House Dad's Literary Life

Chapter 406: Celebrating Too Early

Right, where was Nan Zhaoyu?

The little girls, who had been excitedly whispering together, only now realized this issue. Then, Yang Yi saw that first Xixi, then Yang Luoqi, followed by Lan Xin and Chen Shiyun, one by one, lifted their little heads, looking at him in confusion.

What Yang Yi found strange was that just now, Teacher Shen, who was in charge of taking attendance, had said everyone was present.

So, he went over to ask about it, then hesitated as he walked back.

“Ahem, we don’t need to wait for Nan Zhaoyu. His family has something to deal with and can’t come. Let’s get going!” Yang Yi briefly explained to the children.

“Nan Zhaoyu ran away! He’s a big deserter!” Chen Shiyun shouted.

“Zhaoyu said he would climb the mountain with us!” Xixi pouted unhappily.

Yang Yi wanted to say something but stopped. What Teacher Shen had just told him was not as simple as “something to deal with.” Lan Zhoukai noticed this, raised an eyebrow, sensed something was off, and came over to ask, “What exactly happened?”

Yang Yi lowered his voice and said: “Nan Yiyun had a sudden stroke last night and is still in the hospital. His whole family is there with him.”

This bad news was something Yang Yi didn’t want to tell the children and spoil their good mood today.

Lan Zhoukai was taken aback. He also lowered his voice and asked, “Really? How is he now?”

Lan Zhoukai had a good impression of Nan Yiyun. The first time they met was at a party at Yang Yi’s home, where Nan Yiyun had played a classical piece on the piano. Although he was getting on in years, he had seemed full of energy. How could he suddenly have a stroke?

“Fortunately, Teacher Shen said he has been stabilized and is conscious now, but…” Yang Yi sighed.

“But he hasn’t fully recovered, right?” Lan Zhoukai seemed to understand well. He shook his head and said, “That’s normal. If he’s conscious, it means it’s a mild stroke. If he stayed unconscious, that would be real trouble! But even a mild stroke means at least ten days to half a month in bed, and even then, full recovery isn’t guaranteed—it all depends on his luck.”

Yang Yi looked at him in surprise. Lan Zhoukai sighed. “You think it’s amazing that I know so much, right? Xin’er’s grandfather passed away from a stroke.”

Yang Yi understood and gently patted Lan Zhoukai’s shoulder.

Lan Zhoukai smiled. “Don’t worry, it was many years ago. As for Nan Yiyun’s situation, let’s talk about it after climbing the mountain. If there’s nothing else going on tonight, how about we visit him together? What do you think?”

“Sounds good to me!” Yang Yi nodded.

……

The situation with Nan Zhaoyu’s father was temporarily set aside as the activity began. Yang Yi and the others led the children up the well-maintained mountain path, ascending one step at a time.

Ignorance is bliss. The children didn’t know about what had happened to their little friend’s family. They were still happy, chattering away as they climbed.

At the beginning, they were full of energy!

“I’ve been here with my dad before!” Chen Shiyun ran ahead and even tried walking backward, but her father stopped her, so she had to rejoin the group with a pout.

“I’ve been here with my Papa too! We even had a barbecue!” Xixi recalled last year’s trip and excitedly shared it with her friends. “My Mama came too, and we even played in the big river!”

“Ahem, it was just a stream. If it were a big river, Papa wouldn’t have let you go in.” Yang Yi, walking behind, corrected with an amused smile.

Xixi blinked her big, adorable eyes, glanced at her father, then turned back to her friends.

“But I want to eat barbecue!” Lan Xin was already slightly out of breath from climbing, but still called out excitedly.

“I want barbecue too!” Chen Shiyun joined in.

“Not today. Uncle didn’t bring barbecue tools, just some snacks for you.” Yang Yi told them the harsh reality.

“Ah? No barbecue?” Lan Xin became disappointed.

“My Papa made a really delicious cake. Don’t be sad, Xin’er, it’s really good,” Xixi held Lan Xin’s hand thoughtfully and comforted her.

“I still want barbecue!” Chen Shiyun continued to shout, her temper even fiercer than Lan Xin’s.

“Chen Shiyun, no! Your Uncle Yang said there’s none, so there’s none. Stop shouting and making trouble for others!” Chen Guoqiang scolded her with a glare.

“But I want it!” However, Chen Shiyun only became more stubborn when confronted. She pouted, shouted back at her father, and turned away angrily.

“You-!” Chen Guoqiang was furious. As a boxing coach, he was used to the direct and straightforward nature of the ring, making it hard for him to hold back his temper. If they weren’t outside, he might have already picked up his disobedient daughter for a spanking.

