Ning Shu was astonished by Lin Erbao’s words.

Who gave him such confidence?

Did he think that being a scientist was something he could just claim?

Just because he wanted to be a scientist didn’t mean he could become one!

However, as a mother, she always supported her children’s interests.

Since Erbao wanted to become an athlete, she was willing to give it a try.

Whether he succeeded or not depended on Erbao himself.

Ning Shu said, “If you want to become an athlete, you need to go to a sports school first. It’s the quickest way to become an athlete. If you pass the sports school’s test, you can become a student there. And if you perform well, you could be selected to represent the country as an athlete.”

Of course, some people find coaches directly, but they didn’t have those connections.

Even if they did, it would still require passing tests, so starting with the sports school was necessary.

Lin Guodong was also surprised by his son’s words.

He had never paid much attention to what the kids liked to do; he just provided financially based on their preferences.

However, while helping the children with their studies, he noticed that Erbao was falling behind Yibao and Sanbao and was gradually developing like a typical child.

Becoming an athlete?

It was worth a try, considering Erbao’s speed was something Lin Guodong himself acknowledged. “Alright, I’ll ask my comrades about the sports school tomorrow.”

Ning Shu added, “Since I have nothing to do tomorrow, I might as well find out the location of the sports school and take them to see it. It’s good for Erbao to know what the place is like.”

Lin Guodong agreed, “That’s fine. Just be careful when you go out.”

In fact, when it came to safety, the capital was safer than other cities.

Even if some people wanted to do bad things, they wouldn’t do them in the capital. “Thank you, Dad, thank you, Mom.”

Erbao was overjoyed. “Yay…”

Ning Shu smiled and shook her head, then looked at Yibao and Sanbao. “What about you two? Do you have any thoughts? Maybe you have something else you want to do, like Erbao?”

Yibao and Sanbao shook their heads.

After a moment, Yibao said, “Mom, if Erbao can go to the sports school, I’d like to skip a grade and go to junior high.”

Sanbao, who was more laid-back and hadn’t thought about such things before, couldn’t help but say, “Yeah, I’d like to skip a grade too, like Big Brother.”

Hearing this, Erbao felt a bit embarrassed, thinking he was holding them back.

He spoke up, “Even if I don’t get into the sports school, you two should skip a grade and go to junior high next year.”

Ning Shu looked at the three children and realized that having Yibao and Sanbao accompany Erbao in his studies was indeed delaying their own progress.

Even though Yibao and Sanbao were willing, they also had the idea of skipping a grade.

Since Erbao was okay with it, “Erbao is right. Even if he doesn’t get into the sports school, if you want to skip a grade, you can. I’ll check the situation at the junior high school then.

As for Erbao, no matter whether you get into the sports school or not, as long as it’s something you want to do, your mother and father will support you.”

“So don’t be disappointed if you don’t get in, Erbao.”

Lin Guodong agreed, “Your mother is right. Whatever you want to do, as long as it’s not bad, I’ll support you.”

Erbao quickly said, “I won’t do bad things. I’m a hero’s child.”

Children from the residential compound took pride in being the children of heroes and wouldn’t do bad things.

“Hmm, I believe you.” Lin Guodong said earnestly.

Hearing his father’s words, Erbao felt a surge of pride from being acknowledged and straightened his chest.

Yibao said, “Let’s go for a warm-up walk. We have to run later, and after running, we still have to shower and study. We haven’t finished today’s assignments yet.”

As soon as he heard they were going running, Erbao was filled with boundless energy.

He enthusiastically asked, “Bro, can you time me later? I want to see if I’ve gotten any faster.”

Ning Shu: “…”

Lin Guodong: “…”

Yibao: “…”

He was once again worried about Erbao’s thinking.

It was already dark outside; even if Erbao could run super fast, he wouldn’t be able to see clearly.

Pfft…

Sanbao couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

Yibao said, “Let’s do it tomorrow morning. It’s too dark now, and I can’t see my watch properly. If I misread your time and it looks slower than it actually is, that won’t be good.”

Erbao thought about it and realized Yibao made sense.

He ran so fast—he couldn’t afford to be timed incorrectly. “Alright, tomorrow then.”

The three brothers left the hall together.

Watching them leave, Ning Shu turned to Lin Guodong and said, “Erbao isn’t very bright, is he?”

Lin Guodong replied, “It’s fine. With Yibao and Sanbao around, he won’t suffer any losses in life.”

Ning Shu raised an eyebrow.

Lin Guodong continued, “He might not be the smartest, but he’s clever in his own way. He knows he isn’t the brightest, so he listens to Yibao and Sanbao. He’s aware that becoming a scientist is a long shot, so he’s already thinking of switching to being an athlete. When I was his age, I didn’t have such ambitious ideas.” At this, Lin Guodong chuckled.

Whether it’s becoming a scientist or an athlete, those aren’t paths most people would even consider.

