"Go ahead and never come back! Boo-hoo... I hate you!" Little Yuan Yuan watched as Lin Wanru disappeared, feeling bitter inside, but still trying to act tough.
A pair of warm, delicate arms wrapped around Little Yuan Yuan from behind.
Leng Siyu lowered her gaze and gently advised, "Mom had no choice. She has to go out and work to provide for both of us—so we can go to school and have food and clothes."
"Work? Isn't it Dad's job to make money?" Leng Yuan Yuan looked up at Leng Siyu, her eyes full of tears. "Where's Dad? I haven't seen him for a long time, not even a phone call."
"The times are different. Women can take on more responsibilities now... Dad... Dad's job is special. He has to go abroad to catch bad guys. And his work is confidential, so even family members can't contact him freely..." Leng Siyu picked up Yuan Yuan and walked toward the dining room. "Come on, let's eat. After lunch, I'll teach you how to play table tennis."
"Table tennis? Hmm," Yuan Yuan measured her height with her hands. "Isn't it too difficult for me?"
"Practice a bit and you'll grow taller... In a few days, it'll be your fifth birthday, and I'll give you a really awesome birthday present!"
"Yay! Last year, Dad gave me that big white rabbit toy. I liked it so much! I sleep with it every night!"
"I knew you liked it. You even gave it a name in less than a day."
"My little Bai is the cutest!"
The dining room of Room 0101 was adjacent to the living room, located directly to the north. The furnishings were simple yet neat and fresh. In the middle was a coffee-colored long table and six matching chairs. On the north and east walls were a grayish-white drink cabinet, a utensil cabinet, and a fridge.
There were two bowls of white rice on the table, a plate of stir-fried bitter melon with pork, and a bowl of tomato and egg soup steaming hot.
"Chong Chong's family always has at least three dishes and a soup," Yuan Yuan glanced at the table and commented.
"You're still so young, where did you learn to compare like that? Hurry up and change your mindset. If you think like this again, I won't let you off!" Leng Siyu tugged at Yuan Yuan's little pigtail. "One of these days, I'll make sure your pigtail is gone."
"You can't touch my hairstyle! Dad designed it!"
The two sisters sat down at the table, and Leng Siyu put a few pieces of meat into Yuan Yuan's bowl. "Eat more meat, you'll grow taller."
As she chewed, Yuan Yuan asked, "Why can't Mom let us play with the Xia family? Chong Chong and Pengfei gege aren't bad people."
Leng Siyu fell silent for a moment and didn't answer directly. Instead, she played the "Tai Chi" game. "Adults live in a world that's complicated. There must be reasons we don't understand."
Yuan Yuan's sad eyes met her sister's bright ones. "I only have Chong Chong as a friend. If I don't play with him, I'll have to play with the air!"
Leng Siyu added a few pieces of bitter melon into her bowl. "Then try making a few more friends."
"It won't work!" Yuan Yuan moved her chopsticks around the meat. She sighed helplessly. "The girls envy my beauty, and the boys envy my intelligence. Only Chong Chong is silly enough not to have any messy ideas."
Leng Siyu almost spat out a mouthful of rice. "You're just a little kid, why are you already playing grown-up tricks?"
"Ding-ling-ling—" The doorbell rang.
"Who is it?" Yuan Yuan asked loudly.
"Yuan Yuan, it's me, the handsome, smart, and cute Chong Chong!" Xia Chong Chong announced while pressing his face against the door.
Leng Siyu shook her head in exasperation. In the information age, kids seem to have such high self-esteem!
Yuan Yuan immediately put down her bowl and stood up.
"Hey, hey, hey—didn't you hear what Mom said?" Leng Siyu called out.
"Mom said I'm not a little kid anymore. I can make my own decisions," Yuan Yuan replied in a cheerful tone, running to open the door. She took a pair of her mother's slippers from the shoe rack and handed them to Chong Chong. "Dad's slippers are too big. You can wear these, they'll do. You watch TV first. After dinner, I'll take you out to play table tennis."
