Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“No, I don’t want to go home right now. I want to stay here and sleep with you tonight…” Xiaotu rubbed her tired little eyes and crawled awkwardly over the bed toward Cheng Zhiyan. She placed both of her plump little hands around his neck and gripped it tightly. Then she shut her eyes and whispered to him softly, “I want to drink my milk now please…” And after that, she passed right out. It had happened so fast that it was shocking to Cheng Zhiyan. It seemed as if a light bulb had just been switched off.
“…”
Cheng Zhiyan felt completely helpless as this soft little creature hung onto his neck in a deep sleep. He thought she looked just like a baby koala bear that was holding onto its mother for dear life. He was about to call out for his own mother to come help him, but then he suddenly realized that he might wake up Xiaotu. So, instead of calling his mother, he clenched his teeth, used both his arms and all his strength to scoop her up, and carried her out of the room.
Although Xiaotu was only a three-year-old child, she already weighed almost 30 pounds. A 30-pound child would be heavy to carry for a normal adult, not to mention for a ten-year-old child.
Fortunately, his mother’s bedroom was right next to his own.
At that moment, Zhou Yue had become deeply engrossed in a loud variety show on TV. When her bedroom door was suddenly pushed open, she’d almost yelled because the unidentifiable thing that had walked in had scared her to death.
After she’d calmed down a bit and looked at the thing more carefully, she’d realized that the unidentifiable thing was actually her own son, Cheng Zhiyan, carrying Xiaotu, who was hanging on him with her arms tightly around his neck. She was so amused by the situation that she felt like laughing out loud, but she knew Cheng Zhiyan wouldn’t like it.
“What’s the matter with Xiaotu?” Seeing her son stagger toward her, Zhou Yue quickly leaped off her bed and rushed toward them to grab hold of Xiaotu herself. However, who would have thought that Xiaotu’s arms were so tightly wrapped around Cheng Zhiyan’s neck that they weren’t able to pry her hands off, no matter how hard they tried. And they tried for quite a long time.
“She’s in a deep sleep, I guess.” Cheng Zhiyan’s face was pressed against Xiaotu’s pink cheeks. The sound of her steady breathing floated by his ears, and her fluffy little head was slumped on his shoulders. Her soft hair was touching his neck, and it felt as if feathers were gliding across it.
“Hold on. I’m going to go call Xiaotu’s mother to get her to come over here to help us.” Zhou Yue had tried hard to pry Xiaotu’s hands off her son’s neck. However, after discovering that Xiaotu’s grip on Cheng Zhiyan was impossible to budge, she’d finally resigned herself to calling Zhou Ling.
“All right. Good idea.” Cheng Zhiyan had nodded enthusiastically and then staggered back to his own room, once again carrying Xiaotu.
By the time Xiaotu’s mother had rushed over to aid in this situation, Cheng Zhiyan was already sitting on his bed in an upright position. He was holding onto Xiaotu’s limp body, and he turned toward them in anticipation of finally regaining his freedom.
“My goodness, it is certainly rare for this little rascal to have fallen asleep without me there to coax her.” Upon seeing them in this tight embrace, Zhou Ling couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
“The last thing she said before she fell asleep was that she wanted to drink some milk…” Seeing the mirthful expressions on the faces of his own mother and Xiaotu’s mother, Cheng Zhiyan said helplessly.
“All right, I’ll make some right away.” Zhou Ling nodded, then turned around to find the milk bottle. Within a moment, she’d made a bottle full of foaming milk.
Zhou Ling had pulled at Xiaotu’s arm, but soon she too realized that, for some reason, she wasn’t able to pry Xiaotu’s hands off Cheng Zhiyan’s neck.
She glanced at Cheng Zhiyan somewhat quizzically, and she soon discovered that Cheng Zhiyan was staring at her with the exact same perplexed expression on his young face.
“Xiaotu, Tutu, come over here, I’ve made you some nice warm milk. Why don’t you drink a little bit and let Mommy give you a big hug…” Zhou Ling tried tugging at Xiaotu’s arm a little bit more, but, upon discovering that she couldn’t move her at all, she was forced to stoop down and whisper gently into Xiaotu’s ear.
While still deep in dreamland, Xiaotu instantly placed her right thumb into her mouth and made the standard gesture she’d always made to signal that she was waiting to drink her milk.
Yet her other hand was still tightly wrapped around Cheng Zhiyan’s neck, and she refused to let go no matter how much they tried to make her.
……
Zhou Ling was completely at a loss for words.
Cheng Zhiyan had also been rendered speechless.
“Come over here, Yan Yan. Why don’t you help feed Xiaotu this one time?” Xiaotu’s mother pushed the milk bottle into Cheng Zhiyan’s unwilling hands.