Be Careful, Scum Dad! Mommy Is Back!
Chapter 435 Nuonuo: Inviting Yuyu to Drink Fish Soup

Chapter 435: Chapter 435 Nuonuo: Inviting Yuyu to Drink Fish Soup

"He must be involved in the Xi Family’s power struggle with the other party, right?"

Lu Xining’s eyes deepened. Regarding Shang Lvxing’s conjecture, she replied tactfully, "That’s his business, I wouldn’t know."

Knowing her usual temperament of not revealing emotions, he didn’t press further and directly shared what he knew with her.

"My agents received information that Xi Juan has made special preparations for this ’Net Purge Operation.’ On the surface, it looks like he’s at a disadvantage, but in reality, he’s long since constrained the actions of the other party. Every weakness we’ve seen about him is a façade he’s deliberately shown."

After pondering for a moment, Shang Lvxing continued speaking to her, "Moreover, currently there’s a 60% chance that the person the authorities want to protect... is him."

Both of them knew very well what kind of figure Xi Juan was. What kind of agent could uncover such classified information?

Shang Qing’s face appeared in Lu Xining’s mind.

She did not expose Shang Lvxing’s excuse, pursing her lips slightly as she asked, "What are you trying to say?"

"I know you collaborate with him."

His sigh echoed from across, "Xining, given the current situation, anyone connected to Xi Juan will inevitably be categorized by the other faction as siding with him. Even if your collaboration is purely professional, as long as there’s any association, whatever happens to him next will impact you."

Shang Lvxing knew the ZN Experimental Base was Lu Xining’s labor of love and naturally didn’t want her caught up in the factional power struggle.

Upon hearing this, Lu Xining understood his concern and replied, "At this point, it’s no longer a situation where simply wanting to end the collaboration will make it end."

Back when the "Artificial Uterus" project in Beicheng was first launched, she had felt joy and relief knowing someone of Xi Juan’s status was backing it. Who could’ve foreseen such drastic changes in such a short time?

Now, she was already aboard a pirate ship, forced to contribute all her experimental research achievements.

In a power struggle between two factions, the ones who die the most are always the small fry.

A knock at the door interrupted the exchange between Lu Xining and Shang Lvxing. After hurriedly finishing the conversation, she turned to speak, "Come in."

Cheng Cang entered from outside with Little Dumpling in his arms.

"Mama~" Lu Nuonuo peeked out, beaming at her, holding something colorful and shimmering in her hand.

Seeing the slightly guilty smile on her daughter’s face, Lu Xining frowned. A mother’s intuition told her this little troublemaker must have done something again.

As her daughter grew older, her clever little mind was bursting with all sorts of novel ideas.

"Lu Nuonuo, did you get up to something again?"

Although Ji Chao and Ji Ze were on winter vacation, as future heirs of the Ji Family, their studies were vast and continued without pause. Recently, their interest in horse riding and archery had grown intensely.

Hence, Lu Xining arranged instructors to teach them. At this moment, her two sons were taking archery lessons.

The lonesome Lu Nuonuo had been following a female assistant around to play.

But the moment she saw Cheng Cang wheeling in a crate full of fish and shrimp, she immediately ran to help.

Under the assault of her sweet and innocent smile, the man couldn’t resist taking her to see the juvenile merman. But! Who would’ve guessed she would pluck off the young merman’s scales?

"That’s what happened." Cheng Cang finished recounting the ordeal with a laugh.

Lu Nuonuo, alarmed, waved her hands to explain, "Fishie’s tail was pretty, so Nuonuo just lightly touched it."

"This fell off by itself, Nuonuo didn’t pull it."

She opened her small palm, revealing a fish scale shining with colorful light, glowing brilliantly in her tiny hand.

Little Dumpling looked up at her mama, her apologetic voice filling the room.

"Mama, Nuonuo already apologized to Fishie."

Cheng Cang, who had been teasing the child about pulling too hard, hadn’t expected Little Dumpling to look so crestfallen. He quickly chimed in to help, "Yes, Nuonuo apologized, and the merman wasn’t mad. Sister Ning, don’t blame the child—she even came over on purpose to admit her mistake, worried you’d be upset."

The young merman’s current habitat was an enormous, unused laboratory.

Initially prepared for future experiments yet to commence, it was now transformed into a swimming pool, replenished daily with fresh seawater.

That kid couldn’t be more delighted.

Lu Xining had thought it might’ve been something serious. She scooped up her daughter, kissed her cheek to reassure her, "Mama isn’t mad at Nuonuo."

A merman capable of sending an adult flying with a swipe of its tail—could her less-than-three-year-old daughter really pull off plucking its scales?

She found it hard to believe her daughter possessed such skill.

Holding her daughter, Lu Xining sat down on the sofa, poured a cup of warm water for her, and spoke gently while feeding her, "Mama knows Nuonuo just likes the little merman and wants to be his friend, right?"

Little Dumpling drank some water and immediately felt her throat recover.

She nodded, the sadness on her face dissipating.

Taking the juvenile merman’s scale from her daughter’s hand, Lu Xining examined it closely.

She noticed that its edges, once sharp as blades, had already been smoothed out, prepared in a way that ensured it wouldn’t cut anyone’s palm upon contact.

It seemed... like something pre-arranged.

"Nuonuo, do you like this fish scale?"

Under the light, the fish scale glittered more brilliantly than mother-of-pearl used in certain jewelry brands.

Lu Nuonuo grinned and replied, "I like it, Mama—it’s so pretty."

"If you like it, keep it then."

She let her daughter keep the scale and turned to Cheng Cang, who had entered and sat nearby, "There’s something I need to ask your opinion on."

After listening to her, Cheng Cang shrugged and said, "I’m not big on good deeds, but Shang Lvxing seems pretty enigmatic. I’m actually curious about the matter he’d need my help with. I’ll call him later and figure out the situation before deciding."

Lu Xining nodded, "That’s up to you. If you don’t wish to take the matter, then don’t."

While the adults were discussing things, Lu Nuonuo behaved well by not interrupting. She clutched the fish scale in her hand, imagining the smiling juvenile merman she had seen earlier.

... Fishie was so cute.

Ah! Uncle Fu’s fish soup was also delicious.

As she thought about it, she couldn’t help but purse her lips, recalling Fu Junhang’s culinary skills.

"Mama, Nuonuo wants to drink fish soup."

"Alright, let’s have the kitchen prepare fish soup for you tonight, okay?"

Her big, sparkling eyes blinked as she asked, "Mama, can Nuonuo invite Fishie to drink fish soup with us?"

Lu Xining: "...Maybe not."

Pfft!

Cheng Cang couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Though the juvenile merman had once been human, his current form was undeniably unique—inviting a "fish" to drink fish soup was a tad impolite.

"Uncle, why are you laughing?" Lu Nuonuo looked at him, puzzled, full of curiosity.

Not wanting to hurt the child’s young spirit, he quickly suppressed his smile and said, "It’s nothing. Uncle just remembered something funny."

Little Dumpling scratched her head, thinking this uncle was a bit odd.

At the same time, in another spacious experimental lab, the juvenile merman stared at the scenery above the pool, his eyes flashing with a stormy and inscrutable demeanor.

He attempted to speak: "Nu... Nu..."