Chapter 34: Chapter 34 “Brother Xiao Chen, Where Are We Going?…

Chapter 34

"Brother Xiao Chen, where are we going?……"

Zhao Xiaoxing proudly recounted, "I got caught sneaking ice cream last night! My brother was pulling the ice cream stick to stop me, and I bit onto it, refusing to let go. Then it just popped out~"

"Just as I wished, exactly like mine~" He gave a thumbs-up, his big eyes bright and sincere, adding, "Didn't hurt one bit~"

Lu Zhishi: "……"

Lu Zhishi silently returned the thumbs-up. "That's so you, my good brother."

The days of losing teeth weren't easy. Brushing was tricky, eating was inconvenient, and even sleeping felt awkward.

When his new teeth grew in, they were also very itchy. Lu Zhishi constantly fought the urge to lick them, afraid they might grow crooked.

Both afraid and tempted to lick.

After losing his baby teeth, the permanent ones grew slowly. It wasn't until midterm exams that they had barely emerged, much to Lu Zhishi's annoyance.

Grade school midterms weren't difficult—just Chinese, math, and English. Other subjects could be added as desired.

With his report card in hand, Lu Zhishi happily brought it to Lu Tingan. "Dad, can you sign this?~"

Lu Zhiyu followed, handing over his own report card and settling beside his father.

Lu Tingan was well aware of their academic performance; they consistently ranked at the top, so he and Song Qinian had little to worry about.

"Not bad." After reviewing their exam papers, Lu Tingan signed both the papers and the report cards.

Returning them, he said, "We're going to Grandma and Grandpa's for dinner tonight. We can show them too."

It was their turn to dine at the Song family home, and the elderly couple had been eagerly awaiting their visit.

"Okay~" Lu Zhishi carefully put his report card away. He planned to show it to Brother Xiao Chen later.

"I'm going to find Brother Xiao Chen." Lu Zhishi scampered off again.

Lu Zhiyu chided him, "Why are you always running off to Brother Xiao Chen? Don’t you want to spend more time with your own brother?"

"I see my brother every day~" Lu Zhishi returned, playfully bumping against Lu Zhiyu for a moment, and said with a smile, "Brother Xiao Chen hasn’t seen my report card yet."

His own brother had seen it, but Brother Xiao Chen hadn't.

Chi Chen was his little teacher. How could a student not show his teacher his results after getting his grades?

After appeasing his brother, Lu Zhishi darted off again. His short legs moved surprisingly fast, and he vanished in a flash.

Lu Zhiyu, who had just given chase: "……"

Chi Yuehang was at work. A true workaholic, he kept regular hours daily, even reporting to the office on his days off.

Bai Yansheng was equally busy. The hospital couldn't afford to be understaffed, and his schedule was packed with surgeries almost every day. It was a luxury if he could even make it home for meals.

"Brother! Brother Xiao Chen!" Lu Zhishi skillfully opened the door and headed upstairs, clutching his report card as he knocked. His sweet, childlike voice rang out.

Chi Chen opened the door, looked down at him, and stepped aside to let him in.

Lu Zhishi held up his report card, his eyes sparkling, his soft voice exclaiming, "Teacher Chi, look! Perfect score!"

Hearing the words "Teacher Chi," Chi Chen's ears tingled, though his face remained impassive.

He took the report card, looked down at it, and nodded.

"Very good. Keep up the hard work next time." Chi Chen led him to the sofa, then pulled Lu Zhishi's exam papers from his pocket to review them.

"Mhmm~" Lu Zhishi leaned in, snuggling close to look with him.

His chubby little body pressed against Chi Chen, warm and soft. Chi Chen turned to look, catching only a glimpse of the small curls on his head.

Lu Zhishi seemed to sense his gaze and looked up, meeting his eyes. "Brother Xiao Chen?"

Chi Chen averted his gaze, looking down at the exam papers, and said softly, "Your hair has grown. You need a haircut when you have time."

