Chapter 24: Bathing Together

In the end, it was Zhang Yin who went out and hauled Huo Zhanyan inside.

Huo Zhanyan kept shouting, trying to punch Zhang Yin in the stomach, but his arms weren't long enough to reach, which only made Zhang Yin laugh.

"Whose kid are you, sneaking in here? What are you doing?" Zhang Yin asked deliberately, seeing from the young master's expression that he knew this little brat.

"I’m not 'whose' kid! No, wait—I’m not a kid!" Once set down, Huo Zhanyan puffed out his chest, marched toward Wen Xiao, and declared righteously, "I came to play with Wen Xiao!"

Wen Xiao had initially wanted to throw a pillow at Huo Zhanyan, but remembering that Wen Yu was still there, he settled for clutching the pillow to his chest. He lowered his head and whispered, "I didn't ask you to come."

"I don't care, I’m coming anyway! If you don't let me in, I’ll sleep right at your doorstep!" Huo Zhanyan began to throw a tantrum. Thinking back to how Huo Zhanyan had been clinging to the window just moments ago, Wen Xiao felt he was truly capable of doing exactly that.

Wen Yu listened with a cold expression, speaking bluntly, "My brother didn't invite you."

"Wen Xiao definitely wanted me to come, it’s just..." Huo Zhanyan seemed to be trying to save face, his tone unwavering, "It’s just that he’s too shy! Otherwise, why would he invite all of them and not me?"

Wen Xiao was too stunned by this moving logic to respond. You weren't invited because nobody wanted you to come—what other reason could there be?

Song Jingbai, standing nearby, flashed a smile that always made Huo Zhanyan itch with irritation. "Do you really need another reason? It’s obviously because we didn't want you here."

Huo Zhanyan stood his ground, gritting his teeth. "You’re lying. You must have been bad-mouthing me behind my back."

"Do I even need to do that? Is there a single thing about you that’s likable?" Whether it was because they had fought before or not, the air between them grew thick with tension, as if they were ready to brawl again at any moment.

"You’re no better!" Huo Zhanyan clenched his fists and glared at Song Jingbai. "I don't care, if you guys aren't leaving, I’m not leaving either!"

"If you want to stay, you have to apologize to Wei Nanxing first," Wen Xiao said, exhausted by the nuisance, knowing full well that Huo Zhanyan would insist on staying regardless.

The young Huo Zhanyan was truly noisy—incredibly so. In Wen Xiao’s memory, Huo Zhanyan hadn't been this clamorous; he had been arrogant and ostentatious. He stared at Huo Zhanyan, not noticing that Wei Nanxing had suddenly looked up at him, even stopping his fidgeting. *Xiao-Xiao is standing up for me.* Wei Nanxing lowered his head again, feeling a stinging sensation in his nose.

"Why should I apologize?" Huo Zhanyan looked at the downcast Wei Nanxing with confusion. "He’s the one who punched me, why am I the one apologizing!"

"Then are you allowed to mess with other people's things?"

"I wasn't messing with it, he left it on the table himself," Huo Zhanyan insisted stubbornly.

Wen Xiao stopped arguing and simply stated, "Either way, you can only stay if you apologize."

Huo Zhanyan wanted to say more, but eventually, with a look of humiliation, he walked over to Wei Nanxing and barked, "I'm sorry!" He was so loud, and his eyes were wide with such intensity, that Wei Nanxing was startled and hid behind Wen Xiao.

Wen Xiao frowned. "I told you to apologize, why are you trying to scare him?"

Huo Zhanyan couldn't help but retort, "I *am* apologizing! When did I scare anyone?"

In the end, Huo Zhanyan was forced to mutter a quiet apology before Wen Xiao allowed him to stay.

***

Huo Zhanyan snorted and pulled out a small box, his tone regaining some of its smugness. "I brought a gift for coming to Wen Xiao’s house."

Song Jingbai and the others stared at the box in Huo Zhanyan’s hands, their expressions blank for a moment. They had all forgotten to prepare gifts. Song Jingbai frowned, saying nothing; Leng Shucheng debated whether to take off his own watch; Wei Nanxing sat nearby, flustered, hiding his hands behind his back—he hadn't prepared a gift for Xiao-Xiao either...

*I knew they wouldn't bring anything.* Huo Zhanyan recalled his mother’s advice: if he went to play at Wen Xiao’s, bringing a surprise gift would make Wen Xiao happier. Seeing the expressions on Song Jingbai and the others, he knew he had won! He was the only one who had prepared a gift! Wen Xiao would surely regret not inviting him sooner.

He thrust the small black box toward Wen Xiao, almost hitting his face, and said earnestly, "I spent a long time catching this, it’s for you..."

Wen Xiao took the box, growing increasingly suspicious. *What did he mean, "spent a long time catching"?* When he opened the box, his hand shook, and he dropped it to the floor. The contents tumbled out. A green caterpillar fell onto the carpet, still wriggling slightly.

Wen Yu’s expression shifted instantly. "What is that?!" He raised his foot, ready to crush the caterpillar. Just as he stepped down, Huo Zhanyan lunged forward, covering the caterpillar with both hands. He glared at Wen Yu and shouted, "Don't step on it! This is a gift for Wen Xiao!"

