Chapter 11

Shen Qingqing had never heard of this international competition. The original owner of the body hadn’t cared much about Zhou Jiayan, so she didn’t know about such things.

Looking at the two children happily eating French fries, Shen Qingqing couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for them.

“Poor things, so caught up in all of this at such a young age,” she thought.

The system became excited again, “Host, the heroine is clearly provoking you. Don’t fall for it!”

In the original novel, this exact scenario happened later on when the first episode of the show was recorded.

During the show, Shen Linyan “casually” mentioned that her son was competing in an international piano competition. Then, during the show, Zhou Jiayan and Liang Tianyi had a piano competition, and Zhou Jiayan lost.

The original Shen Qingqing couldn’t take her son’s loss and forced him to practice piano day and night, making their already strained relationship even worse. Zhou Jiayan ended up crying in front of the camera, deepening Shen Qingqing’s “vicious stepmother” image.

But Shen Qingqing wasn’t going to fall for that now. In her opinion, whether Zhou Jiayan excelled in piano or Go wouldn’t impact his future.

She didn’t want to engage in this drama, but when she saw that Zhou Jiayan looked nervous and stopped eating his chicken wing halfway, she decided to address it. As a “good mother” who allowed her children to pursue their own interests, she thought it would be best to clarify things. “Yanyan’s piano learning is just a hobby. If he wants to compete, he can. If not, it’s fine. Yanyan won’t rely on piano to make a living in the future.”

The system panicked, “Host, if you say that, people will think you’re a vicious stepmother ruining Zhou Jiayan!”

As expected, rumors spread quickly in the live broadcast room.

[Hahaha, Shen Qingqing is just as bad as always.]

[God doesn’t need the piano to make a living, hahaha.]

[You’re all too naïve. Shen Qingqing is purposely ruining her child, setting up her future children.]

[+1 to the above. We were too naive before. Now we see Shen Qingqing deliberately ignoring Zhou Jiayan to make him look useless.]

[Shen Linyan is such a good mother. She knows how to love her children and plan for their future.]

Shen Qingqing was no longer intimidated by these petty remarks. She retorted in her mind, “Should I go back and make Zhou Jiayan practice piano like in the original novel? How would that end? Don’t you remember the bad idea you came up with before?”

The system sighed in frustration, “Hosts these days are so difficult!”

Zhou Jiayan, a five-year-old boy, wasn’t thinking that much. After hearing those words, he felt a sense of relief.

He didn’t care about piano that much and knew his own level. He didn’t want to be part of any competition.

He glanced at his stepmother to see if she was lying, and seeing her calm expression, he felt relieved.

Shen Linyan was puzzled. Why was Shen Qingqing saying that her child would rely on piano for a living? Why was she acting so strange all of a sudden?

But Shen Qingqing’s simple response was too much for her to understand.

She held back her frustration and continued, “I believe it’s always good for children to engage in more activities and expand their horizons. As mothers, we should consider what’s best for our children. If we let up now, they might blame us later.”

Shen Qingqing couldn’t help but sneer inside. This was clearly a subtle accusation of having hidden intentions.

Did she think Shen Qingqing was the only one with a brain, or did she think Shen Qingqing was silent?

It felt like she was being forced into making a humble brag. After all, how could a child raised by Zhou Yexuan be truly average?

“We’ve already taken that into account. Piano and the like are mainly for cultivating sentiment. However, if Yanyan plans to take over the family business, he needs to focus on subjects like math and economics. His math teacher told me that Yanyan has already mastered the elementary school Olympiad math courses. Children can’t focus on everything, so as parents, we need to prioritize the most important things.”

Then, she turned to Zhou Jiayan. “Yanyan, tell me, aren’t you amazing?”

What Shen Qingqing said was indeed correct. Zhou Jiayan wasn’t exceptional in the arts, but his abilities in math, physics, and chemistry were exceptional. He was praised by all his teachers.

When Zhou Jiayan heard his stepmother praise him, his ears turned red, and he shyly nodded, “Yes, auntie, Yanyan is good at math.”

Their words managed to shut Shen Linyan down. If she continued, she’d seem like she was pushing her child too blindly. Shen Linyan awkwardly smiled and said, “That’s great. I must have been distracted earlier. It’s good that Yanyan has other interests.”

