nothing serious." Bai Li smiled at the little one; the little dumpling was really adorable.

That answer made the little girl’s whole face change with sympathy. She immediately decided that the best thing she could do was help the way her mother helped her. So when Bai Li was sitting there, Lili leaned in close and announced that she would blow on the wound to make it feel better. It was such a tiny gesture, but it was so sincere that even Bai Li’s eyes softened in surprise. She had not expected such a small child to think of that on her own. It was the sort of thing that only came naturally to a child who had seen care in the home and wanted to copy it.

"Ah! Then I’ll blow on it for Auntie and it won’t hurt anymore. Last time I fell, Mommy blew on it for me, and it didn’t hurt as much." The little dumpling said, bringing her face close to Bai Li’s hand and gently blowing on it with her little lips.

Bai Li looked at the little girl in a way that was both surprised and a little amused. Then she gave her a soft smile, and the corner of her mouth curved in a way that felt much warmer than her usual expression. "Okay," she said, "thank you, Lili, I feel much better now." That was enough for the little girl to become even more motivated. She took the response seriously, like this was a real job she had just been assigned, and she blew on the wound a few more times with earnest concentration. Her tiny lips puckered and she made little focused faces as if she were performing a very important medical procedure. Yan Cijin came back at exactly that moment and saw the scene, which made her laugh before she could stop herself.

Bai Li’s eyes crinkled; she hadn’t expected Dr. Yan’s little dumpling to be so thoughtful. "Okay, thank you, LiLi, I feel much better now."

"Mmm!" Hearing Bai Li say this, the little one thought she couldn’t let her baby drink go to waste for nothing, so she had to blow on it for her auntie a few more times.

Yan Cijin came out of the room with the first aid kit and saw the little dumpling blowing on Bai Li’s wound. She was amused by the little one: "What are you doing?"

"Mommy, I’m blowing on Auntie’s wound, blowing on it will make Auntie feel better." The little dumpling explained.

"Okay, our LiLi is the best girl. Go play with Grandma first, and then I’ll change your auntie’s dressing later, and then you can come back." Bai Li’s wound was quite serious, and Yan Cijin was afraid that the little one would be frightened.

That explanation was so earnestly delivered that Yan Cijin could only smile and accept it. She did not want to discourage the child either. Lili was just being good in her own little way. So Yan Cijin told her to go play with Grandma first and promised that after the dressing was done, she could come back. Lili still looked worried at first, but when she was reassured that Bai Li was strong, she finally relaxed a bit and returned to Yan Laojin with her drink still clutched in both hands.

"But if I don’t blow on Auntie’s wound, it will hurt her." The little dumpling said worriedly. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"No, don’t worry, LiLi, I’m very strong. Go play with Grandma, and Auntie will play with you later." Bai Li gently comforted the little one.

The little one pouted and took a sip of Wahaha, "Okay then, I’ll blow on Auntie’s wound later."

"Okay, go ahead." Bai Li said with a smile.

The little girl then got down and went to find Yan Laojin with Wahaha in her arms.

Yan Laojin had watched all of this and was beginning to feel slightly dazed. This was not at all the picture she had been prepared for after reading all those horrible things in the group chat. Bai Li was supposed to be scary. Dangerous. Cold.

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TO BE CONTINUED.