The fight didn’t just pass by, it brought along other consequences.

The three children led by Li Hengrui naturally clashed with Xu Youyou and the others from then on!

Whether it was a disdainful snort or a face full of contempt every time they met, it’s hard to say where they learned such a rich array of expressions.

As for the other children in the same class, even though they didn’t participate in the incident at the time, they also became somewhat hesitant to approach Xu Youyou and the others.

Although Xu Youyou and her friends had always played together before, they occasionally played games and chatted with other children as well.

But now, perhaps seeing the ‘pitiful state’ of Li Hengrui and his friends, or perhaps being warned by their parents, these children dared not approach Xu Youyou and her friends.

The small group had truly become a close-knit clique.

Even though Teacher Xu tried to ease the situation, the effect was minimal.

“Hmph, whatever, I don’t want to play with these cowards anyway.” Liu Miaomiao said nonchalantly, pouting. “Let’s just play together.”

To be her friend, those people weren’t qualified enough.

However, Qian Xin felt somewhat guilty about this; he believed he had caused trouble for his friends.

Not only had he caused them harm, but they were also isolated by other children. Upon reflection, Qian Xin believed it was because he was too overweight.

But he didn’t want to be like this either. His mother said it was because both she and his father were on the plump side, so Qian Xin was plump as well. She said he would lose weight when he grew a bit more.

But when would he grow up?

Qian Xin still remembered the way adults looked at him, and after saying, “This child looks really stocky,” they would often tactfully suggest to his parents to control his weight.

Because it’s really not good for children to be too overweight!

Qian Xin’s original nickname wasn’t actually Xiao Pang, but adults just started calling him that, and after a while, it seemed to become his nickname.

Qian Xin didn’t mind it at first. He even told his friends about the nickname openly. But……

At lunchtime, Qian Xin only ate half of what he usually had.

Liu Yanzhi was the first to notice.

“Xiao Pang, why are you only eating so little?”

Qian Xin lowered his head. “I’m full.”

After saying that, he tried to leave his seat but was stopped by Liu Miaomiao, who grabbed him. “No way, you’re eating so little, Teacher Xu won’t agree!”

Afraid that children might not eat properly, the kindergarten had requirements for the remaining amount of lunch. They had to eat at least two-thirds of it, and they couldn’t be picky eaters.

For example, they couldn’t finish what they liked and left all the vegetables or other disliked dishes. They had to eat at least more than half of those as well.

Because of his large physique, the aunties used to give Qian Xin a little more, and he used to finish it all.

Upon hearing Liu Miaomiao’s words, Qian Xin returned to his food and ate a few more bites. Soon, there was just about half of it left.

“I’m full.”

He repeated the same sentence, not knowing if he was saying it for his friends to hear or for himself.

Watching Qian Xin’s departing figure, Xu Youyou furrowed her brows.

She felt something was amiss, but couldn’t quite pinpoint it at the moment. She just had a sense that Qian Xin wasn’t very happy.

Xu Youyou wasn’t sure if it was because she had grown up in an orphanage, but she was much more sensitive to the emotions of others than most people. Just like with the Zhou couple in the past, Xu Youyou felt uncomfortable in their presence.

Now, she felt the unhappiness emanating from Qian Xin.

“What happened with Xiao Pang today?” Liu Miaomiao quipped. “Did he eat too many snacks? Why is he eating so little?”

Upon hearing that, Liu Yanzhi quickly retorted, “Xiao Pang didn’t sneakily eat snacks this morning. I was with him the whole time.”

“Then was he scolded by Aunt Qian?”

Liu Miaomiao, judging others by herself, remembered that yesterday Mother Liu hadn’t scolded her severely for the incident, but she kept telling her not to fight with others, and to report any problems to the teacher.

Hearing her mother’s words, Liu Miaomiao became very impatient. She ate much less at dinner, but her mother also made her late-night snack, so she didn’t get hungry.

“No.”

Liu Yanzhi had gone home with Qian Xin yesterday evening because he also had some minor injuries on his body.

Knowing that Liu Yanzhi’s father definitely wouldn’t care about these things and might even scold Liu Yanzhi, Mother Qian directly called and said that Liu Yanzhi would be staying at their house for the evening.

So Liu Yanzhi remembered that Mother Qian seemed quite concerned about Qian Xin being teased by others and comforted him for a while.

“Then what exactly happened?”

Liu Miaomiao frowned as she looked at the plate in front of her. “Could it be that the weather is too hot so he has no appetite?”

Only Liu Miaomiao would probably come up with such a reason.

