The small convenience store’s boss laughed out loud with amusement. Old Li hurried to take the little mute in his embrace, angrily glaring at Ruan Qingmu. “As an adult, why are you scaring a little child? So bad!”
Ruan Qingmu burst out into more peals of laughter and let go of the little mute in good spirits as he ran into the kitchen.
Rows of potstickers lay in the pot, still slightly hot.
He lit the gas stove and briefly warmed them up for a short while before pinching them up and eating five or six in one go.
Actually, he had already eaten at the school.
Qin Yuan’s foot was in pretty good condition as the cold compresses were applied promptly and his injury wasn’t serious per se. It didn’t swell up when he got up in the morning and there was no noticeable pain when he moved around.
But Ruan Qingmu was still afraid of Qin Yuan aggravating it, so he set his alarm early and got up. He ran outside to the breakfast street alone, carrying back two bags of steamed dumplings that they had eaten last time and two packs of red bean congees.
He was afraid that the buns would get cold and become greasy, so he came back at a fast trot. When he arrived at the dormitory, he saw that the vinegar that was packed into the food container had spilled during his trip back.
The two people hid in dorm room 106 and ate in a room full of the vinegar smell. And the smell did not dissipate even after the windows were opened to air out the odor.
Ruan Qingmu felt it was certainly not as good as dining in, but Qin Yuan insisted, saying these dishes tasted more delicious than last time.
Ruan Qingmu stood in the kitchen and suddenly thought of something. He took out his phone, taking several pictures of the potstickers before casually sending them to a certain someone’s WeChat.
“Fresh meat potstickers, just as good as those at Li Kee Dumplings.”
Soon, Qin Yuan’s reply arrived. “Are you back home yet? Didn’t you eat your fill this morning?”
Ruan Qingmu smilingly replied, “My mom made it. She will feel bad if I don’t eat some.”
Qin Yuan paused before calmly replying, “Those potstickers must be very delicious.”
He didn’t like to be disturbed by the aunt who cooked early in the morning, so he always had bread and milk as a simple breakfast. He seemed to never eat this type of hot breakfast anymore after living alone.
Ruan Qingmu returned to his small room and suddenly felt sour and soft in his heart when he saw this string of words.
“Next time we return to school, should I bring some for you to try?”
Qin Yuan was quiet for a moment before replying, “Okay.”
As he was texting Ruan Qingmu, Qin Yuan’s phone suddenly rang.
Qin Yuan stared at the number flashing on his phone screen and pressed the answer button with an indifferent face. “Dad?”
The background sound on the other side was mixed-up and his father sounded anxious and embarrassed. “Xiao-Yuan, I’m really sorry. I was just about to set off to the airport, but suddenly, there was a situation at home…”
In the distance, a nanny’s shrilled, panicked voice could be heard sounding out. “Mr. Qin, Mr. Qin! Madam’s stomach is hurting again, aren’t you coming to take a look? Should we send her to the hospital?”
The man on the other line hurriedly covered the microphone with his hand, but his faint voice leaked a little through the receiver. “Okay. I’m on my way. Be careful and keep an eye on her!”
The voice in the microphone became louder again and his father sounded highly awkward as he said, “Your Aunt Wei’s stomach keeps hurting. She’s scared that she’s going to give birth soon. I’m afraid that I won’t be able to come back to see you on National Day.”
Qin Yuan indifferently listened to his excuses, not bothering to say anything.
His dad’s voice gradually became softer. “I’ve put fifty thousand yuan on your bank card. You should buy some good things during the holiday. Oh right, Secretary Gao bought two new limited-edition sneakers for you. Take a look at them and see if you like them or not.”
Qin Yuan let out an “mm.” “That’s not too bad.”
His dad seemed to let out a long sigh right then. He just wanted to say something but a shriek came from upstairs again. “Mr. Qin! Madam can’t bear the pain anymore!”
Qin Yuan said something before his dad could speak, “Dad, Aunt Wei’s health is more important. You should take her to the hospital now.”
He indifferently gazed down at his own feet. “If a younger sibling is born, all the more reason for you to stay in the hospital. Everything here on my side is fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”
The phone screen went off and the big apartment became quiet again.
Sister Liu opened the kitchen door and asked him, “Young master, do you want the silver cod fish to be pan-fried or salt-baked?”
Qin Yuan raised his head to look at her. “Oh, whatever. Sister Liu, just do whatever is convenient for you.”
The kitchen door was closed and the entire apartment became quiet again. Qin Yuan stared at his phone fixedly and suddenly lowered his head, burying his face in the crook of his arm.
***
Ruan Qingmu examined the room.
His former bed had been given to the little mute and two toys were arranged next to the pillow. One small water pistol and a small teddy bear. Although they were newly bought, they looked a little on the shabby side.
There was also an additional small cabinet in the room beside the bed. Ruan Qingmu opened it and looked through the contents for a while. It contained some of the boy’s things and pitifully enough, the little mute didn’t have a lot of clothes.
He sat in front of the desk and took out the exam papers from his bag, casually sending Qin Yuan a message. “Are you doing homework right now?”
Qin Yuan’s reply came very slow this time. After a long time, he finally replied with a photo. “Already plowed through a set of English papers.”
As expected, Ruan Qingmu zoomed in on the picture and took a look at it.
In the background was a large solid wood desk and his homework was neatly arranged on it. It looked like the top student was in the middle of working on a second set of math questions.
The October 1st holiday was actually not long, only three days. All the teachers of every subject madly sent homework home, fearing that the students would completely forget about their studies during the three days they were off.
Three sets of papers were given for just the English course. The math, physics, and chemistry teachers also didn’t want to be left behind and sent out two sets of exercises of their own.