Chapter 120: Blue Day
Siyuan Road is quiet and has few vehicles. It overlooks the sea on one side and faces the mountain on the other. The wealthy people who live here have given up their treadmills and have fallen in love with running on mountain roads.
When Chen Youhan ran up from the foot of the mountain for the second time, he saw a little creature on the side of the road.
Wearing a white shirt and bib shorts, carrying a neat little schoolbag on his back and holding a teddy bear in his arms, the yellow balloon tied to the bag swayed as he walked.
A car passed by at a speed of 40 miles per hour. Chen Youhan cursed "Fuck you" and quickly grabbed the person in his arms and walked away from the roadside.
"My young master, why did you run out alone?" He was still in shock.
Ye Kai said seriously: "I am running away from home."
His eyes were big and round, with the corners of his eyes slightly drooping. When he finished speaking, his black eyelashes drooped like a small fan.
Chen Youhan was dumbfounded: "Ah?"
"This is Teddy, this is the balloon you gave me last time at Disneyland," Ye Kai patted the small clip hanging on his chest, "and this is money."
Well, the preparations are quite complete.
Chen Youhan held him in his arms, weighed him, and asked coaxingly, "What's in that schoolbag?"
"It's a handwork assignment from Teacher Andy."
Oh my god, running away from home and bringing homework with you.
"And the blue day book."
"……What?"
"Are you in a bad mood today?"
"I'm in a good mood." said Chen Youhan.
"No! It's a drawing book my mother gave me!"
“Picture book.”
Ye Kai followed and read: "Picture book."
The child felt heavy after being held for so long. Chen Youhan's hands were numb. After putting the child down, he squatted down and poked his cheek with his finger: "Then why did you run away from home?"
Ye Kai said: "My mother doesn't let me eat ice cream."
"Show me your teeth."
Ye Kai obediently opened his mouth and let out an "Ah" as if he was facing a dentist.
Chen Youhan had no choice but to stand on Qu Jia's side: "You have to eat less."
Ye Kai snorted, stood up, waved his hand, and said seriously, "You don't understand me." He then said, "Goodbye, Brother Youhan."
I guess he meant "understanding".
Chen Youhan grabbed his little hand and stopped him from leaving, asking, "Can you tell your brother where you want to go after running away from home?"
Ye Kai had obviously thought about this question a long time ago, and said without hesitation: "I want to go to Haagen-Dazs!"
There was an inexplicable determination in his eyes.
The nearest Haagen-Dazs is at the foot of the mountain, a one-kilometer mountain road. For him, it is really a great "runaway from home".
Chen Youhan burst into laughter and couldn't help but hold his legs and hug him back into his arms. He pinched his round face and said, "Okay, that's a good idea. Then wait for me, I'll go with you, okay?"
Ye Kai asked naively: "Are you going to run away from home too?"
Chen Youhan suppressed his laughter and nodded, saying "hmm". He imitated him and said solemnly and sadly, "Who made today a blue day?"
When they brought the person back to Chen's house, Aunt Xu exclaimed, "Aren't you running? Why did you bring one back?"
Chen Youhan carried him upstairs with big steps. Ye Kai lay on his shoulders, his small shoulders firmly covered by his big hands.
Aunt Xu followed them upstairs and heard their eldest son complain with a smile: "I'm going to rebel because I can't eat ice cream. Help me get a box of Haagen-Dazs."
Ye Kai's eyes lit up, and he immediately said, "I want cookies."
"Okay, it's cookie flavored. Just ask Aunt Xu yourself."
Ye Kai half turned around in his arms, facing her and said in a baby voice: "Hello, Aunt Xu, please give me a box of Haagen-Dazs with cookie flavor, thank you, Auntie."
Aunt Xu covered her chest and said “Ouch,” repeatedly saying “Okay, okay, okay,” calling him “good baby.”
After carrying him back to the room and landing on the ground, Chen Youhan squatted down and asked seriously: "Brother, take a shower first, you can play with Zeus for a while?"
Ye Kai pulled the teddy bear's ears and nodded. Although he was well-behaved, he didn't seem to be in a very good mood.
With a whistle, Zeus, who had been on standby, suddenly jumped over. Chen Youhan ordered the dog: "Stay still, do you hear me? Don't stand up, don't open your mouth, don't lick, don't stretch out your paws, understand?"
