Most of the time, Yu Yuanyuan looked silly and clueless, like a waddling penguin, seemingly easy to handle.

But occasionally, she would be surprisingly sharp, always leaving people speechless with her quick retorts.

Yu Jinxiao never expected that he’d actually have to take a three-year-old seriously.

To avoid defeat before even starting, he mentally rehearsed his words before preparing to lay the groundwork for his… well, let’s say persuasion, not conspiracy.

“Tonight, I… Tonight, Daddy is on a secret mission. No one else can know, not even your brother,” Yu Jinxiao coaxed, mixing truth with some mild deception. “This is our little secret. Sometimes lies can be kind. Not all lies are bad.”

He wasn’t sure if she understood his supposedly profound words, but…

But the expression on her little face didn’t look particularly bright.

“Okay! Yuanyuan will keep Daddy’s secret!” The little one confidently patted her chest, making a solemn promise.

Just as she finished, she hugged his neck, her tiny head leaning close to his ear.

Her posture screamed secrecy.

“If Yuanyuan keeps the secret, will Daddy really take us to see the fish tomorrow?”

Well, well, this little rascal knew how to negotiate.

Yu Jinxiao began to wonder if she was truly naive or just pretending.

“As long as you keep the secret, we’ll definitely go tomorrow.” The key to coaxing children was to sound firm.

Yu Yuanyuan was so excited she threw her hands up in celebration, shaking her head eagerly, wanting to get down.

Yu Jinxiao, curious to see if she’d really keep the secret, didn’t interfere and watched from the sidelines, observing her interaction with Yu Mingxi.

“Brother, brother! If we go to the aquarium tomorrow, what should we bring?” Yu Yuanyuan excitedly ran over to her brother, tugging at his sleeve, only to feel something cold under her hand.

It was medicine.

Yu Yuanyuan had seen this the first time she came to this house.

Back then, her brother had been in great pain, like a dying fish, and only got better after taking this medicine.

Her joyful expression gradually disappeared, replaced with worry. She hugged her brother’s leg, her voice trembling with tears, “Brother, are you feeling unwell again?”

“I’m fine now. I felt a bit bad earlier, but I’m much better,” Yu Mingxi quickly reassured her, unable to stand her pitiful tone, lifting her up to comfort her.

As they talked, the topic inevitably shifted to “where did you go tonight.”

“Tonight, I rode in Daddy’s car,” Yu Yuanyuan’s tone was still quite casual, but she kept sneaking glances at Yu Jinxiao to gauge his reaction. “And then…”

“And then?” Yu Mingxi asked eagerly.

“And then we went to Daddy’s company. Daddy was really busy with work, and then…”

Yu Jinxiao almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

That’s enough! Why add more “and thens”?!

One “and then” was enough! Why pile on more?!

He had a sinking feeling that things weren’t going as smoothly as he hoped.

After all, expecting a three-year-old to tell a smooth, believable lie was an almost impossible task.

“And then we came home!” Yu Yuanyuan finished nonchalantly and proceeded to cuddle her brother, acting as if nothing had happened.

Yu Jinxiao’s heart had been hanging in suspense, like fruit precariously balanced on the edge of a cliff, ready to be blown away at any moment.

A man who faced deadly assassins without flinching found his heartbeat alarmingly erratic, all because he was worried his daughter might slip up with her lie.

Just as Yu Mingxi was wrapping up his lecture on safety, the little one suddenly piped up, “Daddy, about that sea—”

“What sea?” Yu Jinxiao’s eyes sharpened instantly, a gaze that could kill.