Chapter 323: Childhood Friends Must Be Cultivated from a Young Age (6)

An Ziyu then wiped his tears and whispered, “Luoluo, you’re so nice.”

Shen Mubai patted his head and said, “Don’t cry anymore. Be a man.”

An Ziyu looked up at her and asked, “What is a man?”

Shen Mubai’s task in this world was to turn An Ziyu into a physically strong, all-around athlete with a sunny disposition.

Looking into his innocent eyes, she didn’t know how to explain it and simply said, “It means you can’t cry.”

Little An Ziyu pursed his lips and asked, “Does Luoluo like men?”

Shen Mubai didn’t expect him to ask this. She scratched her head and nodded, “Everyone likes men.”

An Ziyu responded with an “oh” and wiped his tears forcefully with his small hands.

That evening in the living room, An Ziyu accidentally took a hard fall, hurting his knee. Tears welled up, but remembering what Luoluo said earlier, he tried hard to hold them back.

When Zhou Ruoyun saw him, her precious son was on the ground with tears in his eyes, but none were falling. His fair face was flushed red with grievance.

She quickly ran over and helped him up. Seeing the scrape on his knee, she said with concern, “Why were you so careless? Mommy will get some medicine for you.”

Hearing this, An Ziyu couldn’t hold back his tears anymore, but he didn’t let them fall. He endured the pain and said in a babyish voice, “It hurts so much, Mommy.”

Zhou Ruoyun brought the ointment and gently applied it while comforting him softly.

She naturally noticed her son’s unusual behavior today. He would have cried by now in the past, but now he was holding back his tears despite the pain and grievance on his face.

Zhou Ruoyun, still doting on her child, said, “If you want to cry, just cry. The pain will fly away soon.”

An Ziyu, with tears in his eyes, whispered, “I can’t cry.”

Zhou Ruoyun chuckled and asked, “Can you tell Mommy why?”

An Ziyu looked up at her, hesitated, and then whispered, “Because I want to be a man.”

Zhou Ruoyun was taken aback, not thinking much of it, and smiled.

“Our Ziyu is growing up.”

Though it still hurt, hearing this made An Ziyu’s tears not well up as much. He thought to himself, Maybe he was a little man now.

Remembering Luoluo’s words, An Ziyu smiled slightly.

Kindergarten life was torture for Shen Mubai. She couldn’t play with the other kids, and An Ziyu didn’t seem to like playing with others either. Instead, he liked to stick to her.

By the time he was five, Shen Mubai noticed that the little boy didn’t cry as much anymore. Though he was still a bit pampered and clingy, he had changed.

Wherever she went, An Ziyu followed, always holding onto her clothes, wanting hugs and kisses, even during meals and naps. Once, he almost followed her into the bathroom.

Even Zhou Ruoyun joked, “Ziyu isn’t even this clingy with me.”

Shen Mubai didn’t understand why the little boy had become so clingy, but since it wasn’t a bad thing, she let it be.

As they grew older, their features became more defined, but An Ziyu didn’t seem to have many interests. The only thing he seemed to like was sweets.

He showed no interest in typical boys’ toys like cars.