Chapter 23
Late at night, the dormitory was quiet as could be.
Yu Chen rested his little head in the crook of He Zhen’s arm. Like a greedy little squirrel, he secretly nibbled on biscuits.
The students had eaten tuna sandwiches and vegetable salad for dinner, but Yu Chen had not gotten full, so he had specially added a midnight snack for himself.
Afraid of waking the others, Yu Chen lightly covered his mouth with his round little chubby hand, those glass-like eyes darting constantly toward He Zhen, worried that he might disturb his sleep.
Ever since starting elementary school, the two of them often stayed up very late on Friday nights. Whenever that happened, Yu Chen would simply sleep in He Zhen’s room and the next day they would sleep in together. Over time, they gradually developed the habit of always sleeping together on weekends.
Summer nights were long and stifling.
Before long, a thin layer of sweat spread across Yu Chen’s fair forehead. But he had no desire to move farther away from He Zhen to ease the heat. He casually wiped at his temple with his chubby little hand, kicked his leg hard, slung it over He Zhen’s waist, and fell asleep comfortably.
In his sleep, He Zhen vaguely seemed to hear the sound of a little mouse secretly nibbling on food.
He wanted to catch the little mouse, but instead the mouse-turned-spirit pressed down on him hard, pinning him to the ground so he could not move.
The next morning, when everyone else went to morning drills, Yu Chen—as usual—reported to the supplies station.
By now, the teachers had become very familiar with him and had thoroughly figured out his temperament. So today, while deliberately tempting him with snacks, they also asked him a whole string of difficult questions.
Naturally, none of those questions could stump Yu Chen, this great master of emotional intelligence. Not only did he charm every teacher into an especially good mood, some of them even went out of their way to the school store just to buy him his favorite cheese chocolate pies.
But the art teacher holding one of those cheese chocolate pies deliberately made things hard for him. “Student Yu Chen, can you give me a kiss?”
She liked Yu Chen very much—so much so that she was even planning to paint his portrait when summer camp ended.
Yu Chen tucked his little hands away, his eyes almost going straight at the sight of the chocolate pie. But after struggling for a long while, he slowly shook his head. “No, my uncle said I can’t casually kiss strangers.”
Because Yu Chen was so adorable, a lot of adults were willing to cuddle close with him. Because of that, Li Huan had deliberately given him safety education. Even Li Huan himself rarely kissed Yu Chen’s cheeks anymore.
The art teacher said regretfully, “All right then. The chocolate is still for you. I’ll buy you one again tomorrow.”
Yu Chen immediately lifted his plump little face and bowed sweetly to thank her. But in the end, he thoughtfully added, “No need to trouble Teacher to buy it again. Teacher should keep your money to spend on yourself!”
The art teacher’s heart instantly melted. Holding Yu Chen’s cheeks in both hands, she rubbed and rubbed them.
After morning jogging practice ended, all the students received a new assignment—to build water cannons.
Yu Chen was very happy to be able to participate in this kind of activity. Dressed in a light blue shorts-and-T-shirt set, he stood at the head of the line, looking especially eye-catching like a short, round section of white lotus root.
The water cannon platforms required the students to find suitable wooden planks themselves and assemble them according to the instructions. After a brief round of grouping up, Yu Chen hung a whistle around his neck and set off with He Zhen.
“Boss, where should we go find long wooden planks?”
Yu Chen could not read the instructions and sought help from He Zhen.
He Zhen pulled a compass out of his backpack and, following the little saying “up is north, down is south,” pointed forty-five degrees to the east. “It should be over there.”
Yu Chen’s blank little chubby face instantly filled with admiration. “Boss, you’re really amazing!”
A trace of pride flickered at the corner of He Zhen’s eyes. “Of course. I’ve always been amazing. I’ll teach you the method, and then later you’ll know how too.”
“You’re so nice.” Pouting his round little face, Yu Chen clung to He Zhen like a sticky little rice cake and spoiled himself shamelessly all over him. Smiling faintly, He Zhen rubbed his head. “You’re so clingy, Yu Chenchen.”
Yu Chen beamed brightly, puffed up with vigor and confidence, and dragged He Zhen off to charge toward the place where the wooden planks were stored.
With He Zhen guiding the way, the journey went very smoothly.
Yu Chen carried the lightest section of wood, walking one behind the other with He Zhen.
“Wait for me, I think there’s hemp rope over there.” Building the cannon platform needed a lot of rope, and to avoid making another trip, He Zhen set down the four wooden planks he was carrying and ran over to gather it.
