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

Bai Ci stopped outside the restaurant, the conversation inside drifting clearly into his ears.

Bai Yanzhi's calm voice came first: "How are the experiments going on the ocean?"

"Successfully." A cold and indifferent voice rang out. Needless to say, it was Bai Luochen, the second brother who had just returned home.

Bai Jiheng's lazy tone followed, with a hint of deliberate provocation: "Oh, you've finally decided to come home? I thought you were going to drift at sea until next spring."

"The monsoon has changed."

"The monsoon has shifted, and you only just realized you needed to come back?" Bai Jiheng scoffed. "So, if the monsoon hadn't shifted, you were planning to spend your whole life at sea? Anyway, you have everything at sea: a lab, a deep-sea submersible, and Momo with you. What's home compared to that, huh?"

After a two-second silence, Bai Luochen spoke calmly, "Are you finished?"

"It's not over yet. The old man asked about you the other day, and I told him you were having a great time at sea and had no intention of coming back."

"Um."

"Just one 'hmm'? Didn't you even bother to make a call to let them know you're safe?"

"Video communication at sea is expensive."

"Does the Bai family need your little bit of money for information?"

"I don't lack anything, but you always hang up after saying less than three sentences."

Bai Jiheng was taken aback, his tone becoming even more annoyed: "When I try to chat with you about everyday things, you keep using terms like 'deep-sea basalt' and 'heterophyte cysts,' a bunch of technical jargon that nobody understands. Who wants to talk to you about that?"

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore." Bai Jiheng changed the subject himself, but he clearly wasn't going to let him off the hook. "You said you've been at sea for so long, did you bring anything back? Don't bring back two boxes of stones again. Those two boxes of stuff you gave the old man last time looked so black, the servants drank cooling tea for three days after touching them, and the old man even misunderstood that you were implying he had a fiery temper."

"This time there was no psionic spill."

"...Wait a minute." Bai Jiheng's voice paused for a moment. "So, that pile from last time had some psionic energy leaking out?"

"A tiny amount of dust will only dry out the air for a couple of days; it won't kill you."

Another silence followed.

Bai Jiheng's face fell: "...From now on, you can keep all those broken stones for yourself, and don't send them to me anymore."

Bai Ci stood outside the door, silently going over what she had just heard in her mind: Deep-sea Xuan Stones would emit ghostly energy, and if they came into contact with the body, they would easily cause heat and inflammation. Even the servants who touched them had to drink cooling tea for several days in a row.

Looking at it this way, it's clear that what Second Brother handled was indeed quite dangerous. Moreover, in their earlier bickering, Third Brother, who usually wins with his quick wit, didn't gain any advantage this time. When it comes to witty banter, Third Brother has never lost to anyone; but compared to this kind of cold silence that shuts down the conversation with just a few words, leaving no room for further discussion, Second Brother might be the champion.

Conclusion: The second brother's things are dangerous, and the second brother himself may be even more dangerous.

He recalled Bai Jiheng's earlier words, "Don't worry about your second brother"—his third brother couldn't even get a good deal himself, so where did he get the confidence to say such a thing?

Xiao Qi whispered in his mind, "Bai Bai, your second brother doesn't sound like he's easy to get along with."

He secretly cheered himself up, telling himself that when he went in, even if he saw a giant python coiled at Bai Luochen's feet, he must keep his composure, greet him normally, and sit quietly at the dining table.

If all else fails, you can pretend to be hungry, just keep eating and remain silent.

Taking a deep breath, Bai Ci walked in with a belly full of trepidation.

Three people were sitting in the restaurant. Breakfast was already laid out on the long table, the silver plates gleaming warmly in the morning light.

Bai Ci's gaze first swept around the table, which was empty; the chairs were empty; and the corners of the walls were empty.

There was no Momo. The entire restaurant was devoid of any reptiles.

He quietly relaxed his tense shoulders a little.

Xiaoqi said considerately, "Don't worry, Baibai, there's no heat source signal from Momo here, it's very safe."

Bai Ci silently hummed in her heart, tucking away the last bit of nervousness before turning her gaze to the dining table.

Bai Yanzhi sat in the main seat, holding a coffee cup, with an electronic presentation spread out in front of him. He was wearing a dark gray shirt today, and his posture was more relaxed than last night.

Bai Jiheng sat to his left, slowly spreading jam on a slice of toast with elegant movements, but he looked bored and helpless.

Bai Yanzhi noticed Bai Ci entering first, put down his coffee cup, and nodded gently to him: "You're up? Come and sit down."

Bai Jiheng looked up: "Oh, up so early today? I thought you'd sleep until noon. Are your eyes swollen? Who was crying like that last night—"

"Third Brother," Bai Ci glared at him and warned him.

Bai Jiheng said, "Okay, okay, let's not talk about it. Come and have breakfast. Uncle Chen specially made strawberry pancakes for you."

"...Thank you, Uncle Chen." Bai Ci replied subconsciously, glancing towards the head of the table. Bai Yanzhi had already adjusted the chair on his right.

"I spoke to Uncle Chen, why are you thanking him?"

Bai Ci paused as he walked to the chair, turned around to look at Bai Jiheng, his eyes earnest and sincere, his voice still carrying a soft, nasal tone from just waking up: "Then thank you, Third Brother."

Bai Jiheng didn't expect him to be so serious all of a sudden. His hand, which was spreading jam, froze in mid-air, and his lips twitched, but he couldn't say anything for a moment.

"...Alright, alright, sit down and eat." He turned his face away, a faint blush rising to his ears, his tone feigning impatience, but his voice was noticeably lower.

Bai Yanzhi picked up his coffee cup, took a sip, glanced between his two younger brothers, said nothing, and simply moved the chair on his right two inches closer to himself.

Bai Ci didn't continue the topic and obediently sat down.

Then he finally raised his head and looked in the direction he had sensed since entering the room, but had never dared to look directly at.

Bai Luochen sat opposite Bai Jiheng, against the morning light.

Bai Luochen wasn't wearing glasses. His features resembled Bai Yanzhi's by about three points, but his lines were colder, and his brow bones were higher. His eyes lacked Bai Yanzhi's gentle depth and Bai Jiheng's sharp, ever-present glint; instead, they held a deep, silent blackness devoid of any emotion. He wore a thin, dark gray sweater, the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, revealing his slender, pale wrists.

He was completely different from the "gloomy and cold-blooded scientist who watched a python swallow a rabbit" he had imagined, and he was not the perverted and paranoid man he thought he was.

Xiao Qi let out an extremely irritating exclamation: "Bai Bai, all that imagination you had about your villainous second brother, is this all there is to him?"

"...I didn't expect that either." Bai Ci replied in his heart, his tension still not completely dissipated, and his tone was a little guilty.

"He looks like a quiet, taciturn ordinary person, as aloof as his eldest brother. He shouldn't be as annoying as your third brother."

Bai Ci didn't have the energy to chat with Xiao Qi and felt very uncomfortable sitting there.

He realized that the mental preparation he had done at the door—"remain calm, greet people naturally, eat with your head down, and keep silent"—was completely useless now. There was no scary giant python in the restaurant, and his second brother didn't seem like the type to suddenly pull out strange creatures.

He didn't even stare at me; he just sat there quietly eating, like a statue with its own air conditioning.

How should I greet this quiet, aloof, and completely silent second brother?