Scratching his little curls, Lu Zhishi replied, "Okay~"

Lu Zhishi's grades were consistently excellent. Though he loved to play, he never lagged in his studies.

"Thank you for the praise, Teacher Chi!" Lu Zhishi's little voice rose, clear and bright.

Chi Chen smiled and ruffled his hair. "Do your best on the final exams too."

Lu Zhishi hugged his wrist, rubbing his chubby cheek against it, his big eyes curving into smiles. "Okay~"

When he smiled, the gap where his tooth was missing became very obvious. Chi Chen gently pinched his cheek, lifting it slightly for a closer look.

"Let me see your teeth."

Lu Zhishi grew shy, pressing his lips together, refusing to show them. "They’re ugly."

"They’re not ugly," Chi Chen said, pinching his soft little cheek. "Let Brother Xiao Chen take a look."

Lu Zhishi slowly opened his mouth, his eyes fixed on Chi Chen's face—specifically, on Chi Chen's eyes.

Chi Chen looked down and examined carefully. The new tooth had only grown a tiny bit, like a small grain of rice.

"Don’t lick your teeth," Chi Chen said, letting go and reminding him.

Lu Zhishi: "I didn’t lick them."

Feeling a little guilty, he added, "I don’t lick them often, just once in a while."

Chi Chen stroked his hair. "Mhmm, you’re very well-behaved."

His cheeks flushed red. Lu Zhishi felt rather embarrassed and hugged Brother Xiao Chen’s arm, laughing.

He was very clingy toward Chi Chen. He spent the entire day at the Chi family home. For lunch, Chi Chen made him egg-fried rice.

He also took his afternoon nap at the Chi home, hugging a big plush rabbit Chi Chen had recently made, his round little belly rising and falling as he slept soundly.

Chi Chen came in at some point, pulling down Lu Zhishi’s shirt to cover his little belly, then taking a small blanket from nearby to cover him properly.

He bent down to look at Lu Zhishi’s round, chubby, pale little face, his gaze shifting to his long, curled eyelashes.

His lips were red and shiny, moving slightly, as if he were eating something in his dreams.

Chi Chen found it amusing and poked his cheek—it was very soft.

The first time he saw him, Lu Zhishi was still a tiny cashew, swaddled and lying in an incubator in the hospital nursery. Through a layer of glass, his clear, bright eyes stared straight at him without blinking.

Chi Chen unconsciously placed his hand above the incubator; the little one blinked, his mouth twitched, let out a little murmur, and fell back asleep.

Dad said this was also Xiao Chen’s younger brother, named Lu Zhishi.

Before we knew it, he’d grown so big, little Chubby Cheese.

...

"Goodbye, Brother Xiao Chen!"

Lu Zhishi kept looking back every few steps, his chubby little hand raised high as he waved.

Lu Zhiyu was both annoyed and amused, holding his new stuffed rabbit in one hand and leading him back home.

"Alright, you’ll see your dear Brother Xiao Chen tomorrow. Now, let’s go to Grandma and Grandpa's place for dinner."

"We’ll stop by Brother Xiao Chen’s place when we come back tonight."

Lu Zhiyu: "...Why don’t you just sleep at Brother Xiao Chen’s house then?"

"Better not, I kick the blankets in my sleep. Brother Xiao Chen might catch a cold," Lu Zhishi shook his head.

Lu Zhiyu: "Heh."

He’s never worried about me catching a cold, Stinky Cheese.

When Song Qinian got off work and returned, the whole family got in the car and headed to the Song family home. The elderly couple was already waiting at the door.

"Sweetheart," Grandma Song hugged her eldest grandson, her heart aching for him, touching his face and arms. "You’ve lost weight again."

Lu Zhiyu was a little shy. "Grandma, I haven’t lost weight."

Song Qinian, who was behind them lugging all the bags into the house: "?"

He looked at Lu Zhiyu, who had grown a bit taller and put on some weight, and said amusedly, "Mom, how can you say that so blatantly with your eyes wide open?"

