SFBF CH86

A few days later, President Gu returned to the hospital for a check-up and mentioned that he needed to discuss some follow-up treatment plans with the Dean. Shen Qing took Ao Zai along to accompany the “big guy” to the hospital.

Since President Gu needed some time for his examination, Shen Qing took Ao Zai downstairs to wait, taking the opportunity to walk the dogs.

Although the weather was hot, it had rained heavily the night before. The air was humid, which strangely dissipated the stifling summer heat. Behind the hospital was a park—a space funded by the hospital but open to the public. The park was lush and green, filled with pavilions and man-made ponds, making it the perfect spot to beat the heat this season. It was a favorite spot for both hospitalized patients and nearby residents to sit and relax.

Shen Qing had dressed Ao Zai in a little baseball cap, a plaid short-sleeved shirt, beige wide-leg trousers, and a miniature version of the sneakers Shen Qing was wearing. The whole kid looked soft and fair, with big, twinkling eyes that made him look lively and adorable.

Tian Tian and Yuan Yuan, the two puppies, had completely accepted that Ao Zai was their owner. Ever since Duoduo started school, the task of playing with the dogs had been entrusted to Ao Zai. Shen Qing noticed that Ao Zai was more willing to chatter away than before—but instead of talking to his little robots, he now talked to the puppies. They were inseparable, a perfect match for each other.

Take today for instance: even though they were only here to accompany Big Daddy for a check-up, Ao Zai couldn’t forget his dogs and insisted on bringing them along. He was even willing to take on the duty of a “poop-scooper” for the puppies. Once the adults showed him how, he learned quickly. Soon, Ao Zai was able to walk the dogs all by himself.

Shen Qing only needed to look after the boy. Having set a designated area for the activity, Ao Zai ran wild with the two puppies. Though he was tiny, he handled the two leashes with ease, walking and stopping, crouching and standing, appearing full of vitality. Well, it didn’t hurt that there were four or five bodyguards nearby specifically tasked with the little master’s safety, so Shen Qing wasn’t worried about losing him.

…As for “walking the kid,” it basically consisted of Shen Qing sitting idly in a pavilion, catching a breeze and yawning.

After a while, Ao Zai returned, covered in sweat. Shen Qing handed him some water, and Auntie Zhang, who was nearby, took the puppies’ leashes. Shen Qing straightened Ao Zai’s cap, and the boy giggled at him.

“This child is so cute,” remarked a person sitting in the pavilion nearby, resting after a walk.

“He really is. Look at those big eyes; he looks so sharp,” the person next to them added.

“So, are you the father?” someone else asked Shen Qing.

Shen Qing was used to being complimented on his child and asked questions whenever they went out. As he wiped the sweat off Ao Zai’s face, he replied, “Yes, I am the baby’s father.”

“He’s so tall, he must be four or five, right?” another person asked. Thanks to Ao Zai’s persistent efforts in drinking milk, he had grown quite a bit recently.

Hearing this, Shen Qing was pleasantly surprised. He exchanged a radiant look with Ao Zai—Oh my, baby, they think you’re already five!

Ao Zai caught the signal in Shen Qing’s eyes and realized he was being mistaken for a “big kid.” He immediately pumped his little fist and giggled along with Shen Qing.

“Yes, we are almost four,” Shen Qing answered. Since Ao Zai’s birthday was only a few days away, rounding up meant he was no longer just a three-and-a-half-year-old; he was basically four. Hearing their conversation, Ao Zai chimed in actively, stretching out his little arm and raising his water cup: “Ao Zai is four!”

His action immediately drew praise from everyone around. Especially the older folks who doted on children—a child as spirited as Ao Zai was rare, so they naturally showered him with compliments.

However, amidst the praise, there was a discordant note.

A grandmother pushing a stroller with a baby who looked about one year old suddenly asked, “He’s four, why isn’t he in school today? Is he in middle class or senior class at kindergarten?”

