The sickly one in F4 was the group's darling.

Not long after, the door was gently pushed open.

Bai Yanzhi changed into a simple and clean set of casual home clothes, carrying a food box in his hand. He looked neat and tidy, completely unlike his disheveled appearance last night, covered in milk stains and porcelain marks. He slowly walked to the bedside.

His gaze immediately fell on Bai Ci, and he reached out to gently touch the boy's forehead.

"Awake? Does anything hurt?"

Bai Ci shook his head.

Bai Yanzhi deliberately avoided mentioning the incident of his wrist being grabbed last night, giving Bai Ci a way out.

Bai Jiheng chimed in from the side, "Big brother, you were held captive by the little darling all night and couldn't move, didn't you have anything to say?"

Bai Yanzhi glanced at him indifferently, his tone nonchalant: "It's alright."

With just two simple words, Bai Jiheng was effectively shut down from further teasing, clearly protecting Bai Ci.

As the heat in Bai Ci's cheeks subsided slightly, she mustered her courage, looked up at Bai Yanzhi, and whispered her thanks: "Thank you for your hard work last night, brother."

"Taking care of you is what I should do."

Bai Yanzhi sat on the edge of the bed, opened the food box, and inside was a strawberry osmanthus cake. The cake was soft, with strawberries embedded in the cream and topped with fine dried osmanthus flowers. It was obviously specially made by the kitchen. "I knew you were thinking about these two things, so I had the kitchen prepare them early this morning."

Bai Ci gazed at the fragrant pastries in the box and asked softly, "You've been watching over me all night, have you had breakfast?"

"When I went downstairs to pick up my meal, Chef Wang from the kitchen forced me to eat two pieces of pastry, which I managed to eat a few bites of." Bai Yanzhi pushed the porcelain plate containing the cake onto the bedside table in front of Bai Ci.

"What about me?" Bai Jiheng pointed to himself, raised an eyebrow at Bai Yanzhi, and said, "Big brother, I've been guarding all morning. I deserve some credit for my hard work, right?"

"You're not shortchanged."

Then he opened the second layer, took out a plastic bag, and handed two steaming hot meat buns to Bai Jiheng.

Bai Jiheng looked down at the meat bun in his hand, then glanced at the exquisitely presented strawberry and osmanthus cake in front of Bai Ci, and his lips twitched.

"...Big brother, are you serious?"

"You don't eat meat buns?" Bai Yanzhi asked in a flat tone.

"I ate a meat bun, but that's not the point." Bai Jiheng held the plastic bag up to the same height as Bai Ci's cake. "The point is, he got a strawberry osmanthus cake, and I got a meat bun? And there wasn't even a plate?"

"Aren't you hungry?" Bai Yanzhi calmly put the food box away. "There are plenty of steamed buns."

Bai Jiheng opened his mouth, then closed it again. He wanted to say, "You're so hypocritical," but then he thought that his older brother's hypocrisy wasn't something that just started now. Last night, this guy held his wrist and wouldn't let go, and this morning he had someone prepare a strawberry and osmanthus cake. So this meat bun was just something he remembered and casually stuffed in there.

Bai Yanzhi glanced at Bai Jiheng and said indifferently, "Weren't you the one who kept saying you wanted to eat this last night?"

Bai Jiheng was stunned for a moment.

Last night in the side room, when Bai Ci was engrossed in eating strawberries, he did mutter casually, "What's so great about sweet things? I'd rather have a basket of soup dumplings." Everyone was watching Bai Ci at the time, and no one responded to him; he forgot about it as soon as he said it.

Bai Jiheng looked down at the meat bun in his hand. It was indeed made to his liking: pure meat filling, thin skin, generous filling, and still steaming hot.

The plastic bag was really eye-catching, and the contrast with the exquisitely plated strawberry and osmanthus cake next to it was quite stark.

"So you do remember." Bai Jiheng tore open the plastic bag, took a bite of the bun, and mumbled, "The cake was specially made by the kitchen, the bun was just something I made on the spur of the moment. Oh well, as long as there's something to eat, that's fine."

That's what he said, but as he chewed, the curve of his masseter muscle softened.

Bai Ci glanced at the cake in front of him, then at the steamed bun in Bai Jiheng's hand. He picked up a cake knife, sliced ​​the cake in half, and pushed it towards Bai Jiheng.

