Chapter 9: I want to give them a surprise.

After hanging up the phone, Yin Xiuzhu stood there for a long time, his mind filled with the busy tone from the receiver, unable to think about anything else.

Qi Mu, being a resolute man of action and a straightforward guy who always kept his word, went upstairs to find Qiao Jin as soon as he put down the phone.

“Mom!” He started yelling before his short legs even reached the stairs.

Qiao Jin was working on a design blueprint when she heard her son’s voice. Without looking up, she asked, “What’s up?”

Qi Mu dove into her arms, declaring, “I want to go to Guorui!” Straightforward, simple, and blunt, but effective!

Qiao Jin put down her work and turned to look at him. “What are you on about now?” Her son took after his father, acting impulsively whenever he got an idea.

Qi Mu bared his small tiger teeth and pleaded, “I want to go to Guorui Elementary School.”

Qiao Jin, unable to resist, patted his head, “Didn’t we agree on Shiyan?”

Qi Mu replied, “I changed my mind.”

Qiao Jin, losing her patience, said, “Once something is decided, it’s not allowed to be changed.”

“I want to change, I want to change.” Qi Mu stood on tiptoe and kissed his mom. “I want to go to Guorui Elementary School.”

Although Qiao Jin loved her child, she wouldn’t let him be impulsive. “I asked you before, and you agreed. Why are you changing your mind now?”

Qi Mu replied, “Yin Xiuzhu can’t go to Shiyan.”

Qiao Jin was slightly surprised. “Didn’t you all agree on this?” Qi Mu had announced it at home several times with great fanfare, so Qiao Jin knew about it.

Qi Mu said, “He just called and said his mom didn’t agree.”

Qiao Jin frowned. “Why didn’t he tell you earlier?”

Qi Mu, feeling it was only natural, said, “He’s really timid. Maybe he’s afraid I’ll hit him.”

Qiao Jin was silent for a moment. “You hit him?”

Realizing he’d misspoken, Qi Mu quickly corrected himself. “I wouldn’t hit him. I take good care of him. I mean, he’s afraid I’ll get angry!”

“You hit people when you get angry?”

Qi Mu scratched the back of his head and said, “…Not every time.”

“Alright then.” Qiao Jin lifted his little ear. “So, you’ve learned to bully people now.”

Qi Mu, while crying out in pain, pleaded for mercy, “I’m not bullying anyone. I’m just making sure they don’t bully me.”

Qiao Jin thought to herself that it might be necessary to go to the school and understand the actual situation.

Having been around his mother for years, Qi Mu knew exactly how to placate her.

He imitated his dad flawlessly, kissing Qiao Jin on the cheek and massaging her shoulders. He even complimented her outfit.

Qiao Jin wasn’t angry in the first place. With his antics, her face and eyes were full of smiles. She scooped him up into her arms and kissed his soft little cheek, “Do you really want to go to Guorui Elementary School?”

“I want to go,” Qi Mu insisted. “Mom, you don’t understand. Yin Xiuzhu is so dumb and timid. If I’m not around, he’ll definitely get bullied.”

Qiao Jin was amused by him, “Look at you, being all capable.”

Qi Mu clung to her arm, “Mom, just agree to it. I promise not to eat ice cream for three days!”

Qiao Jin’s eyes curved with laughter, “And no chocolate either.”

Qi Mu’s little face fell, “That…”

Qiao Jin continued, “You’re about to start elementary school. You must memorize numbers within one hundred, recite ten ancient poems, recognize common characters, and also…”

Ah, the little tyrant Qi Mu was defeated.

After signing a series of unfair treaties, Qi Mu finally got his mom’s permission to attend Guorui Elementary School with Yin Xiuzhu.

At this moment, Yin Xiuzhu finally came back to his senses. He highly doubted he had even made the phone call, thinking Qi Mu’s desire to attend Guorui was just his imagination.

He shakily put down the receiver, picked it up again, and dialed Qi’s house number.

This time, he gripped the receiver even tighter, so nervous that his breathing became rapid.

