When Little Yu Huan came out after washing his hair, he saw Ruan Qiuping looking at him with an excited expression.
Little Yu Huan felt a bit embarrassed by the stare, blinked, and asked, "What's wrong?"
Ruan Qiuping gleefully rubbed Little Yu Huan's face and said, "You look so handsome!"
He was sure the cook's daughter would easily fall for him!
Little Yu Huan's ears turned red upon hearing this.
"But why didn't your family's maid blow-dry your hair after washing it?" Ruan Qiuping asked.
"I washed it myself," Little Yu Huan replied.
Ruan Qiuping was taken aback for a moment, then said, "Let me dry it for you then. It's easy to get sick if it's not dried properly."
He thought he could help style Little Yu Huan's hair into a trendy, cool look that would easily attract girls' attention.
Ruan Qiuping had never used a human hair dryer, but in the celestial realm, the Wind God was very enthusiastic about styling deities' hair by controlling the wind. For a period of time, "getting your hair done by the Wind God" became so popular that almost everyone had tried it.
Although Ruan Qiuping had never had his hair styled by the Wind God, he had observed the process hundreds of times from afar and had picked up some techniques.
While blow-drying Little Yu Huan's hair, Ruan Qiuping noticed that even the back of his head was adorable. His hair was soft, and his ears looked soft too. There was a small, light brown mole in the middle of his left ear cartilage.
Ruan Qiuping couldn't resist gently touching it.
Little Yu Huan's body suddenly shrank, and he turned his head to look at Ruan Qiuping, saying softly, "It tickles."
Does touching the ear tickle? How fascinating. Could this be one of those legendary ticklish spots that many people have?
Ruan Qiuping blinked and touched Little Yu Huan's ear again.
Little Yu Huan shuddered instantly, then covered his ears with his hands. He turned to look at Ruan Qiuping again, his cheeks puffed up in anger, and complained, "I told you it tickles when you touch there. Why did you do it again?"
"Okay, okay, I won't touch it anymore..." Ruan Qiuping quickly promised, raising his hands.
Only then did Little Yu Huan turn back to let him continue drying his hair.
But in the next second, Ruan Qiuping's hand quickly touched Little Yu Huan's right ear.
Little Yu Huan was furious. He immediately stood up from the chair and started randomly grabbing at Ruan Qiuping's body, trying to find his ticklish spots too.
Little Yu Huan first grabbed Ruan Qiuping's ears, but Ruan Qiuping remained unmoved and let him grab.
Little Yu Huan tickled his armpits, but Ruan Qiuping's expression was confused, and he remained as still as a mountain.
Little Yu Huan: "..."
Ruan Qiuping yawned, "I might not have anything like ticklish spots."
Little Yu Huan didn't give up. Suddenly, he attacked both sides of Ruan Qiuping's waist with his hands. Ruan Qiuping instantly jumped up like a startled bird, his eyes filled with terror, as if experiencing this strange sensation for the first time.
Found it!
Little Yu Huan laughed and pounced on him, desperately reaching out with both hands to tickle Ruan Qiuping's waist.
Ruan Qiuping was completely defenseless, curled up on the ground laughing.
"No, no, no... Hahaha... I was wrong, I was wrong, I shouldn't have touched your ears... Hahaha..."
"Do you dare... dare to touch my ears again?"
"Hahaha... I don't dare... I don't dare, young master, please spare me, hahaha..."
It was at this moment that the Cook Lady walked over. She stood by the open door, looking at the two people rolling around and laughing playfully. Her gaze was somewhat surprised, but she quickly composed herself, knocked on the door, and said softly:
"Young master, dinner is ready. You can come down to eat after you've tidied up."
After blow-drying Little Yu Huan's hair and picking out his clothes, Ruan Qiuping was extremely satisfied. He thought that unless the cook's daughter was blind, she would suddenly realize that her young master looked stunningly handsome today.
So, Little Yu Huan, with his "straight-to-the-sky" trendy hairstyle created by Ruan Qiuping and wearing a bright orange stylish little suit, slowly walked down the stairs.
"Hahaha... Yu Huan, you look like a big orange rooster!" The cook's daughter pointed at Little Yu Huan and laughed uncontrollably.
Ruan Qiuping: "..."
Yu Huan: "..."
"Qing Qing! How can you talk like that? Quickly apologize to the young master." The Cook Lady hurriedly pressed her daughter to bow to Little Yu Huan, then said, "Young master, Qing Qing is a bit ill-mannered. We're really sorry..."
"Bleh, bleh, bleh..." Qing Qing stuck out her tongue at Little Yu Huan, making a face.
Ruan Qiuping: How did it become a big rooster? This hairstyle has been popular in the celestial realm for nearly 20 years, how could it look like a big rooster?! And also! This childhood friend's personality isn't quite right either. How can this little girl be so overbearing?!
Ah, Little Yu Huan's path to love is so difficult! So difficult!
"Keep a small portion of the meal aside. There's a little girl sleeping upstairs," Little Yu Huan said to the Cook Lady.
"Then I'll make another serving of nutritious porridge that little girls like."
Little Yu Huan nodded, not looking at Qing Qing even once from beginning to end.
During the meal, Ruan Qiuping realized that there were two tables in the entire dining room.
One was larger, and one was smaller.
