Back to Three Years Old: Crushing Scumbags on a Parenting Reality Show 166

Chapter 166

“Congratulations, congratulations, congratulations to our two little class presidents!”

Arriving home from school, as soon as they opened the door, Cheng Tingyan and Wei Maomao were showered with flower petals, their faces turning red.

Seriously! Being a class president in elementary school (and kindergarten), did it require such a celebration?!

They looked at Chen Sujuan inside, who was holding a big cake and saying congratulations, then at Zhang Shilan behind them, who had deliberately not opened the door for them, and at Liu Qiongfang by the door… who had just showered them with flower petals.

Whose idea was this?! Where could she hide?!

On the large cake were two cartoon little girls, holding hands.

Cheng Tingyan, her face flushed, secretly glanced at the little chubby bunny next to her.

These past few days, when picking up the little chubby bunny from school with Zhang Shilan, she had heard many stories about the little bunny’s good deeds at kindergarten from Teacher Hu. Her little chubby bunny had done so much, she deserved to be the class president, she earned it!

As for herself… She was just a twenty-something soul in a six-year-old body, she didn’t sleep or cause trouble in class, she finished her homework and didn’t make any mistakes, and she somehow became the class president after repeatedly failing to decline the teacher’s offer. She was truly embarrassed!

But Cheng Tingyan didn’t know that Wei Maomao, next to her, who was taking pictures of the cake with her smart watch, was also screaming internally!

Yan Yan was in first grade, she had to study, she had to be capable to be the class president, how hardworking, how amazing!

Unlike her… A twenty-something-year-old, who became the class president by mediating fights between a few-year-old children, persuading them to eat… oh, and comforting those who wet their beds. She truly… had no shame sharing this cake with Yan Yan!

The adults couldn’t hear the little babies’ inner thoughts, they just happily took a plastic knife and handed it to them.

Yes, to both of them.

Zhang Shilan placed their hands, one slender, one chubby, on the knife handle, then, under Chen Sujuan’s encouraging smile, they cut the cake together.

The two twenty-something souls shared a moment of awkwardness.

It felt like… they were cutting a wedding cake instead of a “promotion” cake…

Thankfully, this awkwardness was fleeting, washed away by the adults’ applause and praises.

Their blushing and silence, a secret only they knew, the adults, unable to read their minds, were touched by their rare shyness.

Even Wei Chengli, the director, was no exception.

“Are you okay?” Shi Dingshan asked, patting Wei Chengli’s shoulder. “Your eyes are so red, don’t tell me you’re going to cry! There are so many people here!”

“Sigh, I just feel regretful! They’re celebrating Yan Yan and Maomao becoming class presidents at home. I wish I were there.” Wei Chengli sighed. “It’s truly hard to balance work and family.”

“Think positively, you’re learning a lot from Director Qin, aren’t you? This kind of opportunity doesn’t come often, don’t think about home all the time, you’re a grown man.” Shi Dingshan said, glancing at Wei Chengli.

After knowing him for so long, Shi Dingshan truly admired Wei Chengli’s attachment to his family. A director, even if he didn’t travel all over the country, he should at least be a regular at the major film and television bases. But Wei Chengli, the films he made, Shi Dingshan had seen them, they were all filmed in their city and the surrounding areas.

He couldn’t leave his wife before, and now with a daughter, he was even more of a homebody.

But his daughter was truly thoughtful…

Shi Dingshan, remembering how carefully Wei Chengli held the insulated foam box yesterday, like it was a bomb, clicked his tongue. “Didn’t your family send you a box of treasures made by Maomao yesterday? Eating them should give you some strength to persevere.”

Wei Chengli sighed again. “How could I eat them all? One per day, just enough to keep me going.”

“One per day?” Shi Dingshan thought about the contents of the box. “Each one is barely a mouthful. And Maomao made them every day and froze them, those were already frozen for a week when you were at home, and you’re eating one per day, wouldn’t they be frozen for two weeks?”

“No, no, no, you can’t calculate it that way. I ate the oldest ones as soon as I arrived; it’s just a little over a week. And I’m strictly following the order Maomao made them.” Wei Chengli said proudly, raising his chin. “I eat them around 5 PM, it’s like having afternoon tea with them~~~”

Shi Dingshan: “As long as you’re happy…”

He really wanted to pack this guy up and send him home!

