Everyone watched the woman's movements.
Chi Xiuke, Wang Man, and the others looked at one another, a little slow to grasp how things had developed.
"He's crying!"
"Xiao Yi really is crying!"
The woman cried out, then rushed straight through the open door.
"Xiao Yi!"
The scene was chaotic for a while.
The man watched, bewildered. At first, only the young boy had been crying, but somehow it had turned into a mother and son crying together. He stood stunned for a moment.
He set the child in his arms on the sofa nearby and said quickly, "Be good and wait here for Daddy."
Then he hurried toward the mother and son, who were clinging to each other and sobbing.
Xiao Xiao walked straight over to the child, who was staring at him with wide, dark eyes and a bewildered expression.
He crouched down and pointed at the bag of socks clutched in the child's hand. "Hey, would you let me have a look at that bag?"
The child tilted his head and studied the older boy in front of him for a while.
Then he held out the bag to Xiao Xiao.
"Thank you."
Xiao Xiao took the bag.
He opened it and smiled gently at the eyes peering out from inside.
Xiao Xiao pulled the drawstring on the bag of socks closed and handed it back to the child, who had been watching him eagerly. "Thank you, little one."
"Here, you can have this candy."
He took a piece of candy from his pocket.
It was one of the candies the shopkeeper had given him while he was out shopping yesterday.
There had happened to be one left.
The child accepted it with delight.
"Nom~"
Watching the child's cheeks puff up as he sucked on the