VHBF – Chapter 21 The Playboy Daddy (Part 21)

Yinyin tilted her little head back, craning her neck until it felt sore, but still didn’t see her dad making any move. She secretly cracked her left eye open into a tiny slit and peeked at him.

Dad had his head lowered, lost in thought, his brows tightly furrowed in that familiar fierce and impatient expression.

The little dumpling felt a bit heartbroken. “Uncle System, so you were right. Daddy really doesn’t love me anymore!”

System: “……”

The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. Without realizing it, both eyes opened wide. By the time Luo Sheng snapped back to himself, the little dumpling was staring at him with teary, accusing eyes.

When she saw him look over, she quickly hid her hands behind her back, twisted her chubby body away, and presented the back of her round head to him. With a pouty hum in her milky voice, her lonely little back radiated the clear signal—Come coax me!

Unfortunately, Luo Sheng didn’t catch it. He hesitated, then tugged the blanket over her. “Lie down and sleep.”

Dumpling: “Hmph!”

Luo Sheng: “……”

Only after Daddy’s footsteps faded into the distance did the little dumpling turn back around. Looking at his retreating figure, she shouted angrily and aggrievedly: “Daddy, I don’t like you anymore either!”

If you don’t like me, then I don’t like you either! she thought.

System: “Heh.”

Who would ever believe a clingy little puppy like her?

But for the moment, the little dumpling was truly angry. She had been so certain that Daddy would kiss her. Now, her fragile glass heart was shattered into pieces.

Luo Sheng’s steps paused slightly. “Still not sleeping?”

The dumpling almost lost it. “Daddy, let’s have a candlelight talk!”

That phrase she had picked up from a cartoon. She knew it meant when two people, at night, shared heartfelt words together—she and Daddy, that would be a candlelight talk!

Most people would have brushed off a three-year-old’s childish words and walked away. But for some reason, when Luo Sheng thought of the disappointment in her eyes earlier, an unfamiliar sense of guilt rose within him.

A man who had never known the word “guilt” since childhood actually turned back, sat cross-legged on the carpet by her bed, and said casually: “Go on then, what do you want to say?”

The dumpling reacted quickly. She scrambled down from the bed and sat cross-legged across from Daddy, imitating his posture. But her stubby little legs were far too short and wouldn’t fold properly.

In the end, she had to spread them awkwardly in a big “X,” the yellow-and-green dinosaur claws of her pajamas stretched out on either side, looking like a clumsy baby dinosaur that had just hatched.

A flicker of amusement passed through Luo Sheng’s eyes.

Once she settled, the dumpling lifted her head to face her dad.

Putting on a serious little face, she puffed out her chest just like the grown-ups on TV when negotiating, and placed her pudgy little hands neatly by her sides.

Feeling the atmosphere was finally right, she cleared her throat to speak—only to catch Daddy smiling. She immediately flared up. “Daddy, no laughing!”

“You must be serious! No grinning! Be good!”

The dumpling was stubborn, staring at him until he finally schooled his expression. Only then did she continue: “Daddy, do you like Yinyin or not? Let’s talk about that today!”

The tiny green dinosaur dumpling, with her round little face deadly serious, was negotiating with Daddy for the very first time in her life. She valued this greatly. After finishing, she extended a pudgy paw as if hosting: “Now, Daddy, please speak!”

The corner of Luo Sheng’s mouth twitched. He deliberately provoked her. “No. I don’t like you.”

Yinyin: “……”

The dumpling was furious. Luckily, her unwavering faith told her that Daddy must love her, otherwise she might have broken down on the spot.

Her baby voice carried the tolerance of a mischievous child. “Daddy, I’ll give you one more chance! Just one!”

At last, under her intense little gaze, the man lazily nodded. “Barely… maybe I like you a tiny little bit.”

The dumpling instantly filtered out the “barely” and heard only like! Overjoyed, she clapped her hands, then scooted forward with sparkling eyes, stretching her little neck and tilting up her chubby face. “Then Daddy, please kiss me now!”

Her little cheeks were plump and tender. Luo Sheng couldn’t resist giving them a squeeze. The dumpling immediately squealed: “It’s kiss kiss, not squeeze squeeze!”

Luo Sheng had never kissed anyone in his life—not even his own mother, let alone a soft, chubby little cub.

He tried to coax her into going to sleep instead, but Yinyin pouted and accused him of lying.

Her big eyes welled with tears that spilled instantly. “My classmate Zhenzhen said, kisses are the only test of true love! If Daddy doesn’t kiss Yinyin, then you’re a liar!”

Luo Sheng: “……”

Where did this bizarre theory come from?

When he still didn’t move, she broke down into sobs. Even then, she was considerate—crying quietly so as not to wake Grandma and Grandpa—head drooped, looking as pitiful as a neglected left-behind child.

Luo Sheng hesitated, then reached out to ruffle her fluffy little head. “Don’t cry.”

The dumpling only cried harder.

After a while, she lifted her tear-streaked face, big red-rimmed eyes gazing at him, hiccuping between sobs. “Daddy… do you not like Yinyin anymore?”

Even a man with a heart as hard as iron couldn’t withstand that gaze. Stiffly, he bent down and pressed a kiss onto her chubby upturned face.

