Before class started, the teacher and student had a lively chat. The more they talked, the more enthusiastic they became.
Before long, it was time for class to begin.
The math teacher, her face beaming with a smile and her eyes full of confidence in Feng Yuan, started the lesson.
She was a very skilled teacher. It was something many students could attest to.
And she was also good at adapting on the fly.
She would adjust her teaching pace according to each student’s situation.
After chatting with Feng Yuan earlier, her confidence in him had skyrocketed, so she added some addition and subtraction to today’s lesson.
“Yuan Yuan, you can count with your fingers.”
“If you take two fingers and add three more, how many fingers do you have in total?”
Feng Yuan began counting on his little hands.
“Five!”
The math teacher smiled brightly. “That’s right! Yuan Yuan is so smart!”
“So, two fingers plus three fingers make five fingers. Then what’s the result of 2 + 3?”
Feng Yuan: “…”
A blank look spread across Feng Yuan’s chubby little face.
The math teacher’s smile froze slightly. “Didn’t teacher say before? One finger represents one.”
Feng Yuan still looked completely lost.
Math teacher: “…”
The light in the teacher’s eyes gradually dimmed under the little one’s bewildered gaze.
Both teacher and student fell into an awkward silence.
After a long pause.
The math teacher, unwilling to give up, tried another approach. She picked up some small twigs to represent numbers, hoping Feng Yuan could grasp addition through counting them.
But after counting the twigs once, the moment it came to applying that knowledge to actual problems, he got everything wrong again.
The math teacher tried several different methods, but none of them worked.
In the end, she could only resort to the most primitive solution—copying.
“Addition table. Copy it down.”
Besides that, clutching onto her last shred of hope, she gave him a few math exercises to take home and practice.
After spending the entire class learning addition, Feng Yuan’s head was spinning.
He looked at the math problems the teacher had assigned. The expression on his chubby little face no longer looked like a child on the brink of rising. It looked more like one about to collapse.
“Yuan Yuan,” the teacher said gently, “when you go home… You can ask your brother and sister for help.”
Seeing the little boy’s tight, silent face, she reached out and patted his small head comfortingly.
“Learning is all about perseverance.”
Feng Yuan didn’t know whether his teacher’s comforting words had really sunk in.
All in all, the little figure packing up his schoolbag at the end looked rather dejected.
After leaving the classroom, while looking for his sister, Feng Yuan—as usual—called Qin Xun.
The two little ones were very close.
And Qin Xun already knew about Feng Yuan’s new “persona”.
As they talked, Feng Yuan lifted his smartwatch, his chubby little face on the verge of tears. “Qin Xun, Yuan Yuan can’t learn it!”
He wanted to study hard and amaze his dad and grandpa.
But right now, he couldn’t even do 2+3!
Qin Xun looked at the heartbroken little boy and felt an ache in his chest.
“It’s okay, Yuan Yuan. I’ll teach you slowly.”
He comforted the teary little one, cheering him up softly: “When you get back, I’ll teach you math, alright?”
Feng Yuan had already had more than enough of studying for one day.
But for the sake of his goal, he decided to push on just a little longer.
“Okay! Yuan Yuan will study as soon as he gets back!”
“Mm, Yuan Yuan is amazing, really amazing.”
After Qin Xun finished comforting Feng Yuan, he hung up the call.
Left alone in the villa, he started looking up plane tickets to go visit Feng Yuan.
He wasn’t afraid of living alone, nor was he afraid of loneliness.
But recently, the Qin family had been constantly bothering him. It was getting on his nerves.
Aside from the irritation of being harassed, there was also the ache of missing Feng Yuan.
He could see Feng Yuan every day through video calls.
But it had been a long time since he’d actually held him in his arms.
Thinking of the little one who was now working hard to “rise”, Qin Xun’s small face grew serious. In the end, he picked up the phone and called Li Sheng.
“Uncle Li, can I stay at your house this Friday?”
“Of course. I’ll have someone pick you up.”
“Alright, thank you.”
Qin Xun thanked him politely. After hanging up, he stood up to start packing his things ahead of time.
Time passed bit by bit.
Meanwhile, Feng Yuan had already returned home.
As soon as he got back, he immediately began working on his homework.
Feng Qi watched him with deep satisfaction.
