Ji Yanyi said he wasn't hungry, not hungry. But after doing a few problems in the evening, he got hungry while poking at his eraser.
The half piece of stuffed bun in his schoolbag went well with the fish soup.
He ate to his heart's content.
After washing the bowl, he ran into Jiang Yuxu, who had come to wash an apple. "Are you going out with Mom in a few days?"
"It's not just playing."
Jiang Yuxu didn't understand why Ji Yanyi thought going out was always about playing. The envy in his eyes was practically tangible.
Did he dislike school that much?
"Then come to the hospital with us."
Ji Yanyi's eyes widened, and he hid behind the wall. He hated the hospital more than anything in this life, bar none.
"What's wrong? Why are you going to the hospital?"
Jiang Yuxu smiled. Though the kid was scared, he could sense the concern beneath it.
He leaned against the wall, eyes dark, a smile at the corner of his mouth. "Just a check-up. There might be injections and blood draws."
Injections and blood draws?
Ji Yanyi scratched his head. He really hated the feeling of blood being drawn from his body. He'd seen it done improperly once—the whole arm turned black and blue, terrifying.
He vividly described the scene, but Jiang Yuxu's expression didn't change at all.
Wasn't this kid scared?
Everyone he talked to about blood draws was terrified.
He thought so and asked so.
Jiang Yuxu washed the apple seriously, genuinely unfazed. "So what?"
Ji Yanyi remembered how his parents also didn't understand his fear. He clenched his fists, convinced his reasoning was sound.
"You must have inherited their bravery."
Inheriting looks and personality was possible, but bravery? They might have been scared as kids too, just experienced as adults.
As for Jiang Yuxu, he paused. He couldn't be used as a reference.
"Since you're so afraid of the hospital, have an apple instead."
A big apple weighed about a hundred grams. Sharing it meant each got a small apple. Hadn't he heard the saying? An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
His village used to grow apples. Every apple season, he would crave them.
Maybe Jiang Yuxu's words really worked. Ji Yanyi started eating two apples a day, as if doubling the dose would double the effect.
Of course, he didn't actually like apples. He tried juicing, baking, and finally settled on cutting them into rabbit shapes, eating them one by one.
Jiang Yuxu wasn't used to this method at first and didn't find the design cute.
But when Bo Xin fed him with a fork, he easily accepted it.
Standards were indeed getting lower and lower.
Jiang Yuxu coughed twice. "Take the toothpick out of the apple."
"Do you want to eat the whole thing?"
Jiang Yuxu nodded. Bo Xin let him be. Looking closely, she noticed one of his teeth was loose. His front teeth had just grown in.
Teeth had a big impact on a person's growth. Though neither of them had buck-toothed genes,
She'd have to add another check-up item.
Jiang Yuxu covered his cheek, licking the loose tooth with his tongue. He could feel it wiggle.
"Do we have money now?"
"Yes."
Three days after Ji Xingzhi's call, the money arrived.
She thought he'd hold out longer.
For now, five thousand wasn't much, but it could tide them over.
Bo Xin went to the bank to withdraw the money. Though she knew five thousand wasn't a lot for their family, it wasn't a small sum in this era.
So she was cautious, dressing plainly and leaving right after.
She locked her bike at the door. Time was tight and the task heavy, so she simply had the two kids wait at the door. Ji Yanyi wasn't going to the hospital—it was his day off, and he was meeting friends.
Of course, Bo Xin thought it was just an excuse to avoid the hospital.
"Mom, I'm going."
"Don't go too far, you two."
The area was safe, but farther out, not so much.
But she wasn't too worried, knowing Ji Yanyi would mostly hang out at a friend's house watching TV. She knew he had zero self-control. They had plenty of appliances but no TV.