Chapter 2

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A child主动ly interacted, which was good. The attendant was immediately drawn by the sound and, at a glance, saw an honest father traveling with his child.

“Easy to sell to,” was the attendant’s first thought upon seeing Bai Qingyu.

But as he approached, he realized the little one was very young, and adults might not want to feed snacks to such a small child. He also noticed the father and son’s modest living conditions—their clothes faded and old-fashioned, clearly from another era. In this situation, aggressively pushing snacks by exploiting the child’s appetite felt wrong. The attendant smiled and said, “You can taste these for free, only buy if you like them.”

He took out a milk candy and placed it in Bai Xiaochai’s hand. “Uncle’s gift.”

Bai Xiaochai’s eyes lit up, curling his fingers around the candy. “Thank you, uncle.”

“Such a good kid who doesn’t cry or fuss, here’s another one as a reward.”

“Oh?!” Not crying got a reward? Bai Xiaochai opened his mouth slightly, as if dazed by the extra candy, becoming as soft and sweet as milk caramel himself.

“Aww, so adorable,” the attendant sighed fondly as he moved to the next carriage.

“Thank you,” Bai Qingyu said.

“Thank you, uncle,” Bai Xiaochai called from atop Bai Qingyu’s lap, clinging to the seat back as they watched the attendant leave. Then he sat down, spreading his small palms, one candy in each hand, looking from side to side—they were the same size—“Which one, Daddy?”

Bai Qingyu took the one on the left and tore it open for Bai Xiaochai.

Bai Xiaochai sucked on the milk candy, then gazed out the window a little before collapsing into his father’s arms and falling asleep.

It was just the time to switch from hard seats to hard sleepers. Bai Qingyu slung his backpack, cradled his child, and slowly moved through several carriages to find their sleeper berth, placing the sleeping Bai Xiaochai on the lower bunk.

The little bundle nestled in the corner; the lower bunk still had room for two more adults.

Bai Qingyu took out a half-crocheted wool shoe from the backpack, slightly larger than Bai Xiaochai’s current foot size—perfect for this winter.

This was a new skill he had learned, though he crocheted slowly.

The woman across the aisle watched for a while, then rubbed her hands and said, “Let me help you. I’ve got itchy hands lately, and I can crochet any pattern.”

Bai Qingyu was taken aback but handed her the crochet hook. “Thank you, sister.”

He had brought two crochet hooks, so each could work on one shoe.

Both silently focused on their handiwork. By nightfall, Bai Xiaochai already had a pair of wool shoes. He hadn’t woken up once, and Bai Qingyu had not fed him; soon it was time to change carriages again the next day.

The man on the upper bunk lay scrolling through short videos as soon as he boarded, only getting up before sleep to use the restroom. His eyes swept over the child below, frowning, and reluctantly put on headphones with the volume high—he didn’t want to hear any crying.

The train rattled loudly all night. The upper bunk man barely slept, anxiously waiting for the child below to cry, but all night no such sound came. Instead, others were quietly packing, proving his worries were unfounded.

At that moment, the woman across from Bai Qingyu, who had been crocheting with him, said, “Are you getting off soon?”

Bai Qingyu: “In an hour I switch to hard seats, three stops left.”

She said, “Then wake the child to feed some milk before you go. Our sleeper space is big; you can go make the milk, I’ll watch him for you.”

“Uh…” Bai Qingyu hesitated because Bai Xiaochai had never drunk milk. He mumbled, “We left in a hurry and forgot the formula. It’s okay, I’ll feed him after we get off.”

In principle, the tea spirit’s offspring could survive on sunlight and rainwater alone, just growing slowly. To grow faster, they needed human food, but eating and drinking meant needing to relieve themselves, and on the train, not eating or drinking and just sunbathing was best.

“Still three hours before you get off,” the woman said. “The child must be starving. You’re so careless. How will you explain to your wife? Go buy a bottle of pure milk in the dining car and warm it with hot water.”