Unable to come up with an explanation, the group could only quietly observe Qian Xin. To their surprise, they noticed that not only did Qian Xin eat less at lunch, but during afternoon snack time, he also gave all his snacks to them.

When asked, he simply said he was very full and couldn’t eat anymore.

The next day, he even told the lunch aunties not to give him extra food, but just the same amount as the other children.

In the end, he still left one-third of the food uneaten.

Even Teacher Xu came to inquire with concern, but Qian Xin still insisted that he was full.

If a child says they’re full, they can’t force them to eat, right?

Teacher Xu could only enjoin Qian Xin to come to find her if he got hungry in the afternoon. She had prepared some snacks just in case.

However, Qian Xin never came to find her.

Several days later, the children gathered at the familiar small classroom in the kindergarten, which was the place where they had previously discussed Liu Yanzhi’s scumbag father.

This time, the five-person squad was missing one member, Qian Xin, leaving only Xu Youyou, Liu Miaomiao, and Liu Yanzhi.

There was also Lu Chenjun, who had been forcefully pulled along.

Qian Xin was called away by Teacher Xu. It seemed she had something to ask him, probably also about the matter of his eating.

They took the opportunity to discuss Qian Xin’s recent unusual behavior.

Liu Miaomiao raised her hand first and said, “Miaomiao brought some cookies for him, but he didn’t even touch them! He used to love them!”

Liu Yanzhi added, “It’s the same for dinner. He’s eating less. When Aunt Qian asked him, he just said he’s full.”

Xu Youyou frowned. “What’s wrong with Xiao Pang?”

Not sure if it’s because he’s eating less, but Xu Youyou felt that these days Qian Xin seemed a bit thinner, though he didn’t look as strong as before.

Lu Chenjun looked at the chattering sparrows in front of him and knew they wouldn’t give up until they discussed a conclusion. So, he decided to speak up.

“He thinks he’s too fat, so he’s trying to lose weight.”

The term losing weight wasn’t unfamiliar to the children.

Apart from TV commercials, Qin Yiren, Mother Qian, and Mother Liu would occasionally say things like, “Looks like I’ve gained weight, time to lose some.”

Among them, perhaps only Xu Wenyin, with her cheat as a system, didn’t have this worry.

“But can he really lose weight like this?” Liu Yanzhi felt that this approach wasn’t quite right.

However, Liu Miaomiao nodded and said, “It can work! When my mom wants to lose weight, she eats very little!”

At this moment, Liu Yanzhi recalled how his stepmother often ate only a small portion of vegetable salad, also for the purpose of losing weight.

Since everyone said so, it seemed that eating less really could work.

Mother Qian had always been concerned about her child being overweight. She had also tried to reduce his weight by having him eat smaller, more frequent meals. However, whenever Qian Xin felt hungry, he would search for snacks, and there were just too many snacks in the Qian household. Mother Qian couldn’t bear to let her child go hungry.

In the end, they could only rely on training to partially control his weight. However, he didn’t completely slim down; he was still heavier than most children his age.

Now that Qian Xin was actively seeking to lose weight, he probably wouldn’t object to it, right?

After understanding the situation, Xu Youyou and the others felt relieved and even devised a plan to assist Qian Xin in his weight loss journey!

For example, they decided not to bring any snacks like they used to. Even if they occasionally brought some, they wouldn’t eat them in front of Qian Xin.

Another example, they would periodically praise Qian Xin for losing weight, offering encouragement to their friend.

This approach seemed to give Qian Xin more motivation to persist.

In less than a month, it was obvious that Qian Xin had significantly lost weight.

Everything seemed to be developing in a positive direction, but who knew that as another training camp began, several children were running and playing, when Qian Xin suddenly fainted.

The doctor diagnosed malnutrition and rapid weight loss in a short period, leading to the body’s functions being unable to keep up.

The problem wasn’t too serious. Just eat well, exercise, rest properly, and he would recover in no time.

However, when Mother Qian rushed to the hospital and heard the doctor’s words, her eyes welled up with tears.

She looked at Qian Xin, who had already woken up, and for a moment didn’t notice the children accompanying him. She hugged her child tightly.

“What’s the point of losing weight?! Mom doesn’t want you to lose weight anymore!”

“What’s wrong with our family being a bit fat?”

She wanted her child to be healthy, not to criticize Qian Xin for being obese. Now that he had lost weight but become unhealthy, Mother Qian would certainly not allow it.

Qian Xin hadn’t expected things to turn out like this. Feeling the weakness in his body, the little one hung his head in silence, not saying a word.

