Chapter 38

Shen Mingyou and Jiang Chen have very different ways of teaching Nian Nian. Shen Mingyou believes Nian Nian should focus on playing while she’s young, as having a happy childhood is more important than anything else. On the other hand, Jiang Chen, who grew up with an elite education, thinks Nian Nian has a high IQ and should be taught by various famous teachers, just like him.

But since Jiang Chen is often not at home, Shen Mingyou takes care of Nian Nian, so naturally, she gets to decide how to raise her. Jiang Chen doesn’t interfere.

This is why Nian Nian hasn’t been to school yet.

“Mom, I don’t want to go to school.” Nian Nian knew that going to kindergarten meant going to school. She had heard Jiang Xu and Brother Zhao Yi Yang talk about it. Jiang Xu said he hated kindergarten, so if kindergarten was that bad, Nian Nian didn’t want to go either.

She just wanted to be with her mother. Being on the set must be way more fun than kindergarten.

“But everyone has to go to school. If you don’t go, you’ll become illiterate.”

“I’m not illiterate!” Nian Nian frowned and said, “I can read and count. I’m not illiterate.”

Even though Nian Nian hadn’t been to school, her mother taught her to read and write when they lived abroad. Sometimes, teachers would come to the house to teach her. Nian Nian is smart and can learn on her own. She knows a lot, so how could she be an illiterate child?

“School isn’t just for learning. You can also make friends,” Shen Mingyou said. “Every child has to go to school, and so does Nian Nian.”

Jiang Chen also thought going to kindergarten would be good for her. He joined in, saying, “Nian Nian, why don’t you visit the kindergarten first? Once you’re used to it, we can officially enroll you.”

Seeing her parents so determined, Nian Nian thought for a moment and said, “Then Mom will go to school with me.”

Shen Mingyou: “…”

After lunch and a nap, Shen Mingyou took Nian Nian to an international private kindergarten that she had contacted earlier that morning.

The kindergarten is called Dumbo International Kindergarten. Of all the kindergartens Shen Mingyou visited, she thought this one was the best fit for Nian Nian.

It was summer break, but the kindergarten offered summer daycare classes for parents who were too busy with work to watch over their children.

Jiang Chen didn’t leave after dropping them off. He held Nian Nian’s hand and walked her in.

The kindergarten teacher, who was waiting at the door, smiled warmly and greeted Nian Nian. “Hello, Nian Nian. I’ll be your teacher. You can call me Teacher Wen.”

Teacher Wen performed a little magic trick, producing a small flower out of thin air and giving it to Nian Nian. “Welcome, Nian Nian.”

Nian Nian’s eyes lit up. She had just been watching the teacher, and suddenly a flower appeared from nowhere. It was magical.

Teacher Wen led Nian Nian inside, and Shen Mingyou chose the middle class for her. The younger class had children just over three years old, but since Nian Nian was almost four, the middle class was the right fit.

Nian Nian followed the teacher, glancing back every few steps to make sure her parents were still there. Each time, they looked back with encouraging smiles, which reassured her, and she followed the teacher into her classroom.

There were about seven or eight kids in the class, all around four or five years old. As soon as Nian Nian walked in, they recognized her.

“I know you! You’re Nian Nian from “Super Mom”. Your mom’s a big star, just like Jiang Xu’s mom, right?”

“Is she really the Nian Nian from the show? But why does she have red spots on her face? She looks different from how she did on TV.”

Jiang Xu, who was sitting nearby, heard his name and looked up. He saw sister Nian Nian walking in with a small backpack.

He jumped out of his seat and ran over, grabbing her hand. “Nian Nian, why are you here?”

“Are you here to see me?” Jiang Xu turned to Teacher Wen. “Can I take a break and go play with sister?”

Teacher Wen, looking a bit helpless, replied, “Nian Nian is here to study. You two will be classmates from now on.”

Jiang Xu’s eyes widened. “Nian Nian, are you going to school too?”

He remembered hearing that Nian Nian didn’t have to go to school, and he had been a little jealous. But now, even she couldn’t avoid going to school.

Nian Nian was happy to see someone she knew. “Mom says I shouldn’t grow up to be illiterate, so I have to go to school.”

“What does ‘illiterate’ mean?” Jiang Xu didn’t know.

“Illiterate means…” Nian Nian paused, unsure how to explain it. She noticed Jiang Xu holding a Rubik’s Cube, so she took it from him. In less than ten seconds, she solved the entire puzzle.