Seeing Shen Qing look over, she continued, “My grandson is also four. He’s in senior kindergarten now, and his studies are so intense. Why isn’t your child in school? Is he sick?”

Shen Qing: “He’s not sick.”

Shen Qing was rather sensitive about people implying his baby was sick. The smile on his face vanished instantly, and his tone turned cold: “My baby is perfectly healthy.”

The woman seemed to notice Shen Qing’s shift in mood and quickly explained, “Oh, I didn’t mean it like that, I was just curious why your child has time to play outside.”

Without waiting for an answer, she began talking about her own family, saying her grandson was at such-and-such kindergarten and would be starting elementary school at age five. She spoke about how competitive things were for children these days, adding that she was curious why Shen Qing’s kid was just running around and walking dogs instead of studying.

Others in the pavilion chimed in, with one person asking, “Starting elementary school at five? Isn’t that a bit too early?”

“Not at all, not at all! With all this ‘elite education’ stuff, the competition is fierce,” the woman said. “Starting at five is just right. You get into middle school a year earlier, graduate a year earlier—that’s a competitive advantage! Besides, my grandson gets good grades; he might even get into the gifted class. Who knows? You never know, you never know.”

The others, not knowing much about it, were impressed by terms like “elite education” and “gifted class.” They assumed the woman knew her stuff and that her child must be truly exceptional, so they started complimenting her instead. The woman blushed, clearly enjoying the praise.

Just then, she looked back at Ao Zai standing nearby and said, “He’s four, he’s not small anymore. You should really arrange for him to start school; he shouldn’t be playing around like this anymore.”

The woman’s own grandchild in the stroller was clueless, having no idea what the adults were saying.

Shen Qing: “…”

Seriously, lady? You’re circling back to me? He thought she would stop after bragging about herself, but she had to be rude about his child. Shen Qing wanted to say that at four, he was still just a baby, but before he could, Ao Zai suddenly spoke up.

“Ao Zai doesn’t go to school,” he said.

“Huh? You don’t go to school?” The woman immediately jumped on it, lecturing Ao Zai: “That won’t do! People who don’t go to school won’t amount to anything!”

Ao Zai blinked blankly and said to the grandma, “But my Daddies said Ao Zai doesn’t have to go to school. They will hire…”

“Not going to school is out of the question! Won’t the child be ruined if he doesn’t go to school?” the woman interrupted, cutting him off. She didn’t care what the little boy had to say; she only wanted to showcase how “advanced” her own parenting was to the group. She continued chattering, lecturing the child: “What kind of family doesn’t send their four-year-old to school? Does your family not even send him to kindergarten?”

Ao Zai looked up at the grandmother, his face filled with continued confusion.

Although Ao Zai was a little “Long Aotian” who excelled at retorted back, he didn’t quite understand why one must go to school just because they were four. Moreover, hearing the word “kindergarten” made him very resistant, and he immediately declared, “No, Ao Zai is not going to kindergarten!”

“Goodness, this child…” The older woman didn’t expect such a response. In her worldview, children should be in kindergarten by two-and-a-half! Who on earth doesn’t send their child to kindergarten? She was so shocked that she didn’t know how to react.

At this moment, Shen Qing had already pulled Ao Zai into his arms and said, “Excuse me, our child does not need to go to kindergarten. Furthermore, there is no need for you to worry about it; we use one-on-one private tutoring at home.”

With that, he scooped up Ao Zai and prepared to leave. It was hard to communicate with someone like her; one look at her expression revealed she didn’t even understand what “private tutoring” meant. It was a classic case of “trying to explain ice to a summer insect”—a waste of time.

Ao Zai, held by Shen Qing, wrapped his little arms around his “little dad’s” neck. However, he could clearly feel the older people around him pointing and whispering. Someone even said to Shen Qing, “Your child really isn’t going to school? That won’t do.”

