Hua Yusen finally looked down. Staring at the barefoot little toddler in a red top and red shorts, he froze and exclaimed, "My God, where did this kid come from?"
"I... I don't know either," Zhao Nuanyue stammered nervously. "There are too many mosquitoes out here. Let's go back inside!"
"What if her parents come looking for her and can't find her?" Hua Yusen asked. "Why don't you take her back inside? I'll wait out here for them."
Zhao Nuanyue couldn't bear the thought of Hua Yusen getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. She scooped up the Little Red Carp in one arm, grabbed Hua Yusen's hand with the other, and pulled him toward the Dragon King Temple. "Our place is the closest one around," she said. "If someone comes looking, they'll definitely come ask us. There's no need for you to wait out here."
And so, Hua Yusen let Zhao Nuanyue pull him along, his eyes fixed in bewildered disbelief on the little toddler in her arms.
