When Xiaojiu was at the age of seven, Fei Consortium bought the private school in which Xiaojiu studies because of a change in strategic direction. Namely, Xiaojiu becomes the child of the school board.
âWhy did you tell her you bought the school?â Fei Ying complains, âYou know how naughty she is.â
Xiaojiu has always been a very independent child. This character of independence has changed since she went to primary school last year. Fei Ying receives the teacherâs call almost every day to tell her that Xiaojiu frightens her classmates to cry.
âThe children who are frightened by my daughter are all fools.â This is the reaction of her father who loves his daughter so much, âXiaojiu is so cute. How can she really hurt anyone?â
Fei Ying is speechless.
âMy good girl! Our daughter is innocent.â Fei Shan hugs his little wife. âSheâs as cute as you are. Donât worry!â
Fei Ying doesnât tell Fei Yi that except for him, Xiaojiuâs brother also loves her so much. As a result, itâs not Fei Yingâs turn to worry about Xiaojiu.
Caesar School has a long history. Its headquarter is in S City. Ying Family owns it. It is said that Mrs. Ying started it in person. Now, after more than 30 years, it is still a top aristocratic school.
âBrother Mingxi, could you please have lunch with me this noon?â Xiaojiu asks. She is seven years old now, with snow-white skin and two big eyes as clear as two glazed beads. At this moment, she blinks at the teenager in front of her, pouting her small pink lips as though she will cry if he refuses.
Not far away, a few boys of junior high school are shouting in their hearts. How cute! How lovely! Thatâs Fei Changge of the second grade. Itâs said that her family just bought the school.
âDonât come to find me. Iâll go to your restaurant.â Chen Mingxi is now called Li Mingxi. Li Yi and Chen Hong got married a year ago. So he changed into his fatherâs surname.
The 12-year-old teenager is a junior one student. Not like other greasy young boys, Li Mingxi doesnât have pimples. His white and clean face looks so good. Especially his eyes, when he squints slightly to you, he looks so gentle, which makes you fall in love with him easily.
âWhat a waste of time!â Xiaojiu says, âItâs faster that I run to find you.â The spicy fish in the restaurant of junior high school is very delicious.
Li Mingxi touches the little girlâs head. He likes the hairy feeling so that he rubs it a few more times. âIâll take it to you. Itâs so hot. You donât need to go back and forth.â
âOkay!â Xiaojiu enters into the teaching building satisfactorily.
Li Mingxi stands there. After a little arm waves to him from a classroom on the third floor, he turns and leaves.
After he walks a few steps, two boys come and laugh at him.
âDonât give it to me.â Li Mingxi says with a straight face and his eyes turn cold.
âWhy donât you take a look?â One of the boys says. The boy has a round face and wears glasses, handing him a love letter. âJust take it first. Then you can choose to throw it away. Otherwise, she will not give me limited edition skin if she finds I donât give it to you.â
Another yellow-haired boy laughs filthier, handing him a box. âItâs chocolate in it. Itâs said that this kind of imported chocolate is hard to buy.â He says.
âI wonât eat it.â Li Mingxi doesnât look at it and keeps walking straightly.
The yellow-haired boy catches him in a hurry. âThen you should take it and give it to me in the dormitory!â
Li Mingxi finally looks at them and asks, âYou receive so many gifts every day. Why donât you share with me?â
â... You want it?â The round-faced teenager stares at him. âDonât you never look at those girls?â
The yellow-haired boy lowers his voice to ask, âArenât you afraid that your baby becomes anger?â
Li Mingxi and Fei Changge grow up together. Li Mingxi loves her so much that he even wants to stay with her every day. Others donât know that. But their class knows it very well.
âShe loves this brand of chocolate.â Li Mingxi glances at the yellow-haired boy. âThrow the extra stuff and give the chocolate to me when we go back.â
The three teenagers walk away slowly. The round-faced boy still says something.
âThose girls are so funny. Our class has already spread the story about you and Xiaojiu. But some people donât believe it yet. They always want to bump their head against a nail.â
âYou know that, this year, there is a beautiful girl of junior one who has declared that she must make an appointment with you...â
Xiaojiu is sitting in her seat. Her deskmate is the best students in the class. He is a thin and weak boy.
âDo you eat bread?â The little boy takes out a beautifully wrapped bread from his desk. âItâs made by my mother. Do you want to eat it?â
Xiaojiu squints at him. âI put caterpillars in your pencil-box yesterday. But you still invites me to eat bread today?â
â... Iâm not angry with you. Itâs okay if you donât put them anymore. Eat it fast!â
âReally?â Xiaojiu takes the bread and smells it. It seems to be delicious.
She thinks about it for a moment, then she puts one of her rubbers, which is going to run out, in her deskmateâs pencil box. Xiaojiu says, âWell, I wonât scare you with worms anymore.â
Then she opens her mouth wide to take a bite of bread. As she eats it, she squints and says, âYour motherâs bread is so delicious. Can you bring me another one tomorrow?â
â... Okay.â
The little boyâs eyes glisten and he dares not look at her.
Xiaojiu takes another big mouthful. Then she hears a click. She opens her mouth. The white bread is dyed red, and the blood flows from her mouth to her chin.