Holding a single plank, little Yu Chen was a little bored, looking here and there at random.
Suddenly—he noticed several students arguing a short distance diagonally ahead.
“That’s our plank!” Xiao Yu’s little face was flushed with anger, his head of little curls all flying about in disarray. He looked thoroughly bedraggled.
His teammate Fang Jingrao had just been shoved by the one stealing their plank and was now sitting on the ground crying.
Xiao Yu was not very tall, a whole head shorter than the other side. But his momentum was not weak at all. He glared at them furiously without the slightest trace of fear. Unfortunately, there was too big a gap in strength, and the plank he was holding tightly was snatched away with ease.
The other side was from Class Two next door—big and sturdy, clearly not taking Xiao Yu and Fang Jingrao seriously at all.
The boys had just picked up the plank and were about to leave when a child suddenly jumped out and blocked their way.
Standing on slightly higher ground, Yu Chen projected quite a strong presence. “It’s wrong to take other people’s things. You’re not allowed to bully classmates from our class.”
The boys from Class Two looked at each other and mocked him. “Where did this little potato come from? If you’ve got the guts, come over and take it back.”
In a baby-fierce voice, Yu Chen pointed at him. “If you’ve got the guts, then don’t move!”
These two students from Class Two were famous for being naughty troublemakers. Even their homeroom teacher constantly had headaches over them. Among the second graders at Hongwen Elementary, the two of them were practically undefeated. Lots of smaller, thinner students would detour around them the moment they saw them.
Now that they had finally run into a thorny one, they naturally wanted to have a go.
No sooner said than done—Yu Chen took a few quick little steps and shouted with all the strength in his lungs, “Boss! Somebody’s bullying me!”
The voice was so loud it probably echoed through the whole woods.
In less than thirty seconds, He Zhen came running over fast, ropes in hand. The coldness and anger on his face, which had surfaced without him even trying, scared the two boys from Class Two silly.
Since when did kids call backup like this?
“It was them. They grabbed the plank from our classmates.” Yu Chen righteously filed his complaint, hands on his hips as he glared at them.
He Zhen sized him up. “Did you get hurt?”
Yu Chen wrinkled his chubby face and solemnly covered his chest. “Yes! They hurt my heart.”
Seeing Yu Chen clutching his heart, He Zhen frowned slightly.
He threw the rope in his hands straight to the ground, then faced the two boys from Class Two and slowly rolled up his sleeves one by one.
The two boys immediately lost some of their nerve.
Although He Zhen was thinner than they were, the section of arm he exposed looked very strong—no one who had not trained for a long time could have that kind of build. And those cold eyes of his were simply too frightening. They were nothing like the eyes of ordinary little kids about to fight.
It looked like he wanted to eat them alive.
“Fine, take your stuff then!”
The two boys flung down the plank and immediately ran for it.
Seeing the enemy retreat, Yu Chen pulled He Zhen over to Xiao Yu and crouched down to look with concern at the sniffling Fang Jingrao.
“Are you okay?”
Xiao Yu’s face was flushed red. He yanked the useless Fang Jingrao up to his feet. “He’s always been a crybaby since he was little.”
“Don’t cry anymore. They got chased off by my boss.” Yu Chen bent at the waist and stretched his neck to examine Fang Jingrao, his round little bottom inadvertently sticking out and nudging He Zhen behind him.
When Xiao Yu saw that, he could not help laughing. But the moment he noticed He Zhen staring at him, he quickly resumed his proud expression.
“Thank you, Yu Chen.” Fang Jingrao wiped his red eyes and warmly grabbed Yu Chen’s little hand. “Luckily you were here. Can we be friends?”
“Sure!” Yu Chen grabbed He Zhen’s other hand and introduced him to Fang Jingrao. “He’s my boss. If you want to be my friend, you also have to be my boss’s friend.”
Fang Jingrao was honestly a little afraid of He Zhen. Before this it had been manageable, but that expression on He Zhen’s face just now when he was about to beat someone had truly scared him.
Shrinking his neck, he said awkwardly, “Hello, Boss. Thank you for saving me.”
As always, He Zhen’s gaze was cool and aloof, but he still kept a straight face and nodded. “You’re welcome.”
Standing off to the side, Xiao Yu looked at the three of them holding hands, his own hands twisting behind his back in indecision.
Yu Chen curved his eyes at him. “Do you want to join us too?”
Xiao Yu folded his little arms and haughtily announced, “Yu Chen, I admire you very much. Would you like to consider becoming my little brother? If you become my little brother, I can buy you lots of snacks and toys.”
