Go On a Diet Again

However, the truth disappointed her.

Zhuang Zhuang didn’t miss Xiaoguo very much at all. No, it should be said that he didn’t have time to think about her for the time being.

These days, his time was mostly spent on the road.

Out of the five schooling days, he was out for four and a half days. The remaining half of the day was spent resting.

When Xiaoguo brought Zhuang Zhuang back, the little boy told her happily where he had been over the past few days.

It was a barren, fertile, and desolate land.

It turned out that there were still people living in poverty around them. The beautiful life he had enjoyed over the past year had almost made him forget the period when they were starving and living from hand to mouth.

Witnessing this phenomenon made Zhuang Zhuang fall silent for a long time. But that was not Teacher Kong’s intention.

Seeing that the boy looked a little gloomy, Mr. Kong brought him to the fields to observe the harvest of each family.

The extreme contrast between the two scenes made Zhuang Zhuang understand that he shouldn’t look at things so superficially. The bad predicament would pass and good things await in the future.

Zhuang Zhuang also helped a lonely old man cut firewood and fetch water. He taught children younger than him to write their names. He also helped two old men to peel corn…

Xiaoguo understood Mr. Kong’s intentions and was extremely touched. She hugged Zhuang Zhuang tightly. She felt that the best decision she had made was to let Zhuang Zhuang stay by Mr. Kong’s side.

There was indeed so much to learn.

Zhuang Zhuang suddenly stopped smiling and hugged Xiaoguo aggrievedly. He looked up at her with tears in his eyes, while wearing a pitiful look on his face.

“What’s wrong?”

Xiaoguo rubbed his face curiously. Why was the smile on his face suddenly gone?

“Are boys so temperamental…?”

“Mother… I’ll be a good boy in the future.”

Xiaoguo didn’t understand why he was suddenly talking about this, but she was touched and smiled. “It would be good if you grew up safe and sound.”

Most parents do not wish for their children to become successful. They only hoped for peace and joy for their kids. Everything else was just icing on the cake.

“Learning from Teacher Kong wholeheartedly will be beneficial to you for the rest of your life.”

“I will, Mother.”

Xiaoguo no longer felt jealous. Since Zhuang Zhuang was following Mr. Kong, although he had no time to miss her, it was alright with her.

The child would grow up one day, quietly, out of sight of his parents.

–

For some unknown reason, after Zhuang Zhuang came home from Teacher Kong’s place, he proclaimed that he was going on a diet. Even the pig trotters made by Xiaoguo failed to entice him.

Xiaoguo tried to find out why, but to no avail.

“Mother, you don’t have to persuade me. I won’t eat it.”

“Why? Why the sudden change?”

As Xiaoguo spoke, she placed a piece of the pork leg near the tip of his nose and swayed it a few times, trying to tempt him.

At first, Zhuang Zhuang almost couldn’t resist the temptation of the meat. However, in the end, he swallowed his saliva and shook his head vigorously.

“I said no. Mother, don’t waste your energy. I want to eat cucumbers.”

“No way. Zhuang Zhuang. What’s the reason?”

Xiaoguo put down the pork leg meat and looked at him in confusion.

Zhuang Zhuang tried his best to retract his gaze from the piece of meat and swallowed his saliva secretly.

“Did the pork skin bounce a few times just now? Oh my god! Mother’s pork legs were definitely the best in the world.”

“I’m so hungry… It’s a pity… I must endure!!!”

“Hmph, it’s not for any particular reason, I just want to lose weight.”

Zhuang Zhuang simply refused to tell the truth. Xiaoguo had no choice. If he wanted to lose weight, so be it. She got up and went to the kitchen to get him a cucumber.

“Let’s eat.”

Xiaoguo handed him the cucumber with water droplets on it. Then, she shook off the water droplets on her hands and got ready to eat.

But she suddenly noticed the missing piece of pork leg.

Xiaoguo’s fingers paused and she stole a glance at Zhuang Zhuang.

Unexpectedly, the other party tensed up as if his tail had been stepped on. It was obvious that he had done something guilty and was afraid of being discovered.

Her sharp eyes saw the meat stains at the corner of his mouth. They must have been left behind by him because he was in a hurry to eat the pork leg.

Xiaoguo snickered to herself and pretended to stop for a moment. Then, acting like she had not noticed anything, she picked up the pork meat, and deliberately ate with mouth-watering sounds.

