HSS Chapter 79
Translated by Novice Translations
Proofread by Yserieh
Extra 2: First Meeting
Winter 2002.
The winter of this year was particularly cold. After December, the temperature suddenly dropped. The weather forecast was always saying there will be snow. But it wasn’t until the middle of January, when there were still 20 days left until Chinese New Year, that snow finally fell from the thick clouds. In only one night, the yellow and withered ground was covered by a layer of white snow, turning bleak autumn into a world of ice and snow.
However, there were many people in the city. Regardless of the weather, they have to leave early and return late every day. A beautiful world of snow and ice was trampled on in just two hours.
Five-year-old little Xiaoya especially wants to go out to play in the snow, but her yard was too small and there were a lot of things in the yard, so even a small snowball couldn’t be rolled up. It wasn’t like Grandma Bai’s big yard from next door, there it was much spacious and larger than their house.
If only Grandma Bai was home, she would surely agree to let her come over to her house to make a snowman.
"Xiaoya, come have breakfast." Shen Qingyi's voice came from downstairs.
"Oh, here I come." Little Xiaoya jumped down from the windowsill and looked for her slippers on the carpet with her feet covered in plush cat socks. After a long time, she pulled them from under the bed then ran downstairs.
"Come and have breakfast. Today we have soymilk and fried fritters."
"Bought them from outside again." Little Xiaoya muttered. "How can you let me eat fried food every day?"
"Other children can’t eat even if they want to. Let’s see what you would choose.” Shen Qingyi also knows that it wasn’t good to eat too much fried food, but the school was about to go on holiday. She’s been so busy these days that she hasn’t had time to be able to cook breakfast.
"Deep fried, then you choose a restaurant ah."
Shen Qingyi glanced at her daughter’s big wandering eyes, knowing that the little clever demon was thinking again: "Restaurant, KFC ah?"
"McDonald's is fine too." She didn't pick it first.
"Hurry and eat so you can go to school with me." Shen Qingyi was speechless and put the soymilk directly in front of her daughter.
"Going to school again, everyone is on winter vacation." Little Xiaoya wasn’t happy, she’s so pitiful. If other children were on vacation, they would stay at home to play, but she had to go to school with her parents every day.
(TN: In the USA, the elementary and middle/high school has different days holidays start, so maybe Xiaoya’s winter holiday started before the middle/high school level started)
"I know that you don’t want to go, just hold on a little longer." Shen Qingyi coaxed, "You can take the small picture book to school to draw and mom will bring you back after finishing the exam."
"Oh." Little Xiaoya was helpless. She doesn’t want to go, but she had no other choice. Five year old children couldn’t resist their parents.
En, she wants to eat more and grow up quickly.
Shen Qingyi looked at her daughter who was eating the fried fritters and couldn’t help but complain: Just now, she said she was tired of eating greasy foods.
After breakfast, there was no time to clean up the dishes and tableware. Shen Qingyi put on a small red down jacket on her daughter, then a black cartoon hat. She casually tied a scarf around her: “Xiaoya, you go to the door and wait for your mother. I’ll come out with some things.”
"Okay." Little Xiaoya put on her little shoes, opened the door skillfully and walked out. She stood at the gate of the courtyard, waiting for her mother to come out. Suddenly, there was a sharp horn sound, which frightened her and caused her to fall onto the ground.
"Child, are you okay?" The driver of the car hurriedly rushes out from the driver’s seat. It snowed heavily these past two days and he was afraid that the car wouldn’t be stable after breaking. He was afraid that he would hit the child, so he honked his horn to make the child go away, but he didn’t want to frighten people.
"I'm fine." Little Xiaoya stood up and patted the snow from her butt.
“Does it hurt?”
“No, it doesn’t hurt. I am wearing several pairs of pants.”
"Are you, how well-dressed, cute and warm?" The little girl wore a cat cartoon hat. Her big eyes looked like a little kitten.
"Xiao Chen, did you hit a child?" The rear door also opened at this time, and a grandmother in a cheongsam and coat stepped out from the car.
"Lao* furen, I didn’t." The driver replied immediately.
(TN: Just a title to show respect to the elderly)
"Grandma Bai." When little Xiaoya saw the elderly woman getting out of the car, her eyes lit up and she ran over.
