Chapter 117
Xing Nuo was usually a very well-behaved and easygoing child.
Seeing his brother about to put earplugs in his ears, although confused, he didn’t resist.
Just before Shen Yan inserted the earplugs, Xing Nuo reached out and touched his brother’s cool, smooth cheek.
It was a cold, icy touch, different from Shen Baizhou’s cool, sea-like scent.
He pulled his warm, slightly sweaty hand back and touched the earplug.
Just as he was about to say something, his mind went blank.
His memories slowly returned, and he looked around, his sleepy voice filled with confusion.
“So late. Why no sleep?”
He yawned, then, remembering the transparent glass elevator he had seen earlier, his eyes lighting up, he grabbed his brother’s hand and pulled him towards the elevator.
“Big Brother, look! Elevator see-thwough! Can see pwetty garden!”
Shen Yan discreetly put the earplugs away, picked up Xing Nuo, and looked down through the glass floor of the elevator.
He could indeed see the garden below, bathed in the warm glow of the house lights, the ground covered in a layer of golden leaves, like scattered fragments of gold.
He smiled and ruffled Xing Nuo’s hair.
“I see. It’s a special glass elevator. It’ll be even prettier in winter, when it snows.”
Xing Nuo’s eyes widened with excitement, a tear escaping from the corner of his eye, his voice sweet.
“I want see in winter! Build big snowman!”
Shen Yan hummed, carrying Xing Nuo to the bedroom.
“Winter will be here soon. Time for bed now, Xing Nuo.”
Xing Nuo hummed, his head resting on his brother’s shoulder, and as he was being tucked into bed, he yawned and clutched his brother’s shirt.
“Big Brother, tell me stowy.”
Shen Yan, knowing the little one’s bedtime story habit, had filled a small bookcase in Xing Nuo’s room with various fairy tales.
He picked one out and, his voice deep and soothing, read to Xing Nuo, coaxing him to sleep.
Xing Nuo’s eyes slowly closed, and he mumbled sleepily:
“Big Brother wuv me.”
Shen Yan smiled and tucked him in.
“Of course.”
He would always cherish his only family in this world.
Night deepened.
The temperature in the city plummeted, and within days, early winter arrived.
Xing Nuo and the other children, bundled up in thick winter coats, looking like little round balls, played in the kindergarten.
Several classes were having a three-legged race.
The children could volunteer to participate, and the winners would receive double the usual afternoon snack!
The lure of extra snacks was irresistible!
Almost all the children in Xing Nuo’s class signed up.
Except for Xing Nuo himself.
He liked sweet treats, but he had a small appetite and couldn’t finish the usual two or three snacks.
Double the snacks? He didn’t need that.
He took out his warm water bottle, his hands tucked inside its fluffy cover, and sat on the steps, swinging his little legs, watching the other children race.
Teacher Xiao Song, supervising the event, saw Xing Nuo sitting there and walked over.
“Xing Nuo, why aren’t you participating?”
Xing Nuo, looking like a sleepy little raccoon, all round and fluffy, just shook his head.
“Don’t want to.”
Before Teacher Xiao Song could say anything, Qingqing, her face red with anger, dragged Yiyi over.
She sat down heavily beside Xing Nuo. It was obvious they had lost.
She looked up at Teacher Xiao Song and complained:
“Teacher, Little Fatty pushed me! Yiyi and I fell! That’s why we lost!”
Xing Nuo looked over and saw Little Fatty, using his size to his advantage, pushing the other children off the track.
Little Fatty, his hands on his hips, his face beaming with pride, declared:
“Hahaha! You’re all so clumsy! Now the prize is mine!”
Xing Nuo shook his head and sighed.
“Little Fatty bully.”
Qingqing nodded vigorously, her hands on her hips, her ponytail bristling with indignation.
“I hate Little Fatty!”
Yiyi nodded in agreement.
Xing Nuo, seeing his friends’ anger, jumped down from the steps.
“It’s okay. I win for you!”
Qingqing clapped her hands, as if Xing Nuo had already won and gotten the double portion of snacks.
“Yay! Xing Nuo will definitely win!”
Yiyi, her cheeks flushed, added:
“Xing Nuo got first place in midterm exam! He’ll win this too!”
Xing Nuo, his ears turning pink, flattered by his friends’ praise, smiled shyly.
“Okay. I share snacks with Qingqing and Yiyi.”
