Chapter 9: The School Bully (9)

“You only bought her two sets of clothes like this? The child will be uncomfortable wearing them.”

“…”

“You didn’t buy her any baby face cream? Without cream, her skin will easily crack. And how can you let her use the same shower gel and shampoo as you?”

“…”

“What have you been feeding her these days? She should eat less fried fast food.”

“…”

“How could you let her bathe alone? She’s still so small and can’t wash herself properly. Look at her; she isn’t clean at all.”

Upon hearing his mother say this, Zai Ye finally broke his silence. He looked up and said, “I can’t exactly help her bathe.”

Mrs. Wen sighed. “That’s why I said you can’t raise a child on your own.”

Zai Ye lowered his head again.

When it came to raising children, he could mock and look down on his irresponsible father, but he had nothing to say against his experienced mother. After all, before his parents’ divorce, she had taken excellent care of him.

There was still no news about Yu Qian’s mother. It was foreseeable that caring for this child would be his responsibility for a long time to come, so he could only listen to his mother’s guidance.

Right now, he was observing and learning as his mother washed Xiao Qian’s hair. She didn’t perform any special moves or rituals—the child simply lay obediently across her lap while she massaged her head.

Was this really the same child who would squirm and resist when he tried to wash her hair?

Zai Ye frowned. “Why do you move around when I try to wash your hair?”

His ungrateful child remained silent while Mrs. Wen cheerfully explained, “You can’t pull her hair too hard, and don’t spray water directly on her head—it’s uncomfortable when water and soap get in her eyes and ears. Gently pour water over her like this and comb through her hair…”

“Look at you! You don’t know how to wash properly; you didn’t even clean behind her ears.”

Yu Qian lay on Mrs. Wen’s lap like a small teddy bear being rubbed back and forth, contentedly squinting her eyes. Meanwhile, her unfortunate novice father crouched nearby, listening to his mother’s instructions and memorizing the complicated childcare knowledge even more seriously than he did in class.

Because if he didn’t pay attention in class, it would only mean poor grades. But if he didn’t listen carefully to this, the fragile child could actually get sick.

The sight of a feverish child, limp and unresponsive, had truly terrified Zai Ye.

Fortunately, bathing the child wasn’t something he had to learn—Mrs. Wen helped with that.

Since Yu Qian was sick, Zai Ye took two legitimate days off from school. Combined with the weekend, he could stay home for three days.

Mrs. Wen took him and the child shopping together.

Shopping for the child was also an important learning experience.

They started at the large supermarket on the ground floor of the mall. Mrs. Wen picked up a children’s toothbrush: “Look, children have small mouths and teeth. Don’t buy them a toothbrush that’s too big. Get one with soft bristles—if she doesn’t know how to brush, you’ll need to help her.”

Then she selected two for Yu Qian to see: “Which one does Xiao Qian like?”

Yu Qian pointed to one of them, so Mrs. Wen placed it in the shopping cart while educating her son: “You need to give children the right to choose; don’t just grab something yourself.”

Zai Ye nodded in understanding and took two tubes of toothpaste from the shelf, asking Yu Qian: “Which one do you like?”

Yu Qian looked for a moment before pointing at a different one on the shelf.

Zai Ye: “…Are you deliberately going against me?”

After selecting various daily hygiene products, they needed to buy clothes. There were several children’s clothing stores on the third and fourth floors. Zai Ye had rarely been to such places and felt lost among all the pretty little outfits.

“Buy a few short-sleeved shirts for her to rotate. But since it gets cold now when it rains, you also need to buy long-sleeved shirts and pants, and thin jackets too. At least three or four sets—otherwise, she won’t have anything to change into.”

“Okay.” In this entirely new territory, Zai Ye followed closely behind his mom and daughter. As a young man rarely seen in children’s clothing stores—tall with an unusually strong presence—he felt like a large dog that had wandered into unfamiliar territory, overly conscious of every gaze around him and strangely alert.

With a stern face trying to hide his discomfort, Zai Ye picked up a pink short-sleeved shirt nearby and asked: “How about this one?”

Mrs. Wen glanced at it: “That’s for five-year-old girls. Xiao Qian would be swimming in it.”

Zai Ye put it down without another word. Speaking would only expose his inexperience further.

Afterward, they only heard him occasionally ask: “Is this enough?”

“Aren’t we done yet?”

“Didn’t we say just enough to change was fine?”

Mrs. Wen knew that most men couldn’t shop patiently. Looking at her uncomfortable son, she said, “Xiao Qian has very few clothes; buying a few more sets won’t hurt.”

Suddenly she winced slightly and frowned: “My stomach hurts a bit; I need to go to the restroom. Take Xiao Qian to look at other clothes or check out shoes over there.”

Without waiting for Zai Ye’s response, she left without looking back.

Zai Ye almost reached out to stop his mom: “…” Don’t leave me in a place like this!

Handed over to Zai Ye’s care, Yu Qian didn’t care about her school bully father’s mood; she tugged on two of his fingers as they walked between the clothing racks. Then she pointed at an outfit: “This one.”

