In the director's office of Spring Vine Orphanage, a well-dressed young couple sat on a worn-out sofa, looking out of place in the cramped room.
The orphanage director was a kind woman nearing fifty, wearing a slightly faded sweater but with a face full of smiles.
The couple opposite them were the powerful figures of the renowned Ye Group, Mr. and Mrs. Ye.
They had come today to discuss the matter of injecting funds to support the orphanage.
This orphanage wasn't particularly famous or the most dilapidated, so receiving the sponsorship of these two important figures made the director feel incredibly fortunate.
Director Mama had also experienced a life of prosperity in the past. She clearly saw that Mrs. Ye's dress might cost as much as the orphanage children's food for a month.
With the help of Mrs. Ye and Mr. Ye, she would be able to take in more children and ensure that the current children in the orphanage ate better and were warmer.
From time to time, children would run past the office door. Knowing that important guests were in the office today, they were curious to peek.
But the children were well-behaved, so they would only glance quickly before running off. The kind auntie who visited last time had given them candy for a month; they wondered if they would get some this time too.
Near the orphanage entrance, by a small grove of trees, a particularly small boy was squatting in a patch of shade.
He looked up at the children running and jumping in the distance, then quickly lowered his head again.
Luo Qi puffed out his cheeks and poked at ants on the ground with the small stick he held.
The kind auntie who visited last time had brought a lot of candy, some he had never seen before. But he hadn't gotten to eat his share.
There were too many children in the orphanage, and stronger ones would always snatch his candy away.
It would likely be the same this time, so he wasn't particularly interested in the aunt and uncle who had come today.
Luo Qi had known since he was young that if he wanted to grow up safely in the orphanage, he had to be more obedient and well-behaved.
For example, if he gave his candy to the fattest child, he could get an extra small bowl of rice or two pieces of meat.
That was much better than candy that only smelled sweet. *Slurp*, Luo Qi swallowed his saliva, he really didn't want to eat it.
Luo Qi sniffled, rubbed his eyes, and used his stick to block the ant on the ground from returning to its nest.
But the ant was clever enough to know to go around the stick and crawl back into its nest, stubbornly indicating that it didn't want to play with Luo Qi at all. Luo Qi was so angry he almost cried.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over him. Luo Qi tilted his head back to look up, but because he had been squatting for too long, his legs went numb, and his head, along with his whole body, toppled backward.
It didn't hurt as much as he expected. Luo Qi landed with a plop on someone's feet, his back leaning against their legs.
Luo Qi remained looking up at the person behind him. The person behind him had a small, stern face and nudged Luo Qi's back with their knee.
"Little one, you're sitting on my feet."
Little Luo Qi quickly stood up. His clothes had been worn for a long time, and they were a bit dirty from squatting and playing with ants for half the day.
The child who appeared behind him, about his own age, wore brand new, clean clothes that looked different from those of the other children in the orphanage.
Luo Qi patted his bottom and stood up, taking two steps back, and said softly:
"I didn't mean to."
The child opposite him was very pretty, with bright black eyes. Seeing Luo Qi, he suddenly smiled:
"My name is Ye Mu, what's yours?"
Luo Qi pursed his lips: "My name is Luo Qi."
Ye Mu nodded, then suddenly turned and ran away.
Luo Qi puffed out his cheeks, wanting to call out to him, but ultimately didn't.
It seemed that Director Mama wasn't entirely right. Even if he smiled at Ye Mu and learned his name, they were still strangers.
Luo Qi's stomach rumbled twice. It was noon, time for lunch.
Luo Qi patted the grass and dust off his body and ran towards the cafeteria.
If he was late, all the meat would be snatched away.
There was still some distance between the orphanage gate and the cafeteria, and Luo Qi, being small, also ran slowly. By the time he returned to the cafeteria, it was almost time to eat.
However, what Luo Qi had worried about didn't happen this time. Because there were guests today, the cafeteria food was very abundant.
As soon as Luo Qi entered, he saw several meat dishes on the table that only appeared during festivals.
Luo Qi's eyes lit up. Taking advantage of his small size, he squeezed into a vacant table and sat down, holding his small bowl and chopsticks, gazing eagerly at the food on the table.
As the last dish was served, Luo Qi slurped his saliva, retracting his earlier thought about not caring if the pretty auntie came.
If the pretty auntie brought meat every time she visited, he wished she would come every day.
There was plenty of meat today, so no one snatched from Luo Qi's bowl. He quickly scooped several pieces of meat into his bowl and put them into his mouth with satisfaction.
Ye Mu, holding Mrs. Ye's hand, stood at the cafeteria entrance and saw this scene.
The small, thin cub, with only his cheeks round, was eating the rice in his bowl with large mouthfuls, his small eyes still fixed on the meat on the plate.
Because he had eaten his favorite food, his big eyes were full of joy, and a grain of rice was stuck to his cheek.
Ye Mu looked at the child and unconsciously curved his lips. His hand was tightly squeezed, and Ye Mu looked up to see his mother's lips pressed tightly together, her face subtly distorted.
Ye Mu frowned: "Mom? What's wrong?"
Mrs. Ye took a deep breath to suppress the trembling maternal instinct within her and asked as calmly as possible:
"Xiao Mu, the younger brother you wanted Mom to adopt, is this child?"
Ye Mu nodded: "Yes, Luo Qi is very cute."
Ye Mu suddenly picked up Ye Mu and kissed him, generously showering him with praise: "You're truly Mom's good boy! Mom agrees, we'll take your brother home today."
Ye Yun, following behind, silently covered his face. His wife's obsession with appearance couldn't be changed, but could a child be adopted just like that? Wasn't this reckless?
However, in the Ye family, if Ye Yun could change Mrs. Ye's mind, it would be strange. Mrs. Ye cast aside Ye Yun's dissuasion and, in her small high heels, headed towards the director's office.
Earlier, the director had accompanied them halfway and it seemed someone else had arrived, so the director went to attend to them personally.
That person also seemed to be here to sponsor the orphanage. What was their name... Cecilia, was it?
But that wasn't important. Mrs. Ye was already eager to take the adorable, fragrant baby home.