Chapter 11 Swiping Card

Uncle Wei, the Jiang family’s driver, steered the car out of the villa district. Tall buildings lined the streets as vehicles came and went, while the orange-red sunset lazily sprawled across the horizon like a duck egg yolk, casting a faint rosy glow on Zhi Li’s little face.

Xu Qingying couldn’t resist giving it a few gentle pats.

Zhi Li sat obediently, letting Xu Qingying caress her cheek, while she pulled out the red paper money Jiang Yanheng had given her that morning from her small bag. She counted softly, “One, two, three… fourteen—”

Wow! There were actually twenty-seven red paper money notes!

Zhi Li gasped in quiet delight, suppressing her excitement as she began counting them a second time.

This time, she separated five notes and placed them on the seat, then another five, and yet another five—three neat little stacks of red paper money sitting in a row like kindergarten children.

Live stream viewers: […]

[Is this the girl who got three million in pocket money just by saying “Daddy” on the trending list?]

[Is counting 2,700 back and forth really that exciting?]

[If you’re so capable, why not take out all the money in the card and count that?]

[Uh… could this be a show? Did they take the card back after giving it?]

[Damn! That’s possible! They didn’t even give the PIN, right?!]

[You’ve uncovered the truth! Maybe the meals and classes were all staged too? Fake rich family?]

[The lunch didn’t seem to have any expensive ingredients.]

[But the villa is huge.]

[If it were really that big, they wouldn’t have installed so few cameras—probably afraid of exposing the act.]

[Don’t you know there’s villa rental service?]

Xu Qingying had been watching Zhi Li count the red paper money in her bag. When Zhi Li started counting again, she thought the little girl might not have gotten it right the first time. But then she saw Zhi Li meticulously arranging six or seven stacks.

Some stacks had five notes, others three or four.

After placing the last remaining note, Zhi Li lightly bit her lip, seemingly hesitant. After a moment, she reached out with her tiny, fair hand and took one note from one stack, adding it to the first pile.

“Sweetie, what are you doing?”

“Dividing gifts!” Zhi Li pointed cheerfully at each stack on the seat. “Red paper money for Mommy’s gift, for Grandma and Daddy’s gifts, and for Auntie Butler’s gift!”

Xu Qingying smiled at the stack of six notes meant for her. “What about the other stacks?”

Zhi Li continued pointing, “Lightning’s gift, Wei Liang’s gift, and new brother’s gift.” Grandma didn’t dislike her, and Daddy didn’t ignore her—so there was a good chance her new brother wouldn’t reject her either. That meant the gift she bought wouldn’t be thrown away.

[I counted carefully—Auntie Butler gets four notes, and Lightning the dog gets three.]

[Meanwhile, Wei Liang and the new brother only get two. Lightning the dog is the dividing line—people are worth less than a dog.]

[You’d think Zhi Li has low EQ, but she knows to buy gifts. Then you’d think she has high EQ, but she let a dog outrank her stepbrother.]

[She’s practically asking for her stepbrother to get mad.]

[Stepbrother? The one who called her a troublesome kid? Good riddance!]

[Wait, are you getting fooled by Zhi Li’s seemingly sweet act? Wake up! It’s all taught by Xu Qingying!]

[…No, I’m a fan of Zhi Li using a dog as a divider.]

[“I don’t care about any dog, I just want to know if the bank card came with a password or if this is just for show!”]

When Zhi Li was distributing the red paper money, she had her own criteria in mind.

In terms of affection, she loved Mommy the most. Grandma and Daddy—one spent money to hire tutors for her lessons, the other gave her red envelopes and gifts—so she had to return the favor. Auntie Butler cared about whether she was sick, so she deserved a gift too. Lightning played with her, so he also needed a present.

As for Wei Liang, her newly met friend, and the older brother she hadn’t met yet—one was a freshly made friend, the other a soon-to-be family member—how could she not give them gifts?

Uncle Wei, the driver, said in surprise, “Miss Zhi Li, why are you buying a gift for Wei Liang? He’s older than you—he should be the one giving you presents!”

“Wei Liang is my friend!”

Hearing this answer, Uncle Wei chuckled and thanked her on behalf of his son. At the same time, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Back then, it was only because of Old Mrs. Jiang’s intervention that he and his wife had avoided utter despair. Old Mrs. Jiang was practically their savior.

