Qi Chenglin chuckled but did not tease her anymore. He placed her down on the sofa and speedily had their meals.
Ruan Danchen wanted to head out and throw the boxes away, but Qi Chenglin stopped her. He took the boxes, placed them into the plastic bag, and went to throw them himself.
When he came back, he saw Ruan Danchen on the phone, looking particularly flustered.
Then, she heard her say, “Okay, I’ll go there right now.”
Ruan Danchen ended the call and stood up. Seeing that Qi Chenglin was back, she explained, “Youxuan got into a fight with Chang Jianan at school. I don’t know what kind of conflict they got into.”
As the Chang family’s grandson, Chang Jianan was enrolled into Jixia Elementary, although he was not in the same class as Qi Youxuan. In the past, they were strangers to each other, so nothing untoward happened during that time.
Ever since those two clashed heads, Chang Jianan developed a hatred toward Qi Youxuan.
In the beginning, he did not know that Qi Youxuan attended Jixia Elementary as well. He knew the Qi family owned the school, but because he was a young and dull kid, his deductive abilities were nonexistent. Hence, he could not put two-and-two together and realize that Qi Youxuan was definitely enrolled in Jixia Elementary too.
The two boys therefore enjoyed a spell of harmony together in school for some time. Of course, the school was not that big a place, so eventually, Chang Jianan bumped into Qi Youxuan when it was winter camp.
From then onward, Chang Jianan tried instigating trouble whenever he met Qi Youxuan, although he was never Qi Youxuan’s match to begin with. On each occasion he tried to provoke Qi Youxuan, it was Chang Jianan himself that suffered the consequences.
Qi Youxuan, the self-professed mature and wise boy, felt that such small-scale events were not at all worth mentioning. Chang Jianan also suffered the consequences of his own actions whenever he tried to do something to Qi Youxuan, so Qi Youxuan treated it as a source of amusement to liven up his boring school life. That was why he never brought it up to his parents when he went home.
“Youxuan’s class teacher called me saying that the two boys got into a scuffle and were hurt. Their wounds aren’t serious though, since it was just a kid’s fight,” Ruan Danchen said, though she was still quite worried inside her heart. “Both kids’ parents were called by the class teacher. Chang Jianan’s mother is going, so I have to go too.”
Qi Chenglin grabbed his keys immediately, held her hand, and walked out.
“You don’t’ need to go,” Ruan Danchen stopped him. “You still have a lot of work to do. I can go myself.”
“I’ll go with you,” Qi Chenglin insisted. He had already dragged Ruan Danchen out of the office.
Seeing his persistence, Ruan Danchen decided to let him be. Qi Chenglin addressed a few things with the temporary assistant and brought Ruan Danchen to the elevator.
“It’s no big deal. Won’t take much time. By my estimation, we won’t be back too late,” Qi Chenglin explained.
Ruan Danchen nodded. Although it was between their kids, the Chang family had an unreasonable old lady in Grandmother Chang. The class teacher had earlier seemed to intimate that Grandmother Chang would be going there along with Liu Xiangwen.
Liu Xiangwen was the jealous type, and with that bull-headed Grandmother Qi present, it was good that Qi Chenglin went in order to shake things up a bit.
When Ruan Danchen and Qi Chenglin arrived at the school, it was no longer peak hours. The entrance was quiet and there were no cars there. Qi Chenglin drove into the school, but did not park his car at the staff parking lot. Instead, he brazenly parked it at the gate to Qi Youxuan’s school building.
He was very nonchalant about it, as it indicating that the school belonged to him and he could do whatever he wanted.
When the two of them reached the office, Grandmother Chang and Liu Xiangwen were not yet there. Ruan Danchen breathed a sigh of relief.
If those two women had reached earlier, they would certainly have pointed at Qi Youxuan and began scolding. The class teacher might not have the guts to face off against Grandmother Chang, so in the end, the little guy would be faced with a disadvantage.
Ruan Danchen imagined countless different scenarios of what might happen, but the scene in front of her was far from what she expected.
Chang Jianan was crying and shouting like there was no tomorrow, even retching from time to time. Qi Youxuan on the other hand, sat on the sofa, holding a cup of hot cocoa and drinking it.
The table before him was filled with a gamut of junk food, one of the perks of being the staff at Jixia. Different snacks were laid out every day, and teachers who wanted a nibble in the office would be more than welcome to do so.
Qi Youxuan had special treatment, so the teachers made sure that he was comfortable in the office. All they could do was close one eye at him.
