Chapter 73: Son, I’ll Take You to Thank Her Properly
Oh no. Mom is really coming to Fucheng.
And even worse, she wants to meet Lin Baiyi.
How are they supposed to meet? He’s not even dating her! They’re not even that close!
Xia Changyu took a deep breath and muttered, ‘Mom already sees her as her future daughter-in-law. Seriously? That can’t be right!’
But maybe this is just how parents see other people’s daughters, like they’re already part of the family and want to take them home right away.
Still...
Isn’t it also possible that his mom already had a good feeling about the girl, even without meeting her, just because of what happened in Binhai?
In a high-end apartment, a graceful and elegant woman carefully placed a cloth over her beloved piano, then let out a long sigh.
“What a silly son. Even if it’s not for your sake, can’t I go thank that girl myself? She saved your life, after all.”
Her name is Xia Zhilan.
She’s a classically trained musician from the Imperial Capital Music Academy, not like those flashy pianists on variety shows. She mostly performs in formal and serious concerts.
Now in her early 40s, she still looks like she’s in her late twenties.
Xia Zhilan had a very clear purpose. First, to thank her. Second, to see what kind of person she is. And third, if my silly son really likes her, then as his mom, giving him a little help is totally normal, right?”
She looked at her reflection in the mirror.
Even with all the skin care in the world, time still leaves its mark. She gently tucked a strand of white hair into the rest of her black hair.
Then sighed.
And sighed again.
Murmuring to herself, “I’m getting old… already have a few white hairs at just forty.”
She really seemed to care about that...
…………………………………………
As night slowly fell,
The lights in the business school building started turning off. The students studying or doing activities had all gone home.
Lin Yibai’s phone battery also reminded her that if she didn’t leave soon, she’d be in trouble.
“Beep-boop~”
[5% battery]
The low-battery warning was very annoying.
Lin Yibai thought back on her makeup lesson tonight. She kind of learned something, but also kind of messed it all up.
Practice? A total disaster.
Theory? She barely scratched the surface.
She looked at the boy next to her and said, “Why do I feel like unless you’re the one helping me put on makeup, I didn’t really learn anything?”
She scratched her head in confusion.
You lousy love rival, your teaching skills are terrible!
But Xia Changyu stayed calm. No blushing, no panic.
Don’t ask. Just don’t.
If you did, his answer would be, ‘Take it slow and steady.’
If he taught her everything in one night, how would he have an excuse to... ahem, cough cough, he meant to keep inviting her out to learn more, of course.
He kept a serious face and calmly said, “Knowledge should be learned little by little. If you learned everything in just one night, how would other girls feel? What about the people who rely on makeup for their jobs, wouldn’t they all go out of business?”
Lin Yibai raised her nicely shaped eyebrows, thinking about it.
That... kind of made sense?
She nodded and said, “True!”
Xia Changyu said, “So now...”
Lin Yibai replied, “Now it’s time to go home.”
Xia Changyu asked, “Go home? Where to?”
Lin Yibai smiled and said, “Each to our own home, each to our own mom!”
One of them just wanted to get back to the hotel and enjoy some air conditioning.
The other was scratching his head, full of worry. Xia Changyu checked the time on his phone, then looked up at the night sky outside.
He hesitated for a moment, but still said, “It’s not even nine o’clock yet. It’s still early… Let’s stay a bit longer!”
“It’s not that early anymore.”
“But it’s not even nine yet!”
“Do you know what happens after nine?”
“Know what?”
“You really don’t come to the teaching buildings much at night, huh?” Lin Yibai took a deep breath and spoke seriously, “The later it gets, the more… strange things might start happening here. Especially since it’s Friday night.”
Wait… is she talking about ghost stories?
People say many schools were built over old graveyards. During the day, nothing happens because of all the students, but at night things can get creepy.
And some students even form groups to explore haunted buildings.
Just as Xia Changyu was starting to imagine weird stuff—
The girl in front of him lowered her voice and whispered, “I’m talking about couples! Some of them stay really late, so… you know what I mean, right?”
Oh! So that’s what she meant!
Xia Changyu nodded like he totally understood.
Young couples, huh. It’s normal that they like spending time together.
But Lin Yibai shook her head and said, “You look like you still don’t get it. Never mind. I’ll bring you here to explore someday when we have more time.”
Since they were on one of the upper floors, they had to walk down several long hallways.
While passing by some dark classrooms...
Xia Changyu wasn’t sure if he was hearing things or not, but he thought he heard some quiet… noises.
“Huff, huff~”
“Huff, huff~”
“Mmm… mmm~~”
Xia Changyu: …
That was definitely not his imagination. It really sounded like there were couples inside the dark classrooms doing… that.
He was about to peek inside when he suddenly felt someone grab his arm. Something soft was pressing against his hand!
Then, he heard the girl next to him, holding his arm and pulling him away, say in a worried voice, “Are you dumb? Manners! You shouldn’t bother people like that, it’s really rude!”
“But they’re doing that inside the classroom?”
“Shhh~~”
“Huh?”
“Don’t talk about others like that, or it might come back to bite you.” After they got away from the dark classroom, Lin Yibai let out a long sigh and said, “What if one day you’re with some girl in a dark classroom doing something like that, and suddenly someone pokes their head in?”
Xia Changyu quickly said, “That’s never gonna happen! No way I’d do that kind of thing in a classroom! That’s just too crazy!”
At the very least, go get a hotel room or something!
A curse coming back to hit him like a boomerang?
No way, haha!
……………………………………………
Soon, the two of them walked out of the teaching building.
At the South Gate, Xia Changyu wanted to walk her home, but she turned him down.
So he said, “How about I treat you to a late-night snack then?”
Lin Yibai thought about it and said, “Sure, that’s fine.”
Xia Changyu was thrilled.
Finally, a chance to show off and make a good impression! Whatever she wanted, he’d pay for it.
Barbecue? Grilled fish? Hotpot? Maybe even some spicy crayfish?
He thought of dozens of delicious and expensive options… until he saw two very familiar words.
Shaxian Snacks.
Xia Changyu: I give up. This girl…
Lin Yibai confidently ordered the most classic combo from Shaxian, “Two dry noodles and two wonton soups, please.”
Xia Changyu covered his forehead, “How… how much?”
Lin Yibai said, “Relax, it won’t cost much. The noodles are 5 yuan, the wonton soup is 6 yuan. You’re treating, but we can split the bill.”
No! That’s not the problem!
Xia Changyu wasn’t worried about spending 10 or 20 yuan.
He was frustrated because...
Why couldn’t he ever find a chance to really spend money on her?