Chapter 11
Two hours later, Jiang Mi sat in the classroom of Class One, Year Two, head lowered as he worked on a physics paper. Hearing the sound of a chair being pulled out beside him, Jiang Mi turned his head. Sure enough, he saw Liang Xuping, who had returned from home.
Jiang Mi put down his pen, rubbed his forehead, and asked, “How is Jinyi now?”
The next evening self-study session was physics. Liang Xuping pulled his physics textbook out from inside his desk and tossed it onto the tabletop. With a sigh, he said, “When I left, he was sitting on the balcony spacing out.”
Jiang Mi had left school early today. Liang Xuping had gone home with Uncle Lin and only returned after dinner.
Jiang Mi hesitated for a moment, unable to make up his mind. “Do you think what I did today was right?” He had never educated a child before.
“How was it not right?” Yunde High School’s key classes used small-class teaching, with only thirty-five students in each class. There were no desk mates, and Liang Xuping’s seat was separated from Jiang Mi’s by an aisle. He simply dragged his chair over to Jiang Mi and sat beside him. “I’ve wanted him to fix that bad habit for ages. How can he just hit people whenever he feels like it? But before you, no one could control him. That brat doesn’t respond to either soft or hard methods.”
Hearing Liang Xuping agree with him, Jiang Mi relaxed slightly.
“But do you think Jinyi can get rid of this bad habit of hitting people whenever he gets angry?” Jiang Mi didn’t have much confidence.
“I think he can,” Liang Xuping answered after thinking for a moment.
Jiang Mi looked at him doubtfully.
Liang Xuping patted his shoulder. “You don’t know how much that brat likes you, his Jiang Mi-brother. He’s pretty scared you won’t pay attention to him anymore.”
“Is that so?” Jiang Mi was somewhat skeptical.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
This Friday after school, Liang Jinyi was also attending kindergarten, so it was impossible for him to come pick Jiang Mi up. Jiang Mi also had no plans to go to the Liang house that week. After waving goodbye to Liang Xuping, he returned home.
After dinner, Jiang Mi held the leash and watched Yunduo play with its little friends on the neighborhood lawn.
The phone in his pants pocket rang.
It was Uncle Lin calling.
After Jiang Mi answered, he heard Liang Jinyi’s weak little voice.
“Brother.”
Yunduo and its friends were having a great time on the lawn. Jiang Mi looked toward the yellowing plane tree in the distance and gave an “Mm.”
Hearing Jiang Mi’s voice, Liang Jinyi hurriedly said, “Brother, I know… I was wrong. I won’t hit people anymore.”
Jiang Mi didn’t speak.
Because in front of him, Liang Jinyi was a child who admitted his mistakes easily.
Liang Jinyi continued, “Today, I also helped… Chen Ruoxuan… throw away trash.”
His voice rose a little. “Teacher Li also… gave me… a little red flower. Little red flowers… are only for children… who behave well.”
He said the last few words especially anxiously, as though afraid Jiang Mi wouldn’t hear them.
“Brother, can you… play with me tomorrow?” Liang Jinyi asked again.
“No,” Jiang Mi refused.
Liang Jinyi called “Brother” again from the other end of the phone, sounding wronged.
Jiang Mi rubbed between his brows. He really wasn’t very good at educating children, but this should be the right thing to do.
He said, “If you behave well at school for the next week, Brother will believe that you really know you were wrong. Next week, I can play with you.”
Liang Jinyi let out an unmistakably disappointed “Ah.”
He called “Brother” softly several more times, but Jiang Mi showed no sign of softening. Liang Jinyi could only agree to this condition.
“I’ll… behave well.”
Liang Jinyi really liked Jiang Mi-brother. He was very afraid that Brother would never play with him again.
So for the next week, he behaved well at school every day. During class, even when he felt bored, he wouldn’t lower his head to play his own games. During breaks, even when he felt the other children were noisy and annoying, he would restrain the urge to hit them.
Because he behaved well every day, Liang Jinyi received a little red flower to take home every day.
In the blink of an eye, it was Friday.
Liang Jinyi knew that he and Brother would both have time off today. But that day, because it rained at noon and he hadn’t played in the rain for a long time, he ran outside the classroom to play in the rain. The teacher decided not to give him a little red flower today.
At five-fifty, after all the children in Class One had gone home for the weekend, Liang Jinyi still hadn’t left. He remained in the classroom, clinging to Teacher Li and demanding that she make up for it by giving him a little red flower.
