“Um, Zhi Xian, let me help you take care of your wound too, okay?”
An Qing looked at Ruan Zhi Xian, who was getting ready to pack up, and spoke hesitantly.
“Ah? Sure, then I’ll—”
Wait! No, that’s not right!
Ruan Zhi Xian, who had almost agreed without thinking, immediately cut herself off.
I only bought cartoon animal band-aids! If An Qing helps me treat my wound, doesn’t that mean I’ll have to use those cute band-aids too?!
No way, absolutely not! A manly hero like me, how could I possibly use something so cute!
“Ahaha, about that, An Qing, I thought about it, and it’s really not necessary for you to trouble yourself. As for my wound, I’ll just take care of it myself once I get home.”
The blonde girl scratched her head and quickly changed her mind.
So even she thinks I’m useless… I knew it, nobody really needs me.
An Qing lowered her head, lips pressed tight. The courage she had finally mustered seemed to fade away under her thick bangs and drooping eyes, like a candle being snuffed out by the wind.
“Um, or, maybe it’s better if you help me after all, An Qing!”
The black-haired girl looked up in a bit of confusion.
“It’s just, thinking about it, if I go home with a wound, I’ll probably get scolded. It’s definitely better if you help me treat it first, An Qing!”
The blonde girl flailed her arms as she explained.
“So, An Qing, could I trouble you to help me treat my wound?”
Ruan Zhi Xian crouched down in front of An Qing again, her emerald green eyes looking intently at the other girl, her smile both expectant and gentle.
“Okay!”
The black-haired girl nodded almost immediately, and her eyes—which had just dimmed—suddenly lit up again, like a circuit being reconnected.
“It’ll be a bit cold. If it hurts, you have to tell me, okay? I’ll blow on it for you too.”
An Qing gently cupped the blonde girl’s face, carefully dabbing her wound with an iodine-soaked cotton swab. Her movements were a bit clumsy and awkward, but also very gentle.
“Okay, thank you, An Qing.”
Hearing the other girl mimic her words, Ruan Zhi Xian couldn’t help but smile.
Oh dear, honestly, when I saw An Qing just now, I really thought she was going to cry again. Good thing I was quick on my feet…
Come to think of it, An Qing really is a crybaby.
“Alright, all done.”
Finally, the black-haired girl solemnly pressed a band-aid decorated with a cute little rabbit over the wound, her lips curling into a suppressed smile.
“Yeah! Thank you, An Qing, I feel so much better!”
Seeing the pure, radiant smile on the blonde girl’s face, An Qing was a little dazed, feeling her heart thumping in her chest.
So this is what it feels like to be needed…
So, I can be needed by someone too?
“Dad! Mom! I’m home!”
***
At dusk, a lively golden figure burst into the living room of the small villa right on time.
“Welcome home, sweetheart! Go wash your hands quickly, Mommy made your favorite omelet rice for dinner tonight.”
Laila poked her head out from the kitchen, her tone gentle.
“Hm? Wait, Ruan Zhi Xian, what’s with the scratch on your face and the dirt all over you? Mind explaining this to your mommy?”
The mixed-blood woman who had poked her head out quickly noticed something off about the girl, squinting her eyes while holding a spatula, her smile slowly turning intimidating in Ruan Zhi Xian’s eyes.
“Wait, Mom! I didn’t do anything bad today! This is a badge of honor I earned for doing something good!” The short-haired girl panicked and hurried to explain.
“Oh? So Zhi Xian did something good today? What did you do?” asked Ruan Shu He, who had just come down the stairs with a cup of tea, having heard the commotion.
“I saved a little girl who was being bullied today!”
Ruan Zhi Xian didn’t catch the teasing in her father’s tone and boasted excitedly, “She’s the one who helped me trick Li—uh, I mean, the one I happened to meet on the first day of summer break! When I went to play with her today, she was surrounded by a group of bad kids, and they were all bullying her!”
“I charged forward, grabbed a stick from the ground, whack, whack, whack! I sent them running with my Three-legged Cat Kung Fu!”
“In the end, they were all crying on their knees, hugging my legs, swearing they’d turn over a new leaf and become good people!”
“Alright, alright, with your Three-legged Cat Kung Fu and those skinny arms and legs, you beat up a group of bullies? I bet it was just some kids roughhousing, wasn’t it?”
Laila quickly poked holes in her daughter’s embellished tale.
“Ah, Mom! There’s a saying in Hua Country: ‘Do not think any evil too small to commit, nor any good too small to do!’ If they’re bad kids, aren’t they still bad?!” The blonde girl defended herself.
“Ah, Mom, you didn’t grow up in Hua Country, so it’s normal you don’t know this saying…”
“Hey, you brat, your mom’s Hua Country speech is excellent! How could I not know that saying? Didn’t I teach you all your Hua Country phrases since you were little?”
Laila put down the spatula, crossed her arms, and couldn’t help but laugh.
“And besides, is that even what the saying means? Where do you learn all these odd idioms and stories…?”
“It’s close enough, Mom, as long as you understand what I mean, haha.”
Ruan Zhi Xian laughed it off.
A little girl bullied by her peers…
Watching the mother and daughter interact, Ruan Shu He sank into thought.
Normally, the places Zhi Xian goes to play shouldn’t have many children around, right?
She just mentioned tricking Li… or was it something that happened on the first day of summer break… was it that day when she got into trouble and was chased by Auntie Li, ending up in a part of town she doesn’t usually visit?
Although I don’t know exactly what kind of situation that bullied child is in, at least this time, Zhi Xian finally did a good thing…
“So, Zhi Xian, are you going to keep visiting that little girl from now on?”
Ruan Shu He helped Laila bring out the dishes, asking the tomboy who was still excited.
“Yeah! Of course! An Qing and I are friends now! We already promised each other we’d play together often from now on!”
Ruan Zhi Xian rushed to the kitchen sink, scrubbing her somewhat dirty little hands under the water.
Not bad. With Zhi Xian keeping that kid company, those bad kids shouldn’t be able to pick on her again.
Ruan Shu He nodded silently to himself.
“By the way, Zhi Xian, why is the band-aid you used today so cute? Have you finally decided to be adorable? Do you want Mommy to dress you up?”
At this point, Laila finally noticed the unusual sticker on her tomboy daughter’s face, her eyes lighting up.
“N-no way! This—this was totally beyond my control!”
Ruan Zhi Xian immediately covered the little rabbit band-aid on her face, her ears burning red.
“I’m the little man of the house, there’s no way I’m dressing up like a girl!”
“Honestly, you’re already so cute, but you insist on turning yourself into a tomboy. I don’t even know where you picked that up…” Laila shook her head in regret.
“I really wonder when you’ll finally let Mommy put you in those pretty little dresses I’ve been saving for you…”
“That’ll never happen!”
Ruan Zhi Xian plopped herself onto her seat at the dinner table, chin raised as she complained:
“I, Ruan Zhi Xian, will never wear a skirt in my life, so just give up on that, Mom!”