"Mengmeng, why don't you play for a bit? Uncle Jiang will make you some snacks," Jiang Ning said with a smile, his eyes filled with tenderness.
"Okay, okay! Uncle Jiang, will you make me a cake?" Mengmeng blinked her big, watery eyes, looking expectant.
"Sure, no problem! Leave it to Uncle Jiang," Jiang Ning readily agreed, getting up and heading towards the kitchen on the first floor.
"Ring, ring ——"
The clear ringtone of a mobile phone suddenly sounded.
Jiang Ning took out his phone and saw that it was his mother from back home calling.
"Hello, Mom," Jiang Ning answered the phone, his tone filled with affection.
"Ning'er, I heard you're unemployed now, is that true?" The voice of his mother, Ye Shulan, on the phone was filled with concern and anxiety.
Jiang Ning frowned slightly, asking in confusion, "Mom, who told you that?"
"Ning'er, just tell me, are you really unemployed?" Ye Shulan pressed, her voice laced with tension.
"Yes, Mom. But don't worry, I've already found a new job, and I'm working now." Jiang Ning, afraid of making his mother anxious, quickly explained.
Ye Shulan was still a little doubtful: "Really? Ning'er, don't lie to Mom."
Jiang Ning said seriously and firmly, "Really, Mom. I started working yesterday, it's already my second day."
Hearing her son's so certain answer, Ye Shulan finally breathed a sigh of relief, saying, "Since Ning'er really has a new job, that's good. I heard it from your Aunt Lin, she said her Erdan called her and told her."
"Don't worry, Mom, I'm really enjoying this new job now." Jiang Ning continued to reassure his mother.
Erdan was Jiang Ning's neighbor and worked as a warehouse manager in a subsidiary of Jiang Ning's previous company.
Erdan only had a junior high school education, while Jiang Ning worked in the headquarters office.
Being from the same village and working for the same company, Aunt Lin often sought out Jiang Ning's parents, hoping Jiang Ning would help get Erdan transferred to a better position with a higher salary.
But Jiang Ning was only a new employee who had just graduated for two years, and didn't have the authority to transfer positions.
Perhaps because of this, Aunt Lin's attitude towards Jiang Ning's parents had become unfriendly.
This time, Jiang Ning was unemployed, and Aunt Lin must have been sarcastic to his mother.
Jiang Ning thought to himself.
He was fired because of a fresh-out-of-college relative of the vice president.
That relative convinced the boss, and with no power or influence of his own, he inexplicably lost his job. The company only compensated him with a little over ten thousand yuan, far less than the legal compensation.
Jiang Ning was too lazy to make a fuss over such a small amount of compensation, so the matter was dropped.
Ye Shulan asked with concern, "Alright, just as long as you're happy with your job. Are you still working as a network administrator?"
This question made Jiang Ning momentarily unsure how to answer. After hesitating, he deliberately used a lighthearted and joking tone, saying, "Mom, I'm not a network administrator anymore. I'll keep my current job a secret for now, and give you a surprise later."
He didn't want to reveal what he was doing, but he still wanted his mother to think it was a good job.
Hearing her son's joking tone, Ye Shulan was indeed much happier.
She thought her son was so outstanding that he must have found an especially good job, and was deliberately keeping things secret to give her a surprise later.
She had no idea that Jiang Ning's current job was similar to a nanny, taking care of someone else's child. He was really embarrassed to say it.
"Alright then, Ning'er, you work hard. Mom won't bother you anymore."
"Okay, I'll hang up now, Mom. Goodbye."
"Beep beep beep..."
After hanging up the phone, a strong thought suddenly welled up in Jiang Ning's heart: he must have a stable source of income, and ideally, it should be a job that sounded good.
Taking care of Mengmeng was just a favor for a classmate, and it wasn't a long-term plan.
Jiang Ning knew that he had learned a lot of skills now, but it was hard to find a job that didn't affect him taking care of Mengmeng, could earn money, and also sounded good.