Bai Qingyu was troubled—not because of money, but he feared Bai Xiaochai would wet the bed, and the train bed wasn’t theirs. He awkwardly nudged Bai Xiaochai. “Baby, wake up.”

Bai Xiaochai didn’t stir. Bai Qingyu said to the woman, “He’s sleeping too deeply; waking him will make him cry.”

Damn... The upper bunk man tightened his temples. The kidnapping videos he'd just watched flashed in his mind.

This child clearly had never suffered hardship—fair-skinned, delicate cheeks like milky cream, looking nothing like “his dad.” Not waking or feeding for over ten hours—how could such rough care raise such a fine child?

The man, who was about one and a half times Bai Qingyu’s size, bluntly said, “Is he just sleeping too deeply, or did you give him sleeping pills? Is this your child?”

Bai Qingyu was startled. Sleeping pills? He’d only seen them on TV and had none. “I didn’t give him any medicine. He just loves to sleep.”

Man: “Then wake him up.”

Bai Qingyu: “That would disturb everyone.”

Man: “I don’t mind the noise. Just prove you didn’t drug him.”

The woman across explained for Bai Qingyu, “It’s a misunderstanding. Young and honest-looking.”

Man: “It’s exactly people like this, who blend into the crowd unnoticed, who make the best kidnappers.”

At 6:30 a.m., the attendant patrolled carriage by carriage, waking passengers who were about to get off. Hearing the quarrel and keywords, he asked Bai Qingyu to show his ID.

The security checkpoint scene replayed. Bai Qingyu once again proved his identity.

The attendant said, “He’s the child’s father.”

Though the misunderstanding was cleared, everyone agreed Bai Qingyu should wake the child to feed him.

The attendant said, “Sleepers are indeed more convenient.”

The upper bunk man, after seeing photos on Bai Qingyu’s phone, seemed to have accidentally uncovered the father and son’s hardship. The honest dad might not have had money to buy milk on the train, hence the vague excuses. The man took a box of milk from his bag. “Sorry, I misunderstood.”

Bai Qingyu thought Bai Xiaochai wouldn’t wake up soon, but he couldn’t refuse the kindness. He snapped his fingers near the child’s ear. “Wake up.”

A minute later, Bai Xiaochai sucked on the milk, paused, placed the box on the table between the two beds, propped his hands up, stretched his neck, and looked up at the upper bunk man. “Thank you, uncle.”

He drank again and said, “Thank you, uncle.”

The man looked down and saw the child’s eager, shining eyes and was even more sure Bai Xiaochai was starving. “No matter how hard it is, children shouldn’t suffer.”

Bai Qingyu: “You’re right.”

Bai Xiaochai shook the milk box, half full, and held it up to his father. “Daddy, you drink.”

Neither father nor son had eaten; Bai Qingyu had been a tea spirit for a long time and could go without food, but since Bai Xiaochai was born into the human world and raised by Uncle Deng, he was a greedy baby who accepted all food.

Bai Qingyu pretended to sip, then turned the straw back to Bai Xiaochai. “One sip each.”

Bai Xiaochai felt there was so much milk he was already full.

The upper bunk man watched secretly, feeling more ashamed. Despite poverty, the child was polite and well-behaved. His criticism of Bai Qingyu was like asking why he didn’t eat meat porridge.

He thought of his own child, barely a year and a half old, who only knew how to demand from Grandpa Ken. Other children’s gratitude for a bottle of milk was so heartfelt.

Bai Xiaochai, now full, sat curled up in the corner of the lower bunk, holding the wool shoes like a plush toy, pressing his left cheek, then his right.

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The wool yarn Bai Qingyu bought was soft and plush, very comfortable to the touch.

The woman across the aisle felt sorry again. “Where do you live? Give me your address. I’ll send my grandson’s toys over; he’s ten and doesn’t play with them anymore, but they’re still new.”

Bai Qingyu: “Thank you, but no need. I’ll rent a place in South City and buy toys for him myself.”

“Then leave your contact so you can find a place first.”

Bai Qingyu was deeply grateful. He had nothing to offer in return, and as a spirit, he should be generous. After thinking, he gave the couple a bucket of local eggs—Bai Xiaochai’s food supply.

