Mommy, don't be afraid, I'll bring you blind boxes and scam you out of a wealthy family to

Every day, fresh flowers are added to Wen Shulian's hospital room. The blue and purple hydrangeas are lush and beautiful. Wen Li admires them for a while before going to see her mother.

Duan Xianchen accompanied me today.

He leaned against the door frame, his hands in his pockets, watching the little baby nestled next to his mother, seemingly having endless things to say.

The scene was warm and tranquil, like an oil painting.

After a while, he came in and sat down on the chair next to him: "Li Bao, there's something I need to tell you."

"Your maternal grandparents, Wen Guoliang and Chen Xiulan... they are not your mother's biological parents."

Wen Li blinked: "Like a stepfather, not Li Bao's father, right?"

"right."

Wen Li thought about it for a moment. She wasn't very familiar with Wen and Chen to begin with, so she wasn't sad now that she knew it was fake.

"Then, where are Mommy's mommy and daddy?" she asked.

Duan Xianchen shook his head: "We're still looking. But I'll help you find it."

Wen Li recalled: "That day, when we were taking pictures of Mommy, there were other people in the photos that Li Bao didn't recognize; later, in Matchstick, they also celebrated Li Bao's birthday."

Her speech was too disjointed, and Duan Xianchen didn't understand it at all.

But when he looked at Wen Li and then at Wen Shulian, he suddenly felt a pang of regret. It was a blessing to know clearly who one's parents were, a privilege not everyone possesses.

The little dumpling pressed its face against its mother's hand, innocent and affectionate.

Duan Xianchen asked, "Li Bao, Mommy hasn't woken up for so long, aren't you worried?"

Wen Li thought for a moment and said, "Mommy is very busy in another world. I will wait for her to come back."

"...What if I'm constantly busy?"

"Then Li Bao waited."

She answered so matter-of-factly, as if she was only waiting for her mother to come home from get off work, rather than for the even less likely scenario of a vegetative patient waking up.

The little dumpling looked at Duan Xianchen and smiled, "Uncle, you've waited for Grandma to come home too?"

Duan Xianchen was taken aback.

His voice turned colder: "She doesn't care about me at all."

"Your father was her first child, and your second sister was her only daughter. She loved them very much." Duan Xianchen said, as if talking to herself, or as if she had finally found someone to confide in. "Only I am nothing."

He shrugged self-deprecatingly: "In her eyes, I'm not even as good as the people she helps with charity projects."

Wen Li felt so sad that her uncle looked so upset, and she wanted to comfort him, but she didn't know what to say.

She searched and searched, then pulled a strawberry gummy candy from her pocket and handed it to him: "Uncle, here you go."

"Li Bao wanted to give you a strawberry cake," the milk ball said regretfully, "but Li Bao doesn't have any money to buy it."

Her mature tone was so adorable that Duan Xianchen couldn't help but laugh and pinched her chubby cheeks: "You're just a little cake."

The milk ball blinked: Is that so?

-

To fulfill his wish, after leaving the hospital, Duan Xianchen took Wen Li to a dessert shop.

The display case was filled with all kinds of cakes. Wenli hesitated for a long time before choosing the strawberry mousse.

"Just one?" Duan Xianchen asked. "Should we buy them all and try them all?"

Wen Li quickly shook her head and held up her little finger: "One is enough."

The uncle and nephew sat by the window, enjoying their meal and chatting. Duan Xianchen's mood improved considerably.

But there are always disruptors.

"Oh, isn't this Attorney Duan?"

Duan Xianchen looked up.

A man with at least three pounds of hairspray on his face walked over, his smile excessively bright.

Wen Li didn't know him, but she had a very bad feeling about him.

She held the small spoon, a little nervous.

"Editor-in-Chief Lü, what a coincidence." Duan Xianchen put down his coffee, polite but distant.

Lü Hong is the editor-in-chief of a leading financial magazine in Tan City and also Duan Xianchen's college classmate.

The two had been rivals since their student days, but unfortunately, Lü Hong was always outdone, which made him resentful.

Lu Hong's gaze swept over the little boy, then he smiled at Duan Xianchen: "I was wondering why Lawyer Duan was so young and accomplished. Turns out it's because he has powerful connections. With a mother like Ambassador Qin, Lawyer Duan's life is truly smooth sailing."

Duan Xianchen's expression darkened, but he didn't respond.

A few days ago, backstage at the charity gala, many people were present, and it was destined that the public would know that Ms. Qin was also Mrs. Duan.

He should have expected this.

Wen Li glanced at her uncle. She had finally felt a little happier after eating the strawberry cake, but now she was back to the gloomy mood she felt when she saw her grandmother.

Lu Hong was pleased that his words had worked, so he leaned forward and lowered his voice: "By the way, regarding the cross-border project that Attorney Duan is currently working on, someone leaked information to our official account, saying that you were able to move forward smoothly because there were 'abnormal influencing factors' behind you—and they were quite certain of it."

These words are an accusation that Duan Xianchen relied on Qin Zhiyuan's help.

Duan Xianchen coldly replied, "Nonsense."

"We've known each other for so many years, of course I know you've relied on your own abilities," Lü Hong said with a smile, "but some people still believe it."

Without waiting for Duan Xianchen's reply, he left with a casual "Let's talk another day."

