Chapter 65

"Uncle~~~ Uncle~~~"

At midnight, Ma Lanhua dragged her tired body to pick up Xiao Bai. The effects of their outing were evident, and Xiao Bai had come to say goodbye to Zhang Tan.

Indeed, no matter how old they are, girls often need to be taken out for fun to build a closer relationship.

Xiao Mi was also finally less afraid of Zhang Tan, though she wasn't as bold as Xiao Bai, at least she wouldn't lower her head shyly every time she saw him.

Another girl who went on the trip, Huang Meimei, also had a much better impression of Zhang Tan.

This guy really made her look at him differently today. Who would have thought that the former Zhang the Rogue would speak gently to children and even let them ride on his shoulders!

She remembered he used to say that he found children the most annoying and didn't want any when he got married.

The quiet alley was lit by street lamps. Ma Lanhua walked briskly ahead, and Xiao Bai tugged at her pants, taking small steps to keep up. She would occasionally lift her head to look at her aunt, her mouth opening and closing, wanting to say something but holding back.

The journey was quiet, and halfway through, Xiao Bai finally couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Aunt~~~"

"…Paws?"

"Did you have fun today?"

"What? Have fun? I didn't have any fun."

"Ho ho~~~"

Ma Lanhua, knowing the child's mind, scolded her and asked, "How was your trip? Did you forget about me?"

"Ho ho ho, I forgot."

"Paws? Take your hand off my pants, you little rascal!"

"Ho ho ho~~~ Aunt, even if you call me a rascal, I won't be mad at you."

"I thank you."

"We're family."

"Rascal, what did you do? Didn't you go to the event? What did you do?"

"Ho ho~~ It was amazing."

"Are you teasing me, rascal? You're making me curious."

Xiao Bai immediately became excited and chattered about the day's events.

"Aunt, do you know? Old Snake is in the sea? Ho ho ho, what's going on? I'm so worried about Old Snake."

This rascal was still worried about the sea snake, thinking it would drown.

"There are Old Snakes in the sea too, don't worry, don't worry, they won't die."

"How do you know so much, Aunt?" Xiao Bai asked curiously.

"In our little river at home, there are also Old Snakes. Everyone knows, except you."

"That's because no one told me~ Hmph~"

You're overthinking it; the whole world isn't against you.

"Anything else, rascal?"

"Ho ho ho~~ I saw a super big fish."

"Super big? How big? As big as your butt?"

Xiao Bai touched her own butt, then looked at Ma Lanhua's, and said mischievously, "Ho ho ho, Aunt, your butt is so big. The fish I saw is bigger than both of our butts combined."

"How big is that?"

Xiao Bai spread her little hands and said it was much bigger.

She ran to the street lamp, her shadow stretching on the ground, making her look like a giant. She spread her arms, as if hugging the entire alley, and said the fish was that big.

She was talking about a whale.

Ma Lanhua played along: "So big, it could eat both of us."

Xiao Bai babbled and ran up, hugging her thigh, wrapping her limbs around her, and shouting, "Aunt, Aunt, save me! The fish is going to eat me, I'm so scared~~~"

Ma Lanhua almost fell, and in anger, she tried to pull her off.

But she couldn't.

The child was like 520 glue, sticking on, giggling.

Ma Lanhua used her strength to tear the 520 glue off, threw her on the ground, and scolded, "You rascal, you almost made me fall."

Xiao Bai patted her butt, got up, and said unhappily, "Why did you throw me on the ground? Are you a good person? Do you still love me?"

"I'm not a good person, but Mr. Zhang is. He took you out to play."

"Mr. Zhang is a good person, he will be rewarded."

"What about the girl?"

"Girl? Xiao Mi isn't my girl, she's my dear."

"Yee~~~"

"Ho ho ho, Aunt, are you blowing your nose?"

"Go away~"

"Oo oo oo~~"

"I'm asking, the girl who went with Mr. Zhang, is she good?"

"Oh, her? I forgot about her. She's not a girl, she's a little sister. I'm too small to call her that, her butt is so big, I can't call her little sister."

"Then what do you call her?"

"Little sister."

"Little sister? You sound like a gang leader."

"I'm just a child~~ Don't make me angry, Aunt. We should be good, I've already decided, I want to be good to you."

Ma Lanhua muttered, thinking Xiao Bai was being silly, but she didn't realize Xiao Bai was worried about not being able to rest while others were resting.

"That girl is the principal's daughter, did you know?"

"What? The principal's daughter?" Xiao Bai was shocked, "Don't tell me you're lying?"

