The Top Star Fell for Me at First Sight After I Transmigrated as a Dog-Like Streamer - Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Atavism 9.0

Yu Congming had his back to them, speaking in a low, coaxing voice to Zhu Xu about how he’d get a headache if he caught the cold wind. After being dismissed by Zhu Xu, he finally loosened the scarf a bit. Hearing Yu Zhaozhao and Yu Anlan approaching with others, he stepped back to let Zhu Xu’s arms stretch out comfortably from the fabric.

“Brother, Sister-in-law, long time no see.” Yu Congyue greeted them with a smile, though he could only nod since both hands were occupied.

Zhu Xu gave a lazy stretch, his golden eyes scanning the little Golden Retriever frolicking behind the temporary fence. He tilted his chin up and asked, “This is the one from your house?”

Yu Congming followed his gaze and offered a succinct evaluation: “Quite energetic.”

“Xiaobai is always like this when he works—very dedicated and serious.”

Yu Congyue loved how they referred to him. Just as he was echoing their praise, the two “little beans” suddenly pointed at Bai Xun and shouted, “Is that Second Uncle’s partner?”

Startled, Yu Congyue let go of the pups and quickly crouched down, waving his hands frantically. For a moment, he didn’t know whose mouth to cover first.

“Keep it down, my little ancestors! I haven’t even won him over yet. If you scare him off, I’ll have to spend New Year’s alone,” Yu Congyue whispered with great seriousness. “When we’re around him, just call him Xiaobai. I’ll grant you each a wish later, okay? Be good.”

“Don’t spoil them too much. Zhaozhao, Xiaolan, your Second Uncle is a piece of wood that finally sprouted—behave yourselves,” Zhu Xu teased. He glanced at the still-nervous Yu Congyue and nudged Yu Congming to take out a tablet to distract the kids. “I didn’t expect you to have such a rich range of body language though?”

Zhu Xu had known Yu Congming since high school. Their history ran deep. He remembered seeing a middle-school-aged Yu Congyue expressionlessly solving math problems and had subconsciously assumed all the Yu family men were carved from the same block of wood.

During the years when Yu Congming was abroad with him resolving “historical family issues,” Yu Congyue had carried the weight of the domestic business. Given that Congyue usually seemed devoid of worldly desires—no scandals in the eight years since Zhu Xu and Congming married—seeing this “stoic man” suddenly exhibit such strong emotional fluctuations was a novelty to them both.

“I’ve always been like this, haven’t I?” Yu Congyue replied, sounding a bit uncertain.

“Your brother has definitely bloomed,” Zhu Xu whispered to Yu Congming right in front of Congyue.

“Oh right, Sister-in-law, why can you talk?” Yu Congyue finally remembered the question that had been interrupted by the kids.

“What do you mean ‘why can I talk’?” Zhu Xu frowned, exchanging a look with Yu Congming.

“I mean, why can you still communicate normally after reverting to your original animal form?”

Looking at Yu Congyue’s serious expression, it seemed he truly was confused about this.

In reality, Yu Congyue had almost never interacted with other Beastmen during their Atavism Month. Company employees took paid leave at home, and clients with obvious atavism traits wouldn’t choose that time to communicate. Since he only went home for holidays, he had never crossed paths with Zhu Xu during his atavism.

Zhu Xu spoke hesitantly: “Are you saying… You can’t talk? He only barks?”

Yu Congyue nodded.

Zhu Xu thought about it but couldn’t come up with a reason why an adult Beastman would experience this.

Most Beastmen retain their human instincts during atavism. Unless one fails to receive proper guidance during their first atavism—leading to psychological confusion and over-identifying with the animal form—they can usually communicate.

Remembering what Yu Congming had told him about Bai Xun’s background, Zhu Xu understood. He felt a wave of pity. “It’s likely he didn’t get proper guidance during his first atavism. Usually, parents or elders handle that. Your task now is to give him plenty of care and concern. But watch the ‘scale’ of it—don’t be like your brother was back then, haunting me like a male ghost. It was terrifying.”

Yu Congming, who had been silent, couldn’t help but defend himself: “That’s because you ran away without saying a word. You didn’t give me a single chance to explain.”

“Do you know how scary it is to wake up and find out that… happened?” Zhu Xu clearly didn’t want to dwell on that topic. He raised a paw to stop Yu Congming and turned a sympathetic gaze toward Bai Xun in the distance. “If you two do anything later, you must take precautions. Because in this state, it’s really…”

Yu Congyue’s mind drifted, missing the first half of the sentence. He only heard the part about “taking precautions” and “something happening.” He assumed Zhu Xu was warning him about potential health complications during atavism. His desire to protect Bai Xun grew even more urgent.

“I will,” he promised, gazing at Bai Xun and nodding solemnly.

“Good. I hope you maintain that attitude,” Zhu Xu said, satisfied.

Despite being on completely different wavelengths, the two had reached a weird consensus.

