Ying Zhuohan’s usual group of followers noticed that recently, their leader had also become a follower—only this time, the one he was following was the kid who sat behind him, seemingly from some unknown corner of the kindergarten.

No matter how hard they racked their brains, the group of sidekicks couldn’t figure out what Ying Zhuohan was up to. So, they simply followed him around, essentially becoming followers of Jiang Yi, the kid in the back row.

Thus, every day during recess, a crowd would gather around Jiang Yi’s desk. There was Ying Zhuohan, his little group of followers, and even Arno, who frequently wore a gloomy expression.

As the only mixed-race kid in the first grade, Arno’s golden hair and light blue eyes naturally attracted attention. However, because Jiang Yi always had a swarm of people around him—both big and small followers—he soon became even more famous than Arno.

Not long after the school year began, rumors spread throughout the first grade that the pretty black-haired kid in Class 2 had a super-rich and powerful family. Supposedly, he had eighteen bodyguards following him everywhere, even waiting outside the bathroom to guard him.

Arno, the true “young master,” didn’t seem to mind these rumors. Every day, he was busy fetching hot water for Jiang Yi, sharpening pencils for him, and sometimes sulking because Jiang Yi let Ying Zhuohan sharpen his pencils instead.

At first, Jiang Yi’s father was worried that his son, attending the prestigious Elementary School, might feel out of place due to their family’s less fortunate financial situation. He feared Jiang Yi might face unfair treatment or feel a sense of inferiority compared to his classmates. After all, without the help of the Lu family, Jiang Yi wouldn’t have been able to attend the school at all.

Every time Jiang’s father asked how things were going at school, Jiang Yi would obediently reply, “Everything’s great, the teachers are nice, and so are my classmates.” Even though Jiang Yi insisted he was doing well, Jiang’s father remained anxious, worried that his sensible son was hiding the truth to avoid causing him any trouble.

That was until Jiang’s father attended a parent-teacher conference.

As soon as he walked into the classroom with his name tag identifying him as Jiang Yi’s father, a group of enthusiastic children practically launched themselves at him. It was as if a pack of wolves had spotted prey—they scrambled to pull out chairs and offer him a seat, eagerly introducing themselves one after another.

“Hello, Uncle Jiang! I’m Lu Huan, Jiang Yi’s classmate.”

“Uncle Jiang, I’m Yi Han…”

The most excited of them all was a black-haired kid with curly hair, who loudly announced, “Hello, Uncle Jiang! My name is Ying Zhuohan, and I’m Jiang Yi’s best friend!”

Jiang’s father was utterly baffled, but he awkwardly smiled and replied, “Hello, hello…”

Ying Zhuohan looked even more thrilled by this and continued to chatter excitedly, “Uncle Jiang! Jiang Yi is doing exceptionally well in school! He got 100 points in Chinese and 100 points in math!”

Sitting nearby, Lu Ting glanced at Arno, who had a sour expression on his face, and muttered in English, “Suck-up.”

The other parents in the room were somewhat surprised. They glanced at Jiang’s father a few times, as if trying to figure out what kind of person he was to warrant such admiration from all these kids.

Jiang’s father sat stiffly in his seat, thinking to himself that he too would like to know how he had managed to become the object of such adoration from these obviously wealthy young boys.

After the conference ended, Jiang Yi stood outside the classroom, happily telling Arno how amazing his father was. Arno nodded in agreement, affirming that he felt the same way—after all, Jiang’s father was incredible in his eyes.

Jiang Yi’s eyes curved into a smile.

That evening, after the parent-teacher conference, Jiang’s father still felt a sense of disbelief. As he watched Jiang Yi quietly eating his dinner, he finally understood that his son hadn’t been lying—everything was indeed going well at school.

From that day on, Jiang’s father no longer asked whether Jiang Yi was being bullied at school. He merely reminded his son to take care of his health and avoid strenuous activities.

Jiang Yi obediently nodded.

However, in October, when the weather turned colder, Jiang Yi fell ill.

The illness hit hard, and on the day he got sick, he developed a high fever and had to be taken to the hospital. By nightfall, he had been admitted.

When Jiang Yi woke up and saw himself lying in a hospital bed, he wasn’t surprised—just uncomfortable. He weakly told his father that he wanted to eat roasted sweet potatoes, but because he still had a fever, his father could only comfort him, saying he could have some once he recovered.

Since starting school, Jiang Yi had rarely needed to stay in the hospital. Now, lying alone under the covers, receiving an IV drip, he felt groggy and distant. He knew his father wouldn’t allow him to eat anything until he was fully better.

Jiang Yi sniffled, closing his eyes without saying another word, looking as if he had drifted back to sleep.

The child in the bed next to him was also sick. The boy’s mother sat beside him, patting his back and comforting him, saying, “It’ll be alright, don’t cry, Mommy’s right here.”