“You must send him to school no matter what. You can’t spoil a child like this!”

“I think the kid is quite sharp and extroverted; he doesn’t look like… oh, right, an autistic child. Let me tell you, the grandson of my neighbor has autism, and he’s having a hard time even now—besides special education schools, no one wants to admit him.”

Ao Zai looked at his little dad with even more confusion. He didn’t know that not going to school was something that would make people point fingers at them. His little dad had never told him that before.

Ao Zai didn’t like the tone those grandparents were using. If it were an ordinary child facing this kind of “surround” by so many adults, they might feel shy, embarrassed, or lose their confidence. However, Ao Zai was clearly not an ordinary toddler.

Even though he was confused about why not going to school caused people to talk about his little dad, the priority for the never-losing-an-argument Ao Zai was to set things straight. He put his hands on his hips and said to the criticizing group, “Whether I go to school or not, what does that have to do with you?”

His crisp, clear voice rang out, and his tone was imperious—it was quite impressive.

Ao Zai continued: “Everyone should look after themselves and their own kids. At the very least, my little dad would never be a busybody. My little dad doesn’t go around managing other people’s kids or whether they go to school!”

He spoke slowly, but every word was bitten out clearly. While being held, the little tot kept his hands on his hips, scanning everyone who had been pointing fingers at him, his attitude looking down on them. The implication was clear: everyone sitting here judging him was trash.

The people who had been scolded by Ao Zai: “…”

Where did this kid learn to be so sharp? How can someone so small understand these things? The people who had been acting “wise” and “experienced” while criticizing Shen Qing for spoiling his child felt a bit ashamed, while others sitting around who hadn’t said a word were amused, thinking to themselves that even if this chubby kid didn’t go to school right now, he was going to turn out just fine. Our kids started elementary school at six or seven, and not everyone went to preschool. Didn’t they all turn out fine in the end?

Shen Qing was so amused by Ao Zai’s milky yet domineering appearance that he couldn’t stop laughing. He decided to put the boy down; he wasn’t in a rush to leave anymore. Originally, he hadn’t wanted to waste breath or time on irrelevant people, but since Ao Zai had taken the initiative, Shen Qing couldn’t just be a pushover.

Setting Ao Zai down, Shen Qing suddenly looked at the woman who had started the criticism and smiled brightly: “Ma’am, do you know why my baby is four and still not in kindergarten?”

“…?”

Shen Qing’s aura shifted, and the woman was taken aback. The young man who had looked gentle and easygoing now seemed to have a hidden blade in his smile. His smile was still beautiful, but it was no longer “scholarly”—it was filled with an aggressive edge.

Intimidated by this aura and seeing the young man staring intently at her, she stammered, “…Why?”

Shen Qing replied, “Because my baby is smart, and I don’t place much value on his academic progress at this age. I want him to maintain his innocence and grow up healthy and free. Honestly, I didn’t want to bring this up, but at four or five, a child’s brain isn’t fully developed. You make them learn and memorize everything—are you really not afraid your child will run out of ‘stamina’ later? You’ve heard the idiom ‘pulling seedlings to help them grow,’ right?”

The woman’s eyes drifted. The issue of “stamina” was something her child’s parents actually worried about. As the grandmother, she often heard them arguing at home, saying the key wasn’t doing well now, but doing well in high school and college. They were terrified that if they pushed the child too hard, he would burn out later.

Shen Qing continued: “Also, little children should primarily be playing. Unless he actively wants to learn, how can a child be mentally healthy, imaginative, or creative if they are forced to study every day? Oh, of course, I’m not talking about your child. Perhaps your child loves to study; that’s perfectly fine too. My big boy is exactly that type.”

The woman: “…?”

Wait, this young man has another child? Before she could ask, the little boy standing by the man’s side puffed out his little chest and added automatically, “My brother is very creative!”

