At 7:40 in the morning, a tall figure and a small one emerged from the stairwell.
Xia Qing, her long hair draped over her shoulders and dressed in a white sundress, held the small hand of her daughter, whose hair was tied in a ponytail. "Tongtong, walk properly. Don't skip..." she said.
"Okay, Mom." Dressed in a cute school uniform and wearing a cartoon backpack, Zhou Tongtong immediately settled down at her mother's reminder and stopped skipping.
The joyful smile on her small, round face made it clear the little girl was full of anticipation for starting her new life in elementary school.
Xia Qing wheeled her recently purchased electric scooter out of the bike shed, lifted her daughter up, and placed her on the back seat.
Then, she started riding the scooter toward her daughter's school.
In a distant greenbelt, two little creatures poked their heads out from the bushes. They watched Zhou Tongtong as she sat on the back of the scooter, receding into the distance.
