Chapter 4: To hell with whether they're boys or girls; once you've claimed someone, you protect them to the end!

His little sister!

His beautiful little sister!

The little sister he worked so hard to claim!

Turned out to be a boy…

At just four years old, our poor Qi Mu tasted the bitterness of heartbreak.

Old Qi said, “A man does not easily shed tears.”

Though heartbroken, Qi Mu held it together. He turned away sadly, looking devastated, and said, “You take your time, I’ll be going back…” As soon as he said that, he felt a sudden urge to pee, so he quietly turned back and stood next to Yin Xiuzhu… for a “breakup” pee, letting all the sadness wash away with the stream.

Farewell to his little sister, farewell to his claim.

After finishing, Qi Mu walked towards the door with a tragic air.

Yin Xiuzhu called him softly, “Qi Mu.”

The voice was milky, sweet, and soft. How could it belong to a boy?

Qi Mu felt sad, not looking back. There wasn’t much left to say between him and Yin Xiuzhu.

Yin Xiuzhu said, “You haven’t washed your hands.”

Qi Mu hesitated.

Reluctantly, Qi Mu turned back and stood by the sink.

Their teacher had taught them how to wash hands—palms, backs, fingers—and even a rhyme. However, Qi Mu was absent-minded, washing carelessly. He didn’t even use the soap properly, ready to leave.

Unexpectedly, Yin Xiuzhu suddenly grabbed his hand. “Like this, I’ll help you.” He took the soap and carefully washed Qi Mu’s palms, backs of hands, and even his wrists.

From this angle, Qi Mu could see his long, curled eyelashes, his cheeks as tender as white tofu, and those cherry-like, small, rosy lips—so handsome, so gentle, so likable. Why was he a boy?

Overwhelmed with sadness, Qi Mu avoided looking, determined that after washing this “break-up” hand, he wouldn’t see him again.

“There you go.” Yin Xiuzhu took out his own small towel and handed it to Qi Mu. “Dry your hands.”

Qi Mu said, “Your towel is so clean.” Their teacher encouraged independence by having everyone wash their own towels, but Qi Mu couldn’t quite manage it, leaving his towel a mess.

Yin Xiuzhu replied, “I keep it hidden here. If you need to use it, just take it. I’ll wash it afterward.”

Curious, Qi Mu asked, “Why do you hide it?”

Yin Xiuzhu paused, then said, “If I don’t hide it, they’ll throw my towel into the toilet.”

Upon hearing this, a surge of righteous indignation rose in Qi Mu’s head. Just as he had resolved to break up, he declared, “Whoever dares to throw your towel in the toilet, I’ll throw them into the toilet!”

Yin Xiuzhu’s lips curved into a gentle and adorable smile. He said, “You’re really kind.”

Qi Mu was left speechless.

Well, he could throw the bullies who bullied him into the toilet before breaking up!

This break-up dragged on for half a month without happening, and since childhood, Qi Mu had perfected the skill of saying one thing and meaning another.

What finally made Qi Mu abandon the idea of breaking up was during a soccer class.

The kindergarten operated on a small class system, with each class having around eighteen or nineteen children.

Soccer class was considered an extracurricular activity, favored more by boys, while activities like pottery, flower arranging, and crafts were popular among girls. Qi Mu, being a little boss-type player, naturally signed up.

With him around, Xu Xiaoming, Fang Junqi, and others were intimidated, opting to quit soccer class and join taekwondo instead—train if you can’t fight now, and you’ll eventually be able to. At that time, Xu Xiaoming still had integrity.

Class 3 had a total of nine boys, but eight dared not sign up, leaving only Qi Mu. The teachers looked at the list in distress. Class teacher Xiao Zhang said to assistant teacher Xiao Wang, “What should we do? Should we persuade Qi Mu to change his interest?”

Xiao Wang hurriedly replied, “You go talk to him.”