The woman: “…”

Just as she was about to ask what “creativity” was, it suddenly dawned on her—this wasn’t the point. The point was that what the young man said was exactly what she was worried about… Her grandson happened to be the type who hated studying. Lately, her grandson and his parents fought every single day over homework and watching TV. The child would end up throwing things and acting out; his temper was so volatile it didn’t even look like the grandson she had raised. It scared her to watch.

The woman panicked internally. Across from her, the young man continued to speak with a curled lip, as if chatting about household trifles: “I also don’t know if it was actually your child’s idea to want to start elementary school at five, or if it was… sigh. I only know that some parents love to compare and don’t care at all about what’s best for the child; they just want the kid to keep pushing forward. Personally, I think such children are very pitiful.”

The woman’s face turned a shade of purplish-blue. Her grandson was only four; how would he know anything about elementary school? It was all arranged by his parents! The grandmother, her son, and her daughter-in-law all knew that pushing the child too hard wasn’t good. But their anxiety, the fear that the child wouldn’t succeed, and the vanity of telling others that their child would enter elementary school at five made them ignore the child’s suffering over and over again. They were even planning to do the same to their newborn second child—the baby stroller even had English letters printed on it, and they planned to send that one to a bilingual kindergarten at two-and-a-half.

The woman’s expression became terrible. The people around who had been influenced by her earlier now felt that what this young man said made sense.

“Like begets like—if the parents are good, the kid won’t be bad. Looking at this young man’s eloquence and logic, his kid is surely going to be fine.”

“Yeah, some parents can’t even achieve those things themselves, yet they force their kids to.”

A young woman sitting nearby couldn’t take it anymore. She looked at the older woman and said, “Your son must be very outstanding, right? Graduate from a prestigious university? Master’s or PhD? That’s why he demands your grandson be just as outstanding? May I ask which school your son graduated from? What kind of work does he do now? What is his annual salary?”

“…”

The woman could tell the young woman was being sarcastic, but her son’s education was indeed impressive. The woman straightened up and smiled defiantly: “My son is a graduate of a prestigious university, a Master’s! What he does for work is none of your business, but my son makes 350,000 a year!”

Having said that, the woman looked at Shen Qing and suddenly realized… Wait, why isn’t this young man working either? It’s not a holiday!

Thinking of this, she regained her confidence and smiled: “You said ‘like begets like,’ and that’s true. My son works so hard every day, working overtime from nine to five, busy as can be! Not like some people who don’t work, don’t even send their kids to school, and not only are they lazy themselves, but they’re delaying their children’s future with no sense of responsibility.”

After finishing this sentence with a smirk, she didn’t want to talk to them anymore and moved to push her stroller away.

But just then, Auntie Zhang returned after disposing of the dog waste bags. In fact, she had heard their conversation from afar. Not a single word that older woman had said made sense! And now, to hear that person insult her “Madam”… even the “Master” had never called her Madam lazy!

Unable to hold back, Auntie Zhang rushed over, called out “Little Master,” and ran to his side, taking wet wipes out of her bag to clean Ao Zai’s hands.

When the others heard her call the child “Little Master,” they were stunned, and the woman with the stroller stopped in her tracks.

After wiping Ao Zai’s hands, Auntie Zhang stood up and said with a smile, “Some young people make 350,000 a year and feel the need to show off to the whole family. I’m just an old woman, a nanny. Young sir, I’m bad at math—could you help me calculate how much money a salary of 120,000 a month adds up to in a year?”

“1.44 million,” Shen Qing answered subconsciously. A simple math problem like 12 times 12 was something he could answer off the top of his head.

However…

“120,000 what?”

Auntie Zhang: “…That’s the salary you and the Master pay me!”

Shen Qing: “…Oh.”

It dawned on him. The household payroll was always handled by the housekeeper; Shen Qing had never managed or paid attention to it. …But he remembered that a few months ago, he had curiously asked about Auntie Zhang’s salary because he felt she was so good to Duoduo and Ao Zai, and he would have felt guilty if he paid her too little.