Xiao Bai thought about how she had troubled Huang Meimei and even hit her, and now she was worried that the principal would take revenge and hit her butt.

"If I tell you, you'll do what?"

"Oh, I think Little Sister is a good person."

"Did you think she wasn't a good person before?"

"Before, I thought she was a little brat."

"Little brat!!! I knew it, you're a rascal, you've been a rascal since you were little."

"Aunt! We should be good, don't say bad things."

"Mr. Zhang? Do you think Mr. Zhang is good? Is he a little brat too?"

"Aunt, do I have a brother?"

"What brother? You don't have one."

"Really? Don't lie to me."

"Really, your mom and dad only had you."

Xiao Bai suddenly said angrily, "Why didn't they give Xiao Bai a brother? Why?!!!"

Ma Lanhua looked at her with a hint of malice, "Rascal, don't yell at me, I have my ways."

Xiao Bai ignored her and said angrily, "Aunt, why didn't you give me a brother? Why? I'm so angry."

Ma Lanhua scolded, "You rascal, I'm not your mom, why are you yelling at me?"

Xiao Bai suddenly stood still under the street lamp, the light focusing on her small shadow.

Ma Lanhua walked a few steps and realized the child wasn't following.

"Rascal~ Let's go."

Xiao Bai lifted her head, her big eyes filled with confusion, sadness, and委屈, pouted, and ran over, grabbing her aunt's pants again, taking small steps to keep up, her head down, hiding her face.

"What were you doing just now?" Ma Lanhua asked.

She recalled what she had said, suspecting she might have unintentionally hurt Xiao Bai.

She wanted to understand Xiao Bai's feelings, but she was too tired and had too much to do.

By the time she finished, it was late, and Xiao Bai was already in bed, rolling around and giggling, no longer needing her comfort.

Click~ Ma Lanhua turned off the light.

The bed creaked, and a voice said, "Why did you turn off the light?"

Ma Lanhua sighed deeply, closed her eyes, feeling more exhausted than ever, yet more relaxed.

"Save electricity~~"

"Our family is so poor."

Ma Lanhua, half-asleep, suddenly woke up, "What? Following Mr. Zhang, you're getting bold?"

"Ho ho ho~~~"

She wanted to chat with Xiao Bai, but her body was telling her to sleep.

She said softly, "Go to sleep~"

"Aunt, I have something to tell you, do you want to hear it?" Xiao Bai was energetic, reliving the day's events.

Ma Lanhua, half-asleep, asked, "…What?"

Clang clang, the sound of Xiao Bai flipping over in bed.

"Mr. Zhang held my hand."

Ma Lanhua was startled awake, her voice raised, "What? Mr. Zhang held your hand?"

"Mr. Zhang held my hand, I didn't let him, but he's so stubborn."

Ma Lanhua understood, just holding hands, and relaxed, "Did anything else happen?"

Just as she asked, her eyes closed again, feeling as if she was floating in the clouds, her body more relaxed than ever, the wind whistling past her ears, and a familiar child's voice floating over:

"He also hugged me, ho ho ho."

Ma Lanhua felt herself fall from the clouds, her body suddenly weightless, and she woke up again.

"What? Mr. Zhang hugged you?"

Click~

She turned on the light, saw Xiao Bai's face, and scolded, "Rascal! What are you doing at this hour~~~"

Xiao Bai was leaning against the wall, doing a handstand, her head on the bed, breathing heavily, and giggling when she heard this, collapsing onto the pillow, rolling over, and getting up again, full of energy.

"Aunt, am I cool?"

"You're not cool! Go to sleep!"

"Then why did you turn on the light?"

"I'm asking, why did Mr. Zhang hug you?"

Xiao Bai's big eyes darted around, suddenly pounced on the bed, covered her head with a pillow, her little feet flailing like a stranded fish, gasping for air.

"What are you doing?" Ma Lanhua asked irritably.

"I'm shy~"

"Stop lying, why did Mr. Zhang hug you?"

"Because, because I was good."

"…" Ma Lanhua wanted to hit someone, but restrained herself, "You're not good! Besides hugging you, did Mr. Zhang do anything else? …Rascal, take your head out of the pillow."

Xiao Bai crawled out from under the pillow, tried to do a handstand against the wall again.

"I…"

Ma Lanhua got out of bed, scaring Xiao Bai, who fell to the side. Before she could cry out, she was caught and given two smacks on the butt, finally settling down.

"Stop lying!"

