TL: Hua
Extra 25: Childhood Sweethearts If Line 5
Lin Xue didn’t hide the fact that she took the candy from her son.
When she learned that Ye Rongxu was sad about not finding the candy, she chuckled and comforted him, “Brother didn’t lie to you. He did put the candy under the pillow. But eating too much candy isn’t good for you, so Mommy’s keeping it for you. I’ll give you one now.”
Saying this, she peeled a candy, held it to his mouth, and coaxed, “Ah—”
Ye Rongxu obediently opened his mouth, “ah,” and was easily appeased by the candy in his mouth, giving up the whole stash.
Although they were forced to be apart, considering the friendship between the two children, Lin Xue and Xie Yunzhao bought them children’s phone watches.
That way, the two little ones could call each other when they missed each other.
Ye Rongxu was finally appeased a bit more. After getting the watch, he was novelty-struck, calling his brother every day.
Director Ye couldn’t help but feel a pang of sadness; his son didn’t even call him every day.
After Xie Chaoyan started kindergarten, he felt initially very fresh and excited, earnestly reporting his school experiences to Ye Rongxu every night.
But after only a few days, he found it boring. What the teacher taught was too simple, the craft assignments were too easy, and the children’s games were too childish.
He felt that he was too mature to fit in with everyone else and often sat alone, thinking.
The teacher told his mother that he was a bit withdrawn and didn’t like playing with other children, suggesting that parents provide more guidance.
Actually, that wasn’t it. He just felt that the children’s games were too simple. If he joined, he would win every time, which felt a bit like bullying.
Sigh, so boring, he missed little brother…
It’d be better to watch cartoons and learn English with Lanlan.
Oh, right, Lanlan isn’t actually called Lanlan. The little sticky riceball mumbled, mixing up “n” and “l.” Auntie Lin said that little brother’s name is “Nannan,” and those two characters are uncommon.
Xie Chaoyan used a small stick to write “Nannan” on the ground, then lightly erased it, thinking… it’s not hard at all.
The character he wrote most proficiently was Nannan.
Finally, the weekend arrived. His mother was finally taking him to the hospital to see little brother. Xie Chaoyan woke up early, neatly folded his quilt, and then went to wash up.
Xie Yunzhao woke up later than usual on weekends. Seeing him already doing his teacher’s assigned craftwork in the living room, she couldn’t help but be surprised. “Xiao Yan’s awake? Why didn’t you call me?”
Saying this, she went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.
Because she wanted to bond with her son, Xie Yunzhao didn’t take Xie Chaoyan back to the Xie family’s home. Instead, she bought a house near the kindergarten and didn’t hire a nanny, only having a cleaning lady come regularly.
So, she made breakfast herself.
Actually, Xie Chaoyan thought he could make it too and wanted to help his mother lessen her burden.
But as soon as his mother heard him say these things, she hugged him tightly with a pained heart. Besides, there were many appliances in the kitchen he hadn’t seen before, unlike the dilapidated old house he used to live in with Zhang Yun, so he had to give up.
After breakfast, mother and son finally got into the car and headed to the hospital.
Xie Chaoyan deliberately wore the clothes Auntie Lin Xue had bought him previously because little brother had an identical one, and they had agreed to wear them today.
Auntie Lin said that when they wore matching clothes, they looked like real brothers.
Xie Chaoyan didn’t know how close “real brothers” were, but he was sure it wasn’t as close as he and the little sticky riceball.
Upon arriving at the hospital, as soon as Xie Chaoyan stepped out of the elevator, he let go of Xie Yunzhao’s hand and eagerly ran towards the little sticky riceball’s ward.
He had become independent too early and was always steady, like a little adult. Only at this moment did he show his childish side.
However, as soon as he entered the ward, he froze.
Because it was the weekend, and Ye Rongxu’s health had recently improved, allowing him to play with other children, Lin Xue’s younger sister, Lin Yu, had specially brought her daughter, Song Jiaojiao, to visit the hospital.