The dumpling’s eyes lit up. Daddy had kissed her! Throwing her little arms around his neck, she kissed him right back on the chin. “Daddy, Yinyin loves you too!”

Passionate and sincere, she never knew what “restraint” meant. All her devotion and adoration shone openly from her eyes and face, wrapping Luo Sheng in the scent of milk.

His large hand patted her soft head. “Alright, now go to sleep.”

This time, the dumpling happily obeyed. She climbed back into bed, lay down properly, let Daddy tuck her in, then flashed him a sweet smile. “Daddy, goodnight!”

Once a certain principle had been broken, everything that followed didn’t seem strange anymore.

Luo Sheng felt like he had been poisoned by this little cub. Otherwise, why would seeing her cry make him so restless he wanted to lash out?

Later, if he came home late and found her asleep, he would unconsciously pull her blanket up. Standing by her bed, after a long hesitation, he would bend down and brush his lips against her forehead. “Goodnight.”

The system stayed silent, deciding not to tell the little dumpling. Otherwise, her tail would surely wag all the way to the sky.

Not long after, Luo Sheng even went online to post: “Excuse me, what’s wrong with me?”

The comment section exploded with laughter. Luo Sheng frowned, filtering for useful replies.

Potato’s Partner: “Congrats, everything you describe is exactly how a new dad acts. You must be a super doting father, haha…”

Pig Has Two Ears: “My husband was the same way when he first became a dad. Over time, the ‘symptoms’ only got worse. Now he can’t live without our baby. Judging by what you wrote, you’re almost there too…”

One Two Three: “Fellow daughter-con, let’s shake hands.”

Baby’s Dad: “Who doesn’t have a soft spot in life? Bro, is this your first time feeling like this? You panicked so much you rushed to post online, haha, hilarious!”

Half-Cooled Water: “Speaking from experience, your behavior is totally normal. You’re just a bit more extreme in the ‘daughter-con’ department…”

Luo Sheng read them all silently. Suddenly, he remembered the vicious comments from netizens when he first announced adopting the little cub on Weibo. He had fought them tooth and nail for hundreds of rounds. Even now, he could recall several of their harshest remarks.

“A playboy can’t be a dad?”

“He’ll corrupt the kid!”

“Can’t even take care of himself, how could he raise a child?”

Luo Sheng curled his lips into a smile, slouching lazily in his chair. “Hmm… maybe I do have a knack for being a dad.”

But that’s a story for later.

For the dumpling, her very first kiss from Daddy—a kiss with the meaning of love—was so precious that she was giddy with joy, waking up half an hour earlier than usual the next morning.

Even so, when she came out of her room, Daddy had already left for work.

It was the weekend, so no school. Wearing her little bunny slippers, the dumpling pattered over to Grandma’s side and snuggled against her arm. “Grandma, you look so beautiful today!”

Mrs. Luo laughed, tapped her nose, and asked what she wanted. “So sweet so early in the morning? Come on, what is it?”

Blushing, the dumpling twisted her fingers. “W-where’s Daddy?”

“Your dad went to work.”

“Th-then…” Yinyin said, “I don’t have school today.”

Mrs. Luo was puzzled. “I know, it’s the weekend. What is it? Do you want to go play? Grandma can ask your Uncle Mu if he has time to take you.”

Because of Yinyin, Mu Bai had a good relationship with the Luo family—everyone except a certain daddy.

Mrs. Luo herself was too old to take a child out to play, her husband still recovering from a leg injury, and Luo Sheng busy with work. That left only Mu Bai suitable to accompany the dumpling.

Grandma thought she’d be happy. After all, she usually adored Mu Bai, always calling him “Pretty Uncle.” Who knew the dumpling would shake her little head firmly.

Her face flushed red, she stammered, “G-Grandma, c-could I… could I go to Daddy’s work to find him?”

Last night, Daddy had kissed her, filling her fragile little heart. Now she was extra clingy. Plus, remembering what Fatty Uncle said about Daddy being so busy he sometimes skipped meals, her heart ached.

She even asked the system, “Uncle System, I want to go to Daddy’s company to bring him food!”

The system thought it over, found the idea sound, and agreed.

But the little dumpling had never gone out far alone before. The farthest was walking the family golden retriever around the community—and even then, the nanny had followed from afar.

She tugged on Grandma’s arm, acting spoiled. “Grandma~~”

That soft, sweet little voice pierced straight into Mrs. Luo’s heart. She instantly gave in, nodding.

Once she promised, she couldn’t go back on it. She instructed two bodyguards and a driver to escort the dumpling to Bai Corporation to find her dad.

Excited, Yinyin trailed after the cook, counting on her little fingers. “Daddy likes braised pork ribs, likes fish, and also likes eggplant. Auntie, don’t add scallions though, Daddy doesn’t like those…”

The tiny dumpling commanded like a little adult. Not only did the cook feel helplessly amused, even Mrs. Luo chuckled at the doorway. “Alright, alright, we’ll do as Yinyin says. You really know your dad best, caring about everything!”

The dumpling tilted her chin proudly. “Of course! Yinyin loves Daddy the most!”

Then she quickly added, “Ah, but Yinyin also loves Grandma! And Grandpa too!”

“Mm-hm…”