She Adopted Me After My Biological Mother Passed Away - Chapter 4

Can the CEO Attend the Parent-Teacher Meeting for Me?

She had just finished washing her hands and hadn’t even dried them properly before leaving damp water stains on Shi Shuxue’s head. The latter wiped her forehead with a hint of disdain and pulled back to create some distance.

“It’s nothing,” Shi Shuxue muttered.

Chi Yeyu leaned in again. The warm light from the ceiling lamp reflected in her pale amber cat-like eyes, making them shimmer with light. Shi Shuxue leaned back, trying to get away, but was pressed right against the sofa cushions.

Chi Yeyu’s pupils reflected Shi Shuxue’s tense little face. With a playful tilt of her head and smiling eyes, she asked, “What are you hiding for? It’s not like I’m going to tickle you.”

“Too close,” Shi Shuxue said, the thought escaping her lips involuntarily.

“Given our decade long friendship and this guardianship relationship, isn’t it normal to be a little intimate?” Chi Yeyu said, her lips curling into a confident smile.

A decade? They had barely met a handful of times. Just as Shi Shuxue was about to retort, Chi Yeyu leaned into her ear and whispered, “Let me tell you, the old lady almost ate my candy thinking it was medicine just now.”

Her nostrils flared slightly as Shi Shuxue caught a whiff of sweet tea fragrance, it seemed to be camellia-flavored mints.

“…Are you tattling?”

A sense of speechlessness flashed through Shi Shuxue. This person leaned in so close just to give a harmless little report?

“That’s right. Do you want one? It’s not very sweet.” Chi Yeyu clicked open the candy tin with one hand, popping out a small, pale green sugar sphere.

“No” The refusal died halfway. Shi Shuxue suddenly realized she had been rejecting Chi Yeyu since they met. If that was the reason the woman kept teasing her, maybe giving in would make her stop sooner?

So, she changed her mind and said, “Okay,” picking up the candy and pressing it onto her tongue.

A slightly bitter tea flavor mixed with the refreshing coolness of mint spread across her tongue. It really wasn’t too sweet.

Chi Yeyu put away the candy, looked down at her phone, and began typing rapidly while still talking: “Not bad, right? This is a seasonal limited edition, limited to this spring!”

But winter is coming soon…

Ignoring the illogical part, Shi Shuxue asked, “Are you going back tonight?”

“Good question. My usual place is quite far. If I drive back now, I’ll probably arrive at midnight, and I have an online meeting at nine…” She seemed to be talking to herself without thinking, handling matters on her screen.

Her voice gradually faded until she was silent for two minutes. Then, she suddenly locked her phone and asked, “Hey, you aren’t worried about me staying the night, are you?”

Shi Shuxue froze.

Chi Yeyu’s eyes crinkled into a smile. “Relax, I booked a hotel.”

“It’s nearby. Five stars, the kind with a 24 hour gym. After all, someone is silently judging me for consuming too much sugar, so I need to burn it off before bed.” She waved her phone.

Shi Shuxue pursed her lips, finally unable to help herself: “…That is malicious speculation.”

Chi Yeyu showed her canine teeth in a grin, reached out to ruffle Shi Shuxue’s hair, and pulled back just before the girl could frown and dodge.

“I should get going. Wait for me a moment, I have something for you.”

She stood up and walked toward the foyer. Shi Shuxue watched her back, wondering what she was going to give her. Given this woman’s habit of treating her like a preschooler, surely it wasn’t some educational toy?

Chi Yeyu hadn’t brought a bag; she simply pulled something out of the pocket of her overcoat hanging on the rack.

She walked back to Shi Shuxue and handed over a kraft paper envelope: “Shi Xianyu left a letter for you.”

On the envelope was Shi Xianyu’s handwriting, wild and messy, reading “For Shi Shuxue.” Shi Shuxue’s fingertips touched the edge of the envelope, the paper was rough, wrinkled, and smelled of alcohol, as if it had been soaked in bar drinks and then dried.

She looked up at Chi Yeyu. The other woman’s expression was calm, the usual nonchalance fading from her eyes. She showed no particular emotion, simply holding the envelope out as if certain she would take it.

Shi Shuxue looked at the letter left by Shi Xianyu, then thought of her grandmother sitting by the bed waiting for her. Her fingers twitched.

Finally, she took the envelope.

Chi Yeyu watched as she tucked the envelope into a compartment in her backpack, her tone carrying a hint of subtle indulgence: “Aren’t you going to open it right away? I won’t peek, and I won’t laugh at you if you cry.”