Li Sheng brewed some tea and handed it to Feng Qi, speaking in a low voice: “It’s buckwheat tea. It is freshly bought.”
The last time they’d eaten out, the restaurant had served a pot of buckwheat tea. Feng Qi had really liked it.
After they came back, Li Sheng had someone bring some over from home.
The light fragrance of the buckwheat tea was soothing and pleasant.
Holding the cup, Feng Qi looked at the little one doing homework not far away, his lips curving into a smile. “If our Yuan Yuan’s ‘dark phase’ could last just two more days, that would be perfect.”
That way, they’d get two extra days of peace.
Li Sheng glanced over at Feng Yuan’s posture.
He shook his head. “I think he’s already about to give up.”
Even the little one’s back looked pitiful.
Feng Qi chuckled. “Don’t go over. Let’s see what happens when he finally can’t hold it in.”
This “cold, won’t-smile, won’t-cry, devoted-to-studying” version of Yuan Yuan was actually quite amusing to watch.
And Feng Qi wanted to enjoy it a little longer.
Li Sheng’s guess was right.
That night, the poor cub who had been tortured by math problems nearly broke character.
He lay face down on the desk, his little body limp and motionless.
When Li Si passed by and saw this scene, her heart tightened immediately.
She instinctively looked toward Li Sheng and Feng Qi.
The pair of fathers were sitting on the small sofa in the back, eating fruit.
The second uncle, who used to carry himself with flawless composure, was now so relaxed beside his partner that he was practically slouching.
He was feeding Feng Qi pieces of neatly cut fruit, while Feng Qi’s gaze was fixed on Feng Yuan.
Seeing that neither of them planned to step in, Li Si frowned and walked over to Feng Yuan.
Feng Qi saw her approach and lazily stood up as well, following over as if to watch the show.
Li Si bent down, lowering her face to try and see Feng Yuan’s little expression.
Just as she did, Feng Qi spoke from the side, adding a teasing commentary: “Crying, are we?”
Feng Yuan: “……”
He sniffled, stubbornly lifting his chubby little face. “I am not!”
He already said it. The Feng Yuan who used to cry and laugh was gone!
Now, Feng Yuan was a tearless learning machine!
Seeing him sniffle while still insisting he wasn’t crying, Feng Qi chuckled and bent down to pick him up.
“Alright, alright. If you say you’re not crying, then you’re not.”
Feng Qi looked at the little one. His “new persona” has been going strong since yesterday. Though it was quite amusing to watch, if this went on any longer, the poor cub might actually suffocate from holding it all in.
So, he decided to give his precious baby a way out.
“Yuan Yuan,” Feng Qi said gently, “Dad still wants to see you laugh and cry. Why don’t you change back, hmm?”
Feng Yuan: “！”
Hearing his dad’s request, Feng Yuan’s little heart thumped wildly in his chest. Thump, thump, thump!
He clenched his tiny fists tightly, trying hard to suppress the surge of excitement inside.
As expected!
He had successfully scared Dad!
Dad was starting to feel afraid. Starting to regret it!
The little cub, who believed his “dark transformation” was a complete success, looked at his father’s face so close to his own. For a moment, he almost softened.
But he held back.
He wanted Dad to regret it a little more!
That way, the next time Dad tried to hit him, he’d remember this moment.
Maybe, just maybe, he wouldn’t dare hit him again.
For the sake of avoiding future spankings, Feng Yuan stubbornly resisted the urge to take the easy step down that Dad had offered.
In his dad’s arms, he twisted his little body and firmly chose to continue being cold and stoic.
Feng Qi: “……”
Feng Qi sighed. “Alright then.”
He decided to just let the little one keep acting for a while longer.
Feng Yuan’s first day of “serious studying” could barely be considered a success.
On the second day, instead of going home after class, he stayed in the dorm with his brother and sister.
That night, hiding under his blanket, he clutched the math textbook he still couldn’t understand and secretly cried into it until he soaked the pages.
By the third day, the adults at home could no longer sit still.
Li Heng hadn’t received a single kiss from his precious grandson in three whole days.
He called Li Sheng in for a serious talk about Feng Yuan’s situation.
After their conversation, Li Sheng promised his father.
He would coax Feng Yuan back to normal tonight.
So, when school ended that day, Li Sheng and Feng Qi personally went to pick up their little boy.