The feeling of losing weight was very uncomfortable.

At night, he would wake up hungry, and during the day, he always felt weak.

But looking at his gradually slimming figure, Qian Xin also remembered the encouragement from his friends. This time, he gritted his teeth and persisted.

Who would have thought he was so useless?!

“I don’t want to be fat, I don’t want to be laughed at.”

Qian Xin’s soft voice reached Mother Qian’s ears, almost bringing tears to her eyes.

It was her negligence!

When Mother and Father Qian saw Qian Xin eating less dinner voluntarily, they didn’t pay too much attention to it.

Their son was like a little glutton, he would definitely go find snacks if he got hungry.

There was plenty of everything in the villa, especially snacks.

Those snacks weren’t the usual fried and puffed foods, which definitely shouldn’t be eaten in large quantities.

Instead, they were healthy snacks that Mother Qian made specifically for Qian Xin. They not only tasted good but also were nutritious.

She even got a nutritionist certification, fearing that her child might lack something and not grow tall.

The Qian family also had a dedicated room for storing those snacks, so Qian Xin definitely wouldn’t go hungry.

Unfortunately, over the past month, Father and Mother Qian were a bit busy and didn’t notice that Qian Xin hadn’t visited the snack room even once. The missing portion was either taken by the household staff to distribute or thrown away as it neared expiration.

“Xinxin isn’t fat, not fat!”

Mother Qian looked at Qian Xin’s slightly pale round face and said, “We don’t eat other people’s rice. Xinxin looks even cuter like this, really!”

She knew that children always tend to exclude those who are a little different from them, but she didn’t expect it to start as early as kindergarten. The last incident shouldn’t have been easily overlooked!

Mother Qian even started considering whether to transfer Qian Xin to another school.

The better the kindergarten, the better off the children’s families tend to be. Conversely, they were also more indulged by their families. Many times, they might act recklessly and hurt others.

Her child was still so young. If he received malicious words every day, what would become of him?

Mother Qian shuddered at the thought.

“Qian Xin! Whoever says you’re fat, I’ll beat them up!”

At that moment, Liu Miaomiao’s angry voice rang out. She raised her fist and shook it vigorously. “Who said it? Who?!”

Qian Xin was someone under Liu Miaomiao’s protection. If someone dared to bully Qian Xin, then they were bullying her, Liu Miaomiao!

That was something she couldn’t tolerate!

Liu Miaomiao said those words with some real confidence.

With five children training together, perhaps Liu Miaomiao wasn’t the strongest in terms of skill and agility, but her strike was definitely the most painful.

Liu Miaomiao’s strength was truly impressive!

Despite her small size, she packs quite a punch, and it hurts when she hits someone.

Even the instructor said that Liu Miaomiao had natural talent. Who knows, maybe she would be even better than all of them in the future?

It was the first time she had surpassed her friends in a certain aspect, and Liu Miaomiao couldn’t help but feel happy. She was eager to prove herself immediately.

So when Liu Miaomiao heard Qian Xin’s words, she couldn’t help but speak up.

“Xiao—, Qian Xin! You’re not fat! Where are you fat?” Xu Youyou was also angry. She couldn’t believe that her friend had fainted from hunger.

That’s right, listening to the doctor’s words, in Xu Youyou’s understanding, it was indeed that he had fainted from hunger.

Xu Youyou had never doubted Qian Xin’s statement of being ‘full’ before, after all, given her appetite, what Qian Xin ate didn’t seem like a small amount.

But she hadn’t realized that her friend’s appetite couldn’t be compared to her own; otherwise, Qian Xin wouldn’t have needed to lose weight.

Xu Youyou really could empathize with the feeling of being hungry.

Just the thought of Qian Xin persisting like that for a month made Xu Youyou angry, but at the same time, she also felt guilty.

She thought losing weight just meant eating less, but she didn’t expect……

“That’s right! Li Hengrui and the others are all bad kids. Qian Xin, don’t listen to bad kids!”

Liu Yanzhi looked at his friend, who had lost weight but looked very unwell, and wished he could rush to the kindergarten right now and give Li Hengrui and the others a good beating.

Laughing at Qian Xin! Calling Qian Xin fat! I haven’t even laughed at your mismatched eyes yet!

“Wuuwuu.”

Qian Xin cried, wailing loudly.

“I-I really don’t want to be fat.” The little one cried, looking quite pitiful with snot and tears streaming down his face. “I-I want to be slim too.”

Among the children, he was the biggest.

He felt really bad about causing everyone to fight for him last time.