“I remember you saying back then it was 90,000?” Shen Qing truly remembered that number.

Auntie Zhang: “…That was a long time ago. The Master raised my salary before he was hospitalized. It’s 120,000 a month now.”

Shen Qing blinked and smiled at Auntie Zhang, his lips red and teeth white: “That’s truly wonderful.” His smile was sincere, genuinely happy for her. He was also relieved that after lying in bed for so long, his brain hadn’t completely rotted away… La la la, I’m not stupid!

The two of them chatted casually, but the people around were frozen—What? What kind of work, what kind of family pays a nanny 120,000 a month?!

“Must be lying,” the woman was the first to react, shocked, and said: “Are you putting on a show for me?! What kind of family would pay a nanny 120,000 a month! …Even 10,000 is impossible!”

Her son was so stingy that he wouldn’t pay for a nanny costing a few thousand a month, which is why he brought her from their hometown to help with the child. And now, someone was actually paying a nanny 120,000 a month?!

She pointed at Shen Qing, “This person can’t even remember how much salary he pays; he didn’t even coordinate the story before putting on this act!”

Auntie Zhang said with a calm face, “You are truly wronging my ‘Little Mister’ here.”

Shen Qing didn’t like being called “Madam” in public, so everyone had switched to calling him “Little Mister.” Since he was young and had an even younger mindset, “Little Mister” sounded cute and fitting.

Auntie Zhang continued, “The main thing is that in my employer’s large estate, there are many people who earn similar salaries to mine. It’s completely normal for our Master not to remember.”

As she spoke, Auntie Zhang took out her phone. “Besides, why would I lie to you? I just received my salary two days ago; I can show you the deposit notification… this is after tax, so take a look and don’t say I wasn’t being truthful.”

The woman: “…”

She glanced at the phone, her eyes blurring; she couldn’t even count how many zeros were on there. Because she was always taking care of children, Auntie Zhang didn’t wear any jewelry—partly for hygiene, and partly to avoid the risk of a child accidentally swallowing something. Furthermore, Auntie Zhang didn’t dress in a flashy way; at a glance, she really didn’t look like someone who earned over a hundred thousand a month.

However, a person’s temperament is hidden in their speech and conduct. While she might seem ordinary at first, upon closer inspection, one would realize that this “nanny” was indeed not an ordinary domestic worker.

But a nanny earning 120,000 a month?!

Auntie Zhang: “Don’t be so surprised. I’m just an ordinary person; it’s because the masters are kind-hearted, easy to work for, and everyone who works with me earns a high income.”

The woman: “…”

She looked at the young man again… His appearance was outstanding, and he didn’t look like a miser. Based on his attire, he was clearly quite wealthy. She had assumed the young man didn’t work because he was a stay-at-home parent. She never expected… he had a nanny!

The woman looked at Shen Qing again with an expression that signaled her entire worldview had been overturned. Shen Qing shrugged at her, wanting to say, It can’t be helped, my husband knows how to make money.

Auntie Zhang, standing beside him, added: “Our Little Mister is low-key; he never shows off his wealth. But you should have some sense of self-awareness—who do you think you’re lecturing? Does our Little Mister even need to go to work?!”

Since their “Madam” was low-key, Auntie Zhang didn’t want to stir up more trouble than necessary. She stopped there, mostly because she shared the same sentiment as Shen Qing: it was useless to prove anything to these people. Auntie Zhang didn’t even mention that the private hospital opposite was built by their Master, and that this park was built on land owned by the hospital and opened to the public for free—otherwise, where would these people find such a nice place to cool off?

However, while she didn’t want to brag, some things had to be said: “And who said our ‘Little Young Master’ is ruined because he’s not in school? Our ‘Little Young Master’ is a ‘happy learner’ and already knows four languages. Your child studies so hard, but how many foreign languages can they speak? How is their Chinese?”

