When the Snow Turned Cold

After Ning Shixue left, Xie Yaoyao and He Miao took their little shovels and found an empty spot away from the guests’ courtyard to play in the sand. It wasn’t far.

When they arrived, a little boy around seven or eight was already there, building a sandcastle.

Yaoyao didi,
He Miao, wearing her little bud pants, squatted down with Xie Yaoyao.
This sand is so soft. Let’s build a castle too. Do you like castles?

Xie Yaoyao had no objections and nodded.
Okay.

He was wearing his little overalls today, with the little hat his mother made hanging around his neck on a strap, resting on his back.
He lowered his head to dig in the sand, his long, thick eyelashes casting shadows, his profile fair and soft.
Even He Miao couldn’t resist giving his cheek a little pinch.

Gege will go make you all something to eat,
Ji Qing leaned down and said.
You two stay here and play. Don’t run off, okay?

He Miao obediently agreed.
Okay.

Xie Yaoyao was digging in the sand with all his might, his cheeks puffing with the effort.
He didn’t have time to acknowledge Ji Qing, who felt a bit awkward but just smiled.

Tang He’an was too strong, and He Miao refused to let him help build the castle, so he had to squat nearby and keep them company.

After about half an hour, a program team staff member suddenly came over and whispered in his ear,
Teacher Tang, the director wants to speak with you.

Tang He’an hesitated at first, but the assistant director said they would watch the kids, and there were several other staff members around.
Not too worried, he went to find the director.

Xie Yaoyao stuck out his little bottom, kneeling on the ground, and used his finger to poke a few holes in the castle.

Yaoyao didi,
He Miao asked him.
What are you doing?

Xie Yaoyao explained in his milky voice.
This, is bedroom. Big Daddy stay in one, me and stepdad stay in other one.

[Big Daddy: ???]

[Baby, as expected of you. Still this filial.]

[A daily act of filial piety.]

He Miao helped him poke holes and asked curiously,
Don’t your Big Daddy and Little Ning Gege sleep together?

[Miaomiao, speaking for me.]

[Is President Xie not up to it? Unwanted wives can be sent to me. I don’t mind. (just kidding)]

[Those abacus beads are flying right into my face.]

Why,
Xie Yaoyao was even more confused than her, his soft face full of bewilderment.
Sleep together?

He didn’t sleep with Ning Shixue at home either.
But he didn’t care. Big Daddy was already, a grown-up, could sleep by himself.
And he should let the baby sleep with him!

Before He Miaomiao could argue it out with him, Jiang Yu suddenly ran over with a few other little boys.

Jiang Yu was still holding a tree branch.
When he spotted Xie Yaoyao and the others, his eyes lit up.

He waved his hand and told the few little boys behind him.
It’s them! My new little henchmen!

Xie Yaoyao pouted. He wasn’t a henchman.
He was the Sea King.

Why was this gege so dumb?

I’m the princess of the sea,
He Miao also corrected him.

Seeing Xie Yaoyao and the others, Jiang Yu forgot about playing war with his classmates.
He squatted down to build the castle with them.

You should make a coral reef,
Jiang Yu said, dissatisfied with the castle as he sat cross-legged on the ground.
Without coral, how can it be the Sea God’s palace?

But they weren’t by the sea now, and he couldn’t find any coral.
He had to break off a few branches to improvise.

I so tired,
Xie Yaoyao decided to rest.
He took off his little hat, put it on his lap, picked up his little water bottle, and gulped down water, his face flushed.

He Miao leaned over.
Yaoyao didi, can I see your little hat?

Xie Yaoyao handed it to her, not forgetting to say,
This, my mama made.

[First time hearing Yaoyao mention his mom.]

[Dammit, I’m even more curious about who this President Xie is.
Can these gossip accounts do their job this year?]

[I want to know if mom divorced President Xie?]

When Xie Yaoyao was still a tiny baby, his mother made this little hat.
Now he couldn’t wear it anymore, but he always brought it with him when he went out.