Having someone brazenly poach his person right in front of him made He Zhen instantly anxious. He had already been displeased that Fang Jingrao was holding onto Yu Chen, and hearing Xiao Yu say that only worsened his mood. Pressing his lips together, he glared at Xiao Yu in clear displeasure.
“Can you carry me?”
“To be my boss, you have to be able to carry me.”
Yu Chen’s soft, childish little voice rose slightly at the end, just like his little expression, carrying a trace of smug pride.
Xiao Yu froze. He looked Yu Chen up and down from the top of his head to his little feet.
He opened his mouth and asked unwillingly, “He Zhen can carry you?”
He Zhen lightly pulled Yu Chen around so they were standing face to face. The two of them did not need to exchange a single word to know exactly what the other intended.
The next moment, Yu Chen gave one agile hop and latched tightly onto He Zhen. He Zhen’s little hands steadily supported Yu Chen’s plump little bottom.
Off to the side, Fang Jingrao stared in amazement, secretly reaching out a finger to poke the small, tense muscles on He Zhen’s arm.
No wonder He Zhen was so strong.
So that was why…
Looking at how intimate the two of them were, Xiao Yu finally shut his mouth.
He felt like a ragdoll cat by the roadside that had just been kicked.
It was so boring!
Yu Chen’s group’s water cannon platform turned out extremely successful. Compared with the other groups’ creations that fell apart at the slightest touch, theirs was sturdy and good-looking. In just half an hour, they successfully launched more than forty water cannon balloons, beating the other groups until they fled in disarray.
It turned out Yu Chen had not eaten all those biscuits for nothing. He was much stronger than ordinary classmates. Not only did he tie the ropes very tightly, he could launch the balloons incredibly far as well. Paired with his tacit cooperation with He Zhen, the two of them were unstoppable, leaving Fang Jingrao and Xiao Yu completely dumbfounded.
It had to be said—Yu Chen really did have high emotional intelligence. While fighting alongside He Zhen, he still managed to take on the great responsibility of protecting all his little underlings. Xiao Yu, He Zhi’an, and the others were all under Yu Chen’s protection. Whoever bullied his underlings, he beat them. This moved He Zhi’an and Fang Jingrao so deeply that they were practically ready to crown Yu Chen king. Even proud little young masters like Xiao Yu could not help seeing Yu Chen and He Zhen in a new light.
The teacher in charge of taking photos of the students watched all of this and silently marveled that second graders could already possess such broad-minded leadership.
Although it was already September, the weather was still very hot. Especially in a coastal city like this—even the air carried a salty tang, and the air pressure was low.
Though Yu Chen’s heart was not causing any serious trouble at the moment, summers with this kind of high humidity still made him somewhat uncomfortable.
The wilder he played with the water cannons in the air, the more wilted he was the next morning when he woke up.
At this hour, Li Ye had already gone off to breakfast with the other classmates. Only Yu Chen was still wrapped in his silk comforter, grumpily refusing to get up.
He Zhen had already washed up. Wearing a crisp white short-sleeved shirt, he stood by the bed, looking as though he had long since gotten used to Yu Chen’s bad habit.
Yu Chen had sweated all over during the night, and the soft black strands of hair at his forehead were stuck to his little face. Those damp and lively eyes were full of undisguised displeasure.
Normally, He Zhen indulged Yu Chen quite a lot. But at a critical moment like this, he absolutely would not let him keep acting up.
For example, there was only half an hour left before everyone had to assemble, and Yu Chen still had not eaten.
Leaning half against the bed, He Zhen bent one leg slightly, carrying himself exactly like a parent watching an unruly child throw a fit. He lifted his sports watch to check the time, idly spinning his meal card in his left hand. “Yu Chenchen, breakfast today has your favorite three-delicacies wontons. If you go too late, they’ll all be gone.”
The summer camp meals were certainly nowhere near as plentiful as a buffet. Breakfast items like wontons, meat buns, and rice balls were the most popular choices, and only students who got there early could buy them. If you were even a little late, the cafeteria would not even have eggs left.
The moment he heard there were little wontons, Yu Chen—who had still been huffing angrily just a second ago—instantly lowered his head and began putting on his socks with astonishing speed. His skin was naturally very fair, and wearing nothing but little underpants, he looked exactly like a glutinous rice dumpling with black sesame filling—soft and squishy all over.
“Yu Chenchen, get dressed first. I’ll wait for you in the cafeteria. And remember—no running there.” After leaving those words behind, He Zhen walked out of the dormitory.
