After Descending the Mountain, Seven Big Brothers Spoil Me - Chapter 861

Chapter 861: The Eccentric Mrs. Zhou
After playing joyfully all afternoon, it was finally time to go home. The kids were still a little reluctant to stop, but the thought of continuing their fun at home brought smiles back to their faces. They slung their backpacks over their shoulders and happily ran to meet their waiting parents.

Zhou Fei, however, suddenly lost his smile. He tugged down his pants to cover the scrape on his knee and walked carefully toward his mother, obediently greeting her, “Mom.”

Mrs. Zhou glanced down at him, noticing the sweat on his face. “Why are you sweating so much?” she asked suspiciously.

Caught off guard, Zhou Fei panicked for a moment but quickly came up with an excuse. “It’s just… really hot,” he stammered.

It was only early September, and the weather was still a bit warm, so Mrs. Zhou didn’t press the issue. She nodded and began walking him to the car. As they walked, she asked, “What did you do at school today? You didn’t play with those other kids, did you?”

Zhou Fei lowered his head, feeling guilty, and shook his head. “No, I didn’t.”

Just then, one of the kids they had played with waved at Zhou Fei. He glanced nervously at the child but didn’t dare wave back.

Mrs. Zhou gave him a curious look. “Do you know him?”

“He’s a classmate, but don’t worry, Mom. I don’t play with him,” Zhou Fei hurriedly reassured her.

Satisfied, Mrs. Zhou nodded. “Good. You’re there to study, not to make friends with those kids. They’re not worthy of being your friends.”

“Are there any rich kids in your class? You should befriend them. Those are the ones who will be successful in the future, and you need to be just like them.”

Zhou Fei kept his head down and didn’t respond, feeling disheartened. He disagreed with his mother.

Zhouzhou’s family was wealthy–her father was even the richest man around–but she still played with everyone, even with kids like Li Yuxin and Li Yu’an, who didn’t come from money. Zhouzhou treated them all equally, regardless of their family background. He thought that was what true friendship should be–people playing together because they genuinely liked each other, not because of status.

When Mrs. Zhou didn’t get a response from him, she frowned and pressed him again. “Did you hear me?”

“Yes, Mom,” Zhou Fei replied quietly. As he said this, he couldn’t help but glance over at the other kids, who were cheerfully saying goodbye to each other and making plans to meet again tomorrow. He felt a pang of envy.

Mrs. Zhou, oblivious to his feelings, continued, “Good. I work hard every day so you can have a better future, and you can’t squander that by hanging out with poor kids.”

“And just because someone has money doesn’t mean they’re worthy. Look at that one,” she said, pointing to Zhouzhou. “Still getting carried around by adults at her age, running around and smearing cake on her face. No manners whatsoever.”

Zhou Fei was taken aback and looked up to see Zhouzhou clinging to Qin Lie, excitedly chatting about her day. The scene was warm and affectionate, but to Mrs. Zhou, it seemed like bad behavior.

“Zhouzhou’s really nice,” Zhou Fei couldn’t help but blurt out.

Mrs. Zhou’s expression darkened instantly. “Are you defending her?” she asked in a menacing tone.

Fear washed over Zhou Fei, and he quickly shook his head. “No, Mom, that’s not what I meant.”

“Then what do you mean?” Mrs. Zhou glared at him, her disappointment palpable. “How many times do I have to tell you? Those spoiled rich kids will grow up to be nothing but useless brats. What good will it do to play with them?”

But Zhou Fei knew in his heart that Zhouzhou wasn’t like that. She shared her snacks with her classmates, stood up for her friends, and even helped out around the classroom. Everyone liked her.

He wanted to argue back, but he was too afraid of his mother’s disapproval. So, he stayed silent, lowering his head in quiet rebellion.

Seeing his lack of response, Mrs. Zhou angrily dragged him into the car and slammed the door. “When we get home, I want you to write a thousand-word reflection on this!”

Zhou Fei didn’t argue, but he secretly glanced out the window. He could still see Zhouzhou in the distance.

No matter what his mother said, he still believed Zhouzhou was a good person. He slipped his hand into his pocket and touched the candy she had given him.

Zhouzhou had called him her friend.

He hadn’t had a friend in a long, long time. He wanted to be friends with her.

Noticing his gaze, Zhouzhou turned her head and blinked. “Is that Zhou Fei’s car?” she asked.

Chang Beibei glanced over and nodded. “Yep, that’s his. I remember his mom’s license plate number.”

She prided herself on knowing all the little details about people and aimed to be the class’s “all-knowing” source of information.

Qin Lie also looked over, frowning as he recalled something. “Is he the kid whose mom complained about the cake?”

“Yeah,” Zhouzhou nodded, then quickly added, “But Dad, Zhou Fei’s not like his mom. He’s really nice.”

Qin Lie smiled and patted her cheek. “If you like him, then you can play with him.”

“Mm-hmm!” Zhouzhou nodded eagerly, her face lighting up with joy.

Later at home, Zhouzhou recounted her day to Grandpa Qin and Grandma Qin with great enthusiasm, chattering nonstop. They listened patiently, asking questions like “And then what happened?” which only fueled her excitement to keep talking.

When they learned she had played with Zhou Fei, Grandpa Qin and Grandma Qin exchanged a hesitant glance.

Mrs. Zhou was known to be difficult, but seeing how happy Zhouzhou was, they didn’t want to discourage her. After all, kids were kids, and it wouldn’t be fair to judge Zhou Fei for his mother’s behavior. It was just some innocent fun between children.

As they were considering this, Grandma Qin’s phone pinged with a notification from the parent group chat. Mrs. Zhou had posted a photo and tagged everyone, angrily demanding, “Who did this to my son? Who hurt him?”

She followed up with a flurry of messages, tagging the teacher as well: “I want an explanation. Why is my child hurt on his very first day at school?”

“Is this how you manage your students? Allowing bullying to go unchecked?”

Grandma Qin glanced at the photo. It was just a small scrape–something every child would get while playing. It wasn’t even serious enough to break the skin. Making such a big deal out of nothing!

The teacher, trying to be patient, responded politely, “Mrs. Zhou, this happened while the kids were playing a game this afternoon. Zhou Fei accidentally fell. It was an innocent accident.”

But this only made Mrs. Zhou angrier. “What? Playing games? My son never plays games! You’ve already started corrupting him on his first day!”

“Who convinced my son to play? Step forward right now!”