Ai Zhiyi arrived at the first train station at half-past nine. He knew certainly that this place wasn't the place where he should be dropping in to work on a way of his private tutoring, but he was confident that he wasn't losing his way.
Ai Zhiyi got off the train, looking around the crowding hall. Perhaps the new year was arriving two months later, the passengers crowded the station hall, and the seats were all taken. Ai Zhiyi didn't stand still and walked past people to escape the crowds, then walked to a toy store a few buildings from the station.
At a red light, he and other pedestrians began to cross the road. He then turned left, passing the drivers who were waiting under the traffic light.
Accidentally, at the corner of his eye, he caught a familiar figure, so he reflexively turned his head to confirm the person.
As soon as Ai Zhiyi shifted his gaze, unexpectedly a man sitting in the back seat of an Audi Q7 also looked out the half-open window, thus their eyes were spotted at the point of shock. It exploded like a bomb causing panic.
As if time was playing in slow motion, Ai Zhiyi stared at the man for a long time as if he had spent half his life making sure the man's figure again and again, but the certainty he found made him suffer. He felt the wound he had healed long ago began to drip blood down his feet.
While the man didn't take his eyes off either, looking at Ai Zhiyi as if he missed him so bad. Even as the car was driving, his eyes seemed to take him out to approach Ai Zhiyi. Unfortunately, their growing distance made Ai Zhiyi's figure slowly disappear from his sight.
Ai Zhiyi came to his senses after the car was steered, so he quickly turned his face and walked briskly as if someone was about to catch him.
It's Chu Shenshu.
It's really him!
The man's face had become a permanent image in Ai Zhiyi's head as well as their bad memories.
Ai Zhiyi couldn't believe it yet.
However, once the scene replayed in his mind, it was clear how the reality knocked him off so hard to make him realize that the man had truly returned. He even clearly remembered how the man's eyes seemed to say to him: "Zhiyi, I'll bring you home".
Ai Zhiyi was a frangible man. He felt like crying when he found out that Chu Shenshu had returned as well as the bad memories.
Until he arrived at a building with the slogan "blessing of acceptance and a smile of inclusion", he stopped and fell silent.
Ai Zhiyi lifted his chin and read the slogan repeatedly with bloodshot eyes. After the accidental meeting, he became dazed. He even forgot how he ended up standing in front of an orphanage.
Until a familiar voice was heard from a distance calling him very familiarly.
"Papa!"
The voice seemed to bring Ai Zhiyi back home. He also realized how much he missed a boy who just called him byname, which made him slowly forget his worries for a moment.
Ai Zhiyi turned to the voice. Soon after his eyes were lifted, he found a boy who was wearing a red cape-like one of the superhero characters was sprinting towards him with an Ultraman robot toy in his hand.
Ai Zhiyi greeted him with a smile, then squatted down and spread his arms wide open. Until the boy fell in his arms, Ai Zhiyi could feel how the warmth of a family gradually calmed his heart down.
Due to doing many preparations ahead of the performance on his students' graduation day, Ai Zhiyi didn't have much free time to visit Chu Baiyu at the orphanage. Apart from that, the other busyness he had was truly suffocating him.
Ai Zhiyi didn't know for sure how long he hadn't visited Chu Baiyu these days, he could only guess that it was about three weeks or even a month since his last visiting.
Chu Baiyu let go of his embrace, looking at Ai Zhiyi silently.
Ai Zhiyi smiled lovingly and watched the brightness on the boy's face slowly faded away, turning into a frown.
Is he mad?
Ai Zhiyi wondered in confusion but he didn't truly care about any answers.
Then, he pinched the boy's cheek softly. "Yuyu (charming), what's going on? I came to see you and brought you a present. You're supposed to be happy."
Chu Baiyu's round cutie-face turned red on both cheeks like a peach. He showed an angry look, but in Ai Zhiyi's eyes, the look made him even get cuter.
Chu Baiyu pouted, "Hmph! Don't call me that! It's like you're calling a girl! I'm a boy! A boy!"
Ai Zhiyi couldn't help but smile. "Alright, then. I think Xiaoyu sounds better, right?"
Not long after, a middle-aged woman who was the head of the orphanage approached them with a smile. Then, she greeted Ai Zhiyi in a friendly manner, "Mr. Ai, long time no see. I was surprised when Baiyu ran out in a hurry, but looks like it's you who came to visit him."
Ai Zhiyi immediately got up, holding Chu Baiyu's hand. He smiled politely, "Long time no see you too Mrs. Ling. I've been swamped up lately, so I didn't have a chance."
Ling Zhilan smiled in understanding. She said, "People have their own businesses, don't they? It's not something we can deny," the woman paused, then added, "Um, we'd better go inside. Chu Baiyu looks impatient to have a talk with you."
Ai Zhiyi nodded in agreement.
After the woman's words, they immediately entered the orphanage.
In the playing hall, Ai Zhiyi and Chu Baiyu sat at a small light blue table with a scenic motif. As most of the children aged five years and over went to school in the morning hours, made the atmosphere was a bit quieter than the last time Ai Zhiyi visited this place in the afternoon.
Meanwhile, the other children under the age of five were playing in the backyard and frontyard, and some of them were in the playing hall with Ai Zhiyi and Chu Baiyu.
Ai Zhiyi put the plastic bag on the table, said with a smile, "Xiaoyu, I just bought you a new toy, here, go open it."
Seeing the large plastic bag, Chu Baiyu immediately took out a package inside. As soon as he saw the printing of the newest robot on the package, his angry eyes immediately shone up like shiny stars. Chu Baiyu impatiently opened it!
A new edition robot toy with blue and red weapons made Chu Baiyu get excited. He immediately stood up and played with his new toy with great enthusiasm, even proudly showing it off to his friends, making them all feel amazed.
Ai Zhiyi couldn't stop smiling.
Seeing Chu Baiyu's cheerfulness, he also felt happy, and there was satisfaction in his eyes.
After that, Chu Baiyu sat back down in front of Ai Zhiyi without being able to take his eyes off his new toy robot.
Ai Zhiyi patted Chu Baiyu's head, promising, "Next month, I will buy another toy for you, okay?"
As Ai Zhiyi wanted to make Chu Baiyu grow up to be a kind and generous man, Ai Zhiyi said to him, "If your friends want to borrow your toys, lend them. But, lend them to someone you can trust."
Chu Baiyu listened to him very obediently, then nodded his head excitedly.