The two chatted amiably. Bo Yuxu felt he had completed his mother's task. He gave An Ran a deep look, then turned and walked away. Actually, this person wasn't as annoying as he had first thought.
He took Bo Xin's hand. The pause and turn of his head naturally didn't escape Bo Xin's notice. She didn't say anything, just smiled, but Bo Yuxu himself blushed deeply.
Bo Xin thought back to the original story's connection between the two. Yuxu wanted to take revenge on Yanyi, to take away everything that originally belonged to him. His idea was to prove that he was better than Yanyi, that her decision back then was wrong. This view obviously conflicted with Sui Dongsheng's. Sui Dongsheng had An Ran use the guise of an art exhibition to slip toxic materials into his company. An Ran didn't understand, but he still did it. In Yuxu's eyes, that was like a puppet without self-awareness; he hated that kind of person. Now Bo Xin realized that this hatred was situational. As long as he was on his side, he wouldn't hate him.
Bo Yuxu tugged at Bo Xin's hand. "When we get back, I'll heat up the food for you. You've been busy all morning and haven't eaten yet." Now that he was in a good mood and not angry, he could still think about her empty stomach. When he was angry, he couldn't care less.
Bo Xin found this a bit amusing. "But I don't like leftovers."
Bo Yuxu explained, "It was set aside for you, not leftovers."
If that was the case, Bo Xin could barely accept it.
At home, Ji Yanyi was listening to the radio. When he heard something funny, he laughed heartily. It seemed he really enjoyed his alone time. No one was controlling him, so of course he was comfortable. But as soon as he heard the door unlock, he deftly switched to an English channel and followed along, reciting "ABCD" in English.
Bo Xin walked over in her high heels, her expression unreadable. "Both of them came looking for me. Yanyi, why didn't you go?"
Ji Yanyi wasn't frightened at all. He said confidently, "Because they said they were going to scold you for not being punctual. I couldn't possibly side with them."
Hmm, as always, his flattery was masterful. But the fact that the three returned peacefully together meant that Mom had easily resolved the crisis. So he asked, "What happened?"
As the one who had explained, Bo Yuxu was the most suitable to narrate, because the whole way back he had been going through his own mental journey.
Ji Yanyi said enviously, "So Mom helped you make a friend this time."
Bo Yuxu regained his composure and found the flaw in Ji Yanyi's words. "I have friends."
"But not many."
Ji Yanyi counted on his fingers, then concluded, "I know all your friends too." They were also his friends.
Bo Yuxu was silent for a long moment, then gave Ji Yanyi a deep look and decided to charge the highest interest rate for the money he owed him.
Ji Yanyi's hair stood on end. He swallowed and watched helplessly as Yuxu ignored him and went into the kitchen alone.
Bo Xin sat down and let Ji Yanyi fetch the things he had bought from his room and put them on her wrist. Indeed, one for each hand. Bo Xin thought for a moment and then praised, "Yanyi, I really like it."
Ji Yanyi beamed with joy, but after waiting for a long time, he didn't hear anything more. "Mom, after I put the bracelet on you, there's so much less content."
"What do you mean?"
Ji Yanyi felt it necessary to show Mom the signature on that painting. "Of course, the part about making friends."
Bo Xin nodded in understanding. "Then next time." She was going there anyway. Speaking of which, was it actually wrong to keep those children in a completely independent school? The adults were worried that these kids would be bullied by children from complete families, but was it right to trap them in a small space, forcing them to huddle together for warmth? Their recreational activities were simple to the point of monotony, all maintained by He Yewan alone, revolving around one person. One person's strength was limited after all. The activities they thought of were thin, their behavior was thin. If they went to Yanyi's elementary school, they would be taken care of, get snacks, be led upward by good students academically, and have fun with athletic students. Gradually, they might forget this pain and move in a better direction. As for the method to encourage the other children, it would be with little red flowers. Those who helped these children would receive a special little red flower reward, named 'Helping Others Little Red Flower.' Probably few would resist such heroism. The more Bo Xin thought about it, the more feasible it seemed, but implementation had to be step by step. After all, it was just her opinion; it didn't count. If it failed, they could still turn back in time and cut their losses.
Thinking of this, Bo Xin felt a bit hungry. It turned out she had smelled the aroma. The dishes this time, as always, showcased the flavor of the ingredients themselves. She thought Ji Xingzhi needed to sign up for a class on healthy diet that was also tasty. Let him go to class too. Occasionally, Bo Xin also wanted to experience some alone time at home, like Yanyi did.