Zeus snorted and nodded. Chen Youhan was dissatisfied and pointed at it and repeated, "Shut your mouth."
Zeus whimpered, then lay obediently on the ground, looking at Ye Kai with his round little eyes, and then put his big furry head close to his little hand, asking him to touch it.
Chen Youhan watched them play for a while, then turned around and called Ye Jin: "Your brother ran away from home and is about to be kidnapped."
It was summer vacation, and Ye Jin was dating someone outside. Hearing this, she smiled and said, "Thank you. Please treat me well and have a good meal."
Chen Youhan glanced at Ye Kai who was combing Zeus's hair. His small face was focused and a little melancholy. He said, "He's not very happy today."
Ye Jin was laughing so hard that her shoulders were shaking on the other end of the phone. After hanging up, she decided to end the date and go home.
The boyfriend asked jealously: "Your brother has so many people around him, you wouldn't be a big problem, right?"
Ye Jin was puzzled: "What does it have to do with me if other people are surrounding him? Just because he has a lot of people caring about him, can I stop caring?"
The boyfriend was speechless, feeling that he was being neglected and even fooled, and said angrily: "Okay, good Chinese sister."
Ye Jin smiled slightly: "Thank you for the compliment."
The eldest lady's voice was so sweet and crisp that it was enough to infuriate anyone.
Ye opened a box of Haagen-Dazs and ate it slowly, prying a little with a small wooden spoon and sipping it into his mouth. Perhaps he thought it was too delicious, so he nodded unconsciously after taking a bite. Chen Youhan was taking a bath, and Aunt Xu was accompanying him. She was touched by his nodding action and couldn't help but pinch his face.
Ye Kai finished a box and bargained, asking, "Can I have a vanilla flavored one?"
Aunt Xu couldn't make the decision, so she passed the buck and said, "It's up to you, Brother Youhan, to decide."
Ye Kai lowered his head, said "Oh" slowly, grabbed Zeus's ear and said, "Okay."
When Chen Youhan came back from taking a shower, she found him sleeping alone at the foot of the sofa, with the big dog lying beside him and taking a nap. The floor was cold from the air conditioning, and Chen Youhan didn't have time to blow dry his hair, so she rushed over and picked him up. Although the movement was big, the force was very gentle. Aunt Xu was a step late, and she slapped her forehead in annoyance. She wanted to explain, but Master Chen hushed her head.
"Go make him some sweet soup, hot, not iced."
"Didn't Teacher Qu forbid him to eat sweets?"
Chen Youhan lowered his eyes to look at him and lowered his voice: "It's okay, he's in a bad mood today."
What's the mood of a child? Sometimes he's in a good mood, sometimes he's in a bad mood. He'll be fine after a while of coaxing. Aunt Xu turned her back and muttered to herself.
The purple sweet potato milk was stewed, and it was brought in after being blown warm. Chen Youhan squatted in front of him and fed him with a spoon. Ye Kai chewed very slowly, pursing his lips and chewing carefully, then swallowing slowly. He liked to drink purple sweet potato milk very much, but if he ate it in a hurry, he would be criticized by Qu Jia. Qu Jia's jurisdiction included but was not limited to the entire Siyuan Road, which made him feel scared even when eating in the kindergarten.
Chen Youhan then said, "You can drink more."
Ye Kai looked at him with his dark eyes, cautious but a little excited: "Really?"
Chen Youhan said, "Hmm," "You can be willful here with Brother Youhan."
Ye Kai raised his lips and smiled so hard that his eyelashes curved. There was finally some joy in his eyes that was consistent with his five-year-old age. He took the bowl from Chen Youhan with his little hand and drank it all in one gulp.
The dessert bowl was not very big, but it had already buried the child's face. When he put it down, there was a circle of milk stains on his lips.
Ye Jin happened to arrive at this time, and gasped when he saw this scene: "Chen Youhan, you are asking for a fight."
Chen Youhan glanced back at her, put his hand to his lips and made a hushing gesture, "Keep it a secret."
When Ye Kai saw Ye Jin coming, he jumped off the bed for some reason, put on his schoolbag with great effort, picked up the teddy bear, and pretended to leave.