Thus, the little boy secretly made himself a cup of hot cocoa, and on occasion, he would sneak in a few biscuits into his tummy and take a piece of butter cake.
He was very careful in the beginning, but when he went to take the cake, one of the teachers spotted him. Qi Youxuan halted his motion and stared at the teacher with his beady eyes.
Then, the teacher slowly turned around and pretended not to see it.
The little boy’s mind soared in high spirits, knowing that the teacher’s actions was a silent acquiescence.
He then decided to eat in the open. Bearing in mind his restriction on junk food at home, he decided that he would have his fill there, and at the same time, he was thinking about coming up with future excuses so he could be at the teachers’ office and gorge himself on snacks. One such example would be coming over to ask his teacher about things that he did not understand.
In any event, the sight that awaited Ruan Danchen was that of Qi Youxuan sitting extremely comfortably, drinking hot cocoa and eating cakes while reveling in Chang Jianan’s wailing state.
When Qi Youxuan finally saw Ruan Danchen, he placed his hot cocoa down, sucked on his butter-stained fingers, and ran toward her.
Before his excitement truly set in, he saw the stern-faced Qi Chenglin appearing from behind Ruan Danchen.
Qi Youxuan retracted his neck and greeted meekly, “Dad, why are you here?”
“Mom and I were just finishing lunch when your teacher called.” Qi Chenglin looked askance at him. “Looks like you have a lot of time to get into a fight.”
“Then are you feeling full? If not, then how about you eat a bit more? There’s plenty of snacks here!” Qi Youxuan grabbed Ruan Danchen’s hand and led her to the sofa, although his dewy pupils remained fixed on Qi Chenglin.
The teacher was speechless.
‘This is my office and you’re in the wrong, don’t you know? Please don’t use that kind of courteous tone to tell them to help themselves to the food, alright?’
Ruan Danchen pulled the reins on Qi Youxuan and flicked his head with her finger. “Don’t be naughty.”
Qi Youxuan stood beside Ruan Danchen immediately, but he did not forget to tell Qi Chenglin, “Dad, I really didn’t hit him.”
As soon as the boy finished his sentence, a frantic voice roared from behind. “Where’s my grandson? How is he?”
Grandmother Chang was then seen rushing over with the aid of Liu Xiangwen. Upon seeing Chang Jianan crying and retching, she muttered, “Oh dear!” and protected Chang Jianan in her embrace.
“Grandma! Waaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” Chang Jianan cried in anguish. “Grandma, it’s painful.”
“What’s painful? What happened? Tell Grandma, Grandma’ll get justice for you!” Grandmother Chang’s eyes turned red after seeing her grandson gasp for breath and retch continuously.
Liu Xiangwen touched Chang Jianan’s hair softly too. She looked to Qi Youxuan and saw that the boy did not seem to bother at all. There was not a single wound on Qi Youxuan either.
Although Chang Jianan did not have any wounds too, he was crying and retching!
Liu Xiangwen’s blood boiled immediately, so she surreptitiously hinted at Grandmother Chang.
The old lady turned to the family of three and lose her mind immediately. She turned to the class teacher, Teacher Gao, and lambasted, “We put our kids in this school because we trust you, but look at how our kids are now! I’m telling you—don’t you dare side with Qi Youxuan and bully my grandson just because he’s from the Qi family. Otherwise, this little old lady will stay here and make sure you hear no end of it!”
“What actually happened? At least let us know what happened.” It was inappropriate for a big man like Qi Chenglin to voice out at that juncture, so Ruan Danchen spoke first in a solemn tone. She then shot glances at the old lady and Liu Xiangwen. “No matter what it was that happened, it’s still best to get the facts of the entire situation instead of simply putting the blame on any one child.”
As Ruan Danchen was making that remark, Qi Chenglin leisurely went over to the table and took two sachets of cocoa. He opened them and tipped them into two cups, then went over to the water dispenser to get some hot water. He came back to the table with those two cups, placing them there before bringing Ruan Danchen to sit on the sofa.
He passed a cup of cocoa to Ruan Danchen and said, “Sit down and talk. Don’t tire yourself.”
Ruan Danchen nodded in acceptance of his suggestion. She blew on her cocoa and took a sip. Turning to Qi Chenglin, she said, “Jixia’s perks are pretty good. They have more snacks and drinks than Qilin.”
Qi Chenglin nodded and replied, “I’ll let the Purchasing Department know.”
The couple talked as if no one else was there and did not even seem to bother about the two kids’ scuffle. Grandmother Change raged when she saw this, to the point where sparks were going to fly soon.
