Chapter Fourteen: Do You Miss Me?

Chapter Fourteen: Do You Miss Me?

“Hello, hello, hello! Is this Mama? Guess who your baby is!”

The little one was sprawled on the bed, tinkering with the new phone watch Zhou Haochen had bought her, which already had all the family’s numbers saved.

“Oh! Who could be calling me?” Zhou Haochen had, in fact, received Bai Sha’s express permission to buy the watch, and she had even participated in the selection process, though the little one remained blissfully unaware.

“Hehehe (#^.^#), then Mama, take a guess!”

“Oh wow! Who could it be? Is it Papa?”

“Nope, guess again, Mama!”

“Then it must be little Zhou Yuying, am I right?!”

“Oh yeah (^&^)/! Mama guessed right!”

Across from Bai Sha, Lily felt goosebumps erupt all over her arms. Was this how sickeningly sweet mothers became? It was truly frightening.

Indeed, after becoming a girl, Bai Sha still preferred to avoid her old “fox friends and dog buddies” (TL Note: A Chinese idiom referring to a group of shady or disreputable friends) whenever possible. However, feeling bored by herself, she had asked Zhou Haochen to call Lily out to hang out.

“Little Yu! Come out, it’s time to eat!” Madam Qin called from outside.

“Bye-bye, Mama, baby’s going to eat.”

“Bye-bye~”

Bai Sha hung up the phone, noticing Lily’s awkward expression across from her. With a helpless sigh, she said, “Talking to a human infant just makes you unconsciously put on an act.”

“I completely understand! I’m the same way when I talk to my niece.”

Meanwhile, let’s return to Zhou Haochen’s side.

At their grandparents’ house, these grandchildren were truly like living ancestors (TL Note: ‘活祖宗’ (huó zǔ zōng) is a humorous term implying someone who is treated with excessive deference or who causes a lot of trouble but cannot be disciplined, like an elder who is doted on). (Except for those who lived there permanently or were raised by them; don’t ask the author how they know.)

Zhou Haochen finally understood why Bai Sha had asked him to keep a close eye on the little one.

In just one afternoon, anything Zhou Yuying pointed at or even glanced at, the elderly couple would retrieve and ask if she liked it.

If Zhou Yuying so much as stumbled or got startled, stray dogs on the street would tuck their tails and flee, and even concrete slabs would receive a slap (TL Note: An exaggerated description. Grandchildren, please don’t take this seriously. If you’re looking for trouble, your grandparents will certainly give you a good scolding).

“Mom, don’t spoil her too much. She’s four years old; let her eat by herself.”

During dinner, Zhou Haochen even witnessed Madam Qin holding a spoon, ready to feed her. It was simply too absurd.

Madam Qin clapped her hands. “Oh, come on! It’s just been too long since I’ve seen a little one! And you never come home all year; just look how adorable your child is.”

Zhou Haochen was left speechless. He truly needed to return to S City tomorrow; if he didn’t, he felt the little one might as well ascend the throne.

Zhou Senior, ever the shrewd strategist, remarked, “You only have a three-minute burst of enthusiasm (TL Note: ‘三分钟热度’ (sān fēn zhōng rè dù) is a Chinese idiom meaning a fleeting interest or passion). If you’re so capable, why don’t you close your shop, go to S City with little Yu, and take care of the child for him?”

Madam Qin grumbled, “That’s a separate matter entirely.”

How could an intellectual’s fleeting interest be called a “three-minute burst of enthusiasm”? Then he heard Madam Qin’s constant refrain of ‘that’s a separate matter entirely.’

The dining room was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

After dinner, the little one, finally getting to sleep with Papa, rolled around on the bed, then picked up the watch to make a video call to Mama.

“Beep—”

“Hello! Whose video call is this?!”

“Mama!” The little one beamed, spinning the watch wildly. “This is Papa’s room!”

“Wow! It’s Papa’s room!” In truth, the little one spun it so fast that Bai Sha couldn’t see anything clearly. This was simply a way to flatter the child!

“Were you happy at Grandpa and Grandma’s house today?” With no one else home, Bai Sha was curled up in front of her computer, watching Naruto.

“Happy, happy! Grandma bought me so, so many snacks, and I even went fishing with Grandpa by the river and caught a fish so big it wouldn’t fit on a plate!!”