After several years, the little hat’s fabric had become soft and worn, but it was clean.

So pretty. Your mom is amazing,
He Miao touched it carefully, wanting to put it on her own head, but it was blocked by her little pigtails.
She had to regretfully give up.

Jiang Yu also asked to see it.
When he was about to return it to Xie Yaoyao, one of the little boys building the castle next to them suddenly ran over, reached out, and said,
I want to see too!

Jiang Yu looked at Xie Yaoyao.

Xie Yaoyao nodded.
Okay.

The little boy took it from Jiang Yu’s hand.
It was a little yellow baby hat, looking soft and milky.
He curled his lip, looking disgusted, and said,
I know this kind of hat. My little brother wears these. You’re this old and still wear this?

He made a face at Xie Yaoyao to tease him.

Xie Yaoyao felt that was so unfair.
He thought he was still a baby, so why couldn’t he wear it?
He lifted his little hand to take the hat back.

But the boy named Erhu held the hat and ran off.

Jiang Yu stood up, pointed at him, and said,
Stop bullying my little didi!

He had just had a tooth pulled, and the new one hadn’t grown in yet.
His speech was still a bit lispy, and his authority wasn’t what it used to be.

He stomped his foot in frustration.

Erhu ignored him completely.
Jiang Yu was a year younger than him, so why should he listen to Jiang Yu?

Besides, Jiang Yu wasn’t even from their village.
He had moved here from somewhere else.

Ji Qing was carrying some refreshments over when he saw Xie Yaoyao chasing an unfamiliar little boy.
Jiang Yu was also grabbing the boy’s arm, refusing to let go.

But Erhu was a year older than Jiang Yu, and taller and stronger too.
Jiang Yu was no match for him.

The assistant director initially thought it was just kids bickering and didn’t think much of it.
Plus, Jiang Yu had gone to help, so he wanted to see how they would handle it themselves.
Wouldn’t that make good footage?
He subtly waved to the cameraman to get closer.

Unexpectedly, while Jiang Yu and Erhu were arguing, Xie Yaoyao, who was following nearby, suddenly burst into tears.

The crying was so sudden and so heart-wrenching that everyone was startled.

He cried until his face flushed, his eye rims red, his lashes instantly soaked.
Tears fell onto his cheeks.
It was that kind of gut-wrenching cry that made everyone’s heart clench.

What happened?
Ji Qing was startled and quickly went over to ask.

Erhu was also scared.
His hand trembled, and the little hat fell to the ground.

He Miao hugged Xie Yaoyao.

Her eyes were also a bit red as she pointed at Erhu, her voice choked with sobs.
He broke didi’s little hat.

Jiang Yu stood nearby, looking completely at a loss.

He had originally wanted to snatch the little hat back.
But Erhu suddenly gave him a hard shove.
He was still holding the edge of the hat when he fell to the ground.
The little hat made a ripping sound, and the two pieces of fabric separated, torn apart at the seams.

Mama,
Xie Yaoyao sobbed, picking up the little hat.
Then he crouched on the ground and started crying.

The bullet comments were also indignant.

[What is the program team doing? All these people and they can’t watch a few kids? Why didn’t they help when the fight almost started just now? What are they filming?]

[Is no one going to comfort the child? His crying is breaking my heart.]

With so many people suddenly crowding around, Erhu’s face turned bright red.
He wanted to run but didn’t dare.

You apologize to didi!
Jiang Yu grabbed him.

Erhu shook off his hand roughly and stiffened his neck.
I didn’t mean to!

If you don’t apologize, I’m telling the village chief!
Jiang Yu wasn’t backing down either.

Ji Qing quickly crouched down to comfort Xie Yaoyao, trying to hug him.
But Xie Yaoyao absolutely refused to let him.
He cried until his voice was hoarse.
Ji Qing had to tell him,
Gege will buy you a new one, okay? I’ll buy you one exactly the same.