Grandma Song: "..."

Grandma Song ignored him and hugged her younger grandson. "Chubby Cheese, you've gotten thinner too."

Song Qinian: "Mom..."

Grandma Song cut him off sharply: "Alright, you don’t need to say anything."

As soon as he opened his mouth, she knew exactly what he was going to say.

She then took Lu Tingan by the hand and led him to the living room to chat, saying he’d also lost weight and asking if Song Qinian’s cooking wasn’t good anymore.

Lu Tingan laughed. "It’s delicious, I’ve just been busy lately and haven’t eaten much."

"Eat more, and come back often when you have time. I’ll make delicious food for you," Grandma Song hinting subtly for him to come back for meals.

As long as Lu Tingan came back, the other three would follow.

Lu Tingan said with a gentle smile: "Okay, Mom."

Song Qinian took the bags to the kitchen, put everything in its place, poured a few cups of fruit tea, and came back to sit beside Lu Tingan.

He called out to the two little ones: "Where are your report cards? Bring them out to make your grandparents happy."

Hearing the call, Lu Zhishi immediately scampered over, pulled out his report card from his pocket, spread it out in front of his grandparents.

"Full marks!"

Lu Zhishi beamed proudly, giving a thumbs-up.

Grandpa Song adjusted his glasses and smiled. "Not bad, our Chubby Cheese is so clever!"

Grandma Song hugged her good boy, her eyes curving into happy crescents. "Chubby Cheese, you’re such a clever boy!"

Lu Zhishi beamed. Grandma Song pinched his cheek and said she wanted to see his teeth.

Lu Zhishi’s smile stiffened: "...Why does everyone want to see my teeth when I smile?"

A little embarrassed, he opened his mouth to show his dear grandparents the gap from his missing front tooth.

"Hmm, it’s almost there. It should grow out next month," Grandpa and Grandma Song said with experience.

Once they'd checked his teeth, Lu Zhishi ran off to pick some tomatoes and eggplants from the garden to bring back for Brother Xiao Chen.

Lu Zhiyu also took out his report card.

His grades had always been good, so Grandpa and Grandma Song were used to it and praised him plenty.

After Lu Zhiyu ran off to find his younger brother, Grandpa Song asked, "Xiao Yu will graduate next year. Have you decided which school he’ll go to?"

He was asking Lu Tingan.

Whenever Lu Tingan was around, the family listened to him. If he wasn’t there, the elderly couple would ask Song Qinian.

Lu Tingan: "Qi Nian and I are planning to send him to A City No. 1 High School. It’s nearby, and it’s also our alma mater."

Song Qinian nodded beside him: "Yes."

Grandpa Song nodded. They had also planned for the child to go there—it was close to home, had a good environment, and offered excellent resources.

It was a private school with both junior and senior high sections. After finishing junior high, students could directly enter senior high, so he won't have to adapt to a new environment.

Grandma Song said: "Your dad and I think the same. When you have time, talk to Elder Brother Lu and the others to see what they have in mind."

Lu Tingan nodded: "I'll talk with them later."

It was getting late, and the sky was dark. Song Qinian called out to the two little rascals to come home for dinner.

After dinner, Grandpa Song fetched two bottles of medicinal wine and some ointments, while Grandma Song packed a large bag of herbal packs for foot soaks.

They were all for Lu Tingan.

He had old injuries from filming, and when the weather gets bad, they would occasionally ache.

"Take these back and use them. It’s autumn now, use them regularly," Grandma Song fussed, worried his old injuries would flare up. "When it’s cold, don’t go out. Let Qi Nian handle things at the company."

Lu Tingan leaned in slightly, listening patiently to her, nodding all the while. His voice was soft as he replied: "I know, Mom. I will."

Song Qinian was loaded down with yet another pile of things. "Dad, Mom, we'll be back in two weeks. Don’t miss us too much."

Grandpa Song said with an exasperated laugh: "Hurry up and go. Drive carefully—it's getting dark."