However, the netizens were more perceptive than she realized.

[Why do I feel like Shen Linyan is trying to make a point?]

[It seems like she purposely wanted Shen Qingqing to know that Zhou Jiayan’s piano skills were lacking, so she could push the child more.]

[I think so too. Shen Qingqing seemed to imply that piano lessons are not that important and could be harmful to the kids.]

[Can we please stop being so critical? Anyone who has seen Lin Yan’s livestream knows she’s always concerned about her children’s studies. She just wanted to make a reminder.]

[Why do some people speculate maliciously just because they have bad intentions? Lin Yan has been in the industry for a long time and has good character.]

Meanwhile, the situation of the two children was far simpler.

They weren’t best friends in kindergarten, but they still had fun playing together. After dinner, they ran hand-in-hand to the play area in the restaurant, leaving only Shen Linyan and Shen Qingqing at the table.

Without Zhou Jiayan around, Shen Qingqing couldn’t be bothered to keep pretending to be friendly, especially since Shen Linyan had just tried to provoke her by targeting a five-year-old child!

Shen Linyan noticed Shen Qingqing’s change in demeanor and stopped trying to make small talk.

Shen Qingqing continued her meal, enjoying it. Italian food was delicious, and the restaurant was famous for its good reputation.

Children’s worlds are always simple. After half an hour of playing, the two children were already calling each other brothers.

As it was time to part ways, neither wanted to leave. Holding hands, they looked forward to their time together in the future.

Shen Qingqing had no problem with the children’s friendship, and Liang Tianyi was also very cute.

Thinking about the packed schedule Shen Linyan had arranged for him in the original story made Shen Qingqing feel pity for him. Kids nowadays have too much pressure!

They had just finished eating, and since there was still a day left for the “child laborer” to pack his things, Shen Qingqing decided to take Zhou Jiayan to the mall for a walk before heading home to digest the meal.

The mall was even busier at night, with crowds of people eating after work.

Shen Qingqing was extremely beautiful, and even with her child beside her, she still attracted attention from many men.

Since she looked so youthful, some even thought Zhou Jiayan was her younger brother. As they walked, a few tall, handsome men approached Shen Qingqing, asking for her WeChat.

This was a sign of her charm, but Shen Qingqing didn’t mind. Of course, she had no reason to exchange WeChat with them since she was married and also live-streaming.

Before she could turn them down, Zhou Jiayan suddenly hugged her legs, raised his head, and shouted, “Mom! Let’s go home quickly! Dad is still waiting for us!”

He then turned to the man who had approached and said, “Uncle, you’re not as tall or handsome as my dad. There’s no way my mom would like you!”

Everyone was taken aback by his words!

[So this is the little “bodyguard” of parental love?]

[No wonder Mr. Zhou can go on business trips without worries. Looks like he’s left a spy with Shen Qingqing!]

[Hahaha, Yanyan always claims Shen Qingqing is a bad mom, but now her possessiveness is showing.]

[I think the mother-son relationship isn’t as cold as people think. If it were, Yanyan wouldn’t stop other men from chatting with her.]

Shen Qingqing herself smiled at the situation.

Normally, Zhou Jiayan didn’t call her “mom” unless necessary, but this time, he said it so loudly.

Should she say this child is indeed Zhou Yexuan’s son? He was helping his father protect his “little wife” from temptation.

After the man scurried off, Shen Qingqing chuckled and asked Zhou Jiayan, “Yanyan, you’ve grown up. I didn’t expect you to lie so smoothly. Is your father at home?”

Zhou Jiayan nervously twirled his fingers, feeling guilty. He wasn’t sure why he had said that, but he felt that it was the right thing to do.

“Well, Dad said he would call me tonight, so he might be waiting for us at home.”

He added, “Don’t worry, I won’t tell Dad how many uncles asked for your WeChat tonight.”

Has this kid learned to blackmail?

Shen Qingqing had no intention of cheating, but still felt unsettled. She pinched Zhou Jiayan’s chubby cheeks a few times before letting him go.

Then the mother and son continued strolling. When they saw a shop selling Turkish ice cream, Shen Qingqing suddenly felt hungry again.