Zhou Haochen, standing nearby, wiped a bead of sweat from his brow. That fish had been bought by his father at the market, and his dad had discreetly hooked it when the little one wasn’t looking. How long had it been since his father had actually fished? One could only commend their acting skills.

“So, after a whole day out, did you miss Mama?”

“Yes, I missed you a lot, but don’t be sad, Mama. Papa and I will be back tomorrow. Mama, you have to be good at home, okay?”

This precocious tone amused Bai Sha. “Alright~, Mama will be good at home tonight and wake up early tomorrow to pick you and Papa up.”

“Here! Mama, talk to Papa!”

The little one handed the watch to Papa, then, in one fluid motion, swiped Papa’s phone from the nightstand, leaving Zhou Haochen utterly dumbfounded.

“What? Did your phone get swiped?”

Zhou Haochen gave a thumbs-up to the screen, realizing that a mother knows her daughter best. “Amazing, you guessed right.”

This move, oh this move, was clearly an inheritance of Bai Sha’s professional-level planning and hand speed. Player Zhou Haochen’s anti-gank awareness was truly lacking!

“What was your parents’ reaction? They must have been quite surprised to see little Yu, right?” On screen, Bai Sha sat with her arms wrapped around her knees, her face resting on them.

Zhou Haochen ran a hand through his hair, still a bit unaccustomed to the small screen. “They were very happy. Little Yu has practically become a local empress.”

“It’s always like that with older people. When I went back to my hometown before, my grandparents were the same.”

“How was your time with Lily today?”

Bai Sha sighed, saying, “Well, she was happy to talk, but I didn’t understand most of what she was talking about, so I couldn’t really join in. We only found common ground when we occasionally complained about you and her boyfriend.”

“So, that means I’m your boyfriend, doesn’t it?” Zhou Haochen asked with a smile.

“Pfft! Shameless~, we were just complaining together about how unreliable you guys are!”

Zhou Haochen simply smiled without speaking, then just asked, “Do you miss me?”

“Who would miss you! Don’t flatter yourself; I was missing little Yu.”

Since little Yu had come to Bai Sha’s side, she hadn’t left her for a single day. Even though she was with Zhou Haochen on this trip, it would be a lie to say Bai Sha wasn’t worried.

“What about me? Not at all?”

Bai Sha pulled her clothes up to cover half her face in shyness, then subtly gestured with her fingers. “Just a little, as an afterthought.”

“Oh~, so it was just an afterthought.”

“Bastard—. I don’t want to talk to you.”

“So, should I hang up?”

“Eh!? No, don’t! I’m bored to death here by myself.”

“Just kidding, I won’t hang up. Let’s chat for a good while (TL Note: ‘唠个50块的天’ (lāo gè wǔ shí kuài de tiān) literally means ‘chat for 50 yuan’s worth of time,’ implying a long and leisurely conversation, often used humorously to mean ‘chat for a long time.’).”

Inside the room, Papa and Mama were video chatting on the phone watch, while their daughter scrolled through videos on a mobile phone. A strangely harmonious scene unfolded before them.

****

Dream

In the dark, damp rented room, the pathologically pale-skinned girl was no longer in a wheelchair. A pair of crutches rested beside her mold-stained bed.

“Knock, knock!? Is anyone home?”

The girl laboriously propped herself on her crutches and opened the door. Outside, the incessant rain had ceased; bright sunlight stubbornly pierced into her gloomy world, even diluting the pervasive smell of decay.

Looking up, she saw the man who had offered her candy.

“Hello! We meet again. So, you’re my dad’s patient. I came to see how your recovery is progressing.”

The man smiled and extended his hand again, palm open, revealing the same candy as last time.

The girl accepted the candy but didn’t invite him inside, silently blocking the doorway.

“From now on, your rehabilitation is my mission! I’ll be fully responsible for it.”

The man knelt, gently tucking the girl’s messy hair behind her ear, revealing her sickly face. Her silent gaze met his smile.

“From the moment you discard your crutches until you can walk and jump, I’ll be right here with you.”

The girl’s entire body stiffened, yet she remained silent.

“Alright! Since you won’t speak, I’ll begin!”

“Staying cooped up at home isn’t good for your recovery. Come on! I’ll take you flying!”

“First stop: the barbershop 💈!!