Ye Mengchun glanced at Elder Tang on the podium and discreetly tugged at Chu Xia’s sleeve.

Chu Xia turned to her with a puzzled expression.

Ye Mengchun pointed to her own neck, and Chu Xia immediately understood, quickly covering her neck with her hand.

Chu Xia realized that she had missed wearing a scarf that morning due to her rush, and since she wasn’t wearing a turtleneck sweater, the marks on her neck were clearly visible.

She felt a wave of embarrassment, realizing that she had been on the bus and run through the school with that mark visible, wondering how many people had seen it.

Seeing Chu Xia’s distressed face and the excessive movement of her hand covering her neck, Ye Mengchun took off her own scarf, still keeping her eyes on the blackboard, and handed it to Chu Xia.

“Use mine for now,” she said, her lips moving but her tone as emotionless as ever.

Chu Xia took the scarf, gave her a grateful look, and quickly wrapped it around her neck.

After class, Yang Jin and the others gathered around Chu Xia and asked, “Why were you almost late today?”

Chu Xia usually arrived at school twenty minutes early each day and reserved seats for them.

Chu Xia smiled and said, “I accidentally woke up late.”

Yang Jin and the others didn’t press further, as they also had their share of late mornings.

During the lunch break, Chu Xia changed into a turtleneck sweater, put on her own scarf, and returned Ye Mengchun’s scarf.

“Thanks for today.”

Ye Mengchun was reading a book, took the scarf without changing her expression, and said, “You’ve already thanked me.”

---

That evening, Chu Xia was doing her nightly skincare routine at the vanity, and the marks on her neck were clearly visible.

When Cen Zhengnian walked over, Chu Xia slapped his hand away, pointed to the marks on her neck, and said, “Look at what you’ve done! I told you not to kiss my neck too hard, but you didn’t listen at all! Do you know how much trouble I got into today?”

Growing angrier, Chu Xia pushed him out of the bedroom. “You’re sleeping on the sofa tonight.”

Cen Zhengnian didn’t get a chance to speak before he was pushed out.

He looked at the tightly closed door with a helpless smile. “Chu Xia, there’s no blanket outside.”

His tone was still somewhat playful, but his voice carried a hint of pitifulness.

Chu Xia opened the door, handed him a blanket, and said, “Now there is.”

The door was slammed shut with a “thud.”

The sofa was made of redwood.

Since it was winter, Chu Xia had had a tailor make a cushioned sofa pad, so while it was a bit small to sleep on, it wasn’t cold under the blanket.

Cen Zhengnian waited by the door for a while, sighed, and said, “Chu Xia, don’t be angry. I’ll control myself in the future.”

When he heard footsteps leaving, Chu Xia covered her head with the blanket.

She couldn’t soften her stance; otherwise, he would become more unreasonable next time.

Cen Zhengnian had a tendency to push boundaries.

With one person missing from the bed, Chu Xia felt uncomfortable and restless.

Without someone to warm her side or help relieve her fatigue, she missed the comfort.

She shook her head, reminding herself that she had slept alone before without issue.

After some mental preparation, Chu Xia tried to sleep, but she still couldn’t. With a sigh, she sat up.

The living room was colder than the bedroom, and the sofa was narrow and short.

How could Cen Zhengnian manage to sleep on it?

Unable to resist her soft heart, Chu Xia opened the door and went to the sofa.

The once flat sofa now had a shape under the blanket.

Chu Xia crouched down, looking at Cen Zhengnian sleeping on the sofa by the moonlight.

His eyes were closed, long lashes resting on his eyelids, giving him a peaceful appearance.

Chu Xia reached out and traced his handsome face with her fingers, thinking, “Heaven has been too generous with his looks.”

Cen Zhengnian’s eyebrows twitched, and Chu Xia quickly pulled her hand away.

But just as she lifted it, a hand with distinct joints grasped hers.

Cen Zhengnian’s eyes opened, clear and awake. “Chu Xia, can I come back?”

Chu Xia tried to shake off his hand but couldn’t.

She said, “No. Let go of me.”

“Alright,” Cen Zhengnian released her and adjusted the blanket. “I hope it doesn’t get colder tonight.”

As Chu Xia tried to turn and leave, she was stopped by Cen Zhengnian’s words.

She looked at him coldly and said, “You don’t have to sleep on the sofa.”