“There. Now you’re not an illiterate kid anymore,” Nian Nian said, holding up the completed Rubik’s Cube.

Jiang Xu stared at his toy, confused. 

He had been trying to solve it for days, and no one at the kindergarten could do it either—except one kid who had managed to get one side right.

But Nian Nian solved the whole thing in just a few seconds.

Does that mean she’s not the illiterate one? Does that mean he and his kindergarten friends are?

Devastated, Jiang Xu burst into tears, “Waaah… I’m the illiterate one!”

The kindergarten kid who had been playing with the Rubik’s Cube with Xiao Xu all day but couldn’t solve it finally burst into tears: “Waa… Am I illiterate too? I don’t want to be illiterate! Waa…”

Teacher Wen: “…”

Nian Nian: “…”

On the first day of kindergarten, Nian Nian, who managed to make her classmates cry, realized that going to kindergarten wasn’t going to be easy. She soon found herself surrounded by classmates begging her to teach them how to solve the Rubik’s Cube one by one.

Nian Nian sighed, thinking that school was a lot more tiring than she had expected.

After school, Nian Nian was taken home by her parents.

Shen Mingyou noticed that Nian Nian seemed to be in a good mood and asked, “Nian Nian, do you want to go back to school?”

Nian Nian thought for a moment and nodded, “Okay, but what if I miss Mommy?”

“When you miss Mommy, you can contact her anytime.”

Jiang Chen, who was driving, added, “You can also contact Dad anytime.”

Hearing this, Nian Nian felt reassured and put aside the last of her worries.

When the family arrived home, Shen Mingyou took Nian Nian’s hand and got out of the car. As they passed by the small lawn, she noticed a large tent pitched there, with a small tent beside it. The two tents stood out quite obviously.

Jiang Chen silently panicked, remembering he had forgotten to ask the housekeeper to take down the tents.

Seeing her tent still there, Nian Nian excitedly tugged her mother’s hand and said, “Mom, I want to sleep in the tent again tonight. It’s so fun to sleep in a tent.”

Jiang Chen winked at Nian Nian, but she didn’t notice.

However, Shen Mingyou saw it. She glared at Jiang Chen, signaling him to stay quiet, and asked Nian Nian, “Did you sleep here last night?”

It was summer, and the temperature outside was quite high. Shen Mingyou was surprised that Jiang Chen had let their daughter sleep outside in the tent. No wonder Nian Nian had so many mosquito bites on her face.

She knew Jiang Chen wasn’t great at taking care of the baby, but she hadn’t expected him to be this unreliable!

“Yes, Nian Nian ran away from home last night. This was where I ended up!”

Shen Mingyou raised her eyebrows.

“Why did you run away from home?” Shen Mingyou found it amusing. Nian Nian wasn’t the kind of child who threw tantrums without reason. If she ran away, Jiang Chen must have done something to make her mad.

Seeing that Nian Nian was about to tell everything, Jiang Chen waved his hand, signaling her to stop.

But Nian Nian didn’t notice.

“Dad ate all of Nian Nian’s instant noodles and didn’t leave any for me!” Nian Nian, too excited, forgot the agreement she had made with her father the night before and told her mother their little secret.

Shen Mingyou smiled and asked, “You’ve been eating instant noodles?”

“Yeah!” Nian Nian, still unaware of the situation, said, “Mom, instant noodles are so fragrant and delicious!”

The next second, Shen Mingyou’s voice became stern: “Nian Nian, did you forget that Mommy told you instant noodles are unhealthy, and you can’t eat them?”

Nian Nian: “…”

Seeing that her mother seemed genuinely upset, Nian Nian puffed up her cheeks.

“Nian Nian only ate one,” Nian Nian held up one finger. After thinking for a moment, she pitifully held up another finger and corrected herself, “I only ate two.”

“Mommy, let me spank myself twice.” Nian Nian walked over to her mother, stuck out her little butt, and asked to be spanked.

Shen Mingyou nearly burst out laughing. She pretended to pat Nian Nian’s little butt twice.

Nian Nian touched her butt and realized it didn’t hurt at all.

It turns out Mommy still loves Nian Nian. Even when she does something wrong, Mommy can’t bear to really punish her.

“Mom, Dad ate even more of them,” Nian Nian stood up, eyes sparkling with excitement. She grabbed her mother’s hand and dragged her over to Jiang Chen, saying in a bright voice, “Mom, you have to spank Daddy many, many times~”

Shen Mingyou & Jiang Chen: “…”