Chapter 14

“You can have all these biscuits if you say that.” Gu Yuan was certain Zhou Chiyu would nod, revealing a triumphant expression.

Zhou Chiyu lowered his head and stared at his pockets, which were stuffed to the brim and nearly overflowing. He glanced at the remaining biscuits on the table, then nodded slowly. “Okay, I’ll listen to Brother.”

He didn’t know why Gu Yuan wanted him to do this, but he knew it meant he could eat the little biscuits and end up in the same class as Gu Yuan. Why not?

However—

He pouted, hesitating as if he wanted to say something but held back.

Did he really have to talk to the elders like that?

He always felt that kind of talk was something only naughty kids would say.

“Brother, can I not say it like that?”

Gu Yuan noticed his hesitation and deliberately teased him by popping a small biscuit into his mouth right in front of him. His tone left no room for negotiation. “No, you can’t.”

Faced with the other’s serious expression, Zhou Chiyu chickened out.

As if he’d made up his mind, he pursed his chubby lips and ate all the little biscuits from his pockets, fully giving in to the temptation of the treats.

That evening, he guiltily shuffled his little feet over to Gu Lao, who was reading a book, and delivered a fierce, intimidating threat. He had thought Gu Lao would scold him, but Gu Lao just smiled and nodded in agreement.

Gu Yuan, who had been hiding nearby to observe, was very satisfied. Worried that Zhou Chiyu might spill their plan, he specially used cheese yogurt to seal Zhou Chiyu’s mouth.

“This is called a strategy. You can’t tell anyone else, okay?”

“Okay!” Zhou Chiyu licked the yogurt from the corner of his mouth and nodded innocently. “Strategy!”

Once Gu Yuan’s school enrollment was settled, his exercise plan also proceeded in an orderly fashion.

That day, when the nutritionist came to deliver Gu Yuan’s various health data, Gu Lao invited him to the tearoom to assess Zhou Chiyu’s physical condition as well.

He looked at Zhou Chiyu. The little dumpling in front of him was healthy and plump, with rosy cheeks. He was playing with the orange cat and seemed even more energetic than a little tiger.

Sure enough, Zhou Chiyu’s checkup results were normal. The only indicator that crossed the line was perhaps his slight overweight status.

“Our Little Fish Baby needs to lose some weight from now on,” Gu Lao said with a cheerful smile, holding Zhou Chiyu’s physical exam report. “For your health.”

Zhou Chiyu hadn’t yet realized how big an impact losing weight would have on him, nor did he understand what it meant. He grinned carelessly. “Okay.”

Butler Chen smiled in surprise, thinking the sun must have risen from the west.

At dinner, Zhou Chiyu discovered that his plate was almost entirely filled with green vegetables. His favorite meats and white rice were nowhere to be seen.

“Grandpa, where’s my meat?”

Zhou Chiyu stretched out his chubby little hand. “I want to eat chicken wings.”

“Little Fish, the kitchen prepared sweet potato rice balls for you. They have shrimp, fish, and beef mixed in. For losing weight, you can only eat these for dinner.”

Gu Yuan had just learned about Zhou Chiyu’s need to lose weight. He slowly ate his pan-seared salmon, frowning slightly. “Do kids have to lose weight too?”

In his impression, losing weight was something adults did.

“What’s losing weight?” Zhou Chiyu didn’t quite understand. He took a bite of the coarse grain rice ball and scrunched up his chubby face. “Does it mean picking things to eat?”

Gu Cheng laughed. “Haha, losing weight means saying no to all snacks and high-calorie foods. After dinner, Little Fish, you’ll have to go for a walk too.”

Zhou Chiyu was stunned. The unappetizing rice ball on his fork dropped straight into his plate. “No snacks either?”

Gu Lao added, “Not just snacks—drinks and ice cream too. Nut bars need to be cut back.”

Zhou Chiyu could hardly believe it. His eyes went wide, and he was on the verge of tears, looking both innocent and pitiful.

“Young Master, Grandpa Gu is right.” Butler Chen chimed in from the side. “You are a bit chubby. It won’t be good for your health when you grow up.”

“Hmph!” Zhou Chiyu crossed his arms and pouted. “I don’t want to.”

“Little Fish, be good.” Zhou Lao didn’t forget to remind Gu Yuan. “Little Yuan, you can’t sneak food to Little Fish.”

Gu Yuan, suddenly called out, instinctively refuted. “I wouldn’t.”

When Zhou Chiyu heard that, his heart instantly turned ice-cold.

His only savior had betrayed him at the critical moment!

Brother was too unreliable!

This dinner was the worst meal he’d ever had since birth. With angry tears welling in his eyes, he gnawed on the coarse grain veggie ball, his grimacing expression making the adults nearly burst into laughter, tears and all.

Only Gu Yuan silently observed Zhou Chiyu the entire time, without a hint of a smile.

After dinner ended, he stood in front of the kitchen for a very, very long time.

After his bath, Gu Yuan leaned on the bed reading a book. When Bai Wenran told him that Zhou Chiyu was still out on a forced walk at this hour, he felt a pang in his heart.

“Why does he have to lose weight?”

“He’s not fat.”

Bai Wenran was measuring Gu Yuan’s blood oxygen levels. She looked up with a smile. “Didn’t you always call him a little fatty?”

Gu Yuan’s expression froze. He frowned and refuted. “I never said that.”

Bai Wenran gazed at him. “Has Little Yuan started treating Little Fish like a real little brother?”

“I! Did! Not!” Gu Yuan hid his embarrassed expression, closed the picture book, and burrowed under the covers. “I’m going to sleep.”

Bai Wenran naturally knew what Gu Yuan was thinking and responded gently. “Alright.”

At ten o’clock that night, after his bath, Zhou Chiyu lay on the bed puffing out his cheeks and sighing. Butler Chen had told him that when he could eat ice cream again depended on how much weight he lost.

At present, he was ten pounds overweight—about the weight of ten bottles of mineral water. He stared at his milk bottle, extremely anxious.

He probably wouldn’t get to eat ice cream for the rest of his life.

Butler Chen knew Zhou Chiyu well. To support the weight loss plan, he had specially cleared all the snacks from the bedroom to prevent nighttime munching.

Zhou Chiyu watched the bulging bag, his heart bleeding.

But that wasn’t enough—Butler Chen planned to wait until he was asleep before leaving.

With no other choice, he pretended to sleep first. Once Butler Chen left, he slipped on his dinosaur pajamas and sneaked downstairs to the dining room, hoping to find something to eat.

The fridge was heavy and tall. He climbed onto a chair and used all his strength to open it. But the contents disappointed him greatly—only some oddly shaped seafood.

He stuck out his little butt and rummaged around, his dinosaur tail wagging back and forth, creating a comically eerie sight in the dim light.

After a long while, he found a few pieces of rock-hard frozen raw meat. He opened his mouth wide and “ahh”ed for ages, but in the end, he dejectedly put them back.

The meat was too tough; he’d probably chip a tooth if he tried to eat it.

After all that fussing without finding anything good, Zhou Chiyu was furious. His resentful gaze turned toward the elevator, and he stormed off with his little feet straight to Gu Yuan’s bedroom.

Gu Yuan hadn’t slept yet and was reading. When he saw the blurry figure charging in, the corners of his mouth quietly curved up. “You—”

“Brother! I want to learn your strategy!”

Zhou Chiyu’s cheeks bulged like ripe apples. “I want snacks now! If you don’t give me any, I won’t be in the same class as you!”