“Mmm… delicious…”

Zhuang Zhuang silently nibbled on the cucumber. There were still some unknown water stains at the corner of his mouth. She wondered if it was the juice of the cucumber or his saliva.

Just as Xiaoguo was taking another bite of the food, Zhuang Zhuang swallowed the tasteless cucumber in his mouth with tears in his eyes. He tried his best to put on a front and clapped his hands.

“I’m full. I’ll go back to my room first.”

“Yes, yes. Go on.”

Xiaoguo waved her hand and deliberately held the pork leg in front of him. Seeing that he was about to open his mouth, she deliberately teased him and refused to give it to him.

Zhuang Zhuang placed his hands on his hips. “Hmph, I’m not eating it.”

Xiaoguo quickly nodded. “Got it. I’ll give you another cucumber tonight.”

“…”

“Hm, that meat is so enticing…”

Zhuang Zhuang turned around with tears in his eyes and returned to the house.

He didn’t want cucumbers. He wanted meat…

It was all Brother Xiaohu’s fault. He insisted that he was as fat as a ball and that he didn’t look like a scholar at all. Scholars were all skinny.

Zhuang Zhuang retorted, saying that he was fat and cute. However, Brother Xiaohu waved his hand and said with a smile. “Cute is a description for girls.”

If he hadn’t said that, Zhuang Zhuang wouldn’t have thought of losing weight. He would be eating without inhibitions now…

Pork leg… his pork leg…

Xiaoguo looked at Zhuang Zhuang, who had returned to the room, and laughed silently. He said that he was going back to rest. Her guess was that he was going to hide in his room and cry.

Since Zhuang Zhuang was not around, Xiaoguo had no desire to eat. After eating the rice in her bowl, she filled a bowl of rice for Zhuang Zhuang.

“Zhuang Zhuang, I’m going out to look for your Auntie Yang. Remember to wash the dishes…”

“Okay, Mother!”

Zhuang Zhuang’s slightly expectant voice sounded out in response.

When Xiaoguo heard his reply, she snickered and deliberately left the house noisily.

When Zhuang Zhuang heard the door close, he secretly opened a crack of his room door to make sure that there was no one around before running out.

He had only planned to eat some meat, but when he saw the bowl of rice on the table and the chopsticks beside it, tears immediately flowed out of his mouth.

As expected, his mother still doted on him…

Zhuang Zhuang ate a large bowl of rice and half a pork leg with tears in his eyes.

Based on the appetite of a four-year-old child, he ate especially much.

After Xiaoguo came out, she went straight to Mrs. Yang’s house.

Since Zhuang Zhuang was unwilling to say anything, Xiaohu must know the reason. After all, Zhuang Zhuang was still fine when he returned yesterday.

After finding out about the cause of the incident, Xiaoguo was quite cool about it. However, Mrs. Yang was furious. With her big stomach, she tried to hit XIaohu’s butt with a broom.

Xiaohu kept running around the house while his mother chased him with the broom. The others acted as if they didn’t see anything. It was obvious that this scene was very common in the Yang family. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be behaving so indifferently.

At first, Xiaoguo was worried and tried to stop Mrs. Yang. However, she realized that Mrs. Yang wasn’t really hitting the boy. She was just trying to scare him, and so Xiaoguo didn’t try to stop her anymore.

Xiaohu was very mischievous. As he fled, he turned around and laughed at Mrs. Yang. “You can’t catch up with me!”

Mrs. Yang had an indomitable character. The more indignant Xiaohu appeared, the more energetic she became. Unknowingly, she had picked up a broom and one shoe in her hands.

She was going to use both items in her hands. She was determined to beat him till he succumbed to her.

Mrs. Yang could tell that he was afraid, so she sneered and said, “You think I can’t catch up, right? Watch how I will beat you when I catch up!”

The scene of the two of them running around the house was quite entertaining.

Yang Feng even grabbed a handful of melon seeds for Xiaoguo. The two of them chatted as they ate, wondering when Xiaohu would admit defeat.

The episode ended with Xiaohu covering his buttocks and crying.

When Xiaoguo came out of Mrs. Yang’s house, she bumped into a carriage parked outside her house.

When she got closer, she saw that it was someone she knew.

“You have a letter for me?”

“A letter for you, Madam.”

The two of them spoke at the same time. The courier smiled sheepishly and handed her the letter.

“Thank you.”

Xiaoguo took the letter and looked down at the name. To her surprise, it wasn’t Jiang Danhe’s signature, but Xiaoyi’s.