He ran to Teacher Xiao Song, his hand raised high, and said he wanted to participate.
Teacher Xiao Song, after scolding Little Fatty and disqualifying him, making him restart the race fairly, smiled at Xing Nuo.
“Okay, who will be your partner, Xing Nuo?”
Xing Nuo turned his head, and another little boy immediately grabbed his arm, yelling:
“Me and Xing Nuo! Me and Xing Nuo!”
A little girl, her face red from the cold, her hands on her hips, protested:
“No fair! I want to be with Xing Nuo! We never get to be on the same team! I want to be with Xing Nuo!”
The two children were about to start arguing when An Zimuo jumped in, patting their heads.
“Alright, alright, since you can’t decide, I’ll be Xing Nuo’s partner.”
The two-way argument turned into a three-way standoff.
Finally, An Zimuo, the “King of Tattling,” ran to get Teacher Xiao Song, who declared him Xing Nuo’s partner.
An Zimuo, a thin, dark-skinned boy, whose skin never seemed to lighten, even in winter,
eagerly brought the leg ties and bent down to tie his leg to Xing Nuo’s, patting his chest.
“Don’t worry, Xing Nuo, I’ve done this before! I’m very experienced! I’ll lead you to victory!”
Xing Nuo smiled, his eyes sparkling like a galaxy.
“Okay. We win snacks…eat together.”
Qingqing, possessive and always wanting Xing Nuo’s attention, glared at them. An Zimuo, having been in kindergarten for three years, had never shared snacks with Xing Nuo before!
He nodded eagerly, grinning, his teeth unusually white against his dark skin.
“Yes! We’ll eat together later!”
He was so happy, he felt like flowers were blooming on his head!
Little Fatty, hearing this, lifted his chin and snorted.
“You won’t win. I will!”
Xing Nuo, ignoring him, focused on the small red flag at the finish line and took a deep breath.
Another male teacher explained the rules again, making an “X” with his arms.
“No pushing! One more violation, and you’re disqualified!”
Little Fatty and another boy from Class 3 ignored him and, as soon as the whistle blew, took off running.
Xing Nuo and An Zimuo followed, their arms linked, their steps small but steady and rhythmic.
They weren’t as fast as Little Fatty, but their pace was consistent, unlike the other children, who were stumbling and falling.
Little Fatty and his partner, their rhythm off, tripped and fell.
Xing Nuo and An Zimuo, their heads down, their focus unwavering, quickly overtook them.
The boy from Class 3, getting up angrily, was about to push Xing Nuo
when he was yanked back by the leg tie and fell again, tangled.
“Get up! They’re almost at the finish line!”
Little Fatty, seeing Xing Nuo getting along so well with another boy, feeling a pang of jealousy, got up, grumbling.
“Fine.”
He and his partner ran towards the finish line.
Just a few steps away, seeing they couldn’t catch up, the boy from Class 3 reached out and pushed Xing Nuo.
Xing Nuo, caught off guard, stumbled forward,
pulling An Zimuo down with him.
Just as they were about to fall face-first onto the ground, Xing Nuo felt a gentle force supporting him.
A voice sounded beside him:
“How can you be so clumsy?”
Xing Nuo, steadied, grabbed An Zimuo’s hand, and they scrambled back to their feet.
He looked around, but, not forgetting the race, continued running towards the finish line, grabbing the small red flag.
An Zimuo, having grabbed the flag a moment earlier, his hands on his hips, pointed at Little Fatty and his partner angrily.
“Teacher! Teacher! They pushed Xing Nuo!”
Pushing in front of An Zimuo, the “Tattletale King,” was unforgivable!
He would be reporting Little Fatty to the teacher for the next three days.
Teacher Xiao Song and the PE teacher walked over, their faces serious, and took Little Fatty and the other boy aside.
The boy from Class 3, refusing to apologize, yelled:
“I didn’t push him! I didn’t!”
Teacher Xiao Song, exasperated, said sternly:
“Children who lie will be punished by the Justice Angel!”
It was a line from a recent fairytale movie they had watched. Children who lied would be punished by a little angel and end up crying.
The boy, unafraid, stuck his tongue out at the teacher and Xing Nuo.
“Bleh! I’m not scared!”
The next moment, he yelped, clutching his head, tears welling up in his eyes, having been mysteriously smacked on the head.