Wen Li, biting her small spoon, pushed the rest of the cake in front of her to Duan Xianchen: "Uncle, eat this."

Duan Xianchen knew that this was Naituzi's way of comforting people, so he didn't refuse.

The tartness of the strawberry mixed with the sweetness of the cream melted on the tip of the tongue, gentler than the candy from before.

Wen Li then asked, "Uncle, if you're a lawyer, does that mean you have to help other people?"

I guess so.

Have you helped many people before?

"Yes, some."

"Do you like helping out?"

Duan Xianchen looked into her eyes, so clear that they reminded him of his initial motivation for studying law: "Mm."

Wen Li tilted her head: "Then, why do some people not like you helping them?"

This question is too pure and innocent, leaving adults, already tainted by worldly corruption, unsure how to answer it.

How can he explain to a three-year-old what jealousy is, what prejudice is, and what it means for "others to feel worse when they see you succeed than when they fail"?

The milk ball had clearly come up with a good idea, putting down its little spoon: "Then next time someone doesn't like it, you can tell them to go see it."

Duan Xianchen was momentarily confused: "...What are you looking at?"

"Seeing you help, I knew you were a good uncle!" Wen Li's sweet, childlike voice was incredibly earnest, filled with childlike certainty.

Duan Xianchen paused for a moment, then pushed the strawberry mousse back to Wen Li and pinched her cheek: "Okay, whatever Li Bao says."

Seeing that her uncle's expression had relaxed a bit, Wen Li scooped up a big spoonful of cream and stuffed it into her mouth, then happily wiggled her little legs.

Duan Xianchen also laughed.

There are too many people in this world who look at others through colored glasses. They don't see the person themselves, but rather their surname, their family, their father, mother, and brothers.

But at least there's this little guy who always sees the real him.

-

Duan Xianchen was driving towards the old house when he was called back by a phone call from the law firm, who said there was an emergency.

Duan Xianchen said apologetically, "Li Bao, please wait with your uncle for a while, okay? If you're in a hurry, I'll call your family to come and pick you up."

The little dumpling hugged the snow dragon, which was almost bigger than herself—the one her uncle had just bought for her—and said without hesitation, "Pear, wait for your uncle!"

Frustration is frustration, but having milk dumplings around always makes me feel more at ease.

I rushed back to the law firm, and it was already dark.

The office lights were on, and partner Fu Jing sat on the sofa, sighing.

Seeing that Duan Xianchen had brought a small child with him, he was taken aback: "Is this your brother's child?"

Duan Xianchen remained noncommittal, but Wen Li obediently greeted him, "Hello, Uncle."

Fu Jingchong smiled at her: "The little one is very polite."

Wen Li sensed the awkward atmosphere, so she climbed onto the small sofa on the other side and sat down, holding Xue Long's paws and playing by herself.

Fu Jing handed over his phone: "Look, it's trending again. You guys with the surname Duan, you're all prone to causing trouble."

Duan Xianchen glanced at it.

Fu Jing was right. The Duan family had been taking turns dominating the trending topics lately, from Duan Shimi's plagiarism incident to Duan Hetong and Wen Li's adoption scandal, and now it was their turn.

The revelation that Lü Hong mentioned did indeed appear on social media.

Soon, someone else added fuel to the fire.

Qin Zhiyuan's overseas experience was brought up again and placed alongside Duan Xianchen's project, accompanied by an ambiguous statement:

"The timing is too coincidental."

The comments below are varied and diverse:

No wonder the progress has been so smooth.

This guy wins every single lawsuit; I told you there was something wrong with him.

It turns out it's not about ability, it's about who your father is—no, who your mother is.

[Hahaha, what a mama's boy!]

……

The topic of the older siblings' story is relatively mainstream, and many netizens are "concerned," which is understandable.

Duan Xianchen never expected that his niche field could be stirred up like this.

Or rather, it's not that they're really nitpicking over his case.

Instead, anything related to the Duan family is put under a magnifying glass and subjected to scrutiny from every eye.

Fu Jing pinched the bridge of his nose: "Nobody cares whether it's true or not, they just want to see the juicy details, to see that you got opportunities that others couldn't get because of your family connections."

Duan Xianchen threw himself into the sofa and closed his eyes: "From childhood to adulthood, whatever I do well, I get criticized, simply because my surname is Duan."

Fu Jing sighed.

He and Duan Xianchen were old acquaintances from their student days. Back then, Duan Xianchen would run around for more than ten days straight for a case, even suffering from heatstroke, but he never thought of using his family's connections.

This proud man, when being introduced, always insists on saying first: "Old Duan's youngest son."

Duan Xianchen spent ten years making everyone forget the shackles of his identity and only remember him as the youngest and top lawyer in the industry.

As a result, it collapsed in one fell swoop and became "Ms. Qin's son".

"It's always like this...it's always like this..." Duan Xianchen's emotions grew increasingly agitated. "From the past until now, she just can't stand to see me doing well! She's only satisfied when she's destroyed everything I have, isn't she?!"

He slammed his fist on the coffee table, making a loud "bang".

Wen Li was so startled she almost jumped up and turned her head away.

But they were stunned.

She thought she was seeing things and rubbed her eyes.

But it's still the same.

Uncle is crying...?

The little dumpling hugged Xue Long tightly, momentarily at a loss.