Xie Yunzhao’s younger sister, Xie Yunhua, also brought her two children, thinking of visiting Ye Rongxu and also letting her own children spend more time with her sister’s child.
Because Xie Yunzhao had called her a few days ago to mention that the kindergarten teacher said Xie Chaoyan was withdrawn, Xie Yunhua advised that it would be good for children to interact more with their peers. She then volunteered, asking if her little nephew could spend more time with her own Xie Yi and Xie Yu.
Even more coincidentally, Director Cao, Ye Boxuan’s business partner, brought his wife and son to the hospital for a health check-up today. The couple had some unexpected matters, so they temporarily entrusted their son Cao Yuxuan to Director Ye.
So, Xie Chaoyan, full of expectation, walked into the ward, only to see his beloved little brother, Lanlan, surrounded by four or five children, lively and joyful.
What about being his only friend? He clearly said last night on the phone, in that soft, milky voice, that he missed him so much and liked him the most, but today he’s playing with four or five other children.
Little liar!
Xie Chaoyan felt sad and stood motionless at the doorway.
Lin Xue came in carrying fruit and, seeing him, asked in surprise, “Xiao Yan, why don’t you go in?”
It was then that Ye Rongxu on the bed saw his brother had arrived. He happily scrambled up without even putting on his slippers and scurried over, his black, grape-like eyes sparkling. He grabbed Xie Chaoyan’s hand and said happily, “Brother, you’re finally here!”
Because he ran too quickly, he was slightly out of breath. Xie Chaoyan immediately felt a pang of heartache and, like a little adult, gently patted his chest, earnestly saying, “Little brother, don’t rush; breathe slowly.”
Lin Xue quickly brought the medicine, helped him take a few puffs, and once he recovered, she picked him up, patted his bottom twice, and chided, “Your health isn’t good, and you’re running barefoot. If you do this again, I won’t let your brother come see you.”
Ye Rongxu immediately tensed up upon hearing this, hugging Lin Xue’s neck and saying, “No!” Xie Chaoyan followed beside them, softly comforting him, “Little brother, don’t be afraid. I’ll definitely come to see you.”
Lin Xue was helpless with these two little ones. After putting Ye Rongxu back on the bed, she pulled Xie Chaoyan to sit there too, letting the children play together.
Xie Yunzhao then slowly approached, smiling and greeting Lin Xue and the others.
The children quickly started playing together. The adults, not wanting to crowd them, went to the next room to chat.
However, Ye Rongxu’s health wasn’t good, and he couldn’t be exposed to too much noise; besides, this was a hospital. Before leaving, Lin Xue and Xie Yunhua both instructed their children not to be too noisy.
After they left, Ye Rongxu excitedly pulled his brother, wanting to take everyone to watch cartoons together.
But Xie Yu and Cao Yuxuan both found it boring. Especially after learning Ye Rongxu wanted to watch Dora the Explorer, Cao Yuxuan couldn’t help but say, “That’s not good to watch! I like to watch Transformers.”
Xie Yu, the little chubby kid, also agreed, echoing, “Dora and that monkey named Boots are so silly. Swiper the fox is right there, and they can’t even see him!”
Then he strangely asked, “Don’t you think so?”
Ye Rongxu’s little face turned red with indignation, and he stammered, “I-I certainly know! Brother and I already found out that Dora and Boots are nearsighted! Oh, you don’t know what nearsighted means, do you? Brother, quick, tell them.”
He tugged at Xie Chaoyan’s hand, pleading.
When the little brother was so dependent on him, Xie Chaoyan’s small chest filled with satisfaction. He cleared his throat and, with a serious face, explained, “Nearsighted means you can’t see things far away clearly without glasses; you can only see things close up.”
After he finished, he saw that Xie Yu and Cao Yuxuan both had an “aha!” expression, as if everything suddenly made sense. He then remained calm, feeling that they weren’t all that impressive, showing off in front of his little brother, Lanlan.
Hmph, did they think he and little brother hadn’t noticed Dora’s eye problem in the cartoon? Every time Swiper the fox appeared, Dora couldn’t see him and would ask those watching the screen if they saw him.
