“Yingze, you can’t feed spicy food to Yuanyuan,” Yu Mingxi said sternly.

His scheme thwarted, Yu Yingze pouted in disappointment and continued eating.

Spicy?
What is spicy?

Back at the orphanage, the children’s food was always mild, so Yuanyuan had never encountered anything spicy before.

The obedient little cub, busy eating, tried to sneak glances at the food that Yu Yingze was about to serve her. It was red and festive-looking—very appealing to the eyes.

Her little paws, busy scooping rice, paused as she looked left and right to make sure no one was watching. Then, with a swift movement, she leapt up and dunked her cartoon spoon into the chili oil, scooping up some food, and sent it straight into her mouth without a second thought.

Her bright, shiny eyes were full of curiosity and excitement.

It’s the food my second brother loves. It must be amazing…

Boom!
A volcano erupted!

Before she could even savor the taste, the spoon fell from her hand onto the table. Her little face turned bright red as the spiciness hit her hard. She froze, her body twitching uncontrollably as her eyes went dull, and her hands and feet flailed in panic.

“Yuanyuan is going to die! Yuanyuan’s poisoned! Waaah!” The little one on the chair started rolling around in agony. “Daddy, save Yuanyuan! Big brother, save me! Waaaah! Second brother is a liar! It hurts so much, my tongue is on fire!”

A series of pitiful wails filled the dining room, making the simple act of having a meal seem like a dramatic event.

Aunt Chen hurriedly grabbed the strawberry milk she had just bought and shoved a straw into Yuanyuan’s mouth. “Quick, drink this, little miss! Drink it now!”

Gulp, gulp, gulp.

The little cub, whose face had turned bright red from the spiciness, quickly downed the entire carton of strawberry milk. Her cries finally subsided a bit.

“Brother, Yuanyuan almost died just now!” As soon as she felt a bit better, she clung to Yu Mingxi, seeking comfort.

In fact, Yu Mingxi was also a little shaken by how Yuanyuan had flailed around. If anyone had seen her reaction, they’d have thought she’d been poisoned rather than just eating something spicy.

Oh, right, this was like the little cats in cute pet videos.

“I told you not to eat it, but you went ahead and stole a bite,” Yu Jinxiao said, still calm and composed. “Do you want another bowl? I can give you two big servings.”

“Nooo, I don’t want any more!” The frightened little one shrank back against the chair. “Daddy, how could you do this?!”

“Change her spoon, and switch out her bowl too.”

“Yes, sir.”

Aunt Chen brought out a fresh set of utensils, planning to scoop some food for Yuanyuan.

The little cub, still terrified from the chili experience, watched nervously. As soon as she saw Aunt Chen’s spoon heading toward the red dish, she fluffed up in alarm.

“Auntie, Yuanyuan will behave! Please don’t hurt me!!”

“Little miss, I would never harm you,” Aunt Chen reassured her, stifling her laughter as she deliberately changed the spoon’s direction to ease Yuanyuan’s mind.

Seizing the moment, Yu Yingze mischievously grabbed a piece from the spicy dish and, after catching Yuanyuan’s attention, popped it into his mouth with a smug look.

“Second brother!” Yuanyuan wailed in distress. “Don’t eat it! You’ll die!”

“Tsk, you’re just weak. See, I’m fine after eating it.” Yu Yingze was unfazed by her cries.

Yuanyuan watched him carefully, waiting several minutes before confirming that her second brother was still alive. She let out a long breath: “Why does the red food only harm me? I didn’t do anything to it.”

“Some things are for adults to eat, not kids.” After savoring his triumph, Yu Jinxiao decided it was time to play the role of a responsible father.

The little dumpling on the chair paused, tilting her head in deep confusion. “But second brother is a kid too.”

Yu Jinxiao fell silent.

Why was his journey as a parent always so full of challenges? It was exhausting.

Other people’s daughters are like little cotton-padded jackets, but mine is more like a needle in my side.