Chapter 52: Is Xiao Fu Bao Disliked? The Whole City Loves Me With Their Lives
Chapter 52: A Little Landmine for You
Little A, full of scientific talent, decided to tell a different kind of story.
"Suìsuì, today's story is called: 'If You're a Little Tired, I'll Give You a Little Landmine.'"
"First, you need a landmine."
"What is a landmine's life like?"
"A landmine needs explosives and a detonator to go off."
...
The rest of the story was filled with things Suìsuì didn’t understand—nitrate, sulfur, potassium chlorate, potassium nitrate, perlite powder, titanium powder, and a lot of chemical formulas.
Suìsuì: "Huh? What?"
She couldn't understand a word but found it quite hypnotic.
Before long, Suìsuì had fallen into a sweet sleep.
Even though the child was asleep, that didn’t stop Xiao A from continuing enthusiastically.
He had started his story, and it didn't matter if the audience was awake or not!
Suìsuì woke up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom, and Xiao A was still talking.
Remembering Lele’s advice to always be polite, Suisui tried to keep her eyes open to listen.
Unfortunately, it didn't work.
By morning, Suisui's head was filled with thoughts of nitrates and sulfur. She didn’t quite understand why being tired meant you’d get a landmine.
But she did know that making a gift from scratch showed sincerity.
However, a landmine… She had no idea how to make one.
Suìsuì thought, "If I can't do it, I’ll ask my brother for help."
After breakfast, the rain stopped.
Since the roads were still slick and hard to walk on, they planned to stay in the town for the day.
Physician Liu was busy with his two apprentices, reading and sorting through the herbs they had.
The two kids, bored, started to research landmines.
Feng Xuanrui had never even heard of a landmine.
As much as he wanted to boast, "Big Brother knows everything," this time, he truly didn’t.
At noon, when Prince Qing returned from outside, Feng Xuanrui immediately went to ask him.
The Prince had been out trying to find someone to ask about the weather, hoping to figure out when they could leave—maybe tomorrow, maybe the day after.
When he heard Feng Xuanrui ask about landmines, Prince Qing was baffled. "What’s that?"
Feng Xuanrui: "Huh?"
Even Uncle Wang didn't know!
Realizing this, Feng Xuanrui proudly puffed out his chest.
Sure, he didn’t know, and that was shameful. But if even Uncle Wang didn’t know, for some reason, it made him feel proud.
If Uncle Wang didn’t know about landmines, that was fine. Feng Xuanrui decided to offer a vague guess: "It’s when you mix nitrate and sulfur together and stir, right?"
Since no one knew for sure, Feng Xuanrui figured it didn’t matter if he made something up.
Listening to the boy’s nonsense, Prince Qing furrowed his brow and asked uncertainly, "Are you trying to make fireworks?"
He recalled that sulfur was an ingredient in fireworks, and the strong smell always lingered after setting them off.
Suìsuì, who had been quietly following behind Feng Xuanrui like a cute little shadow, had remained silent until now. Hearing the mention of fireworks, her curiosity was piqued, and she tugged on her brother’s sleeve, softly asking, "Big Brother, what are fireworks?"
Feng Xuanrui wasn’t sure how to explain at first. After thinking for a bit, he hesitantly answered, "Maybe it’s like releasing a sky lantern—just for fun to watch."
"Something fun to watch?"
"What does that mean?"
Suìsuì’s little face was filled with confusion.
But after thinking about the sky lanterns they had seen before, she figured it might be similar.
If it was like that, it must be very pretty.
Still somewhat puzzled, Suìsuì nodded slowly, and Feng Xuanrui, not wanting to explain any further, waved his hand grandly. "When we get back to the capital, I'll have someone set off fireworks for you to see!"
Hearing her brother's promise, Suìsuì happily nodded, "Alright, I’ll wait for you, Brother!"
Suìsuì had never seen fireworks and didn’t know how much it would cost to set off a display.
Feng Xuanrui didn’t know either, but for him, the cost of fireworks? No big deal.
Prince Qing didn’t mind it either.
Compared to the wild spending of some of the noble sons in the capital, Feng Xuanrui was growing up rather well.
So, he didn’t object to a little extravagance now and then. And fireworks—something everyone could enjoy—seemed like a great idea.
The thought of seeing fireworks when they returned to the capital filled the children with excitement.
Although Feng Xuanrui didn’t know anything about landmines, he was very familiar with fireworks.
So, he eagerly held Suìsuì’s hand and started describing just how beautiful and awe-inspiring fireworks could be.
In the afternoon, the sun finally came out.
The spring sun was warm but gentle, not too hot.
The two kids opened the windows to let the sunlight in for a bit, then closed them again and went back to the challenge of solving the infuriating Lu Ban locks.
After several unsuccessful attempts, Feng Xuanrui angrily declared, "Once we’re back in the capital, I’m burning all of these! Every single one!"
Suìsuì was a bit reluctant to part with the little gifts, but when she thought about how her brother was more important, she obediently echoed, "Burn them all! Burn them all!"
Although the little girl was reluctant, she was willing to give them up for her brother's sake.
This realization made Feng Xuanrui so happy that he started bouncing around like a little monkey, darting from room to room by dusk.
Thankfully, the inn wasn’t very big, and they had rented out the whole place. Everyone there was part of their group, and since Feng Xuanrui was a pampered young master, no one took offense, even if they were startled by his antics.
Feng Xuanrui's energy finally wore out after almost half an hour, and by the time dinner rolled around, he was completely worn out.
After eating, he washed up quickly and climbed into bed, where he squirmed toward the center and made room on the outside. "Suìsuì, you can’t sleep in anyone else’s room; you can only sleep with me."
Suìsuì was still washing her face, but hearing her brother’s words, she nodded obediently.
Satisfied with her response, Feng Xuanrui finally closed his eyes to sleep.
Suìsuì finished washing up, applied the ointment Physician Liu had made for her, and then returned to bed, lying down next to her brother.
Because of the ointment on her face, she couldn’t sleep on her side, so she lay flat on her back, stiff and straight.
The sight of the little girl lying so rigidly was both pitiful and cute.
Physician Liu watched for a while, then couldn’t help but chuckle. "Once it dries a bit, you can turn over. And you don’t have to lie so stiffly. Don’t worry, if the ointment rubs off, we’ll just reapply it."
The ointment had been specially made by Physician Liu over the past few days.
Suìsuì’s face hadn’t been well cared for in the past, and the spring breeze had left it red and chapped.
Physician Liu had prepared a nourishing ointment to help restore her skin.
The rest would depend on the child’s natural ability to heal.
And Physician Liu was quite confident in her recovery.
The next morning, however, his confidence wavered.
Because Suìsuì had fallen ill.
.png)
Comments
Post a Comment