He and his little brother had already discovered this problem and, after researching, concluded that Dora was nearsighted because she wasn’t wearing glasses.
Xie Yu and Cao Yuxuan both thought he was amazing after hearing this, not only discovering the problem but also explaining it.
Ye Rongxu was even more pleased, proudly raising his tail (if he had any). Pulling Xie Chaoyan’s small hand, he announced to the playmates present, “He’s my big brother!”
Such an amazing brother was his.
Xie Yu and Cao Yuxuan indeed cast envious glances, and Song Jiaojiao also looked surprised.
Only Xie Yi, who was a few years older than Xie Chaoyan and already in elementary school, looked helpless, shaking his head in an old-fashioned manner.
However, even so, Xie Yu and Cao Yuxuan were unwilling to watch cartoons together because it was too, too, boring!
And watching this cartoon also meant learning English! Why did they have to study on weekends too?
Don’t let Xie Yu’s mixed heritage fool you; his father was from Country E, but he grew up in China and, despite his blonde hair, couldn’t understand a single word of English.
“Let’s play house instead,” finally suggested Song Jiaojiao, Ye Rongxu’s little cousin.
“Good idea, good idea!” Xie Yu agreed and proposed, “Let’s play Transformers protecting the Earth. I’ll be Bumblebee. Who wants to be the little monsters?”
Other children: “…”
Everyone quickly ignored him and enthusiastically discussed.
Song Jiaojiao: “I want to be the mom.”
Ye Rongxu: “I want to be the dad.”
Cao Yuxuan: “I want to be the dad too.”
Ye Rongxu: “No, I said it first.”
Seeing this, Xie Yu couldn’t help but interject forcefully, “I’ll be the dad too!”
“No, we said it first!” Ye Rongxu and Cao Yuxuan unanimously objected.
Xie Yu felt wronged: “Can’t there be three dads?”
Then he got a smack on the head from his brother.
Ye Rongxu turned to ask Xie Chaoyan, “Brother, what do you want to be?”
Xie Chaoyan: “…” I want to be the dad too.
So, can’t there be four dads?
Ultimately, Xie Yi, the oldest child, intervened to mediate: “I think we can play with two families. That way, there will be two dads, two moms, and two children. Alright, I’ll go first and be a child.”
Xie Yi originally didn’t want to join. After all, he was an elementary school student and couldn’t relate to these little kindergarten kids; it was too childish.
But if they played with two families, and he didn’t join, there wouldn’t be enough people. Moreover, before coming today, his mother had specifically told him to take good care of his little cousin from his aunt’s family.
Thinking this, he glanced at Xie Chaoyan, who hadn’t spoken, and thought to himself: This cousin is indeed withdrawn.
“Cousin, what do you want to be?” he offered amicably.
Xie Chaoyan wanted to be the dad, and then Ye Rongxu would be the mom. But Ye Rongxu wanted to be the dad, which made him very troubled.
He could only whisper to Ye Rongxu, “Little brother, how about you be the mom?”
Ye Rongxu opened his clear eyes and asked curiously, “Why? Dad’s the strongest!”
Xie Chaoyan didn’t know why, but he just wanted it that way. After a long pause, he finally blurted out, “I think Mom is the strongest.”
Ye Rongxu furrowed his little brow, thought seriously for a moment, and then realized, “You’re right! Dad’s afraid of Mom, so Mom’s the strongest!”
Then he raised his hand and changed his mind: “I’m not being the dad anymore; I want to be the mom!”
Xie Yi: “…” He was wrong. His little cousin isn’t withdrawn at all! He practically fooled Uncle Ye’s son into silliness.
Finally, the two families were decided: Ye Rongxu’s family—Ye Rongxu as the mom, Xie Chaoyan as the dad, and Xie Yu as the son.
Song Jiaojiao’s family—Song Jiaojiao as the mom, Cao Yuxuan as the dad, and Xie Yi as the son.
Xie Yu lost the argument and cried to his brother, “We brothers are both sons for other people. So cruel!”