“What? Four languages?!” The people around were astonished.

Auntie Zhang’s tone was certain: “If you really let your grandson come out and compete with our Little Young Master, he might not be able to win!”

In truth, she wanted to say he definitely wouldn’t win. But after hearing what Shen Qing said earlier, she realized that the other child was quite pitiful if he was constantly being pushed by his parents and grandmother. Since Auntie Zhang loved children, she felt the same way Shen Qing did—she didn’t want to use the two children as tools for comparison.

Auntie Zhang had her own daughter and granddaughter. She used to think children had to study hard to avoid being “eliminated” by society, but after spending time with Shen Qing, her mindset had shifted: Children, it doesn’t really matter if they are ‘successful’ or not; as long as they grow up to be self-sufficient and have good health, that’s enough. This was what Shen Qing often said, and she found it increasingly wise.

As people continued to discuss the “four languages,” the young woman who had spoken up for Shen Qing earlier, who happened to know English, asked Ao Zai out of curiosity: “So, you can speak English, right?”

Ao Zai tilted his head. Seeing that she was a pretty “big sister,” he gave her some face and nodded: “Ao Zai, can!”

“Okay, let me test you.”

This girl was clearly a patient from the hospital across the street, out for some fresh air—her leg was in a cast. But she was lively, and the kid in the baseball cap was just too cute. She dragged her injured leg over to Ao Zai, looked closely at his big face, and asked him what a few English words meant.

However, Ao Zai only knew conversational English. He understood words within a context, but if asked for isolated words, he didn’t know them and couldn’t pronounce them accurately. No one at home ever forced him to memorize vocabulary. He couldn’t answer the girl’s questions.

The older woman nearby sneered. Although she didn’t understand English, she knew the kid couldn’t answer! That nanny was lying!

But then, the child’s father spoke up, in fluent English. He spoke a few sentences to the child, and the boy immediately responded fluently in a foreign language, then switched to Chinese to explain the meaning of the words the “big sister” had asked about, his voice milky and sweet.

The girl was stunned. She looked at Shen Qing in surprise and said, “That’s perfectly correct! …Sir, both you and your baby’s spoken English are excellent!”

She was genuinely impressed. The other bystanders didn’t understand English at all, and the whole situation was confusing to them. If they didn’t know foreign languages, how could they have said all that? But if they did know, why couldn’t the child answer the student’s questions earlier?

The girl quickly realized what happened and said sheepishly, “I get it now. Your baby has a private tutor for conversational English, right? That is just too amazing! Haha.” She felt a bit embarrassed; her own English was poor and based entirely on the rigid “exam-prep” style, with non-standard pronunciation. Asking a toddler to translate those words was a bit unfair to the kid.

She added, “My English is actually quite bad; I couldn’t even follow what you were saying just now. You guys are just so cool!”

Hearing this, although the people around still didn’t quite grasp the details, they seemed to understand the outcome: the kid knew English and was even better than this college student…

Everyone then turned to look at the older woman who had been so critical and dismissive: “I wonder if your grandson and your son can speak English at this level?”

The woman: “…”

She was still reeling from the heavy blow that her son, who had studied through years of hardship, earned less annually than a nanny. Now, being asked this by the college student, she became even more indignant: “That’s just because they have a good background! My son started from scratch!”

The girl disagreed: “Is there a possibility that if you spent less time showing off and comparing, and just focused on doing your own thing, you might have achieved more?”

She gestured toward Shen Qing: “This gentleman is wealthy and capable, but he doesn’t go around bragging or stepping on other children to praise his own.”

The woman: “…”

The girl: “Everyone is working hard silently; it’s not just your son who is suffering.”

Seeing her say this, Shen Qing couldn’t help but look at her a few more times—she had spoken right to his heart! Myself, well… I’m just a ‘salted fish’ (lazy person) who doesn’t care what people think. But my ‘Big Gu’s’ path was even harder than ‘starting from scratch’! Who in the Gu family is an easy target? Has it been easy for President Gu to get where he is today?