They brought a bunch of things over and took a bunch of things back. Song Qinian was worn out.

"Fat Cheese, take these fruits and veggies you picked over to Uncle Chi's."

Song Qinian was packing up and only then realized these two rascals had picked so much stuff; no wonder the bag felt so heavy.

"Comiiing!"

Lu Zhishi dragged two bags with one hand, huffing and puffing all the way from the Lu family's house to the Chi family's, exhausted. Before even reaching the Chi family's door, he started yelling:

"Uncle Chi! Come quick!"

Chi Yuehang heard the call and hurried down from upstairs, took the bags from his hands, and carried him inside the house.

"Fat Cheese, what goodies did you bring for uncle this time?"

Lu Zhishi counted on his fingers for him: "Apples, pears, tomatoes, eggplants, radishes, cucumbers..."

Chi Yuehang got a kick out of it; he knew they had gone to the Song family for a meal today. "Don't tell me you took all the fruits and vegetables your grandparents grew."

"Grandma and grandpa still have more. They said to have my dad plant even more in two weeks~" Lu Zhishi reassuringly patted his chest.

This made Chi Yuehang laugh. "Alright, have your dad plant more then."

Bai Yansheng came down the stairs and told Chi Yuehang to put this stuff away while he took Lu Zhishi's hand and led him upstairs.

"Staying at uncle's place tonight?" Bai Yansheng asked softly. "Uncle changed to a new blanket, it smells great."

Lu Zhishi liked the idea. "Then I'll go home in a bit to get my little blanket."

He had a small blanket he'd used since he was little; without it, he couldn't sleep.

Bai Yansheng smiled and said, "Okay, uncle will go get it for you in a bit. You can take a bath here directly."

"Okaay!"

After walking him to Chi Chen's room door, Bai Yansheng went downstairs to the Lu family's house to get his little blanket.

Lu Tingan saw him coming and laughed, teasing, "Dr. Bai, long time no see."

Bai Yansheng was very busy, keeping long hours, sometimes not even coming home to sleep at night. They hadn't seen each other for several days.

"President Lu, it's been hectic lately." Bai Yansheng also smiled, though he looked tired.

Lu Tingan pulled two boxes of ginseng from the cabinet. "Take these; you look like you could use them."

"Thanks," he said, accepting them. "I came to get Fat Cheese's little blanket; he's sleeping at my place tonight."

Not only did he come for the blanket, but on his way back, he also managed to coax Lu Zhiyu into coming along. One tall and one short, carrying blankets and pillows, they headed to the Chi family's house.

After Song Qinian finished his shower, he asked, "Where did both kids go?"

"Fat Cheese is sleeping at Yansheng's place, and Little Fish went along too."

Song Qinian raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

Then his eyes lit up, a smile spreading uncontrollably across his face. He walked to the living room, bent down to kiss Lu Tingan's cheek, and scooped him up and carried him upstairs.

"Perfect timing..."

At the Chi family's house.

After his bath, Lu Zhishi put on clean, sweet-smelling pajamas. He first went to check on Lu Zhiyu's room, then ran to Chi Chen's room.

"Brother Xiao Chen, blow-dry my hair for me." Lu Zhishi squeezed in, sitting next to Chi Chen, and ruffled his damp hair.

Chi Chen brought a comb, first tidying his messy hair before blow-drying it.

Lu Zhiyu, after his bath, also came over, bringing two competition problem books, reluctantly working on problems with Chi Chen.

"Do I really have to participate in this competition?" Lu Zhiyu moaned.

Chi Chen said expressionlessly, "Hurry up and write."

Lu Zhishi got them some tea and water, then curled up on the small sofa, eating fruit while reading a storybook.

Watching the perfectly content Fat Cheese on one side and the competition problems in front of him, Lu Zhiyu felt the urge to make him solve problems too.

Being younger, Lu Zhishi fell asleep while reading the storybook.

Lu Zhiyu worked on competition problems for a long time, growing more awake the more he wrote. He wished he could fall asleep instantly too.

