Cen Yuankai was very loud. He scratched his back, and within moments, his face was a mess of snot and tears. He twisted and turned on Cen Zeping’s body, crying heartbreakingly. No one knew how many times he had cried by now. Everyone assumed he was just throwing a tantrum about the chicken wings and didn’t take it seriously.
But when his crying became so intense that he seemed to have trouble breathing, Cen Zeping finally panicked. He quickly picked him up. “Kai Kai, where does it hurt?”
Cen Yuankai kept saying his back hurt, both itchy and painful.
Frantically, Cen Zeping carried him to the on-site doctor.
“What’s wrong with my son?” Cen Zeping shouted angrily.
The doctor lifted Cen Yuankai’s shirt and pulled out two cockleburs, holding them up to look.
“It’s nothing serious. Cockleburs aren’t poisonous. They probably got stuck to his clothes in the mountains today.”
Children have delicate skin. Although cockleburs aren’t poisonous, they are covered in dense, small spines. When they stick to the inside of clothing and rub against the skin, they cause itching and discomfort. Cen Yuankai lay on his father’s lap, exposing a small patch of reddened skin on his back. The scratch marks were very obvious, and they had already drawn a little blood. The doctor was applying medicine with a cotton swab.
“Aren’t you going to give me an explanation?” Cen Zeping was very angry and started blaming the staff.
The staff members felt they were just unlucky. Cen Yuankai was too unruly; they couldn’t watch him every single second. They had indeed failed to supervise the child properly. Everyone accepted the blame without complaint, advising Cen Zeping to take Cen Yuankai to the hospital for a check-up when they got back, promising to cover the medical expenses.
Cen Yuankai humphed, enjoying the staff’s humble attitude, and waved his hand magnanimously. Grandma Zhang came out of the house with her rice bowl, took a bite, and muttered that city children were so delicate, making a huge fuss over two little cockleburs. Now, Cen Yuankai had another excuse to make trouble and finally got his chicken wings.
Su Youli watched them from a distance, gripping his chopsticks. He picked up his little bowl and walked over. He had finished his chicken wings, but there was still a meatball in his bowl, an extra serving from Grandma Zhang. One of the female staff members responsible for watching Cen Yuankai had been scolded the most harshly. She sat with her head bowed, not uttering a word.
After a moment, she felt a light tap on her shoulder. Looking up, she saw a soft, adorable little face smiling at her. The little one, holding his bowl, picked up the meatball and placed it into her bowl.
A bit confused, she said, “Youyou?”
Su Youli said softly, “Auntie, here’s a meatball for you.”
Then, the little one scurried back, climbed onto his stool, and snuggled into his brother’s arms. Shen Yan looked at the staff member, then at the little one’s head peeking out. He seemed to understand something. He took the little one’s little hand. The soft, white palm was a bit red. Shen Yan suddenly smiled and tapped Su Youli on the forehead.
Who would have thought? His little Youyou was a bit of a rascal.
After lunch, Shen Yan borrowed Grandma Zhang’s electric scooter and took Su Youli to Grandpa Bai’s house. The road to Grandpa Bai’s was a bit steep. Shen Yan parked the scooter by the roadside and carried Su Youli up step by step. Before coming, Shen Yan had deliberately not brought any cameramen. Su Youli tilted his head and whispered to his big brother.
“Big Brother, I did something bad~”
The little one’s voice was very soft. Shen Yan smiled upon hearing it.
So what if he stuffed a couple of cockleburs down Cen Yuankai’s collar?
Shen Yan didn’t think the little one had done anything wrong. On the contrary, he was relieved that he had found his own way to fight back against malice.
He laughed, his chest heaving. “Oh? What bad thing did Youyou do?”
Su Youli pinched his fingers. That morning in the mountains, Cen Yuankai had stomped on his little grasshopper, Big Brother’s reward for coming in first. Su Youli had been so angry that he had crouched down and picked up two cockleburs. The little one knew quite a few plants in the forest. Many were poisonous. He didn’t dare touch those, only picking the two non-poisonous cockleburs. He had clutched them tightly in his palm, turning his palm red.
“Cen Yuankai snatched my camera and stomped on my little grasshopper. I picked up the cockleburs and secretly put them inside his clothes while we were playing hide-and-seek.”
Sitting in his brother’s arms, the little one earnestly recounted the “bad thing” he had done.
Shen Yan asked, “Does Youyou think this was a bad thing?”
Su Youli thought for a moment. The image of the auntie being scolded by the director popped into his head.
“It was a bad thing. Youyou did wrong.”
Shen Yan was about to say he hadn’t done wrong when the little one added in his soft, milky voice, “Youyou shouldn’t have secretly put the cockleburs in his clothes. It made the auntie get scolded.”
He should have done it openly.
The little one just felt bad that his actions had caused the auntie to be scolded. That’s why he thought he had done wrong. Shen Yan threw his head back and laughed heartily, thinking Youyou was absolutely adorable. He tapped his nose. “Don’t feel guilty. When we get back, I’ll have Dad transfer some compensation money to that auntie.”
That money would be compensation for her. Shen Yan didn’t want Youyou to be so guilt-ridden that he wouldn’t dare fight back next time something like this happened. His little brother had been bullied. If he wanted to put cockleburs in someone’s clothes, he would put cockleburs in someone’s clothes. He didn’t need to overthink it.
“You did great. If someone bullies you, you fight back. Got it?”
Su Youli nodded seriously. “Big Brother, I’m sorry. I couldn’t protect the little grasshopper.”
Shen Yan put his arm around him and pressed his forehead against the little one’s. “Don’t worry. Big Brother will give you plenty more rewards in the future.”
Su Youli pressed his little lips together. But none of those rewards would be that specific little grasshopper.
Remembering the little one’s red palm from clutching the cockleburs, Shen Yan warned, “In the future, don’t touch things outside. What if they’re poisonous?”
“Cockleburs aren’t poisonous.”
He recognized the cockleburs. The little one tilted his head up, his eyes big. “Cockleburs are medicinal herbs.”
Shen Yan pinched his cheek and called him a clever little rascal. The little one’s mischievous act became a secret between him and his big brother. The two of them soon reached Grandpa Bai’s doorstep. Shen Yan, familiar with the place by now, knocked and called for Grandpa Bai to open the door. Grandpa Bai was overjoyed to see the soft, adorable little one in Shen Yan’s arms.
“Youyou, say hello to Grandpa Bai.”
Su Youli was set on the ground and called out, “Hello, Grandpa Bai,” in a clear, crisp voice.
Overjoyed, Grandpa Bai’s eyes crinkled into slits. He didn’t have anything nice at home. Grandpa Bai, leaning on his cane, limped back to his room and brought out a large bamboo basket. Inside were a dazzling array of handmade items that he planned to sell at the market on market day. There were straw-woven butterflies, dragonflies so lifelike they seemed ready to fly, and other small ornaments.
Su Youli placed his little hands on the edge of the bamboo basket, his eyes wide with wonder. “Wow!”
If you like what I do, please consider supporting me on Ko-Fi, Patreon, or PayPal <3.
