Going Back Early

Xiaohu wouldn’t tell her. It was a secret.

Actually, the main reason was that he didn’t know how old the girl was. According to what he heard, she was not born yet.

“But she must be as beautiful as a fairy!”

Xiaohu thought for a moment and replied.

“Really?” Mrs. Yang didn’t think much of it at first, but after hearing his description, she was quite sure that he was just making it up. How could a fairy like a country bumpkin?

Xiaohu snorted smugly. “Of course!”

Uncle Jiang was so handsome, and Aunt Xiaoguo was so beautiful. Their daughter must be very cute.

With this thought in mind, Xiaohu’s face slowly turned red. If she could cook as well as Auntie Xiaoguo, he would like her even more!

Mrs. Yang pursed her lips and looked at him. He looked like he meant every word he said and he was actually blushing…

“Silly boy, I don’t need you to marry a fairy. I just want you to work harder and stop thinking about playing every day.”

She did not say what she was thinking. After all, he was a little boy. It was natural for him to harbor a beautiful dream in his heart. She should just leave it that way.

Xiaohu shook his head and returned to his room happily, leaving Mrs. Yang sighing to herself outside.

—-

At the dining table, Xiaoguo was quietly drinking the rice soup in her bowl. Jiang Danhe and Zhuang Zhuang sat on either side of her. Neither of them spoke or communicated. Other than the sound of chewing, there was no other sound at the dining table.

After the incident where he was tied to a tree the day before, Zhuang Zhuang started opposing Jiang Danhe at every turn. At first, he took it to heart without taking any action, but later on, he started playing pranks. On the other hand, Jiang Danhe was a scheming man. Zhuang Zhuang always ended up crying because of him.

Xiaoguo couldn’t sit back and do nothing now that her son was being bullied. Hence, she taught the two of them a lesson indiscriminately before they finally stopped their nonsense.

After dinner, Xiaoguo did not even need to do anything. The two of them seemed to be able to read her mind. One of them cleared the dishes and the other cleaned the table. Xiaoguo only had to wash her hands and return to the room to rest.

Satisfied with the current situation, Xiaoguo wiped her mouth and headed to her room.

The two people in the kitchen watched Xiaoguo from the corner of their eyes. After she left, Zhuang Zhuang was the first to attack. He took the bowl of water that he had prepared and splashed it at Jiang Danhe.

Jiang Danhe was not to be trifled with. When Zhuang Zhuang made a move, he quickly turned around and dodged.

After Xiaoguo went out, she thought for a moment about the two. What if they started fighting while she was not around? No, she had to take a look!

As soon as she lifted the curtain, a basin of water with the smell of food splashed onto her face. Not a single drop was wasted—all the water landed on her face and clothes.

Zhuang Zhuang and Jiang Danhe were shocked. No one had expected this to happen.

“Mother…” The culprit, Zhuang Zhuang, subconsciously stuffed the basin to Jiang Danhe and pretended to look pitiful.

“…” Before Jiang Danhe could gloat, he was stuffed with a basin. Now it was his turn to explain.

“Xiaoguo, listen to me…”

“Do you need to explain?” Xiaoguo wiped her face expressionlessly. She didn’t know why there was so much water. She couldn’t wipe it off no matter how hard she tried. The water was so greasy.

Seeing this, Zhuang Zhuang immediately tried to please her. He picked up the cloth beside him and handed it to her. He smiled cutely and said, “Mother, let me help you wipe it.”

Xiaoguo was silent as he handed her the cloth. “Do you think this is suitable?”

Zhuang Zhuang didn’t understand why it wasn’t suitable. He was his mother’s considerate little cotton pants, unlike that person who only knew to stand there in a daze. As he thought about it, he glanced sideways in disdain.

Zhuang Zhuang smiled and handed the cloth to Xiaoguo again, but she refused to take it. Hence, he looked down curiously at the cloth in his hand. When he realized what was wrong, his face turned red. He threw it on the table with a whoosh and said with an embarrassed smile, “Hehe, a rag is indeed not suitable.”

“Pfft…”

Jiang Danhe laughed out loud.

Xiaoguo looked over at him and immediately regained her poker face.