…

Bai Xun, still filming, felt a sudden chill. Holding a frisbee in his mouth, he turned toward a familiar scent and saw Yu Congyue standing on a small slope with a tall man he didn’t recognize. The black cat in the man’s arms was looking at him with the exact same “pitying” expression as Yu Congyue.

What? What’s going on?

Since the shoot was over, Yu Congyue jogged over to pick up Bai Xun without a word.

“Your family’s ‘love brain’ is definitely a genetic trait,” Zhu Xu muttered, rubbing his head against Yu Congming’s chest. He inhaled his exclusive scent, squinted his eyes, and let out a yawn.

“Perhaps,” Yu Congming whispered, kissing the tip of a furry ear. It tickled, causing Zhu Xu to flick his ear and shoot him a look that said ‘That’s enough.’

“Daddy, Papa! We want to play with Xiaobai!” The “beans” saw Yu Congyue run off and dropped their tablets to follow.

“Don’t pull his tail. Pet him gently. Treat Brother Xiaobai like family, understand?” Though Zhu Xu was confident in his children, they were still seven-year-olds. Curiosity was natural, so he offered a few reminders.

“Don’t worry, Daddy! Second Uncle likes Brother Xiaobai, so we like him too,” Yu Zhaozhao promised in a milky voice, grabbing Yu Anlan’s hand as they ran down the slope.

Bai Xun ran toward them and leaped into the arms of the semi-crouched Yu Congyue. He showed off his completed work like a hero and was showered with praise. Then, he turned his head and saw the two toddlers running toward him hand-in-hand.

“These are my niece and nephew, twins. The girl is Yu Zhaozhao, and the boy is Yu Anlan,” Yu Congyue introduced. “My older brother and sister-in-law are here too. Don’t be nervous; they’re mainly here for tomorrow’s board meeting.”

In the blink of an eye, the kids were in front of them, sweetly chirping “Hello, Brother Xiaobai!” before staring at the man and dog with wide eyes.

Bai Xun preferred communicating with children over social maneuvering with adults, especially children as well-behaved as these. He immediately wanted to interact.

Yu Zhaozhao was the first to pick up Bai Xun and sit on a nearby chair. She carefully stroked his head and back. Yu Anlan was more reserved; he only touched Bai Xun’s wet nose after seeing his sister do it.

“Wow, Brother Xiaobai is so pretty. His fur is so soft.” “His eyes are beautiful too. Daddy showed us Brother Xiaobai’s videos. Brother is so amazing.” “Look, Brother Xiaobai’s paws are soft too.”

Zhaozhao’s compliments came in waves. She didn’t hold back her affection. Yu Anlan didn’t say much, but he nodded in agreement every single time.

This harmonious scene made Yu Congyue feel gratified, yet a bit… off. When he realized he was feeling jealous of two children, he felt incredibly childish.

“President Yu, Teacher Bai’s shoot is successfully finished. You can head back to rest,” the assistant director said, giving a knowing look at the familiar Yu family members.

“Brother, Sister-in-law, Mom had Congji bring some local specialties and seafood. How about a simple hot pot tonight?” Yu Congyue suggested. Considering Zhu Xu’s condition, eating at home was best.

“Sounds good. I’m not picky,” Zhu Xu replied. He didn’t have much of an appetite during atavism anyway.

After settling things, the group headed back. Since the shoot was in the neighboring city, it took nearly an hour and a half to drive back.

The housekeeper was efficient. By the time they entered, the chicken and dried squid soup base was simmering on the induction cooker, and all the ingredients were neatly plated.

Just as they sat down, something felt missing.

“It’s a bit too quiet. If Congji were here, it’d be a riot…” Zhu Xu, finally freed from the scarf, stretched on his high chair and made a casual remark. Just then, a commotion came from outside.

“Speak of the devil?” Yu Congyue turned to see a smugly smiling Yu Congji entering with wine and drinks.

The moment before the door closed, Bai Xun thought he saw a familiar figure in the car parked outside. Judging by the rabbit ears and hair color, it was almost certainly Qiu You.

But didn’t he want to avoid Yu Congji yesterday? Why is he driving him home today?

Bai Xun was baffled. He kept glancing at Yu Congji, who was happily giving gifts to the kids and clearly didn’t want to discuss how he got home. Bai Xun’s desire for gossip reached its peak.

Damn it… why can’t I talk at a time like this?!

He took a frustrated bite of a cooled meatball. His eyes lit up instantly—the crisp, sweet taste slightly numbed the pain of being unable to ask questions.

“Why are you so happy today?”

While cooling some food for Bai Xun, Yu Congyue saw the pup’s face wrinkled in distress. He had also seen Qiu You in the car when he went to get glasses. He couldn’t bear to see Bai Xun struggle, so he asked the question first.

“A small matter, just a small matter.”

Rarely, Yu Congji didn’t brag loudly. He just poured a glass of wine and tried to play it off.

Something was wrong. Extremely wrong.