"…What did I lie about?"

"Mr. Zhang."

"Mr. Zhang is handsome."

"Wow, you're so smooth, rascal."

"Everyone says Mr. Zhang is handsome, I don't know what kind of handsome. Aunt, what kind of handsome?"

"It's the kind that makes you feel dirty."

"Oo oo oo~~~ I'm dying of laughter."

She rolled around on the bed.

"Stop rolling, if you roll again, you'll roll under the bed and be picked up by a ghost."

"You're scaring me, I'm not afraid of ghosts."

Ma Lanhua knew she could talk all night, so she asked directly, "Rascal, I'm asking, what did Mr. Zhang do to you?"

"He treated me to a lot of snacks, it was great."

"Oh, right, the 10 yuan I gave you? Did you give it to Mr. Zhang?"

Xiao Bai was shocked, "Oh no~~"

"Looking at you, you definitely didn't give it."

Xiao Bai took her small backpack from the head of the bed, rummaged through it, and pulled out a small, round stone.

Ma Lanhua scolded, "What are you doing, putting a stone in your backpack, are you going to eat it for a snack?"

Xiao Bai laughed awkwardly, put the stone back, rummaged again, and pulled out a small stick, quickly putting it back before Ma Lanhua could scold her. Finally, she pulled out the 10 yuan, crumpled and looking very sad.

Ma Lanhua mocked, "Bai Chunhua! You really are a freeloader, not giving him money, what were you thinking?"

Xiao Bai argued, "I was tricked."

She said Mr. Zhang did this, then that, and then this, making her forget to give him the money.

"Tomorrow I'll make a chicken leg for Mr. Zhang to thank him."

"Chicken leg?"

"Chicken leg."

"Slurp—smack—gurgle~"

"What are you doing?"

"Aunt, are chicken legs good?"

"Aunt's chicken legs are the best in the world."

"Teach me, I want to be the best too, to make Luo Zikang cry."

"Rascal, I'm asking, what else did Mr. Zhang do to you?"

"He hugged me."

"I told you so many times, don't let him hug you, didn't you remember?"

"…I think he's a good person."

"Rascal, stupid, anything else?"

"I need to think."

"Think fast."

"Aunt, tell me a story."

"Go away~"

"Then I can't remember~"

"Chicken legs tomorrow, no for you."

"I remember, Aunt, I'm so smart."

"Tell me fast."

"I rode on Mr. Zhang's shoulders, it was so high, so much fun."

"What? You rode on Mr. Zhang's shoulders? He let you?"

It's one thing to hug a child, but letting a child ride on your shoulders means a very close relationship.

Xiao Bai laughed, "I even pulled his hair into corn tassels."

"Didn't he hit you?"

"I shot him."

Ma Lanhua was stunned, "Did you bring a water gun?"

Seeing Xiao Bai nod, she scolded, "You rascal, how many bad things did you do? Mr. Zhang must think you're a rascal. I told you so many times to be good, don't make Mr. Zhang unhappy, do you think I'm just talking nonsense?"

"No."

"Yes."

"I was very good."

"Did you take a bath today?"

"Yes."

"You didn't."

"Yes!"

"I said you didn't, so you didn't. You smell, go take a bath."

"Why? I don't want to, I want to sleep."

"Sleep? I think you need to be punished."

Ma Lanhua took Xiao Bai to the bathroom, closed the door, and said it was time for a bath, but Xiao Bai's angry voice kept coming through the door, clearly not taking a bath.

"Eh? Ha ha, eh~~ What? What? What do you mean, ah~~ Aunt, what are you doing?!! I'm so shy."

"I'm so angry! What are you, a rascal, Ma Lanhua!"

"Ma Lanhua, I'll fight you~~~"

"Uncle—don't sleep, come save your Xiao Bai~~~ Bai Jianping~~"

...

A few minutes later, Xiao Bai was released, looking miserable, muttering and cursing Ma Lanhua.

But Ma Lanhua didn't care too much. She checked Xiao Bai's body, found no marks, and felt relieved. She lay back in bed, turned off the light, and threatened the whining Xiao Bai to be quiet, or she would tear her mouth.

Xiao Bai, more afraid of Ma Lanhua than ghosts, didn't dare to make a sound.

Ma Lanhua closed her eyes, and soon her body was flying again, floating in the clouds. Xiao Bai was running on the grass below, shouting, "Aunt, Aunt, don't leave me, I'm a little rascal, I'll be good, okay?"

PS: Two chapters combined, so, ho ho ho, no more for today.