The upper bunk man said he was on a business trip and had no way to cook eggs.

Bai Qingyu looked at the woman across the aisle. She loved chatting and had said this trip was her way home. There was no reason to refuse.

“Sigh, you keep them for yourself then.”

“It’s a token of goodwill. The eggs come from my own free-range chickens and are fragrant,” Bai Qingyu said, planning to raise chickens in the city to feed Bai Xiaochai if possible.

“—Alright then.”

...

At 10 a.m. the next day, the train arrived at its destination. Bai Qingyu, carrying his son, followed the map he’d prepared toward the job market.

“Daddy, look.” Bai Xiaochai was playing and suddenly pulled out two red bills from the wool shoe. This shoe could turn into money!

Bai Qingyu was stunned, realizing it must have been the kind woman who crocheted the shoes who slipped in a red envelope for Bai Xiaochai.

There were so many good people in the world.

Bai Qingyu said, “It was from the auntie. Keep it safe. We’ll use it to buy you treats later.”

“Okay.” Bai Xiaochai obediently put the money back in the shoe, hiding it deep so it wouldn’t get lost.

Bai Qingyu adjusted the straps of his backpack and was suddenly drawn to a rental flyer posted on an electrical box.

[Near subway, two-bedroom apartment, entire rent 9,000] [Roma Community single room 2,600] [Basement 10 sqm large space 800] [Sublet one-bedroom apartment 3,000]...

So expensive! No wonder it’s a first-tier city!

Back in their village, 200 yuan could rent a small house with a yard!

Bai Qingyu patted his pocket. He could probably only afford a basement, which wouldn’t do. Little Xiaochai would never grow tall that way. His baby grew slowly and needed a place with good sunlight to grow healthy.

In fact, he didn’t necessarily have to rent. He could live in a park, absorbing the essence of sun and moon, though too much rain could cause illness. Or live under a bridge?

Bai Qingyu adjusted the backpack straps and calmly tore his gaze away from the rental ads. His current goal was to find a job with room and board.

Three days ago, Bai Qingyu had done his homework through South City TV. The job market was one kilometer east of the train station, held jointly by the Liqing District of South City, mainly targeting people with employment difficulties and newly arrived migrant workers.

With much luggage, Bai Qingyu stood on the outskirts to observe.

At that moment, a professional woman of about 35, wearing a name badge, accompanied by an assistant, approached Bai Qingyu.

“We must pay attention to the difficulties faced by special groups and guide them appropriately—” the woman paused.

“District Chief?” The assistant followed Ms. He Ying’s gaze and saw a hesitant honest man whose blue cloth clothing and Liberation shoes looked out of place in the big city. His eyes were confused at the bustling recruitment site, fingers nervously fumbling the backpack straps.

Recalling her boss’s words, the assistant stepped forward, “Hello, can I help you with anything?”

Bai Qingyu: “Hello, I’m here looking for work.”

The assistant pointed to the left side’s “Employment Consultation Desk.” “If you haven’t planned yet, you can consult experts there about job directions.”

Bai Qingyu gripped his backpack strap. “Okay, thank you.”

“Thank you, sister.” Bai Xiaochai peeked from the backpack’s gap. If the direction was off, he couldn’t see anyone, so he softly repeated what his father said.

The assistant was surprised, “You have a child in your backpack?”

Bai Qingyu: “Yes, I have to work and take care of him at the same time.”

“Ah…” The assistant looked troubled; that would make job hunting hard.

Bai Xiaochai raised the soft cushion under his feet to prop himself up, pulling hard until his head popped over the basket’s edge, sneakily pushing aside the sunshade to reveal half his face—he didn’t need shade, but Bai Qingyu feared being checked for ID three times a day, which would disrupt job hunting.

He Ying glanced casually, her gaze fixed. This child’s upper face looked strangely familiar.

Bai Xiaochai flexed his toes to grip the bamboo frame and kicked off the tarp, revealing his whole face. Covered by the canopy was too boring; he was like a snail trying to crawl out of its shell.