Teacher Li was gentle but principled. “No, Jinyi. Because you ran out to play in the rain, several classmates followed you and played in the rain too. They were all soaked.”
Liang Jinyi wanted to say that they were too stupid. When he went to play in the rain, only his hands got wet.
But he knew that if he said that, he definitely wouldn’t get a little red flower. So he said, “I didn’t… make them play. And I… didn’t get wet.”
“Teacher Li, just… give me… one little red flower, please.” Liang Jinyi hugged her leg and acted spoiled. “Please, please.”
Teacher Li was thirty-three this year and had worked at this kindergarten for ten years. In those ten years, she had seen countless children. But when it came to looks, Liang Jinyi was indeed among the very best. She really didn’t know what his parents looked like to have given birth to such a beautiful child.
However, Teacher Li had very strong principles. She knew very well that wrong things had to be refused from the start.
“No. Your behavior today does not earn a little red flower.”
Liang Jinyi became a little angry.
But just then, there was a knock at the classroom door.
Liang Jinyi turned to look, and his eyes instantly lit up. He strode toward the person at the classroom door. Only when he was one or two meters away from the other person did Liang Jinyi slow down, shuffling over in small steps to stand before him.
Softly, he called, “Brother.”
Jiang Mi lowered his eyes and glanced at Liang Jinyi, then gave an “Mm.”
Seeing this, Liang Jinyi took one step forward and pressed himself against Jiang Mi’s thigh. Looking up, he asked, “Brother, why are you here?”
“To pick you up from school.” Jiang Mi crouched down and looked Liang Jinyi in the eyes.
Liang Jinyi turned back to glance at Teacher Li, his tone uneasy. “But today, I don’t have… a little red flower.”
Afraid Jiang Mi would think he had made a mistake, Liang Jinyi hurriedly added, “Today, I saw the rain… was pretty, so I caught it… with my hands. A few classmates… copied me. But they… got wet. I didn’t want… them to copy me either.”
As Liang Jinyi spoke, his tone even carried a little grievance.
Jiang Mi smiled and reached out to rub Liang Jinyi’s little head.
Then Jiang Mi greeted Teacher Li and held Liang Jinyi’s hand as they walked toward the kindergarten gate.
Jiang Mi had originally been waiting at the school gate today for Liang Jinyi to finish class. But all the students from Class One had come out, and only Liang Jinyi was missing. This week, it was also Class One’s turn to be the last class dismissed, so Jiang Mi and Liang Xuping had come to the classroom to look for him.
Although Liang Xuping cared about Liang Jinyi in his heart, now that he had seen him, he merely walked behind them with both hands in his pockets, acting rather indifferent.
Being suddenly held by Brother, Liang Jinyi was a little dazed. He followed Jiang Mi for a few steps in a trance before lifting his head to ask, “Brother, you forgive me?”
Jiang Mi gave an “Mm.” “Because I know Jinyi has been behaving well this week.”
This week, Liang Jinyi had called Jiang Mi every night to report that he had behaved well and received a little red flower.
But besides Liang Jinyi praising himself, Jiang Mi had actually contacted Uncle Lin. Uncle Lin had coordinated with the teacher, who said that Jinyi had behaved very well at school this week, had not caused trouble, had even helped his classmates, and had also paid close attention in class.
Liang Jinyi cheered.
Then he stopped walking again.
Jiang Mi lowered his eyes to look at him.
Liang Jinyi hugged his thigh with both hands, his eyes shining brightly. “Brother, hold me.”
Jiang Mi hadn’t seen this little dumpling for more than ten days. In truth, he did miss him a little. He bent down and picked Liang Jinyi up.
Liang Jinyi wrapped both arms around Brother’s neck and happily rubbed against his neck. Only then did he lift his head to look at him and say softly, “Brother, let’s not… quarrel anymore, okay?”
“Quarrel?” Jiang Mi was puzzled by Liang Jinyi’s description.
Liang Jinyi explained with complete seriousness, “When one person… ignores another person… that’s quarrelling.”
He tightened his arms around Jiang Mi’s neck and pressed his head against Jiang Mi’s chin. “Brother, I don’t like… quarrelling with you.”
There had been a burst of rain at noon today. Now, at dusk, a faint rainbow hung in the sky.
The corners of Jiang Mi’s lips curved slightly. “If Jinyi doesn’t make mistakes in the future, Brother naturally won’t quarrel with you.”
