"My brother is so stupid at playing games."

The children sitting in front of Wan Qiu couldn't help but complain after Wan Qiu lost the game again.

Wan Qiu was also a little embarrassed.

He is indeed not very good at playing games and can't compare with the kids.

"My brother seems to be not very good at anything except dancing, but I can't dance either."

The girl had a cute ponytail and was lying on the ground, with nothing underneath her thighs.

Wan Qiu was at a loss.

The girl saw Wan Qiu's expression and looked up and said, "But I'm smarter than my brother!"

"Yes." Wan Qiu's affirmation was not false at all, "You are smarter than me."

"I'm so smart." The girl patted her chest proudly, "I did very well in school."

"No matter how well you study, you can never be as good as Brother Chu." The child next to her said to the girl.

"Brother Chu is my role model. I want to learn from him." The girl was not angry.

Wan Qiu sat cross-legged next to the two of them and nodded, "I want to learn from my brother too."

"You're so stupid." The girl frowned, "You can't win even if I let you win."

Wan Qiu wanted to say something, but a shadow fell around them.

The tall boy also sat next to them.

A handsome profile came into Wan Qiu's sight, with a gentle smile.

Chu Yigui stared at the girl in front of him: "Everyone's intelligence is displayed in different places. Brother's intelligence is in other places."

The other children were obviously happier to see Chu Yigui.

The girl also asked curiously: "Then where is he smarter?"

"You will know after you have more contact with him." Chu Yigui said with a smile, and thought for a while, "If any of you discover my brother's cleverness first, I will give you a reward, how about it?"

When the children heard that there was a reward, they were obviously very happy.

Even the children standing by who didn't understand what was happening would look over here.

Chu Yigui always finds it easy to stir up the emotions of the children around him.

But Wan Qiu was looking at Chu Yigui.

Wan Qiu opened his eyes wide and saw something he had never seen before.

It seems that...

ash.

Wan Qiu had seen traces of burning on the roadside. They were probably left by homeless people who picked up things nearby and used them for cooking.

Only ashes were left of those that were burned, a gray patch that could not be distinguished from its original appearance.

As long as the wind blows slightly, these gray ashes of varying shades will be blown into the sky.

Wan Qiu stretched out his hand and held Chu Yigui's.

A strange feeling, like being crushed...

"Brother?" Suddenly, Chu Yigui's voice woke Wan Qiu up, and Wan Qiu came back to his senses.

Where are the ashes?

He held Chu Yigui's arm and squeezed it hard.

The warm touch felt real, and everything I just saw seemed like an illusion.

"What's wrong?" Chu Yigui asked, tilting his head.

Wan Qiu didn't know.

Wan Qiu didn't know what he was seeing.

"Brother, are you afraid of being surrounded by children?" Although Chu Yigui asked a question, he was just joking.

Wan Qiu shook his head.

Wan Qiu let go of Chu Yigui's arm.

Chu Yigui lowered his eyes and looked at the place where Wan Qiu caught him.

Because Wan Qiu seemed to have used too much force when he wasn't paying attention, Chu Yigui felt pain.

No matter how thin Wan Qiu is, he is still a boy after all.

Although Wan Qiu let go of Chu Yigui's arm, he covered Chu Yigui's fingers.

Even he didn't know why he did that.

Chu Yigui raised his fingers and overlapped them with Wan Qiu's fingers.

Wan Qiu can always see gray.

Those uninterrupted grays would always cling to Chu Yigui, as difficult to remove as real ashes.

But it has never been as serious as it is now.

As if he noticed Wan Qiu's bad mood, Chu Yigui did not let the other children bother Wan Qiu anymore.

Instead, he asked Wan Qiu to help the child who had difficulty turning over in bed turn over.

Wan Qiu went to the room on the other side, where there was also a nurse working.

Wan Qiu helped the children with limited mobility according to the caregiver's request.

The soft, tender, warm child eased Wanqiu's strange hallucination-like feeling.

Suddenly Wan Qiu was sensitive enough to notice something, and his gaze shifted to the door.

At this time, there was a man standing at the door.

The tall man was wearing black clothes, with the white world outside the window behind him. He looked particularly out of place.

Wan Qiu looked at the man with a confused look.

There is a sense of familiarity.

