TYAM Chapter 90

Guess who forgor uploading this chapter before Chapter 91? ME!!!!

With the arrival of spring, both of them became increasingly busy with work. Even though they worked at the same company, there were times when they wouldn’t see each other for six or seven days.

—Since the start of the year, Ji Linqiu had been frequently traveling for further studies, while Jiang Wang was often flying back and forth for meetings. As a result, they often had to ask Ji Changxia and the others to help take care of Xingwang.

Because of this, the child hadn’t even planned to mention the upcoming sports day to them—it was only when the school sent a mass text message to parents that they found out.

[Tao Yingqi]: Dear parents, this parent-child sports day is a special event organized by the school to promote bonding and increase interaction opportunities. It has been scheduled for Saturday so that parents can participate without missing out. We encourage all parents to take part.

Jiang Wang had called Peng Xingwang every few days but had never heard a word about this. When he saw the message, he immediately instructed his secretary to adjust his schedule and book a flight back to the provincial city before calling Xingwang.

“Big Brother!” The child sounded a little shy. “Didn’t we just talk on the phone yesterday? You miss me that much?”

Jiang Wang drawled with a teasing tone, “Peng——Xing——Wang.”

Every time the boy heard this tone, he instinctively felt guilty. “I—I’ve been super well-behaved lately! The teacher even praised me in class!”

Is there anything you’ve been keeping from me?”

“N-no, nothing at all!”

Jiang Wang sighed internally—this kid was still too polite with him. He spoke slowly, “What about the sports day? Why didn’t you tell us?”

Hongshan Primary School had never held a parent-child sports day before, so Jiang Wang had no prior experience with such events. 

But now that there was an opportunity, he was determined to join in and have fun with his younger self.

Peng Xingwang, who had panicked at hearing his full name, had just finished mentally reviewing all the times he had petted dogs or slacked off on homework in the past two weeks. He never expected the issue to be about this.

“Oh, the sports day?” Peng Xingwang didn’t quite see the problem. “I signed up for the 400-meter run and the relay race! If you and Linqiu-ge have time, you can come watch!”

“Xingwang, your Teacher Tao told me that this is a parent-child sports day.” Jiang Wang’s tone was light. “It’s not just for kids—there are also events for parents, and even competitions between parents. Are you planning to kick me and your second brother out of the family?”

“But you guys are so busy!!” Peng Xingwang was anxious. “This isn’t a big deal at all! You really don’t have to come, I’ll be fine on my own!”

He was so worried about troubling them that he rarely asked for anything. He spoke so hurriedly that it sounded like he was tripping over his own words. “Brother, you really don’t have to come back just for this. I can go to the sports day by myself!”

“Nonsense!” Jiang Wang snapped back. “If you keep acting like this, I’ll skin you alive!”

The child let out a long, dramatic wail.

“Do you think your Brother Linqiu and I need you to be this careful around us? We want to spend more time with you, got it?”

Peng Xingwang was stunned for a long time, unable to tell if they were just trying to comfort him or if they truly meant it.

“…Really?”

At that moment, Jiang Wang wished he could reach through the phone to ruffle the boy’s hair.

Ji Linqiu had been away for many days on an exchange program. When he heard about the event, he was more than happy to join in. The two of them returned home on Wednesday, and the child was so excited he bounced around the house.

“This is the parent sign-up form! Teacher Tao said we can register up until the competition starts!”

Jiang Wang took the form and scanned through it.

“I’ll sign up for the 5 km run and the triathlon.”

Peng Xingwang’s eyes sparkled. “I’ll cheer for you!”

Ji Linqiu took the form next, intrigued. “There are quite a few team events. Let’s all go together.”

The next day, Peng Xingwang submitted the form, shocking Tao Yingqi.

Only three parents in the entire school had signed up for the 5 km run, one of whom was a long-time marathon runner. Aside from them, no other adults had dared to enter.

Boss Jiang is so strong-willed! 

She scanned down the form and saw that the two male guardians had checked every parent-child event, signing up for everything.

Peng Xingwang stood beside the desk, cautiously watching his teacher’s expression.

He knew that most of his classmates would be attending with their parents, and he had been worried that his two older brothers wouldn’t be able to come.

“Alright, I’ve got it,” Tao Yingqi said in a complicated tone. “Make sure to tell your brother that 5 km run… it’s easy to pull a muscle. Participation is what matters most, don’t overdo it.”

That last sentence was the key point.

Very few working adults kept up a regular exercise routine. Boss Jiang, good luck to you.

Peng Xingwang cheerfully agreed, waved, and left.

---

On Saturday, Experimental Primary School was as lively as a children’s festival. The entrance was decorated with flower arrangements, and red, orange, yellow, and green helium balloons hung in clusters like festive lanterns.

Walking between his two older brothers, Peng Xingwang still felt a little nervous.

Other kids were coming with their moms and dads. Wouldn’t it be strange for him to be here with two older brothers?

But before he even reached the school gate, all his worries disappeared.

There were many kids in situations just like his.

Some had come with aunts, uncles, or cousins, while others had brought their grandparents. 

Among the crowd, the three of them didn’t stand out at all.

The only difference was that, unlike other families, as soon as they stopped by a stall to buy a bag of plum blossom cakes, at least ten sharp-eyed kids ran over and greeted them in loud voices.

“Hello, Principal Jiang!”

“Hello, Teacher Ji!”

“Teacher Ji!! It’s you again!!”

