After the previous incident, Xiao Hu had been unusually well-behaved for a few days. Yu Qianran would see Lu Zhishen running over to play with him within a minute after class ended, only to dawdle reluctantly back to his own classroom when the bell rang.
Yu Qianran’s greatest joy every day was waiting for Lu Zhishen to arrive, walking to and from school together, playing together during breaks.
On this day, the well-behaved Xiao Hu began to stir up trouble again.
He stomped over to Yu Qianran and Lu Zhishen with an imposing air. “Hey, you! Fight me. The winner gets to play with Ranran.”
Lu Zhishen frowned, his face showing only annoyance at being disturbed. “Ranran is already playing with me.”
He didn’t need to fight, Ranran liked playing with him anyway.
“You’re pro… provoking me!” Xiao Hu’s face flushed red, stumbling over the word “provoke” and blurring it out.
“If you fight me and win, I won’t bother him anymore.”
“Really?” Lu Zhishen was sorely tempted.
Xiao Hu nodded. “Yeah.”
“No.” Yu Qianran grabbed Lu Zhishen’s hand. “You promised Auntie.”
No fighting!
Yu Qianran mouthed silently.
Lu Zhishen blinked, pointing at Xiao Hu. “But he keeps bothering us.”
If a fight could make him stop bothering them, wouldn’t that be a good thing?
Yu Qianran, acting like a little adult, put on a stern face. “No.”
Lu Zhishen: “Ranran~”
“No.”
Lu Zhishen hung his head dejectedly.
Having dealt with Lu Zhishen, Yu Qianran turned to Xiao Hu. “If you bother me again, I’ll tell the teacher.”
Xiao Hu puffed up angrily. “Yu Qianran, aren’t you childish? All you know how to do is tattle!”
Yu Qianran snorted. “None of your business.”
Defeated in his attempt to stir up trouble, Xiao Hu left unwillingly.
Yu Qianran turned back to Lu Zhishen with a gentle expression, not forgetting to remind him, “Shenshen, you can’t fight, okay? Otherwise, I won’t talk to you.”
Lu Zhishen felt wronged but obediently replied, “Got it.”
In the afternoon, sunlight retreated from the corridor, and the swaying green leaves outside the window were tinged with specks of yellow, like sprites changing outfits as they diligently dyed the world.
During naptime, while everyone was asleep, Xiao Hu sneaked out and crept into Lu Zhishen’s classroom.
“Lu Zhishen, come out.” Xiao Hu stood beside Lu Zhishen’s bed, leaning on one hand while pushing Lu Zhishen’s arm with the other.
Lu Zhishen, who had just closed his eyes: “…”
He suddenly opened his eyes, his dark pupils meeting Xiao Hu’s chubby face.
!?
Lu Zhishen sat up, whispering, “What do you want?”
“Come out and fight,” Xiao Hu said matter-of-factly. “You’re not scared, are you?”
Lu Zhishen sighed. “I’m not fighting, and I’m not scared.”
He was listening to Ranran and being a good boy.
Xiao Hu curled his lip. “You say you’re not scared, but I’m younger than you and I’m willing to fight you.”
Lu Zhishen looked disdainful. “Say what you want and leave. Don’t disturb my nap!”
Xiao Hu took a deep breath, remembering not to make too much noise and attract the teacher’s attention. He gritted his teeth but kept his voice low. “If you don’t fight me, I’ll go fight Yu Qianran. He definitely can’t beat me.”
…
“Waaah!”
An earth-shattering cry woke the napping children.
“What’s wrong? Who’s crying?”
“So noisy, I want to sleep.”
“What happened?”
Yu Qianran drowsily opened his eyes, his ears filled with the sound of chattering voices.
He yawned, hugging his blanket as he struggled to wake up.
Nap time wasn’t over yet, but Ranran wanted to sleep…
Yu Qianran lay back down again, closing his eyelids that hadn’t stayed open for too long.
“Ah, seems like Xiao Hu lost a fight with someone.”
“Huh? Really?”
“How did Xiao Hu sneak out to fight again?”
Yu Qianran thought to himself, “Oh, it’s Xiao Hu again.”
He wasn’t surprised at all. Last semester, Xiao Hu had often bullied other kids when the teachers weren’t looking.
This had nothing to do with him. Sleep was more important.