His cooking skills were top-notch, so should he go cook for people? But that way, he wouldn't be able to spend time with Mengmeng at all.
With Grandmaster-level Math Skills, teaching isn't an option either, due to time conflicts.
What work can Young Dad do at the villa to earn money without affecting his childcare duties?
"The internet!"
Jiang Ning's eyes suddenly lit up. "This is the internet age. Why not start with the internet?"
The most popular platform right now is Huayin. Why not register a Huayin account?
Could he film his childcare experiences and upload them as videos?
No, that would affect Mengmeng and her employer's family.
What about live streaming? Or filming the entire process of his cooking?
"Hmm, I'll name the account 'Young Dad.' When I cook, I'll make cooking show videos and wear a mask during live streams.
I won't interfere with taking care of the child, and I can also film some interesting moments of daily life with the kid, but I won't film Mengmeng in the background. That seems pretty good."
He decided to act immediately.
Jiang Ning immediately registered a Huayin account.
Then, he set up his phone. He hadn't bought a mask for his first video, so he only filmed the entire process of making something, focusing on his hands while making it, without filming his face.
Soon, a small and adorable cream cake was born in Jiang Ning's hands.
The shape was a cute little bear.
The pattern on the bear was carefully drawn with chocolate powder.
Under Jiang Ning's skillful hands, the little bear looked incredibly lifelike. The cake was simply a work of art.
In the video, Jiang Ning deliberately changed his tone while introducing the baking process.
After the recording, Jiang Ning had to edit the video. He was extremely careful, afraid of accidentally filming something he shouldn't. He meticulously handled the post-processing before uploading it.
Afterwards, Jiang Ning warmed a cup of warm milk.
"Mengmeng, come down and have some snacks!" he called out in a gentle voice.
"Okay, Mengmeng's coming right away!"
Mengmeng's clear voice came from upstairs. Soon, she came running down, skipping and jumping.
"Wow, Uncle Jiang, the little bear cake you made is so beautiful! Mengmeng doesn't even want to eat it."
Mengmeng's eyes widened, filled with surprise and delight, and she couldn't take them off the cake.
"Mengmeng, the cream cake is delicious! Uncle Jiang will make it into lots of cute animal shapes when he makes food in the future. Aren't you going to eat any?"
Jiang Ning coaxed with a smile.
"Ah, but, Uncle Jiang, this cream cake is really too beautiful."
Mengmeng was a little conflicted, wanting to eat it but unwilling to spoil such beauty.
"Mengmeng, if you don't eat it, this beautiful cream cake will go bad in a couple of days.
Then you won't only miss out on the delicious cake, but you'll also be hungry. And this little bear will also start to smell bad."
Jiang Ning patiently explained.
"Oh, is that so? Then, then Mengmeng will eat it." Mengmeng made up her mind immediately.
"Mm, that's a good girl. Uncle Jiang made these foods just to make Mengmeng happy. If Mengmeng just stares at it and doesn't want to touch the spoon, Uncle Jiang will just make something simple next time."
"Ah, no! Mengmeng will eat it, Mengmeng will eat it from now on. Uncle Jiang, can you make every dish these cute little animals, okay?" Mengmeng held Jiang Ning's hand and acted coquettishly.
"Okay, good girl."
Under Jiang Ning's persuasion, Mengmeng finally picked up the spoon and gently bit off the bear's head, revealing the white, delicate cream inside.
When the cream melted in her mouth, Mengmeng's eyes widened instantly, full of surprise, and she said, "Uncle Jiang, this cream cake you made is the best cake Mengmeng has ever eaten!"
"Mm, if Mengmeng likes it, eat it all. Uncle Jiang will make delicious food for Mengmeng every morning at this time."
"Alright, thank you, Uncle Jiang." Mengmeng happily nodded her head, her face beaming with a happy smile, and began to eat the cake.