Comrade Lin Erbao was never an ordinary person—not from a young age.

“Our Erbao is wise in a foolish way,” Ning Shu said.

She felt that Erbao lived a clear and happy life, and that was pretty good.

After dinner, Lin Guodong cleaned up while Ning Shu went to heat some water.

After they had showered and taken a leisurely walk in the courtyard, the three Bao brothers still hadn’t returned.

Ning Shu couldn’t help but say, “I’m heading to bed first—it’s too cold.” The winter in the capital was bone-chilling, and without heating, only the warm bed could comfort her.

Lin Guodong said, “You go ahead. I’ll keep an eye out.” If they were back in their family compound, he wouldn’t worry even if the boys were late, but having just moved to the capital, with the three brothers still so young, Lin Guodong was uneasy.

“Alright, I’m going up then. The bed is already warm.” The bed had been sun-dried in the afternoon and warmed with hot water bottles at night; it was sure to be cozy.

It wasn’t that Ning Shu didn’t care about the boys; with Lin Guodong around, she didn’t need to worry.

She was used to having him take care of things.

In some ways, she was just as carefree as Lin Erbao.

Why were the three brothers still out so late?

Yibao and Erbao were crouching, panting heavily, while Sanbao was utterly exhausted, barely able to speak. “Second Brother, I don’t want to run anymore. I can’t keep going.” Being younger and not as strong as his brothers, Sanbao’s exercise load tonight was 1.5 times the usual.

The reason?

Lin Erbao, who wanted to be an athlete, was pumped up, feeling particularly excited.

“Just one more lap, just one,” Erbao said cheerfully. “I still have energy left.” They were running laps around the courtyard and had done so many that even the guards were stunned.

“I can’t do it.” Sanbao was adamant about not running any more.

Yibao remained silent.

He was also worn out; although not as bad as Sanbao, he wasn’t far from it.

“Sanbao, a man shouldn’t say he can’t,” Erbao suddenly said.

Pffft… Hahaha…

The two bursts of laughter came from the guards at the gate of the compound.

At this moment, the three children had finished their round and were squatting by the gate.

Hearing Erbao’s comment, the two guards couldn’t help but laugh.

“Comrade Lin Hairui, do you know why men can’t say ‘I can’t’?” one of the guards teased.

Erbao blinked, unsure.

He had heard several soldiers say that men shouldn’t say ‘I can’t’ back in the residential compound.

But who was Lin Erbao?

In front of others, he couldn’t admit he didn’t know.

So, Lin Erbao moved his not-so-smart little head and said, “Because a man is the head of the family. If the head of the family says ‘I can’t,’ then who will support the family? It can’t be the women, right? Women need protection from men. So, men can’t say ‘I can’t.’”

Yibao and Sanbao were surprised.

Although they didn’t fully understand the statement, they felt Erbao’s explanation made sense.

Yibao and Sanbao realized that there were things Erbao understood that they didn’t.

They looked at Erbao differently now.

Although Erbao wasn’t very perceptive, he noticed the change in Yibao and Sanbao’s expressions.

He felt they saw him as a smart person now.

So, Erbao straightened his back.

The two guards had complex expressions after hearing Erbao’s explanation.

They had been joking, thinking Erbao wouldn’t understand, but now that he had provided such a positive explanation, they couldn’t argue with him.

The guard who had asked the question nodded, “Yes, you’re right. A man is the head of the family and has to bear the responsibility. If a man says he can’t, what about the women in the family? Comrade Lin Hairui, you’re great.”

Erbao beamed at the compliment, showing his trademark white teeth.

Unfortunately, it was too dark to see them clearly, even with the bright moonlight.

“What are you doing here? Don’t you want to go home?” Lin Guodong, who had been waiting for the three children to return, decided to come out and check.

He found them chatting with the guards.

He hadn’t even gotten to know the guards well, so he didn’t know how the children had become so familiar with them.

Seeing Lin Guodong approach, the two guards saluted, “Hello, Regiment Commander.”

“Hello, thank you for your hard work.” Lin Guodong nodded to them and then looked at the three children, “Aren’t you going home?”

“We’re coming, we’re coming…” The three children ran over to Lin Guodong.

Erbao leaned against him, saying, “I’m exhausted.”

Yibao and Sanbao also walked over slowly.

Lin Guodong noticed they were out of breath, “What did you do? You’re so out of breath.”

Sanbao said, “We ran a lot today, about 1.5 times more than before. If you hadn’t come, Erbao would have made us run even more.”

“Hmm.” Yibao added helplessly, “Dad, are there any other ways to train Erbao besides running? I don’t want to keep running like this with him. We’re not even going to be athletes.”

Lin Guodong thought for a moment, “I’ll prepare a training plan suitable for Erbao when we get back.”

“That’s great, thank you, Dad.” Erbao affectionately hooked his arm around Lin Guodong.

The figure of the big man and the three children gradually walked away, disappearing into the darkness.