Once the year was over, the little rascals seemed to have opened a floodgate of conversation. Not only were they eloquent, but they also walked with incredible speed. If you weren't careful, the little guys would disappear without a trace.
After the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, all the children and adults in the village had to go to school. However, considering the weather, classes didn't start properly until the twenty-ninth day of the first lunar month.
Looking at her kids who were always causing trouble at home, Gu Miaomiao had some ideas and secretly wanted to send them to kindergarten.
The elders of the Shen family had also been tormented by these naughty children all winter, and they no longer treated these kids with the same care and caution they had shown before. They were all somewhat tempted by Gu Miaomiao's suggestion.
Dad jokingly asked the kids for their opinions.
Little did they know that the kids thought kindergarten was some kind of fun place, and since they were bored at home, they kept clamoring to go.
Originally, it was just an idea, but the kids insisted on going.
Finally, Shen Wuqiu was driven to desperation by their nagging and had no choice but to talk to the kindergarten principal about it. After all, they were still too young, and the earliest children in the village to go to kindergarten were three years old.
The kindergarten principal was initially reluctant to accept such young children, as they were only a little over a year old and would be difficult to care for. However, upon hearing that she was sending five at once, she became somewhat tempted. Mainly, rural kindergartens aren't as popular as those in county towns; the few students they recruit each year are mostly recruited by the principal and teachers from various villages.
After some consideration, the headmistress personally visited the family to learn about the children's situation. She found that although the four sisters were a bit young, they were talkative and energetic, and more sensible than three- or four-year-olds. As for the older boy, he was even more remarkable.
So, one day in mid-March, Ah Shu and her four sisters happily boarded the school bus to kindergarten with their little backpacks on their backs.
However, before school ended in the afternoon, at 2 p.m., the school principal called, her voice trembling with tears, to inform Shen Wuqiu that her child was missing.
After hanging up the phone, Shen Wuqiu hurriedly prepared to drive back, but the next second she received a call from her father: "Qiu, did the school teacher call you? The kittens came back on their own."
Upon hearing this, Shen Wuqiu's entire body went limp.
"Autumn..."
"Dad, I'm listening." After a few seconds of silence, Shen Wuqiu finally let out a long sigh of relief. "Teacher He called me..."
"Did you call? This school is so unreliable. How could they let the children come back on their own? It's so unsafe for them to be so young..."
"Dad, let Ah Shu answer the phone," Shen Wuqiu interrupted him decisively.
Mr. Shen was puzzled, but he still handed the phone to Ah Shu, saying, "Qiu Qiu wants you to answer the phone."
Ah Shu pursed her lips and took the phone. "Behind the mountain."
Shen Wuqiu told him many times to call her "Auntie," but Ah Shu listened to everything else except this one title. No matter how many times she mentioned it, he just wouldn't change it.
Shen Wuqiu was too lazy to care what he said at this point. "What's wrong with you guys? Doesn't kindergarten let out at 4:30? Why are you back at this hour?"
Ah Shu hesitated, unsure of what to say. After a while, he glanced at the few little gods who had already run into the supermarket and whispered, "The little gods all said that kindergarten wasn't fun, so when the teacher told them to take a nap, they ran back."
"This is utterly ridiculous!" Shen Wuqiu almost choked on his breath. The kindergarten in town wasn't in the town center, but it was still more than ten kilometers away from the village.
"Don't be angry, Shanhou. It's all Ah Shu's fault." Ah Shu was most afraid of her getting angry.
Shen Wuqiu suppressed her anger, holding back her words. "You're a good child, I don't blame you." She paused, then asked, "How did you get back?"
Ah Shu didn't dare to lie. "We were originally planning to walk back. But after walking for a while, the three little gods said their feet hurt. I saw that the little gods couldn't walk anymore, so I flagged down a big cart and sat at the fork in the road at the entrance of the village. Then we got off the cart and met Aunt Tingting. She brought us to find Grandpa Chen."
Shen Wuqiu was almost driven crazy by these brats, but now that she knew they were all safe and sound, she breathed a sigh of relief. After exchanging a few more words with Ah Shu, she hung up the phone and quickly called the headmaster to explain the situation. The more she thought about it, the more frightened she felt, and she lost all interest in the peach orchard. She hurriedly went home.
Meanwhile, a few kids appeared at the supermarket carrying their little backpacks, which drew gasps of amazement from everyone.
At this time, everyone takes a lunch break, but the villagers don't have the habit of taking a nap. After eating, they gather around the supermarket to gossip and chat.
Seeing these children walk steadily and speak clearly, calling each other "Auntie" and "Grandpa" as they are asked, is already quite remarkable.
When everyone heard that the kids had started kindergarten, they could hardly believe it.
"Oh dear, my grandson, when he was this age he still walked with a wobbly gait, I never imagined he'd go to kindergarten."
"That's right, that's why people say comparing yourself to others will only make you miserable."
"Grandpa Le, you are so lucky. Not only are all your granddaughters beautiful, but they are also so smart and clever."
"In other words, I would be overjoyed to have even one granddaughter like that, let alone four."
"But then again, seeing other people's children grow up always seems easier. Think back to when they had their one-month celebration, they were such tiny little bundles of joy, and now they're already going to kindergarten."
"That's right. I've hardly ever seen Grandpa Le's granddaughters. If I saw them outside, I would never guess that they were Wu Qiu's daughters."
...
When it comes to Xiu Sun, Father Shen is very happy to hear everyone flatter him, and for this reason, he specially brought out a lot of melon seeds for everyone.
Not long after, Shen Wuqiu drove up to the supermarket.
The children hadn't seen their mother for most of the day and, thinking she had come to pick them up, started calling out "Mommy~" from afar.