Xiao Zhang looked distressed, saying, “It’s rare for a child to have such an interest. We should support him. Who knows, we might cultivate a future soccer star who brings glory to our country!” ¹The Chinese national soccer team is well known to be very bad

Xiao Wang nodded, saying, “Yes, yes, yes, of course, we know Mu has strong athletic abilities.” Internally, he thought: What a hassle dealing with this little boss!

In reality, their teachers had it tough too. Given the nature of this kindergarten, they couldn’t afford to provoke any child. Usually, when they put on a serious face, most kids would listen, but Qi Mu was never ordinary. It seemed like he didn’t even know the word “fear.”

After the list was submitted, the soccer coach immediately placed Qi Mu in Class 2, recognizing that he couldn’t play on his own in a team sport like soccer.

Teacher Xiao Zhang explained this to Qi Mu, saying, “If you don’t like being alone, we can change your interest, maybe to taekwondo…”

Before he could finish, Qi Mu interjected, “Class 2? Sure, I know the class well.”

Xiao Zhang was left speechless.

Forgot that you are the playground boss, and bosses aren’t scared of anything.

That afternoon during extracurricular activities, the other boys from Class 3 went in a group to the taekwondo classroom, while Qi Mu strolled alone to the soccer field.

He still had Yin Xiuzhu on his mind, thinking about kicking some “break-up” balls or something.

But as soon as he arrived at the soccer field, he heard voices that made his blood boil.

“Get lost! Who wants to play soccer with the crazy kid!”

“Do you even know how to play soccer? Did you sign up just to drag us down?”

“Stay far away, crazy spreads, I don’t want to catch crazy.”

Qi Mu exploded with anger. Spotting a soccer ball at his feet, he lifted his leg and kicked right into the crowd.

The clustered children were startled, shouting in alarm, “Who’s there? The coach said no kicking right now!”

Amid their clamor, they turned and saw Qi Mu.

Dong Jisheng, the former boss of Class 2, angrily questioned, “Qi Mu, what are you doing here in our Class 2?”

Qi Mu glanced at Yin Xiuzhu, who was huddled in a corner, and raised his voice defiantly, “I’m here to play…” deliberately drawing out his words. With a swift kick of his leg, another ball shot towards them. “With you guys!”

Forget playing nice, he was going to kick these troublemakers out!

Dong Jisheng had been tolerating Qi Mu for a while now. Taking advantage of their numbers, he shouted at Qi Mu, “You’re always protecting the crazy kid, you’re just as crazy!” In a kindergarten setting, insults were rarely heard, and “crazy” was a pretty strong word.

Qi Mu, a true disciple of Qi Dashan, understood actions speak louder than words. He lifted his leg and kicked another ball their way.

Standing by the goalpost, he took full advantage. After enduring their insults, the group rushed to steal the ball. Qi Mu used both hands and feet, kicking and throwing, creating an impenetrable defense.

Yin Xiuzhu, watching from afar, was completely stunned.

Qi Mu, despite his bravado, was still just a child. Provoked by the boys from Class 2, he had thrown several balls their way, prompting them to retaliate. Dong Jisheng, a chubby boy who clearly ate well, picked up a ball and hurled it directly at Qi Mu.

Caught between enemies, Qi Mu couldn’t dodge one without facing another. Just as he was about to take a hit, Yin Xiuzhu swiftly rushed in and stood in front of him.

Bang… The ball struck him in the abdomen, causing Yin Xiuzhu to double over in pain, clutching his stomach.

Qi Mu had always been used to facing challenges alone, never expecting someone to step in and shield him.

The boys from Class 2 were stunned. While they often bullied Yin Xiuzhu, they had never intended to seriously harm him. Seeing him pale and in pain, they panicked.

At that moment, the coach arrived, alarmed at the scene. “What’s going on? Why are you playing like this?”

Normally, kindergarten teachers were supposed to keep a close eye on the children at all times, given that they were still very young and needed supervision. The coach had briefly stepped away to take a phone call, assuming the assistant teacher from Class 2 was present. Unaware that the assistant teacher was indisposed, he had gone to the restroom nearby, resulting in this misunderstanding.

