Chapter 13: First Day of Kindergarten
The sun was shining brightly.
A perfect day to go to kindergarten!
Gu Tang and Gu Qinian were settled into child safety seats, sitting side by side in the back of the nanny van.
“Uncle Butler changed to a new bow tie today!”
Gu Tang had always had sharp eyes, and he spotted at once that the butler looked a little different from usual.
Not only was the bow tie new, but his hair was combed back even more neatly than usual, and his suit was pressed so crisply that not a single wrinkle could be found.
“Today is darling child’s and young master’s first day of kindergarten. It’s an important day!”
Even the butler’s tone was full of joy. Beneath his proper and rigorous appearance, he was more excited than the two little cubs.
Compared with the butler’s excitement, Young Master Gu looked much calmer.
Gu Qinian quietly looked out the car window, showing Gu Tang only the back of his round little head. No one knew what he was thinking.
“Nian Nian, don’t worry!”
Gu Tang very knowingly patted Young Master Gu’s hand where it rested on his lap. The two little gourds on their wrists lightly knocked together with a clear ding.
He thumped his little chest with confidence. “Kindergarten isn’t scary! You still have me. I’ll protect you.”
Gu Qinian: “…”
The three-year-old milk dumpling still had a round little face and a soft, squishy body that could be kneaded however people liked.
And he wanted to protect him?
After living through two lives, this was the first time anyone had said they would protect him.
Young Master Gu found it rather novel, and his heart even warmed a little. The words of protest rose to his lips, then were swallowed back down.
Forget it. He would let the little cub get puffed up with confidence for a while.
The nanny van moved steadily and quickly.
After only sitting a short while, Gu Tang started getting sleepy.
He was used to sleeping in late, so once his excitement wore off, his upper and lower eyelids began fighting each other. His head drooped as he played absentmindedly with his little white jade gourd and muttered softly, “Actually, this kindergarten maybe isn’t really that necessary…”
Gu Qinian, who heard every single word perfectly clearly: “…”
He just knew the little cub was unreliable.
Through the rearview mirror, the butler also noticed Gu Tang’s head bobbing up and down with sleepiness, so he comforted him, “Darling child can nap for a little while. We’ll be there once we get down the mountain.”
The Gu family estate was located in a highly private mountain garden district on the outskirts of the city, while the kindergarten Gu Tang and Gu Qinian were going to was an affiliated school under the Gu Group in the city center. The drive took over half an hour, so taking a short nap was perfectly fine.
Gu Tang had a brief and lovely little dream.
By the time he opened his eyes again, they were already at the kindergarten entrance.
Not feeling reassured, the butler put child smart watches on both little cubs and instructed them, “If anything happens, contact me anytime. After school this afternoon, I’ll still be waiting here to pick up young master and darling child.”
Gu Tang had not fully woken up yet, so he nodded lazily.
Gu Qinian gave a low “mm” and pulled him along toward the kindergarten.
The butler secretly took a photo of the two little cubs walking through the kindergarten gate and sent it to Gu Quan and to Shen Ningqing, who was still filming—
In the picture, the two little cubs had their tiny backpacks on and were walking shoulder to shoulder through the flower-covered kindergarten archway. Even the shadows behind them looked as if they were holding hands.
Shen Ningqing was so touched that she dabbed at her tears. “The children have grown up…”
A moment later, she received a message from the head of the Gu family.
Husband: When we got married, we also walked through a flower archway!
“What are you thinking about?!”
Shen Ningqing’s pretty brows knitted together. She blocked her over-imaginative husband, then continued holding his phone and admiring the adorable little backs of the cubs.
Gu Tang and Gu Qinian were assigned to Sunflower Class One.
In order to let his son fully experience collective life, Gu Quan had kept things as low-key as possible and had not told the principal that his son was coming. But when the two children walked into the classroom holding hands, the teacher still glanced at them several more times.
Mainly because the two children were too striking.
One was round and adorable, the other delicate and beautiful.
Walking in together, they were impossible not to notice.
Quite a few children nearby were crying and fussing because they could not see their parents, and others were running around wildly. Compared to them, these two children stood out as especially well-behaved. They even knew to find themselves little chairs and sit down properly.
The classroom had all kinds of chairs painted with different flowers.
Since this was the sunflower class, Gu Tang chose two chairs painted with sunflowers—one for himself and one for Young Master Gu.
Any environment full of children was bound to be noisy.
After Gu Qinian sat down, his fine, delicate brows slowly drew together.
Too noisy.
He was starting to regret coming to kindergarten.
“I have something yummy!”
Seeing that Young Master Gu looked unhappy, Gu Tang rustled around in his pocket and pulled out a milk candy, offering it to him. “Do you want it?”
Gu Qinian originally had no interest in candy at all, but because he was so bored, and because Gu Tang was the one offering it, he reached out by habit.
His fingertips were just about to touch the candy when the other suddenly pulled his hand back.
Gu Tang: “Wait a sec…”
As though he had suddenly remembered something, he unwrapped the candy and bit off half of it.
Only then did he lift his face and smile carefree. “I want some too!”
The already small candy instantly became only half a piece, and there were two tiny bite marks on it.
Gu Qinian: “…”
It was not as if he absolutely had to eat the candy.
But Gu Tang was extremely enthusiastic.
And very persistent.
Seeing that Young Master Gu was not reaching out, he simply held the half piece of candy up to his mouth, carrying a strong sense of “good brothers should share everything.”
Gu Qinian stared at the little tooth marks on the candy for a while. Only after struggling against his inner cleanliness obsession did he slowly part his lips.