Week after week…

In the blink of an eye, it had been over two weeks since school started, and Wei Maomao had been the class president for over a week. She had gradually adapted to the kindergarten’s slow pace and noisy environment, she was also becoming more and more adept at resolving the children’s various strange conflicts and problems. And of course, the ingredients Teacher Hu gave her as rewards kept her busy making “takeout.”

Everything was good, her three-year-old life seemed to be on track.

Except for one thing, it was a bit… uncomfortable.

On Friday and Saturday nights, when she went downstairs to sleep with Yan Yan, Wei Maomao slept soundly.

But ever since school started, whenever she slept alone upstairs, she couldn’t sleep well. The recurring characters in her dreams were Cheng Feiying, Cheng Rongrong, and Bai Lei, whose face she couldn’t see clearly. Wang Qingchuan and Lu Xiuxiu’s dad would also make cameo appearances. They were all annoying people, making her angry all night. And every time, she felt restrained, struggling to fight back. Later, as the dreams became more frequent, perhaps because she was too angry, too anxious, she even evolved the ability to breathe fire, water, and lightning in her dreams…

Fighting monsters in her dreams, she was always tired when she woke up.

But with her mom’s constant reminders, Wei Maomao had to endure this five-days-of-monster-fighting, two-days-of-rest schedule.

And now, even her rest time was being reduced…

“No! I won’t! I won’t, I won’t, I won’t!” Wei Maomao shouted, rolling from the bed to the floor, just as she was about to roll back onto the bed, Zhang Shilan grabbed her by the collar.

“Mommy is talking to you nicely, stop rolling around!” Zhang Shilan said, struggling to hold down the little rascal.

“I’m not listening!” Wei Maomao said, her cheeks puffed out, she struggled. “We agreed that I wouldn’t go downstairs the night before school, then I can go the night before we don’t have school! Why can’t I go!”

Zhang Shilan laughed in exasperation. “Why can’t you go? You tell me, how many times do you go down that hole every day? Let’s just count today, once before school, once after school, once before dinner, twice after dinner. It’s only 7 PM now, and you usually go down again after your shower, that’s six times today, right? I’m not even counting the times you went down to sleep, just the times you went down during the day, let’s just say five times a day, to be conservative. It’s been two weeks since school started, so you went down seventy times, right? I think it’s even more, I’m underestimating.”

“Hmph…” Wei Maomao, caught, turned her head away, refusing to participate in the math lesson.

Zhang Shilan didn’t mind, she just pinched the little pufferfish’s face and said, “You went down seventy times, then let me ask you, how many times did Yan Yan come up?”

The little pufferfish deflated instantly.

Zhang Shilan knew the little chubby baby understood, she felt a pang of sympathy, she pulled the little one onto the bed and hugged her. “I know you and Yan Yan are good friends. But Yan Yan is six years old now, she’s in elementary school, she also needs her own space, right? If you go down to play with her, she’ll definitely be happy to play with you. Mmm… Do you understand what Mommy means? You can still go down, but not so often, give her some personal space, right?”

“I don’t always play every time…” Wei Maomao said, turning her face away.

Sometimes she just went down to say a few words, then left!

“So Mommy isn’t saying you can’t go down. How about… once or twice a day? That should be enough, right?” Zhang Shilan said, looking at the dejected little chubby baby in her arms, she felt a pang of regret, so she changed “once every one or two days” to “once or twice a day.”

A little bit of sadness now was better than more sadness later.

Yan Yan seemed to be a child who needed her own space, her not coming up also proved this. It was just… she seemed to be accepting the frequent visits because she couldn’t bear to reject Maomao. Although Zhang Shilan hadn’t observed any reluctance or displeasure from Yan Yan, but… if this continued, she would get tired of it.

Of course, because Maomao always went down, there was no need for Yan Yan to come up often. If Yan Yan came up once every two… three days? She wouldn’t have mentioned this. In fact, Zhang Shilan had never seen Yan Yan in their apartment.

