Chapter 50: Rejecting Ding’s Mother

The next morning, the sky was clear and bright.

To avoid Ding’s mother’s invitation, Su Ning skipped breakfast and went straight to the snake field, watching the rows of red snakes. Suddenly, Su Ning felt they weren’t so scary—at least, not as scary as Ding’s mother.

Just as Su Ning was happily thinking she had escaped, she never expected that Qiao Duoduo and Huo Yang had brought Ding’s mother and Ding Guangyu along. Yes, all four of them came together.

Su Ning looked at Ding Guangyu, who appeared awkward, and at her helpless friend, and tried to greet Ding’s mother casually.

“Ah-yi, what a coincidence! You’re up early too.”

“Not a coincidence at all,” Ding’s mother replied. “Didn’t we agree yesterday? Luckily I ran into Duoduo and the others, or I wouldn’t have known how to find you, our diligent little bee.” As she spoke, she even tapped Su Ning’s nose, making Su Ning shiver with discomfort.

Qiao Duoduo looked extremely embarrassed and helpless. Knowing Su Ning didn’t like being approached too closely, she decided to open a private chat and confess.

Qiao Duoduo: “Su Ge, I was wrong.”

Su Ning smiled sweetly at Ding’s mother, lowered her head shyly, and glanced at the private chat, her heart burning with frustration. She replied:

“You do realize you were wrong?”

Qiao Duoduo didn’t expect Ding’s mother to be so clingy, so she explained proactively:

“Su Ge, this morning, as soon as I opened the door, I saw Ding Ah-yi about to knock on your room. I told her you’d already gone out early. But she insisted on following, saying, ‘We’re together, we must meet up.’ I…”

Qiao Duoduo felt aggrieved as she spoke, while Ding Guangyu stood like a wooden post, unable to say a single word to help. A look from his mother and he immediately lowered his head—enough to make anyone frustrated.

Su Ning briefly grasped what happened but had no time to think further. Ding’s mother then spoke again: “Come on, let’s form a team together.”

This time, Qiao Duoduo dared not act on her own. Seeing no one respond, Ding’s mother looked at Su Ning: “Su Ning, why don’t you form a team? You won’t mind if I slow you down, will you?”

Su Ning looked up at the sky and thought, Mom, Dad, your teachings really have been put to full use. Feeling a bit confident, she took a deep breath and carefully phrased her reply.

“Auntie, the three of us are perfectly divided into tasks. Also, I handle the final strike and distribute the loot afterwards.”

Before Su Ning finished, Ding’s mother interjected: “That won’t do! You’re just a young girl. If you have so much, what if someone targets you? Listen to me—I won’t be greedy.”

Of course, the thing you fear always happens, Su Ning thought, silently rolling her eyes. Auntie, I’m worth much more than just these things.

“Auntie, nothing will go wrong. We’re all together. If I don’t strike the final blow, I’ll feel uncomfortable.”

Hearing this, Qiao Duoduo barely stifled a laugh and added: “Yes, Auntie, Su Ning is a kid at heart. She won’t be happy if she doesn’t get the last hit.”

Su Ning didn’t care about her image in Ding’s mother’s eyes, and Qiao Duoduo casually “smeared” her reputation, which Su Ning actually appreciated—better to cut this troublesome relationship short!

Seeing Su Ning calm and Qiao Duoduo apologetic, Ding’s mother had to relent: “Alright, I see you don’t trust me. Ah, getting old is useless!” She glanced at the two of them.

But they didn’t budge, showing no intention of giving her an inch. Fortunately, Ding Guangyu, familiar with his mother’s temper, stepped in to comfort her: “Mom, that’s not what anyone means.”

Ding Guangyu gave the two girls pleading looks, while Su Ning, tired of Ding’s mother’s boundary-less interference, stared at the sky. Qiao Duoduo, knowing Su Ning disliked this, lowered her gaze to her toes without hesitation.

Seeing no response, Ding’s mother continued talking to herself: “Even though I’m old, I’m still a fighter, not worse than Xiaoyu, sigh!”

Su Ning replied immediately: “Auntie, since that’s the case, you and Ding Guangyu must cooperate well. Why don’t you take all the monsters here, and we’ll go to the other side? It’s not far, and we can keep an eye on each other, plus avoid fighting over monsters.”

She then led Qiao Duoduo and Huo Yang away with smiles.

Ding’s mother, initially pleased that Su Ning spoke up, was stunned. She hadn’t expected this young girl to be so shameless. She had even considered having Xiaoyu date her as a test.

After thinking it over, Ding’s mother realized that although Su Ning insisted on her way with monsters, she was much better than Li Huanran. Li Huanran didn’t look like a proper girl, flirted too much, and dressed revealingly. Su Ning, though less flashy, was delicate, fair-featured, and had a small round face—an ideal “prosperous wife” type. Plus, she lived alone in her rented apartment, clearly from a capable family or with skills herself. Either way, in the future, she’d belong to her son.

As for this little temper—fine, everyone has it. Once she’s in her home, there are ways to teach her manners.

Luckily, Su Ning had no idea about these thoughts. Otherwise, she would have immediately thrown aside all manners to confront this shameless old woman.

Now, Su Ning was happily convinced she had finally escaped Ding’s clingy mother.

“Duoduo, isn’t this something to be happy about? Sometimes, if you care too much about face and social status, you’ll get eaten alive.”

Qiao Duoduo looked at Su Ning, who was shamelessly imparting wisdom on social rules normal people could never follow. Seeing her happy, she just carefully warned:

“This Ding Ah-yi drove even Li Huanran, whom she valued as precious, away. She’s not someone to underestimate. If she truly values you, there are basically only two paths.”

“What?” Su Ning stared blankly at Qiao Duoduo.

“One: She gets her way, brings you into her home, and treats you as she pleases. Over time, she’ll care for you less.

Two: You have a huge argument with her, and she’s extremely disappointed. She may no longer favor you, and there’s an 80% chance she’ll ruin your reputation—spread it everywhere, make it really bad.”

Seeing Su Ning’s concern, Qiao Duoduo emphasized the second point.

Su Ning thought, indeed, it seemed there were only these two paths left. She could only reluctantly reply:

“What did I do to deserve this?”