Chapter 11
Worried that the two children might catch a chill, Grandpa quickly opened the door and let them go inside first.
Grandma placed Lin Huaixi on the bed, then looked at Qi Wang with concern.
Qi Wang had not been drenched, but he was carrying a heavy damp chill on him, and even his hair was wet. No one knew how long he had been sitting out there in the rain.
Maybe from the moment they left, Qi Wang had been waiting the whole time.
Grandma had never expected a child to go this far. Her heart ached for him. She poured him a cup of hot water and said, “Qi Wang, why don’t you change into one of Xixi’s outfits first? If this keeps up, you’ll catch cold.”
Qi Wang gave a small nod, his eyes never leaving Lin Huaixi.
Grandma understood what he was feeling and reassured him, “It’s okay. Xixi’s fever has already gone down. The doctor said it’s nothing too serious. He’s just dehydrated and overheated inside. If he comes home and rests properly for a few days, he’ll recover.”
Only then did Qi Wang let out an almost imperceptible breath and look back at Grandma.
Grandma led him into the bedroom, found a few clean clothes, and handed them to him.
She could not treat Qi Wang like an ordinary little child, so she explained a little more, “These are all clothes Xixi has worn before, but they were just washed yesterday and have been kept in the wardrobe.”
Qi Wang nodded and raised a hand to take them.
Grandma did not ask whether he needed help. She simply walked out of the bedroom and thoughtfully closed the door behind her.
After putting on Lin Huaixi’s clothes, Qi Wang looked at his small reflection in the mirror and found it very strange.
His mother was in such a bad state that she could not buy him new clothes. All his clothes had been brought over from “that house.”
Before, those people had repeated it to him again and again—his clothes were all custom-made, expensive, and one of a kind.
But Qi Wang did not like those clothes. In them, he could not run or jump. Every word and movement had to be proper and restrained, like a delicate doll displayed in a shop window.
Those clothes were fragile too. Once they changed places, they could no longer “live.” The new nanny had already ruined several of them in the washing machine.
The nanny had been full of guilt and fear, but he had not cared at all.
He had never liked them in the first place.
Lin Huaixi’s clothes, on the other hand, had all been carefully chosen by Grandma and his mother. They were soft and loose, brightly colored, and decorated with cartoon prints.
Qi Wang lowered his head to look at the cute little rabbit printed right in the middle. For some reason, he reached out and touched the rabbit ears, then lifted the collar and brought it to his nose for a sniff.
Even though it had been washed and carried the scent of detergent and sunshine, he could still smell Lin Huaixi’s own special scent on it.
It was impossible to describe in words. Warm and soft, it made him think of Lin Huaixi’s smiling face and his endless lively energy.
Qi Wang pushed the door open and walked out. He looked at Grandma’s back as she brewed ginger soup in the kitchen, stayed quiet for a few seconds, then moved very lightly toward the bed where Lin Huaixi was sleeping.
Lin Huaixi was tucked under a goose-yellow blanket. His cheeks were flushed red from sleep, and his lips had turned rosy again, slightly puffed with each breath.
The empty feeling in Qi Wang’s heart was gone now. He took off his shoes, climbed onto the bed, hugged his knees, and sat beside Lin Huaixi, staring at him without blinking.
When Grandma came out carrying the ginger soup, this was the scene she saw. Her steps paused, and her heart was instantly filled with tenderness.
She almost treated Qi Wang like her own grandson now. She brought the ginger soup over to him and said softly, “Drink this. It’ll warm your body.”
Lin Huaixi was a little glutton who loved sweets and hated the spicy taste of ginger soup. Every time, Grandma had to coax him for ages before he would drink it with a miserable face, taking tiny sips one by one. After finishing it, his eyes would even turn watery, and he would throw himself into Grandma’s arms, acting spoiled and asking for comfort, all while secretly taking the chance to wheedle some candy out of her.
Qi Wang, however, did not even blink. Holding the bowl, he drank the ginger soup down in one go. Then he returned the bowl to Grandma and did not forget to thank her politely.
Grandma stared at him in surprise, then could not help laughing. “You child really are…”
Before she could finish, she was interrupted by a child’s sleepy murmur.
Lin Huaixi was weak and had been sleeping very deeply, yet now he woke without warning. He could not even open his eyes fully. He only searched instinctively for Qi Wang’s figure, and after seeing him, a faint smile appeared on his face. He grabbed the corner of Qi Wang’s clothes with one hand, then slipped peacefully back into sleep.
