Training began at six o’clock, but because the Lu family home was far from the command post, Lu Lin had to get up before four o’clock the next morning.

After getting ready and preparing to go downstairs, Lu Lin saw Shi Sheng opening the door next door with a squeak, barely able to open his eyes as he looked around.

“Lu Lin—Lu Lin—”

“What are you doing?” Lu Lin looked at him, amused and concerned. “Go back to sleep.”

With his eyes closed, Shi Sheng shook his head. “I… I’ll have breakfast with you.”

It seemed that Shi Sheng had set an alarm to wake himself up. With his eyes half-closed, wearing his bathrobe, he almost floated out of his room, dragging his hands as he went downstairs.

“Hey!” Lu Lin grabbed Shi Sheng, who was about to fall down after stepping on air, and pulled him back. He shook his head helplessly and extended his arm. “Lean on me a bit.”

“Okay.”

His hair was still messy, and the bathrobe was sized for Lu Lin, so it looked much larger on Shi Sheng. Shi Sheng began to secretly compare their heights again, feeling frustrated that he was so much shorter than Lu Lin. Otherwise… maybe he wouldn’t necessarily be the bottom.

“What are you thinking?” Lu Lin tightened his belt for him.

With his hands behind his back, Shi Sheng stood up straight and raised his chin.

They went downstairs together, and he rubbed his tired eyes, finally managing to open them completely. Then he saw Lu Songnian sitting upright at the head of the dining table, having breakfast.

There was an empty seat next to him with milk and a sandwich, obviously prepared for Lu Lin.

Lu Lin was stunned, clearly not expecting Lu Songnian to be there. “Dad, why are you up so early? Are you practicing Tai Chi?”

“You brat, sit down and eat,” Lu Songnian snorted coldly, then softened his gaze a little when he looked at Shi Sheng coming down. “Zheng Ma, please prepare another plate.”

“Alright.”

Shi Sheng interpreted this kindness as basic courtesy for a regular guest.

He rubbed his hands and followed Lu Lin to the bathroom on the first floor to brush his teeth and wash his face. He then realized that toothpaste, toothbrushes, and towels were all prepared.

But when he came to Lu’s house before, Zheng Ma had prepared disposable items. Why was it different this time? Shi Sheng scratched his head and brushed his teeth in sync with Lu Lin.

After brushing their teeth, Lu Lin approached the mirror to shave, then lowered his head for Shi Sheng to touch his face. Shi Sheng saw Lu Songnian walking by outside the door and quickly withdrew his hand.

“Coward,” Lu Lin chuckled softly.

Annoyed, Sheng jumped up and hit him. “Get lost, get lost.”

After a while, they both finished washing up, and breakfast was served.

Shi Sheng buried himself in eating, Lu Songnian dealt with documents, and Lu Lin poured half a cup of milk for Shi Sheng and hurriedly stuffed the last bite of sandwich into his mouth before standing up.

“What are you doing?” Shi Sheng kicked him under the table.

“Drink more milk for calcium,” Lu Lin casually rubbed his head, then looked at Lu Songnian. “Dad, I’m done eating. I’m off to work.”

Lu Songnian waved his hand. “Go ahead.”

“Wait for me.” As Lu Lin moved his chair away, he leaned down and whispered softly, then pinched Shi Sheng’s cheek. His movements seemed so natural, as if it was a normal family’s everyday life. Then he walked out briskly, leaving only Shi Sheng and Lu Songnian at the dining table.

Shi Sheng touched his face and met Lu Songnian’s calm and imposing gaze.

“Uncle, are you going to eat…”

He blushed from the roots of his ears to his neck, feeling embarrassed to leave food in someone else’s home. He reluctantly drank half a glass of milk and finished the ham sandwich.

After finishing his meal, he stood up. “Then Uncle, I’ll…”

“Wait a moment, you can’t stay in the room all day. In the afternoon, let Lu Yin take you around the neighborhood.”

“Okay, thanks, Uncle.”

Shi Sheng glanced over, seeing Lu Songnian hadn’t touched his sandwich. He probably didn’t have much appetite despite getting up early, which was why he was sitting at the dining table.

Was he just there to have breakfast with Lu Lin?

Shi Sheng rubbed his ears as he returned to his room, opening the chat box to send a message. “You didn’t see the look your dad gave me, I’m dying.”

Red53: I managed to restrain myself.

Red53: I actually wanted to kiss you.

Blue53: …

For a moment, Shi Sheng didn’t know how to respond to this. He wanted to take a nap, but ended up not being able to fall asleep even by six o’clock. Lu Lin messaged him saying he had arrived at the command center.

“My dad is stubborn, once he decides something, he won’t change his mind,” Lu Lin said as he got out of the car and walked towards the building. “Him letting you stay at home probably means he’s temporarily agreed to us being together, giving you a trial period.”

“What?”

“It’s like when someone passes an interview and the company hires them on a trial basis, you know,” Lu Lin chuckled. “He just likes to bring that business mentality into our home.”

Shi Sheng quickly sat up from the bed.

He went downstairs and saw the housekeeper collecting the plates from the table.

“Zheng Ma, did Uncle not have breakfast?”

“No, normally Mr. Lu buys breakfast from outside, like pan-fried buns or something. But since he got up early today and the shop outside wasn’t open, there was no way to make it at home. I guess he’s not interested,” Zheng Ma replied, shaking her head.

Shi Sheng thought for a moment. “Then are you going to buy pan-fried buns later?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll go instead.” Shi Sheng rubbed his hands together.

Zheng Ma was about to refuse, but suddenly felt like it wouldn’t hurt.

Not long after, Shi Sheng came back with a basket of soup dumplings, just as Lu Songnian came out of the bedroom, Shi Sheng reached out his hand, holding the soup dumplings in his left hand and soy milk in his right.

“Uncle! Good morning!”

Lu Songnian was startled by the loud voice as soon as he came downstairs, his expression strange. “Did you buy these?”

“Yeah, I saw Uncle hadn’t had breakfast, so I got some fresh soup dumplings for you to try.” The enthusiastic Shi Sheng placed the food on the table and gestured with his hands. “I bought them from the corner shop on West Street.”

Lu Songnian looked at him somewhat amused, as if he had discovered some secret to making money, shook his head, and sat down. Zheng Ma, who was busy in the kitchen, noticed and brought over chopsticks.

Shi Sheng exchanged a glance with Zheng Ma, scratching his head and chuckling.

“Uncle, you go ahead and eat. I’ll go upstairs to do my morning exercises.”

Lu Songnian nodded, and Shi Sheng dashed upstairs again, quietly hiding in the corner of the stairs, pulling out his phone. He asked Lu Lin about his father’s preferences and what he did every day.

Lu Lin replied succinctly with a word: workaholic.

He then added, “I want you to stay at my house to relax, don’t really treat yourself as an employee.”

“Okay, baby.” Sheng scrolled through his emojis and sent a [kiss] .jpg.

At the dining table, Lu Songnian picked up a soup dumpling and looked at it thoughtfully. “This is an attempt to win my favor.”

“How do you feel, sir?”

“I have to say, it’s much better than Lu Lin.”

“Sir, I was asking about the taste of the soup dumplings,” Zheng Ma said kindly, “Looks like you are going to have another son.”