Chapter 77

Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.

Translator: Cheese

Village boy

Wang Haoxue’s hometown was called West Wang Village. Unlike the dirty and shabby appearance of other villages, it had two-story buildings everywhere, and some families had cars. It looked prosperous and affluent.

The ski resort was located behind the village. Although it had just opened, the number of tourists visiting was not low. Thankfully, Uncle Wang had booked rooms in the ski resort’s hotel in advance. The owner of the ski resort was acquainted with Uncle Wang and gave Su Tian and the others a 30% discount.

After bringing in their luggage, Uncle Wang took everyone out to eat at a farmhouse. The mountainous area that was home to all sorts of game animals. Not to mention the variety of river fish, shrimp, and pheasants, there were also the insects that You Pinyan and Xi Yun adored.

Wang Haoxue saw that the two of them loved to eat insects. Chortling, she said that next year in the summer, there would be many monkeys in the mountains. Fry them in hot oil, sprinkle them in salt–she didn’t need to explain how delicious it was.

You Pinyan and Xi Yun’s eyes glowed green, like hungry ghosts.

In the past, You Pinyan had never eaten such things. The last time she had come across fried insects was also when Xi Yun had taken her out to eat.

The Young Miss was already pondering whether to buy a mountain to raise an assortment of insects for her to eat.

After dinner, the two children carried back a pack of fried fish and shrimp to bring back home as snacks.

Uncle Wang asked Wang Haoxue to take everyone out to play while he went back first to visit his old man.

Wang Haoxue sent her old dad off with a wave. She quietly exchanged looks with You Pinyan and laughed together.

Su Tian felt a chill in her heart at the sight of their tacit mutual understanding. “What bad ideas are you two cooking up?”

The two girls shook their heads in unison.

You Pinyan: “Nothing, what could we be thinking about?”

Next to her, Wang Haoxue nodded. “That’s right, that’s right.”

Liu Kaiyan pulled Xi Yun over and whispered, “What are you guys doing?”

Xi Yun whispered back: “She wants to let jiejie eat bugs.”

Liu Kaiyan: “…!”

Xi Yun: “There are fried insects in the fried shrimp.”

Liu Kaiyan: “…”

He looked over at Su Tian, then at the two scheming girls, not knowing who he should sympathize with.

Could Tiantian be schemed against by these two fools?

Silly kids.

The group of children walked along the road. The two girls hooked up the plastic bags containing fried shrimp and insects, chattering with radiant smiles.

Su Tian walked in the center, refusing their offerings from time to time.

Suddenly, a strong push came from behind. Su Tian was shoved aside, and a boy in thin and tattered clothing sprinted past the group, running like the wind.

Liu Kaiyan reacted quickly and held on to Su Tian. He asked, “Are you okay?”

The others also scolded the boy who ran off before surrounding her and asking if she was fine.

Su Tian shook her head. Suddenly, she realized: “Have you guys lost any of your things?”

This situation, it was too much like a purse thief.

When the boy rushed over, You Pinyan and Wang Haoxue had been pushed away. The two were stunned. Their backpacks were still there…

“Damn!” You Pinyan suddenly realized something and lifted her empty hands, looking incredulous. “Where’s my fried shrimp?!”

Wang Haoxue also stretched out her empty hands, speechless. “My fried fish are gone, too.”

Su Tian: “…”

Everyone stared at each other for a moment. It couldn’t be? They’ve seen purse thieves steal gold chains, but it was their first time seeing the theft of fried shrimp and fish.

Wang Haoxue was baffled. “They’re not valuables, what’s the point of stealing them?”

Xi Yun bit his lips and hazarded a guess. “Maybe he’s too hungry?”

He had been hungry before. When it became too unbearable, he also had the idea of stealing food.

You Pinyan: “Does it matter why? Let’s go to the police! Damn, even if they’re stealing things, they dare to push Tiantian?”

Su Tian: “Forget it, maybe he was really hungry.”

Although it had only been a brief glimpse, Su Tian could see that the thief looked extremely wretched. And on such a cold day, he was wearing a dirty, thin coat.

Moreover, it was good those things had been taken away. Did they think she didn’t know that there were fried insects hidden inside?

She really had no interest in fried bugs.

Liu Kaiyan: “Forget it. We came here to play. If we go to the police, we’ll have to file a report and waste time.”

Only then did You Pinyan angrily give up.

Unexpectedly, not long after, they ran into the youth who had stolen the fish and shrimp.

Near the ski resort, someone had cleared an open space and poured water. After the water froze, it became a natural ice skating rink. Many people who came to the ski resort would stop by the ice skating rink for a round.

Because it was free, there were many people who came to play. But because it was inconvenient to carry things, other than valuables, food and beverages were placed in the surrounding open space.

When Su Tian and other others spotted him, he was hunched over, sneakily pilfering someone’s biscuits.

When Su Tian saw him, she quickly turned to stop You Pinyan. Unfortunately, the Young Miss had already blurted out, “Stop!”

The youth looked up in their direction. He snatched the biscuits, straightened his body, and ran away.

“Damn!”

The Young Miss cursed and sprinted out in hot pursuit.

Su Tian’s “Don’t chase” was caught in her throat.

In the blink of an eye, You Pinyan had run off.

Su Tian quickly told Xi Yun to stay in place. No matter who called him, he must not run around.

She, along with Liu Kaiyan and Wang Haoxue, followed after You Pinyan.

It was clear that the boy had been driven to dire straits. If You Pinyan angered him, only heaven knew what he would do.

The snow on the mountain was heavy, making movement difficult. In contrast, it was advantageous to Su Tian, allowing everyone to follow the footprints.

They soon caught up to You Pinyan. She stood in the snow without moving, her back facing them, so they did not know what she was looking at.

