Chapter 88

### Chapter 88

◎ Visitor from the Sky ◎

"Teacher Ran, did Grandpa Gu cook a ton of meat today? I could smell it during class, and it made me drool so much."

A little boy with two runny snot trails and cheeks wind-burned from the morning mountain breeze looked up with a big, toothy grin, asking Meng Qi, who had transformed into "Ran Ming." His eyes held both admiration for Meng Qi and a craving for the stewed meat, his innocent, clueless look super cute.

At that moment, Meng Qi was standing on a stepladder repairing the basketball hoop. He glanced down, grinning, showing off his pearly whites.

The stepladder under his feet wasn't the sturdy, safe carbon steel or aluminum kind you'd find in stores. It was a homemade, backwoods special: two thick branches as supports, tied together at the top with hemp rope, with short wooden stakes nailed across the middle as steps. It looked super sketchy, and without someone holding it steady, it wouldn't work. So the little boy, while chatting with Meng Qi, was gripping one of the thick branches with both hands, giving it his all to keep Meng Qi safe.

Though the kid looked as thin as a beanpole, with barely any meat on his bones and not much height, making it hard to believe he could really protect Meng Qi, Meng Qi on the ladder looked totally chill, unafraid of falling.

"Today is the Double Ninth Festival—a very important day for the elderly. If they eat well today, it's said to bless them with health and longevity. So early this morning, Teacher Ran had your Grandpa Gu go to Uncle Guangde's to get some meat and stew it. You guessed right, little foodie—right now, there's meat stewing in the big iron pot."

As he spoke, Meng Qi quickly threaded a thin wire from one side of the hoop to the other, then passed another wire through a gap in the backboard. Finally, he twisted the two ends of the wire together a few times. In less than two minutes, he had fixed the wobbly hoop back in place.

The boys who loved playing basketball weren't very tall, but they had some strength. In just over three months, Meng Qi had climbed up and down to fix the hoop at least five times. From being scared stiff to walking on it like it's nothing, he'd turned into a full-on hoop-fixing pro.

Of course, besides fixing basketball hoops, Meng Qi could repair everything in this small school with its five tiled-roof rooms—from the teachers' wireless mics to the desks, chairs, and table legs. Whenever someone called out "Teacher Ran" from afar, Meng Qi, who lived and ate on campus, would quickly appear and solve their problems.

That's why the little boy looked at Meng Qi with such admiration. In his young heart, Meng Qi was like a superhero from the sky, suddenly appearing with all kinds of cool stuff he'd never seen before. He built them bright, spacious classrooms, set up a reading nook with brand-new books, bought soccer balls, basketballs, badminton sets, table tennis, electronic keyboards, accordions, guitars, drum sets, watercolors, oil paints, markers, and crayons... and bright new backpacks, school supplies, shoes, and clothes. The boy had never seen so many new things in his life, nor had he ever been this happy!

He first excitedly praised Meng Qi for fixing the hoop, but being young and unable to hide his thoughts, his face dropped. Frowning, he asked Meng Qi, "Teacher Ran, why isn't the Double Ninth Festival a holiday for kids? Then... will Grandpa Gu's stewed meat be for us to eat, too?"

Ever since Meng Qi arrived, the students had lunch at school. It wasn't always lavish, but there was no shortage of meat—potato stew with pork, mushroom chicken, green pepper stir-fry, braised carp, and more, all made in different ways. After three months, you'd think they'd be satisfied, but kids are naturally prone to cravings. Plus, Old Gu, Gu Bangqi, had a knack for making braised pork that was irresistibly fragrant. This made the little boy worry, and as he waited for Meng Qi's answer, he kept gulping.

Meng Qi, carefully climbing down the ladder after fixing the hoop, cracked up laughing at the sight. But afraid that laughing too hard might make him lose his footing, he first laid flat on one of the wooden rungs to laugh it out. Once he was done, he continued climbing down. When his feet touched the ground, he turned around and booped the little boy's nose. Then, with a poker face, he teased the kid, "Oh man, little Ruirui, what are we gonna do? The government says the Double Ninth Festival is for the elderly. Teacher Ran can't change that."

The little boy, Yang Gaorui, whom Meng Qi called "Little Ruirui," hung his head right away upon hearing this, his last hope dashed. He let out a big sigh like a grown-up and said gloomily, "Man, Teacher Ran, why can't I be an old guy? I want to eat meat too..."

Meng Qi laughed heartily again, bent down, and scooped up Yang Gaorui, lifted him over his head and swung him around a bit until the boy laughed. Then he set him down, patted his head, and said, "Don't worry, I haven't forgotten you. We've stewed a whole lot of meat today—enough for both the elderly and you little sprouts of the country."

"Really, Teacher Ran? Are you telling the truth?" Yang Gaorui lit up right away, his big eyes sparkling as he eagerly bugged Meng Qi for an answer.