Ye Rongxu looked disgusted: “My brother and I couldn’t possibly give birth to a blonde son like you!”
Xie Chaoyan grabbed his little hand and nodded seriously, “Mm.”
At home, the dad has to listen to the mom. This was the family’s “pecking order.”
The adults from the next room returned and burst into laughter, seeing them playing so earnestly.
Xie Yunzhao teased, “Nannan is being Brother’s wife today? You like Brother so much, why don’t you marry Brother and be his bride when you grow up?”
Although it was a joke, after saying it, she suddenly remembered that when she and Lin Xue were both unmarried, they had indeed said that if they never married, they would live together forever as best friends. If they both married, they would arrange a baby engagement for their children.
Lin Xue obviously remembered this and couldn’t help but joke with her about it.
Ye Rongxu looked curious and asked Xie Chaoyan, “Brother, what is a bride?”
Xie Chaoyan seriously explained, “A bride is a groom’s partner; they will always be together with the groom.”
“If I become Brother’s bride, will I also always be with Brother?”
“Yes.”
“Then I want to be Brother’s bride,” announced little Ye Rongxu.
The adults, however, burst into laughter.
Ye Rongxu looked confused.
Xie Yi shook his head again. Sure enough, Uncle Ye’s son had been tricked into foolishness by his little cousin.
Ye Rongxu had a particularly fun day today. Even after his friends went home in the evening, he still felt a bit reluctant. He told Xie Chaoyan, “I wish every day could be like this.”
But he knew it was impossible, because not only Xie Chaoyan but also his other friends had to go to kindergarten. Brother Xie Yi was even more impressive; he was in elementary school, in second grade!
Sigh, everyone was busy. If only there were no kindergarten and elementary school.
Ye Rongxu fantasized, counting on his fingers as he shared with Xie Chaoyan, “This way, Cousin comes on Monday, Xie Yu on Tuesday, Xie Yi on Wednesday, Cao Yuxuan on Thursday, Friday…”
Hmm, there weren’t enough friends.
Originally, Qin Jingxu and Qin Jingrong from the Qin family would occasionally come, but for the past month or so, they hadn’t.
Actually, after the news of the child swap and Qin Qijiang’s affair broke, Qin Jingrong’s mother was too embarrassed to bring her child over. As for Qin Jingxu, his biological mother was in prison, and besides the two elders of the Qin family, no one looked after him, so it was even less likely for him to come. Ye Rongxu was still young and didn’t understand these things, but it didn’t matter to him because he didn’t particularly like those two Qin brothers. Since they weren’t coming, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday could all be for Brother Xiao Yan.
Counting it this way, wow, he was quite busy.
And the people who came every day were different, so fresh.
Xie Chaoyan was having dinner with him. Hearing this, he quickly fed a spoonful of rice into his mouth, cutting him off, “Little brother, eat quickly.”
Ye Rongxu obediently ate his rice and soon forgot about it.
It was Xie Chaoyan who inexplicably felt a sense of crisis.
Originally, he was supposed to go home with Xie Yunzhao tonight, but after dinner, he suddenly changed his mind.
“Mom, can I stay at the hospital tonight and sleep with the little brother?” He pleaded, tugging at Xie Yunzhao’s clothes.
Since finding him, Xie Yunzhao had been especially doting on him. Yet, he had become independent too early, often acting too mature for a child, which made it hard for Xie Yunzhao to find opportunities to make up for it.
Now that he suddenly asked for something, how could Xie Yunzhao refuse? She immediately nodded, only remembering afterward that she also needed to discuss it with Lin Xue.
Lin Xue naturally agreed. After all, it wasn’t the first time the two children had stayed together. And Ye Rongxu didn’t need IV drips at night recently, so there was no inconvenience.
So that night, Ye Rongxu snuggled into his brother’s arms again to sleep. Xie Chaoyan hugged him tightly with his little arm, feeling inexplicably content, as if a missing piece in his heart had been filled.