Seeing that He Zhen was not even waiting for him, Yu Chen panicked terribly. Fortunately, summer short sleeves and shorts were easy to put on. After casually washing his face and brushing his teeth, he slung on his little schoolbag and chased after him.
On the way, little Yu Chen felt very wronged.
At this hour, by the time he got to the cafeteria, there would definitely not even be milk buns left.
With his light-up Mickey Mouse sneakers flashing as he ran, Yu Chen quickened his pace, his lips pouting so hard they could probably hang an oil bottle. When he reached the cafeteria entrance, he ran into Fang Jingrao and Xiao Yu, who were also late.
Fang Jingrao enthusiastically greeted Yu Chen, while Xiao Yu looked full of righteous indignation. “It’s all your fault for oversleeping. The cafeteria doesn’t have breakfast anymore!”
Yu Chen raised his head to look and found that the windows truly were empty, with only a few packaged little buns and some pickled vegetables left.
Tucking his little hands in gloomily, he still refused to give up. He ran over to the food counter and stood on tiptoe, peering inside with all his might.
Excessive hope could only end in disappointment.
The little bread inside was backup breakfast, usually provided only to students who came late. It looked dry, and there did not seem to be any filling inside. Just from looking at it, he could tell it would not taste good.
Just as Yu Chen’s sadness kept growing bigger and bigger, Fang Jingrao exclaimed in amazement, “Boss He actually got the little wontons.”
Yu Chen immediately turned around and discovered that He Zhen was sitting alone in a corner of the dining hall, while on the tray before him sat a steaming bowl of little wontons and two little pig-shaped buns filled with custard.
“Boss~”
Yu Chen was so happy he practically floated over, his Mickey Mouse shoes flashing with every step until he ran all the way to He Zhen and the lights finally stopped blinking.
“You got the wontons?”
Yu Chen noticed that He Zhen’s cheeks were a little rosier than usual, and that his temples were covered in dense beads of sweat, as though he had just run a race. Leaning close to the wontons, Yu Chen sniffed hard. A familiar fragrant aroma slipped into his nose.
Yu Chen was drooling just from smelling it. Clingily, he moved closer to He Zhen. “Boss~”
Normally, at a time like this, He Zhen would be the first to offer him a few bites of wontons. But today, He Zhen stayed perfectly still. Propping his cheek on one hand, he gave Yu Chen a sidelong glance. “So you finally got up?”
“Yep.” Though Yu Chen was answering He Zhen, his black, round, glossy eyes never left that bowl of wontons.
“I already told you that if you didn’t get up, there’d be no breakfast. But you insisted on staying in bed.” He Zhen’s eyes were bright, and a trace of mischief hid in his proper features. “You didn’t get any food, huh?”
“I won’t dare do it again next time.” Yu Chen puffed his cheeks, looking exceptionally obedient. All the arrogance and stubbornness from his morning refusal to get out of bed had vanished without a trace.
Like a little seal, he kept nudging up against He Zhen with his round body. If his eyes could grow little hooks, he would have used them to pull the wontons straight over to himself.
“Boss!”
Yu Chen pursed his lips and tested the waters. “Are the little wontons good?”
Even though He Zhen had not yet picked up his chopsticks, he still deliberately teased Yu Chen. “Good. Extremely fragrant.”
Yu Chen swallowed hard, and his chubby little hand crept eagerly toward the custard buns. “Then what about the buns? Are they good too?”
He Zhen sat upright in his chair and ignored Yu Chen no matter how much he wriggled against him.
Like a little grown-up, he crossed his legs leisurely. “Also good.”
Yu Chen wiped at the corner of his mouth, then pressed his plump lips together and continued rubbing against He Zhen. The words I want to eat the little wontons were practically written all over his face.
Sneaking glances at Yu Chen, who was practically about to drip drool straight into the bowl, He Zhen desperately suppressed the upward twitch of his lips and put on a cool, aloof act.
Actually, he simply wanted Yu Chen to remember this lesson.
By now, Yu Chen’s habit of sleeping in had become worse and worse.
Summer was still manageable, but in winter Yu Chen became the ultimate reluctant riser, constantly delaying breakfast because he could not get out of bed.
Sometimes, when there was no time for breakfast, Yu Chen would hastily drink a cup of milk. Occasionally he even went to class on an empty stomach.
Li Huan often lectured Yu Chen about this, but at home Yu Chen was the family’s little darling. The moment anyone said anything too serious, little pearl tears would start falling, and Li Huan could never bear to continue.
This time, He Zhen had set his heart on helping Yu Chen break the bad habit, so he could only resort to this tactic.