Now rushing over, both confused and concerned, they realized this wasn’t just child’s play. Such a serious incident could lead to dismissal!

Qi Mu didn’t care about these things. He looked at Yin Xiuzhu and asked, “Does it hurt?”

Yin Xiuzhu’s little face was pale, but he still smiled at him. “It’s okay.”

Qi Mu felt uneasy. “Why did you come over?”

Yin Xiuzhu replied softly, “I don’t want you to hurt.”

Soft-spoken words, heartwarming. Qi Mu looked at him, and the thought that came to his mind was, “Damn it, regardless of whether you’re a boy or a girl, once you’ve got my seal of approval, I’ll protect you through thick and thin!”

After this incident, not much happened. The soccer coach and the assistant teacher were punished but not fired.

Because it was Yin Xiuzhu who got hit by the ball, his family never cared, so since the parents didn’t intervene and the child wasn’t injured, it passed like this.

However, since then, Qi Mu has become a frequent visitor to Class 2.

Dong Jisheng and a bunch of brats were all dealt with by him, and no one dared to call anyone crazy again.

In fact, Qi Mu’s protection of Yin Xiuzhu earned him the respect of several preschool teachers.

They knew about Yin Xiuzhu’s situation and felt sorry for him, but the situation in the kindergarten was complicated, so they couldn’t be overly critical of the other children.

These children, though young, were the most observant of nuances. When their parents casually mentioned Yin Xiuzhu’s mother at home, it inevitably made its way to the kindergarten. As for who could be bullied, who couldn’t be, how to align oneself, how to form cliques—no one needed to teach them; they were born knowing.

Fortunately, Qi Mu showed up.

Actually, Qi Mu never took the initiative to bully anyone, but if anyone dared to bully him, even if it was just calling his dad a nouveau riche, he would throw a punch.

He didn’t understand what “nouveau riche” meant, but he could tell if the tone was bad.

His fearless nature from a young age was partly inherited, but more importantly, it came from the truest love of his parents.

This was the true source of strength for a child’s growth.

Yin Xiuzhu couldn’t fight back because his mother ignored him when she was quiet and cursed him when she went crazy, and his father had only seen him a handful of times since birth. In such a vast home, filled only with the cold words of nannies, how could he voice his grievances?

He had nowhere else to go.

But now, he had Qi Mu.

Children grew up fast. It seemed like in the blink of an eye, Qi Mu and Yin Xiuzhu had already moved up to the senior class together.

Of course, kindergarten didn’t operate with class divisions like this. Once the children were assigned to a class, they stayed there until they graduated.

However, there was an exception. In Class Two, a student transferred out, leaving a vacant spot. In the office, Teacher Xiao Zhang and the Class Two homeroom teacher discussed, “Your class was already short one student, and now another one is leaving. Your class size will be too small.”

The Class Two homeroom teacher immediately understood, “Don’t even think about it!”

“Don’t say that,” Teacher Xiao Zhang replied, “Mu Mu has been constantly running to your class anyway. He could already be considered as half a Class 2 student.”

The Class 2 homeroom teacher said, “Even half a kid is giving me gray hairs. You want to send a whole one over?”

“Whether half or whole, it’s all troublesome. Can’t you show some kindness and relieve me?”

“I’m still hoping for relief!”

In truth, Teacher Xiao Zhang was just joking around. She didn’t really want to send away Qi Baba. The main issue was that even if she wanted to send him away, she couldn’t!

Little did she know, that the next day at noon, Qi Mu dashed out from the neighboring class, “Teacher!”

Upon hearing the crisp little voice, Comrade Xiao Zhang’s legs went weak. “What’s wrong?”

Qi Mu raised his little face and said, “Our classmate Li Hong is transferring out. There’s an empty spot. Why not let Yin Xiuzhu come over?”

Teacher Xiao Zhang: “…”

Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that not only did Qi Mu not leave, but another troublemaker would come!