But before he could bite it, the little toddler pulled his hand back again.
Gu Tang slapped his own forehead. “Oops, oops, I almost forgot. Nian Nian loves being clean, so I guess I shouldn’t give it to you after all…”
“…”
The corner of Gu Qinian’s mouth twitched.
[Host, amazing! “Torment the Male Lead x100” task progress: 1%. Reward: +1 life point!]
Hearing the system’s report, Gu Tang froze.
He had not meant to bully Gu Qinian at all.
Could it be that Young Master Gu was angry?
When he turned his head to look, the other boy’s beautiful brows and eyes were dark and deep, his thin lips pressed tightly together, and his whole little self looked gloomy…
Gu Tang hesitantly held out the hand pinching the half piece of candy again. “Do… do you want it?”
Without saying a word, the other lowered his head and bit the half piece of candy right out of Gu Tang’s fingers.
Young Master Gu’s cheek puffed out on one side as he chewed the candy.
Seeing that he seemed to like it a lot, Gu Tang dug into his pocket again like he was offering a treasure. “You like it? I still have one more whole candy!”
For some reason, Young Master Gu suddenly stopped chewing.
His face turned even darker.
Gu Tang: “???”
[Woohoo! “Torment the Male Lead x100” task progress: 2%! Host, so clever—having candy but not giving it to the male lead, and instead deliberately making him eat the half you already bit. You’re driving him mad!]
Gu Tang scratched his head innocently. “That’s not it. He didn’t give me the chance to explain just now…”
He had wanted to bite off half and then give Gu Qinian a fresh full one, but the other insisted on the half-eaten one. What was he supposed to do?
Why was he angry again?
Ah, Young Master Gu was really hard to serve…
Gu Qinian could not be bothered to argue with a clueless little toddler. He chewed the candy fiercely and finally swallowed the half piece in sullen silence.
At that moment, a little boy and a little girl came over.
They looked very much alike.
The little boy pulled the little girl over to sit next to Gu Tang and the others, while the girl stared at the candy in Gu Tang’s hand without blinking.
The longing in her eyes was far too obvious.
Gu Tang instantly understood and handed the candy over in a friendly way. “Do you want some too?”
“Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm!”
The girl nodded over and over.
After receiving the candy, she even politely thanked Gu Tang.
After introducing themselves, Gu Tang learned that they were twins. The boy was called Jiang Yiwen, and the girl was called Jiang Yiyi.
Jiang Yiyi touched the candy lovingly. She unwrapped it and was just about to put it into her mouth.
Suddenly, a hand shot out and snatched it away.
“Poor kids don’t get candy, hahaha!”
A fat, sturdy boy grabbed Jiang Yiyi’s candy and ran off, all while yelling “poor kid, poor kid.”
Gu Tang was usually very easygoing, but this time, his temper flared up at once.
He stood up and blocked the chubby boy, saying angrily, “Give the candy back to her!”
The chubby boy’s face was full of flesh. He looked Gu Tang up and down, stuffed the candy into his mouth, and mumbled, “I saw an extra-expensive car drop you off just now. That means we’re the same kind of people. My mom said their dad is just some little employee. If he didn’t work at Gu Group, they would never get into our kindergarten.”
What kind of family taught a child like that?
Already comparing social status in kindergarten?
Gu Tang rolled his eyes. “As if I want to be in the same group as you.”
The chubby boy snorted, the fat on his face wobbling. “Anyway, I don’t play with poor kids. It’ll make me poor too!”
Then he ran off.
“What a weirdo. As if anyone cares.”
When Gu Tang turned around, he pulled yet another candy from his pocket like magic and stuffed it into Jiang Yiyi’s hand. “Ignore him. I still have more.”
The system was speechless.
[Host, just how many candies did you bring…]
Jiang Yiyi had a sweet personality. Once she got her candy, she forgot all about being bullied just moments before and closed her eyes in bliss to enjoy it.
Unlike his sister, Jiang Yiwen was more sensitive. He quickly explained, “My little sister just loves eating things. M-my family isn’t so poor that we can’t even buy candy…”
Of course not.
How could a Gu Group employee not have money to buy candy for his children?
The fact that Jiang Yiwen was making a special effort to explain it meant his self-esteem had definitely taken a hit.
Gu Tang understood, but he did not say much. He only smiled sweetly and said, “I love food too!”
Jiang Yiwen visibly relaxed and did not continue talking about whether they were poor or not.
After Jiang Yiyi finished the candy, she treated Gu Tang as one of her own. She scooted over next to him and started sharing the fun little things she had in her backpack.
Seeing that the pretty boy beside Gu Tang had not said a single word the whole time, she asked curiously, “Why does he never talk? He’s so cold and aloof!”
Recently, she had been watching TV dramas with her mother, and the male lead in them hardly talked at all, looked super cool, and was especially handsome.
Her mother had told her that was called a “cold male god.”
Jiang Yiyi had remembered the fresh new phrase.
Gu Tang grinned. “I’ll make this cold male god speak right away.”
Jiang Yiyi tilted her head and looked at Gu Tang doubtfully.
Her mother had said a cold male god could not be won over by just anyone—unless it was the female lead.
Then she watched as Gu Tang gave a little cough and deliberately said in a loud voice, “Oh! You mean him? He’s my little brother!”
“No!”
Cold male god Young Master Gu immediately turned around and glared at him fiercely.
Gu Tang smiled smugly. “See? He talked!”
***
Author’s Note:
Jiang Yiyi: So you’re the female lead!
Tang Tang: That’s a misunderstanding!
