NMBJ2 - EXTRA 2

Author: Liza

Three-year-old Zhao Mingshu was sent to daycare early by Zhao Pingjin. The reason was that Huang Xitang had a son and forgot about her husband, which made Zhao Pingjin angry. Xitang was both helpless and heartbroken for her son, but little Zhao Mingshu comforted his mother by saying that he wanted to go to daycare and didn’t want to stay with his childish father.

At daycare, Zhao Mingshu looked at all the crying children and, with a frown, walked away calmly to the nap room. He sat on his little bed, pulled out a comic book and a bag of chips, and began reading and eating.

Eventually, a crying child sat beside him and wailed, “I want my mommy! I want my mommy!”

Zhao Mingshu looked at her for a moment, then, with a look of disdain, turned away from her. Unexpectedly, the crying child moved to the other side of him and cried again, “I want my mommy!”

Zhao Mingshu, expressionless, handed the crying child some chips. “Eat some chips.”

The crying child took a chip, still crying, and said, “I want my mommy!”

Zhao Mingshu took out a tissue from his bag and said, “Wipe your face, it’s so ugly.”

The crying child wiped her tears and snot and said again, “I want my mommy!”

Zhao Mingshu got annoyed. “She doesn’t want you anymore.”

The crying child was scared and cried even harder.

In the afternoon, when Xitang came to pick up her son, the teacher praised Zhao Mingshu for being the best-behaved in the class, not crying, not making a fuss, and being such a good boy. The teacher awarded him a little red star sticker on his forehead. Zhao Mingshu turned his head with a look of disdain, and the teacher awkwardly kept her hand in the air.

Xitang, seeing her son’s expression, quickly took the red star and said, “What a beautiful little red star! Let me put it on Longlong’s (Zhao Mingshu’s nickname) hand.” Zhao Mingshu reluctantly complied, allowing her to stick the star on his hand.

At dinner, Xitang praised their son’s good behavior at school, and Zhao Pingjin casually responded, “Oh, that’s great.”

Suddenly, a kick flew from under the table. Zhao Pingjin gave his wife an exasperated look, put down his bowl, and rubbed his son’s head. “Keep up the good work tomorrow!”

Zhao Mingshu, in his mind, rolled his eyes and thought, “Silly!” Xitang quickly intervened, “Longlong, aren’t you worried about all the other kids crying, not wanting their mommy to pick them up?” Zhao Mingshu wiped his mouth with a napkin and said, “I’m not worried, it’s your loss if you lose me. It’s not easy for someone my age to have kids.”

Xitang...

Zhao Pingjin... losing it.

Zhao Mingshu’s name was chosen by a group member, Azure, who helped come up with it. They also suggested his sister’s name, Zhao Mingxin, as it represents “forgiveness” and “heartfelt.”