Little Yu Huan and Ruan Qiuping sat at the larger table to eat, while the family's maids, bodyguards, the Cook Lady, and the cook's daughter all crowded around the smaller table.
One side was lively and bustling, while the other was cold and quiet.
"Is this how you usually eat?" Ruan Qiuping asked softly.
"This is good," Little Yu Huan said. "I like eating alone."
Ruan Qiuping blinked and deliberately teased, "Oh, so you like eating alone. Then I should also go with them..."
"Slap."
Little Yu Huan grabbed Ruan Qiuping's wrist, his expression a bit nervous.
"I'm just kidding," Ruan Qiuping smiled. "In the future, if there's anything you want, you can say it. If you don't want to eat alone, you can invite others to sit at this table."
"But I really don't like eating with them," Little Yu Huan paused, then frowned and said, "Zhao Qingqing is very noisy."
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao Qingqing ran over with her own rice bowl. She sat down across from Yu Huan without invitation and asked curiously, "Yu Huan, you just said there's a little girl sleeping. Who is that little girl?"
"Zhao..."
Yu Huan opened his mouth, about to call the Cook Lady to take Zhao Qingqing away, but Ruan Qiuping quickly covered his mouth: "It's not a big deal to eat together. It's more lively this way."
How could he let Little Yu Huan send Zhao Qingqing away? This was an excellent opportunity to cultivate feelings.
"Why aren't you answering me, Yu Huan? Who is that girl? I never knew you had any friends other than me."
"You're not my friend either," Yu Huan said.
"I am."
"You're not."
"I am, I am, I am! Besides me, do you know any other kids?"
"She's my sister," Ruan Qiuping quickly answered, interrupting the argument.
"Where is she sleeping then? It's not in Yu Huan's bed, is it?" Zhao Qingqing's eyes widened.
Ruan Qiuping asked with interest, "Why can't she sleep in Yu Huan's bed?"
"Of course she can't!" Zhao Qingqing frowned, saying angrily, "Yu Huan's bed... is for Yu Huan to sleep in, not for other girls to sleep in."
"Yu Huan!" Zhao Qingqing kicked Yu Huan's foot with her own, "Yu Huan, did you remember? You can't let others sleep in your bed... um... I can, but no one else can."
Ruan Qiuping raised an eyebrow.
Oh! It seems there's potential here! This little girl, although a bit overbearing, clearly has feelings for Little Yu Huan!
Now it all depends on Yu Huan's side.
Ruan Qiuping put down his chopsticks, eagerly watching the live performance of a grand children's idol drama.
"You especially can't," Little Yu Huan coldly replied.
Hmm... the girl is quite enthusiastic, but the boy is still in a defensive stage.
But that's okay.
A woman pursuing a man is like a thin veil, and even a tough man fears a persistent woman.
Ruan Qiuping seriously commented.
Zhao Qingqing pouted, seemingly long accustomed to Yu Huan's coldness, not hurt at all. She jumped off the chair and came back with a notebook: "Yu Huan, this is the homework assigned by the tutor. You've already finished it, right? But I'm not very good at it. Can you help me take a look?"
"My homework is different from yours," Yu Huan said.
Zhao Qingqing: "I know, but you must be able to do my problems too, right? It's just... the subtraction from here to here. I'm too stupid, I can't figure out any of them. Can you teach me?"
Yu Huan put down his chopsticks and said to Zhao Qingqing, "I have a great way to make you smarter."
"What is it?" Zhao Qingqing blinked, her face full of anticipation.
Little Yu Huan said with a serious expression, "Go stand on your head in the corner. All the blood will rush to your brain, making you smarter. But you can't speak - if you do, the smartness will escape through your mouth."
"Wow!" Zhao Qingqing looked shocked. "How long do I need to stand on my head to become smart?"
"The longer, the smarter."
"Then I'll do it every day! That way I can become smart enough to take the same classes as you and do the same homework!"
With that, Zhao Qingqing happily skipped off to the corner to stand on her head.
Ruan Qiuping: "..."
So it wasn't my problem - this kid just likes to fool people.
But... this development isn't bad at all.
Although for now, Zhao Qingqing seems to be the only one invested, their innocent childhood friendship is bound to blossom into something more. There will surely come a day when Little Yu Huan realizes his life is full of traces left by Zhao Qingqing.
Even though he claims not to care, if Zhao Qingqing is gone for just one day, he'll feel empty inside.
But by that time, Zhao Qingqing might be tired and ready to give up.
Zhao Qingqing: "My heart is so weary and in pain. Yu Huan, I'm giving up on you. I don't want to like you anymore."
Yu Huan: "Come back! Who said you could give up on me without my permission?!"
What follows would be the crowd-pleasing "chasing after the wife" drama...
Just as Ruan Qiuping was lost in his daydreams about the future, he heard Little Yu Huan take out his phone and start making a call:
"Uncle Zhang, I want to change cooks. No, Auntie Zhao's food is very delicious, but I hate her daughter."
Ruan Qiuping was stunned.
The childhood sweetheart couple I was rooting for... ended badly.
"W-why?" Ruan Qiuping asked, trembling.
Little Yu Huan hung up the phone, furrowed his brow, and said:
"She said the hairstyle you gave me makes me look like a big orange rooster."