Although the floor was connected, but if it wasn’t a mutual effort… A moderate distance was necessary for a lasting relationship.

Zhang Shilan, worried, after thinking about it for days, finally decided to talk to the little chubby baby today. But after this conversation, looking at the dejected little one in her arms, her heart ached even more.

Neither Zhang Shilan, who was conflicted, nor Wei Maomao, who was lost in thought, knew that someone came and left outside the door…

Cheng Tingyan, carrying a glass of pear water, came down from the little chubby bunny’s bedroom and returned to her own, she sat down on the chair silently, deep in self-reflection.

It wasn’t just because of the number of times Zhang Shilan said she went upstairs, it was also…

Cheng Tingyan wasn’t six years old; she knew Zhang Shilan wasn’t asking for an equal exchange of visits. As a mother, what she saw was her own child’s boundless enthusiasm, repeatedly offered, and another child…

The pear water on the table was still warm, steam rising slightly.

Cheng Tingyan stood up, walked to the wardrobe, and looked at herself in the full-length mirror.

In the mirror, wearing a light green, dandelion-patterned nightgown, was a six-year-old little girl, not a twenty-something woman.

This was how Maomao saw her, a child of similar age, a… good friend.

Good friends should reciprocate, respond to enthusiasm with enthusiasm, stand on equal footing, needing and being needed.

Maomao didn’t lack people to care for her; she shouldn’t accept that sincere affection with a caregiver’s mindset.

The six-year-old her… Cheng Tingyan closed her eyes, her hand on her chest, her childhood memories, and the memories of those few days before her rebirth, were so vivid.

Could she do it? Be like her past self…?

After a long while, when Cheng Tingyan walked past the living room with the pear water, Chen Sujuan was surprised.

“You’re not using the passage? You’re going outside?” Chen Sujuan asked, touching the glass. “It’s a bit cold now, you should have Maomao reheat it, then you won’t be coughing tomorrow.”

“Mmm.” Cheng Tingyan nodded, opening the door and walking out.

After the door closed, Liu Qiongfang clicked her tongue. “Maomao just choked on her food and coughed a few times this afternoon, she’ll be fine by tonight, what’s the use of your pear water?”

“You don’t understand.” Chen Sujuan said, glancing at Liu Qiongfang. “Children’s throats get irritated after coughing, drinking some pear water will make them feel better, you used to drink it when you were young.”

And… Yan Yan should also go upstairs.

Cheng Tingyan went upstairs, delivered the pear water, and quickly came back down. Back in her bedroom, she couldn’t help but look up at the panel in the ceiling.

It was Saturday today, no school tomorrow. But Maomao said earlier… she coughed this afternoon and wouldn’t be coming down to sleep tonight.

Mmm… So choking on an egg roll and coughing, how would that affect sleeping together at night…

Silence filled the quiet room.

Unable to go downstairs to sleep tonight, Wei Maomao felt a bit down.

But… she had indeed been too clingy. Yan Yan was in elementary school now, a big girl. School must be tiring; she would definitely want some alone time when she came back, to read or play, but she had insisted on having that hole made, constantly disturbing her, it truly was…

Wei Maomao felt ashamed of her lack of consideration and her greed. But the thought of distancing herself brought an unspoken sadness. To distract herself, she decided to start the work she had planned for tomorrow night earlier.

Late at night, Wei Maomao took out the old tablet she had sneaked out from the storage room again and opened the drawing software she thought she would never use again.

Wei Maomao didn’t know what other class presidents in kindergarten did, but after her initial speechlessness and helplessness, she truly felt a sense of responsibility.

Sigh, this damned sense of responsibility…

So, should she start with rejecting oppressive education and breaking free from her low self-esteem, or should she start with acknowledging women’s status and that there was no throne to inherit, or…

Her chubby fingers moved nimbly across the tablet screen, preparing for her next words of wisdom.

Although she didn’t have to be as cautious as on the show, with all those cameras, her earlier “genetics” remark, without a proper source, was a bit impulsive.

Thankfully, she managed to get away with it.