Zai Ye could only imitate what his mother had done earlier—taking down the piece of clothing and checking the label, but couldn’t make anything of it. He had no choice but to hold it up against Yu Qian to compare. Unfortunately, he couldn’t tell if it fit or not either; instinctively, he looked up for help and immediately locked eyes with a store assistant.

In that instant, it was no exaggeration to say that Zai Ye felt like he had made eye contact with a teacher about to call on him in class.

Sure enough, the assistant seemed to receive some signal and quickly approached with a smile: “Sir, do you need any help?”

Zai Ye, who actually didn’t want help:

“…Does this outfit fit her?”

The assistant looked over: “Your child seems about two years old? This wouldn’t fit her well, but we have smaller sizes in store. Just a moment while I get my colleague.” She swiftly contacted someone without giving Zai Ye time to refuse.

“Sir, this style just arrived recently—it’s very popular! The material is very skin-friendly and won’t irritate your child’s delicate skin at all…”

Caught in the assistant’s endless introduction, Zai Ye couldn’t find an opportunity to interject until her colleague brought the clothes. Only then did she conveniently stop explaining. By this point, Zai Ye felt compelled to buy the outfit.

Yu Qian, being completely childish, found selecting items fun and soon dragged Zai Ye to another rack, with the assistant following closely. Caught in the middle, Zai Ye couldn’t help but glance toward where his mother had disappeared.

Why wasn’t she back yet?

Those brief fifteen minutes felt exceptionally long to Zai Ye. When Mrs. Wen finally returned, she noticed her son had accumulated many more clothes. Hadn’t he just said they’d bought enough?

“Are we done shopping? Can we leave now?” Zai Ye asked, his tone almost pleading.

Mrs. Wen replied: “…Yes, almost done. We just need to get some socks for Xiao Qian and a few pairs of shoes.”

Zai Ye’s eyes went dead..

He carried the somewhat excited Yu Qian, one hand supporting her bottom while using the other as a barrier across her chest—serving as a human stroller.

As soon as they entered the shoe store, Mrs. Wen efficiently selected two pairs of shoes and placed them beside Zai Ye while instructing, “Try these on Xiao Qian to see if they fit.” Then she went to look at more items.

Zai Ye had no choice but to place Yu Qian on the fitting stool and crouch in front of her, resigned to changing her shoes.

Children are always restless; as Yu Qian swung her legs around, Zai Ye grabbed her feet: “Stop swinging!”

Yu Qian looked around before fixing her gaze on the frowning young man in front of her and suddenly exclaimed: “Giant panda!”

Today Zai Ye wore a black and white hoodie that indeed resembled a panda’s colors. He responded wearily, “You think I look like a panda? Don’t I look more like your dad?”

Who was it that called him ‘daddy’ upon their first meeting?

After saying this, he saw Yu Qian suddenly hunch up her shoulders while covering her mouth with her hands, letting out that crafty yet adorable “hee-hee” giggle, her face showing she’d done something naughty but wouldn’t confess.

Zai Ye became alert: “What are you laughing about? Did you do something bad?”

Yu Qian: “Hee-hee!”

Zai Ye didn’t know, but System 65 observing from the sidelines felt pity for him. Originally, this school bully should have been enjoying sweet romances with beautiful girls instead of changing diapers and caring for babies.

The little girl whispered mysteriously: “I’ll tell you secretly.”

She waved him closer with an adorable gesture; Zai Ye suspiciously leaned in until this little cutie (brat) suddenly declared: “I won’t tell you! You’ve been tricked!”

Zai Ye: “…” Damn it, I want to hit this kid!

Deep breath…

After finishing their shopping and leaving the mall loaded with bags, several boys approached from the plaza ahead. One of them spotted Zai Ye’s cold expression and suddenly brightened up, exclaiming: “Hey! Isn’t that Brother Ye!”

Several boys looked over at once, greeting him as they rushed over.

Mrs. Wen held onto Yu Qian: “Who are they?”

Zai Ye replied curtly: “My classmates.”

Only then did the boys notice there was a parent present—they became much more polite, awkwardly calling out “Auntie.” Some curiously eyed Yu Qian, including one who had once been dragged to the police station with Zai Ye after fighting, who foolishly laughed: “Brother Ye! Is this your sister? She used to call you ‘daddy’ back then! Hahaha!”

Zai Ye thought: You’re the foolish one.

The four-hour shopping spree had drained all patience from Zai Ye along with any expression from his face—he didn’t want to say another word.

But his unexpectedly encountered followers were particularly enthusiastic. One of them called out: “Brother Ye! We’re going to play basketball at Willow Tree Park after dinner—come join us! You haven’t hung out with us in ages!”

Zai Ye’s eyes flickered—not because he wanted to play basketball, but because he yearned for a temporary escape from the hell of childcare.

Seeing him glance toward her with a silent question, Mrs. Wen almost laughed out loud as she kindly replied, “It’s fine, go have fun with your classmates.”

Zai Ye looked worriedly at the blinking little monster, afraid she might suggest coming along to play—and then burst into siren-like crying if things went wrong.

Mrs. Wen reassured him, “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of Xiao Qian. You go have fun and enjoy yourself.”