Chi Chen gently carried the little one back to his own room, pulled the small blanket over him, then covered his stomach with a larger blanket, and finally tucked the big plush rabbit in next to him.

After turning off the light and closing the door, Chi Chen tiptoed away.

Lu Zhishi drowsily opened his eyes, hugged his big plush rabbit tightly, closed his eyes, and fell into a deep sleep.

School days always felt both slow and fast.

Lu Zhishi and Zhao Xiaoxing's permanent teeth came in, and final exams arrived. After the exams, winter break began.

His final grades were good; this time, he got a perfect score again.

After the New Year, he received a thick stack of red envelopes. When spring came, Lu Zhishi resumed his daily routine of waking up early for school.

Lu Zhiyu and Chi Chen were in their graduating class. To enter the experimental class of A City's No. 1 Middle School, they needed top scores on the junior high entrance exam.

Lu Zhishi didn't disturb them, usually studying and doing homework on his own nearby, even pulling Zhao Xiaoxing along to study hard.

Spring turned to summer, and the weather grew hotter. Elementary school let out for summer break, and Lu Zhishi celebrated his seventh birthday.

This summer, Lu Zhishi went abroad for a study tour, exploring everywhere with Zhao Xiaoxing. When he returned, he was really tan, but his foreign language skills had improved a lot.

Chi Chen and Lu Zhiyu entered junior high, ranking first and second in the entrance exam to get into the experimental class of No. 1 Middle School. They still sat together as desk mates.

Zhao Xiaoyun's grades were also good, securing a spot in the experimental class, along with a few other classmates.

Lu Zhishi was really sad to see them go.

Lu Zhiyu found it amusing. "We still come home for dinner and to sleep every afternoon after school."

Lu Zhiyu's school was in another direction, so Song Qinian hired a driver specifically to take them to and from school.

Junior high life was different from elementary school—more busy with studies, more to learn, and many competitions to participate in each year. Both Lu Zhiyu and Chi Chen were quite busy.

As they entered junior high, Lu Zhishi also matured a lot. Every day, he studied seriously with Zhao Xiaoxing, following step by step in the footsteps of Chi Chen and Lu Zhiyu.

Elementary school life was slow-paced. Watching his two older brothers move further and faster ahead, Lu Zhishi unconsciously felt a sense of urgency to grow up.

It seemed like everyone was moving forward, while he was left slowly behind, watching their retreating backs from afar.

Lu Zhishi was too scared; he didn't want to go back to the life he had before, he didn't want to be left behind—he wanted to be with everyone.

Zhao Xiaoxing was carefree, worrying every day about what to eat, not really able to understand his anxiety.

"Isn't it good like this now? Slowly, growing up is tiring."

Zhao Xiaoxing handed him an ice pop, and the two little guys squatted under the big tree at the entrance of the first middle school, biting their ice pops while watching the passersby.

"You're right too," Lu Zhishi said, biting his ice pop, looking listless.

Zhao Xiaoxing patted his chest, "Of course, I'm Zhao Xiaoxing, Six Cheese's best friend."

Lu Zhishi was amused by him.

Zhao Xiaoxing patted his shoulder and comforted him, "Don't worry, we'll be in middle school in two years too."

They were starting fifth grade, and after finishing sixth grade, this would be their school too.

"When we're in seventh grade, my brother, Brother Xiao Yu, and Brother Xiao Chen will be in twelfth grade, and we can still go home together."

Lu Zhishi took a bite of his ice pop, his brows furrowed with melancholy—it was still a long way off.

The weather was hot, and they had eaten three ice pops by the time Chi Chen and the others came out of the exam hall.

As the sun set in the west, the five of them squatted by the roadside, watching the passersby and vehicles, each biting an ice pop.

They were watching the passersby, and the passersby were watching them too.

Lu Zhiyu: "By the way, what are we doing here?"

Zhao Xiaoyun: "Didn't you say you were tired and wanted to rest here and have an ice pop?"