âFei... Fei Changge...â The little boy stammers. His face turns white suddenly.
Xiaojiu touches her mouth and turns pale, too. She stammers, âAm... Am I going to die?â
The little boy blubbers, âIâm wrong. Iâm wrong. Please donât! Donât die!â
When the teacher comes into the classroom, she hears such a frightening sound that she almost falls down due to fear. Running to the two children in a hurry, she is shocked so much when she sees Xiaojiuâs face full of blood.
âChang... Changge. Donât move. Let me have a look...â The teacher says.
Opening Xiaojiuâs mouth carefully, the teacher checks it again and again. Then her expression changes.
âFei Changge, your tooth has fallen out...â
Li Mingxi runs to the infirmary so quickly that his breathing is too rapid. As soon as he comes in, he locks his eyes on the little girl sitting on the sofa and covering her mouth. When she sees him, she gives her watery eyes on him.
âXiaojiu...â Li Mingxiâs heart is ache to see her. He hugs her in his arms. âDonât be afraid. Iâm here.â
Xiaojiu clamps her hand against her mouth and hesitates in speaking. Li Mingxi is so anxious. He picks her up and runs out. âLetâs go to the hospital!â
âWell...â The school doctor stops him with smiling. âShe lost a tooth, which is normal. Itâs time to change it.â
Li Mingxiâs body becomes stiff. He turns around slowly. âChange...Change tooth?â
âBrother Mingxi, stop talking. You will let others hear that!â Xiaojiu quickly covers his mouth. Li Mingxi just finds that the little girl really lost one tooth and she speaks indistinctly for her teeth missing.
âBut sheâs too old to change her teeth...â Li Mingxi remembers it better than anyone else, for the last tooth that Xiaojiu changed is in the box near his bed.
âThis is not so sure. Some children change teeth late, even at the age of ten.â The school doctor adjusts her glasses. âThe new tooth has just appeared. Generally, it wonât fall out so early.â
Li Mingxi frowns, âXiaojiu, tell me how the tooth fell.â
âWell... Because I ate bread?â Xiaojiu thinks about it and says, âThereâs a very hard raisin in it.â
So the raisin made the tooth fall out? Li Mingxi doesnât believe that raisins could be as hard as that.
Finally, Li Mingxi calls the driver to come. Then he asks for leave with Xiaojiu. The teacher could have wanted to say they didnât need to ask for leave because of changing a tooth. But when she sees Li Mingxiâs serious expression, she canât say it anymore.
When Fei Ying receives Chen Hongâs phone call, she realizes that her daughter is sent to other peopleâs house and the little girl loses a tooth. After Fei Ying goes there, she looks at her daughterâs teeth happily.
She asks, âOh! Do you feel indistinct when you speak?â
Xiaojiu stares at her angrily. âMommy, you are so bad!â
âItâs too delicate of you to ask for leave.â Fei Ying educates her daughter. Li Mingxi says quickly, âAunt Ying, donât blame Xiaojiu. Itâs I who brought her back.â
Fei Ying endures the impulse of turning her eyes white. âMingxi, you canât spoil her like this. Look at her behaviors now. Donât you know that she bullies her classmates every day?â
âXiaojiu wonât bully her classmates. It must be other peopleâs wrong.â Mingxi says with the same face as his future father-in-law.
Chen Hong laughs beside them. âFei Ying, donât bully our Xiaojiu!â
âThis is my daughter!â Fei Ying stares at her.
Chen Hong laughs happier, âNow she is your daughter. Few years later, she will be ours!â
Li Mingxi lets Xiaojiu rest at home for three days. At the beginning, Fei Ying certainly doesnât agree. But Fei Yi also loves his daughter so much. The same as Li Mingxi, he also thinks that her daughter is seriously ill and needs a good rest.
At school, Xiaojiu puts her schoolbag on the table. The little boy who is her deskmate asks anxiously, â Fei Changge...Are you all right?â
Xiaojiu covers her mouth and shakes her head. âItâs all right. But my tooth hasnât grown out yet.â
âIâm sorry... Itâs all my fault.â Suddenly the little boy cries, âIâm wrong. The bread I gave you was out of date. I had bought it for three days. And itâs a broken bean in it rather than a raisin. I... Iâm wrong. Iâm sorry for you!â
Xiaojiu looks at him without any expression. After a long time, she says, âSo you deliberately gave me the broken bread?â
âBecause... Because you scared me with worms. So... So...â
Xiaojiu waves her hand, âNever mind. I forgive you.â
âReally?â The little boy looks at her with emotion. âItâs very kind of you. Iâll bring you fresh and delicious bread tomorrow.â
Xiaojiu pats him on the shoulder and says, âRemember your words. Donât forget.â
The little boy nods heavily.
The next day he really brings delicious bread-and-butter. When he comes back after lunch and opens the pencil box, his face turns white. A fat and fleshy green caterpillar is lying there. The caterpillar is very active and twists to climb out.
âDidnât you say that you forgave me?â The desk-mate asks with tears.
Xiaojiu pokes at the caterpillar in the pencil box. She answers, âYes, I forgive you. But I didnât say I would not put caterpillars in your box!â
âYou... You...â The little boy bursts out crying and runs out.