However, beneath the familiarity, there is a more unfamiliar feeling.

The man was looking at him.

Wan Qiu was very uncomfortable with that kind of look.

It was like the cold disinfectant came into contact with his skin, absorbing the moisture and burning his skin, leaving a bitter taste.

Wan Qiu bent down to tidy up the child's clothes, looking at his confused child with his dark eyes like grapes.

The astringent feeling disappeared.

Wan Qiu plucked up his courage and looked up again.

But the tall, dark figure disappeared.

The feeling that oppressed Wan Qiu also disappeared.

When Wan Qiu was lying on the bed in the orphanage, his hands and feet were curled up.

For some reason he felt that today it was colder than every other time he came here.

Wan Qiu was groggy in his sleep, and he wanted to recall the storybook that Chu Yigui had read to the children that night.

But for some reason, as long as I close my eyes I can see the ashes of the burning thing flying all over the sky.

He stood in a blank world, but his whole body was covered with ashes.

Wan Qiu reached out to wipe it away and saw the traces left.

However, what Wan Qiu saw was not only the gray dust left by the smoke, but also the words hidden in it.

Wan Qiu tried hard to see the content of the text clearly.

But the area covered by the ashes was too small for him to see a complete sentence.

'orphan'.

'Rubbish'.

'nausea'.

These messy words always seem to appear more clearly.

For some reason, he was unwilling to read the words that appeared on his body again.

However, he could not control his body. He spread the ashes again and again to peek and force himself to read.

Wan Qiu was afraid.

He was afraid.

'You don't even deserve a name.'

When this sentence suddenly appeared, Wan Qiu opened his eyes.

After taking a few quick breaths, he seemed to calm down.

It was already daybreak, and on the whitened windows there was still water vapor condensed from the contact between the hot and cold air in the house.

There was a subtle smell in the air, like the smell of burning wood.

Sitting up, Wan Qiu looked at his hands, which were shaking.

Everything in the dream is clear and visible.

For some reason, even though he was in a space that belonged to two people, Wan Qiu seemed to feel that he was the only one there.

Wan Qiu approached Chu Yigui's bed and saw the bulge in the bedding.

Chu Yigui had his back to him. His hair seemed longer than he remembered, hanging on the pillow, looking gray.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Wan Qiu wanted to tuck in the quilt for Chu Yigui, but when he touched Chu Yigui's bedding.

The bedding slumped slightly.

Wan Qiu looked at the collapsed area and felt fear in his heart.

He didn't dare raise his eyes again to look at Chu Yigui.

Wan Qiu didn't dare to move.

He was afraid that any action he took would cause Chu Yigui to collapse.

Wan Qiu couldn't bear it anymore and he seemed to be crying.

Even the tears were falling silently.

even so.

The bulging quilt could not bear the weight of my tears...

Wan Qiu suddenly opened his eyes.

The dark sky that has not yet been brightened.

Wan Qiu was still lying in bed.

There was no collapsed bedding, and he didn't even sit by Chu Yigui's bed.

Wanqiu was confused.

Are you dreaming?

In the dream, did he also dream?

Are you dreaming now, or have you woken up?

Wan Qiu felt a little cold on his face. He reached out his hand and touched the wet traces of tears on his cheek.

He also cried in his dream, but there didn't seem to be any wet feeling.

Is he really awake now?

Wan Qiu suddenly remembered that Chu Zhang said that if you don’t know whether you are dreaming or not, then pinch yourself. If it hurts, then you are not dreaming.

Wan Qiu pinched himself hard in his quilt.

I pushed so hard that I felt the pain.

Wan Qiu sat up, and in the dark night, he looked at Chu Yigui who was lying on another bed.

He heard his brother's breathing.

It's reality, not a dream.

Wan Qiu took a deep breath.

For some reason, the feeling of being alone in the dream made him feel more suffocated than before.

Wan Qiu wiped his cheeks, but did not feel the tears flowing again.

"Brother?" Chu Yigui's voice suddenly came in the dark night.

There was a rustling sound of bedding, and Chu Yigui half sat up.

"Did you have a nightmare?"

"Yeah." Wan Qiu responded softly and asked, "Did I wake you up?"

"No, I just don't know why I can't sleep well tonight." Chu Yigui turned his head and opened the quilt, "Brother, do you want to come over?"