Liang Jinyi hurriedly said, “I won’t make mistakes.”
After a pause, he added, “I won’t hit people… ever again.”
As though feeling that wasn’t enough, he continued, “Even if someone hits me… I won’t hit back.”
Jiang Mi’s steps paused slightly. He lowered his eyes and looked at the little dumpling in his arms.
“Jinyi, Brother doesn’t approve of you bullying classmates for no reason. But if a classmate bullies you or hits you, Brother supports you fighting back.”
“I don’t like it when Jinyi hits people just because he’s angry. But if Jinyi is bullied, Brother will also feel upset.”
Liang Jinyi pulled a little distance between himself and Jiang Mi, his eyes shining as he looked at him.
After a moment, he rubbed his head against Jiang Mi’s neck again and said softly, “Brother, I really… like you.”
After saying that, he looked at Jiang Mi again, his eyes full of expectation. “Brother, do you like me?”
Jiang Mi lowered his head and glanced at the little dumpling in his arms.
Not receiving a definite answer from Jiang Mi, Liang Jinyi became a little anxious. He urged, “Brother, do you like me?”
Jiang Mi reached out and tapped the tip of his little nose. Helplessly, he answered, “I do.”
Liang Jinyi was finally satisfied and obediently leaned into Brother’s arms.
Since Liang Jinyi had behaved very well that week and had indeed realized his mistake, Jiang Mi went to the Liang house that day and played with him for a whole day. The next day, when Jiang Mi was about to go home and Liang Jinyi hugged his thigh, saying he wanted to go home with Brother, Jiang Mi brought him along too.
Uncle Lin drove them to Qiuxin Garden, where Jiang Mi lived.
After arriving at the entrance of the residential complex, Jiang Mi carried Liang Jinyi out of the car. After they agreed on the time for Uncle Lin to pick Liang Jinyi up tomorrow, Uncle Lin drove away. Jiang Mi carried Liang Jinyi into the neighborhood.
After walking about four or five hundred meters, Jiang Mi’s steps stopped. He focused on listening to the movement coming from beside him.
“Brother,” Liang Jinyi called in confusion.
Jiang Mi set Liang Jinyi down and walked a few steps forward. His fingers gently parted the neatly trimmed shrubs. Sure enough, he saw a weakly barking puppy underneath.
When the puppy saw someone approach, it let out a few feeble barks at Jiang Mi.
The puppy was very dirty and didn’t look like a household pet. There were also dried red marks on its leg. It was already November now, with autumn cold and heavy dew. Jiang Mi didn’t hesitate and directly picked the puppy up.
Five minutes later, Jiang Mi returned home.
He carefully examined the puppy and discovered that not only was its leg injured, there were also wounds on its abdomen and ears.
After Jiang Mi simply applied some medicine to it, he took some of Yunduo’s dog food, soaked it soft in warm water, and fed it to the little puppy.
The puppy lay on the mat and limped forward one step. It first sniffed the smell of the food, then barked softly twice at Jiang Mi before lowering its head and eating heartily.
Seeing that it was eating happily, Jiang Mi reached out and patted its little head.
“Brother.”
When Jiang Mi was doing things at home, Liang Jinyi had been circling around him the whole time. Now that his Jiang Mi-brother was crouched in front of the puppy, he naturally crouched in front of the puppy too.
Seeing Brother pat the puppy again, Liang Jinyi hurriedly asked, “Aren’t we… sending the puppy home?”
“This puppy is a stray. It doesn’t have a home,” Jiang Mi explained.
A stray dog.
Liang Jinyi immediately became alert.
He knew that Yunduo used to be a stray dog too, a dog without a home. Then after Brother met it, he brought it home and had raised it for many, many years, playing with it every day. But he also knew that Yunduo was an old dog and would die soon.
But this dog was a puppy.
Liang Jinyi bit his lip and stared straight at the puppy eating dog food. “Brother, are you… going to raise it too?”
As though sensing danger, the puppy grew uneasy. It stopped eating and glanced around.
Jiang Mi thought it wasn’t used to the new environment, so he raised a hand and stroked its body. After the puppy was soothed, it lowered its head and resumed eating.
Jiang Mi answered Jinyi, “Brother won’t raise it.”
In their family, he and his father liked dogs, but his mother didn’t like dogs very much. Back when they raised Yunduo, it was also because Jiang Mi had promised he would take care of Yunduo.
But he had still been an elementary school student then and had a lot of free time. Now, he didn’t even have time to take care of Yunduo, let alone a puppy.
