The Little Fool Saves the Masochistic Novel Protagonist CHAPTER 16
Chapter 16
“Master, please stop here.”
The taxi stopped in front of a building not far from the mall. Chi Abei was about to get out when Lin Xiu suddenly pushed his head.
He looked up and saw Lin Xiu blocking the car door: “Wait for me in the car, I’ll get something.”
Chi Abei “oh”-ed, retracting his leg.
Watching Lin Xiu enter the building, Chi Abei stuck his head out the window, looking at the various signs on the building.
The sign for the Children’s Palace in the middle of the building was somewhat old, surrounded by various new, brightly colored signs: a tutoring center, Jiawen Yoga, Kung Fu Taekwondo, and on the far side, a dimly lit sign that would be invisible at night if not illuminated by the others… a boxing gym.
Chi Abei stared at the “Boxing Gym” sign for a long time, finally confirming that it had no prefix; it was just called Boxing Gym.
I wonder if it’s gone bankrupt…
After a while, Lin Xiu came out of the building. He was carrying a school uniform and a schoolbag, and a man in a black vest came out with him. The man looked refined and wore glasses, but his muscular physique betrayed his intimidating nature.
After an unknown conversation, the man in the vest glanced at Chi Abei, patted Lin Xiu on the shoulder twice, and returned to the building.
Seeing Lin Xiu approach, Chi Abei leaned against the car door and asked: “Brother, who was that just now?”
“A friend.” Lin Xiu opened the car door: “Get in.”
Chi Abei moved inside and subtly inquired: “Brother, do you come here every night? Do you tutor students at the tutoring center here?”
Lin Xiu ignored him and told the driver: “Master, go to Xi Nong.”
Xi Nong was Lin Xiu’s home. It was late, and Lin Xiu’s home and school were in opposite directions; sending Chi Abei back to school and then returning home would take a lot of time, so Lin Xiu didn’t want to bother.
The driver looked at them in the rearview mirror: “Are you students? Can students tutor others?”
Chi Abei knew they couldn’t, but he’d looked around at the signs just now, and besides the tutoring center, he didn’t see anything else that suited Lin Xiu. He just wanted to pry information out of Lin Xiu, but Lin Xiu didn’t take the bait.
Chi Abei said: “My brother is an excellent student. He’s always ranked first in his grade. Tutoring middle and elementary school students is no problem at all.”
The driver: “Wow, so amazing.”
Chi Abei felt the driver didn’t believe him. After all, a high school student tutoring students at a tutoring center was unlikely, even if the tutoring center agreed, the parents might not.
Chi Abei thought of the man in the vest and was a little worried: “Brother, be careful outside. Don’t get scammed, and don’t get bullied.”
Lin Xiu didn’t know where he got the idea that he’d be bullied: “No one bullies me. That was a friend of mine.”
Hearing this, Chi Abei became even more worried.
You have friends I don’t know! Don’t make friends with just anyone!
…
Xi Nong was an old residential area. It was slated for renovation in the past two years. Although the houses were old and dilapidated, the prices had been driven up.
There were no streetlights in the alleyway. Lin Xiu led Chi Abei through winding paths. When they entered the house, Chi Abei tripped over the threshold.
Lin Xiu pulled him up: “Watch your step, there’s a threshold here.”
Chi Abei grabbed Lin Xiu’s arm to steady himself: “I can’t see either. There aren’t even any lights here.”
Lin Xiu turned on the yard light. The dim light was enough to illuminate the small yard.
Chi Abei exclaimed: “Wow, your house is nice! It even has a yard. Can I have a barbecue here on weekends?”
Lin Xiu: “No, these are old houses. It’s easy to catch fire.”
Chi Abei followed Lin Xiu into the house. The house wasn’t big, with two bedrooms and a kitchen. The living room was cramped, only fitting a two-seater sofa, a dining table, and a TV stand.
Chi Abei: “Brother, your house is so cozy.”
Lin Xiu looked at him, thinking, You’re good at talking. It’s small, what cozy?
