Chapter 7: He glanced at his mother and lowered his gaze. "Mom, I'm back."

Qi Mu never even considered separating from Yin Xiuzhu.

They agreed to watch out for each other. How could they do that if they were apart?

His dad always said, “A man should keep his word.”

Wait… was it “A real man” instead of “A man”? Who cares? Anyway, his dad was just a big softie in front of his mom.

Qi Mu pushed the slightly melted chocolate towards him. “Do you want some?”

Before he could finish, the teacher noticed. “Qi Mu, what are you doing?”

Qi Mu quickly tucked the chocolate into his palm and sat up straight.
The teacher walked over sternly. “Are you bringing snacks to school again?”

Qi Mu was always honest and never lied. He grinned. “Yes.”

The teacher sighed. Well, she was annoyed, but there was nothing she could do!

Yin Xiuzhu wanted Qi Mu to avoid getting in trouble. Just as he was about to speak up, Qi Mu stood up abruptly and asked, “Teacher, should I go to the back or outside the door?”

Teacher: “Outside!” She felt a headache coming on whenever she saw him.

Qi Mu happily got up and secretly stuffed the chocolate into Yin Xiuzhu’s hand before leaving.

Yin Xiuzhu watched his back and tightly held the slightly deformed warm chocolate. Qi Mu treated him better than everyone did.

Qi Mu wasn’t going to stand outside as punishment obediently. He took a detour to the restroom, relieved himself, washed his hands, and used his fragrant little towel to wipe them — Yin Xiuzhu was really thoughtful, always washing the towel so clean for him.

Inside the classroom, lessons continued while Qi Mu chatted outside with Dong Jisheng from Class 2.

That little rascal was also sent out by the teacher to stand as punishment.

Dong Jisheng asked him, “Are you going to Shiyan?”

Qi Mu replied, “Yeah, don’t miss me.”

Dong Jisheng said, “Miss you, my foot.”

Qi Mu shrugged, “Without me, who’s going to keep you company while being punished?”

Dong Jisheng retorted, “I don’t need anyone to keep me company!”

Qi Mu said, “Then I’m leaving.”

He turned to leave. Dong Jisheng, not as daring as Qi Mu, obediently stood where he was punished by the teacher, not daring to go anywhere. Normally, Qi Mu was the only one who kept him company. If Qi Mu left, he would indeed be bored.

“Hey…” Dong Jisheng called out to him, “If you leave, what about your class’s little…”

He didn’t finish the word “psycho.” Qi Mu glared at him, and Dong Jisheng quickly changed his words, “What about your little follower?”

“Little follower” wasn’t any better. Qi Mu said, “Yin Xiuzhu.”

Dong Jisheng was afraid Qi Mu would argue with fists, so he quickly said, “Yin Xiuzhu, got it.” Even though he had been in the same class as Yin Xiuzhu for two years, he never remembered his name until now.

Qi Mu said confidently, “He’s coming with me.”

Dong Jisheng was just a little brat and didn’t understand much. He said, “Yeah, you two can go together.” After he finished speaking, he felt really pleased. Without Qi Mu, the big devil, and the little psycho, Guorui would be really exciting.

When class was over, Yin Xiuzhu was the first to come out and gave the chocolate in his palm to Qi Mu.

Qi Mu was surprised. “Why haven’t you eaten it?”

Yin Xiuzhu said, “I took a bite, these are for you.” He knew Qi Mu wanted some.

Qi Mu couldn’t resist asking, “You don’t want more?”

Yin Xiuzhu replied, “Hurry up and eat it, don’t let the teacher catch you.”

Qi Mu chuckled, “You’re always so good to me!” With that, he peeled off the plastic wrapper and stuffed the whole chocolate into his mouth.

Seeing Qi Mu like this made Yin Xiuzhu even happier than eating the chocolate himself.

After school, Qi Mu reminded him, “Don’t forget to tell your mom when you get home.”

Yin Xiuzhu nodded solemnly, clenched his fist, and encouraged himself.

Qi Mu got home early, while Yin Xiuzhu waited until dusk for his driver to pick him up.

They drove in silence until they reached the gate. Only then did Yin Xiuzhu begin to feel a slight nervousness.

His house was large, and even after entering the gate, the car had to pass through a garden before reaching the rear building.

The garden was well-maintained, but Yin Xiuzhu didn’t find it beautiful. He disliked the dark green pine and cypress trees, finding them too tall and gloomy as if they blocked out all the light.

Behind the garden, the building occupies a broad footprint, with an elegant style that brings a serene tranquility amid the bustling surroundings. However, to a six-year-old child, everything appears silent and oppressive.

He didn’t want to come home, disliking the pervasive chill within the house.

Even with the air conditioning on and the thermometer showing a pleasant temperature, the indifferent coldness seemed to seep through flesh and bone alike.

Yin Xiuzhu took a deep breath and pushed open the door to enter the house.

No one was in the living room, and even the lights were off. The dark, spacious house resembled a gaping beast, ready to devour any prey that stepped inside.

Yin Xiuzhu hurried over and turned on the lights. The huge crystal chandelier bathed the entire room in daylight-like brightness, yet his trembling fingers couldn’t calm down so quickly.

He took another deep breath, returned to the entrance to change his shoes, and wiped away his shoe prints with a towel—lest the housekeeper scold him if she found out.

After completing these tasks, he slowly ascended the stairs and headed to the room at the far right.

The door was closed, silently rejecting everyone.