But she wouldn’t be so lucky every time. Wei Maomao decided to continue working on “Tutu Adventures.” Not just to provide a basis for her guidance and solutions to the children’s problems in her class, but also…

After the variety show ended, at the airport, Wei Maomao had learned from Wei Chengli about the popularity of “Tutu Adventures” online. Popularity brought influence, if she could not only provide a source for her views, but also help others, it would be even better.

As the night deepened, Wei Maomao’s little chubby paws drew and drew and drew on the tablet… She didn’t forget to keep her ears perked up, listening for any movements outside her door.

But Wei Maomao didn’t know that after witnessing the bunny wrapping herself in her blanket like a cocoon for several nights, Zhang Shilan had given up on checking on her and tucking her in.

Slippers, they made noise when walking in the corridor, but… not downstairs.

The newly installed panel, its hinges well-oiled, didn’t make a sound when opened, until Cheng Tingyan climbed a few more steps and stepped onto the floor.

The strange sound made Wei Maomao instinctively look towards its source, and in the next second, she was startled by the sudden appearance of someone in her room, she let out a muffled yelp, even dropping her tablet.

Cheng Tingyan, just coming up to perform her nightly routine of tucking in the bunny, found that the usual nightlight wasn’t on, and in the darkness, she saw a strange glow in the distance. Before she could even react, something was thrown at her.

Cheng Tingyan looked down, the tablet on the floor was lit, displaying the familiar, bizarre cartoon bunny on the screen.

The light from the tablet illuminated the dark room slightly.

“You…” Cheng Tingyan said, looking at the little chubby bunny on the castle bed, her head peeking out from under the bed canopy and blanket.

The sudden appearance of Cheng Tingyan! The dropped tablet, the Tutu she was drawing! Wei Maomao’s mind exploded!

Cheng Tingyan watched as the little chubby bunny rolled over like a ball and snatched the only source of light from the floor.

“Are you secretly watching cartoons instead of sleeping?” Cheng Tingyan asked, exasperated. “I saw it, ‘Tutu Adventures,’ right?”

Wei Maomao, who was racking her brain for an explanation, was stunned by this ready-made excuse.

“Go to bed early, we’ll watch it together this afternoon next time.” Cheng Tingyan said.

Wei Maomao, relieved that she got away with it so easily, looked at the figure in the darkness. “Yan Yan, why are you here?”

“…“ Cheng Tingyan wanted to mention her recent good deeds, to let the little chubby bunny know that she wasn’t like Zhang Shilan said, never coming up.

But the words felt strange on her tongue.

Ah, what a good person, not coming up during the day, but sneaking in at night…

“I just wanted to see if your cough is better.” Cheng Tingyan said, after searching for an excuse.

“It’s better now, I’m fine. Grandma’s pear water is delicious~~~” Wei Maomao said, clutching the tablet tightly, she was still a bit nervous, her words betraying her desire to have Cheng Tingyan leave. “Yan Yan, you should also go to bed early.”

“… Mmm.” Cheng Tingyan said, taking two steps back, she went down the stairs and closed the panel behind her.

After she left, Wei Maomao took a few deep breaths, then waited quietly in the darkness, after confirming that Cheng Tingyan wouldn’t suddenly come back because she forgot something, she turned on the tablet again.

But… Yan Yan came up! To see if her cough was better!

The tablet screen lit up again, illuminating the little chubby face, a smile on her lips.

A little bit of sweetness fueled her, her little chubby paws moved swiftly across the tablet screen, she quickly became immersed in her drawing.

But then…

Her enhanced hearing, a product of her past life’s experiences, caught a faint sound in the room, she instinctively minimized the drawing software and, lifting the tablet, saw… half a head on the floor?

Their eyes met, it was… awkward!

Under the light from the tablet, Cheng Tingyan hesitantly climbed up.

Wei Maomao glanced at the time on the screen, 11:55 PM…

After a long silence, someone finally spoke.

“You’re still watching cartoons?”

“Why are you here?”

One person speaking might have reduced the awkwardness, but two people speaking at the same time… it was awkwardness squared.

But when a third party appeared, the awkwardness vanished instantly, replaced by panic.

“Maomao? You’re not asleep yet? I thought I heard you talking?”

Zhang Shilan’s soft voice came from outside the door, startling both of them.