Meanwhile, Fang Jingrao and Xiao Yu had already bought their dry bread and were sitting across from them. It had to be said that little foodie Yu Chen really did know what he was talking about. Once that bread was torn open, there was absolutely nothing inside. Xiao Yu could barely get it down. He had to keep taking sips of warm water with it.
“Yu Chen, why don’t you go buy some bread?” Xiao Yu was very generous. He split off one of his breads and offered it to Yu Chen. “Do you want it?”
Picky little Yu Chen politely thanked him, then shook his little head to decline.
Fang Jingrao stared at the delicious breakfast on He Zhen’s tray, licked his dry lips, and then looked at Yu Chen, who was drooling just as much. He began wondering in his little head whether He Zhen would end up sharing the food with Yu Chen.
But there really were not that many wontons.
If he gave some to Yu Chen, He Zhen definitely would not have enough for himself.
Yu Chen was still uselessly staring at the little wontons, especially after seeing the dry white bread. That only strengthened his determination to mooch a few wontons off He Zhen.
He did not need much—three would be enough.
Of course, four would be even better.
Five would leave him half full!
But today his boss suddenly did not seem very clever.
Why could he not tell that Yu Chen wanted to eat the little wontons?
Little Student Yu Chenchen sadly lowered his eyes and finally stopped rubbing against He Zhen like a little seal.
If there was really no other way, he could only go eat the little bread.
He was much too shy to actually ask He Zhen outright.
“The wontons have cooled down. Here, take them.” He Zhen raised his brows slightly and pushed the bowl over toward Yu Chen with an expression of false disdain.
He had suddenly remembered the last time Yu Chen ate noodles too quickly and burned himself.
But these wontons had already been left to cool for five minutes, so now they were just right to eat.
“For me?” Fiery surprise flashed in Yu Chen’s eyes. He immediately leaned over and took a first sip of the delicious wonton broth. “You’re really giving them to me?”
The wronged note in Yu Chen’s voice amused He Zhen.
He pointed at the custard buns. “The buns are for you too.”
Yu Chen looked as though he had just won the lottery. Suppressing his overwhelming joy, he immediately grabbed one of the custard buns and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing away.
“Boss, have you eaten yet? Let’s eat the wontons together.”
“I’m not eating wontons together with you.” Young Master He propped up his cheek proudly, his tone full of teasing. “When it comes to eating, I’m no match for your speed.”
Yu Chen’s cheeks bulged full. “I can leave you half.”
Just then, He Zhi’an walked past carrying his schoolbag.
He glanced at the wontons and pouted. “I was just wondering who ran that fast earlier. So it really was Boss. No wonder the last bowl of wontons got snatched up by you.”
Earlier, in order to grab the wontons, He Zhen had run like a little whirlwind. He Zhi’an had not even managed to see the person clearly before the last bowl of wontons had already been bought and taken away.
He Zhen ruthlessly mocked him. “Whose fault is it that you run so slow?”
He Zhi’an let out a huff and slunk away.
Before He Zhen even had time to turn back, Yu Chen’s arm had already slid over and wrapped tightly around his waist.
“Boss~ you’re so nice~”
Clever little Yu Chen had finally realized that his boss had sprinted so fast just to grab the wontons for him. No wonder he was covered in sweat.
“Boss, to express my gratitude, I’ll sing you a song.”
Yu Chen sat up straight, preparing to show off his singing voice. He had personally composed a friendship song about himself and He Zhen and was planning to present the finished result today.
He Zhen had heard Yu Chen sing before. He was terribly off-key, barely different from reciting poetry aloud. Still, it would probably make an excellent alarm clock—anyone would definitely wake up in the morning. So without mercy, he clapped a hand over Yu Chen’s mouth. “No singing necessary. Hurry up and eat.”
Yu Chen blinked, then noticed He Zhen’s back, still half damp with sweat.
His boss really was an angel!
Working so hard just to buy wontons for him!
Yu Chen solemnly knitted his little brows and began seriously thinking of what things He Zhen liked, so he could find a way to express his gratitude.
From what he could tell right now, his boss clearly did not like hearing him sing.
In that case—
his little brain suddenly remembered the request the art teacher had made yesterday.
Having made up his mind, he lifted his thick, long lashes, dimples appearing at the sides of his face as he leaned sweetly closer. “Boss, then… would you like me to give you a kiss?”
Across the table, Fang Jingrao froze in the middle of chewing bread.
So feeding Yu Chen could earn you a kiss?
If He Zhen did not want it, then he certainly did!