And now, after finally losing a bit of weight, he got sick.

Having his friends come to comfort him only made Qian Xin feel sadder. The more he thought about it, the louder he cried.

Seeing Qian Xin’s pitiful appearance, Mother Qian also started to wipe away her tears.

The atmosphere affected the other children, and they couldn’t help but start crying quietly too.

Lu Chenjun didn’t know how to comfort them, feeling a bit at a loss as he stood there.

Suddenly, the whole room was filled with various cries. Father Qian, who arrived late and pushed open the door to the hospital room after parking the car, thought something very serious had happened to his son. His face turned even whiter than the hospital walls.

But even after hearing Mother Qian’s later explanation, Father Qian’s expression didn’t improve much.

He understood his son’s situation.

Because Father Qian himself also was on the heavy side.

It could be said that everyone in the Qian family had this body type.

When he was younger, he would be mocked by classmates. ‘Little Chubby’ was actually one of the milder nicknames. There were even worse ones like ‘Fatso’ or ‘Rice Bucket’, and even when he wanted to play basketball, he would be laughed at, with comments like, “With that body, can you even jump?”

It wasn’t until later, when he inherited the family business, that the situation began to improve.

After all, in the business world, appearance and physique don’t matter. Whoever has the money holds the power.

Father Qian had finally managed to escape from that situation, only to see it now befalling his son.

The thought that his son had only just started kindergarten, with primary school, middle school, high school, and so on still ahead, made him wonder if it would continue like this forever.

But he was still a man who had spent many years in the business world. Father Qian hugged Mother Qian and Qian Xin tightly. “Don’t cry, don’t cry.”

“Son, how about Dad hires a professional instructor for you?”

“We just used the wrong method before. As long as you’re determined, you’ll definitely lose weight.”

Qian Xin wiped away his tears. “R-really?”

“Really! Don’t you trust Dad?”

Father Qian flashed a convincing smile. “How about Dad and you lose weight together? Let’s see who can do it better!”

Father Qian also wanted to say that it’s okay to be a bit overweight; the Qian family can support him after all.

But as a firsthand victim, he clearly understood that his son would face not just the Qian family, but also classmates, teachers, and so on in the future.

Of course, there were certainly good kids like Xu Youyou and the others who wouldn’t care at all about Qian Xin’s physique. But Father Qian also knew that not all kids were like them.

Qian Xin’s confidence had already been damaged, and mere simple words of comfort were of no use to him at all.

For the sake of the future and also for health reasons, Father Qian had to demonstrate how to be a responsible man.

“Mom, too!” Mother Qian held back her tears, and she also understood Father Qian’s thoughts.

Indeed, they couldn’t make their son live only in a world full of kindness. Rather than offering empty and useless comfort, it was better to toughen up and give it their all!

Anyway, the Qian family had money, so hiring a professional fitness instructor to help with weight loss was completely feasible.

Moreover, Mother Qian also felt that both she and her husband needed to lose weight. Otherwise, if they continue to gain weight, they might develop the three highs^[1]high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and high blood sugar before they reach forty.

“I-I’ll do my best.”

With the promise from his parents, Qian Xin also stopped crying, then somewhat embarrassedly buried his head in his mother’s embrace.

He just cried for nothing.

An’an and the others wouldn’t laugh at him, would they?

Of course, they wouldn’t!

Xu Youyou and the others immediately cheered up Qian Xin.

They also vowed to help, promising that if anyone dared to laugh at Qian Xin in kindergarten, they would tell Father and Mother Qian.

Xu Youyou even gave Lu Chenjun a determined look.

Juanjuan, let’s work together! If Li Hengrui and his group dare to come again, we’ll drag them to a place with no surveillance and give them a beating, forcing them to eat lots and lots of vegetables and carrots!

Lu Chenjun: “……”

The meaning contained in that gaze was too complex for him to comprehend at all.

Was Xiao Lu treating him like a mind reader?

“Good children, good children.” Mother Qian patted the heads of the children and added, “Xinxin is fortunate to have friends like you!”

Losing weight shouldn’t be rushed. Qian Xin needed to replenish the nutrients he had lost before, and his current physical condition didn’t allow him to continue participating in this month’s training camp.

This time, Xu Youyou and the others can only train with one less person.

However, with the support of his parents and friends, Qian Xin’s subsequent weight loss journey was no longer as unhappy and depressive as before.

Almost every day, he would share with Xu Youyou and the others what he had done and what he needed to do.

If he needed help, he would directly turn to the other children for assistance, such as reminding him not to overeat, what time to eat, and so on.