Jiang Mi looked at the evening sky outside the window. “It’s too late now. Tomorrow, Brother will send it to the pet hospital for an examination, then ask the people at the hospital to help find a suitable family to adopt it.”
Hearing Brother say he wouldn’t raise this puppy, Liang Jinyi couldn’t help cheering.
Jiang Mi: “Hm?”
Liang Jinyi pressed his small body close to Jiang Mi and said ingratiatingly, “Brother, I’ll go with you… to walk Yunduo.”
Jiang Mi rubbed Liang Jinyi’s little head again, confirming that his head felt better to rub than a puppy’s. He smiled and said, “Yunduo has already been walked twice today. He doesn’t need another walk.”
“Then let’s… play with him.” Liang Jinyi looked around the living room and brought over Yunduo’s toy ball.
Jiang Mi played with Liang Jinyi and Yunduo for a while. Seeing that Yunduo was tired and the puppy was also lying on the mat wanting to rest, he took Liang Jinyi to wash up.
After that, Jiang Mi washed up himself. It was still early when he finished, so he returned to his room and planned to work on a physics paper. Worried that Liang Jinyi would be bored, Jiang Mi told Liang Jinyi to go downstairs and watch cartoons.
Liang Jinyi shook his head.
Then he went to the study next door by himself and dragged over a chair almost as tall as he was. He placed it beside Jiang Mi, climbed onto it, sat down properly, and said, “I’ll stay with Brother.”
Seeing this, Jiang Mi went to the study and found a comic book he had read when he was young. He handed it to Liang Jinyi so he could quietly pass the time.
Halfway through Jiang Mi’s studying, Jiang’s mother came upstairs with fruit. She saw a teenager and a little cub sitting quietly in front of the wide desk, both with their heads lowered as they read. Warm white light spilled over the two of them, and even the angle of their lowered heads was exactly the same.
Jiang Mi’s mother thought for a moment and didn’t call out to them. She entered quietly and placed the fruit plate on Jiang Mi’s bedside table.
At eleven o’clock, Jiang Mi finished studying. After holding Liang Jinyi and eating a few cherries his mother had brought up, the two of them went to bed.
The next day, as soon as the sky brightened, Jiang Mi woke up. Liang Jinyi immediately urged him to hurry and take the puppy to the pet hospital.
Jiang Mi yawned, took off the pajamas he was wearing, and found a sweater to put on. “We have to eat breakfast first.”
“…Okay,” Liang Jinyi said.
After eating the breakfast Jiang’s mother made, Liang Jinyi brought up the old matter again. Looking at the ugly little puppy wagging its tail at his brother, he said, “Brother, let’s… send it to the hospital.”
Jiang Mi glanced at the time on the wall and told him, “The pet hospital doesn’t open until nine. It’s only eight now. We’ll wait a little before leaving.”
Liang Jinyi: “…”
Half an hour later, Jiang Mi put the puppy he had found last night into a carrier and brought it to the pet hospital.
The pet hospital was very close to his house, only fifteen minutes away on foot. The doctor examined the puppy and found no serious illness, only superficial wounds. Jiang Mi let out a breath of relief. He left the puppy there, paid one week of boarding fees, and entrusted the doctor with helping the puppy find a suitable caretaker.
The doctor was fairly familiar with Jiang Mi as well and had treated Yunduo a few times before. Hearing this, he agreed.
After that, Jiang Mi went to pet the puppy again. Only then did he take Liang Jinyi’s hand and leave.
Seeing that they had finally left the pet hospital and Brother had not taken the puppy away, Liang Jinyi let out a huge sigh of relief.
Jiang Mi found it a little funny. “Jinyi, you really don’t want Brother to raise that puppy?”
Liang Jinyi nodded heavily. Then he hugged Jiang Mi’s thigh, looked up at him, and said, “Brother, just raise me.”
After a slight pause, Liang Jinyi began promoting himself.
“I’m prettier… than a dog. Obedient. Smart!”
Jiang Mi had never seen someone compare himself to a dog before. Feeling mischievous, he teased him, “But puppies have tails, and you don’t.”
Hearing that, Liang Jinyi fell silent for two seconds.
But this problem didn’t stump him. His eyes shining, he said to Jiang Mi, “You can buy… puppy clothes… with a tail. I’ll wear them… and then I’ll have… a tail.”
Author’s Note
A little late, but it’s almost five thousand words. Praise me!