However, thinking of what the little sticky riceball said at dinner, he frowned slightly, feeling he needed to find a way; otherwise, the little sticky riceball would become close with other children.
—
On Sunday evening, Xie Chaoyan finally left with Xie Yunzhao.
As last time, the two little ones reluctantly said goodbye.
Once in the car, Xie Chaoyan buckled his seatbelt himself, then turned his head, hesitantly asking Xie Yunzhao, who was driving, “Mom, can I come to play with the little brother every day after school from now on?”
Xie Yunzhao was surprised to hear this. Why are they… getting more and more clingy?
Xie Chaoyan thought it might be too much trouble, so he quickly added, “I’ll learn to take the bus myself; I won’t trouble you, Mom.”
Hearing him say this, Xie Yunzhao felt a pang of heartache and quickly said, “It’s no trouble at all. From now on, Mom will pick you up from school and take you to the hospital every day.”
Her child, due to his past experiences, was always cautious and didn’t want to trouble others. But she was his mother; how could she find it troublesome?
Xie Chaoyan still felt it would make his mother tired and shook his head, saying, “No need, Mom has work.”
Xie Yunzhao felt both sadness and relief at his excessive thoughtfulness, then decided definitively, “It’s alright, Mom will take you to see Nannan every day from now on.”
The kindergarten ends at 4:30 pm, and Xie Yunzhao has a high degree of work freedom. By adjusting the time slightly, she can send him off every day.
Unbeknownst to them, it was already year-end. Ye Rongxu had been discharged from the hospital some time ago, just in time to celebrate New Year with his family.
Xie Chaoyan’s birthday was before the New Year. In the past, when Qin Jingxu had his birthday, Xie Yunzhao would take him abroad to play. This year, it was her biological son’s first birthday, and Xie Yunzhao felt it shouldn’t be worse than what she gave Qin Jingxu, so she asked Xie Chaoyan for his opinion early on.
Xie Chaoyan didn’t want to go abroad at all; he wanted to celebrate his birthday with the little sticky riceball.
Xie Yunzhao had no choice but to celebrate it in Jiangcheng instead. Since the birthday banquet couldn’t be the best, she focused on the gift, sparing no expense.
However, for Xie Chaoyan, the happiest thing seemed to be that the little sticky riceball also came to celebrate his birthday that night.
After the New Year, Ye Rongxu unexpectedly fell ill and was hospitalized for half a month again.
It was the first time Xie Chaoyan saw the little brother struggling and suffering due to difficulty breathing and being resuscitated. His hands and feet turned cold with fear, and he finally understood why the adults always said his brother was not well and why he had to be hospitalized so often.
After that, Xie Chaoyan learned to identify Ye Rongxu’s medicines: which was the small oxygen bottle, which was the bronchodilator, which was the allergy medication, and all sorts of medicines for headaches, colds, and fevers.
He also learned how to administer medication to the little sticky riceball during an emergency, what posture to use, and how much to administer—he remembered it all clearly, even more diligently than his studies.
Xie Yunzhao couldn’t help but tease him, “Xiaoyan, are you raising your little brother like a little wife?”
At that moment, Xie Chaoyan was coaxing the somewhat listless Ye Rongxu to take his medicine due to illness. Hearing this, he actually replied with an “Mm.”
Xie Yunzhao was surprised. Later, she told Lin Xue, “The two children get along so well together; why don’t we arrange a child marriage for them?”
This was said as a joke, but later, they did arrange a child marriage for the two, though it was only verbal, not formal, still mostly said as a joke.
After all, the future is uncertain. If the two children truly liked each other when they grew up, it would naturally be excellent. But if they didn’t feel that way, then they would just pretend the words were never spoken.
Xie Chaoyan didn’t know any of this and continued to carefully look after Ye Rongxu every day, just like he was caring for a little wife.
It wasn’t until after the summer vacation of the following year that Xie Chaoyan, now seven years old, was supposed to start elementary school.
A bolt from the blue struck again—
Elementary school wasn’t as relaxed as kindergarten. He had to do homework every day after school and couldn’t come to see the little sticky riceball every day.
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