Chapter 6

The tail of summer flashed by.

Pei Zhiyuan sighed around the house. “I don’t want to go to school.”

He attended a Private School, nearly an aristocratic academy, which started more than half a month early — pure torture for a child his age.

Ding Mei coaxed patiently. “You brought home an award certificate last semester, Little Yuan — weren’t you so happy then? Besides, at school you get to play with your classmates. So much fun!”

Pei Zhiyuan considered this. “That’s true, but…” He pointed at the little girl across the table. “Why doesn’t Yu Mian have to go to school?”

Ding Mei blinked. This little girl wasn’t hers to manage.

Pei Tiancheng was reading a financial magazine when Pei Zhiyuan ran over to pester him. “Grandpa, Grandpa, it’s not fair! Why do only I have to go to school and she doesn’t?”

“Let Grandpa think about that one, all right?”

Pei Tiancheng set down the magazine and lifted his grandson onto his knee, though his gaze drifted… True, he had brought this child back only to guarantee the partnership would hold — but who could say whether things might change someday? Since she was here anyway, sending her to school was merely a matter of a little money.

“Grandpa, have you thought of an answer?”

“I have. Little Yuan starts first grade. Mianmian is a year younger, but she’ll go to school with Little Yuan too. Understood?”

Yu Mian looked at him without a word, wearing a slightly dazed expression.

Pei Zhiyuan mocked her, running over to tug her braid. “Fluffy Lambie, you big dummy! Now you have to get up early with me every day!”

Yu Mian’s head jerked sideways at the tug. She bit her lip, and the moment he let go, she stood up at once, wanting to go upstairs.

Pei Songxi happened to be coming down.

Yu Mian walked up to her, tilted her head back, and tugged her sleeve. “Auntie Pei.”

“Ahahaha, Mama, did you hear that? She calls Auntie ‘Auntie Pie’!”

Yu Mian had a small but persistent trouble: she’d woken up one day having lost a tooth, and now she spoke with a slight whistle.

Pei Zhiyuan seized every chance to tease her about it… and right in front of Auntie Pei, no less. Her face went red with mortification.

Pei Songxi said mildly, “It’s fine.”

Pei Zhiyuan was a regular chatterbox. “Auntie, you don’t know — she’s starting school with me too! Someone gets to suffer alongside me!”

Pei Songxi’s gaze sharpened slightly, settling on Pei Tiancheng. “Father, you approved this?”

Enrolling a child in school required solving many problems — household registration, age, prior schooling…

If he knew all these details so well, then either he had been close friends with Yu Mian’s parents. But she knew better than anyone that in his heart there was only profit, no personal feeling; he would never take on trouble for friendship’s sake. Or else Yu Mian still had living relatives, and he could obtain all this information without the slightest effort.

Pei Tiancheng turned the pages of his magazine with perfect calm, the authority of long command about him. “Xu Zhong arranged it.”

Pei Songxi’s features turned cold. She waved Yu Mian off, sending her upstairs first.

Yu Mian, ever obedient, ran up at once.

Ding Mei sensed the shift in atmosphere too. Meeting Pei Songxi’s gaze, she received a slight nod, took the hint, and left with the rambunctious Pei Zhiyuan.

Only father and daughter remained in the living room.

The air froze for an instant.

Pei Songxi exhaled lightly. “Father. Send her home.”

Pei Tiancheng’s brow creased. “Songxi, why must you keep fighting this?”

Pei Songxi’s voice was flat, plainer this time than before. “I don’t know why she came to this house. But I know there must be something behind it. Power struggles are a game for the adult world — I don’t understand why you insist on dragging a child this small into it. She’s only six.”

“I already told you — her parents died, there’s no one to raise her, so I brought her back. Songxi, what is going through your head? Can you not trust your own father in the slightest? Drop this matter. I won’t agree.”

Pei Songxi knew she could not persuade him.

As a businessman, he had his own calculations and motives, and as for the hidden matters — her father was determined to keep them from her, so he would never breathe a word. And he was now the Head of the Pei Family; he would only let her know what he wanted known.

“Then let her go to school.”

Pei Songxi gave up trying to persuade him, dropped that single line, and left.

By the time she returned to her room, Yu Mian was knocking at her door, her words whistling through the gap in her teeth. “Auntie Pie (Auntie Pei), I get to go to school! Can I really go to school?”

She trusted her with all her heart.

Pei Songxi looked down at her, a faint sorrow in her eyes.

