âOf course, do you think Iâm as bad as you are?â Yuan Yuan said as he looked at the strange shape that his sister had made. He couldnât even tell what it was supposed to be because it looked like a pile of poop.
Xi Xi said sulkily, âIâm still a beginner, alright? After Iâve mastered this, I swear Iâll be better than you.â She refused to admit defeat and continued to try to shape the playdough in her hands.
Yuan Yuan had stopped playing with playdough for a while. There was a period when he had enjoyed playing with playdough and could create many tiny animals and even human figurines from playdough.
He dug up several kinds of colored playdough and started to mold them into shapes. 10 minutes later, he had created a tiny human figurine.
Xi Xi turned to look at her brother and couldnât help but clap her hands happily when she saw that the human figurine looked a lot like her mother. He even managed to recreate her motherâs hairstyle and clothes.
âYuan Yuan, itâs amazing how you managed to create a figurine that looks so much like mom,â Xi Xi said as she looked at her brother in admiration. The more she interacted with her brother, the more clever he seemed to her. He could speak English, play chess, recognized many words, and could even draw. He was the complete opposite of her since she could only dance and couldnât even write her name properly.
Yuan Yuan nodded and chose to ignore her praise. He realized that his sister was only good at chattering non-stop and even her dancing was only of an average standard. She couldnât even compare to the girls in his class.
Yuan Yuan continued to play with playdough and soon, he created another human figurine. This time, he created a male figurine.
He had modeled this figurine after his father. The figurine was clad in a black shirt and pants and carried a document in his hand as though he was hard at work.
âYuan Yuan, who is this?â Xi Xi asked curiously when she saw that the human figurine looked like an adult male.
âThis is my dad,â Yuan Yuan said as he placed the figurine of his father next to the figurine of his mom.
âYuan Yuan, could you make me a figurine of my dad?â Xi Xi asked. She was upset when she saw the figurine of Yuan Yuanâs dad being placed next to the figurine of her mom.
Yuan Yuan froze and turned to look at Xi Xi with a frown.
âWhy should I make one of your dad?â Yuan Yuan asked. He didnât like Xi Xiâs father at all.
âPlease help me. Iâm sure you could do it, canât you?â Xi Xi said as she tugged on his clothes. She had learned that to act cute in front of her brother and parents because they would always give in to her requests whenever she did that.
âI wonât do it,â Yuan Yuan said with an unhappy frown. âYour dad is so ugly and he would even beat others up. Why donât you try to make him yourself?â
Yuan Yuan had an extremely poor impression of his sisterâs father. He would vaguely remember Xi Xiâs father hitting his mother and himself. Although he couldnât remember the exact details, he knew that Xi Xiâs father had hit them.
Xi Xi was extremely upset by her brotherâs words. âYuan Yuan, my dad is the best. He doesnât hit anyone,â she retorted.
Xi Xi hated how her brother would always insist that her dad was not a good person.
He Xiyan could hear her children arguing when she returned home.
Their argument went along the lines of âmy dad is the best, not yoursâ, and âmy dad is handsome while your dad is ugly.â
He Xiyan coughed softly and soon, Yuan Yuan and Xi Xi fell silent.
They both said in unison, âMomâ¦â
He Xiyan smiled as she walked over and gently patted their shoulders.
Yuan Yuan and Xi Xi noticed that her hand was wrapped in a thick layer of bandages and she was clearly injured.
âMom, what happened?â Xi Xi asked as she bit her lip and looked at her motherâs injured arm.