It was a familiar scene. Wan Qiu put on his slippers and walked to Chu Yigui's side.

But he didn't get into Chu Yigui's bed as quickly as before.

In the dark space with only faint light, Wan Qiu stared at Chu Yigui.

As if he was afraid of something, he didn't dare to touch Chu Yigui.

"Brother, if you don't come in soon, the warmth in the bed will disappear." Chu Yigui said.

Wan Qiu listened to Chu Yigui's voice and stretched out his hand to Chu Yigui.

Getting closer little by little.

It seemed as if something would happen with just a little bit of force from the fingertips.

However, Wan Qiu's hand was suddenly held.

Chu Yigui's warmth wrapped around the back of Wan Qiu's hand and led him closer to Chu Yigui's cheek. Wan Qiu touched Chu Yigui's face.

Soft, delicate, warm and solid.

The real Chu Yigui.

"Brother, do you want to touch me?" Chu Yigui asked.

"Yeah." Wan Qiu responded in a low voice.

Even though Chu Yigui couldn't see Wan Qiu clearly, he was able to discern Wan Qiu's emotions just from this one sound.

"Let's sleep together." Chu Yigui pulled Wan Qiu over.

Wrapped in the same bedding, just like before.

When Chu Yigui touched Wan Qiu, he noticed that Wan Qiu's temperature was too cold.

Wan Qiu doesn't have a physical condition that causes cold hands and feet, it's just a very strange change.

Chu Yigui wrapped his legs around Wan Qiu and passed his warmth to him.

When Chu Yigui was tucking in the quilt for Wan Qiu, his fingers touched the hair beside Wan Qiu's cheek, which was slightly wet.

I touched the corner of Wan Qiu's eyes, and there was still a residual wet feeling.

Chu Yigui asked: "Brother, did you have a terrible dream?"

Wan Qiu was silent and waited for some time before Chu Yigui heard Wan Qiu's answer: "I suddenly forgot."

"Did you forget it after you woke up?" Chu Yigui asked.

Wan Qiu nodded and said, "It feels like a very scary dream."

Chu Yigui half hugged Wan Qiu: "Is this still scary?"

Wan Qiu shook his head: "I feel very sad now, I can't say it."

The feeling of dreaming can sometimes linger in reality for a long time.

But the content can also be suddenly forgotten.

Chu Yigui didn’t know what kind of dream Wan Qiu had.

Wan Qiu really didn't remember.

Chu Yigui finally just hugged Wan Qiu and said, "It's okay. I won't have dreams again tonight."

Chu Yigui felt Wan Qiu nodded in his arms.

Chu Yigui was talking to Wan Qiu in a disjointed manner.

Wan Qiu also responded.

As usual, Wan Qiu would fall asleep as long as they chatted like this.

This time is no exception.

Chu Yigui patted Wan Qiu's back gently.

The force gradually decreases until it disappears.

The next day, he got up very early again and turned on the lights. When Wan Qiu was changing clothes, Chu Yigui suddenly held Wan Qiu's hand.

There were extremely exaggerated bruises on Wan Qiu's arms.

"What's going on?" Chu Yigui asked.

"I had a very scary dream. When I woke up, I didn't know if I was still dreaming, so I pinched it."

Wan Qiu was also surprised when he saw the exaggerated bruises on his arms.

It seemed that he didn't expect that he would pinch so hard.

Chu Yigui asked Wan Qiu to wait in the room for a while, and went to the dean to get a medical kit to treat Wan Qiu.

Chu Yigui knew that Wan Qiu’s pain threshold was different from that of ordinary people, so he obviously did not go easy on him.

Some ointment was applied to Wan Qiu's arm, and the smell of the ointment filled the air.

Wan Qiu sniffed the air and said, "This smells good."

"This is not perfume." Chu Yigui didn't know whether to laugh or cry, "Brother, don't be so hard next time."

"Yeah." Wan Qiu responded obediently.

"What kind of dream is this?" Chu Yigui put the medicinal oil into the medicine box, a little curious, "Is it related to anyone?"

Wan Qiu really doesn't remember.

I clearly still remembered it when I woke up.

When Chu Yigui suddenly held his hand and touched his cheek last night, the sudden feeling of security made Wan Qiu instantly forget about his dream.

