“Hahaha, Little Sister Qianqian, you really are something else.”

Jiang Zheng laughed so hard that he almost lost his breath. “Did you go to the bathroom and flush your brain down the drain along with everything else?

Do you want me to pull up the surveillance footage and see which deity scammed you out of your toilet paper?”

Jiang Zheng thought this joke was enough to keep him laughing for a whole year.

“No need, thanks.”

Yu Qian listened to Jiang Zheng’s mockery with a deadpan expression while scolding the unknown culprit in her heart.

“Come on, let’s exchange contact info. If you ever get stuck in the bathroom again, I’ll send someone to rescue you.” Jiang Zheng took out his phone and waved it in front of Yu Qian.

Yu Qian originally wanted to refuse outright, but remembering the consequences of not adding people’s contacts in time before, she silently added Jiang Zheng on WeChat and saved his phone number.

Jiang Zheng’s profile picture was the letter ‘Z’. Yu Qian scrolled through her contacts and saw that Bai Qiming’s was an ‘M’, while Lin Niannian’s was an adorable cartoon avatar.

Holding her phone, Yu Qian sincerely asked Jiang Zheng, “Are you and Brother Ming using couple profile pictures?”

Both had a black letter on a white background, and both were just initials of their names.

“You already know my relationship with your brother, don’t you?”

Jiang Zheng casually draped an arm over Bai Qiming’s shoulder, making no effort to explain that Bai Qiming’s profile picture wasn’t just an initial. If zoomed in, one could see that it actually contained two ‘N’s’ which stands for ‘Niannian’.

“Ah Ming, so you two are using couple avatars?”

Lin Niannian looked at Bai Qiming in shock, as if she had just uncovered a scandalous secret.

“Don’t listen to his nonsense.” Bai Qiming slapped Jiang Zheng’s hand away and frowned in annoyance.

Jiang Zheng, still unsatisfied with the chaos he had stirred, leaned closer to Lin Niannian and said, “Niannian, you’re too innocent. Look at Qianqian, she immediately saw that my relationship with Ah Ming isn’t ordinary, but you’re still completely clueless.”

“Jiang Zheng, shut up!” Bai Qiming finally lost his patience and snapped.

Seeing that she had successfully diverted the troublemaker’s attention, Yu Qian smirked secretly and happily got ready for class.

────ρя


After a full day of classes, the students chattered as they left the classroom.

Lin Niannian clung to Yu Qian, chirping non-stop all the way.

Outside the school gate, a problem arose.

Yu Qian stood in front of the car, wondering where she should sit.

On one side was Lin Niannian’s expectant gaze, and on the other was Bai Qiming’s barely perceptible frown— truly a difficult choice.

“Qianqian, let’s sit in the back together, okay?”

Lin Niannian had always shared a car with Bai Qiming. Though he never said it aloud, he enjoyed these moments. The daily ride home was one of the rare times they could be alone, and occasionally, Lin Niannian would lean in close to him…..

Yu Qian glanced at Bai Qiming again and noticed that he had turned his head to the side, pretending not to care.

But seeing him feign indifference while refusing to get in the car first, Yu Qian almost burst out laughing. Bai Qiming was truly the definition of a tsundere^[1]a Japanese term that describes a character who starts off cold and harsh, but gradually becomes warmer and more affectionate.

Faced with such an amusing stepbrother, Yu Qian, of course, chose to sit in the back with Lin Niannian!

As soon as Yu Qian opened the back door, Lin Niannian’s eyes lit up and she quickly climbed in. After shutting the door, she looked at Bai Qiming who was still outside, and asked in confusion, “Ah Ming, aren’t you getting in?”

Bai Qiming shot Lin Niannian a sullen look before silently getting into the front passenger seat.

────ρя


Today was Yu Qian’s first day at her new school and Wang Hui had made a rare effort to come home early.

“Qianqian, how was school today?” Seeing Yu Qian walk in, Wang Hui immediately greeted her.

“Mom, don’t worry. I like my new school and I can understand what the teachers are teaching, Brother Ming takes good care of me, and my classmates are all nice.”

Yu Qian sat beside Wang Hui and earnestly recounted the interesting things that had happened during the day.

Looking at her mother’s pleasantly surprised expression, Yu Qian felt a pang of sadness. She had never been this patient when talking to her mother before. Later, when she finally wanted to speak, she no longer had the chance.

“As long as you’re happy.” Wang Hui reached out to pat Yu Qian’s head, her eyes full of relief.

Her daughter had finally grown out of her rebellious phase and was starting to resemble her younger self again. Wang Hui still remembered that long ago, whenever she and her first husband were exhausted, little Yu Qian would clumsily try to massage their shoulders and bring them water.

Whenever she came home late, little Yu Qian would drag a stool to the door and wait with their previous dog, Da Bai.

But then, her first husband had died in an accident at the construction site. To give her daughter a better life, Wang Hui had no choice but to leave Yu Qian in the countryside with her grandparents for three years.

By the time she could bring Yu Qian back, the once-sweet child had turned rebellious. Every conversation was laced with barbs, and though it often hurt Wang Hui’s heart, she never regretted those three years apart.

She never wanted her daughter to stare enviously at other kids eating snacks again. She never wanted to be in a situation where, when Yu Qian fell sick, she had to borrow money just to take her to the hospital.

Thinking about money……

“Qianqian, do you have enough money? Let me transfer you some more.”