Ruan Danchen sat comfortably on the sofa. Grandmother Chang did not even scream tiredness even though she was already so old, so there was no way a young person like Ruan Danchen would be tired.
“Nannan, what’s going on here? Tell Grandma. Grandma will get justice.” Grandmother Chang patted Chang Jianan on the shoulder and said, “Nannan, don’t worry. They have to explain it to us today.”
Chang Jianan however, continued to cry harder. He did not even say a single word, and his cries were already making Grandmother Chang feel annoyed.
What was he crying for when his grandmother was already there to support him!
Her anger increased even more when she saw Qi Youxuan sitting there and munching on like nobody’s business.
Ruan Danchen placed the cup down and asked her son, “Youxuan, why don’t you tell us why you and Chang Jianan got into an argument?”
Use of the word argument deescalated the severity of the situation. Chang Jianan may be crying his eyes out, but there was no evidence of wounds on him and Youxuan, suggesting that the boys might not have fought at all.
Surprisingly, it was the grandmother who objected to it. “Why must your son be the one to say that? Is it fair that he’s allowed to tell one side of the story and pick out only the parts that benefit him?”
Ruan Danchen was fed up at having to look at Grandmother Chang. She said slowly, “Chang Jianan keeps on crying and doesn’t want to talk, right? If he continues to cry for the whole afternoon, should we be waiting here for the whole afternoon as well? You’ve got plenty of time now, but we have work to do.”
Although it was not explicitly said, Grandmother Chang still felt that Ruan Danchen was taking at jab at her for being idle every day.
Grandmother Chang was thoroughly irked. She knew all along that Ruan Danchen was no easy person to deal with, and was clearly hurling sarcastic remarks at her.
Qi Chenglin could not be bothered with the old lady and told Qi Youxuan to begin speaking.
Qi Youxuan stuffed the last piece of cake into his mouth, after which Ruan Danchen gave him a tissue. The boy wiped his hands while explaining, “Mom, you know that Chang Jianan doesn’t like me. Ever since he saw me in school and knew that I went here, he’s always been trying to stir trouble. I’ve never started anything with him. Since we’re not on good terms, I won’t say hi to him if I meet him, but I also neve caused trouble for him. It was Chang Jianan who always tried to cause trouble for me.
“But he was the one causing trouble every single time. It wasn’t me who started it. He tried causing problems to me but he ended up causing problems for himself all the time.” Qi Youxuan looked shot a look of contempt at the still-bawling Chang Jianan. “I never bothered telling you because he’s nothing anyway.”
Despite being in the midst of crying, Chang Jianan could still hear Qi Youxuan’s words. The latter’s remarks made Chang Jianan wail even more fervently.
Qi Youxuan rolled his eyes exasperatedly and turned to his parents. “Dad, Mom, look at his attitude. Do you think it’s worth my time to cause trouble to him? Even coming home and telling you about it isn’t worth it at all.”
Qi Chenglin had a matter-of-factly expression and he nodded. “It really isn’t worth it.”
Grandmother Chang was fuming. The father-son duo was there just to annoy and anger her, and their words were incredibly hurtful.
“Then what happened this afternoon?” Qi Chenglin asked again.
“This afternoon, he came to my class all of a sudden while I was about to eat. He was holding a container, and then he poured it all into my food. I looked and saw bugs. There were earthworms, ants, and other things all crawling in my food. There was even soil.” Qi Youxuan felt disgusted just by thinking about it. He nearly vomited after seeing soil and bugs in his meal.
He pouted and grumbled, “I haven’t even had one bite yet.”
Despite his maturity and bravery, he was still a seven-year-old boy. It was just too disgusting to look at and he could not take it at all.
Recalling the creepy crawlies inside his meal repulsed him and his red face turned pale. It might even be the case that he would have no appetite when he looked at rice.
Ruan Danchen looked at his demeanor and knew that the boy was still a bit scared. Feeling heartbroken, she touched his little face.
In front of so many people however, she was wary of hugging the boy because she was afraid that he might find it embarrassing.
Qi Youxuan rubbed his little face on Ruan Danchen’s palm and batted his long lashes.
“And then?” Ruan Danchen asked softly.
“I didn’t eat the rice. I threw it away. The canteen was already closed at that time, so I couldn’t buy anything else. Thankfully there’s snacks in the office so I’m quite full after eating them,” Qi Youxuan said, putting up an air of earnestness in his character.
Ruan Danchen, “…”
‘Nobody asked you that.’