I not want,
Xie Yaoyao struggled out of his arms, his face completely red from crying.
His little hands clutched the broken hat as he said through tear-blurred eyes,
I want find mama.

Ji Qing couldn’t help feeling annoyed.

He had only ever taken care of Ji Xiao, one child, and felt Xie Yaoyao was way too hard to soothe.
When Ji Xiao’s toys were broken by other kids in kindergarten, he never cried either.

And he had looked at that little hat.
The craftsmanship was very rough.
It probably wasn’t worth much.

The commotion was too loud.
Tang He’an and the director hurried over and found the children all crying.
Tang He’an’s face immediately darkened, and he frowned at the director.

The director finally panicked.

He was at a loss, but luckily Ning Shixue returned with Ji Xiao at that moment.
Xie Yaoyao’s face was streaked with tears, his eyes swollen like peaches.
Yet tears still streamed down endlessly.
He turned and opened his little arms.
Ning Shixue picked him up.

What happened?
Ning Shixue held him and asked.

Xie Yaoyao sobbed too hard to speak.
In his hand, he clutched the dirty, torn little hat.
He hugged Ning Shixue’s neck, burying his tear-soaked, soft face in the hollow of Ning Shixue’s throat.

Little Ning Gege.
He Miao was still crying too.

But she held back and bravely told Ning Shixue what had just happened.

Ning Shixue’s already cool peach blossom eyes darkened, like a pool covered in deep winter snow.
His voice remained calm, yet it inexplicably made everyone shudder.
He said to Erhu,
Apologize.

His gaze was unlike anything human.

Ning Shixue’s complexion was pale, his eye sockets slightly deep.
Being stared at by these eyes for a long time felt like gazing into an abyss.

Erhu was only seven and had never encountered anyone like this.
Ning Shixue looked so thin, his pale, slender wrist not much thicker than his own.

Yet his whole body trembled.

He didn’t want to apologize, but he was afraid of Ning Shixue.
His face flushed bright red, but he still pressed his lips together and said nothing.

The village chief arrived upon hearing the news, along with Erhu’s mother, Wang Guilan.

Wang Guilan knew there was a program team filming some kind of variety show in the village.
They were all celebrities she had never seen in her life.
Hearing that Erhu seemed to have offended some important people, she was terrified and rushed over, intending to push Erhu to apologize.

But when she arrived, the program team was a huge crowd, and Ning Shixue was staring coldly at Erhu.
Who was bullying whom here?
She frowned, walked over quickly, and scooped her child into her arms.

What do you think you’re doing?!
Wang Guilan said.
All these people bullying one little kid?

Jiang Yu refused to back down, pointing at Erhu.
He broke someone else’s thing first!

What’s it got to do with you?
Wang Guilan’s tone was impatient as she waved him off.

The village chief desperately signaled to her.
Only then did Wang Guilan calm down a bit.
But she still shielded Erhu behind her.
It’s just a hat, isn’t it? I’ll pay you back, that’s fine, isn’t it? You all ganging up on a kid, aren’t you scaring him to death?

Ning Shixue looked at most in his early twenties.
She instinctively didn’t take him too seriously.

Xie Yaoyao was tired from crying.
Tears still wouldn’t stop flowing.
But he wasn’t crying as loudly as before.
He hugged Ning Shixue’s neck, sobbing in small, choked bursts.

Ning Shixue suddenly walked over.

Wang Guilan tensed up, blocking Erhu.
What do you think you’re doing? You want to start a fight?

Ning Shixue ignored her completely.
His cold eyes were hidden in the shadows.
He walked over and kicked Erhu’s half-built sandcastle, sending it crashing down.

Erhu immediately burst into loud wails.

You’re a grown adult, picking on a kid?!
Wang Guilan was both hurt and angry.
Hurt that her child was surrounded by so many people, angry that he had to go and provoke them for no reason.
She knew perfectly well how mischievous her own child was.

