Read Novel Full Chapter 68.1 – When Facing Certain People, Even a Little Angel Has to Take a Break (I)
Chapter 68.1 – When Facing Certain People, Even a Little Angel Has to Take a Break (I)
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Xia Mian had thought that Sun Yuexin and Li Lizhen’s parents would arrive first, since they lived closer to the police station. She hadn’t expected the first to show up to be Ning Shaobai.
A black Santana screeched to a halt at the station entrance, and Ning Shaobai stepped out of the car. It was a chilly early spring night, yet he was wearing only a thin white coat—clearly having come straight from the hospital.
Xia Mian shrank back at the fierce look in his eyes. But with his long strides, he closed the gap in just two steps, seized her by the back of the collar, pulled her over, and gave her a piercing once-over before finally exhaling in relief. “What happened?”
His tone wasn’t exactly pleasant, so Mr. Mi quickly interjected, “It wasn’t her fault—some thugs came after her. She called the police.”
Only then did Ning Shaobai notice the homeroom teacher. He immediately bowed slightly. “Sorry for the trouble, sir.”
“No trouble at all. Xia Mian handled things very well,” Mr. Mi said, a hint of admiration in his voice. “This kid’s got guts.”
In all his years teaching, it was the first time he’d met a student with the courage to immediately report harassment to the police. If more were like Xia Mian, maybe those punks always hanging around the school gate would finally disappear.
Ning Shaobai gave the girl a side glance before politely continuing the small talk. “I see. We’ll be counting on you to keep an eye on her.”
He looked so much like a proper parent that Xia Mian couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.
Hidden from the teacher’s view, Ning Shaobai reached out and gave her a sharp pinch. Xia Mian jumped and stepped back in alarm—
—right into Sun Yuexin and Li Lizhen, who were practically swooning.
“That’s your brother? Oh my god, he’s so hot!”
“Does he have a girlfriend? My sister’s single!”
Xia Mian clicked her tongue. “Don’t even think about it.”
Amidst the banter, Sun Yuexin’s and Li Lizhen’s parents arrived on their bicycles. The two sets of parents knew each other and, after confirming their daughters were okay, began fussing over them—half scolding, half comforting.
“You two girls are really something, huh?”
“Having the police called over…”
“First time in my life picking my kid up from here…”
Mr. Mi quickly explained the situation to ease their worries. “It’s late, let the kids go home and rest. They still have school tomorrow.”
Ning Shaobai, having learned that the two girls got dragged into this while helping Xia Mian, stepped forward to apologize.
“Sorry—it all started because of our Xia Mian. I hope it didn’t trouble you too much.”
Mr. Sun, a friendly looking middle-aged man with a slightly round belly, chuckled warmly. “No, no, it’s okay. Helping a classmate is the right thing to do—it’s not the kids’ fault.”
Mrs. Li took Xia Mian’s hand. “So you’re Xia Mian! I’ve heard all about you from our Zhenzhen—you’re great at studying, right? Come visit our home sometime!”
Mrs. Sun, noticing Ning Shaobai’s white coat, beamed. “Is Xia Mian’s brother a doctor? Which hospital?”
“Yan University Hospital.”
That answer made both families even more enthusiastic. In this day and age, being a doctor—especially at a famous local institute—was a prestigious thing.
Xia Mian, noticing Ning Shaobai’s thin clothing, quickly shot a look at Sun Yuexin and Li Lizhen.
The two of them immediately got the message and grabbed their parents.
“Mom, I’m so sleepy…”
“Mom, I’m freezing—let’s go home, quick!”
“Alright, alright, we’re going.”
“Xia Mian’s brother, let’s talk again sometime!”
Ning Shaobai stood still, watching the two families walk away. Just as he turned to settle accounts with a certain troublemaker, a pair of arms suddenly wrapped around him from behind.
He froze, only to see Xia Mian peeking her head out from his right side, wearing a sheepish grin as she quickly rubbed his chilled forearm to warm him up. “Dr. Ning, you must be freezing! Thank you for coming!”
“You should know what I’m like—I never suffer losses. So there was no need to rush over like this,” she added. But then she caught sight of his hands, stiff and bluish from the cold. She quickly took them in hers, breathed warm air on them, and started rubbing harder.
“So cold, so cold…” she muttered, stamping her feet from the chill, then looked up with a cheeky grin. “Getting warmer now?”
Ning Shaobai closed his eyes, took a deep breath, yanked his hand free, and said irritably, “If you’d let me get in the car earlier, I’d be warm by now!”
“Oh, oh, oh!” Xia Mian hurriedly pushed him towards the car, opened the driver’s door for him personally, and said attentively, “Please come in.”
Once Ning Shaobai got in, she walked around and climbed into the passenger seat, then immediately launched into full-on flattery mode. “Dr. Ning, you were so handsome today, totally nailed the parent mode…”
Ning Shaobai seemed to know what she was getting at. He reached over and flicked her forehead. “No can do. With the way you stir up trouble, I’m not about to be running to school every other day. I never had the teacher call my parents over when I was in school, not even once.”
