Despite the Chinese teacher’s assurance that Jiang Yi would eventually have his own wife, Arno was still not entirely convinced. He turned to Jiang Yi, making one last desperate attempt, and asked if he wanted a wife in the future.

Jiang Yi nodded earnestly and said, “Yes, I want a wife.” He even gestured seriously, saying he would buy a big house for his wife.

Arno was speechless.

The Chinese teacher praised Jiang Yi, saying, “That’s very responsible of you, Jiang Yi, to be thinking about such things at such a young age.”

Jiang Yi blushed, clearly a bit shy from the compliment.

Meanwhile, Arno, thinking about how someone else could be with Jiang Yi all the time—eating together, bathing together, playing together, and even sleeping on the same bed—started feeling that the whole concept of a “wife” was incredibly annoying.

Annoying and frustrating.

He sulked, poking at the pages of his Chinese picture book.

Jiang Yi, thinking that Arno was worried he might not find a wife in the future, patted Arno’s shoulder to comfort him, saying, “Don’t worry, when we grow up, we’ll work hard together to find wives.”

Arno grimaced, wishing he hadn’t asked at all.

He would much rather focus on studying Chinese terms like “Big Uncle” and “Little Aunt” than hear Jiang Yi talk about buying a big house for his future wife.

At 8:30 p.m., Jiang’s father arrived on the second floor to pick up Jiang Yi.

In the bedroom, Arno was sitting on the carpet, asking Jiang Yi if he could stay the night and sleep over.

Jiang Yi shook his head and, with a mature tone, told Arno that once he got married, his wife would sleep with him every night, so he wouldn’t be lonely.

He reassured Arno not to worry, saying everything would be fine once they grew up.

Not wanting Jiang Yi to leave, Arno suddenly had an idea. His eyes lit up as he suggested that Jiang Yi could be his “wife” for now, just to keep him company at night. And later, when he found a real wife, they could revisit the arrangement.

The butler translating this proposal could only wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Jiang Yi, feeling something was off, said with confusion that since they were both boys, he couldn’t be Arno’s wife.

Arno, unbothered, asserted that children were different from adults and that they could figure it out when they grew up.

Jiang Yi’s big, innocent eyes blinked in confusion. He stood under the soft light, his long lashes fluttering like butterfly wings, his fair cheeks dimpling slightly.

The more Arno looked at him, the more adorable he seemed. Half intimidating and half coaxing, Arno tried to convince Jiang Yi to be his “wife” for now, promising they could play with puzzles together before bed.

Jiang Yi nodded, somewhat understanding and somewhat not.

Arno’s eyes sparkled with excitement as he asked if this meant Jiang Yi wouldn’t be going home tonight.

Jiang Yi honestly replied, “No, I have to go home to be with my dad.”

Arno fell silent.

Jiang Yi waved at him, soft and gentle, saying, “Bye-bye, Arno. See you tomorrow.”

Arno, still sulking: “…”

He stared blankly at Jiang Yi, who clearly hadn’t noticed his irritation, and reluctantly raised his hand to say goodbye.

Jiang Yi happily left, holding his father’s hand.

On the way home, Jiang’s father hesitated for a long time before gently asking about what had happened at kindergarten that day.

Being an adult, he knew that children could be cruel in their bullying and exclusion, especially towards a child like Jiang Yi, who came from a single-parent family and was more likely to be seen differently by others.

Jiang Yi, holding his father’s hand, was focused on stepping on his shadow as they walked. When he heard his father’s question, he tilted his head, thought for a moment, and said it was about the yogurt incident.

Jiang’s father asked if Jiang Yi had been scolded, but Jiang Yi shook his head, saying, “No, Arno helped me get the yogurt back.”

Relieved, Jiang’s father was about to ask if Jiang Yi had been scared, but before he could, his usually well-behaved son rolled up his sleeve and excitedly demonstrated how Arno had helped him reclaim the yogurt that day.

Jiang’s father: “…”

He struggled to find the right words, finally saying, “Helping your friends is good, but maybe you shouldn’t copy everything exactly…”

Jiang Yi, only half-understanding, nodded, deciding that what his father said made sense and that he would pass the advice on to Arno.

The next day, the students of Golden Sun Kindergarten’s Class 2 discovered that Qi Nian had not only missed school but also that his water bottle and sleeping area were gone.

Teacher Li explained that Qi Nian had transferred to a kindergarten closer to home due to health reasons.

Song Ziyi and a few classmates widened their eyes and turned to look at Arno.

Arno was squatting on the ground, watching a girl from the next class play with a doll, occasionally glancing at his “doll,” Jiang Yi.

The kids were puzzled, unsure if Arno had anything to do with Qi Nian’s sudden departure.

Song Ziyi scratched his head and exchanged confused looks with the others.

Even though Teacher Li had explained Qi Nian’s transfer, many parents knew that it was unusual for a child to suddenly change schools so close to graduating from the senior class. The children might not understand, but the adults knew better.

So, several parents warned their kids not to bully the boy named Arno in their class.

