Chapter 29: Goodbye, Uncle

Ji Yanli instinctively hit the brakes when Tang Xiaohe suddenly called out.

Due to the inertia, Tang Xiaohe and Nini bumped into the backrest of the front seat.

Tang Xiaohe was startled and rubbed her head while checking if Nini was hurt. But Nini just touched her head and laughed, showing her uneven little teeth. She thought it was funny that both she and Tang Xiaohe were rubbing their heads at the same time.

Seeing that there was no injury, Tang Xiaohe breathed a sigh of relief.

“Sorry,” Ji Yanli said apologetically. He had braked instinctively and a bit too sharply.

“It’s okay, my head is tough. I shouldn’t have suddenly asked you to stop,” Tang Xiaohe said.

They were just about to turn a corner and reach the school gate. Ji Yanli had been to the school a few times before. His Maybach was too eye-catching — no other teachers at the school drove a Maybach. The security guards and staff who had seen Ji Yanli driving it were all deeply impressed and knew it was his car.

Now that the two of them had just confirmed their relationship, and since the school office was a gossip hub, she didn’t want their private matters to become a topic of gossip.

“We’ll just get off here and walk the rest of the way,” Tang Xiaohe said.

Ji Yanli understood, opened the door for them, and took Nini’s little schoolbag from the trunk, slinging it over his shoulder. He held Nini with one arm and handed the bag to Tang Xiaohe.

An old lady selling soy milk nearby saw this scene and couldn’t help but praise, “You three are the most beautiful family I’ve ever seen! The little girl takes after her mom — so pretty!”

Ji Yanli smiled warmly at the compliment. Tang Xiaohe smiled and explained, “We don’t have kids yet. This is a little friend from a friend’s family, and we’re just taking care of her temporarily.”

The soymilk lady was surprised. Anyone seeing this scene would think it was a happy little family, but after hearing Tang Xiaohe’s explanation, she smiled again, “If you have your own kids someday, they will definitely be just as handsome and cute!”

Tang Xiaohe felt a little embarrassed to respond, but Ji Yanli nodded obediently and seriously said, “Thank you!”

Tang Xiaohe took the bag from Ji Yanli’s hand, bent down, and said to Nini, “Alright, come with me, say goodbye to Uncle.”

Nini waved her chubby little hand sweetly and in a baby-like voice said, “Thank you, Uncle! Goodbye, Uncle!”

Ji Yanli half-crouched, waved back to Nini, and softened his voice, “Goodbye, Nini!”

Talking to such a little girl softened his heart, and his voice naturally became very gentle, afraid of accidentally scaring her.

He watched Tang Xiaohe hold Nini’s hand and walk around the corner before getting back into the car.
Just as he was about to start the engine, something suddenly came to mind.

What did Tang Xiaohe ask Nini to call him just now? Uncle? Why did she repeatedly tell Nini to call Tang Xiaohe “Sister,” but call him “Uncle”?

Ji Yanli swore he really didn’t mind at all — he was just a little curious. Just a little.

He took out his phone, put it back in his pocket, then took it out again. He opened Tang Xiaohe’s chat, his finger scrolling back and forth, deleting and rewriting messages repeatedly. Finally, he typed a line and sent it.

Tang Xiaohe personally took Nini to her classroom and watched her put down her bag and sit down before returning to her own office.

Unexpectedly, Xu Fangli was already waiting there.

“Hey, I heard that Zhang Wan’s husband hit her yesterday?” Xu Fangli asked eagerly, her expression full of curiosity.

Tang Xiaohe felt a bit uncomfortable at Xu Fangli’s tone, but she couldn’t tell if Xu Fangli was genuinely worried about Zhang Wan or just gossiping and digging for information.

Tang Xiaohe dodged the question, pretending not to know: “I’m not really sure.”

“How could you not know? Didn’t you take Zhang Wan to the hospital?” Xu Fangli raised her voice slightly, her eyes sharp and gleaming with excitement.

Tang Xiaohe realized then that Xu Fangli was just there to pry.

Her heart turned cold, and she felt annoyed. But since Xu Fangli was her senior, she didn’t want to make a scene. Silently thinking “None of your business,” she cooled her tone and said, “I already told you I don’t know.”

“I saw it with my own eyes! I just wanted to confirm it with you — turns out it’s true! I thought Zhang Wan, and her husband were pretty loving, so maybe I was mistaken,” Xu Fangli babbled on when she didn’t get the answer she wanted.

Tang Xiaohe rubbed her temples, growing very impatient and even a bit disgusted. The middle-aged women in the office always talked about houses, stocks, husbands, kids — she could understand that — but why were people so interested in others’ privacy? Why not focus on themselves and live their own lives well?

Tang Xiaohe pulled a piece of paper from her desk, wiped her hands, crumpled the paper, stood up abruptly, and tossed it into the trash with a sharp tone: “If you really saw it, why are you still asking me?”

Xu Fangli was displeased by Tang Xiaohe’s attitude. What was that about? And why did she feel like Tang Xiaohe wasn’t about to throw the paper, but rather throw her out?

Seeing Tang Xiaohe unwilling to engage further, Xu Fangli said sulkily, “I actually ran into you and Zhang Wan at the hospital. We were a bit far apart, so I didn’t say hi. Later I overheard some nurses chatting.”

Tang Xiaohe didn’t want to dig into whether Xu Fangli was purposely snooping or just accidentally overheard. For her, the only words left to say were “None of your business.”

She stared coldly at Xu Fangli: “You knew Zhang Wan was hospitalized, but did you go to visit her?”

Xu Fangli was rendered speechless by the question, awkwardly looking around before making a weak excuse: “Well, I’ve been busy lately. Maybe someone from our grade group can find time to go together.”

Tang Xiaohe found it unbelievable — organizing a group visit? Was this really a visit or just a chance to mock someone?

Not wanting to say another word, feeling her temper about to flare, Tang Xiaohe grabbed her textbook and teaching materials from the bookshelf, suddenly stood up, and said, “Class starts soon. I’ll go to my class first.”

Without waiting for Xu Fangli to respond, she pushed the door open and left the office.

There was still some time before class. Tang Xiaohe sat on the podium watching the students in morning reading.

The students were all clever — when they saw Tang Xiaohe’s unhappy expression as she entered, those who usually chatted idly during morning reading instead all quietly opened their books and pretended to read seriously.

Whether they were truly focused or just pretending, at least it looked like they were taking it seriously.

Suddenly, a message popped up on her phone from Ji Yanli — sent nearly twenty minutes ago but only just now showing a notification, maybe because of network or phone delays.

“Why do you get to be ‘Sister,’ but I’m ‘Uncle’?”

What did that mean? The scene from earlier suddenly flashed in her mind: “Alright, come with Sister, say goodbye to Uncle.”

So, he actually minded that?!