When Auntie Chen came to help Yuanyuan wash up and get ready for bed, Yingze had still failed to pry any information from her.

Great, looks like it’s going to be a sleepless night, he thought.

Staring wide awake at the ceiling, Yingze couldn’t stop his mind from racing with thoughts about the little secret Yuanyuan was hiding. Strange, surreal dreams followed him all night, each one involving the mysterious plans of the small troublemaker.

Finally, it was the day of his birthday.

Yingze woke up with a sliver of hope lingering in his chest. Even if Dad forgot, his brother never would! Right?

But as the morning passed, his hopes started to dwindle. During breakfast, Yuanyuan and his brother chatted happily, as if everything was normal. Everyone seemed to be in high spirits—except for him. It felt like he was standing on the outside, looking in on a different world.

It became all too clear to him. They’d all forgotten his birthday. Not even Auntie Chen seemed to remember.

Head hung low, Yingze grabbed his school bag and headed for the car. Meanwhile, Yuanyuan snuck a quick wink in Mingxi’s direction. From afar, Yu Jinxiao noticed the exchange and couldn’t help but think how childish, yet amusing, the little ones could be.

A moment later, Yuanyuan turned toward her dad and flashed a peace sign with her fingers, a big smile on her face.

Yu Jinxiao glanced up from his phone and nodded slightly. But when he looked up again, he noticed Yuanyuan still holding up the peace sign, staring at him expectantly, clearly waiting for some sort of response.

He felt an intense sense of awkwardness wash over him. It was like she was silently pleading for him to join in on her silly antics, and the longer she stared, the more uncomfortable he became.

Was she serious?

There were staff members walking around, and Mingxi was nearby. How could she expect him to join in such childishness?

“Daddy! Daddy!” Yuanyuan called out, bouncing over to him, holding up her peace sign proudly. “Look! Look!”

Yes, yes, I see it. I’m not blind, okay? Yu Jinxiao thought, his frustration growing. But there was something about her wide, hopeful eyes that made it difficult to ignore her.

No matter how much he wanted to brush her off, she kept following him, her gaze full of anticipation. Finally, Yu Jinxiao looked around to make sure no one was watching. With great reluctance, he lifted his hand and half-heartedly flashed a quick peace sign.

His normally stoic, handsome face, combined with the playful gesture, was an odd yet amusing contrast.

Satisfied, Yuanyuan beamed and cheerfully waved goodbye to him as he left for work. Before he went, she also handed Gao zhou one of her hand-drawn invitation cards, which he accepted with great enthusiasm.

Gao zhou immediately framed it and stuck it behind the steering wheel, treating it like a prized possession.

Yu Jinxiao couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Sometimes I’m just not childish enough to fit in with these people, he thought.

As soon as Yu Jinxiao left for work, Yuanyuan rushed back to her room and locked the door, setting to work on her birthday present.

Meanwhile, in the middle of a meeting at the company, Yu Jinxiao’s thoughts wandered to the matter of birthday gifts. What should I get? he wondered.

He knew Yingze loved Transformers, so that seemed like a safe bet. But then he suddenly thought of something else: What was Yuanyuan planning to give?

Even he didn’t know what the little one had been working on.

After his meeting, curiosity got the better of him, and he decided to stop by the house before going out to buy a gift.

When he arrived, Auntie Chen told him that Yuanyuan had been holed up in her room all day, coming down only for lunch. She had insisted on being woken up early the next day because she was hard at work on her birthday gift.

Whatever she was making, it was top secret. Not even Auntie Chen knew what it was.

Yujin Xiao’s curiosity peaked. He walked quietly down the hallway, carefully turning the doorknob with his fingertips to avoid making any noise.

Inside, he spotted a small, round figure on the floor, busy with something on the carpet.