Instead of going straight home, the family of three went out to have some fun.
It got dark late where they lived, and Feng Yuan got out of school early.
So, Li Sheng took him to an outdoor amusement park.
The amusement park they went to was quite large.
Even at six in the evening, it was still filled with children.
After the family of three entered the park, Li Sheng immediately lifted Feng Yuan onto his shoulders.
Riding on top of his big dad, Feng Yuan couldn’t hold back the happy grin tugging at his chubby cheeks.
“Yuan Yuan, take a look and tell us what you want to play,” Li Sheng said. “Dad and I will take you.”
Feng Yuan wanted to play everything.
He pointed his little pudgy hand at the carousel, the Ferris wheel, the roller coaster…
“Play them all!” the little one declared loudly in his milky voice.
Hearing that, Li Sheng followed the directions of those tiny fingers and began taking him around to play.
While they were having fun, another parent came over, drawn by how cute Feng Yuan was, and started talking to him.
That parent even handed him a piece of candy.
Feng Yuan gazed longingly at the candy. Though he really wanted to eat it, he obediently handed it over to his dad.
Feng Qi didn’t want to make too big a deal over one piece of candy.
He just smiled, took the candy, and held it in his hand without unwrapping it for Feng Yuan.
The other parent lingered in front of them for quite a while, chatting pleasantly.
Before leaving, that kind-looking parent offered a kind reminder: “Lately, there have been many child disappearance cases around here. Your child is very cute. Please be extra careful and keep a close eye on him.”
At the mention of child disappearance cases, the smile on Feng Qi’s face instantly faded.
Back when he was still in the country, he would pay attention to news related to children. But after coming here, he hadn’t kept up much with local events.
That realization made the last trace of his smile disappear completely.
He thanked the parent for the warning. During the rest of their time at the amusement park, he kept a noticeably closer watch over Feng Yuan.
Feng Yuan could feel his dad’s tension.
Even though he was still trying to maintain his “cold and stoic little boy” persona, seeing his dad so nervous made him reach out his small hand to hold his dad’s.
“Yuan Yuan won’t go missing!”
In a tiny voice, he added, “Yuan Yuan won’t run away from home anymore.”
Hearing that, Feng Qi squeezed his little hand in return and smiled softly. “Mm.”
The bond between father and son began to warm up again.
Of course, in Feng Qi’s eyes, it had never really gone cold in the first place.
At his favorite amusement park, Feng Yuan’s mood gradually relaxed.
He pointed toward the small children’s roller coaster in the air. He wanted to ride it.
That children’s coaster was modeled after the full-sized adult roller coaster.
This kind of kiddie roller coaster was lower in height and had just the right amount of thrill for children.
The little kids riding it were all squealing and shrieking in excitement, their voices nearly breaking.
Feng Yuan’s eyes sparkled as he watched the coaster go around. He wanted to get on and shout, too.
Li Sheng paid for the ride and handed him over to the staff.
Adults weren’t allowed on this attraction. The little coaster was designed only for children.
Before getting on, Feng Yuan couldn’t help grinning from ear to ear.
Right after he smiled, he tried to pull his expression back immediately. But Feng Qi had already seen it.
Feng Qi chuckled and reached out to gently rub his son’s chubby little face, his eyes carrying no hint of teasing for having “caught” him breaking character.
Feng Yuan: “……”
His round cheeks turned a little pink.
He didn’t look at his dad again and instead stretched out his small hands so the staff could lift him onto the ride.
There were already several children waiting on the coaster.
The child sitting next to Feng Yuan was a little blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl.
When she saw him sit down, she smiled brightly at him.
“Hi, you’re really good-looking.”
“Do you have a girlfriend? If not, I can be your girlfriend.”
Feng Yuan: “Ah?”
Feng Yuan was completely stunned by the question.
He stared at the little girl who was still waiting for his answer and said weakly, “I-I’m only three years old… I’m still in kindergarten.”
The little girl raised her eyebrows and said, “I’m five. I’m in kindergarten, too.”
“I’m two years older than you, but I don’t mind.”
Feng Yuan: “……”
It was the first time he had ever met such a bold and straightforward girl.
His chubby little hands clutched tightly onto the seat. In his soft, milky voice, he stammered.
“But… I don’t even know you…”
Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152