Qi Mu answered the phone, “It’s done. My mom agreed to let me go to Guorui.” Only God knew how much he had to sacrifice, but there was no need to tell Yin Xiuzhu about that. He wasn’t like Xu Xiaoming, who would constantly talk about these trivial matters.

Yin Xiuzhu’s small hand turned white at the knuckles from gripping the phone too tightly. He didn’t know how to describe his feelings at that moment. It was as if something had surged from his heart, flowing to his limbs, making him a bit unsteady on his feet.

“Re-Really?”

“Would I lie to you?” Qi Mu said, “Don’t you believe what I say?”

Yin Xiuzhu’s voice trembled, “I believe you… I believe you!”

Qi Mu chuckled a few times and said, “But don’t get too excited yet. My mom already registered me at Shiyan. I have to report there first and might have to attend for a while before transferring to Guorui.”

Yin Xiuzhu nodded vigorously, then realized he was on the phone and Qi Mu couldn’t see him. He swallowed hard and replied, “Okay.”

“Oh, right,” Qi Mu added, “don’t tell Xu Xiaoming and the others yet. I want to surprise them.”

Yin Xiuzhu responded, “Got it.”

Qi Mu was puzzled, “Are you catching a cold? Your voice sounds weird.”

Yin Xiuzhu tried hard to steady his emotions, “No, I’m fine.”

“Alright then, see you at school in a while,” Qi Mu said.

Just as they were about to hang up, Yin Xiuzhu called out to him.

“Yes?” Qi Mu replied.

Yin Xiuzhu whispered, “Thank you.”

Qi Mu looked puzzled, “What are you thanking me for?”

Yin Xiuzhu couldn’t quite express it, so he just said softly, “I’m really happy.”
Qi Mu said, “If you’re happy, then smile. Why do I feel like you’re about to cry?”

Yin Xiuzhu paused, then managed a clumsy but heartfelt smile, “I am smiling.”

“Alright, alright,” Qi Mu said, feeling a bit embarrassed for some reason.

“What’s there to be happy about starting elementary school? There will be classes and homework. It’s so stressful.” Qi Mu then remembered he would have to start memorizing numbers, reciting poems, and learning characters this summer. Oh dear, Tyrant Qi wished he could stay in kindergarten forever.

The kindergarten summer vacation was short. Qi Dashan took his wife and child to Hawaii for a trip. When they returned, both father and son were tanned a nice wheat color.

Qi Mu was very pleased with this and kept asking Qiao Jin, “Mom, do I look like chocolate?”

Qiao Jin pinched his little cheek, “Yes, you look sweet!”

Qi Dashan shamelessly added, “What about me? Do I look like a big chocolate bar? Want to take a bite?”

Qiao Jin responded by slapping the shameless rogue away.

As the start of school approached, Qi Mu had already lost his tan and was worried, “I tanned for so long, how did I get pale again so quickly?”

Qi Dashan, still dark-skinned, patted his son’s head and said, “You take after your mom. You don’t keep a tan well.”

Qi Mu looked at his dad with envy, “I haven’t even shown Yin Xiuzhu yet.”

Qi Dashan said, “No worries. When you guys get a bit older, I’ll sign you up for a summer camp. You can both get plenty of sun there.”

Qi Mu raised his little fist, “You promise!”

Qi Dashan bumped fists with him, “It’s a deal.”

On the first day of school at Guorui, Xu Xiaoming was full of swagger. Back when he first started kindergarten, he was the class bully, always surrounded by a group of followers. Only Dong Jisheng from the neighboring class could rival him, while the others… they could only cower in the corners.

Then Qi Mu came along. Xu Xiaoming had planned to intimidate him, but instead, he was the one who got kicked down. That memory was truly hard to look back on.

Luckily, Qi Mu went to Shiyan, so Xu Xiaoming finally had a chance to shine.

Fang Junqi eagerly supported him, “Brother Xiaoming, from now on, you call the shots in our class!”

Xu Xiaoming chuckled, “Of course.”

Who else but him? There couldn’t be anyone else!

