Chapter 10 - True Danger (1/2)
Qiu Ling sat at the table in the Zhong's house and sighed heavily. After what had happened back then, Madam Zhong was overly cautious with her son. She had stripped him to her back and carried him wherever she went. If she could, she'd probably be still doing that, but Zhong Jing Yi had already turned three years old by now. A little too old to be still carried around.
Still, Madam Zhong didn't leave him out of her sight. Most of the time, she held one of his tiny hands and had him tag along with her. The boy didn't mind. In fact, he seemed quite reliant on his mother, gripping the skirt of her dress, if she ever let go of his hand.
Qiu Ling had been sulking, since he noticed this for the first time. The Jing He he knew from the nine heavens hadn't even been so close to him. How could he cling to a mere human like that?!
Thankfully, Mister Zhong had talked his wife out of always taking the boy with her just a few weeks ago. He had understood her over protectiveness after what happened, but he wanted his son to turn into a strong man, not someone who needed protection all of the time. Especially the protection of a woman. How could a boy his age still rely on his mother this much?
As a result, he had decided to show Jing Yi all the fun things to do as a young boy. Unfortunately, Jing Yi didn't seem as thrilled as he had hoped.
Mister Zhong looked at his son wryly. ”Jing Yi … Don't you want to go have a look at the forest? There is a big river you can play at and if you're not too loud, we might even see some animals!” The 'big river' Mister Zhong talked about, was actually a small stream, but a three-year-old child would probably not notice.
Mister Zhong watched Jing Yi excitedly, but didn't get any response. The boy clung to his mother again and only blinked his doe eyes at his father. River? Animals? His mother had already told him to be cautious, should he ever have to face something terrifying like that! The river brought small children like him somewhere far away, if they fell in. And those animals would swallow him whole!
Remembering all of that, the boy hid behind his mother. Madam Zhong crossed her arms and smiled triumphantly. ”See that? Jing Yi doesn't want to go! Why not let him stay with me?”
Mister Zhong sighed and stood up. He just couldn't coax his son. ”How can that be? He's a boy. He should be outside, playing in the mud, trying to catch rabbits, climbing up trees. What is it with this child? What did I do wrong as his father, that he doesn't want to go outside? He's never played with any of the other children!”
”What should he play with them for? Who should he even play with? The second son of the Pans? He's just like his older brother! He'd bully my Jing'er!”
Qiu Ling nodded vehemently. Indeed! Even though Madam Zhong was at fault for him not having much time with Jing He for the last three years, she was a good mother. She had realized soon enough, that all those other children in the village weren't good enough to spent time with his Jing He! They would just be a bad influence.