Now, seeing how much Zhi Li cared for the Jiang family, and how much calmer Madam had become with Zhi Li around, he felt genuinely happy for the master’s household. After all, harmony at home leads to prosperity in all things.

Come to think of it, the young master had decided last minute to return today—most likely because of Zhi Li, whom Madam had brought home.

Zhi Li was so sweet and sensible. Surely the young master wouldn’t make too much of a fuss… right?

Sigh.

Uncle Wei’s momentary relief vanished as quickly as it had come.

Zhi Li stacked the red paper money neatly into her little bag. Halfway through, she suddenly spotted a black-faced, silver-lettered card inside. “Mommy, Daddy gave me this as a gift. Is it like a stamp?”

Xu Qingying stared at the diamond card. “…”

Netizens stared at the bank card rumored to hold three million. “…”

Zhi Li had lived with her grandmother before this. She had never used card payments—not even mobile payments. Everything was bought with cash. So this was the first time she had seen a bank card, and she had no idea what the words on it meant.

“This card is so pretty.” Zhi Li stroked it carefully, already planning to put it in her Memory Jar when she got home that evening so her grandmother could see the gift from her new daddy too!

“It’s similar to the red paper money you just counted,” Xu Qingying explained. “When you buy something, you can hand this over to pay.”

Zhi Li gaped at the bank card. “!!!”

This black card could pay like red paper money?!

How many red bills was it worth?

Zhi Li spread her tiny palm, comparing the sizes of the black card and the red bills. The black card wasn’t even as big as a single red bill—half the size of a hundred, maybe fifty?

Xu Qingying watched Zhi Li’s delighted expression and thought to herself: Earlier, she hadn’t heard Jiang Yanheng mention a payment password to Zhi Li.

Coincidentally, her phone buzzed with a notification. In their chat, Jiang Yanheng’s assistant had sent over the bank card’s password.

Due to the camera angle, the phone screen wasn’t visible to the live-stream audience.

As a result, the production team noticed that the viewer count for Zhi Li and Xu Qingying’s livestream remained far more stable than the other three families’.

Whether Zhi Li had gotten the password and whether she could use the bank card had become a carrot dangling before the netizens—they absolutely refused to leave the livestream until they saw the card being swiped!

——

The car passed through the bustling front square, where the noise was as loud as rolling waves, and stopped at the entrance of the mall.

Zhi Li had been leaning against the window, gazing at the scenery outside, when suddenly her almond-shaped eyes lit up. She pointed excitedly at the window. “Mom, Auntie Zhong Wei is at the entrance!”

Xu Qingying also spotted Zhong Wei. Besides her, there were crew members from the production team assigned to film them and security guards maintaining order.

Xu Qingying had brought Zhi Li out for two reasons: first, to let her pick out daily necessities she liked in person, and second, to have the suite at home redecorated in the meantime.

Zhong Wei stepped forward to open the car door for Zhi Li, offering a faint yet warm smile. “Miss Zhi Li, we meet again. Good afternoon.”

“Auntie Zhong Wei, good afternoon!” Zhi Li greeted her with boundless energy. When she noticed the unfamiliar uncle holding a camera behind Zhong Wei, she waved cheerfully. “Uncle, good afternoon!”

The cameraman had some biases against Xu Qingying, but it was hard for him to stay cold toward Zhi Li, who had greeted him so warmly. He returned her smile. “Good afternoon, Zhi Li.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhi Li’s smile widened even more, radiating a warmth that instantly made people feel fond of her.

Zhi Li tilted her head, studying the camera the cameraman was holding, and asked softly, “Is it the same as the ones installed at home? But it looks much bigger.”

“It films in high definition!” The cameraman remembered his colleagues’ instructions—to capture Zhi Li and Xu Qingying clearly and record their words unmistakably, ensuring netizens had no reason to criticize them again.

It could film very clearly?

Zhi Li recalled seeing her mother on TV and pursed her lips. “Uncle, is it working right now?”

The cameraman sensed that Zhi Li had something to say that shouldn’t be heard on the livestream. Excited at the potential material, he suppressed his twinge of guilt and lied, “It’s not working yet.”