Chen Youhan held his hand: "Baby, what's wrong?"
Ye Kai said, "I've eaten enough here, I have to go." He looked at Ye Jin again and sighed softly, "I don't want to see my sister now." Perhaps he felt that this was a harsh remark, so after thinking for a while, he comforted her and said, "I'm sorry, sister, don't worry, maybe it will be better tomorrow."
Ye Jin felt that the little thing was pitying her. She was both amused and annoyed: "Little ungrateful bastard, I left my boyfriend and came to see you!" She squatted down and held his shoulders: "What's wrong? I heard from your brother Youhan that you were unhappy today, right?"
Ye Kai lowered his head, twisted his fingers awkwardly for a while, and nodded.
Her brother was as clear as if he were transparent, and he could not hide the little sadness in his eyes. He could only lower his long and straight eyelashes to cover up the grievance inside.
"Oh, what should we do then?" Ye Jin sighed and scratched the tip of his upturned nose.
Ye Kai had glanced at the TV at some point, and he mimed in a soft and unclear voice: "Leave me alone."
Ye Jin burst out laughing and had to pinky promise him, "Okay then, when you feel better, remember to call me." She leaned her cheek closer and said, "Kiss sister, okay?"
Ye Kai thought about it, and mercifully kissed her on the face. He had a childish scent, and Ye Jin couldn't help but hold him in her arms and hugged him tightly for a while, with her cheek against his: "My little ancestor."
At the foot of Siyuan Road, Haagen-Dazs is next to a Portuguese egg tart shop. The owners are a Danish couple who have settled in China for more than ten years. There are endless streams of people checking in in front of the dark blue shop every day.
Chen Youhan changed into a T-shirt, and Ye Kai tightly grasped his index finger. He liked holding Chen Youhan's hand like this, holding it tightly, and not letting go even when his palms were sweating.
Although it was five o'clock in the afternoon, the sun was still terribly hot. Chen Youhan found a fisherman's hat for him, which was too big. When he put it on, it covered his entire face. Ye Kai led him and followed his steps step by step, with his head lowered, and his eyes could only see the small area at his feet.
He recalled the time during the Dragon Boat Festival when all the colorful ropes were lost and it was his brother Youhan who took him all over the mountains to look for them.
While I was making the sachet, I sat on my grandmother's lap. Her dress was soft and fragrant, so beautiful. Her hair was also soft, with beautiful curls.
"Baby, this is mugwort."
"Mugwort." Ye Kai followed.
“This is dogwood.”
"Dogwood."
"As a stranger in a foreign land, I miss my family all the more during festivals. I know my brothers are climbing the mountain, but there is one less person wearing dogwood branches."
Ye Kai listened, raised his little face, which was smaller than a palm, and saw his grandmother holding a branch of dogwood, and was in a daze for a while.
She came back to her senses and continued to say one thing after another: this is Patchouli, this is Atractylodes, this is cinnamon, Angelica dahurica, Acorus calamus... The fragrant herbs were put into a brocade bag embroidered with koi carp.
Grandma held his two small hands, and his small hands pinched the small red strings at both ends of the brocade bag and gently pulled them out -
"Great!" She picked it up, carefully hung it on his chest, and sang like a poem: "Wear a sachet on your body, stick mugwort on your door, all plagues will be driven away, and auspicious light will shine brightly!"
Ye Kai clapped his hands awkwardly, the tail of the multicolored rope tied around his wrist swaying slightly.
He was the only one who had the colorful string and sachet, and no other child in the kindergarten had them. He was so proud that he took them off on the way home from school, walked a few steps, looked at them, walked a few steps, and played with them again. When he remembered, he had no idea where he had lost them.
Aunt Jia started to feel anxious when she saw his pouty mouth. The corners of her mouth, which were always upturned, were pressed down uncomfortably. She blinked and tears fell from her eyes.
"Oh, baby, don't cry, don't cry." She wiped his soft cheeks, which were wet with tears, and said, "Auntie will help you find it."
Chen Youhan had just sneaked back from school after skipping class. He had his phone in front of his face and his brows were slightly furrowed. He was talking on the phone to someone, and his tone sounded impatient.
"What's wrong?" He hung up, hunched over and supported his knees.