"It seems to be a dream about my brother." This is all Wan Qiu could remember. "It was a dream. I had a dream."

"Then I am guilty of a heinous crime and I have not even made my brother sleep well." Chu Yigui teased.

"No, brother is not wrong." Wan Qiu immediately reached out and grabbed Chu Yigui's clothes, explaining anxiously.

"I know." Chu Yigui laughed, "It was just a joke."

Wan Qiu looked at Chu Yigui eagerly and let go of his hand.

Chu Yigui stood up and asked, "Brother, take your time to change your clothes, or do you need my help?"

Wan Qiu shook his head.

"So I'll go to the kitchen and prepare breakfast for the kids?"

"Yeah." Wan Qiu nodded.

Chu Yigui closed the door.

He stayed at the door for a few seconds, then turned and left.

Wan Qiu noticed that the other children today seemed to enjoy being around him.

Everyone was playing a game called "Find the Smart Wan Qiu", and Wan Qiu was experimenting with various mini-games.

Wan Qiu followed everyone in a daze, but he seemed extremely clumsy no matter what he played.

"Brother, can you play cat's tangle?" a girl said to Wan Qiu with open hands.

Wan Qiu looked at the rope. He knew how to play with it, but he had only seen it in the countryside.

When the rope became a knot, there were sounds of disappointment from the children around.

Wan Qiu was at a loss.

But the nurse was delighted.

When the dean appeared at the door, Wan Qiu noticed that Chu Yigui stood up and walked to the dean's side.

Even if the dean didn't call Chu Yigui's name.

The dean was talking to Chu Yigui with a gentle expression.

But the children around him were making so much noise that he couldn't hear clearly.

But Chu Yigui nodded and came to Wan Qiu's side.

"Brother, I have to go out for something and will be back soon. Can you wait for me here for a while?"

Chu Yigui asked Wan Qiu, but Wan Qiu neither answered nor refused.

They were together almost all the time during this winter vacation and were never apart.

"It won't be long. I will let the bodyguards stay with my brother all the time. Don't go anywhere before I come back, okay?" Chu Yigui said.

Wan Qiu nodded.

He still would not refuse Chu Yigui's request, no matter what it was.

"One hour. I will be back within one hour."

Chu Yigui half-knelt in front of Wan Qiu and hooked Wan Qiu's hand with his slender fingers.

The fingers were entangled with each other, and finally Chu Yigui bent his little finger and hooked Wan Qiu's little finger.

"Hook."

The children nearby also started to make pinky promises to each other and were having a lot of fun.

Wan Qiu nodded.

Wan Qiu watched Chu Yigui say goodbye to him, then stood up and left with the dean.

For some reason, Wan Qiu had a strange feeling of being left behind as he stood there.

The crackling sound, like the sound of flames burning firewood, echoed in Wanqiu's ears.

Wan Qiu walked out of the entertainment room and leaned over to the edge of the windowsill.

Several other children also came over.

During this period, the snow has shown some signs of melting, and the snow piles that usually accumulate on the roadside appear a little dirty due to melting.

He saw a man standing in the yard.

It was the man he saw yesterday who had been looking at him.

The man was wearing a long, thick windbreaker and a navy blue plaid scarf.

Until Wan Qiu saw Chu Yigui.

His brother also wore a black coat, but he wore a white scarf.

When the two stood together, Wan Qiu suddenly had a strange feeling.

Chu Yigui is about the same height as that man, but their body shapes are slightly different.

The man looked older, but very handsome.

I don't know why.

Wan Qiu felt that the two people were very similar.

They exchanged a few words and his brother followed the man to the orphanage's main gate.

From their perspective, they could see a black vehicle parked at the door.

When he was about to get on the car, Chu Yigui paused and suddenly turned his head.

At the same time, Wan Qiu felt that he was seen by Chu Yigui.

Chu Yigui, who hadn't smiled at all when talking to the man, smiled faintly in his direction.

Wan Qiu subconsciously returned Chu Yigui's smile, but Chu Yigui just turned around and got into the car.

His brother couldn't see him.

Wan Qiu suddenly thought of it.

"That uncle comes here quite often recently, and keeps asking about Brother Chu."

Suddenly the child next to him said.

"Yes, that uncle always brings us candy."

