The spread of dishes was dazzling to Si Mingjing.
"Miss Si, please don't stand on ceremony. Make yourself at home," the Old Madam said, her eyes crinkling with a warm smile. "I made sure no one else came to freeload, so you wouldn't feel overwhelmed. After all, you saved our family's precious Xiaobao. You have no idea how many people wanted to thank you personally."
"Thank you, Old Madam," Si Mingjing replied, touched by the kindness.
It wasn't that she felt awkward; she simply didn't know what "making herself at home" felt like. She'd never truly had a home. Her mother passed away when she was five, and ever since, she had struggled to survive on Prison Star.
Ye Nianbai was also diligently peeling a sea crab for Si Mingjing. "Babe, try this! It's super yummy!"
"Babe?"
Seated at the dining table were Old Madam Ye, Old Master Ye, Mo Yinhe, Ye Shen, Xiaobai, and Si Mingjing.
Mo Yinhe was the most aloof presence at the dining table. He was a tall, distinguished man who kept his head down, focused on eating. His simple white shirt was worn with an air of nonchalant elegance and pride.
Mo Yinhe suddenly looked up when his son uttered the word "Babe."
Ye Nianbai immediately puffed out his chest, his expression turning petulant. "Dad, Babe is my wife! You can't call her Babe!"
Mo Yinhe visibly started, his expression turning exceedingly grim. His voice was like ice. "Change the nickname."
"Why?" Ye Nianbai protested.
"No 'why.' I forbid it." Mo Yinhe's low, commanding voice, filled with absolute paternal authority, brooked no argument.
"This Little Master insists!"
"It seems you're itching for a spanking!"
Father and son faced off, neither willing to yield.
Mo Yinhe abruptly put down his chopsticks.
"You little rascal! It seems a few days without discipline and you're ready to tear the house down!"
Ye Nianbai immediately scrambled off his chair and ran to the Old Madam, letting out a theatrical wail that could shake the heavens. "Great-Grandma!" he cried, his words astonishing. "Dad's just jealous that I have a love life and he doesn't!"
The Old Madam instantly pulled the little boy into her arms, glaring at Mo Yinhe. "Why are you bickering with a child? It's just a nickname! What does he know? So what if 'Babe' is your special term of endearment? Your grandpa still calls me Babe! Does that mean he can't call me that anymore?"
Old Master Ye looked at his wife, his wine glass paused halfway to his lips.
When had he ever called her Babe?
The Old Madam's glare was like a forty-meter blade, practically making it a life-or-death question. "Isn't that right?"
"Of course, it is, Babe. I've been calling you that for decades," Old Master Ye said, the tips of his ears turning red.
The Old Madam's confidence swelled.
"Hmph! See? Everyone's someone's Babe!"
A flicker of indiscernible pain crossed Mo Yinhe's deep, unreadable eyes. He said nothing more, unwilling to argue with his elders, and resumed eating. Yet, his upright back seemed to radiate a stark loneliness.
Si Mingjing, always perceptive, sensed a loneliness seeping from the very soul of the man as he ate with his head down.
Could it be that the word "Babe" had triggered painful memories of a past love?
He must have loved Xiaobai's mother very much.
Si Mingjing was certain.
She pulled the little boy closer. "Xiaobai, actually, I don't really like the nickname 'Babe.' It isn't unique, and I don't want anything that isn't unique to me."
Ye Nianbai seemed to understand. He immediately changed his tune. "Got it, Jingjing! From now on, only this Little Master gets to call you Jingjing!"
Si Mingjing: "..."
Ye Shen, who had been preoccupied with a crab leg, mumbled indistinctly as he changed the subject, "By the way, Miss Si, when do you plan to start treating my brother? What's your treatment plan? Don't worry, whatever medicinal ingredients you need, I can procure them. Feel free to use the very best for my brother's treatment."