My Virtual Wife From my Phone Has Come to See Me - Chapter 24

Chapter 24: “Miss Shi, Let’s Have a Talk.”

Xing Xiaochu and Guazi were waiting together at the door to welcome Qi Ying. As soon as Qi Ying stepped out of the elevator, she saw two shadows—one large and one small—squatting by the entrance. At the sound of the elevator, both heads snapped up in unison.

Xing Xiaochu said, “Sister, you’re back.”

Little Guazi said, “Meow—”

Qi Ying felt a sudden surge of warmth; the scene was so beautiful she felt a strong urge to capture it with her phone.

“Mm.” Qi Ying walked over to Xiaochu and handed her the heavy bags. “These are the textbooks and uniforms the teacher asked me to bring you, along with your student ID and campus card. Take a good look and see what’s missing; we’ll buy everything else in the next couple of days.”

Xing Xiaochu took the heavy bags and nodded earnestly. Noticing a bead of sweat rolling down Qi Ying’s temple, she reached up and wiped it away with her sleeve.

Qi Ying caught the pleasant scent lingering on Xiaochu’s skin.

“Thank you, Sister,” Xiaochu said with a smile. “Actually, you could have called me to go with you. This is something I should have done myself.”

Qi Ying’s lips twitched into a small smile as she ushered Xiaochu into the house.

In the study, Qi Ying cleared off the desk and said, “You’ll study here from now on. This desk is large enough to hold plenty of things.”

Xiaochu placed the books on the desk, her eyes sparkling with joy as she flipped through the brand-new pages. It was obvious she loved them. Qi Ying then pulled out the uniform. It was an athletic-style tracksuit; the teacher had mentioned this was currently the only style available, and other uniforms would be purchased collectively once the semester started.

“Your teacher said you’ll need at least three sets—spring/autumn, summer, and a down jacket for winter,” Qi Ying said, holding up the long-sleeved jacket. “Come, try it on. Let’s see if it fits.”

When Xiaochu put it on, it was clearly several sizes too large.

Qi Ying scratched her head at the sight.

“They didn’t have many sizes left. The teacher warned me it might be big when she asked for your height and weight, but I didn’t expect it to be this big.” Qi Ying circled Xiaochu, inspecting the fit. “No worries. Don’t forget, I’m a fashion designer. Take it off; I’ll alter it for you.”

Xiaochu shook the sleeves that hung past her fingertips. “It’s okay, Sister. It’s quite comfortable being a bit big. Altering it is too much trouble.”

Qi Ying laughed. “What trouble? It’s just a bit of needlework. Take it off, I’ll go get my tools.”

After fetching her scissors, soft measuring tape, and thread from the storage room, Qi Ying turned the dining table into a makeshift workstation. She began deconstructing and resizing the uniform while Xiaochu, cradling the kitten, watched her every move. She saw the original garment taken apart and sewn back together, with large pieces of fabric falling away under the snip-snip of the scissors.

The kitten was fascinated by the scraps. It hopped onto the table to play with the needles and thread, only to be scooped up by Qi Ying and placed back on the floor with a warning not to interfere.

Fearing the cat would bother Qi Ying further, Xiaochu played with it using a teaser wand. However, the little guy had clearly found a new obsession: the fabric scraps. It kept pestering Qi Ying with insistent meows.

Qi Ying glanced at the little creature and said with a smile, “Stop crying. Once I’m done with the uniform, I’ll use the scraps to sew you a little fish.”

The kitten looked up: “Meow—”

Soon, Qi Ying finished the uniform jacket. Xiaochu tried it on again, and this time it was a perfect fit—neither too loose nor too tight.

Xiaochu stared at her cuffs in wide-eyed wonder. “I clearly saw you take it apart, but I can’t see any sewing marks at all! Sister, you’re amazing.”

Qi Ying beamed at the praise, looking quite proud of herself. “You can still tell if you look closely since it’s hand-stitched. It would be better if I had a sewing machine here, but it’s fine—no one will notice unless they’re looking for it.”

Wearing her new uniform, Xiaochu nodded, her eyes shining as she looked at Qi Ying.

Next, Qi Ying started on the pants, which were much simpler. After shortening them, they didn’t require much work. True to her word, Qi Ying used the leftover fabric to make several little fish for Guazi.

She made one large fish from the pant leg scraps and a string of smaller fish from the remaining edges.

“He’s still too small, so keep this big fish in the cat bed for when he’s older. These little ones are for him to carry around and chew on for his teeth.” Qi Ying knelt and handed a thumb-sized cloth fish to Guazi. The kitten trotted over with its tail held high, bit down on the blue fish, and happily ran off.

Xiaochu changed into the full set. The blue-and-white uniform suited her perfectly, making her look much younger—almost like a middle schooler.

She looked beautiful.

Qi Ying stared, momentarily dazed. Mistaking her silence for a bad fit, Xiaochu looked down and asked worriedly, “Does it look bad, Sister?”

Qi Ying shook her head quickly. “No, it looks wonderful… I mean, it really suits you.” She tried to recover her composure. “I’m sure the other school uniforms will look just as good on you.”

Only then did Xiaochu feel relieved.

“Xiaochu.” Qi Ying felt this was a moment worth remembering, so she pulled out her phone. “Let me take a photo of you. That way, your mother can see it too.”

Xiaochu froze for a second. Seeing Qi Ying already holding the phone, she nodded and stood on the balcony to pose as requested.

“So pretty,” Qi Ying said, looking at the photo with satisfaction.

Xing Xiaochu’s heart felt heavy. Watching Qi Ying flip through her photo album, she realized with a start that Qi Ying was only this good to her because she was “her mother’s child.”

If it were someone else, would Qi Ying be just as kind?

Or rather, was Qi Ying’s affection merely an extension of her love for her mother? As long as it was her mother’s child, Qi Ying would take care of them.

Xiaochu’s eyelashes trembled slightly. She hid her hands behind her back, nervously pinching her palm until a red mark appeared. Qi Ying noticed nothing; she even beckoned Xiaochu over to take a selfie together.

Xiaochu didn’t refuse. She leaned in with a pale face and forced a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

…

After exiting the game, Qi Ying looked at the photo of herself and Xiaochu. The girl still looked a bit stiff, clearly uneasy in front of the camera.

It’s okay, Qi Ying thought. It will get better over time. Xiaochu will eventually warm up to me.

Ding-ling—

Qi Ying pushed open the shop door only to see a familiar figure sitting on the sofa. Shi Yu was wearing a black-and-white suit today. Hearing the door, she turned to look. Her exquisite, beautiful eyes locked onto Qi Ying. She didn’t say a word, but her gaze was brimming with accusation.

Behind the computer at the checkout counter, Xia Ruoxin shrugged at Qi Ying, signaling that she was on her own—this was something they had to settle between themselves.

Qi Ying knew this confrontation was inevitable. She had prepared herself the moment she saw Shi Yu. She walked slowly into the shop, stood before her, and said:

“Miss Shi, let’s have a talk.”