“Ow!”
Before she even reached the cart, Luoluo’s tiny body lost balance, and she fell headfirst toward the hard ground.
She hit the ground solidly, and a burning pain immediately shot through her knees and palms again. The little turtle in her arms rolled away with a series of tumbles.
“Wuuu… hurts…”The piercing pain made tears pour uncontrollably from Luoluo’s eyes.
But after everything she had gone through these past two days, she didn’t dare cry loudly. She only sniffled softly.
The sudden commotion shattered the quiet.
The tall figure who had been facing away from them abruptly turned around.
“Uh… such a pretty uncle.”The moment Luoluo saw his handsome face, she couldn’t help blurting it out between hiccups, even forgetting to cry.
The little turtle, which had rolled away, was still struggling on the ground with all four legs in the air. After finally flipping itself over, it crawled back beside Luoluo.
Hearing her exclamation, it stretched its neck high and lifted its head to look up too.
Wow!
This was the best-looking person it had ever seen in its entire turtle life — aside from Luoluo.
He had a youthful face tinged with impatience. His jawline was sharp and clean, blending the brightness of a young man with the ruggedness of an adult.
His thick black hair carried a natural curl. His skin was a healthy wheat color, yet not rough in the slightest.
His deep-set eyes were framed by long thick lashes, and a faint scar cut through the peak of his right eyebrow, adding a hint of wild rebelliousness.
His nose was tall and straight, and his lips well-shaped, the corners curved lazily in a careless manner.
When he saw them, the corners of his mouth turned downward slightly, giving off an unmistakable “keep strangers away” rogue-like vibe.
His name was Xiao Lu. He had secretly sold the wild boar he hunted yesterday in town, bought supplies for home, and was just about to head back to the village.
He only glanced once at the child and turtle on the ground. Without saying a word, he turned around and grabbed the ox rope to leave.
“Moo—!”
At that moment, the old yellow ox that had been standing quietly suddenly let out a loud moo.
Instead of obeying Xiao Lu’s command, it stubbornly stayed rooted in place, its large bell-like eyes fixed unblinkingly on Luoluo.
Xiao Lu hadn’t expected the old ox to refuse to move, so he tugged harder on the reins.
But the ox seemed not to feel the pull at all. Instead, it leisurely walked two steps toward Luoluo.
Then it lowered its head and gently nudged her with its wet grass-scented nose.
Somehow, Xiao Lu almost absurdly sensed a kind of… affection in the ox’s actions.
What the hell was this?
Today was really cursed. First the wild boar meat sold for less than expected, and now even the usually obedient ox was going against him.
“Old Huang! What are you nudging for? Move already, we’re going home!” Xiao Lu yanked the rope again, irritation flaring.
But the old ox acted as if it heard nothing. Its four hooves stayed planted firmly to the ground without budging.
Its gentle eyes glanced at the little turtle in Luoluo’s arms, then back at Luoluo herself, letting out another short and mild “Moo—”.
Luoluo, who had already stopped crying, looked up at the old ox, then sneaked a glance at Xiao Lu’s impatient face.
“Cow-cow,” she whispered softly to the ox, “Luoluo hungry… wants meat buns…”
The little turtle instantly covered its eyes with its short front legs, secretly peeking at Xiao Lu through the gaps.
Luoluo really had no sense for reading the room. The man was obviously about to get angry, yet she still dared ask him for meat buns.
That greedy little glutton was going to get them killed.
“Luoluo, Luoluo…” The little turtle kicked her lightly with its tiny legs. “Quick, stop talking. That person looks really fierce — he’s going to get mad.”
Luoluo turned her head and met Xiao Lu’s gaze, then murmured back to the turtle, “Not fierce… very handsome… like Daddy…”
Ever since she was little, everyone in the family had praised her father for being handsome and capable. The man before her gave her the same feeling — handsome and strong — so he seemed like Daddy.
The little turtle’s bean-sized eyes immediately spun rapidly again.
Luoluo had no home anymore. Although the man looked impatient and seemed to have a bad temper, someone this handsome probably wasn’t a bad person.
And Luoluo clearly liked him too, so why not—
“Luoluo, quick, call him Daddy!” the little turtle hurriedly urged her, no longer overthinking. “Quick! Hurry and cry while calling him Daddy, or there’ll be no meat buns!”
A man handsome enough to afford meat buns was a rare treasure. They had to seize this chance.
The little turtle’s words struck Luoluo’s tiny brain like lightning.
Her longing for a father, mixed with her obsession with meat buns — under this double temptation, Luoluo opened her mouth toward Xiao Lu.
“Waaah— Daddy! Daddy, Luoluo hungry… Luoluo hurts…”Her babyish crying voice sounded utterly heartbroken, filled with complete dependence and grievance.
That earth-shattering “Daddy” slammed directly into Xiao Lu’s head.
His entire body froze.
The impatience on his face cracked apart.
His fierce expression stiffened there awkwardly, looking almost comical.
“Da… Daddy?”Even Xiao Lu’s voice changed pitch, as if someone had grabbed him by the throat. Never in his life had he expected to be scammed by a milk-drinking toddler.
He instinctively roared back, “Who’s your daddy?! Don’t call people randomly, little brat — go find your real father!”
“Waaahhh, waaahhh— Daddy, Luoluo hungry… Luoluo hurts…”What answered him was even louder crying, along with Luoluo stretching her tiny arms toward him, asking to be carried.
The little turtle shrank its neck into its shell and played dead in Luoluo’s arms, desperately minimizing its existence.
At some point, several passersby had quietly gathered around.
There was an auntie carrying a vegetable basket, an old man smoking a dry tobacco pipe — all of them watching from a distance, pointing and whispering.
“Isn’t that Xiao Lu from Guhe Village? How did he scare the child into this state?”
“Oh dear, what a sin. Such a tiny child crying like this…”
“She’s calling him Daddy? Since when did Xiao Lu get such a big daughter outside?”
“Look how pretty that little girl is. Maybe she really is his child — ordinary people couldn’t produce such a beautiful kid.”
…
The comments — full of sympathy, disdain, and curiosity — all came crashing down on Xiao Lu.
Normally, Xiao Lu was already notorious in the village for being rough and unruly. What he hated most was people gossiping behind his back.
But now this situation…
Damn it!
He irritably raked a hand through his hair, feeling like his head was about to explode.
How was he supposed to explain to these gossip-loving busybodies that he didn’t even know this little brat?
Who would believe him?
But if he didn’t explain, was he really supposed to let this tiny thing cling to him while hugging a turtle?
Chase the child away?
Xiao Lu might not be a good man, but he wasn’t heartless enough to lay hands on such a tiny little bean-sized child either.