"Look at my brother—do you think he wants this?" Wen Yu was cold. "Move your hands and let me squash this bug!"

"No! You can't!" Huo Zhanyan roared, protecting the bug as if it were his own wife. "This is for Wen Xiao!"

Wen Yu yelled back, "I already told you my brother doesn't want it! Zhang Yin, pull him away! I think you just came here to stir up trouble."

Wen Xiao covered his ears, feeling that the whole situation was absurd. Thinking of that plump, wriggling bug, he felt goosebumps rise all over his skin. Huo Zhanyan had actually given him a caterpillar as a gift, and he had been so serious about it that it was hard to even view it as a prank.

Seeing Huo Zhanyan looking at him, Wen Xiao immediately said, "Don't give it to me, I don't want it."

Song Jingbai laughed, his tone sounding earnest, though to Huo Zhanyan, it sounded like pure schadenfreude. "If that’s how you give gifts, I think it’s better not to give any at all."

"Giving a bug is impolite," Leng Shucheng added, and Wei Nanxing nodded in agreement.

Just then, the front door opened. Wen Tianhe walked in, hung his coat on the rack, and swept the room with a sharp gaze. "What are you all doing?"

Wen Yu immediately pulled his foot back, sitting on the sofa looking tense, while Huo Zhanyan picked up the caterpillar, cradling it in his hands to make sure it hadn't been flattened. Wen Tianhe looked away. He had already received a report from Zhang Yin that Wen Xiao had brought friends over. He was surprised, but more than that, he was happy. He hoped Xiao-Xiao would make more friends, and recently, he had even been considering taking Xiao-Xiao out to more social gatherings. Because of Xiao-Xiao’s poor health in the past, he had rarely interacted with the outside world, and now, Wen Tianhe just wanted everyone to know that he had a younger son.

***

After dinner, Wen Tianhe went upstairs, instructing Wen Yu to take good care of his brother. Wen Yu accepted the arduous task and went back out, preparing to engage in a battle of wits with the children, only to find they had somehow scrounged up scraps of paper and were planning to play a game of sticking notes on each other.

"It’s rock-paper-scissors!" Huo Zhanyan said. "Whoever loses gets a note stuck to their forehead!"

Leng Shucheng seemed particularly sensitive to winning and losing; his eyes were fixed on the pile of paper scraps on the table, ready to begin.

Song Jingbai added, "Sticking notes isn't enough. The person with the fewest notes at the end gets to name one person to grant them a wish. The person with the most notes can't speak for a whole day."

Huo Zhanyan grew excited, slamming his hands on the table. "I’ll definitely win! I never lose at rock-paper-scissors, so all of you better prepare to stay quiet!"

Wen Xiao was surprised to see even Wei Nanxing joining in, pointing at himself.

Huo Zhanyan had never liked Song Jingbai, so he challenged him first. When they revealed their hands, Huo Zhanyan’s face twisted. "How is that possible..."

Song Jingbai calmly wrote "IDIOT" on a blank slip of paper and slapped it onto Huo Zhanyan’s forehead. "Never lose? Are you only winning in your dreams?"

Watching Huo Zhanyan looking utterly devastated, Wen Xiao played a few rounds himself. After a while, it became clear who had the most and the fewest notes.

Wen Yu, who had stepped away for a moment, returned to find a strange scene: the children had all fallen asleep on the large sofa. His brother was asleep in the middle, his head resting against that boy named Song Jingbai. His brother’s waist was being hugged by the quiet kid, while the boisterous Huo Zhanyan was sprawled across his brother’s chest, and the blond, mixed-race boy was sleeping with his head on his brother’s lap.

They were all tangled up, and they were crushing his brother!

Wen Yu walked over, ready to shake them all awake, but then he saw Wen Xiao open his eyes, looking at him groggily. "Brother?"

Wen Yu thought his sleepy brother was just too cute; he couldn't help but pull out his phone to take a picture. *Of course, he’d have to Photoshop the others out later!*

Wen Xiao yawned, feeling a tightness in his chest. He looked down and saw Huo Zhanyan sleeping like a dead pig. If he hadn't heard him snoring, he might have thought Huo Zhanyan was just pretending to sleep to avoid the punishment. It was mainly because Huo Zhanyan had been crushing him while he slept.

Wen Xiao kicked Huo Zhanyan off. As Huo Zhanyan landed on the carpet, he didn't react at first, only blinking blankly when he finally opened his eyes.

"Wen Xiao, why are you at my house?"

"Look closely, this is *my* house..." Wen Xiao was speechless. Who was the one who smashed the window just to get inside?

Huo Zhanyan had fourteen notes stuck to his face—the most out of everyone; his face was barely visible.

Wen Xiao checked the time; it was nearly eight o'clock in the evening. There was a knock at the door, and one by one, people arrived to pick up Huo Zhanyan, Leng Shucheng, and the others. The house suddenly grew quiet.

As Huo Zhanyan was being carried away on someone’s back, he was still muttering, "I won... I won..."

Wen Xiao peeled the four notes off his own face. He had been so sleepy he couldn't remember who had stuck which note to him, though he could probably guess by the tone of the insults written on them.