“That’s the end of this matter. If this continues, I’m going to wash my hands off the both of you.”

Although Xiaoguo’s tone was not very serious, and the consequences did not sound that terrible, her words frightened the two of them. They repeatedly promised that they were wrong and would stop fooling around. They also made promises to restore their father-son relationship.

Xiaoguo was furious, but she knew when to stop and didn’t pursue the matter. She only said that she wanted to take a shower and quickly returned to her room.

Jiang Danhe and Zhuang Zhuang were very discerning. Upon hearing that she was going to take a shower, they knew what to do.

One went to fetch water, while the other went to start the fire. All of this was done to win Xiaoguo’s forgiveness. However, the two of them, who had agreed not to fight, couldn’t help but compete among themselves. “If you work hard, I’ll work even harder.”

Hence, Xiaoguo took a bath in the bathtub that was almost overflowing with water. It was lucky that she didn’t drown.

When she came out of the shower, she saw Zhuang Zhuang alone by himself. Her hand that was drying her hair paused. “Where’s your father?”

She subconsciously thought that the two of them were fighting with each other again.

“He just went out to release the pigeon.”

“Release the pigeon?” Xiaoguo asked again in disbelief. She was puzzled when Zhuang Zhuang nodded again.

While they were talking, Jiang Danhe returned with a serious expression.

“What’s wrong?” Xiaoguo saw his expression. Why did he look so troubled after releasing a pigeon?

“It’s nothing.” Jiang Danhe shook his head and came to her side hesitantly. “Xiaoguo, I have to return to the capital earlier than expected.”

“So suddenly?”

Xiaoguo and Zhuang Zhuang were both a little shocked. This was too sudden.

“Yes.” Jiang Danhe took Xiaoguo’s hand and explained, “I just received a letter. There are some emergencies that require my hasty return to the capital.”

“Emergencies?” Xiaoguo swallowed the question she was about to ask. This must be a state secret that was not convenient for him to talk about. Then she thought of Zhuang Zhuang saying something about pigeons.

“A letter? A messenger pigeon?”

It was a very old method of sending messages.

Jiang Danhe nodded and took a towel to dry her hair. Xiaoguo felt uncomfortable and wanted to take it back from him, but Jiang Danhe placed it on her head and gently rubbed her hair.

Now that he was already drying her hair, Xiaoguo didn’t resist. She just sat there and enjoyed herself.

Zhuang Zhuang covered his eyes shyly. It was a scene that was inappropriate for children.

“So when are you leaving?”

“Right away.”

“Right away?!”

Xiaoguo was so surprised that she almost jumped up. “That’s too hasty!”

Jiang Danhe could only calm her down and tried to get her to sit down. Zhuang Zhuang’s mouth was hanging open in disbelief.

Jiang Danhe continued to dry her hair unhurriedly, as if he was enjoying the last few heartwarming moments before parting.

Xiaoguo couldn’t get up since he was holding her down. She was feeling anxious. It was such odd timing. Should he eat before leaving?

“I’ll cook for you!”

Xiaoguo was about to stand up when Jiang Danhe stopped her. “No, I’ll see how it goes on the way.”

“Then…” Xiaoguo didn’t know what to do for him. She was thinking anxiously about what she could do for him.

“I’ll leave after I’m done drying your hair.” Jiang Danhe dispelled Xiaoguo’s thoughts. Then, he looked at Zhuang Zhuang and decided to trick his son one last time. “I’m going to visit Teacher Kong. I’ll bring Zhuang Zhuang along with me so that you don’t have to send him off.”

As soon as she said that, Zhuang Zhuang immediately shivered. Before he could refuse, Xiaoguo nodded in agreement.

Zhuang Zhuang had not returned to Mr. Kong’s place for a long time. In addition, he was a mummy’s boy that was homesick. If he stayed home for a few more days, things would get back to square one again.

“Mother, I don’t…”

“No!”

Xiaoguo and Jiang Danhe answered in unison. Zhuang Zhuang was stunned when he saw their reaction. “What’s the big deal? Why are they being so serious…”

Just like that, no matter how reluctant he was, Zhuang Zhuang carried his bag and rode to the county with Jiang Danhe.