The monthly holiday was only one day, so Yue Zhishi spent it holed up in his room. Song Jin had returned from his business trip and was baking with Lin Rong, filling the house with the aroma of butter. Song Yu went downstairs to make coffee and was asked by Song Jin about his recent grades and the TOEFL exam.

"Are you confident?"

Song Yu said it was alright and was about to go back upstairs. Lin Rong stopped him, "Xiao Yu, didn't you say yesterday that you wanted a rug? I picked out a woolen one from your aunt's shop. It'll be delivered in a little while, and we'll go up and lay it out for you then."

"Oh." Song Yu's throat seemed a little uncomfortable. He coughed. "Anytime is fine."

Lin Rong handed him a plate of freshly baked gluten-free chocolate lava cookies. "Take these up to your little brother. Wait, I'll pour him a glass of hot milk too."

Song Jin suggested, "Yogurt would be better. Yogurt is good for the stomach."

With his parents having arranged everything so clearly, Song Yu carried the items upstairs. Passing by Yue Zhishi's room, he stood outside the door and called his name. He heard Yue Zhishi answer from inside, asking what he wanted.

Song Yu frowned, finding it strange. "Mom asked me to bring you some cookies."

"Oh! Then... then just leave them at the door for me. I'll get them in a bit."

After Yue Zhishi finished shouting through the door, he heard Song Yu's grunt of assent from outside a few seconds later. He waited a while longer before walking over and opening the door a tiny crack. Confirming that Song Yu wasn't at the door, he finally opened it boldly and picked up the tray that was on the floor.

"What kind of mischief are you up to in there?"

Caught red-handed, Yue Zhishi peeked his head out to see Song Yu standing a few steps away in the hallway, watching him. An image from Tom and Jerry popped into Yue Zhishi's mind. Right now, he was Jerry, peeking out of his hole to steal some cheese.

Song Yu didn't say much and walked directly toward Yue Zhishi's room, but Yue Zhishi was a step faster, ducking inside and slamming the door shut with a bang.

Song Yu, shut out of the room, experienced a complex state of mind he had never felt in eleven years.

He even stood at the door, stunned for a moment.

......

On Monday morning, after washing up, the two brothers came downstairs and saw Lin Rong at the entrance, changing her shoes with a sense of urgency in her voice.

"A good friend of mine suddenly has acute appendicitis, so I have to go to the hospital to take care of her now. I don't have time to make breakfast today. I've left money on the table, so you two go out to eat."

Yue Zhishi saw her scarf was still on the rack. He rubbed his eyes, walked over, took the scarf, and wrapped it around her. "Drive safely."

"Be careful what you eat outside, and don't give in to your cravings." Lin Rong hugged him, then said goodbye to Song Yu, and left through the door.

The cold air from outside seeped straight to Yue Zhishi's ankles. He gave a small shiver, stomped his feet on the spot, and ran upstairs to change into a pair of long socks. Then he hurried to leave with Song Yu.

Yue Zhishi, thinking about Song Yu's uncomfortable wrist, insisted on giving him a ride to school, but was, of course, flatly rejected. After a stalemate, and being blasted by the cold wind outside, the two of them ended up choosing to take a car.

The car was fast, so they arrived at the school gate early. Yue Zhishi, with his schoolbag on, walked practically glued to Song Yu's side. Before, he could never go to school with his brother, but now he could walk openly side-by-side with him. He was in a very good mood.

But when they reached the breakfast shop, he couldn't walk another step.

"I'm so hungry." Yue Zhishi really just stood there without moving.

Song Yu didn't say anything. He chose the cleanest and most spacious shop and went inside. He ordered soup dumplings, three-delicacy doupi, and a bowl of beef noodle soup.

"Wide noodles or thin noodles?" the owner asked.

Yue Zhishi looked behind the owner. "Do you have hollow noodles?"

"Sure do." The owner cheerfully put the noodles into a strainer ladle. "I'll give you some extra."

"Thank you, owner!" Yue Zhishi sat down opposite Song Yu and sized up the shop's walls, which were covered with menus. After a moment, he spoke up, "Brother Song Yu, I want some sweet red bean soup."

Song Yu looked up at him, as if thinking he was a lot of trouble. But he didn't say anything and got up to ask the owner. To his surprise, the owner said they didn't have it. "We only have black soybean milk. If you want some, the shop next door seems to have it."

Hearing this, Song Yu went directly to the shop next door.