Hearing her mother’s words, the sourness in Yu Qian’s heart vanished in an instant.

“There’s no need, Mom. I still have money.”

Her mother was still the same. No matter what they talked about, she always ended up asking if Yu Qian needed money.

Even every time Yu Qian called her, her mother’s first sentence was always, “Are you out of money? I’ll transfer some to you.”

As if all she ever did was ask for money.

In reality, Yu Qian was never a reckless spender. She used to take the money just to annoy her mother. Sometimes, when she missed her, she would even call pretending to ask for money. But in truth, she had never wasted a single cent. She had saved it all up, and now, the amount had reached six figures.

Even though Yu Qian had refused, Wang Hui still planned to transfer her daughter some money later.

After all, she worked so hard to earn money just so that Yu Qian could live freely and without worries.

Not to mention that Yu Qian had now become well-behaved and sensible. Wang Hui had also found a life partner, so she no longer had any worries in her heart.

When a person was happy, they couldn’t help but want to treat their children even better.

“Qianqian, what do you want to eat today? Mom will make it for you.” Wang Hui asked cheerfully, standing up with a bright smile as she looked at Yu Qian.

Mom’s cooking……

Yu Qian swallowed. In her early years, her mother had decent cooking skills, but after becoming busy with her career, she rarely cooked. Nowadays, her meals were just barely edible.

“Mom, you finally have a break, so don’t tire yourself out too much.” Yu Qian said sweetly, looking at her mother with an obedient expression.

“It’s fine, I haven’t cooked for you in so long.”

Seeing the anticipation on her mother’s face, Yu Qian quickly searched for a solution in her mind.

“Then…… how about tiger-skin green peppers?”

The dish was simple enough. There shouldn’t be any room for error, right?

“And what else?”

“Nothing else, nothing else! I haven’t had that dish in a long time, so I just want to eat that.” Yu Qian hurriedly refused.

“What about you, Qiming? What would you like to eat? Aunt will make it for you.” Wang Hui turned to look at Bai Qiming, who had been silent all this time.

Bai Qiming glanced at Yu Qian’s panicked expression and replied calmly, “No need to trouble yourself, Aunt. I’m fine with anything.”

“You, Child, how can you not have any favorite dishes?” Wang Hui sighed helplessly at her always-indifferent stepson.

────ρя


In the end, Wang Hui still cooked four dishes and a soup, including the tiger-skin green peppers that Yu Qian had specifically requested.

“Today’s meal seems a little different.” Bai Jin commented when he returned home from work. Looking at the rather simple spread on the table, a gentle smile appeared on his face.

“I cooked today. You’ve never had my cooking before, have you? CEO Bai, you have to give me a proper review.” Wang Hui said with a bright smile as she looked at Bai Jin.

Shrinking into the sofa, Yu Qian glanced at her mother and then at Uncle Bai. Why did she feel like there was an unmistakable scent of PDA in the air?

Hearing Wang Hui’s words, Bai Jin immediately put on an expression of pleasant surprise. “Then I’m in for a real treat today!”

He set down his briefcase, washed his hands, and sat down at the dining table.

Yu Qian and Bai Qiming also took their seats.

Yu Qian picked up a green pepper and cautiously took a bite.

Fortunately, her mother still had a knack for selecting peppers. This one was only mildly spicy and had a nice fragrance.

“Tiger-skin green peppers made by Mom are still the best.”

Bai Jin also picked up a piece of stir-fried pork and gave Wang Hui an approving nod.

Meanwhile, Bai Qiming silently chewed on a piece of leafy greens, feeling that they were overcooked.

But as he watched the two people beside him showering exaggerated praise, he started doubting his own taste buds.

Bai Qiming: I suddenly feel like I don’t belong in this family.

The father and son had tried a bit of every dish except for the tiger-skin green peppers. Neither of them could handle spicy food.

With no one to share them with, Yu Qian had to finish the entire plate of green peppers by herself, eating them with two bowls of rice.

Bai Qiming glanced at her multiple times, even feeling the urge to record a video and use it to motivate Lin Niannian to eat more.

By the time Yu Qian left the table, she was clutching her full stomach.

Being a mama’s girl was truly exhausting. She had to be careful to protect her mother’s fragile dignity at all times.

Yu Qian looked at Uncle Bai, who was still chatting warmly with her mother.

Once again, she marveled at what kind of extraordinary husband Wang Jiajia had found for her mother.

As a high-ranking executive, he could lower himself so much just to lavish compliments on her mother’s cooking.

But Uncle Bai, could you please stop talking to my mom about cooking?

Yu Qian watched as her mother, beaming with pride, seemed ready to take over all future dinners.

She wailed internally.

A dose of motherly love once in a while was enough. On regular days, she still preferred the taste of money-infused meals prepared by the cook.

────ρя


The next morning, Yu Qian noticed that their car had changed.

Originally, they had been using a five-seater.

But now, it had been replaced with a vehicle where the back seats faced each other.

Yu Qian didn’t know what this type of car was called. She only silently glanced at Bai Qiming.

Could his intentions be any more obvious?

“A car like this is more convenient for three people.”

“Qianqian!”

Lin Niannian came out of her house and waved at Yu Qian. She also noticed the change in the car but didn’t ask about it.

On the other hand, Jiang Zheng, who had just stepped out as well, lit up at the sight of the vehicle.