Qi Wang looked at Lin Huaixi’s chubby little hand, then at the curve of the smile still lingering at the corner of his lips. Turning to Grandma, he asked, “Can I sleep here tonight?”
Grandma hesitated a little, but after thinking it over, she still agreed.
Lin Huaixi’s fever had been caused by dehydration, not a cold, so it would not be contagious. Besides, Qi Wang’s house was right next door. If she informed his mother, she would probably get permission.
As the night gradually deepened, Grandma took care of both children and switched off the dim yellow lamp by the window.
Standing at the doorway, she looked inside once. When her gaze fell upon the two little lumps under the blanket on the bed, she suddenly felt at ease and gently closed the door.
The room was dim, with only a hazy moonlight drifting through the window and softly spilling over the bedside.
Qi Wang blinked. After getting used to the darkness, he slowly turned over.
He was wearing Lin Huaixi’s clothes, covered by Lin Huaixi’s blanket, sleeping in Lin Huaixi’s bed. Lin Huaixi was lying right beside him, and he could feel the warmth from his body.
Even though there was no one else in the room, Qi Wang still moved as if he were afraid someone might discover him. Very slowly, he edged a little closer toward Lin Huaixi. He did not touch him. He only rested the tip of his nose against the goose-yellow blanket, and as their breathing gradually fell into the same rhythm, he too drifted into deep sleep.
…
Grandma came in to check on them several times during the night. Only after seeing that both little ones were sleeping soundly did she finally relax.
Sleep could restore strength. So the next morning, Grandma deliberately did not disturb them, wanting to let them wake naturally.
Perhaps because Lin Huaixi was beside him, Qi Wang also slept for a very, very long time. When he finally opened his eyes again, the sunlight was already bright and strong. Thick green leaves pressed against the glass, casting irregular patches of light. The whole room was blazing with brightness, as if it were bathing directly in sunlight with nothing to block it.
Qi Wang’s curled, thick lashes trembled lightly twice. What had happened before sleep rushed back into his mind, and he widened his eyes in alarm, frantically searching for Lin Huaixi.
His fingertips touched the soft blanket first. When he saw Lin Huaixi’s fluffy hair, his heart slowly settled back into place, and his breathing grew calm again.
Lin Huaixi was still asleep, lying in exactly the same position as before. Qi Wang watched him quietly, suddenly seized by an unexplainable fear that Lin Huaixi might be like Sleeping Beauty in a fairy tale and never wake up.
Without realizing it, he tightened his grip on the blanket, buried his head into the crook of Lin Huaixi’s neck, and sniffed.
Wake up soon. From now on, I’ll play childish games with you. I’ll go to school with you. I’ll even learn to make little bunny cakes for you. I won’t find you annoying anymore. I won’t think you’re silly anymore. I can do anything… just wake up soon.
The room was utterly quiet. No one heard Qi Wang’s voice. Little by little, he ended up sprawled over Lin Huaixi’s shoulder, as though he had fallen asleep.
Even the flow of time seemed to slow to a crawl. Just as Qi Wang’s senses were becoming hazy, he suddenly felt something gently brush against his hair.
At first he thought it was a hallucination and did not react. Only when it brushed him again did he suddenly realize something. Stunned, he lifted his head.
Lin Huaixi had already opened his eyes. His pupils were clear and moist, as clean as a pool of lake water, reflecting Qi Wang in them.
Outside the window, the sun was pouring out its blazing light with all its might, bright enough to sting the eyes. Yet Qi Wang looked straight into Lin Huaixi’s eyes and felt that Lin Huaixi’s eyes were the brightest thing of all, outshining even the sun.
“Qi Wang, why are you here?” Lin Huaixi asked crisply, sounding not the slightest bit sick, nor did he seem to have any lingering psychological shadow from what had happened the day before.
He got no answer. Qi Wang just kept staring at him, his expression completely blank.
Lin Huaixi wrinkled his nose in confusion. Then he actually turned his head and followed Qi Wang’s line of sight, stretching his neck and looking around here and there, looking silly as ever.
That familiar feeling had returned.
Knowing that Lin Huaixi was fine, Qi Wang got off the bed and went to call Grandma.
A few minutes later, Grandma came in carrying a small breakfast table, her face glowing with delight. “Xixi, are you hungry? Eat a little more, and you’ll get better faster.”