“Teacher Ji, sob sob sob sob, I haven’t finished my English homework yet—”

Even the teachers at the reception desk were startled and checked to see if Ji Linqiu was wearing a school uniform.

Jiang Wang hadn’t expected that he, a former troublemaker, would one day be addressed as “Principal Jiang.”

…Truly, tides can turn in just thirty years.

Ji Linqiu was kind and gentle to every child, but he never let go of Peng Xingwang’s hand, holding it tightly wherever they went.  

Peng Xingwang noticed the envious gazes of his classmates and felt both proud and a little embarrassed.  

It felt so good to be held by a teacher who truly liked him.  

Experimental Primary School was twice the size of Hongshan Primary School. The latter only had a small 400 m  gravel track, whereas Experimental Primary had a grand 800 m rubberized track and a fully equipped gymnasium with a swimming pool.  

Jiang Wang hadn’t taken a close look the last time he was here. As they walked toward the back of the school, he finally took in its scale and sighed in admiration.  

“When I was in primary school, we only had gravel tracks. If you ran too fast and tripped, the gravel would embed itself in your wound, and you had to pick it out with tweezers one by one. I ended up with a huge scar from that.”  

Ji Linqiu flipped through the school brochure absentmindedly and asked casually, “Left or right knee?”  

Jiang Wang instinctively touched his knee. “Right. The school nurse just dabbed some antiseptic on it, but it got infected later.”  

Ji Linqiu kept walking at the same pace, but his heart skipped a beat.  

He had bathed Peng Xingwang before and had seen the scar on the child’s right knee with his own eyes.  

Back when Peng Xingwang was still living with Peng Jiahui, during the first semester of first grade, some kids from another class had deliberately snatched his key while playing on the playground.  

Peng Xingwang had panicked and chased after them, only to stumble and fall hard on the gravel track. Not only did he scrape off a layer of skin from his knee, but the gravel had embedded itself in the wound, causing a lot of bleeding.  

That was the first time Ji Linqiu had truly taken notice of this child.  

The Old Lady Xu was getting old and couldn’t keep up with everything.  

Although Ji Linqiu was officially just a subject teacher, he was also the assistant homeroom teacher for Xingwang’s class. Anytime something happened, kids would come to him to report it.  

As soon as he heard that a child had been injured, he rushed to the school clinic and found a dirt-covered Peng Xingwang sitting there.  

The little boy’s face was streaked with tears and snot, but when he saw Ji Linqiu, he still managed to smile.  

“I was just running too fast on my own. It’s nothing, really!”  

Ji Linqiu walked beside Jiang Wang and Peng Xingwang, watching them in the warm sunlight and gentle breeze.  

He had already guessed many things, but none of them could be spoken aloud.  

Because the thought itself was too fantastical, too absurd.  

The same birthmark. The same scar.  

Even the way they smiled, the identical curve of their lips.  

When they did something wrong, they both scratched the top of their heads.  

They both loved sweet osmanthus rice wine soup and hated carrots and chicken liver.  

Jiang Wang had told stories about his childhood many times, and strangely enough, Ji Linqiu could find a matching memory in Peng Xingwang every single time.  

If all of this was just a coincidence, then how could they explain that coat?  

Ji Linqiu had a feeling that this matter wouldn’t just hang in limbo forever.  

One day, sooner or later, everything would come to light.  

It might be a shocking revelation, or perhaps just a false alarm.  

Jiang Wang scanned the seating signs and, upon finding their designated spot, beamed with delight. He clapped Ji Linqiu on the shoulder. “Look, we get to sit under the wisteria vines! Not only is it surrounded by flowers, but we won’t be sitting in the sun either.”  

“That’s true.” Ji Linqiu shook off all the wild thoughts in his mind and smiled sincerely. “I’ve been a teacher for so many years, but I never thought I’d get to experience being a parent.”  

Meanwhile, Tao Yingqi stood at a distance, struggling internally.  

She had been talking to Fu Er about switching jobs for a while now.  

If she really made the jump, Boss Jiang would be her new boss in the future.  

But if her future boss collapsed halfway through the 5 km race like a dead dog, it would be the most embarrassing thing ever… Not to mention, her own career prospects might suffer as well!  

Boss Jiang looked  lean and strong, but… this was a 5 km run! Was he really that confident?!  

After thinking it over, Tao Yingqi decided to go have a word with him.  

“Mr. Jiang, Mr. Ji, long time no see!”  

The two men looked up at the greeting and exchanged friendly pleasantries.  

With a warm smile, Tao Yingqi smoothly brought up her concern.  

“By the way, I saw that Mr. Jiang signed up for the 5 km run. Looks like you exercise regularly?”  

Jiang Wang thought back to his military days, when he used to run 20 km daily with full gear. Then he compared that to his current routine — casually jogging five or six kilometers from time to time. He felt a little guilty.  

“I haven’t trained seriously in five or six years. My stamina isn’t what it used to be.”  

“Not many parents signed up for this event,” Tao Yingqi immediately offered a way out, practically handing him an excuse on a silver platter. “Including you, there are only three. If you want, you could just drop out, 5 km is a tough distance, you might end up with a broken leg, haha—”  

Ji Linqiu guessed what she was trying to do but held back his laughter.  

Jiang Wang, however, took it as a challenge and straightened up. “If that’s the case, then I must run properly. Thank you for the reminder, Teacher Tao!”  

Tao Yingqi’s smile froze. She nodded stiffly and forced out a laugh.  

“…Just make sure to stretch and warm up beforehand. Don’t get injured.”  

Yup, he’s doomed….