Ning Shixue’s eyes curved, but his gaze was icy.
Not only will I hold it against him, I’ll hold it against you too.

Wang Guilan felt increasingly uncomfortable under his stare and couldn’t help hugging her child and shrinking back.

Ning Shixue had no time for them now.
Holding Xie Yaoyao, he turned and left.

He had glanced at the little hat.
It was sewn together from a few pieces of fabric.
Fortunately, only the seams had come apart; the fabric itself wasn’t completely torn, only slightly damaged at the edges.

He remembered when he was little in the orphanage, the headmistress would mend his clothes.
She could fix things much more broken than this.

And you couldn’t even see the mends.

Xie Yaoyao’s mother wasn’t particularly skilled at sewing either.
She had just made a baby hat for him out of love.
The workmanship was simple.
Ning Shixue thought this shouldn’t be too hard to fix.

Xiao Yu,
Ning Shixue looked down and asked Jiang Yu.
Is there a tailor in your village?

Jiang Yu quickly nodded.
Yes! I’ll take you!

Ning Shixue took Xie Yaoyao’s bottle and made him some formula.
Xie Yaoyao lay in his arms, occasionally sobbing around the nipple, his tears soaking Ning Shixue’s shoulder.

The village tailor was an old man in his seventies.
When he saw the little hat, he said,
It’s fine. It can be stitched back up.

The problem was, to stitch it exactly the same, they’d need thread of the same color.

This was a poor village to begin with.
Mending clothes wasn’t done with much precision.
The tailor’s shop couldn’t find this kind of pale yellow thread.

I’m going to town later. I’ll buy some then. I know a place that has it,
the old man said.

Xie Yaoyao’s eyes were swollen and pitiful.
The old man handed him a little cloth tiger.
Xie Yaoyao lifted his little hands to hold it, his voice a bit hoarse as he whispered,
Thank you, grandpa.

Ning Shixue tried to pay, but the old man cheerfully waved him off.
It’s nothing. Just a little doodad I sewed myself. Not worth anything.

The little cloth tiger was adorably made, with a cute tiger head.
Xie Yaoyao squeezed it with his chubby little hands.
He thought this grandpa was amazing.
He should be able to fix his little hat.

His face was damp, his nose tip a bit red.
He tucked the little tiger and himself into Ning Shixue’s arms.

Ning Shixue was going to town now.
If he went, it would take about the same amount of time as the old man going and coming back.
So he told Xie Yaoyao,
We’ll come back to see grandpa tonight, okay?

Xie Yaoyao, holding the little cloth tiger, nodded.

The old man thought Ning Shixue was Xie Yaoyao’s older brother.
He had asked Xie Yaoyao earlier why he didn’t ask his mom to fix it.
Xie Yaoyao said his mom was gone, not here.

Only then did the bullet comments learn that his mother had passed away.

[If someone broke something of my mom’s, I’d want to fight them too.]

[My mom also passed away when I was two or three. I don’t even remember her face anymore. She made me a little bear back then. I’m in my thirties now, and I recently noticed the bear’s ear had come unstitched. I cried all night.]

Xie Yaoyao’s crying was so heartbreaking that some viewers couldn’t help crying along.

The program team’s back end was flooded with complaints.
The director and assistant directors were in a complete panic.

Ning Shixue took Xie Yaoyao back for lunch.

They were at the same seaside they had visited before.
Another program team was filming a dating show there, inviting married guests.
The director had originally arranged with that program team to bring the kids over in the evening for some interaction.

But now that they had offended Ning Shixue, and He Lin was unhappy about He Miao crying, and Tang He’an felt their show was problematic, they didn’t know how to proceed with the evening plans.

Ning Shixue originally didn’t want to go.
He wasn’t afraid of quitting the industry, so why should he put up with the variety show director?
But Xie Yaoyao was a chatterbox who loved watching excitement.

The other show seemed to have a competition that evening.
Maybe Xie Yaoyao would enjoy watching it.