Meng Qi lifted his chin and asked, all confident, "Has Teacher Ran ever lied to you?"

"No! Teacher Ran always keeps his word! He's never tricked us!" Yang Gaorui jumped a mile high, spinning around like crazy and shouting, "We're getting meat! Awesome! Teacher Ran is the best! He's giving us meat too!"

With Yang Gaorui's shouts, the other students scattered around the campus all gathered around Meng Qi, chattering excitedly about their joy.

In the blink of an eye, Meng Qi had been here for over a hundred days.

He remembered those first few days, before the dilapidated school had even started repairs. These little sprouts, whose average height was less than half of Meng Qi's, had to bring their own stools for outdoor classes. They wore gray, patched clothes, some with layers of patches, and stared timidly at Meng Qi. When he greeted them, they seemed eager to get close but were held back by shyness and fear of strangers, making their interactions stiff.

It was a far cry from their lively, spirited behavior now.

A little girl with a ponytail grasped Meng Qi's right hand and shook it a few times, tilting her head and asking with a grin, "Teacher Ran, why aren't Brother Zheyuan and Brother Liangliang here yet? Aren't they celebrating the festival with us?"

The girl, named Yang Jiangmi, was the most outgoing of the group—almost like their spokesperson. She often spoke up for the others, making requests or asking questions to Meng Qi or the other teachers. Meng Qi quite liked her; he had always envied classmates with that kind of personality.

The "Brother Zheyuan" and "Brother Liangliang" she mentioned were Meng Qi's two bodyguards, Zhao Zheyuan and Qu Liang. At first, worried that Meng Qi might struggle to adapt to the environment, the two had stayed with him for nearly a month out of professional duty. Once the school was built and Meng Qi had a place to live, they left—but not back to the capital. Instead, they settled in a more convenient city area, ready to answer Meng Qi's call at any time.

Meng Qi had signed a two-year contract with Tianshu Zhong'an. Unless something special came up, Zhao Zheyuan and Qu Liang would stay rooted here with him for that period.

Lately, Meng Qi hadn't had any tasks for them, so he hadn't contacted them. Now that Yang Jiangmi asked, he answered honestly, "Your Brother Zheyuan and Brother Liangliang have their own things to do. They're not celebrating with us."

"Will they come here after they're done? We miss them so much." Little Yang Jiangmi looked a bit sad, clearly genuinely missing Zhao Zheyuan and Qu Liang.

When Meng Qi looked at the other students, they were nodding vigorously like chicks pecking at rice, echoing Yang Jiangmi's words.

No wonder. Compared to Meng Qi, who always seemed burdened with worries, the carefree Zhao Zheyuan and Qu Liang were much more fun. Plus, they had an extra dose of childlike innocence nurtured by their privileged upbringing, making it easy for them to bond with kids. Since they left, the students would mention them every now and then.

"Miss them that much? It's Tuesday today. If you all behave in class and finish your homework for the next few days, I'll have them come over this weekend to play with you. How about that?" Meng Qi said, shaking his phone with a smile, drawing out his words. "If you agree, I'll leave them a message."

"We agree! Of course we agree! Teacher Ran, we promise, ahhh!" As soon as Meng Qi finished, the kids, led by Yang Jiangmi, went wild, jumping around him in joy.

Touched by the lively scene, Meng Qi couldn't resist opening his camera to capture the moment. He thought about sharing it with someone, but after a moment's consideration, he only sent it to Xiao Yueya. Since the phone number he was using was registered under her ID, no matter how he tried to escape, he couldn't avoid her. So from the start, he hadn't hidden anything from her. Occasionally sharing interesting rural life with her also let him pick up news from the capital—a win-win.

Though he would have preferred to share it with Qi Yun.

Or, if luck was on his side, with his grandparents, He Cong and Wang Boyuan.

"Teacher Ran, can we go play with Meng Lingzhi now?" Yang Jiangmi interrupted Meng Qi's reverie, staring at him with pleading eyes. Yang Gaorui also flashed his big, adorable eyes, blinking at Meng Qi.

Meng Qi's heart softened instantly, and he nodded without hesitation. "Go ahead, but be careful not to let them bite you."

The mountains were high and the roads long, and somehow, on a whim, he had brought Meng Lingzhi and Ren Baizhi along too. Now, the two little creatures lived with him on this renovated campus. They no longer ate turtle food but instead feasted on insects and small shrimp from the wild. In three months, they had grown much bigger and more spirited, becoming the darlings of the kids.

Besides sharing daily life with Xiao Yueya, Meng Qi kept posting videos of Meng Lingzhi and Ren Baizhi on a video app to pass the time.

Life here wasn't really boring—there was always work to do and disputes to settle. But occasionally, when things quieted down, he still felt an emptiness in his heart... He really didn't like parting with friends.

"Author's Note"

A new year begins—may wealth and peace abound all year round!