Xu Xiaoming was in such a good mood that his tail might as well have been wagging in the air.

There were four classes in the first grade of Guorui Elementary School. Xu Xiaoming and Fang Junqi were placed in Class 1. Coincidentally, Dong Jisheng was also in Class 1. Even more coincidentally… so was Yin Xiuzhu.

When Xu Xiaoming saw Yin Xiuzhu, he generously announced, “I won’t hold the past against you. Just behave from now on.” Most of the reason he got in trouble with Qi Mu was because he had picked on Yin Xiuzhu.

Yin Xiuzhu glanced at him but said nothing.

Xu Xiaoming, thinking Yin Xiuzhu was scared, felt even better and added, “Don’t worry, since we’re in the same class, if anyone else bullies you, just tell me. I’ll see what I can do to help.”

Yin Xiuzhu withdrew his gaze and returned to his seat.
Xu Xiaoming pouted, “He’s really unlikable.”

But these were just minor details. As long as Xu Xiaoming didn’t see Qi Mu, everything was fine. Although Dong Jisheng used to clash with Xu Xiaoming, they had bonded over their shared experiences under Qi Baba’s rule, so their relationship improved significantly.

Entering elementary school was a different world compared to kindergarten, especially at prestigious schools with hefty tuition fees, where every child seemed groomed to be a multi-talented elite.

The homeroom teacher quickly assessed the class dynamics. There were twenty-four students in total. Xu Xiaoming and Dong Jisheng were noted troublemakers, Fang Junqi seemed to sway with the wind, and the rest of the children were generally well-behaved.

However, the teacher paid particular attention to Yin Xiuzhu. This student was well-groomed and didn’t quite fit the typical appearance of a boy. Yet, he seemed timid, always sitting at the back and avoiding interaction with others.

Mr. Xu De had been teaching at Guorui Elementary School for seven to eight years and was privy to many things, especially gossip about the Yin family, which he had heard whispers of before.

Rumor had it that Yin Xiuzhu was not the biological son of Yin Zhenggong, but rather the result of Mrs. Yin’s extramarital affair.

Of course, these were just rumors, and no one knew the exact truth. Mr. Xu De wasn’t inclined to believe them outright. If there were doubts about paternity, why not just conduct a paternity test? If Yin Xiuzhu wasn’t Yin Zhenggong’s child, why bother raising him? It seemed unnecessary to him.

But if Yin Xiuzhu truly was Yin Zhenggong’s biological son, why was he being neglected like this? Judging from the child’s cautious and reserved demeanor, Mr. Xu De could only imagine the kind of life he must lead at home. He sighed softly and averted his gaze—it wasn’t his place to delve into these matters.

In the blink of an eye, half a month had passed since the start of school. Xu Xiaoming and Dong Jisheng were inseparable, dubbing themselves the “twin heroes” of their class, aiming to dominate their grades.

Little did they know, their carefree days were about to come to an end.

One afternoon after school, Mr. Xu De announced, “We’ll have a new transfer student joining us tomorrow. Let’s all welcome him warmly and make him feel at home.”

Upon hearing this, Yin Xiuzhu’s eyes suddenly lit up.
Xu Xiaoming and Dong Jisheng chattered behind, “Another transfer student!”

Dong Jisheng said, “We better treat him well.”

Xu Xiaoming smirked, “Of course.”

Fang Junqi whispered, “Qi Mu was also a transfer student back then…”

Xu Xiaoming interrupted, “There can’t be that many Qi Mu in the world.”

Dong Jisheng, feeling bold, retorted, “Even if it were Qi Mu, so what?”

Xu Xiaoming had been about to respond but hesitated, recalling Qi Mu’s mischievous grin. “No way, Qi Mu is at Shiyan. He wouldn’t come here!”

Fang Junqi interjected cautiously, “But what if… what if…”

Xu Xiaoming slammed the table. “If it really is Qi Mu, I’ll eat this pencil case!”

It was a luxurious pencil case, thirty centimeters long, several centimeters wide, three layers high, and shaped like a car, all made of pure metal!