He Ying’s eyes lingered on him—the upper half of his face was very familiar, but his chubby baby cheeks softened the resemblance.

The assistant said to Bai Qingyu, “You’re young. If you sent the child to daycare, finding work would be easier.”

He Ying glanced at the assistant. Do you know how expensive daycare in South City is?

She asked Bai Qingyu, “Did you graduate high school? What skills do you have?”

“Babysitter? Sanitation worker? Gardener? Cook, dishwashing…” Bai Qingyu listed several competitive jobs. He was physically strong and could do well.

As for education, Bai Qingyu felt ashamed. The tea spirit never attended school, only learned to read and write in the spiritual realm, relying on watching TV with Uncle Deng to understand the human world.

“No formal schooling… but I can read and use a smartphone,” Bai Qingyu said calmly.

Rain or shine, he knew how to get home... The assistant pressed her lips to hide surprise. It was rare for someone his age to miss nine years of compulsory education. A young single father who looked like he came from a remote mountain area, recently lifted out of poverty by officials, finally willing to seek work in the city.

He Ying looked again at Bai Xiaochai. She felt a special connection to the child and wanted to help: “Does the child cry a lot?”

Bai Qingyu: “He doesn’t cry.”

“If you want to be a babysitter, I can recommend a job with room and board. The employer is usually not home and has little work.”

Bai Qingyu met so many kind people along the way, never suspecting a trap. “I’m willing! I eat little, sleep little, and have good stamina. I’ll satisfy the employer.”

He Ying: “The employer has a bad temper. You and the child avoid him and you can get paid for several months. If you can’t stand his temper, you can quit anytime.”

Bai Qingyu: “No problem. I have a good temper.”

He Ying: “Good, it’s arranged. I’ll call the housekeeper. You just go to the address given. Lin Mi, take him to the bus stop for the 505.”

After Bai Qingyu left, He Ying thought of the child’s face and called her nephew’s housekeeper. “I’m recommending someone to be the babysitter.”

The housekeeper asked in advance: “Any issues with this person?” This aunt oversaw poverty relief, often recommending disabled people with good character to He Shao as babysitters with full benefits. He Shao was a workaholic rarely home, so it was just for company.

He Ying: “No issues.”

The housekeeper relaxed, about to entrust the job, when the aunt casually said, “He’s bringing a child. Arrange a room far from He Renyuan’s, so he won’t find out.”

Housekeeper: ???

Everyone knew He Shao hated children—those chaotic beings outside the law and order. He Renyuan preferred rules and order; human children escaped legal rules and had no life order.

The housekeeper cautiously asked, “Is he your friend?”

He Ying: “No. Met him at the job fair. He has a child and is having trouble finding work.”

“What if He Shao finds out?”

He Ying: “If he finds out, he has to leave. I just pity the child and want to give them a temporary place. Help me keep it secret.”

Housekeeper: “Okay. He Shao is rarely home anyway. He probably won’t notice for months.”

An hour and a half later.

The housekeeper looked at the honest Bai Qingyu, who seemed from the seventies, and the adorable child behind him, slapping his thigh—no, he was very wrong.

It wasn’t just because He Ying felt pity for the child. This child’s features were a spitting image of her young master. She’d seen He Renyuan grow up; no wonder she felt so kindhearted.

“Looks alike... 50% alike, no, 70% alike...”

Fate had brought them together. Seeing the child suffer outside was truly heartbreaking.

But at home, it was different—there was even a sense of the young master’s family being complete. Otherwise, only the housekeeper and babysitter entertained themselves, and He Renyuan was rarely home, making the salary feel awkward.

“Mr. Bai, come with me,” the housekeeper smiled. “You can put the child down. Can he walk?”

“Yes.”

Bai Qingyu put down the backpack and carried Bai Xiaochai out.

Bai Xiaochai had always been watching the world from inside the basket. Now with an open view, he clung to his father’s leg, observing his surroundings.

Such white walls, such smooth floors.