And as for Auntie Zhang’s high salary—she earned it because she withstood the original owner’s “sugar-coated bullets” and threats, and didn’t join in on abusing the two children. Shen Qing felt that for that alone, no amount of money was too much. How could people think wealth comes easily to others?

The argument had attracted quite a crowd, and just then, a crisp voice rang out: “Brother!”

At the sound of that voice, everyone turned, and Shen Qing naturally turned around with Ao Zai. It was a child wearing a hat, hard to tell if it was a boy or girl, shouting for their “brother.” The child looked only three or four, being held in an adult’s arms. They looked overly thin and pale, but their spirit was high. The moment they saw Ao Zai turn, their big eyes fixed on him, calling “Brother” repeatedly.

“Mr. Shen!” The adults around the child looked pleasantly surprised.

They were a couple, a man and a woman in their thirties.

The man was holding the child, and the woman was pushing a stroller.

Upon seeing Shen Qing, the woman didn’t even care about her stroller anymore. She walked straight into the pavilion, her face full of joyful surprise. “Mr. Shen! Little Ao Zai! We meet again!”

“Tingting, come here quickly! Come and see the big brother who saved your life!”

As she said this, the surrounding crowd immediately began to buzz with questions: “What do you mean, saved her life?”

By this time, the little girl named Tingting had been brought over by her father. She clearly remembered Ao Zai, but she was quite shy about being so close to him, not daring to say a word. She just looked at Ao Zai and whispered, “Brother.”

Her mother explained to the crowd: “You don’t know this, but my daughter was suffering from a serious illness. We had no money for treatment and were almost ready to give up. It was this little boy and his father who helped us establish a foundation, which is how we raised the money. Later, the surgery went very smoothly, and my daughter was able to get her life back.”

The crowd: “…”

This… Although it was hard to imagine the circumstances, no mother would joke about her daughter’s life; what she said must be true.

At that moment, the people who had been watching the spectacle out of simple curiosity felt a sense of awe toward Shen Qing and Ao Zai. Shen Qing had recognized the family of three the moment they appeared, but amidst everyone’s scrutinizing gazes, he was more concerned with the child: “Is she recovering well?”

“…Extremely well.” The mother couldn’t help but tear up at the mention of it, finding it hard to get the words out. After the surgery was a success, she had taught her daughter to write a thank-you card by hand, which they had delivered to the patient room on the top floor of the hospital to share the good news with Mr. Shen and Little Ao Zai.

However, when it came to rewards or repayment, Mr. Shen and his family would accept nothing, not even allowing them to mention it. The woman’s family was an ordinary one; they only knew that Mr. Shen and Little Ao Zai’s family lived on the top floor, and they didn’t dare to easily go up and disturb them. Meeting them here by chance, the mother’s knees buckled, and she was about to kneel in gratitude.

Shen Qing quickly stopped her, saying, “That’s unnecessary. Besides, the foundation exists to help those in need; you met the criteria, that’s all. It has nothing to do with us.”

He smiled and patted his little one’s head. “If you want to thank someone, let your daughter recover fully and then come back to thank her brother Ao Zai. After all, the foundation was initiated by Ao Zai.”

It was a matter of fate. Back when President Gu had just awakened from his deep coma, Shen Qing would bring Ao Zai to the hospital to see his “Big Daddy” every few days. It was here in this garden that Ao Zai had met the sick little girl. At the time, Ao Zai didn’t understand the meaning of “illness,” nor did he know that in this world, some people couldn’t afford medical care. The tiny tot just felt a strange sense of sadness and loneliness, perhaps influenced by his father’s own illness. Seeing the girl with such a pale complexion, Ao Zai sighed repeatedly, and even after returning home, he kept asking Shen Qing how he could save the little sister.