In his groggy state, Jiang Yi felt a wave of sadness wash over him. At times, he wondered what his mother looked like, and at other times, he thought about how, once he got better, he really wanted to eat those roasted sweet potatoes.

Eventually, Jiang Yi drifted into a dream. In it, his mother returned from somewhere far away, pulling along a suitcase and calling his name. She had even brought him a bag of freshly roasted sweet potatoes.

When Jiang Yi woke up, he was surprised to find that the sweet potatoes from his dream had somehow materialized in reality.

Arno had sneaked two roasted sweet potatoes into the hospital, hidden under his school uniform. They were still steaming, and he was busy peeling one of them for Jiang Yi.

Jiang Yi, still groggy, asked Arno what he was doing there.

Arno, with a serious expression, replied, “Because you wanted roasted sweet potatoes, so here I am silly.”

Still half-asleep, Jiang Yi responded with an absent-minded “Oh.”

Arno called him silly.

Jiang Yi felt a bit wronged. How could Arno call him silly when he had scored 100 in both math and Chinese? He wasn’t silly at all!

After a moment, Arno added, “If you weren’t silly, you wouldn’t have been crying by yourself, hiccupping without even realizing it.”

It was only then that Jiang Yi noticed his pillow was damp from his tears.

Sniffling, he murmured softly, “I didn’t realize…”

Arno finished peeling the sweet potato, and Jiang Yi, his eyes gleaming, obediently opened his mouth, ready to be fed.

But instead of giving him the whole thing, Arno scooped out just a tiny piece with a spoon and offered it to him.

Jiang Yi blinked, confused.

Arno cleared his throat and explained, “I had to sneak these in, so you can’t have too much. Just a little taste. The adults said you can’t eat much when you’re sick.”

Though a little disappointed, Jiang Yi figured a little was better than none. So, he carefully licked the small spoonful of sweet potato like a kitten.

Watching Jiang Yi savor that tiny bite of sweet potato, Arno’s heart softened. Sick Jiang Yi was both adorable and pitiful.

In the end, Jiang Yi clung to the spoon, teary-eyed, refusing to let go.

Arno had no choice but to sneak him another tiny bite of sweet potato.

Jiang Yi was bedridden for a week, and during that time, Arno acted like a smuggler, sneaking in small snacks that Jiang’s father wouldn’t allow—simple things like bread slices, dried purple sweet potatoes, and sparkling water. But for Jiang Yi, being able to secretly enjoy those treats, even in such tiny portions, made his illness more bearable. In fact, it became the highlight of being sick.

Sometimes Arno would even switch out the sparkling water for plain water, letting Jiang Yi have a few sips, which Jiang Yi would drink with sparkling eyes, always saying it was delicious.

When Jiang Yi was finally discharged from the hospital, he was the first to start wearing a heavy coat, even in the classroom. His clothes were noticeably thicker than those of his classmates.

For the first time, Arno began paying attention to the weather. In the past, he had always loved snow because it meant he could go skiing right outside his home without having to visit a ski resort. But now, Arno realized snow wasn’t such a good thing—it meant colder weather, and colder weather meant Jiang Yi was more likely to get sick.

But Jiang Yi loved the snow. When it first snowed in late October, he and Ying Zhuohan pressed their faces against the window, watching the snowflakes fall.

Ying Zhuohan excitedly told Jiang Yi how beautiful his family’s villa would look covered in snow, and how it would be even more stunning when the Christmas decorations and lights were put up.

While Jiang Yi listened intently, wrapped up like a small ball in his thick coat, Arno came over and pulled him back to his seat, scolding him for leaning against the cold window.

In early November, their class held a Halloween event. That evening, all the students dressed up as different characters and participate in various activities.

Arno, still bitter about Jiang Yi not being selected to play a fairy in the kindergarten graduation performance, eagerly helped him plan his Halloween costume. He suggested he could dress up as a fairy for the event.

Excited, Jiang Yi praised how cute fairies were. Arno said he would be a knight, and together, they could go around asking the teachers for candy.

Ying Zhuohan, sitting in front of them, secretly listened in and made a mental note of the conversation.

On the night of the Halloween event, Arno arrived at school with Lu Ting. Dressed as a knight, he searched everywhere for Jiang Yi but couldn’t find him.

It wasn’t until a little ghost jumped out from a corner, waving its arms and trying to scare him. “Boo—!”

Looking at the ghost, with his knight helmet and sword, Arno stood there in all his glory. “…”

After a brief two-second pause, Arno sighed, adjusted his expression, and said, “Oh no, how terrifying.”

The little ghost, wearing a mask, burst into laughter and, feeling encouraged, continued to wave its arms and playfully growled, “Grrr~”