CH 4

When Aunt Hua finished writing the final question, Little Miaomiao’s tender little face was about to knock on the table. Aunt Hua stretched out her hand, placed it flatly on the table, and allowed Little Miaomiao’s little face to fall directly onto the palm of her hand.

After raising her little daughter for such a long time, her little face became soft and fleshy.

Aunt Hua’s heart softened, as she looked at her little daughter. She leaned over and picked her up with care.

Suddenly, Little Miaomiao woke up and felt as if she was floating in the air. Fear filled her eyes, as she struggled in fright.

“It’s Auntie, don’t be afraid. It’s Auntie. Auntie is holding you.”, Aunt Hua saw Little Miao’s fear-stricken eyes. She immediately understood what she was thinking, so she quickly allayed her worries.

Only then did Little Miaomiao see with clarity that her aunt had picked her up. The panic in her eyes gradually subsided. Then, she carefully and slowly embraced Aunt Hua.

The little girl in her arms placed her trust in Aunt Hua instantly. When Aunt Hua saw this, her hands shook and she almost broke into tears. Aunt Hua gently touched Miaomiao’s head and said in a quivering voice, “Auntie is here.”

Aunt Hua embraced Little Miaomiao and returned to her bedroom. Little Miaomiao sat on the bed obediently, while Aunt Hua helped her slip into her pajamas.

Aunt Hua took out the scar removal cream from the nearby cabinet. Then, she slowly applied it on Little Miaomiao’s hands and calves.

After applying the cream, Little Miaomiao was stuffed into her quilt. Aunt Hua didn’t notice that Little Miaomiao slept in the same place tonight.

When Uncle Hua returned, it was already past one o’clock in the morning. He saw that his wife was still awake and was sitting on the sofa in the living room.

Uncle Hua took off his coat and walked over, “Why aren’t you in bed?”

Aunt Hua put down her needle and thread and replied, “I am making adjustments to her school uniform.”

She put down the blue and white school uniform. Then, she stood up and embraced Uncle Hua, “Our daughter took the initiative to hug me today.”

Uncle Hua rubbed her head, “She’s a good girl. She will get much better in the future.”

“I know. I’m not in a hurry. But when she hugged me, I was so excited, that I could’ve cried.” Although she didn’t give birth to her, she slowly healed her wounds little by little. Little Miaomiao dreaded them and hid whenever they approached her. But now she could sit at the same table to share a meal with them, go to school, and address her as Auntie. Her work was more arduous than most mothers.

“I saved some food for you. Go ahead and eat it first.” Aunt Hua sat down again and picked up the school uniform she bought today. “I will be finished here soon.”

Aunt Hua is a fashion designer. Not only could she draw up designs, but she also can create her own clothes. Slightly modifying a pre-existing design presents no difficulty for her.

Uncle Hua saw that his wife had changed the cuffs of the original school uniform. It was no longer the ruffle design like the other clothes that she made for her. Instead, they became an elongated part of the cuffs, which were unnoticeable, except to those who paid attention to them.

After Aunt Hua altered the school uniform, the house fell into silence. She carefully opened the little girl’s room and placed the school uniform next to her.

Little Miaomiao nestled inside her quilt, exposing only her small head. Aunt Hua couldn’t help it, and she bent down and kissed her little cheek.

During this time, Dad Zhou got up and trekked to the bathroom. When he came back, he saw a slit of light emanating from the slightly ajar door to the study.

A shiver ran down his spine, and his heart began to palpitate quickly. He looked left and right, and he couldn’t find any suitable weapons to use. He took off his slippers and held them. He furtively tiptoed into the study.

He pushed the door to the study gently and saw his son sitting in front of the computer.

Zhou Yuan had a perplexed expression on his face. “Dad, why are holding your slippers. Are you about to squash a cockroach?”

Dad Zhou put the slippers on the ground nonchalantly and said, “I just saw a rat.” He changed the subject and asked, “It’s very late. Why are you here? If you don’t go to sleep now, you won’t be able to wake up tomorrow!”

