Yan Qiushu was eating her food in small bites, but the boy next to her was eating in large mouthfuls. He first rolled the chubby, white dumpling in chili oil, blew on it twice, and swallowed it in one go, ignoring how hot it was inside.

Across from them, Dongdong winced from the burn. Xiao Huaiwu laughed and suggested he spit it out. When he hesitated, she offered him some cold water to cool down.

Meanwhile, Xiao Huaiting, after just a few quick breaths, easily swallowed his dumpling.

Yan Qiushu was shocked. She thought, *I’ve eaten dumplings with my deskmate a few times, but never this hot, and I didn’t even realize it. Does this person not feel pain?*

Noticing her gaze, the boy turned and smiled naturally at her. “What’s wrong?”

Yan Qiushu instinctively asked, “Aren’t you hot?”

Xiao Huaiting shook his head, replying casually, “It’s fine. I always eat quickly.”

Yan Qiushu smiled, leaned in closer, and whispered, “Eat slowly. Otherwise, you might hurt your esophagus. The esophagus doesn’t feel pain, but if it keeps getting damaged, over time, you might not be able to eat at all.”

Knowing this topic was a bit gloomy for a festive occasion, she kept her voice low.

Xiao Huaiting remained silent for a moment before nodding seriously, “Okay.”

For the next dumpling, he slowed down, taking smaller bites instead of gulping it down.

Satisfied, Yan Qiushu turned her attention back to her meal. But as she glanced around, she noticed several people at the table looking at her. She wasn’t sure when everyone had stopped chatting.

Awkwardly, Yan Qiushu lowered her head.

Just then, Dongdong seemed to have figured something out. He pointed at Yan Qiushu, about to speak, “Sister Shu and uncle said—um!” But his mouth was quickly covered by Shen Pingyu.

Madam Xiao lightly coughed and said with a stern look, “Don’t talk loudly while eating.”

“Okay…” Dongdong mumbled, returning to his meal.

Yan Qiushu discreetly touched her face, feeling it warm. She took a deep breath and bit into another dumpling, venting her embarrassment.

This time, the dumpling was filled with fennel and egg. Suddenly, she felt something hard. She quickly shifted it with her tongue, pulled it out with her fingers, and discovered a pink pearl!

Just then, the boy next to her eagerly raised his hand, shouting, “I got a pearl!”

“Wow!” Dongdong exclaimed enviously and then dove into another dumpling.

After a while, Shen Pingyu modestly revealed, “I found one too!”

Soon, Madam Xiao also found a pearl. Xiao Huaiqi frowned and moved a dumpling from his bowl to Wan’er’s. The little girl ate it in tiny bites and then beamed, “Mom! I got one too!”

Dongdong became anxious. “There are only two left! I need to hurry!”

Yan Qiushu found his quick math impressive. Xiao Huaiting teased, “Dongdong, Sister Shu got one too. There’s only one left. Let’s see who finds it last.”

Dongdong: “?!”

His face showed a mix of grief and frustration as he cautiously ate each dumpling, trying not to waste food.

Watching her son’s expressions, Xiao Huaiwu couldn’t stop laughing. Suddenly, her eyes widened, and she spat out a round pearl! Smiling ‘sadly,’ she announced, “The last pearl went to mom, hahaha!”

Dongdong froze, staring in disbelief. “What?!”

Everyone thought he was about to cry and curiously watched him.

Yan Qiushu quickly reassured, “There’s one more; there were seven in total.”

Dongdong’s spirits lifted, while the elders sighed in regret.

Yan Qiushu: “…”

However, with one pearl still unclaimed, Dongdong stopped eating altogether, unsure which dumpling held the prize. He watched the elders eat closely, wondering if it might be in someone else’s bowl, especially his mother’s.

Whenever someone paused eating, he anxiously asked, “Did you get the pearl? Can you give it to me? I want it!”

Eventually, Xiao Huaiqi couldn’t bear it anymore. He carefully picked a dumpling from the pile and placed it in front of Dongdong.

Dongdong took a bite and exclaimed, “Wow! It’s the pearl!”

The meal ended with everyone smiling.

Afterwards, they all prepared to rest before the New Year’s Eve dinner and vigil. But before anyone could leave, a guard arrived urgently.

“General, His Majesty has summoned you!”

“Eunuch Fu came just now to deliver the message. The Prime Minister was also informed…”

The mood at the Xiao family table turned tense.

Xiao Huaiting reassured them with a smile, “It’s nothing serious. Mother, brother, sister-in-law… please eat without me. I’ll return to keep watch with you.”