"It's Xiaoya." When Grandma Bai saw Xiaoya, her friendly face was immediately full of smiles, "You grew taller and fatter."
"I’m just wearing a lot."
"Good, not fat, just wearing a lot.” Although I don’t know how many five year old children pay so much attention to their image now, no matter what she does, such a big child is cute no matter what she does. And the livelier she is, the cuter. If Xiao Chuan can be half like her, half would be good ah.
"Xiaoya, can Grandma introduce a little older brother to you?" Grandma Bai crouched down and asked the little girl.
"Can we play together?" Little Xiaoya asked happily as there was almost no children her age in their community, thus she had no friends during winter and summer vacations.
"Of course." Grandma Bai opened the door that she just closed when she got out of the car. She patted a little boy who was dazed inside and waited for him to notice her before holding out her hand to help him get out of the car. “This is Grandma’s grandson, Bai Chuan.”
"Hello Older Brother Bai Chuan." Little Xiaoya yelled crisply and raised her hand to shake someone's hand. "My name is Mu Xiaoya, let's play together later."
The little boy took a step back, lowered his head and didn’t glanced at little Xiaoya from beginning to end.
"..." Little Xiaoya was taken back. Could it be that this good-looking little older brother doesn’t like me?
"Mu Xiaoya, didn't I tell you to wait at the door? How come you’re over there?" When Shen Qingyi didn't see her daughter at the door, she went back to the house to look for her. Shen Qingyi was angry and anxious.
"I... I came to say hello to Grandma Bai." Mu Xiaoya cuddle against and then hid behind Grandma Bai.
"Teacher Bai, you’re back?" Shen Qingyi also saw Grandma Bai and hurriedly said her greetings.
"I'm back. You’re going to the school to proctor the exam, right?" Grandma Bai was also a teacher. She calculated the date and it should be the time for final exams.
"Yes, I'm running late. I will properly greet you once I return." After that, she called out to her daughter who was hiding behind Grandma Bai. “Come here, we have to go to school.”
"I'm not going. I want to stay and play with Older Brother Bai Chuan." With that, Mu Xiaoya took advantage of this little older brother’s inattentiveness and grabbed the little older brother’s hand.
"This is your grandson?" Shen Qingyi also noticed Bai Chuan.
"Yes, my little grandson." Grandma Bai likes Mu Xiaoya. At this time, she hopes that Mu Xiaoya's lively energy can influence Bai Chuan, so she said, "Let me have Xiaoya. When you get off work, you can come and pick her up."
"I don’t want to trouble you."
"No, I like her."
Shen Qingyi didn’t insist anymore. She left Mu Xiaoya and went to school by herself.
Grandma Bai held Bai Chuan’s hand, and Xiaoya also held Bai Chuan’s hand, one big and two small walked into the Bai family’s courtyard like a bunch of candied gourds.
"I haven't lived here for a long time. The heating hasn’t been turned on. Grandma will go turn on the heating. Would you like to play with Big Brother Bai Chuan in the living room for a while?" Grandma Bai asked.
"Yes." Xiaoya said sweetly and nodded crisply.
When Grandma Bai left, little Xiaoya was full of excitement and curiosity and was left alone with little Xiao Chuan.
"Big Brother Bai Chuan, how old are you? I’m five years old this year."
Ignoring me?
"Big Brother Bai Chuan, why haven’t I ever met you? Where did you lived before?"
Still ignoring me?
"Big Brother Bai Chuan, why are you ignoring me? The teacher said it’s rude when others asks you questions, and you don’t answer them."
Actually, still ignoring me?
"I know, are you afraid of strangers? It doesn’t matter, I’m very familiar here. Do you want to make a snowman together? Let’s make a snowman that is as good-looking as you." Little Xiaoya took off her gloves and ran into the snow. She grabbed a handful of snow and came back to place some in little Xiao Chuan’s hand.
Little Xiao Chuan was chilled by the cold, but there was some reaction, he looked down at the snow in his hand. The child’s body temperature was high and a small handful of snow soon turned into water, little Xiao Chuan looked at his wet palm, suddenly a little surprised.