It was quite small. Chi Abei had never seen such a small house before. He used to think Lawyer Meng’s 120-square-meter house was small, but there were even smaller ones.
Chi Abei stood there not knowing where to go: “Brother, where will I sleep tonight?”
Lin Xiu pointed to the room next to him: “You sleep in my room, the one on the right.”
Chi Abei went over to take a look. The room on the right was larger than the one on the left. It was obvious which room was Lin Xiu’s and which was his grandmother’s. His grandmother’s room had floral bedsheets and pillowcases, but not this one.
Chi Abei: “Grandma likes flowers?”
Lin Xiu took out two packs of instant noodles from the cupboard: “Old things, can’t bear to throw them away. Grandma uses them herself.” Lin Xiu asked: “Are you hungry? Do you want noodles?”
Hearing about the old woman’s frugality, Chi Abei suddenly felt sentimental. He looked at Lin Xiu.
After several days, Lin Xiu once again saw maternal brilliance in his eyes. Lin Xiu frowned: “Don’t act weird. Be normal. Are you going to eat or not?”
Chi Abei suppressed his worried paternal gaze: “Eat instant noodles?”
Lin Xiu: “Only instant noodles.”
Chi Abei felt even more sympathetic: “Not even an egg?”
Lin Xiu didn’t know what was wrong with him; he turned and went into the kitchen: “There is, I’ll add one for you.”
Chi Abei followed: “Add two. Aren’t you eating?”
He couldn’t believe he wouldn’t even eat an egg. Skipping breakfast and dinner, he only ate one meal at school. No wonder he was so thin!
Chi Abei nagged Lin Xiu incessantly in the kitchen, telling him to eat on time and to have a balanced diet. Lin Xiu, with a headache, turned around and said: “Didn’t you say you wanted to review high school content? I have high school textbooks in my room; go find them yourself.”
Chi Abei’s nagging was interrupted. He “oh”-ed and reluctantly left the kitchen.
When Lin Xiu brought out the noodles, he found Chi Abei still in the room. He called out: “The noodles are ready.”
Seeing that Chi Abei didn’t come out, Lin Xiu walked over and saw him looking at the folder on his desk: “Come eat.”
Chi Abei turned around and asked: “Brother, did you write this?”
Lin Xiu wasn’t worried he’d understand anything: “Come eat noodles.”
Although Chi Abei didn’t fully understand, he recognized the three characters “project proposal”. If he wasn’t mistaken, these were company documents. Why would Lin Xiu have this at home?
While eating noodles, Chi Abei wanted to ask Lin Xiu about the proposal, but Lin Xiu didn’t give him the chance. He finished the noodles in a few bites, even drinking the soup. He put down his bowl and chopsticks and took out his homework from his schoolbag.
Chi Abei suddenly jumped up: “Oh no, I didn’t bring my homework!”
Lin Xiu was startled by his sudden outburst: “If you didn’t bring it, you didn’t bring it. Eat your noodles.”
Chi Abei frowned: “But won’t the teacher scold me if I don’t hand it in?”
Lin Xiu lowered his head and wrote his test paper: “No.”
Chi Abei: “How do you know?”
Lin Xiu glanced at him, choosing his words carefully: “Because you’re special.”
Chi Abei wasn’t stupid; he understood what Lin Xiu meant. He completed the implied sentence: “You mean because I’m stupid, so the teacher gives me special treatment and doesn’t collect my homework?”
“…” Lin Xiu didn’t speak.
In fact, that was true. Who would care if a little fool handed in their homework? Even if he did, the teacher wouldn’t look at it. Who would give themselves high blood pressure for no reason?
Chi Abei didn’t want to be treated as a fool by Lin Xiu anymore. He said: “I’m not stupid.”
Seeing Lin Xiu didn’t react, he moved his chair closer to Lin Xiu, leaning in and saying: “I was pretending before.”
Lin Xiu looked at him: “Pretending?”
Chi Abei nodded: “Yes, I was biding my time, enduring hardship and humiliation!”
Lin Xiu: “…”
If I hadn’t seen you ten years later, I would have believed you.