A while later, Yu Qianran heard other kids sharing the news they’d gathered.
“Xiao Hu fought with a kid from the senior class and got beaten until he cried.”
“What?!”
“Why? Does he want to be the boss of the senior class too?”
An alarm bell went off in Yu Qianran’s mind.
It probably isn’t Shenshen, right…
He just told Shenshen this morning not to fight.
No, Ranran wasn’t at ease.
Yu Qianran sighed softly and got out of bed.
He followed the direction where other kids were loosely gathered, walking all the way to the end of the hallway, the area under the staircase.
Xiao Hu had gone from wailing loudly to sniffling quietly. The child standing opposite him was a bit hard to see, so Yu Qianran took two more steps forward.
“Hey, little one, go back.”
A kindergarten teacher tried to stop him.
“Teacher, I’ll just take a quick look.” With that, Yu Qianran nimbly slipped past and immediately spotted Lu Zhishen.
Yu Qianran fell silent.
“Shenshen,” he called out unhappily.
“Ranran, I…” Lu Zhishen was delighted at first, but then remembered what he had done and guiltily hid his hands behind his back.
Yu Qianran approached Lu Zhishen with a stern face. “Why did you fight?”
You promised Ranran just this morning.
Shenshen is a liar. Shenshen doesn’t keep his word.
“I… Ranran, don’t be mad.” Lu Zhishen reached out, trying to hold Yu Qianran’s hand to appease him, but Yu Qianran mercilessly swatted it away. “He was the one who insisted on fighting me. I was actually sleeping.”
His childish voice carried a hint of grievance.
It was all Xiao Hu’s fault, making it so he couldn’t even hold Ranran’s hand anymore.
Ranran must be really angry.
“Why did you even bother with him?” Yu Qianran pursed his lips, wearing an expression that said, “Let’s see what other excuses you can come up with.”
“He said if I didn’t fight him, he’d fight you. He also said he wouldn’t cry.” Afraid that Yu Qianran would ignore him, Lu Zhishen blurted everything out in a rush.
After speaking, Lu Zhishen looked at Yu Qianran with a pitiful expression.
“Ranran, I was wrong. Please don’t be mad, okay?”
After hearing Lu Zhishen’s explanation, Yu Qianran was only a little bit angry. “Next time you fight, you have to tell me in advance.”
Lu Zhishen’s eyes sparkled with hope. “If I tell you, can I fight then?”
Yu Qianran put his hands on his hips, lecturing seriously. “No.”
Good kids don’t fight.
Xiao Hu’s piercing cries interrupted the two children’s conversation. “Wahhh, I don’t care, you hit me!”
Yu Qianran turned around and carefully examined Xiao Hu’s bruised and swollen face.
He couldn’t help it, he laughed out loud.
Xiao Hu cried even louder.
The teacher: “…”
All that comforting went to waste.
Fighting was a serious matter, and this time, parents would have to be called again.
Familiar faces appeared: Xiao Hu’s dad and the butler uncle, though Gu Kexin was missing this time.
Xiao Hu’s dad arrived with a fierce, menacing attitude. “This is absolutely outrageous. I demand you expel him.”
He hadn’t gotten over his anger from last time, and this time it was definitely the other side’s fault. He wouldn’t let it go easily.
The teacher refused. “That’s too severe.”
“What do you mean? Are you trying to protect a child who bullies the younger ones?” Xiao Hu’s father thundered angrily. “If I don’t get an explanation today, I’ll call the reporters and expose your school’s behavior.”
The teacher tried to intervene, “Mr. Hu, please calm down. This matter still needs to be discussed.”
“Discuss what?!” Xiao Hu’s father pointed fiercely at Lu Zhishen. “Last time, my child was bullied by them too, and your kindergarten did nothing about it. Get your principal out here!”
Yu Qianran and Lu Zhishen: “…”
Last time, it was your son Xiao Hu who started the trouble, and this time too!
Xiao Hu’s father had completely redefined Yu Qianran and Lu Zhishen’s understanding of people, they had never seen someone so unreasonable, twisting the truth and making baseless accusations.
The principal was forced to come out.
Xiao Hu’s father insisted on expelling Lu Zhishen, but the fault didn’t lie solely with Lu Zhishen, Xiao Hu had provoked the incident first.
