<The Pei Ge Diary>
My name is Pei Ge, with the ‘ge’ from ‘gewuzhizhi’ (to investigate things to extend knowledge), not the ‘ge’ from ‘big brother’ (bi ge). Later, my dad said not to focus on ‘investigating things to extend knowledge’ anymore; my name is now from xiao gege (Little Brother).
I asked Uncle Jiang what ‘xiao gege’ meant, and Uncle Jiang said it’s a quiet and elegant beauty. Huh? Isn’t it like my dad?
Later on, since Dad said he found me squatting on the police station, he would start calling me ‘Dun Dun’ (meaning squat).
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Let’s rewind time half an hour.
Pei Rong earnestly told his son, “Dad needs quite some time to cook, so have some formula milk first.”
Pei Ge brought out his own milk bottle—he had long abandoned the pacifier for a straw, filled it up, and then went outside to the open space to drink and play.
The Jiang family villas were connected, with a small courtyard in front enclosed by iron railings. The gate was locked, and unless Pei Ge could fly, there’s no way to get out.
Pei Ge leaned on the base of the railing, squeezing his little face between two pillars. He sipped on his milk, blinking his eyes at the pedestrians outside. Occasionally, the small silver bracelet on his wrist made a tinkling sound as it knocked against the railing.
The villa was the second building by the road. From Pei Ge’s perspective, it’s easy to see the side of the road.
Five young people with differently dyed hair, after losing a big round of an online game and being frustrated, cursed and grumbled as they came out of an internet cafe.
Having been up all night, hungry and with a heavy air of hostility, their faces didn’t look too pleasant.
“Isn’t it just a mistake that cost us the game? Have you said enough?”
“You dare say that again?!”
The smell of gunpowder clashed, and the five immediately start throwing punches at each other, turning it into a brawl.
“Don’t fight!” Pei Ge couldn’t even continue drinking his milk. A well-intentioned citizen, warm-hearted indeed.
He held the milk bottle, anxiously spinning around. His hawk-like eyes spotted a place at the base of the railing blocked by a tile. Peeking underneath, oh, there’s a dog hole leading to the neighbor’s house! And the neighbor’s iron gate was unlocked!
The hole was tiny, something a child wouldn’t think of getting stuck in.
Pei Ge threw the milk bottle through the hole first, then took off his jacket and squeezed through, holding the milk bottle as he dashed over.
“Don’t fight!” Pei Ge stood on the outskirts of the battlefield, clenched his fists, jumped, and shouted, “Dad said no fighting!”
The five of them looked around, even checked the surroundings, and didn’t find anyone. When they looked down, they only then discovered a child slightly taller than knee height.
The kid was cute, but fighting was more important.
Pei Xiaoge ran around the battlefield. Sadly, no one listened to him.
Sweat covered his forehead as he took a deep gulp of milk. The intense battlefield finally determined the winner and loser. A blond youth, exhausted and hungry, was thrown out and landed with a thud at Pei Ge’s feet.
Pei Xiaoge: !!!
This big brother looked like he’s about to faint! Time for an emergency rescue mission!
He was familiar with the appearance of the blond brother; it was just like when he was rolling on the ground due to hunger. A mouthful of milk from Dad would do the trick.
Milk could cure all ailments.
He squatted down, opened his own milk bottle, and fed a mouthful to the blond brother.
Blond brother: ???
Due to extreme hunger, coupled with the caring and encouraging eyes of the little guy, like an angel descending, the blond subconsciously took a few sips.
“Big brother?”
Darn it, at this moment, the blond guy made a full recovery. How could he withdraw from the battlefield with such a cute little kid watching?
He shouted loudly, “Damn it, Wang Qun, even this kid is better at ‘healing’ than you! Can you at least heal me during team fights?”
One of the four responded, “You didn’t even know how to give support! What are you complaining about?”
With comparison came harm. The blond guy, filled with sorrow and indignation, returned to the arena.
Pei Ge: ???
Next, people were constantly pushed out of the arena. Pei Ge, with his short legs, ran swiftly, crossing the line of fire, and gave a sip from his milk bottle to anyone who fell.
Their fearless appearance made the five people feel at a disadvantage, shrinking back when fighting, afraid of sending away their ‘healer’.
In the battle of dignity, anyone who was ‘healed’ had to hold on and stand up.
That guy named Wang Qun probably had really bad healing skills and was being chased and beaten.
Pei Ge’s head shook as he watched, couldn’t help but stomp his feet. “Hide in the bushes! Go around and attack him!”
Wang Qun: “...”
He leaped into the green belt, wiped his nosebleed, “Heh, can this little brat command better than you?”
“Are you hiding in the bushes now? How come you didn’t do that when playing games?”
Pei Ge, with his small body blocking the gap in the bushes, raised an empty milk bottle and said, “No milk!”
Accompanying his words, a police car came whizzing by.
For a moment, everyone fell silent. The immediate reaction was to run, heading towards the Jiang family residential area. Pei Ge instinctively followed, running back home.
“Those who fought are not allowed to run!”
Pei Ge widened his eyes, looked at his empty milk bottle and fingers. Did I start the fight?
Yes, he did.
“Uncle Policeman, I surrender.”
The policeman looked at the little guy in front of him. He had to bend over to touch his head. “...”
Without the need for the police to take action, Pei Ge, in an honest and practical manner, using the bottle and then himself, climbed into the police car... into the passenger seat.
Policeman: You just wanted to hitch a ride in the police car, didn’t you?
The other five people, running and realizing the kid had been caught, hesitated and stopped, all being taken away.
“Gathering for a brawl by the roadside has a severe impact. There’s traffic coming and going; are you not cherishing your lives?”
—We didn’t want to fight either, but he’s too good at ‘feeding’ (providing resources in the game). Wherever someone falls, the milk bottle follows. Not getting up is un-Chinese.
“Damaging the grass is harming public property.”
—We didn’t want to hide in the bushes either, but he was right.
Policeman: “What’s your name?”
“Pei Ge.”
Pei Ge reached into his pocket, stood on tiptoe, and took out a hundred yuan bill, handing it to the policeman.
Policeman: Bribery?
“Uncle Policeman, help me buy some milk for my brothers.” Pei Ge looked worried. They seemed really hungry. It took him half an hour to drink his milk, but they finished it in a few sips.
After saying that, he put his little hand behind him, leaned against the wall, squatted down, in a more standard posture than the other five.
He was wearing a pure black vest, with a bit of dirt from the grass on his face, giving off a somewhat “buy cigarettes for my little brother” vibe.
Five people: “...” They’re not lacking in food, but why were they so moved?
When Pei Rong arrived, he saw his own kid squatting among the five people, small and tiny, with the other people’s shins enough to block his entire body.
When he presented his ID and birth certificate, the police immediately recognized Pei Rong.
They had been wondering before how this little kid could be so outstanding. Seeing Pei Rong, they could only say it was unexpectedly expected.
The female police awkwardly explained, “I wanted to hold him up, but he likes squatting.”
Not to mention that this little kid came to mediate in the first place. Who would crazily treat a one-and-a-half-year-old kid as a suspect, not daring to write anything on paper, afraid that it would be a nationwide joke?
Pei Rong: “It’s okay, let him squat.”
After understanding the whole story, he compensated with five hundred yuan for the destroyed grass, signed the papers, and planned to take the kid away.
“What about the others?”
“No serious consequences. They would be educated and then released.”
Pei Ge handed the milk bottle to Wang Qun, leaned on his dad’s shoulder, and soon closed his eyes and fell asleep. This brother needed his milk more.
Wang Qun held the strongest prop tightly. “I will be a good healer from now on.”