Why did the snow disappear?
"Isn't it fun? Let's go play together." Little Xiaoya felt that this little big brother was really too shy. He obviously liked it but didn't say. But it didn’t matter if he doesn’t say, I’ll just drag him…
The two little children, one in a red jacket and the other in a royal blue coat were in the white snow, particularly eye-catching. The driver, Xiao Chen, came in from outside with some things, but when he saw his family’s second young master squatting and playing in the snow, he was shocked and was pale with fright: “Why is second young master…”
"Xiao Chen." Grandma Bai called the driver.
"Lao furen."
"Let him play."
"However, second young master may catch a cold," the driver was worried.
"It's okay." Grandma Bai was also worried about her grandson’s health, but she preferred to let Xiao Chuan have a childhood.
"Let's roll a snowball of this size first and use it as the body." Mu Xiaoya finished making a big one and started to make a smaller one. “Then roll another one so big so it can be the head.”
Little Xiao Chuan stood stunned. He looked at the red ball, rolling a ball that wasn’t much smaller than her. After rolling one, she rolled another, then stacked them on each other. Little Xiao Chuan didn’t know what it meant, but in this white snowy world, the red color was particularly dazzling, always swaying in front of him.
(TN: So the surname Bai also means white, so it's pretty symbolic they first meet in the snowy white winter)
"Grandma Bai, does Big Brother Bai Chuan dislike me?" Xiaoya, who was tried from this morning, also hadn’t spoken with her good-looking little big brother, and was a little frustrated.
"No, your Big Brother is particularly shy, so he doesn't like talking." Grandma Bai coaxed.
"He's too shy."
"Yes, but he was willing to play with you, so that means he likes you."
"He didn't play with me, I made the snowman by myself." He wasn’t even willing to pick up rocks for its eyes.
"But he was always with you, ah. If he didn’t like to play with you, he wouldn’t be standing in the snow the entire time."
It wasn’t hard to coax a five-year-old child, not to mention with the temptation of snacks. Little Xiaoya turned her face and soon forgot this unpleasantness. Then she spent the entire afternoon reading comics in the heated study. Moreover, Big Brother Bai Chuan didn’t rob her of the final say.
In the evening, Shen Qingyi came to pick up her daughter, little Xiaoya reluctantly waved her hand: “Big Brother Bai Chuan, I’ll come again to play with you tomorrow.”
Naturally, Bai Chuan didn’t respond, but little Xiaoya knew that he was shy, so she didn’t get angry. The next morning after breakfast, she came running over wearing her red down jacket.
"Grandma Bai, I've come to play with Big Brother Bai Chuan."
"Your Big Brother is still in his room. I'll call him." Grandma Bai said with a smile.
"It's okay, I’ll go see if the snowman I made has disappeared." Little Xiaoya went to the place where she made the snowman yesterday. Naturally, it would be impossible for the snowman to melt overnight. He was still standing there, but even if it doesn’t melt, it won’t stop her from making another one.
But what’s that lump next to the snowman?
"Big Brother Bai Chuan?" As she approached, little Xiaoya found that this little lump beside the snowman was Bai Chuan in a white jacket and white hat.
"How come you’re squatting down here?" Little Xiaoya saw that Bai Chuan was covered with snow, so she couldn’t help but stretch out her hand to pat the snow off him. When she patted him, she could tell from a glance that he was squatting out here for a while.
Little Xiao Chuan didn’t move or looked at little Xiaoya, as if he were a snowman himself.
"I know, you're pretending to be a snowman, right?" Xiaoya suddenly had an idea. They read cartoons yesterday afternoon and saw such a plot. The child had made a snowman, kissed it, and the snowman came to life.
"I'll kiss." Little Xiaoya was about to kiss him, but suddenly her foot slipped, and she directly fell on top of little Xiao Chuan who ‘cosplayed’ as a snowman.
Little Xiao Chuan recovered, stood up silently, turned around, and walked into the house.
"Big Brother Bai Chuan, wait a minute, I haven't kissed you yet. You still can’t move, you’re still a snowman~~" Little Xiaoya expended a great amount of effort to chase after him until she was able to get into the other’s life.
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Author’s Notes:
No abuse~~