Kid, do you want to go?
Ning Shixue asked him.

Xie Yaoyao’s eyelashes were still damp, his soft face showing traces of redness from crying, his cheeks streaked with tears.

But now tears were just welling in his eyes, not falling as hard as before.
Hugging his bottle, he hummed in agreement.

He wanted to watch the competition.

The tailor shop grandpa said it would be fixed by a little after ten.
They could go out, and by the time they came back, they could pick up the little hat.

The director, with a flattering smile, led the guests onto the bus.

Xie Yaoyao was listless and silent the whole way.
He curled up in Ning Shixue’s arms.
Ning Shixue, somewhat awkwardly, patted his little bottom gently for a while.
Surprisingly, Xie Yaoyao fell asleep, his soft, white cheek pressed against Ning Shixue’s collarbone.

[Male mommy. Crying.jpg]

[I’m going crazy. I never thought I’d see the day I find this drama queen… kind of gentle.]

For the filming, this seaside area had been specially decorated.
A temporary audience section had even been set up.

It was indeed crowded and lively.
Xie Yaoyao’s eyes were still red like a little rabbit’s.
Ning Shixue took him to sit in the audience.
He finally lifted his head and stared unblinkingly at the scene below.

At 7:30 PM, night fell.
A bonfire was lit by the sea.
Moonlight pierced through thin clouds, and the sea shimmered with the rippling waves that only appears at night.

The other program team’s tasks were much harder than the parenting show’s.
This venue was also several times larger.

The guests formed pairs and had to start running from the starting point.
Following the direction guided by the seaside bonfires, they had to run to a trampoline, jump hard to reach a ball hanging in the air, then transport the ball to the next location… all the way to the finish line, which was a high platform.

In front of the high platform, many plush stars were hung in the air by the program team.

Below were inflatable mats.

To win the competition, they had to jump from the high platform, grab a star, and land on the mat.

The plush stars contained vouchers for various prizes.

Night enveloped the entire coastline.
Above was the moonlight; at their feet were bonfires.
The program team had also lit lamps along the coast, perfectly illuminating the path for the guests while still being beautiful.
Especially those stars, which looked like they were dangling from the night sky.

That uncle, he so dumb,
Xie Yaoyao said quietly to Ning Shixue, his eyes still red but no longer crying.
One of the guests couldn’t reach the ball no matter how he jumped.

If it were the baby, he’d definitely be able to!

–

After Xie Zhaozhou finished his meeting that evening, he received a call from Liao Yanwan asking him to return to the old residence.

Song Li had told him what happened with the program team.
Ning Shixue had handled it well, so he didn’t interfere further.

Liao Yanwan was always convalescing.
The old Xie residence was in a secluded location.
Xie Zhaozhou drove there, his pure black Maybach parked in a leafy corner of the estate, shrouded in night.

He walked into the old residence.

Liao Yanwan still had a cashmere shawl wrapped around her shoulders, as if she had been waiting for him a long time.
Her eyes were red, her face pale, her lips pressed tightly together as if desperately trying to control her anger.

In the end, she couldn’t control it.
She raised her hand and, without explanation, slapped Xie Zhaozhou.

Xie Zhaozhou’s head turned with the slap.
He closed his eyes for a moment.
When he opened them again, those dark, narrow phoenix eyes were still calm and icy.

What exactly do you want?!
Liao Yanwan’s eyes were red as she gasped.
Are you trying to drive me to my death?!

The previous incident with Ning Shixue had caused a huge uproar.
And last night, the first official episode of the variety show had aired both online and on satellite TV.
It was then that Liao Yanwan learned Ning Shixue had taken Xie Yaoyao on the show.

Xie Yaoyao had also been wronged.

Your elder brother is dead, and now you want to drive me to my death too,
Liao Yanwan’s voice trembled as she pointed at him.
What right do you have to let Ning Shixue take Yaoyao to a place like that?!