Chapter 3: This Dad’s a Little Bit Foolish

“Daughter’s awake! She’s looking at me! Wife, come quick—our girl’s looking at me!”

Old Su was so thrilled his face glowed like a lantern. He couldn’t even form a full sentence.

He wanted to reach out and touch his little girl, but hesitated—his hands were too rough, too calloused. What if he scarred her soft skin?

Her skin was as tender as silken tofu—so delicate, he didn’t dare breathe near it.

“Lord, you’re acting like a child again,” Old Su’s wife chuckled, shaking her head with a smile. But her eyes never left the baby either.

When the little girl’s gaze finally flickered toward her, her heart thumped like a drum in her chest.

She’d give anything—her very soul—to this tiny, rosy-cheeked bundle of sweetness.

Xiao Tangbao tried desperately to open her eyes wider, to make sense of the blurry shapes before her.

But everything swam in fog.

Fine. She’d try again.

One more time.

And one more.

“Wife, look! Our daughter’s glaring! She—she’s glaring at me!”

Old Su rubbed his hands together, practically vibrating with joy.

Xiao Tangbao: ……

This guy’s kind of dumb.

She couldn’t see clearly, but she could hear just fine.

Was she *really* glaring?

Well… maybe?

But why was he acting like he’d won the lottery? It was ridiculous.

Old Su had no idea his daughter was silently judging him.

He was on cloud nine.

Oh my gosh—he’d been *glared at* by his own daughter!

What an honor! A moment he’d treasure for life!

He’d tell those lazy, loud-mouthed sons of his later—watch them envy him!

Wow… turns out his little girl’s glare is actually kind of cute.

As for his wife’s teasing about being “overdramatic,” Old Su didn’t even register it. With a daughter like this, who cared about anything else?

Old Su’s wife was stunned too.

“Oh wow… our little girl really *can* glare?”

She’d birthed six sons and raised grandsons, but never once had a baby this young show such a deliberate, fierce stare.

Look at those big, round eyes—dark as polished onyx, bright and alive. So full of spirit!

Clearly, this kid was sharp as a tack.

No wonder she was different from all those rowdy boys.

Old Su’s wife was shamelessly biased—no filter, no mercy.

Finally, Xiao Tangbao made out the two figures before her.

Huh? Who are these people?

She didn’t recognize them.

She blinked rapidly.

Then, like a film reel flipping through her mind, memories flashed—fleeting, fragmented, but unmistakable.

Her lower lip trembled slightly.

Ah… that’s right.

A wave of drowsiness washed over her. She let out a tiny, elegant yawn, then slowly closed her eyes.

“She’s asleep again?” Old Su panicked.

He hadn’t even gotten to talk to her yet!

“Tangbao, come on—just glare at Dad one more time! One glance! That’s all I ask!”

He rubbed his palms together, nearly tempted to pry her eyelids open himself.

“Leave her alone, you idiot!” Old Su’s wife snapped, shooting him a death glare. “If you wake her up, I’ll have your hide.”

With a daughter like this, men could go cool off somewhere far away.

Old Su’s wish to be stared down was finally fulfilled.

Too bad it wasn’t by his own little girl.

***

Let’s be honest—among the villagers of Da Liushu Cun, the Su family was legendary.

Not because they were rich or powerful.

But because they were *ridiculously* good at producing sons.

Every woman who stepped into their home seemed destined to carry a boy.

The neighbors’ eyes turned red with envy.

And secondly—this family was *poor*. Like, painfully poor.

So broke it sounded like coins rattling in an empty tin.

So poor the house had nothing but four walls and a dozen boys.

That was Old Su’s own words.

Naturally, that earned him a mountain of resentment.

Now, as Su Dahu and the others stepped out the front gate, they instantly became the village’s latest gossip magnet.

“Dahu, did your mom really give birth to a sister?” The tone dripped with curiosity.

“Yep,” Su Dahu said, grinning.

A few steps further.

“Dahu, did your mom *really* have a daughter?”

“Yep.”

Another step.

“Dahu…”

“Uncle Er, don’t ask,” Su Erhu—aka Su Second Tiger—jumped in. “She’s a girl. Done.”

“Smartass,” Uncle Er shot back. “You knew what I was gonna ask—so why not just say it?”

“Alright, alright. Go ahead.”

“Did your mom really have a *plump* little daughter?”

“See? Knew you’d ask that,” Su Erhu smirked. “Yeah, she did.”

“Kid, you’re gonna get slapped.”

Uncle Er lunged, hand raised.

The brothers walked the whole way to the village entrance, stopped every few steps by curious villagers asking the same question over and over.

At the old locust tree by the village gate, a crowd had gathered.

As soon as they saw the Su brothers approach, all heads swiveled in unison.

They needed to hear it straight from the source—was it true? Was it real?

Even if they already knew, they still had to chat about it, just to savor the moment.

“Dahu, where you headed?”

Su Dahu exhaled. Finally, a question that wasn’t the same.

“Just walking around the foot of the mountain,” he replied.

Then—

“Your mom really gave birth to a sister?”

“Yeah… yeah, she did.”

Still stuck in the loop.

“Is it *definitely* a girl? Not some trick?” Skepticism thick in the voice.

“Absolutely,” Su Dahu said, scratching his head. “What else would it be?”

“Dahu, your mom’s a real miracle—what’s that called… oh right, *old oyster pearls*!” someone sighed enviously.

“Mrs. Su’s got real talent,” another muttered, tone unclear.

“Nah, it’s old Su’s doing,” someone else chimed in. “Old but still strong—look how fast he walks, like wind behind him…”

“True… true…”

The conversation teetered dangerously close to going off track.

Thankfully, someone pulled it back.

“Dahu, you guys finally made it through the hard times.”

“Yeah, yeah—now that things are turning around, don’t forget us neighbors.”

“Right! Dahu, remember when you were a baby—I held you myself!”

“Dahu…”

Suddenly, the crowd under the great locust tree lit up with warm, familiar smiles—like long-lost friends reuniting.

Su Dahu: ……

He felt overwhelmed.

He was naturally quiet and simple. How was he supposed to read all these people’s minds?