Before Cen Zhengnian could smile, Chu Xia added, “You can sleep with An An. His bed can fit two people.”

With that, she turned and left without looking back.

Back in the bedroom, Chu Xia looked at the door: there was no way she was going back to sleep!

The sofa was indeed uncomfortable, despite the cushion, and quite hard.

Fearing he might catch a cold and affect his work, Cen Zhengnian sighed and went to Cen Huai’an’s room.

“Dad?”

Cen Huai’an, stirred by the noise, opened his eyes groggily and saw his father carefully making up the bed.

He called out.

Cen Zhengnian patted his head. “Did I wake you?”

Cen Huai’an shifted over to make space and closed his eyes to continue sleeping.

He figured his dad must have made Mom angry, just like on TV.

Cen Zhengnian was surprised by his son’s reaction.

He smiled, shook his head, and lay down next to Cen Huai’an.

---

Three years later.

Cen Huai’an, now ten and a half years old, had skipped a grade and was in the second year of middle school, making him the youngest in his class.

He was still learning chess and had participated in many competitions.

In his room, Chu Xia had specially made a glass-fronted cabinet to display his various awards and certificates.

In addition to chess, Cen Huai’an had joined the math competition class at the affiliated school of the research institute and was preparing to participate in a city math competition with his teacher.

At this time, Chu Xia was not studying at school but was interning at the hospital with Elder Tang.

Elder Tang had only taken two students: Chu Xia and Ye Mengchun, while the other students were assigned to different doctors.

Cen Huai’an’s youthful round face had faded somewhat, and he had grown taller.

Although he was the youngest in his class, he wasn’t short and didn’t sit at the front.

When Cen Huai’an came home, he opened the door, changed into slippers, hung up his backpack, and looked toward Chuxia, who was cooking in the kitchen.

“Home already? Help me peel some garlic and peel the potatoes.”

“Mom, let me cook.”

After Cen Huai’an did what Chuxia asked, he cut the potatoes and said, “Mom, I’ll cook the meat and potatoes.”

When Cen Huai’an was in middle school, Chuxia started teaching him how to cook. If she came home late, Cen Huai’an would cook dinner.

He couldn’t make food taste exceptionally good, but he could handle home-style dishes without disaster.

“Alright. You cook the meat and potatoes; I’ll serve the rice.”

At the dinner table, Cen Huai’an said to Chuxia and Cen Zhengnian, “Mom, Dad, the day after tomorrow, I’ll be going to the city with my teacher for a competition, so I won’t be home for lunch.”

“I’ll be at the hospital the day after tomorrow as well. Zhengnian, you’ll have to eat at the cafeteria.”

Cen Zhengnian nodded with a smile, “Okay.” He looked at Cen Huai’an and asked, “An’an, do you want me to take you to the city?”

Cen Huai’an shook his head, “Dad, we have the teacher with us. After the exam, I want to go to great-grandpa’s house.”

“Alright.”

Cen Huai’an often went to Grandpa Jiang’s house alone now.

Chuxia would send him to the bus, and he would get off at the bus stop at the entrance of Grandpa Jiang’s alley.

Sometimes, he would also go to the library alone to read.

At his age, he was often disliked in the family compound, being quite mischievous.

Only Cen Huai’an was well-behaved and obedient.

Chuxia wished he would be a bit more playful and join the other kids in having fun.

Cen Huai’an told Chuxia, “Mom, I don’t like those games.”

The neighborhood kids liked playing war games, house games, and mud fights.

Except for the war games, which he was willing to join as a strategist, he was not interested in the other games.

Whenever Cen Huai’an participated in the war games, he was highly sought after because whichever side had him was bound to win.

He preferred joining the Eighth Route Army side, and every time they won, his lips would curl up in a smile.

That evening, Cen Huai’an was sitting in his room, working on math competition problems, when Chuxia knocked on the door with a cup of hot water and a washed apple.

“Mom.”

Seeing Chuxia, Cen Huai’an put down his pen and stood up to take the tray from her.

Chuxia walked to the table to look at his math problems. “Are middle school math problems already this difficult?”

Chuxia considered herself good at math, but she could only solve one problem.

After looking at Cen Huai’an’s answers, she realized her initial approach had been incorrect.

Cen Huai’an stood quietly by, sipping his water and watching Chuxia without disturbing her.

“An’an, are these problems tiring?”