"Don't you have any shoes for kids? And by the way, why are you taking me out instead of me taking you?" Chong Chong raised an eyebrow, looking unconvinced.
"Because I suggested playing table tennis, so of course, I'll be the one to take you," Yuan Yuan replied firmly.
Chong Chong argued, "Usually, older kids take younger ones. I'm older than you by a month, so I should take you!"
Yuan Yuan gave him a glaring look. "The mature one takes the childish one. My mind is much more mature than yours, so I should be the one to take you!"
"Yuan Yuan, are you eating or not?" came Leng Siyu's voice from the dining room. "If you're not eating, no snacks later!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming," Yuan Yuan quickly glanced at the dining room and turned back to Chong Chong. "I'll take you!"
"I'll take you!"
"I'll take you!"
"I'll take you—"
Leng Siyu shouted, "Both of you shut up! I'll take you!"
And just like that, the world became quiet.
Yuan Yuan obediently sat back down to finish her meal, occasionally glancing at Leng Siyu with big eyes.
Chong Chong found the remote control and turned the TV to a station where the recently popular historical fantasy drama Jue Yin was playing.
"...The east wind gently sweeps past the fence, spreading a faint fragrance in the southern garden. The bloom and wither of flowers have their reasons, and life's rise and fall are the most unpredictable." The slow, sorrowful theme song of the show echoed from the living room.
"What's Chong Chong watching?" Leng Siyu asked.
"Jue Yin, my brother read the novel and said it's really good."
"Strange, I thought boys these days are all into video games. I didn't expect one to be into novels," Leng Siyu said. Once Yuan Yuan finished eating, she quickly cleared the dishes and threw a dishcloth at Yuan Yuan. "Yuan Yuan, clean the table."
Yuan Yuan looked at the dishcloth with a pair of dramatically disappointed eyes.
The next moment, Leng Siyu dropped another bombshell, "From now on, you'll have to learn to comb your hair, mop the floor, cook, and do laundry…"
Yuan Yuan's big eyes widened in protest, "I—don't—know—how—to—do—that! I—can't—do—well!"
Leng Siyu quickly washed the dishes, then plugged the sink with a stopper. "No one is born knowing how to do things. If you don't do it well, you can try again."
Yuan Yuan absentmindedly moved the dishcloth around, making random patterns on the table. "Wasn't it you and Mom who did the housework before?"
"Before was before, now is now."
Yuan Yuan continued to absentmindedly draw random shapes. "What's the difference?"
Leng Siyu swiftly washed the dishes, "The difference is that now I think you're old enough to take on some housework. You just admitted it yourself—you're growing up."
Yuan Yuan's anger flared up as soon as she heard that. She threw the dishcloth onto the floor, hands on her hips, defiantly declaring, "If I've grown up, I can make my own decisions! I decided I'm not doing housework!"
Leng Siyu came out of the kitchen holding the clean dishes, and when she saw the dishcloth on the floor, she furrowed her brows. She stared at Yuan Yuan's big eyes and said, "Pick it up!"
Yuan Yuan stood still, a defiant look in her eyes as she locked gazes with her mother. "No! I won't! I'll never pick it up!"
"One... Two..."
"Alright, alright, I'll pick it up," Yuan Yuan quickly bent down and grabbed the dishcloth. She carefully wiped the table and grinned. "Hehe, it's not difficult at all. Look at how clean I've made it!"
Leng Siyu put the dishes down and softly praised her, "Yuan Yuan, stop comparing yourself to Chong Chong's family. No matter how good their family is, it's someone else's home. We are the Leng family. There's no need to envy others."
Yuan Yuan muttered quietly, "What's so great about the Leng family?"
Leng Siyu leaned down and seriously asked, "Dad is protecting thousands of families, and Mom is protecting ours. As Dad and Mom's daughter, do you feel wronged?"
Yuan Yuan paused, considering the question carefully. She didn't respond, but continued wiping the table she had already wiped several times.
"It's very clean now," Leng Siyu softly complimented her, gently patting Yuan Yuan's little head.