[That lively sparkle in his eyes, precocious.] The housekeeper thought.

Bai Qingyu said, “Tea Baby, this is Grandpa Housekeeper.”

“Gua—njia—ye-ye,” Bai Xiaochai slowly repeated, tilting his round head.

[Not like the young master when speaking.] The housekeeper thought. He Renyuan was eloquent, spoke fast as a child, and as a lawyer was fiercely sharp-tongued, intimidating opponents. But in the past three years, he had become quiet, often lost in thought alone.

Bai Qingyu: “I’m Bai Qingyu, here’s my ID. This is Bai Xiaochai, Tea Baby, from tea leaves.”

[Tea? Mr. He loves tea. The basement is a tea warehouse.]

The housekeeper said, “Here’s your room. It has double-pane soundproof windows. When playing with the child, it’s best to close the doors and windows tightly.”

“Wait, let me think.” The housekeeper frowned. This room, though diagonally across from the young master’s, was on the first and second floors that He Renyuan often passed. Only the third-floor guest room was never visited. If Bai Qingyu stayed on the third floor, even if Tea Baby wandered off, he wouldn’t be seen in the living room.

This mansion housed He Renyuan on the second floor, the housekeeper and babysitter on the first, and only He Renyuan could permit anyone on the third floor. Qi Yun hesitated a moment but decided to follow He Ying’s request to protect Bai Qingyu.

“Qingyu, do you mind living on the third floor?”

“Anywhere is fine.”

Qi Yun assigned Bai Qingyu a large guest room with an east-facing balcony, furnished with everything except a mattress.

The housekeeper explained, “The young master never brings guests home. The guest room is always empty. The mattress was stored next door. We’ll get someone to help bring it later.”

“Thanks, Uncle Qi. I’m used to hard beds. No trouble,” Bai Qingyu said, having brought his own bedding. Once spread out, the room’s modernity fell back several decades.

Qi Yun’s eye twitched. “Mr. He usually stays at the company and only comes home one night a month. When he does, you put the child to bed early. All peaceful.”

Bai Qingyu: “Uncle Qi, what’s my job?”

Qi Yun hesitated. They didn’t have much to do daily, but the mansion needed its usual maintenance. Their main task was to keep the garden weed-free and clean the third-floor guest room to pristine condition for guests.

“Understood.”

With no further business, Qi Yun paced a few steps, then took a large bread box from his pocket and handed it to Bai Xiaochai, casually saying, “Settle in today. Come down at mealtime.”

Bai Xiaochai hugged the bread, amazed.

The housekeeper felt twenty years younger, facing the young master.

...

On Bai Qingyu’s first day at work, he planned to perform well. He tore the bread and gave some to his son, saying, “I’m going to work. You stay here and sunbathe, okay?”

Bai Xiaochai buried his face into the soft bread and took a bite. “Okay.”

“Daddy, I want water.” He was already a sensible child, remembering to drink water with bread.

After feeding him water, Bai Qingyu pulled out a cloth diaper from the backpack. When Bai Xiaochai was awake, he could express his need to go to the toilet, but not when asleep. So Bai Qingyu always put a diaper on him, especially after drinking before bed.

The diaper was sewn with two layers of pure cotton fabric and a thin layer of white cotton inside, reusable.

He disliked disposable diapers.

Once, some despicable tourists threw a bag of used disposable diapers off a cliff, piling them under tea bushes. Years later, they hadn’t decomposed. Bai Qingyu despised them and reluctantly cleaned them up himself.

Cloth diapers were good—cotton and biodegradable.

Bai Qingyu sat on the floor, unpacked the soft rattan bag containing bedding, and rewove it into an open oval basket.

Bai Xiaochai sat opposite, focused on gnawing the bread. His movements were slow and steady, ensuring every bite reached his mouth, not wasting a bit of the creamy bread.

Bai Qingyu suddenly stared at Bai Xiaochai for a while, then patted his head. He felt that not only had diapers fallen off the cliff before, but some other hard-to-handle trash too, which had cost him much effort.