She was aggrieved to hear that the boy went hungry, but she felt slightly relieved after knowing that he was full from all the cake.
Qi Chenglin twitched his lip. Ruan Danchen was easily emotional and swayed by Qi Youxuan.
“Nobody asked you that,” Qi Chenglin shot him a glance. “You suffered all that but didn’t retaliate at all? What did you do to Chang Jianan?”
Qi Youxuan puffed his cheeks, thinking that he was able to gloss over that.
Left without a choice, he said honestly, “So, I went to catch some bugs. Chang Jianan already finished his meal, but I wouldn’t do the same thing to him of course. I wouldn’t be creative if I used the same trick on him, right? So, I poured the bugs over his head.”
QI Youxuan peeked carefully at Qi Chenglin and said, “And then he cried.”
Qi Chenglin patted his head. “Mm,” said Qi Chenglin, and not a single word was uttered after that.
Qi Youxuan felt that his dad was not angry. The man even patted his head softly. Did that mean that Qi Chenglin was praising him?
“I think this is just some ruckus among kids. You bully me, I bully you back. There’s no reason to react so exaggeratedly,” Qi Chenglin said to the two class teachers.
In fact, both the class teachers had no idea what actually happened. Chang Jianan’s class teacher, Teacher Gao, did not manage to get anything out of Chang Jianan because the boy cried incessantly without answering any question.
Qi Youxuan meanwhile, was so unperturbed that he even stealthily took some food to eat. Through Qi Youxuan’s status alone, the teacher was hesitant to ask him, and moreover, he did not act as though he did anything wrong.
The teachers only option was to call both boys’ parents and let them settle it amongst themselves.
Working as a teacher in Jixia Academy earned them much admiration from others, but those outsiders did not know how difficult it was to work there, due to the fact that they could not offend any of the students there.
Both teachers did not know how to react, although they knew about Grandmother Chang’s unreasonableness. Chang Jianan had previously been involved in an altercation with his classmates. When scuffles happen, Chang Jianan would go back home, only for the grandmother to show up at school the next day.
As expected, Grandmother Chang began rattling off unhappily before either of the teachers could say anything. “Is that how this matter is going to be settled? I won’t allow it! Qi Youxuan’s the only one talking here. Our Nannan hasn’t even said anything yet. It’s ridiculous to just believe what your child is saying!”
Grandmother Chang paid close attention to Chang Jianan’s face. The were tears all over his smudged face, and an endless stream of snot was exiting his nose. His eyes were swollen like a goldfish and his face was red, as if he had just finished shouting wildly.
Looking at his neck, she spotted some red marks.
“What’s this? Why is your neck hurt?” Grandmother Chang opened her grandson’s collar and looked in.
At long last, Chang Jianan halted his tears. He shivered and hiccupped before saying, “It was… It was Qi Youxuan, he… Ugh… He poured the bugs on my head… They fell on my neck… I felt itchy…disgusting…so I scratched…”
Fortunately, the weather was warm, but a kid’s immunity was still weak. He was very lucky to have worn slightly more clothes, so the bugs did not enter his shirt.
“Ruan Danchen, teach your son a proper lesson! He’s already such a terrible person even though he’s so young! I always say that a mother is important, but you, as a mother, are not even showing a good example to your kid! How terrible did you teach your kid to be! His actions alone show that he was lying when he said all that!” Grandmother Chang scolded whenever the opportunity arose.
Qi Chenglin frowned but looked at the boy with an even gentler expression than before. A slight smile was even present as he touched the boy’s hair and said, “You did good.”
When Qi Youxuan realized that his dad praised him in addition to not being angry, the glee in his dark pupils increased, and his face slowly revealed a smugly-pleased expression.
His chubby and fair-skinned face was tinted with a bashful redness. He looked down slightly, and feeling awkward, he said, “I’ll continue to maintain this and keep improving.”
Grandmother Chang, “…”
Liu Xiangwen, “…”
Teachers, “…”
“You… y-y-y-you…. What is this that you’re talking about! Is this how you teach your kids, Qi Chenglin?” Grandmother Chang did not expect Qi Chenglin to be the most irrational person ever. Ruan Danchen must have been a bad influence on him!
As the saying went, it was important to know what kind of wife one gets married to.
“How I teach my kid is none of your business, as an outsider,” Qi Chenglin glanced at her, suggesting that Grandmother Chang was a busybody poking into other people’s business. He then took another slow sip of his cocoa.
Grandmother Qi was red-faced after hearing Qi Chenglin’s comment.