Breakfast was made by Grandma herself. It was fairly light, but also very delicious. Lin Huaixi’s eyes lit up immediately, and he sat up while clutching the little blanket around him.
Grandma used a hot towel to wipe Lin Huaixi’s hands and let him sit on the bed to eat.
Normally Lin Huaixi ate by himself, but now that he had not fully recovered, Grandma was hesitating over whether she should feed him. Before she could decide, Qi Wang naturally picked up the bowl, scooped up a spoonful of plain porridge, blew on it twice, and calmly held it to Lin Huaixi’s mouth.
Lin Huaixi’s big eyes rolled twice, then he obediently opened his mouth.
One quietly fed, and the other quietly swallowed. Before long, the bowl of porridge was almost gone.
Lin Huaixi was starting to struggle a bit and patted himself with his little hand. “I’m full. My tummy is all puffed up now.”
Qi Wang glanced at him and corrected him mercilessly, “It’s not puffed up, and you’re patting your chest.”
Lin Huaixi lowered his head to look several times, then moved his hand downward a little, pushed out his belly with effort, and patted it twice. “Now it’s puffed up.”
After saying that, he felt he was completely right and broke into a silly grin.
Qi Wang shifted his gaze away from Lin Huaixi’s face, set down the custard bun, and stopped forcing him to eat more.
After breakfast, Lin Huaixi was even more energetic and did not look like a sick child at all. Grandma did not urge him to keep resting and simply let the two little ones play on their own.
Lin Huaixi stretched out his plump little feet, kicked the blanket down to the foot of the bed, and moved the pillow aside. Only then did he scoot over to Qi Wang’s side and hold up his little face as if trying to lecture him. “Qi Wang, in the future you mustn’t run around. Bad people might snatch you away. Then you’d never see Mommy again, and never see me again!”
“…” Looking at Lin Huaixi’s face, which was full of earnest seriousness, Qi Wang felt half amused and half exasperated. “Yesterday it was clearly you who ran off. I was the one who went looking for you.”
Lin Huaixi let out a puzzled little sound. His eyes rolled once, and when he thought, all his features scrunched together, his fingers twisting around each other too.
No, that couldn’t be right. Yesterday he had been squatting at the intersection, worried that Qi Wang might run to the other side. And later Qi Wang had appeared, running over from the direction of home…
!!! Was he really the one who had run off?!
It was as though Lin Huaixi had just been struck by lightning. His expression went blank, and his whole body froze.
“So yesterday I was the one who got lost and almost got taken away by bad people?” Lin Huaixi spoke very slowly, his eyes no longer even moving. His little brain was clearly overloaded and no longer able to process such a complicated issue.
Qi Wang did not have the heart to say, What bad people? You were obviously just squatting by the road like a little mushroom because you were silly. He sighed and decided not to let Lin Huaixi waste more effort on it. “That’s not important. Just don’t run around anymore.”
Even though this question had nothing to do with arithmetic, Lin Huaixi still started counting on his fingers. One chubby little leg was bent while the other stretched out naturally, and his expression was so bitter and serious that he looked exactly like an old grandpa sitting at the doorway.
Qi Wang could not bear to watch any longer. He covered Lin Huaixi’s ears with his hands, forcibly turned his head back around, and said word by word, “Stop thinking about it!”
Lin Huaixi’s train of thought seemed to come in little sections, so he really did stop thinking immediately. Looking at Qi Wang’s serious little face, he murmured softly, “Qi Wang, are you angry?”
Qi Wang shook his head, but he did not smile either.
Lin Huaixi tried to tug at Qi Wang’s little hand, wanting to cheer him up.
When it came to comforting people and acting spoiled, Lin Huaixi had inherited all his skills straight from his mother. Even at such a young age, he already wielded them with divine ease. With his fluffy head of hair, he rubbed and burrowed around in Qi Wang’s arms.
This move worked wonders on Grandma and Grandpa. They laughed every time. Lin Huaixi was extremely confident in it, but he overlooked one important fact.
Qi Wang was the same age as he was, and just as small. There was no way he could withstand Lin Huaixi charging straight into him like a little wild boar and then rooting around like he was plowing a field.
Qi Wang lost his balance and fell backward onto the bed in one go.
With his hair now a complete mess, Lin Huaixi stared blankly at Qi Wang, who looked like a little turtle flipped onto its back, shell underneath and all four limbs in the air, wobbling twice from side to side.
“…”
Oh no. It looked like he had failed at cheering someone up.