Chi Chen didn't say anything, took a tissue from his backpack, and wiped the sweat from the two younger brothers' foreheads.

The tissue smelled nice. Lu Zhishi turned to look at Chi Chen: "Brother Xiao Chen, I want to eat cool ice jelly."

"What? Ice jelly, I want some too!" Zhao Xiaoxing's ears were sharp, automatically picking up information whenever he heard about something delicious.

They all wanted ice jelly, but they had spent all their pocket money on ice pops earlier.

Chi Chen glanced at them coolly, "How many ice pops did you just have?"

Lu Zhishi looked around guiltily, stammering, "Just a little..."

Zhao Xiaoxing counted on his fingers, "Including this one, we've had four."

Chi Chen didn't say anything, tugged at the two gluttons next to him who only cared about eating: "These two had four ice pops."

"What?! Fat Cheese, didn't you say you only had one?"

Lu Zhiyu turned his head sharply, confiscating the ice pop in his hand: "No more eating, I'm going to tell Dad when we get back."

Lu Zhishi widened his eyes: "Tattletale brother! I was just two bites away from finishing."

Lu Zhiyu quickly finished the two ice pops in his hand, threw the sticks into the trash, and dragged Lu Zhishi home. "I'm also a beat-you-up brother, Stinky Cheese."

Zhao Xiaoyun acted without speaking, smacking Stinky Cheese's butt twice, pulling him home, and saying he would tell Mom and confiscate his pocket money.

Zhao Xiaoxing hugged his brother's leg, crying and fussing: "Stinky brother! Tattletale!"

Zhao Xiaoyun snorted coldly, "Didn't you hear what Brother Xiao Yu just said? I'm also a beat-you-up brother, do you want to get beaten again?"

Chi Chen carried the two small backpacks and walked behind.

In the sunset glow, the small conch on the backpack was blown by the wind, clinking pleasantly against the small shell hanging from the other backpack.

As expected, Lu Zhishi got beaten again when he got home. Song Qinian stood behind him with the ancestral feather duster, watching him.

Scolding while beating, getting angrier as he scolded, smacking him a couple of times.

"If your stomach hurts tonight, I'll confiscate your pocket money."

Lu Zhishi balanced a bowl of water on his head, holding the bowl with both hands, facing the wall to reflect, explaining softly: "It was too hot..."

"Too hot so you had four ice pops?"

"All four were small..." He even let go with one hand to gesture.

Song Qinian held back his temper, "Hold your bowl steady."

Lu Zhishi felt much better after being beaten; the anxious mood was gone. Not beaten for nothing, Stinky brother was right, the feather duster really is a good healing method.

Just his butt hurt a bit.

It was still bright outside. Lu Zhishi wandered around the house feeling bored, then ran off to find Chi Chen.

Just as he went out, he saw Chi Chen coming over. Chi Chen glanced at him and went inside to find Song Qinian.

Not sure what they talked about, but when Chi Chen came out, he called Lu Zhishi to go with him.

Lu Zhishi didn't understand why, but happily followed.

At the gate, there was a big white bicycle. Chi Chen got on, held the handlebars, and nodded at him.

"Get on."

"Me?" Lu Zhishi pointed at himself clumsily, then realized, hurried forward and sat on the back seat, grabbing Chi Chen's clothes.

With the wind, the sunset shone on his face, a bit dazzling, but very pleasant.

The bicycle rode farther and farther, out of the villa area, turning and riding along the Long River.

The scenery here was infinitely beautiful, the sunset spreading across the sky layer by layer, like a girl's gradient skirt.

Besides them, there were many young people riding bicycles out to relax, laughing and chatting as they passed by.

More were children, couples, families, elderly couples strolling slowly along the Long River...

Lu Zhishi held onto Chi Chen's clothes, the wind lifting the bangs on his forehead, brushing over his face.

His gaze withdrew from them, moving to the slim, tall back of the young man in front of him.

"Brother Xiao Chen, where are we going?"