Things were going according to Yue Zhishi's plan. He craned his neck to look outside, and once he confirmed his brother had indeed left, he quickly pulled a package out of his own schoolbag, ran to the opposite side of the table, and swiftly unzipped Song Yu's bag and stuffed it inside.

After taking care of the "crime scene," he returned to his seat, pretending as if nothing had happened, and obediently unwrapped two pairs of disposable chopsticks. A moment later, Song Yu came back with the red bean soup.

The soup was very warm. Yue Zhishi pulled out one of the two straws Song Yu had brought back, pierced the plastic seal on the cup, and took a big sip. It was sweet and smooth.

The owner's wife came to serve the soup dumplings. She gave each of them a small saucer, which contained vinegar with shredded ginger. Yue Zhishi stood up and placed Song Yu's chopsticks on his saucer.

The soup dumplings were filled with shrimp and fresh pork. There were eight in total, with laid-out pine needles separating the dumplings from the bamboo steamer. The skin was especially thin, so thin you could faintly see the shrimp inside. He picked up a soup dumpling, its soup-filled skin wobbling, like a water balloon from his childhood, as it landed in his vinegar saucer.

Without any discussion between the two, Yue Zhishi directly picked up the other straw on the table and unwrapped it. He aimed the sharp end at the dumpling's skin and sucked up the soup the moment he pierced it. "Mmm!"

"Aren't you afraid of burning yourself to death," Song Yu said, though his expression was one of someone used to it.

"This broth is so savory." After he finished sipping it all, he used his chopsticks to tear open the skin, ate the shrimp and meat filling inside with some vinegar, and finally left a large piece of the skin.

"Here are your noodles, and the doupi." The owner's wife came over carrying two bowls. She saw Yue Zhishi place the dumpling skin into Song Yu's bowl and was a little puzzled. "What's wrong, does the skin not taste good?"

"No, no," Yue Zhishi said as he moved the bowl of noodles in front of him, "it's that I can't eat it."

The owner's wife nodded with partial understanding, told them to add their own cilantro, and left.

Song Yu very naturally ate the dumpling skin he had been given and then ate a piece of doupi while it was still hot. The three-delicacy doupi could be considered one of the most filling breakfast items.

Diced pork, dried bamboo shoots, and shiitake mushrooms are mixed into seasoned glutinous rice, with a savory gravy added to enhance the aroma. The "doupi" skin is a thin sheet made from a batter of ground green beans and rice. It's placed on the bottom of a pan, spread with egg, and cooked until set. After being flipped, the glutinous rice filling is added, pressed down, and spread evenly. It's cut into squares while being pan-fried. Served hot, the glutinous rice is savory, fragrant, soft, and chewy, and the doupi skin is golden-brown and crispy.

The best part was, it contained none of Yue Zhishi's allergens, and he loved it.

They shared all of their breakfast dishes. Yue Zhishi ate a piece of doupi, then started to attack the rice noodles. He picked up a piece of braised beef and gave it to Song Yu. "I've been wanting to eat hollow noodles like this." Yue Zhishi stuck his chopstick into one of the noodles, then put it in his mouth. "Isn't it like Chinese pasta?"

Song Yu just felt that he was like a morning bird, chirping away. He wasn't usually like this. Today, he was abnormally excited, as if he had accomplished something major.

"Talk less, eat faster."

Only then did Yue Zhishi quiet down a little. He ate four skinless soup dumplings, half a bowl of noodles, and one piece of doupi. Song Yu finished the rest. Lin Rong had taught them since they were young to respect food, so the two of them never left leftovers when they ate out.

After breakfast, the number of people coming and going at the entrance increased. Song Yu picked up his schoolbag and left the breakfast shop, with Yue Zhishi jogging behind him.

The owner's wife was staring blankly at her soup dumpling steamers when the owner slapped her shoulder. "Still half asleep this early in the morning?"

"No." She frowned, as if she couldn't figure it out. "Those two handsome boys just now were so strange. One only eats the soup dumpling filling, and the other only eats the skin."

The owner wondered what the big deal was. "Ah, kids these days all have their own quirks."

The two separated on the third floor. Song Yu went upstairs by himself, ran into a classmate, who teased him.

"I saw you two having breakfast together from afar. You're so close with your little brother."

Song Yu didn't say anything, nor did he refute it.