Ye Kai lowered his head, occasionally wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, still with that aggrieved look. Although he was so suffocated that his breath was uneven, he didn't make a sound.
Aunt Jia explained the whole story, and Chen Youhan squatted down: "Brother will take you to buy a new one, okay?"
Ye Kai shook his head and spoke incoherently: "No... it was my grandma who did it..."
Chen Youhan took the handkerchief from Aunt Jia and gently wiped it under his eyes: "It's okay, then let's ask grandma to make another one together."
The corners of Ye Kai's mouth shrunk even more: "Grandma... Grandma went to Vancouver."
Chen Youhan understood, and his heart softened inexplicably. After thinking for a while, he said, "Then Brother Youhan will accompany you to look for it."
Aunt Jia was so anxious that she stamped her feet: "Oh, how can I be so embarrassed!"
"It's okay. How can grandma's colorful string be lost? Right? We'll go get it right away." As he spoke, he smiled and shook his head at Aunt Jia: "You go back first and tell Teacher Qu."
In the eyes of a four-year-old, the hillside of Siyuan Road was so long that it seemed like it would take a lifetime to walk through it.
He stumbled after Chen Youhan, who searched the bushes inch by inch. Half past three, half past four, half past five, ah, found it.
The colored rope was put back on his wrist, and Chen Youhan helped him tighten it, and breathed a sigh of relief: "Okay, it won't be lost this time."
Ye Kai felt that he had done something wrong: "I'm sorry, Brother Youhan."
"How could that be? The cricket stole it."
Ye Kai looked up in confusion, looked at the rope, then at Chen Youhan, then at Chen Youhan, and then at the bushes.
The cricket chirped twice and then hopped away.
"It said this colorful rope was really beautiful and it wanted one too."
"But stealing is wrong." Ye Kai said seriously.
"Of course not, so you see, it doesn't even dare to see you."
So that's how it is.
Ye Kai held the tail of the colored rope tightly in his palm so that the cricket could not steal it.
·
Children have poor memories. As Ye Kai was being held by Chen Youhan, he recalled the colorful ropes of the Dragon Boat Festival, his grandmother's dark green skirt, and the afternoon when his brother Youhan held his hand and helped him find the rope.
The road and the sun are both so long, and even though he is five years old, he still feels they are just as long.
·
After walking a few steps like this, his back and waist ached from bending so much that he just held the person in his arms.
A small schoolbag hung on his broad shoulders and a yellow balloon swayed in the wind.
Ye Kai finished eating three scoops of ice cream, and then nibbled on two hot yellow egg tarts from the Danish couple next door. Finally, he was satisfied, and he covered his lips with his hands and whispered, "Brother Youhan, I want to tell you a secret."
Chen Youhan listened attentively.
The child said: "If you feel blue today, then eat Haagen-Dazs! Haagen-Dazs makes me feel good."
He had just started to learn pinyin formally, but he had already been reading picture books, learning phrases, and having conversations in English with Qu Jia every day, including a set of written words, which sounded very cute and serious.
Chen Youhan then wrote on the square napkin:
"Haagen-Dazs makes me feel good, Xiaokai"
After writing a line of words in a flamboyant style, he folded it into the shape of a triangular scarf and stuffed it into Ye Kai's small pocket.
After eating and drinking, Ye Kai started to act like a spoiled brat and still didn't want to go home. Chen Youhan was going to the bar, but after hesitating between forcibly taking him back to Ye's house and accompanying him to cool off, she finally called to cancel the reservation.
There's nothing he can do about it, because he met a kid today who was still blue after eating Haagen-Dazs.
When Chen Fei came back from work, he saw Ye Kai and Alaska rolling around on the lawn. It was time, and all six watering machines started to automatically rotate and spray. The sunset and water fell all over Ye Kai, and he was startled. He screamed but did not dodge, instead he started to play with water. Zeus followed him and rolled around, forgetting the strict discipline of the young master, and he grinned and wheezed.
When Chen Fei saw this, he didn't know for a moment whether the dog or the child was happier.
He held the frisbee handed over by the servant in his hand, but did not throw it away for a while. Instead, he watched Zeus playing with Xiao Kai. If Ning Shu was still alive, she would surely love him so much that she would want to be his godmother and buy him a lot of small clothes and toys every day.
