“Мaster Нuаng!” Аn еldеrlу noblеwomаn at the forefront sрoke аnxiоuslу, “Aftеr yоu gavе my grandson that Longеvity Loсk last timе, his health did improve, but these past few dаys he’s bеen сrying nonstор. Сould уоu рleаse takе а lооk and see what’s rеally gоing оn?”
“Yеs, we tоok him to the hоspitаl, but thеу сouldn’t find аnything wrong. Yеt the bаby just keеps crуing. Нe’s so littlе, аnd thе dоctors don’t darе рrescribe sleeping рills…” Тhe baby’s mоthеr wipеd hеr teаrs as shе sрokе.
As soon as her words fell, a clear, crisp voice suddenly rang out from below: “Little brother, don’t cry!”
Everyone looked down and only then noticed a little girl around three years old in the room.
Standing beside the little girl was a young man who quietly pulled her back a bit, offering an awkward smile to everyone.
“Who are these two…?” the baby’s mother asked, puzzled.
The grandmother suddenly interrupted with delight: “Ah! My grandson has stopped crying!”
“It’s true! He’s stopped crying!” others exclaimed in surprise.
The infant in the swaddling clothes, who had just been crying heartbreakingly, had now quieted down, only hiccupping softly.
Everyone’s attention shifted back.
“Master Huang is truly remarkable.”
“The baby has been crying for days, and nothing we did could soothe him, but he stops crying as soon as he’s here.”
“Master, you must take a good look at our little one this time.”
Master Huang stroked his chin smugly.
This family had come to him two months ago, asking him to examine their newborn who was weak and frequently ill.
Master Huang had given them a Longevity Lock on the spot, instructing them to have the child wear it at all times. Sure enough, the child’s health improved.
Afterward, the family had even come with drums and gongs to thank him, bringing generous gifts.
As for this time… it probably wasn’t a big issue either.
“A child crying incessantly is likely just a bit frightened. Nothing to make a fuss about,” Master Huang concluded leisurely. “If I add a bit more yang energy to the Longevity Lock I gave him, it should stabilize his spirit…”
“Second Uncle, hold me!” Xiao Ling Bao’s voice rang out again, untimely.
Interrupted, Master Huang glanced at Xiao Ling Bao with displeasure.
His disciple immediately made a gesture to shoo them away.
Ling Yixi had already picked up Xiao Ling Bao, feeling dizzy and lightheaded, with only one line spinning in his mind: He’s holding Ling Bао! He finally got to hold his little Ling Bао!
Even as others urged him to leave, his steps felt light and airy, and he walked out in a wobbly, inverted figure-eight pattern.
As they passed the maid holding the baby, Xiao Ling Bao suddenly reached out and happened to touch a jade Longevity Lock around the baby’s neck: “This isn’t right! There’s another little brother inside this!”
As her words fell, an inexplicably cold wind swept through the room.
Everyone seemed to hear an illusion—the sound of an unfamiliar little boy’s crying echoed in their minds.
Involuntarily, everyone shuddered in unison…
“How dare you!” Master Huang’s guardian disciple roared angrily. “Impudent child! You’re still wet behind the ears! Stop spreading such nonsense here!”
“Now, now,” Master Huang displayed magnanimity instead. “This girl has an inauspicious fate, so naturally she tries to absorb others’ luck by cursing them. A three-year-old child doesn’t even know what she’s doing.”
With his words, everyone immediately turned hostile and unfriendly gazes toward Xiao Ling Bao.
“Ling Bао isn’t inauspicious!” Xiao Ling Bao put her hands on her hips. “Ling Bао isn’t as inauspicious as you, Uncle, and not as inauspicious as the little brother inside this lock!”
“Whose little girl are you?” The baby’s grandmother looked displeased. “How did your parents raise you?”
“Alright, little ancestor.” Ling Yixi, terrified, covered Xiao Ling Bao’s mouth and dashed outside.
Xiao Ling Bao showed no fear at all. Perched on Ling Yixi’s shoulder, she waved at the people inside the house, her voice clear and bright: “Before it rains tonight, the little brother will cry again. You must come find Ling Bао before then… remember, before it rains, before it rains…”
Ling Yixi ran as if sprinting a hundred meters.
Finally reaching the bridge in the garden, Ling Yixi caught his breath and set Xiao Ling Bao down.
“Oh, my little Ling Bао,” he said with a pained expression, “do you know whose family that was…”
But Xiao Ling Bao paid no attention to his words, simply waving at the water behind Ling Yixi: “Hello, sister!”
Ling Yixi turned around in horror and, unsurprisingly, saw only a pond of calm water.
“I say, Xiao Ling Bao…” He was at a loss for words…
Suddenly, Xiao Ling Bao gave his legs a hard shove.
“Ah!”
With a splash, Ling Yixi fell straight into the pond.
The commotion was loud, and people immediately came into the yard.
Ling Yixi dog-paddled his way back onto the bridge and, ignoring his soaked clothes, scooped up Xiao Ling Bao and vanished like the wind…
…
Concerned with the fate of the Ling family, Ling Yixi didn’t care about his appearance. After changing into whatever clothes were handy, he took Xiao Ling Bao to the name-change office.
However, when he pulled the note Master Huang had given him from the paper tube, he was completely dumbfounded.
The note had gotten wet, and the writing was now blurred.
The first character, “Ling,” was still somewhat recognizable, but the middle character was completely smudged. As for the last character, its radical had turned into an ink blot…
“This is… this is… could you help identify it?” He had no choice but to swallow his pride and ask the staff for help.
The staff member was also troubled. “The radical of this last character is ‘qi.’ But is the radical… wood, square, or jade?”
Was it Qi, Qi, or Qi?
“It’s water!” Xiao Ling Bao declared confidently from the side.
Ling Yixi… steeled himself: “Right, it should be Qi!””
“And this middle one, little one, can you recognize it too?” the staff member asked half-jokingly.
“It looks like this…” Xiao Ling Bao tilted her head thoughtfully, tracing the shape with her finger.
“I know! It’s the character ‘zi’—Ling Ziqi!” Ling Yixi clapped his hands.
After the name was changed, Ling Yixi quietly took Xiao Ling Bao to a secluded spot.
“Ling Bао, can we discuss something?” Ling Yixi crouched in front of Xiao Ling Bao, rubbing his hands together with an ingratiating smile.
Xiao Ling Bao nodded, her watery eyes fixed on Ling Yixi.
Ling Yixi felt like crying. How could his Ling Bао be so adorable?
And here he was, trying to coax such an adorable Ling Bао into helping him cover up his own mistake.
“Ling Bао, don’t tell anyone about the note getting smudged, okay?”
How could he possibly explain it?
That a grown man was pushed into the water by a three-year-old?
Or that as the Second Brother of the Ling family, he couldn’t even handle a simple task like changing a name?
As long as he didn’t tell and Ling Bао didn’t tell, and with the staff processing so many names every day and Master Huang naming so many people each month… no one would ever know he had switched things around.
“Alright, alright, silly uncle, don’t cry,” Xiao Ling Bao generously patted Ling Yixi’s shoulder. “Ling Bао will protect you!”
Thus, the two formed a revolutionary alliance on this matter.
…
Night fell.
After coaxing Xiao Ling Bao to sleep, Ling Yixi went downstairs and was surprised to find half the family had returned home.
“Dad, big brother, Old Third?” Ling Yixi hurried forward. “How did it go?”