After saying that, he seized and picked up Zhou Yuan. Zhou Yuan was taller than his peers, but shorter than adults. He presented no challenge and was thrown directly into his bedroom.

“Don’t even think about transferring. Go to bed!” said Dad Zhou.

Because Zhou Yuan had this stain on his record, Dad Zhou naturally thought that he was up in the middle of the night to submit an application to university again.

Zhou Yuan didn’t retort. He was still thinking about the information that he had just discovered.

Zhou Yuan now knew better. A year ago, he was unaware, but now, he understood. Not everyone in this world has his intellect, and not everyone great or talented would be remembered. Naturally, he understood why everyone couldn’t live similarly to him.

But he never thought that there were children, who suffered through such hardship.

He had only experienced a tenth of his life and his greatest distress was his parents’ refusal to allow him to skip grades. He had to interact with a group of children, who lived in a completely different world from him.

When Zhou Yuan arrived at school the next day, he saw the Little Snail wearing the same school uniform as his other classmates. She was already sitting in her seat.

Zhou Yuan approached her, “Good morning Miaomiao.” He now knew that her name was Miaomiao, not Meow.

Little Miaomiao was holding the packet of dried meat and was awaiting his arrival. Thoughts filled her little head about how to give the packet to the other party. So, she couldn’t react when she heard him talking to her.

Simultaneously, Zhou Yuan sat in his seat and saw that Little Miaomiao didn’t answer him. He continued to patiently talk to her, “When I arrived just now, I saw what would be served for lunch today. Today’s fruit is pomegranate. Do you like to eat those?”

The school would publish the menu for the children’s lunches on the bulletin boards outside every morning. This made it convenient for parents, when they sent their children for supervision.

When Little Miaomiao heard this, her thoughts drifted from the dried meat to a new source of interest. She turned her head and asked in a low voice, “Sixteen?”

Sixteen? Can that be eaten? Auntie taught her how to count. She can count up to fifty. Yesterday, her Auntie also said that she didn’t get the sixteen. She didn’t understand why sixteen could be eaten. She never heard about eating fourteen, fifteen, and seventeen.

“Yes, pomegranate.” Zhou Yuan coaxed the little child and asked, “Does Miaomiao like to eat pomegranate?”

Little Miaomiao didn’t answer. Her little head was filled with only one thought.

Sixteen.

Little Miaomiao’s mind meandered through many twists and turns. She finally decided.

Simultaneously, her classmates entered one after another. Since children usually came to school during this time, they all arrived in groups of two or three. They walked in, held each other’s hands, and talked about a variety of things.

“My tooth is loose. Mom said that after it fell, she would throw it under the bed…”

“My mother said that it should be thrown on the roof. Otherwise, no new tooth would grow!”

“…”

“…”

Little Miaomiao watched them come hand in hand with envy. Her hand touched the meat packet again. Then she furtively glanced at her neighbor, Zhou Yuan, who was in a rush to finish his homework.

Zhou Yuan went home yesterday and didn’t do his homework. He now raced against time to complete it. For him, these two papers were more akin to child’s play. Ten minutes were more than enough for him to finish them.

His face radiated extreme sobriety, and Little Miaomiao was hesitant to disturb him.

Little Miaomiao just observed him doing his homework. When he finished his homework, she thought about conversing with him and giving him the dried meat packet. She thought about befriending him.

Zhou Yuan raised his eyes and met Little Miaomiao’s gaze. He smiled at her and then, he continued to hasten through his homework.

Little Miaomiao looked back with embarrassment.

Soon, school began. The first class was Chinese with Teacher Xie. Aggrieved by yesterday’s events, she cried and simultaneously felt incensed.

After Teacher Xie came in, she felt a little abashed. But she didn’t mention yesterday’s events and immediately started teaching.

Zhou Yuan wasn’t going to embarrass her either. After all, they already dealt with the matter. As long as she didn’t cause any more incidents. It would be boring to mention it again.