PCMWF Chapter 123

Under the little guy’s caring gaze, Shen Minyan ate the spoonful of mashed potatoes. The sour feeling spread throughout his body. He couldn’t help but sniffle twice. The little guy noticed his father was crying. The warm tears were falling onto his face. Why was Dad crying? It must be because taking care of him was so tiring. Su Youli was still too young to fully understand the complex, indescribable emotions adults felt.

Dad was crying. He needed to comfort him. He couldn’t laugh at him. Kun Kun also used to cry, always secretly shedding tears when Little Dad was sick. Crying was just a way to release emotions. Once the crying was over, everything would be fine. The little guy struggled out of his blanket, kicked off the wrap that held him tight, pushed himself up, and wrapped his arms around his father’s neck.

“Dad, it’s okay. It’s okay to cry.”

“I love you, Dad. Thank you for taking care of Youyou.”

He whispered comfort in his father’s ear, patting his back gently with his little hand, just like the adults did. Shen Minyan took a deep breath and looked up. His eyes were red, with dark circles underneath. The little guy tilted his head, his little hand touching his father’s chin. It felt a bit prickly.

“Dad, your beard has grown back,” the little guy said, as if it were something amazing.

Shen Minyan laughed through his tears and offered his chin for him to touch. “When Youyou is better, will you help Dad shave again?”

The little guy immediately said, “Of course!”

The breakfast was finished bite by bite, shared between father and son, not a single crumb left. After eating, the little guy was visibly more energetic. He sat on the bed, looking at his three friends who were lying by the bedside. Mi Le kept making funny faces, making the little guy giggle. Pei Qiqi’s brow was furrowed the entire time, his expression very serious. He was the only one who didn’t seem happy. When Hua Zhao brought up some snacks for the children, she teased him, saying anyone would think he was the one who was sick. Pei Qiqi remained silent, staying by Youyou’s side and refusing to go anywhere.

“It’s all my fault,” Pei Qiqi suddenly said.

Hua Zhao smiled and patted his head. “What’s your fault?”

Pei Qiqi pressed his lips together, thought for a moment, and confided in his aunt: “If I had stayed with Youyou the whole time yesterday, he wouldn’t have gotten sick.”

He had come in first place with two hundred yuan in prize money. When the three of them finished their tasks, he had known Youyou’s rank. So when he went out to buy the gift, he deliberately walked slowly, hoping to catch up with Youyou and split his prize money with him.

“Youyou didn’t want my money, so he went to the beach to find shells for Uncle Shen as a gift. The beach was windy, and the sun was so strong yesterday.”

Pei Qiqi’s nose tingled as he spoke. Fevers hurt so much. His nose and ears got all blocked, his head hurt, and his whole body felt weak. He remembered how terrible it was when he had a fever before. Just thinking about Youyou feeling that awful last night while he slept soundly, unable to help at all, made his heart ache.

Hua Zhao hadn’t expected him to have such a strong sense of responsibility. Just as he was about to cry, she crouched down and hugged him. “Qiqi, Youyou getting sick has nothing to do with you, understand?”

Pei Qiqi shook his head, his voice choked. “I said I would protect Youyou.”

A warmth landed on his shoulder. Pei Xu turned his head and saw a little hand resting there. He turned around, and a cute little face was right in front of him.

The little guy had changed out of his pajamas into comfortable clothes. He stood beside him and asked, “Brother Qiqi, what’s wrong?”

In Su Youli’s memory, Brother Qiqi wasn’t a crybaby. Even when he cried, he looked super cool. Why did he seem so sad now?

Pei Qiqi sniffled hard, quickly turned around, and took his hand. “I’m fine.”

He wasn’t going to cry in front of Youyou.

The little guy didn’t suspect a thing. He blinked his big eyes, already feeling restless.

“Brother Qiqi, let’s go play.”

The little one was full of energy again after his recovery. He didn’t want to stay in the room anymore. He wanted to go downstairs and play.

Pei Qiqi looked at Uncle Shen. Before he could say anything, Qiqi refused him: “No. You just got better.”

And he knew that fevers in children could come back. Youyou needed to rest properly. Although he couldn’t go out, his father carried him to the living room so he could watch Ultraman Tiga with his friends. The production team had an emergency meeting. The main subjects of “Little Feet Big Adventure” were the four children. Since Su Youli was sick and couldn’t go out, the other three were sticking to him like glue and didn’t want to go off on their own either. The director was at a loss. Could they really just film the kids watching TV in their room? If they aired that, netizens would tear them apart.

Shen Minyan asked him, “What’s the plan for today?”

The director: “Today’s original plan was to have the children try out diving on the island.”

Shen Minyan raised an eyebrow, hands in his pockets, and looked at the director. The director’s scalp tightened. This plan definitely couldn’t go ahead. The children were too young. Su Youli hadn’t gotten sick from playing in the mud last time, but he got sick after looking for shells. If another child got sick, it would be a problem. While the show’s appeal was important, it wasn’t more important than the children’s health and safety.

The production team got together to come up with a plan. Fortunately, they’d shot enough material yesterday. If they were stuck in the villa all day today, it wouldn’t be the end of the world. Some staff members suggested having the children go on an adventure inside the villa, hiding “treasures” for them to find. Kids loved treasure hunts. Others pointed out the villa was spacious, so maybe some parent-child games would work. Last time’s “Water Field Rescue” had been very effective, full of warmth and laughter.

Within half an hour, the production team had listed several options and decided to choose the most feasible one. Knock, knock, knock.

The four little ones were sitting in a row in the living room watching TV when they heard a knock at the door. Mi Huan answered it. It was a few children with slightly darker skin. They were clearly native islanders, with clear, simple eyes. The oldest couldn’t have been more than seven or eight.

Mi Huan crouched down and smiled. “Hello. Can I help you?”

The leader, A Ming, was a bit nervous meeting this handsome big brother. “Hello, is Mi Le here?”

Mi Huan raised an eyebrow and glanced inside. Had Mi Le offended someone in the village yesterday? He squinted, carefully examining the children at the door for any injuries.

He remembered that Mi Le had been clean when he came back, so they probably weren’t here to complain about a fight. He nodded. “Yes, he is.”

He turned his head: “Mi Le! Someone’s here for you!”

Mi Le glanced sideways: “Who’s looking for me? Bro, I’m busy! Tiga is about to transform!”