Such efficiency and results were much better than before by a huge margin.

Even Xu Wenyin couldn’t help but praise Qian Xin in her mind.

It’s not about spur-of-the-moment inspiration; persistence is the real skill!

With such determination, the little boy didn’t need to worry about failing to lose weight.

Seeing Qian Xin like this, Xu Wenyin also had an idea in her mind.

The unresolved issue of the virus had been weighing on her mind all along.

She was afraid that one day her program might suddenly crash, with no future ahead of her!

By then, the next system might not come as quickly. What would Xu Youyou do if she were left all alone?

She had to come up with a Plan B.

As a foreign system, Xu Wenyin faced too many limitations. One wrong move and she could be detected by the rules of this world. Even if the virus didn’t kill her, she might get expelled first.

Wouldn’t that be a joke?

But she could try to delegate tasks like Qin Yiren did, getting her subordinates to help her!

Ace was the plan executor selected by the system.

From their conversations during this period, it’s evident that Ace was very interested in AI-related matters.

If he could create a virtual body, she might be able to directly ‘switch bodies’, sacrificing some programs and functions in the process to completely rid herself of the virus’s invasion.

Anyway, once the task was completed and 5874 returned to the system space, after upgrading with points, she would be a good system again!

However, due to limitations inherent to himself and the era, it might take about a hundred years for Ace to come up with a breakthrough that meets Xu Wenyin’s minimum requirements.

By then, not to mention Ace, Xu Youyou might not even be around anymore.

Whether Xu Wenyin’s occasional subtle hints can spark his inspiration depends on Ace’s own aptitude.

So far, Ace doesn’t seem like a fool.

Of course, there might not be any results from this for several years, or even decades.

Xu Wenyin, however, had no choice but to do it!

Taking action offered at least a glimmer of hope for success; if she did nothing, she would truly be left with nothing but waiting for death!

Even Qian Xin, a child, could make a firm decision and fearlessly commit to weight loss. There’s no reason why a big system like her couldn’t match up to a child like him!

Xu Youyou was unaware of Xu Wenyin’s plan, nor did she know about her mother’s efforts behind the scenes. She was also busy, striving to make herself even more formidable.

Ever since Lu Chenjun said those words in front of Qin Yiren last time, this mother had become aware of her child’s talent.

In modern times, it would be a waste not to become a politician.

Of course, Lu Chenjun was still young, it’s too early to say these things.

Perhaps he doesn’t like the deceit and scheming in the political arena at all.

But that didn’t hinder Qin Yiren from hiring a teacher who specialized in the book of deceit^[2]a reference to political cunning and after Xu Youyou expressed interest, both children started taking classes together.

In Qin Yiren’s eyes, as long as the children weren’t malicious or cunning to do bad things, and they retaliated against those who bullied them while protecting themselves, there was absolutely no problem.

Qin Yiren would prefer her child to be the one who actively avoids and counterattacks those who bully him, rather than being the one who actively bullies others.

Plus, there’s an old saying that people can foresee one’s future according to one’s personality when one was little.

She felt that both Lu Chenjun and Xu Youyou were fundamentally good and kind children.

As long as others don’t bully them, they wouldn’t actively bully anyone.

———pr

Amid their busy lives, Jiang City suddenly received some news.

The new mayor of Jiang City has been selected!

Everyone had known for a while that the mayoral election in Jiang City was approaching. Over the next decade, Jiang City’s strategic position would be crucial, with the position of the mayor being the most important. Doing well in this role would lead to further advancement.

However, the incumbent mayor still had a few years left in his term. Several influential families eager to make their mark in Jiang City have naturally set their sights on the position.

Even if the new mayor wasn’t their ally, he/she absolutely couldn’t befriend their opponents!

Having government endorsement was crucial for a family, especially in a place like Jiang City, which was such a valuable territory.

Over the past year, families like the Qin’s and the Qian’s have been working diligently behind the scenes. Other families in similar businesses have done the same and people like Zhou Weimin were among the first casualties in this battle.

However, the intentions from higher up were difficult to discern. Until the last moment, no one knows for sure who would come out on top.

In such a situation, it’s entirely possible for someone completely unexpected to be parachuted in.

Now, the person had finally been decided!

And it’s really…… unexpected!

Upon seeing the familiar face on the document, Qin Xiao couldn’t help but burst into laughter, delighted enough to have his assistant open the bottle of his favorite red wine.

The new mayor of Jiang City was Lu Weizheng.

The once most underestimated dandy of the Lu family had now become the youngest mayor in the history of Jiang City!