Late at night, Ji Xingzhi sneezed. He pulled his collar tighter. Early spring was probably when the temperature difference between day and night was greatest. And yet here he was, exposed to the wind, but he didn't feel the throbbing pain in his head. This room was the only one with a balcony—the master bedroom. The other balcony was in the living room, usually used for drying clothes. And now such a nice room was occupied by him.
Ji Xingzhi thought for a moment and decided to call He Mingqiao. He called the office phone and it connected. Ji Xingzhi's voice carried a hint of weakness. He Mingqiao's irritable mood softened a bit, but his tone was still a bit harsh. "What's up? My big patient."
Normally, such sarcasm would be phrased as 'my big busy person.' It seemed Mingqiao was really angry. Ji Xingzhi advised, "When you have time, you could go look at the flowers and grass by the roadside to lighten your mood."
"The key is I don't have time!" If there's no time, then nothing can lighten the mood.
Ji Xingzhi hummed in acknowledgment. He remembered that back then he wasn't this busy. What he could do, Mingqiao could do too, but it was still too hard. "Back then I did too much myself; I failed to cultivate a team that could hold the fort during my illness."
He Mingqiao agreed, but saying it now seemed a bit late.
Ji Xingzhi said, "So later, I'll arrange it."
He Mingqiao sighed to the heavens, smoothed his greasy hair, and fell into speechlessness. "Don't tell me you called just to tell me about benefits I can't enjoy." It was no different from when the school started renovating classrooms right after he graduated. Better not to have told him the good news at all.
Ji Xingzhi paused again, a signal that he was thinking about what to say next. "I've been reading some books about children's rebellious phases recently."
He Mingqiao glanced at a photo album in his hand. It was a family photo of Ji Xingzhi from the past. Ji Xingzhi was about thirteen or fourteen in it. His aunt and uncle had raised him without having children of their own. He Mingqiao, who was from the same village, rolled his eyes toward the ceiling as if reminiscing, but clearly he couldn't recall what state Ji Xingzhi was in back then. He just said from experience, "Aren't rebellious phases supposed to be for thirteen or fourteen year olds?" So wasn't Ji Xingzhi reading these books too early?
Ji Xingzhi had something to say about that. "My kids might have been rebellious since birth." From the moment Yanyi was born, his journey of parenting had never been smooth.
He Mingqiao remembered: Ji Xingzhi had always climbed trees, caught fish in the river, skipped homework, and been punished with standing outside class. He had been rebellious all along, never obedient. He was about to retort when the phone hung up, leaving a dial tone. So what was the point of his late-night call? Nonsense! He Mingqiao slammed the receiver in anger.
On the other end, Ji Xingzhi heard a knock at the door. He paused, then confirmed he hadn't misheard. He didn't take off all his clothes as instructed, but simply unfastened his shirt. The door was unlocked. Someone entered. Ji Xingzhi looked down and saw Bo Yuxu. The child's stature made him realize his current posture in front of a child, and he began buttoning up with one hand. "Didn't your mom say she was coming tonight?"
Bo Yuxu didn't overthink it; this was indeed what his mother had told him to do. "Mom asked me to bring you the medicine." It was Chinese herbal medicine. Mom had prepared the prescription and had someone boil it for a long time at the pharmacy. She didn't want it at home, because just the smell was bitter enough for Bo Yuxu to wrinkle his nose. Even with his odd taste, he didn't want to try such a dark, murky thing. Bo Yuxu frowned.
Ji Xingzhi made the same expression. So tonight's treatment was just delivering medicine? Then why did he tell him to take off his clothes? Ji Xingzhi squinted in confusion. "Is there anything else?"
"Mom told me to apply the medicine for you. This is the first step of my medical training under Mom."
Ji Xingzhi: "..." It did require him to take off his clothes, but this was far from what he had imagined.
Bo Yuxu said, "No way around it. Mom came up with some good ideas. If it works out, it'll be great for those trafficked children." In short, Mom was busy now, so she sent him, a beginner, over. A child's education indeed needed a model, or someone to play the role of a patient. Was this a type of family interaction?
Ji Xingzhi had to admit it was interesting. And the one teaching was his son. He unfastened his buttons again, exposing his shoulder blade, and gestured with his chin toward Bo Yuxu, generously and openly. "Come on." But it still felt a bit strange. The strangeness came from the fact that while he was at home researching school matters, his son was sent to deal with him. It was as if he was secondary in people's minds, an issue that could be outsourced, while those children were not. This odd feeling should probably be called annoyance.