"Third brother, you can have half of the cake."

Bai Jiheng pushed the cake plate back: "You eat it yourself. One steamed bun is enough for me."

"Give me one of those steamed buns," Bai Ci said.

"...Don't you have a cake?"

"The steamed buns look pretty delicious."

Bai Jiheng stared at him for two seconds. Seeing him staring longingly at the plastic bag in his hand with a look of "I've never eaten this kind of bun before," he finally took one out of the bag and handed it to him.

Bai Ci took the bun, lowered her head and took a bite. She chewed it a couple of times with her cheeks puffed out, and her eyes lit up.

"……tasty."

Bai Jiheng scoffed at his expression, stuffed his own bun into his mouth, and said nothing more. He didn't touch the strawberry osmanthus cake, but the bag of meat buns was the first thing he emptied.

Bai Yanzhi watched Bai Ci holding a steamed bun in one hand and a cake in the other, reluctant to put either down, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly.

Bai Jiheng swallowed the last bite, squeezed the empty plastic bag in his hand, and suddenly said, "But brother, there's something I need to say."

Bai Yanzhi looked up at him.

"These steamed buns are packed in plastic bags. Which genius in the kitchen came up with this idea?" Bai Jiheng held up the plastic bag and waved it in the air. "Cakes are served on porcelain plates and silver forks, but steamed buns are stuffed in plastic bags. People who know the situation might say it's just the kitchen being convenient, but people who don't might think the Bai family has gone bankrupt and can't even come up with a plate."

Bai Yanzhi took the bag, glanced at it, his eyebrows twitched slightly, and threw it into the trash can behind him.

"Is Uncle Chen not keeping an eye on things in the kitchen today?"

"Uncle Chen was busy until the early hours of last night, so I let him go and rest," Bai Yanzhi said. "Today is the sous chef's turn."

"Sous Chef? New here?" Bai Jiheng thought for a moment, but couldn't quite place him.

I just started working here last week.

"Oh—I knew it, the old master craftsman wouldn't do something like that."

Meanwhile, in the manor kitchen, a young cook stood in front of the preparation table, staring at the unused steamer and plates in front of him, his face filled with despair.

Chef Wang, who was working at the stove nearby, passed by and glanced at her: "Xiao Xu, what's wrong? Your face is all scrunched up like a steamed bun."

Xiao Xu slowly turned her head, her face contorted with grief: "...When I was packing the buns for the Third Young Master, I forgot to bring a plate and just used a plastic bag to carry them over."

Master Wang remained silent for two seconds.

"Do you know who ordered the Third Young Master's breakfast to be prepared today?"

"...Young Master."

"Do you know what level of breakfast the young master personally ordered is considered in the Bai family kitchen?"

"...the highest level."

"You provided a plastic bag with the highest-level breakfast."

Xiao Xu buried his face in his hands and let out a muffled groan.

Master Wang patted him on the shoulder, his tone carrying the sympathy of someone with experience: "It's alright, Third Young Master's temper has been a bit better lately, he should be in a good mood. Just be more careful next time, everyone has a first time."

Xiao Xu peeked out from between her fingers: "Then, then I'll do it tomorrow..."

"Remember to use a plate tomorrow." Chef Wang turned to look at the soup on the stove. "If you forget again, I won't help you find a steamer."

Xiao Xu gave a muffled "hmm".

In the hospital room, Bai Jiheng was unaware that someone in the kitchen was filled with remorse for his plastic bag.

"The steamed buns are good. They're cooked just right, and the skin isn't broken," he commented casually.

Bai Yanzhi glanced at him.

"Why are you looking at me? Good is good, and bad is bad." Bai Jiheng picked up his cup and took a sip. "Next time, just ask him to use a different plate. There's nothing else to complain about."

After Bai Ci finished eating the last bite of cake, Bai Yanzhi put the empty bowls and plates on the bedside table into a food box, picked up a damp towel and handed it to him to wipe his hands.

"Dr. Qin will be here this afternoon to do your examination."

Bai Ci's hand-wiping motion suddenly stopped, her heart sank, and an inexplicable panic instantly gripped her limbs.

He wasn't the real Bai Ci at all; he was a rabbit spirit living in another body.

What if some inexplicable abnormalities are discovered? What will they think?

His fingertips trembled slightly, and he felt uneasy, fearing that the secret hidden beneath his skin would be exposed.