The students, however, were confused by these warnings. Arno rarely spoke to them and spent most of his time orbiting around Jiang Yi. Far from bullying Arno, they could hardly even catch him during games like “eagle catches the chickens” because Arno would always sprint away with Jiang Yi practically on his head, leaving them in the dust.

Unaware of all this, Jiang Yi happily continued trying to involve Arno in group activities, feeling proud that Arno was integrating well into their class.

As the end of June approached, Class 2 prepared for their graduation performance.

The lunchtime teacher and cafeteria staff were particularly emotional, knowing they wouldn’t have to deal with a certain determined blond boy climbing onto beds and sneaking into the kitchen to wait for a big bone for soup.

As the graduation approached, Class 2 decided to perform a play for the event.

When the play was decided, the class was abuzz with excitement, and in the end, roles were assigned by drawing lots.

Arno was confident that the role of the fairy would go to Jiang Yi. After all, the fairy was the cutest character in the play, and no one in Class 2 was as cute as Jiang Yi!

Song Ziyi, for once, agreed with Arno’s opinion, and the two boys reached a rare consensus.

On the day of the drawing, both Arno and Song Ziyi gave up their chances to draw so that Jiang Yi could go first, eagerly awaiting the result.

Jiang Yi stepped up to the podium, carefully drew his lot, and when he opened the slip of paper, he blinked in surprise before breaking into a delighted smile, his eyes sparkling.

Arno and Song Ziyi exchanged a look, both confident that their plan had worked.

Jiang Yi came down, holding the paper, and called Arno’s name several times excitedly, his soft voice bubbling over with joy.

Arno’s lips curled up slightly as he said, “What is it?”

Jiang Yi’s eyes sparkled as he beamed, “Arno! I’m going to play a tree!”

Arno: “???”

Song Ziyi: “???”

Not believing his ears, Song Ziyi went up to the podium and drew a slip, pulling the role of the “King of the Forest.”

Holding the paper, he asked around, trying to find out who else might be unlucky enough to play a tree.

Except for Jiang Yi, there was no one else.

Arno’s mouth twitched as he watched Jiang Yi swinging his legs, looking more like a happy little mushroom than a tree.

So, Arno took his slip of paper with the knight’s role and exchanged it with the other unfortunate student who had drawn the tree role.

The other student, who had been downcast at first—since the tree role had no lines—was ecstatic when Arno offered to switch, quickly agreeing.

Rehearsals lasted a week. During this time, Jiang’s father learned that Jiang Yi was going to participate in the graduation performance and even perform on stage. Excited, he asked Jiang Yi what role he was playing, but Jiang Yi shyly, with reddening ears, told him it was a secret.

Jiang’s father chuckled, thinking he would borrow an old friend’s video camera to capture the special moment for his son.

Lu Ting also inquired about Arno’s role during breakfast, knowing that this was Arno’s first graduation performance. Arno calmly told him it was an important role that would be on stage for a long time.

Lu Ting raised an eyebrow, assuming that the principal had given special treatment to his son. He told Arno to do his best.

Arno nodded seriously, thinking that playing a tree couldn’t be that difficult.

After a week of rehearsals, the graduation day finally arrived.

On the day of the performance, the auditorium was decorated grandly. Lu Ting, as one of the investors, sat in the front row among many of S City’s most prominent figures, who had come to watch the performance out of respect for the Lu family.

Backstage in the dressing room, Jiang Yi was dressed in his tree costume, his fair face poking out through a small hole in the outfit. He wobbled around a few steps, then squatted down happily, asking Arno, “Do I look like a tree?”

Arno, also dressed in a tree costume, had initially thought the outfit was ridiculously silly. But when he looked up and saw Jiang Yi squatting there with his bright, smiling eyes, he decided the costume wasn’t so bad after all.

He flicked one of Jiang Yi’s “leaves” and said, “You look great.”

Jiang Yi, in return, praised Arno, saying he looked even more like the big banyan tree at the entrance of the kindergarten.

Arno, who had been gradually improving his Chinese comprehension, could only respond with a slightly awkward, “Thanks… I guess.”

Soon after, the play began. Jiang Yi and Arno, both in their tree costumes, quickly ran onto the stage and rooted themselves firmly in place.

The stage lights dazzled the audience as Jiang’s father raised his camera, searching for his son. He couldn’t spot Jiang Yi among the performers and was puzzled, but he didn’t worry too much, assuming Jiang Yi would appear later.

Lu Ting, sitting in the front row, also had his phone out, streaming the event to his wife, who was watching from the other side of the ocean. She was equally puzzled. “I thought Arno was supposed to be in the play?”

Lu Ting paused, scanning the stage again he paused for a moment, and then fell silent.

The play continued, with various scene changes and sound effects filling the auditorium. Despite the visual and auditory spectacle, neither Jiang’s father nor Lu Ting could spot their sons until the very end.

As the play drew to a close, Lu Ting’s wife, watching from her phone, furrowed her brow and asked, “This is almost over, and Arno still hasn’t appeared?”

Lu Ting finally conceded, “Well… dear, is there a possibility that our Arno is playing a tree?”