After giving a perfunctory greeting to everyone, Shen Wuqiu opened the back door, grabbed one chick in each hand, and tossed them into the back seat in two batches, his face grim.
Ah Shu was very sensible; after the second batch of babies were thrown in, he quickly climbed onto the vehicle himself.
"..."
It wasn't until the car had driven far away that everyone present realized what had happened and looked at Mr. Shen, who was equally bewildered, "...What... happened?"
"..." Mr. Shen blinked, shook his head, and after a couple of seconds, as if remembering something, he suddenly slapped his forehead. "I have to go back and check. Qiuqiu must be angry. Those little brats must have sneaked back..."
"I knew it was strange. Doesn't the kindergarten usually drop us off at least at five o'clock?"
"Can such a young child really come home from kindergarten by himself?"
“Just now, Tingting said that she saw the child at the fork in the road, and when she felt it was dangerous, she brought the child to Grandpa Le’s place.”
"My goodness, this is incredible! The child is so young..."
...
Mr. Shen was too lazy to listen to their flattery. Seeing that Er Aizi's mother was there, he handed the supermarket over to her and headed towards Huashan.
He didn't drive; he made a phone call to ask Shen Wuqiu to wait for him.
As a result, Shen Wuqiu did not answer the phone.
It wasn't that Shen Wuqiu didn't hear it, but rather that she saw it was him who hit her, so she simply ignored it. She was furious whenever she saw these audacious brats.
She drove in silence, while the little ones in the back looked at each other, not daring to speak easily, and each of them sat obediently with their little hands folded.
Shen Wuqiu silently led the children home, drove the car into the yard, and opened the back door.
Sanmao is a particularly good at being affectionate. The first thing he did was pout and say, "Mommy, hug me~"
Shen Wuqiu didn't even glance at her, and simply picked them up one by one.
"Oh, you're back already?" Su Yunzhi came out of the house when she heard the noise. She was very happy to see the little ones back. "Did you pick them up? I knew it wasn't appropriate for them to go to kindergarten at such a young age..."
"They came back on their own." Shen Wuqiu slammed the car door shut, turned to look at Su Yunzhi, and said, "Don't you think they're amazing?"
"You came back by yourself?" Su Yunzhi was confused. "What do you mean, 'came back by yourself'?"
"I came back from kindergarten by myself and didn't tell anyone." Shen Wuqiu was getting a little annoyed as she looked at the girls standing there motionless. "What are you all standing there for? Get inside."
The children immediately rushed into the house.
Shen Wuqiu grew angrier the more she thought about it, so she went straight to the back of the yard and broke off a bamboo strip.
"Wuqiu, the children are still young, you have to take it easy."
"It's precisely because they're young that they need to be properly educated." Shen Wuqiu entered the house with a bamboo stick, too lazy to even change her shoes. Seeing that the carefree Er Mao and San Mao were even trying to grab the remote control, her anger was about to erupt. "You two, stand against that wall over there."
As soon as the tiger roared, the cubs immediately slunk up and stood straight against the wall.
Shen Wuqiu stood in front of them, holding a bamboo stick, and asked them with a stern face, "Who led the way back?"
Er Mao and San Mao glanced at each other furtively, but remained silent.
"I'll ask you one more time..."
“It’s me…” Da Mao stepped forward.
“Mom, it’s not my eldest sister.” Simao immediately retorted, glaring at the instigators, Ermao and Sanmao.
Er Mao and San Mao pouted and reluctantly stepped forward.
Da Mao stood with her two younger sisters, looking apologetic. "I'm the eldest sister."
Shen Wuqiu: "Stretch out your hand."
Da Mao and Er Mao were quite obedient, but San Mao, seeing the bamboo stick in her hand, was reluctant but still stretched it out.
Shen Wuqiu grabbed Da Mao's hand, gritted his teeth, and lashed out with the bamboo stick.
"Hiss~" Da Mao cried out in pain, but quickly pursed his lips again.
Shen Wuqiu felt extremely distressed, but she still hardened her heart and slapped Er Mao's palm again.
When it came to Sanmao, the little guy quickly pulled his hand back before the bamboo stick could be lashed out.
Shen Wuqiu was furious and grabbed her hand.
Sanmao immediately started crying, "Mommy, please be gentle, boohoo~"
The moment the bamboo stick touched the ground, the crybaby's tears were already streaming down her face like a broken string of beads.
"..." Shen Wuqiu was so angry that she wanted to slap her a few more times.
After finishing his cigarette, Sanmao stepped forward and extended his hand, saying, "I'm the younger sister."
Ah Shu also stepped forward, "I was wrong too."
Shen Wuqiu was so angry that she slapped both of them as well.
After she finished, she asked sharply, "Does it hurt?"
Da Mao: "Ouch!"
Er Mao: "It doesn't hurt~"
Sanmao: "Waaah, it hurts so much! Ouch, it hurts so much!"
Si Mao: "~"
Ah Shu glanced at Da Mao and whispered, "It hurts~"
Looking at her stubborn second daughter and her dramatic third daughter, Shen Wuqiu deeply realized that educating children is truly a long and arduous task!
I'm so tired!
After taking three deep breaths, Shen Wuqiu moved a stool over, sat down in front of them, and began to reason with them and appeal to their emotions: "Do you know why I hit you today?"
Fortunately, all five little ones said in unison, "We know."
“What did I tell you before I left this morning? I told you to listen to your teacher and not to run around. Did you listen? When you go to school, you should listen to your teacher. Look at you, you ran off without a word. Most importantly, you're still so young. It's not safe on the roadside. What if you were taken away by a stranger, or…”