Fortunately, Yang Yi stopped him and said with a smile, “Brother Chen, don’t get angry. It’s no trouble! Besides, children don’t always understand things right away—you have to be patient and explain it to them.”

“Shiyu, it’s not that Uncle doesn’t want to make barbecue for you today, it’s just really not convenient. Look, we’re climbing a mountain, and up there the wind is so strong we can’t light a fire to make barbecue, right?” Yang Yi explained patiently to Chen Shiyun.

Chen Shiyun felt respected. Although the little girl couldn’t quite grasp the reasoning behind it, her mood improved significantly, and she no longer wore that stubborn expression from before.

However, she might still be holding a grudge over her father’s scolding earlier, as she remained sullen.

“My own daughter is still the best! Obedient and understanding!” Yang Yi thought to himself as he glanced at Xixi, who was looking at her little friend with concern.

However, Lan Zhoukai waved his hand boldly and said, “Want barbecue? No problem! After we climb the mountain and go back down, Uncle will take you all to a fancy hotel for some barbecue!”

“Wow! Fancy hotel barbecue!” Immediately, all four little girls cheered in delight. Chen Shiyun forgot about being angry with her father, and even Xixi joined her friends in happily jumping around the chubby uncle.

Lan Zhoukai, usually an unflappable billionaire, was now grinning like a child, and giving Yang Yi a proud glance, as if to say, “See, I’m more popular than you.”

Yang Yi was both amused and exasperated, almost wanting to say, “Fine, fine! Take them all—except for my daughter!”

……

However, they celebrated too early. Climbing the mountain wasn’t that easy!

After walking several kilometers up the mountain path, not just the children but even the adults were panting heavily, let alone able to talk.

Yang Yi and Chen Guoqiang were fine. Both had trained and were physically fit, so they weren’t out of breath. But Yang Guo, a university professor who rarely exercised, was panting heavily along with Lan Zhoukai, sweating profusely.

Keep in mind, the higher they climbed, the colder it got!

The children were struggling even more. Yang Yi had already picked up the delicate Yang Luoqi twenty minutes ago, while the other three girls were still persevering. Xixi and Chen Shiyun were in slightly better shape—though panting, they could still keep going. But Lan Xin was struggling. Her chubby little legs were trembling, and if it weren’t for Xixi holding her hand and constantly cheering her on with “Xin’er, you can do it!”, the little chubby girl might have already given up!

“Everyone, let’s rest for a bit, drink some water, and have some fruit to replenish your energy. We’ll continue climbing later!” Fortunately, Teacher Shen organized a break at this point.

Lan Zhoukai was so exhausted that he wanted to sit down directly. Fortunately, Yang Yi reacted quickly and reached out to support him. “You can’t sit when you’re this tired. Walk around slowly for a bit.”

“Little Yang… Little Yang! How much farther?” Lan Zhoukai asked, gasping for breath.

The stone steps winding up the mountain, although not steep, seemed endless. The mountain path ahead curved again, and it seemed like there was no end in sight. The summit was also out of sight, hidden behind the dense forest and towering trees covering the mountainside.

It was worth praising that Jiangcheng had made a significant investment in the Tingshan Mountain Scenic Area. Along the mountain slopes, sturdy fences had been built at the edges, and on the side closer to the mountain, solid wire mesh had been installed to enclose the vegetation, preventing minor landslides or falling rocks from injuring visitors.

Large-scale landslides were rare in Tingshan Mountain and if one did occur, no preventive measures would be able to stop it.

Thanks to these comprehensive safety measures, several peaks of the Tingshan Mountain scenic area that were open to the public attracted many hiking enthusiasts and tourists. Even on regular days, there were quite a few visitors. Today, being the weekend, even more citizens came to climb and exercise.

So, it wasn’t just the parents and children from the Springfield Kindergarten parent-child event—many other people were also climbing towards the mountaintop.

A man in his forties, who looked like an experienced hiker and appeared to be in great shape, passed by. When he heard Lan Zhoukai’s question, he smiled and pointed to the guardrail, saying, “There’s still two kilometers to go. You’ve only covered about four hundred meters so far. The last two hundred meters are the toughest!”

At this moment, Yang Yi and the others finally noticed that while they had been chatting and laughing, they hadn’t paid attention to the fact that along the railing, there were pillars at regular intervals with inscriptions indicating the distance they had climbed and the altitude.

“St-still that far?” Lan Zhoukai’s legs went weak, but fortunately, Yang Yi supported him. To help him, Yang Yi even put Yang Luoqi down.

“Uncle Lan, do you want some water?” Xixi, who had been sipping from the straw of the water bottle her father handed her, noticed Lan Xin’s father looking exhausted. The little girl sweetly ran over and offered her bottle.