Not long after, morning self-study began. The English teacher walked into the classroom with a book. Song Yu unzipped his schoolbag to get his English notes, when he suddenly discovered an extra box inside. Finding it strange, he took it out.

His deskmate was a timid but somewhat gossipy boy with glasses. He glanced at the box, and afraid of being caught by Song Yu, he pretended to be loudly reciting vocabulary words.

The box was white and looked handmade. It was covered in drawings. The main drawing was of two little figures. One had curly brown hair, the other had black hair. The black-haired one's wrist was injured, but it was the brown-haired one who was crying. Above their heads was a large red arrow, pointing to the box's opening.

The deskmate peeked out of the corner of his eye. He saw Song Yu's disdainful expression and thought he was going to toss it aside. After all, he, who frequently received all sorts of gifts, often did that. He wouldn't even spare a second glance for even the most exquisitely wrapped gifts.

But to his surprise, Song Yu actually opened it. Just a shabby little handmade box like that, he actually opened it to look?

The deskmate exclaimed in his heart, 'So this is what Song Yu is into.'

He began to wonder what was inside the box.

Song Yu opened the packaging and took out a stack of...

Medicated plasters? The deskmate was so shocked his glasses slipped. He immediately pushed them back up, watching while pretending to recite his book. Song Yu flipped through them one by one. It turned out there were drawings on the plasters too, and each one was different. They were packed with panel-like illustrations, just like a comic strip. The main characters were the little curly-haired boy and the black-haired boy.

In the morning self-study classroom, which was filled with the deafening sound of recitation, the deskmate accidentally heard Song Yu let out a laugh. It sounded like a mix of amusement and helplessness. In short, it was very unlike him, and very miraculous.

But Song Yu didn't look for long. He straightened the stack of skin-colored plasters, put them back in the box, and placed it in his drawer.

This unsolved mystery of the morning self-study session lingered in the deskmate's mind for a long time.

Both math classes in the morning were spent going over exam papers. Song Yu hadn't made many mistakes, so he saved time by burying his head in new problems. His wrist, as expected, still hurt. He stopped writing and stared at his wrist, thinking for a good while. Finally, he took out the box from his drawer.

He recalled what he had casually said the other day—that they were too ugly to wear.

Ever since they were children, every one of Yue Zhishi's surprises had been carried out furtively.

Picking out a pain relief patch where the two little figures were closest together, Song Yu examined it carefully. Only then did he realize the drawing was very familiar. It seemed to be the scene from when he won first place in the high jump in the fourth grade of elementary school. Yue Zhishi had happily thrown himself into his arms, but his running start had been too forceful, and he knocked him right over onto the field.

Later, during the award ceremony, the top three were standing on the small podium. Just as Song Yu stepped onto the highest platform, Yue Zhishi, who had just started elementary school, ran out from nowhere, darted behind Song Yu, and hugged his leg, disrupting the entire rhythm of the ceremony.

Of course, in the end, he was forcibly carried away by his elementary school homeroom teacher.

Coming back from his memories, Song Yu tore off the plastic film from the back and carefully applied the pain relief patch to his wrist. After smoothing it out, he unnaturally tugged at the sleeves of his sweatshirt and school uniform jacket, trying to cover it. Then, pretending as if nothing had happened, he buried his head and continued doing his problems.

After the long class break, the great mass of students trooped downstairs to assemble for exercises. Qin Yan's movements were lazy, his eyes darting around. He accidentally caught a glimpse of Song Yu's right wrist.

'What the hell is that on his hand, a tattoo??'

The moment they were dismissed, he immediately ran up to Song Yu and, without a word, yanked on his sleeve. "What did you do to your wrist? Song Yu, you're such a gangster, daring to do this behind my back..." The moment he grabbed his wrist, Qin Yan's expression suddenly turned into that of an old man on the subway staring at a phone. "...apply a medicated plaster?"

Song Yu's expression changed. He pushed him away and pulled down his sleeve. "What nonsense are you talking about."

"No, but what is this?" Qin Yan laughed as if he had discovered a new continent. "Where did you get such a cute medicated plaster? Did some girl give it to you?! This is the kind of plaster a real man should use! Quick, quick, I hurt my shoulder playing ball a couple of days ago, give me one too."

Song Yu: "..."

"Why are you so stingy? I can at least buy it, right?" Qin Yan started pulling at his own school uniform. "Fuck, it's so cold! Hurry up! Just one piece!"

"In your dreams."