Su Tian sighed in relief and hurried over with everyone else. She also saw the young boy You Pinyan had been chasing.

He was sitting in the snow, wearing loose pants. The skin exposed to the air was frozen, but he carried a shabby, black backpack filled with straw and black cotton.

The backpack’s zipper was broken and could not be zipped shut. A pale yellow kitten poked its head out from inside. The kitten was very thin, its plaintive mewls pitiful and weak.

There were many foods placed around the young boy. Instant noodles, bread, biscuits, milk, and the fried fish and shrimp he had stolen from them…

He picked apart the biscuits he had just stolen and mixed a small piece with a bit of fish and shrimp. He placed it into his mouth and chewed, then spat it out into his palm to feed the kitten.

The kitten sniffed and cried out softly. It cleanly finished eating the food before affectionately licking the young boy’s hand.

Everyone watched blankly. For a while, no one spoke.

After the boy finished feeding the cat, he stuffed all the food he had stolen or snatched into the bag, leaving only an opened carton of milk. He poured the milk into the palm of his hand to feed the kitten.

“Wait.”

Su Tian suddenly spoke.

The young boy lifted his head and glanced over at Su Tian, his eyes containing ruthlessness. He warned in a low voice: “Scram.”

The ominous air emitted by the other party was too heavy. Liu Kaiyan stepped forward to block in front of Su Tian.

This boy was dangerous. Too dangerous.

Su Tian pulled Liu Kaiyan’s arm and explained to the boy: “If you feed the cat like this, it will have diarrhea.”

The young boy thought that these people had come looking to make trouble with him, and his attitude towards them was very bad. When he heard Su Tian’s words, the violent air in his eyes slightly eased.

Su Tian turned to Liu Kaiyan and asked, “Do we have any milk and antidiarrheal medicine in our bag?”

Liu Kaiyan nodded. He shrugged off his backpack and fished out a carton of milk and a box of Smecta1.

The Smecta had been prepared for them by He Qingwan, who had packed a lot in fear that they would be unaccustomed to the new environment and have diarrhea.

The milk had also been packed by He Qingwan, in case they were not used to the local food. When they had come out to play, Liu Kaiyan had brought some along.

Su Tian received the Smecta and milk. She asked, “Can I hand them over?”

The boy looked at Su Tian, then at the others, and replied coldly, “You come by yourself.”

Wang Haoxue and You Pinyan anxiously grabbed her arm. This boy looked really dangerous.

That look in his eyes just now had scared them.

Su Tian shot them a smile and walked over with the medicine and milk.

She glanced over. As expected, the milk in the boy’s hand really was just ordinary, fresh milk.

Feeding a cat cow’s milk, it was only natural to contract diarrhea.

Su Tian sighed in her heart. She handed over the Shuhua milk2 and explained softly, “Many cats can’t digest lactose. When they drink fresh milk, they will have diarrhea. But this kind is okay. Give it a try?”

The boy’s gaze quivered.

Little Mi started having diarrhea two days ago. At that time, he had picked up half a carton of milk that had been thrown away by a tourist. He was reluctant to drink it and fed Little Mi a bit every day. Until now, the half-carton of milk had not been finished.

Was there a problem with the milk?

When Su Tian saw that he didn’t take it, she gently placed the Shuhua milk on the ground, set the Smecta on top of the milk, and said:

“I don’t have any medicine for cats with me, but it should be able to take this kind. This box has eight packs. Mix it with water and feed it three or four times a day. It should be almost better after it’s all taken.”

Smecta was an antidiarrheal medicine for infants, and it could also be used for kittens.

The youth’s cold and sharp gaze gradually melted. With lowered eyes, he looked down at the milk and medicine on the ground, and whispered: “Thank you.”

Su Tian: “You’re welcome. I also like cats. …”

After a pause, she continued, “But very few cats are born in winter. It’s very difficult to take care of one.”

The boy had no time to take care of himself, yet he was also raising a cat.

He said: “I found it on the road. It was almost frozen to death, so I picked it up.”

Su Tian smiled. She looked down at the little kitten in the backpack.

Completely unafraid of people, it poked its head out from the pile of straw and cotton. Perhaps because it had just eaten, it seemed to be in good spirits and meowed at Su Tian.

Su Tian absolutely adored it. She asked him, “What’s its name? Can I touch it?”

The youth was still holding the milk in his palm. He answered:

“Little Mi. You can touch.”

He spoke very briefly, seeming unwilling to speak more to people, clearly very indifferent.

Su Tian smiled, not minding it. She gently reached out and stroked the kitten, calling softly, “Little Mi, Little Mi, why are you so cute?”

Little Mi mewled, and it even licked Su Tian’s palm.

She smiled again. Her gaze fell on the boy’s purple, frozen hands. Without commenting, she stood up and said:

“Then I’m leaving. We’re staying in XX Hotel. If Little Mi still isn’t better after taking all the medicine, come see us again. Oh, and my name is Su Tian.”

She originally wanted to give the boy more Smecta, but there was only one in the bag, and the rest were in the hotel, and it was clearly unrealistic to go back to get it now.

The boy lowered his head, neither saying he would, nor that he wouldn’t.

Su Tian didn’t mind. She said goodbye to Little Mi and turned around to leave.

When the group of people couldn’t be seen, the boy finally lifted his head. He raised his hand up and licked the milk clean, just like Little Mi did.

Can’t waste it, he thought faintly.

[1] 思密达: a brand of medicine to treat acute diarrhea

[2] 舒化奶: a brand of lactose-free milk

Cheese: apparently Smecta being used to treat cats is a thing

Cat boy seems pitiful. New villain to rehab maybe??

Like this:Like Loading...

Related