Yin Xiuzhu knocked on the door, but there was no sound from inside. Yet he knew his mother was in there.

He pressed the door handle and pushed it open. The room was dimly lit, with only the blood-red sunset casting its glow through the window onto the woman sitting there, casting a dark crimson hue.

The woman was dressed in a white outfit, extremely quiet, almost like a cold statue.

She was very beautiful, with astonishingly smooth black hair and skin so delicate it resembled cold jade.

At the prime of her beauty, she had lost her vitality and become a withered flower.

Yin Xiuzhu inherited her features; such delicate features on a boy’s face softened his appearance.

He glanced at his mother and said softly, “Mom, I’m back.”

There was no response, not even a glance spared for him.

Yin Xiuzhu felt a pang of disappointment in his eyes. Despite knowing the outcome each time, he still held a faint hope, perhaps that one-day things would be different, that one day she would look at him.

But it was not to be. Just as persistently as he greeted her every time, she responded with endless indifference.

This was the third time Yin Xiuzhu had taken a deep breath since returning home, his only way to ease the tension in his chest.

After going downstairs, Yin Xiuzhu picked up the phone. His father hadn’t come back for a long time, so he could only call him about registering for Shiyan Elementary School.

He didn’t know if his father would agree, but he knew he had to take this step; he had to try.

Before he could dial the phone number, a series of footsteps echoed from outside.

Yin Xiuzhu was stunned for a moment, then an uncontrollable joy surged up—Dad is back!

He hurriedly put down the phone and trotted to the living room. Just then, the door opened, and Yin Gongzheng, dressed in a sharp suit, walked in. Behind him were his assistants, but they didn’t enter the house. They simply briefed him on the next day’s schedule and then left.

Yin Xiuzhu waited until everyone had left before cautiously coming out and carefully saying, “Dad.”

Yin Gongzheng didn’t even look at him, tugging at his tie as he asked, “Where’s your mom?”

Yin Xiuzhu hesitated, saying, “She’s upstairs.”

“Hmm.” Yin Gongzheng strode towards the stairs and went straight up.

Yin Xiuzhu pursed his lips and followed. He needed to talk to his dad about Shiyan Elementary School…

As he reached the top, he heard his mother scream, “Yin Gongzhen, get out! Get out of here!”

Yin Xiuzhu stopped in his tracks, his face as pale as paper.

A loud thud echoed from inside the house, followed by Yin Gongzheng, his hair disheveled, storming out. He cursed, “Madwoman!” and locked the door behind him from the outside.

Yin Xiuzhu stood on the stairs, trembling uncontrollably.

Yin Gongzheng glanced at him, feeling irritated. “Move aside.”

“Dad!” Yin Xiuzhu didn’t know where he found the courage, to grab Yin Gongzheng’s sleeve.

Yin Gongzheng frowned at him. “What’s wrong?”

Yin Xiuzhu’s voice trembled, but he spoke loudly, trying to get it all out in one breath. “I-I’m about to graduate. Shiyan School. I want… I want to go to Shiyan Elementary School.” He said it. He really said it.

Yin Gongzheng’s disgust in his eyes was not concealed: “Shiyan Elementary School? Do you think you haven’t embarrassed me enough?”

Yin Xiuzhu hesitated, then looked up at him. “Shiyan Elementary School is… really good.”

“Who do you think you are? Do you think the name Yin Xiuzhu was given to you for nothing?”

“I…” Yin Xiuzhu didn’t know how to answer his father’s question.

Yin Gongzheng, in his irritation, said, “Don’t even need to think about attending such a trashy school. I’d rather hire private tutors to teach you at home than to let you go there.”

With those words, he stormed off, flinging his sleeves as he left.

It wasn’t until the roar of a car engine outside that Yin Xiuzhu snapped out of it.

His father had left, leaving his mother locked inside, frantically smashing anything within reach.

Maids and caregivers started coming upstairs one by one to calm down his mother, who had gone mad. No one paid any attention to Yin Xiuzhu; he stood there like a transparent person, ignored by everyone.

He couldn’t go to Shiyan Elementary School. He was about to lose the only person who would look at him.

The birthday fairy… wouldn’t come to him. After all, he was a child who didn’t even have a birthday.

Yin Xiuzhu cried the whole night, sobbing heart-wrenchingly as if trying to cry out all the tears he had accumulated over the years.

But what good would it do? This empty house seemed to swallow everything.

Yin Xiuzhu took three days off sick, and when he returned, he had lost weight.

Qi Mu said with concern, “Is your home’s air conditioning set too low? Let me tell you, even in summer, you should cover yourself with a blanket. Just in case the air conditioning starts to blast freezing air.”

Yin Xiuzhu felt like crying when he saw him, but he held back. With only a few days left, he wanted to spend quality time with Qi Mu.

Qi Mu added, “Make sure you take your medicine properly, don’t be afraid of the bitterness. I’m not afraid of it at all; I just swallow it without blinking, super cool!”

Yin Xiuzhu imagined the scene and smiled slightly. “Yeah, I’m not afraid either.”

Qi Mu then got serious again. “Did you talk to your mom? Can you go to Shiyan Elementary School?”

Yin Xiuzhu’s eyelashes trembled as he looked down. He whispered, “I talked to her.”

Qi Mu smiled happily, “Then I’m relieved.” He added, “Don’t worry, even though there are no familiar classmates in Shiyan Elementary School, as long as I’m there, no one will dare to bully you!”

Yin Xiuzhu smiled back, his voice somewhat awkward, “I know.”