Chapter 42: Reconciliation
The young master Bai had committed a one-sided act of violence. Mi Yang, standing at the door, slowly closed it, carefully keeping watch for him.
Hearing no more commotion inside, he then walked in. “I’ve brought the game consoles.” His eyes were still taking in the scene. The floor was a mess, and both of them had juice on their clothes, especially Ji Bai’an, who was a complete mess. Mi Yang was a little worried that the little Ji Bai’an would go and tattle to the adults.
But his worries were unnecessary. Although these two cousins didn’t look much alike on the surface, they were the same on the inside, the type to be very concerned about their pride even after a fight. Neither of them said a word. After the fight, they each went back to their rooms to change their clothes, washed their faces, and then moved to a different room, occupying opposite sides, seven or eight meters apart, and started to play their game consoles. If it weren’t for the obvious way they were ignoring each other, they would have looked as if nothing had happened.
Mi Yang: “…”
Alright, as long as you’re happy.
At lunch, Mi Yang couldn’t eat much. The pastries in his stomach hadn’t been digested yet, and he was just sipping his soup. Fortunately, there were many adults at lunch, and Mrs. Bai was happy to see her sister, so she wasn’t watching the children eat. Mi Yang managed to get away with it.
Usually, they would take a nap after lunch. But as Mi Yang was going upstairs, he heard the phone ring in the living room. He stopped for a moment and looked back. Auntie Wu was answering the phone. It seemed to be a friend of Mrs. Bai’s. Mi Yang was a little disappointed. He had thought it was his parents.
As he stopped, Bai Luochuan stood beside him and held his hand. The young master Bai followed Mi Yang’s gaze and, seeing him looking at the adults talking downstairs again, said irritably, “I’m sorry.”
Mi Yang blinked his eyes, then realized what was happening. The other was afraid he would turn back and go to the living room—the two of them had also had a fight and hadn’t made up yet.
Bai Luochuan held on tightly. Mi Yang glanced at the living room again but didn’t linger and followed him back to the bedroom.
Mi Yang lay flat on the small bed, picking at his pillow, thinking about his parents in a desultory way. The bed beside him dipped a little, and soon the young master Bai had climbed up. He lay down next to him and, after not being quiet for more than two minutes, he rolled over and skillfully lifted his little pajamas, reaching in to touch his little belly and gently rubbing it.
Mi Yang tilted his head to look at him. The young master Bai’s gaze met his, and he was a little embarrassed, but he still said, “Let’s make up, okay?”
Mi Yang softened a little. Bai Luochuan then leaned over and hugged him, saying in a muffled voice, “Don’t make me angry in the future.”
Mi Yang: “…”
Mi Yang was about to get angry again in a matter of seconds!
Bai Luochuan rubbed his head against him a couple of times, also feeling wronged. “I just want to give you the best.”
Mi Yang was sullen for a while before he said, “Then you can’t talk about my grandma’s house like that. That’s called being a snob. If you become very rich in the future, and my family still lives in a small house like this, will you not play with me anymore? When you come to my house, will you also call my things junk?”
Bai Luochuan hugged him a little tighter. “Then why don’t you just come with me?”
Mi Yang was so angry he laughed. He bumped his head against his. “Who wants to go with you!”
Hearing him laugh, Bai Luochuan relaxed a little and grumbled, “If you don’t come with me, what if everyone bullies you in the future?” He reached out and rubbed Mi Yang’s stomach, educating him, “Didn’t you run very fast in PE class? You should run.”
Mi Yang said lazily, “Oh.”
Bai Luochuan said again, “Does it still hurt?”
Although his temper was bad and his tone was not right, Mi Yang could already understand his meaning. He smiled and said, “No, it doesn’t hurt anymore.”
Bai Luochuan was curious. “Then why aren’t you talking? What are you thinking?”
Mi Yang couldn’t tell the truth. He always felt that Cheng Qing had left a little too suddenly that day, and his heart was a little flustered. But these were all his guesses, and there was no certainty. As he picked at the edge of his pillow, he said perfunctorily, “Oh, I was just thinking about… kiwis.”
Bai Luochuan’s little brow furrowed.
Mi Yang was close to him and could still smell a hint of fruit on him. He had probably gotten a lot on himself when he had smeared Ji Bai’an’s face with a kiwi in the morning. He had seen juice on his hands. It was a wonder that this young master, with his obsession with cleanliness, hadn’t rushed to take a shower and had just wiped himself off and was hovering around him. Mi Yang chuckled to himself at the thought. “I was thinking about how that kiwi was smeared on his face just now. It was so soft. It must have been very sweet, right?”
Bai Luochuan snorted. “You want to eat it? If you want to eat it, I’ll go get you a box. You wait.”
Mi Yang thought he was just joking, but he didn’t expect him to actually go and bring a box over. Bai Luochuan picked out a few and placed them on the table. He was about to get more when Mi Yang quickly stopped him. “That’s enough. I can’t eat that many at once. I just want to have a couple of bites to taste it.”
Only then did Bai Luochuan reluctantly bring over the few kiwis on a small plate. Mi Yang couldn’t eat that many, and besides, his stomach was already full. He just picked the softest and sweetest one and shared it with Bai Luochuan.
The ripe kiwi was sweet and sour, very delicious. Mi Yang had been feeling sick from the pastries in the morning, and now he was eating with relish, even licking his fingers.
Bai Luochuan fed him the last bite with a spoon. Seeing Mi Yang obediently eat it, his cheeks puffing out, his confidence swelled. He himself went back to the previous topic and reminded Mi Yang, “In the future, if anyone bullies you, don’t say anything. Hide first. When I come back, tell me, and I’ll beat him up.”