For the first time, the carefree Ao Zai, whose heart was usually as vast as the ocean, had something that deeply troubled him. When Shen Qing learned of the situation and found out the surgery and follow-up treatment would cost three or four hundred thousand yuan, he thought about just donating the money directly—he couldn’t just ignore it. But when President Gu heard about it, he said that saving one person wasn’t true compassion, which led to the creation of the mutual aid foundation.

Of course, President Gu contributed the most to this endeavor, providing the initial seed capital. But as Gu Huaiyu had said, simply donating to save one person wouldn’t solve the broader problem. Establishing a mutual aid foundation, even if it was small in scale for now, was like planting a seed. Even if they only saved one person a year, perhaps years later, the children who were saved would become the pillars of the foundation, helping even more people… And naturally, they wouldn’t just save one person a year.

The foundation was registered in the names of his two children, and without Ao Zai’s kindness, the foundation would never have been established. So, the main credit certainly belonged to Ao Zai! Ao Zai had even puffed out his little chest and promised his Big Daddy that when he grew up, he would personally manage the foundation to help more people.

“Why should such a child go to school? Does he even need to go to school?!” Hearing of Ao Zai’s glorious deeds, the elderly folks in the pavilion were instantly moved and conquered. They hadn’t done as many good deeds in their entire lives as this little child! He had saved a living person! A blossom of the motherland, a child full of future hope!

“That’s right! It doesn’t matter if he goes to kindergarten or not; the child is already outstanding!”

Someone even turned to mock the woman who had been criticizing Ao Zai: “Madam, if your level of understanding can’t reach this point, don’t force it. Let me summarize it for you: the child is sensible, smart, kind-hearted, and has strong moral values. His family education is excellent, and they aren’t lacking in wealth. Whether you believe it or not, these are the facts. You think your son is already amazing, but the ceiling of the world is far higher than that.”

“Forget it, don’t talk to her anymore. I just want to know, such a kind and adorable child, can this grandma give you a hug?”

For a moment, everyone was praising Ao Zai and crowding around him. Some, hearing the story, couldn’t help but tear up along with the little girl’s mother. Ao Zai, basking in the praise of the elderly crowd, felt happy again. He never suffered from stage fright and replied, “No hugs for Ao Zai.”

Ao Zai blinked his big eyes and stated seriously, “Even though Ao Zai doesn’t hug just anyone, Ao Zai can take pictures with you grandpas and grandmas! Ao Zai is very photogenic!”

When he said this, the elderly folks in the pavilion were all amused, laughing until they were doubled over. The pavilion was immediately filled with laughter, and people actually started lining up to take photos with Ao Zai.

Ao Zai, surrounded by them, giggled, “Hee hee hee!”

He couldn’t help but be happy. He didn’t know why—maybe it was because the little sister was healthy now. Big Daddy was healthy too, and everything was good. Ao Zai was a child without a single worry!

“By the way, Mr. Shen.” The little girl’s mother finally stopped crying and asked with concern: “Is your husband’s health alright…”

She knew that Mr. Shen’s husband had been seriously ill and hospitalized, which was why Ao Zai had met her daughter there, leading to this turn of fate. She didn’t dare pry too much; asking now was just a polite expression of concern.

Shen Qing smiled at her: “My husband has already been discharged. We’re here today to accompany him for a follow-up check-up.”

“Is that so? That’s wonderful!” The girl’s mother revealed a smile of relief and joy. Although she had never met Mr. Shen’s husband, ever since her daughter was saved, she had prayed every day that Mr. Shen’s husband would also get better. Such a kind family—Heaven must not tear them apart! And since she had no power of her own, the only thing she could do at times was pray.

Shen Qing: “…”

He wanted to say more, but as his gaze drifted into the distance, the smile on his face deepened.

Over there, likely having finished his check-up—after promising he would call Shen Qing to go back as soon as he was done—Gu Huaiyu was approaching their direction, accompanied by two assistants.