“Who says I stir up trouble? I never go looking for it.” Xia Mian huffed. “Just like today, you really can’t blame me!”
She gave him a rough summary of everything that had happened and concluded, sighing dramatically, “If you had to find fault with me, I guess it’s just that I’m too pretty, too popular.”
“Being beautiful sure is a curse. If beauty were a crime, I’d be sentenced to life without parole!”
Ning Shaobai was deadpan, “Life? I think the death penalty would be more appropriate.”
Xia Mian: “…”
What a line. She couldn’t tell if that was an insult or a compliment.
“The trio that had just been brought into the ER—your handiwork?” He suddenly asked.
Xia Mian paused. “They were sent to your hospital? Oh, right, yours the closest.”
“Are they okay? Nothing too serious, right?”
Ning Shaobai replied, “You tell me. Don’t you already know?”
“Haha, well yeah, they should be fine. It just looked scary with all the blood. At most, some mild concussions—a good night’s sleep should fix it.”
He shot her a look. “You sound awfully experienced. Where’d you learn that?”
“Just a coincidence, total coincidence,” Xia Mian laughed it off as she tried to change the subject. “So, are you going back to work or heading home?”
Ning Shaobai didn’t press further. He lowered his head and gestured at the white coat he was still wearing. “What do you think?”
“Overnight shift, huh? Got it.” She nodded flatteringly. “Dr. Ning, you’ve worked hard. Thanks again for today.”
Ning Shaobai ignored her and focused on driving.
As the car approached their alley, Xia Mian quickly said, “Just drop me off at the alley entrance. If Second Aunt hears a car, she’ll start asking questions.”
He didn’t say anything, just pulled over at the alley entrance, turned on the high beams, and lit up the path for her. He only turned the car around after watching her reach her gate and wave back.
Sure enough, Xia Wenyue was still up, stepping out of the west room as soon as she heard the gate open. “Why so late tonight?”
“Ah, something happened at school. Some thugs tried to cause trouble in the first years. The police came and took them away. I stuck around to watch with my classmates, so we got home a bit late.”
Xia Wenyue had never been nosy. Seeing Xia Mian was alright, she just yawned and said, “There’s food on the stove. Eat a little before you head to bed. Xiao Feng’s been waiting for you—he just fell asleep…”
Just as she said that, a sleepy little voice called from the west room, “Auntie?”
“Yeah, Auntie’s back!” Xia Mian answered quickly.
Xia Wenyue shook her head helplessly. “He refuses to sleep if he doesn’t see you. They had a drawing class at kindergarten today—he wants to show you.”
“Got it, got it. You go to sleep, Second Aunt. I’ll tuck him in.” Xia Mian hurried into the west room.
The little boy was sitting under the blanket, eyes fixed on the doorway. When he saw her, they lit up. “Auntie!”
“Mm,” Xia Mian took off her coat and walked over to kiss his cheek. “Auntie’s home. Why are you still awake?”
The boy grinned and pulled a piece of paper out from under his pillow, handing it to her.
“For Auntie?” Xia Mian asked, delighted.
Xiao Feng nodded happily.
She unfolded it and saw a drawing made from colored pencils: blue skies, white clouds, bright sun. An orange adult figure was holding a yellow child, surrounded by colorful flowers and butterflies.
The drawing was simple and childlike, but it radiated warmth and affection.
“Is this Auntie and Xiao Feng?”
The child smiled again and opened his arms for a hug.
Xia Mian couldn’t help but laugh—this little guy was getting good at acting cute. She picked him up and said, “This is amazing. You did such a good job!”
He nuzzled against her neck contentedly.
“If Auntie finishes all her homework early this weekend, I’ll spend a whole day playing with Xiao Feng afterward. Sound good?”
“Okay!” Xiao Feng beamed with joy.
These days, they barely saw each other. When she left in the morning, he was still asleep. They had lunch together, but after school, she was often buried in homework. By the time she finished, he was usually too sleepy to stay up.
Even so, he always waited for her to go to bed together.
Xia Mian kissed his little face, heart aching a bit. “Want to sleep in Auntie’s bed tonight?”
“Yeah!” Xiao Feng threw his arms around her neck and bounced a little—tonight was a real treat!
Xia Mian laughed. This little guy really was so easily satisfied.
Because of Xiao Feng’s situation, Xia Mian had privately consulted Ning Shaobai. He’d recommended letting him sleep with her until he turned seven, to build up a strong sense of security before transitioning to sleeping alone.
That night’s sleep was peaceful, a sharp contrast to the chaos just hours earlier.
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Translator’s Note:
We received a huge donation for TGCF last week, so here we are: a mass release! For three full weeks! Enjoy!