Mi Yang chuckled and nodded. “Okay.”
Bai Luochuan said again, “Call me ‘big brother’.”
Mi Yang looked at him with a smile and didn’t say anything.
Bai Luochuan pinched his cheek and, after waiting for a while, pouted. “Fine, if you don’t want to, then don’t. But you’re not allowed to call anyone else ‘big brother’ either, you hear? If I see you, I’ll beat you too.” He even added a little threat at the end.
Mi Yang thought for a moment. He really couldn’t remember Bai Luochuan ever hitting him. This person had a rash personality, but the two of them rarely ever fought. At most, he would get unhappy and turn to leave, and Bai Luochuan would grab his arm and shout at him. The next day, the young master Bai would have a sour face but would still come up to him. This rotten temper, there was really no one else like him.
Luo Jiangyuan and Ji Bai’an stayed at the Bai’s house together. In the evening, when Mr. Wei was tutoring in the study, there was also a little auditor.
Ji Bai’an had been taught a lesson and was obviously much more well-behaved. But when Bai Luochuan was at school, he would still deliberately come to provoke Mi Yang. Mi Yang remembered the young master’s words and would either run or hide. When he couldn’t hide, he would take Ji Bai’an to Mr. Wei’s class. He had also discovered that Ji Bai’an and the young master Bai had a habit. These two brothers both loved to perform in front of adults. Bai Luochuan would put on a stern little face and act like a little adult, being strict with himself in everything. Ji Bai’an, on the other hand, liked to pretend to be well-behaved and cute, with a strong desire to perform.
Mi Yang had a good temper and was patient. He could listen to whatever Mr. Wei taught, and he would also do his homework seriously, without any intention of skipping class.
After being taken to a few classes by him, Ji Bai’an started to roll his eyes and pretend to have a stomachache, hiding and playing his game console by himself.
Mi Yang was still a little anxious about Ji Bai’an’s arrival. He had hidden his most treasured thing—the ancient book restoration book—very securely, and had also collected all the bottles and jars and put them under Bai Luochuan’s bed. Even so, he was not at ease and would go to check on them from time to time. Since this person had arrived, Mi Yang had had two nightmares. Without exception, he was tied up by Ji Bai’an, sitting face to face, and made to watch him tear up a book. Mi Yang couldn’t move, and the more anxious he was, the sweeter the little demon opposite him smiled. His breath was close to his ear. Mi Yang turned his head to dodge, and he heard him whisper in his ear, “How is it? The sound is not bad, right? You’re not going to shout? If you don’t, then I’ll tear up another one for you to listen to.”
If Mi Yang had the ability to summon, he would have wished he could summon ten young master Bais to beat him black and blue.
He treasured those books so much. Even when Bai Luochuan was at his worst, he had never dared to touch them!
A few more days passed, and the weather slowly warmed up. The willow trees had sprouted, as if a spring breeze had swept over the mountains and rivers, turning them green.
Mi Yang received a piece of good news and a piece of bad news.
The good news was that he had finally fully recovered and could go to school. The bad news was that his mom had called and said she would be back in a while.
Cheng Qing said to him, “Yangyang, your father is sick. It will be a while before he can go back. You be good at Luochuan’s house, don’t run around, and listen to Uncle and Auntie Luo, you know?”
Mi Yang agreed and asked, “Mom, what’s wrong with Dad? Is he seriously ill?”
Cheng Qing said, “It’s fine, just a small surgery. He’ll be fine after a while.”
Mi Yang asked again, “Appendicitis?”
Cheng Qing said vaguely, “Something like that. Mom has to go back and take care of Dad. You be good, okay?”
Hearing the tone of her voice on the phone, she didn’t seem very anxious, and Mi Yang slowly relaxed. In any case, as long as his family was healthy and there were no major illnesses or disasters, he was very content.
Mi Yang’s return time was extended again. Bai Luochuan was very happy, but he could see that Mi Yang was still homesick, so he took the initiative to offer to go back with him for a look.
Mrs. Bai naturally agreed, but she also beckoned for Ji Bai’an to come over and said with a smile, “Bai’an, you can go with them too. You’ve been here for so long and haven’t gone out to play. Luochuan and Mi Yang are very familiar with this place. You can just follow them.”
Bai Luochuan frowned with some disgust. “We’re going to Mi Yang’s house.”
Mrs. Bai said, “I know. Luochuan, take Bai’an with you. You can play with your little brother in the future too, okay?”
Bai Luochuan rolled his eyes. “My little brother is Mi Yang.”
Mrs. Bai was at a loss for whether to laugh or cry. “This is your cousin. It’s different.”
The little young master Bai didn’t even look and said impatiently, “I don’t want to.” He turned to grab Mi Yang’s hand but was held by Luo Jiangyuan. She bent down and coaxed him, “Luochuan, don’t be in a hurry. Look, these are all toys your little aunt brought for you. Let your little brother play with you, okay? See which one you like. They’re all yours…”
Bai Luochuan was even more impatient. He pulled his hand back. “I already said I don’t want to. I want to go out. I don’t like to play with him.”
The little Ji Bai’an beside him was not a pushover either. He was used to being a little emperor at home. When he went out, his mother had repeatedly told him to be a good boy and behave well. In front of his aunt, he had put on a bit of a performance. Now, hearing his little cousin’s unwelcoming words, he was also not happy and muttered, “Who wants to play with you.”
Luo Jiangyuan quickly tugged on his sleeve and smiled awkwardly.