She smoothed the stray hairs at her forehead. “Mm. Go. Study hard… Mianmian.”

It was the first time she’d called her by name. Her voice was clear and cool, carrying a trace of melancholy far too subtle for a child to catch.

Yu Mian was simply overjoyed at being called “Mianmian,” clenching her little fists. “Of course! I’ll study really hard!”

She was so excited by that almost-encouraging remark she could hardly sleep.

The next morning, when Auntie Zhang came to wake her, she shot up in bed. “Oh no, I have to hurry — it’s my first day of school!”

Auntie Zhang brought in a blue-and-white school uniform, styled her hair into a high little braid, and handed her a pale-blue schoolbag. “There are pencils and an eraser in your pencil case, plus two notebooks and your water cup. You…”

Her eyes grew hot as she spoke — perhaps anyone who had been a mother could never bear to see a child suffer. “It’s your first day at school. Don’t be afraid, you hear? The teachers are all very kind. Don’t be afraid.”

Hearing her repeat “don’t be afraid” over and over, Yu Mian’s smile was like morning sunlight in March. “I’m not afraid.”

After her initial quiet reserve, the sunny, open nature in her temperament showed itself now and then, like a small round sun.

She skipped a few steps, quieting only when she reached the downstairs floor, and sat beside Pei Songxi to finish breakfast. “I’m off now!”

Seeing her joy and excitement, Pei Songxi lowered her eyes after only a second. “Mm. Go.”

Pei Zhiyuan had overslept and came out of his room sniffling. “I want to sleep more… sob, I want to sleep more.”

“There, there, no crying, sweetheart. Grandma fell ill last night, and Mama has to go see her now, so I can’t take you. Uncle Gao the driver will take you to school — take this bread and eat it on the way. Have Papa pick you up after work.”

He wiped his tears, took the bread, reluctantly shouldered his schoolbag, and waved at Yu Mian. “Let’s go! School time!”

Yu Mian nodded, looked back once at Pei Songxi, then turned and followed him out.

The driver dropped the two children at the school gate, where a teacher was waiting outside. Pei Zhiyuan hopped out of the car and announced at the top of his lungs, “Hello, Teacher!”

The teacher beamed at him. “You must be Student Pei Zhiyuan?”

“Yes! Teacher, my name is Pei Zhiyuan!”

“Is this your little sister?”

Yu Mian went red and mumbled a hello, backing up a step — but Pei Zhiyuan grabbed her schoolbag. “Yes, Teacher. Her name is Yu Mian.”

“All right, all right, you two, come along with Teacher.”

The teacher walked ahead; the two children followed behind.

Yu Mian said nothing, only occasionally lifting her head to look at the buildings around her and the people coming and going.

Pei Zhiyuan, on the other hand, never stopped talking. “Even though you stole my auntie… but, but you live in my house now, so that makes you my little sister. Only I get to tease you. Nobody else gets to bully you, got it?”

Yu Mian nodded blankly.

Pei Zhiyuan pouted. “Look at you, all dopey — you probably didn’t understand a word. If anyone bullies you, come find me.”

Yu Mian nodded again. “Mm.”

The two children were placed in the same class, different seats.

Yu Mian’s deskmate was a quiet girl, and Yu Mian didn’t speak to her.

Her first day of school.

She sneaked glances around her; everything felt so strange… She kind of wanted to cry.

If only Auntie Pei were here.

…

The first day passed quickly — textbooks handed out, self-introductions, teacher introductions, chatting with new classmates. There was hardly anything to do.

Pei Zhiyuan had a wonderful time with his new classmates. They eyed the Phone Watch on his wrist enviously:

“My papa won’t buy me one.”

“Pei Zhiyuan, can I touch it?”

“Hey, I saw it first! Pei Zhiyuan, can we be friends?”

The little boy loved being the center of attention, so much so that after school he walked to the school gate surrounded by a crowd, grinning foolishly as he climbed into his father’s car, chattering and wheedling until he’d told his father every last detail of the school day — and completely forgot something.

When they got home, Pei Songxi was watering the flowers. Her hands stilled as she watched her brother return holding only their nephew; she looked behind him, her voice cooling by three degrees. “Where’s Mianmian?”

Pei Zhiyuan froze, then burst into loud wails. “I don’t know… I forgot her! Is she still at school? I’m sorry…”

Pei Songxi said nothing, her brows slowly knitting, like a layer of deep-autumn frost settling over her face.

She snatched up the car keys and slammed the door behind her.