Other people's children are always better behaved.
But Ye Kai is too obedient.
Tennis swing practice was so boring that he pouted and maintained his posture stubbornly.
"Raise your hands high! Where's your strength? Your posture is wrong! Try again!" The coach was so fierce.
With tears in her eyes, she turned around to look for Chen Youhan, her mother and her sister. Chen Youhan wanted to negotiate with the coach, but was driven away by Qu Jia.
In the end, I didn't cry. I held back my tears and practiced fifty more times.
They were playing like crazy now, and even Chen Fei could only feel pity when he saw them.
After they were soaked to the skin and still hadn't had enough fun, Chen Fei finally pulled the person out: "Okay, okay, my little darling, Xiao Jia will cause trouble for me later."
Like a puppy with its neck pinched, Ye Kai obediently tossed from Chen Feiyi's hands to Chen Youhan's hands, and from Chen Youhan's hands to Aunt Xu's hands. The hot water was ready, and he took a bath at Chen's house, and began to doze off when he came out.
But picture books still need to be read.
Chen Youhan watched him slowly take out a heavy, hardcover, large-format picture album from his schoolbag and skillfully turn to the corresponding page.
"Let's talk about this today." He pointed to a penguin with raised eyebrows and drooping eyes in the book, "Today it's the penguin's turn to be unhappy."
“What’s the English word for penguin?”
She replied in a coquettish voice: "penguin."
"penguin's blueday."
Chen Youhan said as he took the picture book.
...Damn, what a mistake. It's all in English.
"On blue days you bee pa... paranoid that everyone is out to get you."
Ye Kai held his chin with both hands: "Hmm."
Chen Youhan: “……?”
"Read English first, then speak Chinese - Brother Youhan, what is a paranoid?"
Chen Youhan: “…” How the hell should I know?
Adults are too cunning. He scanned the lines and picked out the ones he knew: "On blue days you feel like you're floating in an o of sadness..." Chen Youhan cleared his throat: "That is to say, on blue days, Mr. Penguin feels like he is floating in the sea of sadness..."
“It’s not penguin, it’s you.”
"...Well, it's you who thinks."
"What is floating and sinking?"
"It floats up and sinks down, just like swimming."
"Oh." Ye Kai nodded and looked at him intently again.
Chen Youhan didn't want to miss him anymore, so he changed the subject and asked, "Are you still blue now?"
Ye Kai said, "My blue is ready, but the penguin's blue is not yet." He shook his legs and waited for him to read the next line.
Chen Youhan was devastated.
After three lines, perhaps because his English was too shaky, the sentences were incoherent and the intonation was off, and the translation was also half-guessed. He lowered his head, clenched his fists and rubbed his slightly closed eyes, and said dazedly: "...Brother Youhan, it's really strange, I feel sleepy just listening to it."
...That's great! Chen Youhan closed the book seriously and said, "Go to sleep if you're tired!"
Ye Kai fell asleep, his brows slightly furrowed, his two soft hands curled up and placed on his face.
In my sleep, my eyebrows seemed to be gently rubbed by Brother Youhan’s fingertips.
Then stretch out along with it.
It was as if he picked me up and held me in his arms.
Brother Youhan also has a nice scent, but it’s different from grandma, mom, and sister’s, different from dad’s, and different from grandpa’s.
The short arms subconsciously wrapped around his neck.
As she lay softly on his shoulder, she opened her eyes a little, saw the street lamp flickering and bright, and then quickly closed them because she was sleepy. Where was Brother Youhan taking him? He walked steadily step by step... Ye Kai lay prone, thinking, so this is what it means to "float on the sea".
Insects chirped and birds chirped all the way, and it was really late at night.
The lights in the Ye family were on. Qu Jia opened her mouth and exclaimed silently, with pity on her furrowed brows. Chen Youhan made a shushing gesture and gently returned Ye Kai to her arms.
Qu Jia took it, and Ye Kai automatically found the most comfortable way to anchor like a boat returning to the harbor.
Qu Jia caressed his hair lovingly, patted his back gently, and coaxed him softly as if humming a ballad: "Baby, baby..."
A kilometer away from home seems so long.
The author has something to say:
Baby, baby, lots of love for you
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