"Uncle also gave us lessons, although I couldn't understand what he taught."

"Yeah, I don't understand."

"I can understand a little."

Wan Qiu listened to the children chattering about something.

His mind recalled the look in the eyes of that man who was somewhat familiar yet somewhat strange at the door.

Their pinky promise was very effective and Chu Yi returned very quickly.

Just like we agreed, I will be back within an hour.

Wan Qiu looked at Chu Yigui, who had not changed at all since he left.

Although he was a little confused, Wan Qiu didn't know why he didn't want an answer.

Wan Qiu smelled a faint scent on Chu Yigui that was only found in hospitals, so faint that it seemed like an illusion.

After Chu Yigui came back, Wan Qiu left the entertainment room.

He walked in the corridor, trying to find someone.

However, even though he searched the entire corridor, he did not see the middle-aged man in black clothes again.

Even though Wan Qiu didn't know why he wanted to find that man, he wouldn't be disappointed if he didn't find that man.

That night, Wan Qiu still slept with Chu Yigui.

Wan Qiu slept well while feeling Chu Yigui's body temperature.

They only stayed in the orphanage for three days and two nights, and as soon as they came back they packed up and prepared to go to school.

Wan Qiu took a separate entrance examination at the beginning of the school year. Unfortunately, he could only enter the sixth grade.

But tutoring is not without effect. The sixth grade courses have become easier to learn.

This semester is the second semester of Chu Yigui's third year in junior high school, and Chu Yigui has become extremely busy.

Fu Zhengyu said that they could go directly to junior high school from elementary school, so it didn’t matter if they didn’t study hard now, but they had to work hard for the exams in the third year of junior high school.

"But Brother Chu obviously ranks first in the grade in every exam. He works so hard. He really doesn't let others survive."

Fu Zhengyu sat in the front seat of Wan Qiu, leaning on Wan Qiu's desk and talking to Wan Qiu.

Wan Qiu nodded.

"Brother Li Shuo has been busy lately. When they graduate, there will be no one to protect us."

Fu Zhengyu sighed.

Covering them?

Wan Qiu didn't understand.

"But the guys who have been promoted from the second year to the third year of junior high school are still here, so there's nothing to worry about." Fu Zhengyu laughed.

Wan Qiu nodded.

After Fu Zhengyu finished speaking, he looked at Wan Qiu and said, "It's been more than a month since the class started. Haven't you recovered yet?"

"What?" Wan Qiu was stunned.

"You look even dumber than when I first met you. You always stare blankly after class and don't even take the initiative to buy me food."

Ever since Wan Qiu learned to share snacks with classmates, Fu Zhengyu has been the biggest beneficiary.

Wan Qiu opened his mouth and said dejectedly: "I'm sorry, I forgot."

"What's the big deal? That's not what I meant. I meant that you look like you haven't woken up yet recently. What did you do to stay up late at night?" Fu Zhengyu asked.

Wan Qiu shook his head.

He dropped his eyes.

His face was a little pale.

"Are you really okay?" Fu Zhengyu asked.

"..." Wan Qiu hesitated for a long time before saying, "I've been having nightmares lately."

"What dream?" Fu Zhengyu asked.

Wan Qiu frowned: "I can't remember."

"A dream that you can't remember is called a nightmare?" Fu Zhengyu sneered.

Wan Qiu couldn't describe the feeling.

His feelings remembered, his body remembered, but his memory did not.

It's like touching something extremely familiar. I remember the touch and the shape, but I can't remember what it was.

"It doesn't matter, dreams are the opposite of reality." Fu Zhengyu patted Wan Qiu's shoulder, "If it's a nightmare, then something good is bound to happen."

Wan Qiu nodded and believed what Fu Zhengyu said.

"Why don't we find something interesting?" Fu Zhengyu thought for a moment, "Brother Chu's birthday is coming soon, have you thought about what birthday gift to give him?"

Wan Qiu was stunned. Birthday?

Wan Qiu calculated the time: "Isn't there still a month left?"

"So just find something interesting to do in advance, and prepare early so you don't have to rush around when the time comes."

The bell rang and Fu Zhengyu returned to his seat.

Wan Qiu took out the book and unconsciously wrote the word "birthday" on it.

For some reason, Wan Qiu felt that these two words were very unfamiliar.