Livestream viewers: *Yes, yes, we can’t see or hear anything at all.*

Zhi Li beamed, pulling out a red paper money from her bag and holding it up high to the cameraman. Sweetly, she said, “Uncle, here’s some money for you.”

“What’s the money for?”

Still holding up the red paper money, Zhi Li pleaded, “Could you make sure to film my mom beautifully?”

Everyone present froze.

Even Xu Qingying and Zhong Wei, who had been discussing work, turned to look.

The cameraman chuckled, pretending to accept the money. Teasingly, he asked, “Only film your mom beautifully? Don’t you want to be filmed beautifully too?”

“No need.” Zhi Li scratched her head sheepishly. “If I give more red paper money, I won’t have enough left to buy gifts.”

Cameraman: !!!

This kid was nothing like Xu Qingying! She was absolutely heart-meltingly sweet!

[Did Xu Qingying teach her this too?]

[I heard online that Xu Qingying wasn’t particularly close to her biological daughter, but Zhi Li cares about her more than I care about my own mom.]

[Script! This has to be a script Xu Qingying gave her!]

[If it really is a script, then Zhi Li has a natural talent for acting.]

If Zhi Li’s earlier displays of maturity had still led some netizens to believe they were orchestrated by Xu Qingying, after a morning of livestreaming, doubts began to creep in.

Perhaps—

Zhi Li was genuinely this thoughtful!

When the group of four appeared in the mall, it caused quite a stir.

Xu Qingying!

Even if Xu Qingying’s online reputation was tarnished, she was still a major celebrity! The key point was, Xu Qingying looked even more stunning in person—how did her studio’s photo edits somehow make her appear less attractive before???

Wait a minute.

Why was there a child next to Xu Qingying? From afar, the little girl looked as fair and pristine as a tiny snowman. Up close, she wore a small rabbit diamond hairpin, and beneath her straight bangs, a pair of sparkling dark eyes shone brightly, making her utterly adorable.

They quickly snapped photos and posted them online, only to realize Xu Qingying had been live-streaming with her daughter all morning!

Some people just loved gawking at celebrities, and soon a crowd gathered, holding up their phones to film. Fortunately, Zhong Wei had brought mall security in advance, so there was no need to worry about maintaining order.

Zhi Li was initially a bit nervous being surrounded by so many onlookers, but the moment her mother led her into the first store, her nervousness faded away.

Xu Qingying first took Zhi Li to a cartoon-themed store—a decision she’d made last night after noticing how much Zhi Li loved the plush toys on her bed. The store was filled with everything from small mirrors and hairpins to large backpacks and pillows, all designed with cartoon characters.

As expected, the moment Zhi Li saw the store’s decor and merchandise, her little feet froze in place, and she stared wide-eyed at the items inside.

The bright lights and displays in the shop reflected in Zhi Li’s eyes—this was her first time visiting a store with so many cartoon-themed products!!!

“Sweetheart,” Xu Qingying bent down to meet Zhi Li’s gaze, her tone laced with affection, “if you see anything you like, just tell Mommy, okay? Mommy will buy it for you.”

Zhi Li’s rosy cheeks flushed even deeper, like a perfectly ripe peach.

After a moment, she raised her right hand, tightly clutching the bank card, and asked, “Mommy, can I use this first? I’ve never paid with this kind of red paper money—no, I mean, Black Card before.”

Xu Qingying chuckled fondly. “Of course you can. Go ahead and enjoy swiping it.”

Then, she leaned in and whispered a few numbers into Zhi Li’s ear. “Did you remember the payment PIN?”

“I did!”

Netizens who had been waiting to see a spectacle: “???”

So the stepfather didn’t share the PIN because Xu Qingying already knew it?!

Soon after, Jiang Yanheng, who was signing documents in his office, heard his phone buzzing repeatedly on the desk.

He unlocked it to see a string of bank card transaction notifications popping up in the message bar.

20.2 yuan.

35.5 yuan.

45.9 yuan.

46.1 yuan.

“……” Jiang Yanheng stared at the screen with an unreadable expression. As he continued signing, he found himself unusually distracted, keeping an eye on the incoming messages.

He was determined to see when little Zhi Li would finally make a single purchase exceeding three digits.