For a moment, the principal was also in a difficult position, unable to offend either side.
Lu Zhishen whispered, “Ranran, if I get expelled, won’t I be able to go to kindergarten with you anymore?”
“No, you won’t,” Yu Qianran sensed Lu Zhishen’s unease. “Ranran will go find Shenshen.” He tightly grasped Lu Zhishen’s hand.
Lu Zhishen was moved.
Yu Qianran stepped forward fearlessly and asked, “Uncle, you think Shenshen bullied Xiao Hu, so you want him expelled, right?”
Xiao Hu’s father was taken aback, unsure why Yu Qianran was getting involved, but he nodded anyway. “Yes.”
Yu Qianran spoke as if innocently bringing it up, “Uncle, Xiao Hu has been bullying me all along, so I want the kindergarten to expel him too.”
“You’re lying!” Xiao Hu’s father retorted. “My Xiao Hu would never bully anyone.”
Yu Qianran remained calm and said word by word, “He did. He wouldn’t let other kids play with me, and he bullied other children too.”
Originally, Ranran didn’t care, but Xiao Hu’s father was too terrible, he actually wanted to expel Shenshen. He absolutely couldn’t let the bad guy succeed.
Xiao Hu’s father twisted the truth again, “How can you lie at such a young age without even thinking? I refuse to let my son attend such a school. I’m going to sue your kindergarten!”
“I’m not lying. We can check the surveillance footage,” Yu Qianran didn’t give Xiao Hu’s father any chance to slander him. “Uncle, do you dare to watch?”
Xiao Hu’s father said, “Watch it then!”
His son was the most well-behaved child, just a bit mischievous.
Yu Qianran took advantage of a free moment to message his mother, asking her to come to the kindergarten and help him.
So, when a group of people headed to the surveillance room to review the footage from the past few days and Xiao Hu’s father tried to deny everything, Gu Kexin arrived with a lawyer.
“What else do you have to say?” Gu Kexin blocked the doorway, her face cold as she addressed Xiao Hu’s father.
Xiao Hu’s father instantly lost his earlier aggressive demeanor, acting like a weasel trying to flatter her. “This is all a misunderstanding. It’s normal for kids to have little conflicts.”
“I don’t think it’s just kids playing around,” Gu Kexin sneered. If it weren’t for today’s incident, she might never have realized her child had been enduring bullying all along.
“It really is a misunderstanding. Look, my son was beaten up by your son’s friend today,” Xiao Hu’s father held his bruised and swollen son, almost pleading. “How about we just let this go? I won’t hold him responsible.”
Gu Kexin glanced over and didn’t think Lu Zhishen had done anything wrong.
If it weren’t for Lu Zhishen fighting with the other boy, that child would have come looking to fight her Ranran!
Ranran was so young and not in good health. She didn’t dare imagine what could have happened if a real fight had broken out. She absolutely would not let that father and son get away with this!
“Attorney Zhang, I’ll leave the rest to you.” Gu Kexin ignored Xiao Hu’s father’s pleas and politely addressed the kindergarten principal and the others. “I’ll also trouble the principal to allow my lawyer to copy the surveillance footage.”
The principal, being shrewd, naturally knew whose side to take for the best outcome for himself and the kindergarten, and quickly agreed.
Yu Qianran was very happy. Although he didn’t fully understand everything, he knew that Shenshen could attend kindergarten with him.
“Ranran, it’s Mom’s fault.” Gu Kexin trembled as she gently hugged Yu Qianran.
How could she have been so careless? Seeing Ranran acting normal every day and not mentioning any bullying when asked, she had truly believed nothing was wrong.
Ranran had secretly endured so much hardship when she wasn’t paying attention, and at that time, she was too busy with work. Why hadn’t she spared a little more time to pay closer attention?
“Mom is the best.” Yu Qianran raised his hand to pat Gu Kexin’s shoulder, leaned in, and kissed her cheek. “Mom helped Ranran teach the bad guys a lesson today. Ranran loves Mom the most, the most, the most. Mom, don’t be sad, or Ranran will be sad too.”
Yu Qianran didn’t dwell on the hardships he had endured before. He only wanted his mom to be happy now.
Lu Zhishen said earnestly, “Auntie, don’t be sad. I’ll beat him up again if needed.”
Gu Kexin chuckled softly.
They were both such good children.