“Better not.” Shi Shuxue zipped up both layers of her bag, saying flatly, “I don’t want to ruin my current mood.”

“Hmm?” She was confused for a split second before reacting quickly: “In other words, you’re in a good mood right now?”

Chi Yeyu bent down to look at her face. Shi Shuxue turned her head away, avoiding all eye contact.

“…It’s so-so,” she said stubbornly, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Chi Yeyu squinted her eyes with delight, her restless hand reaching out to pinch Shi Shuxue’s cheek. It took some effort for Shi Shuxue to rescue her face from the “devil’s claws.”

“You are the most dishonest brat I’ve ever met,” Chi Yeyu said.

Shi Shuxue’s cheeks were slightly flushed not from shyness, but from being pinched.

“Speaking of which, does this make me your adoptive mother? Since Shi Xianyu gave you something, I should give you a gift too.”

Chi Yeyu stood up straight, her tall frame casting a shadow that happened to envelop Shi Shuxue.

Shi Shuxue shook her head. “I don’t want it.”

Chi Yeyu intentionally put on an oppressive air and asked, “Don’t want what? Does our little Xue have some complaint?”

“I don’t want an adoptive mother who is only nine years older than me,” Shi Shuxue protested.

Chi Yeyu grabbed Shi Shuxue’s wrist and pressed a deep black bank card into her palm, closing her hands over the girl’s right hand. “And now? Is it still a no?”

Shi Shuxue asked, “What is this?”

“An unlimited Super Black Card! Essential equipment for a novel CEO to increase their personal charm!” Chi Yeyu said lightheartedly, her sparkling pale eyes looking at the cold-faced high schooler. “You can use it however you want. Just imagine the thrill of whipping out a black card and treating your whole class. Wouldn’t that be super cool?”

Shi Shuxue turned a deaf ear to her “cute” tone, her thin brows furrowing: “I don’t feel that way at all. I won’t take it. Please take it back.”

She was determined to return the card. She moved her hand but found she couldn’t pull away.

“…”

She used real strength, yet she couldn’t move Chi Yeyu’s iron grip an inch.

What did Chi Yeyu grow up eating? Did sweets have the effect of Spinach for her? Shi Shuxue used both hands, struggling with all her might, but she could not break free from Chi Yeyu’s restraint.

Chi Yeyu looked like a smiling, heavyweight Buddha statue: “Accept it, don’t reject me. As your guardian, I want to play some sort of role.”

Shi Shuxue’s lips thinned into a straight line. She stared down at the card in her palm, then looked up with a serious tone: “Miss Chi Yeyu, I don’t know what kind of history you had with Shi Xianyu, but what you did today has already been help enough for us. I am very grateful to you, but I cannot accept this card.”

The TV in the living room had been turned off after dinner. Her grandmother and the caregiver had returned to the bedroom, and Auntie Li, who lived nearby, had finished cooking and rushed home to take care of her granddaughter.

Only the two of them were left in the living room. When neither spoke, the silence was so heavy you could almost hear the ticking of a clock.

Chi Yeyu’s fingertips suddenly loosened. Shi Shuxue thought she was going to take the card back, but she saw the other woman’s eyelids drop, her long butterfly-wing lashes casting shadows. The curve of her mouth had vanished at some point.

Shi Shuxue’s heart thudded. Had she been too harsh? After all, Chi Yeyu had been busy all day hiring a caregiver, picking her up from school, all while having plenty of her own work to handle.

She bit her lip, trying to find a way to soften her words.

At that moment, Chi Yeyu’s shoulders actually began to tremble slightly.

Is she really angry? Shi Shuxue curled her fingers, the edges of the black card in her palm making her feel panicked.

No matter how childish she acted, she was still an adult much older than her. Her experience and mindset were far beyond her own. If she really provoked her, it might not be as easy to resolve as a squabble between classmates.

Shi Shuxue peeked up quickly at Chi Yeyu.

The woman’s head was down, dyed strands of hair falling to cover her eyes. She couldn’t see her expression, only the increasingly obvious trembling of her shoulders, which caused the grip on her wrist to loosen.

In an instant, Shi Shuxue imagined how the other might react. Maybe she would let go and walk away, or maybe she would put on a cold face and say something stinging.

But the next second, Chi Yeyu let out a “pfft” laugh. It sounded like it had been held in for a long time, vibrating with a shaky tail-end.

“You’re too strange.” Chi Yeyu looked up, and there wasn’t a hint of anger in her eyes, they were brimming with laughter. She brushed her bangs back to reveal her smooth forehead, looking bright and moving. “Generally speaking, no one refuses free money. How on earth did Shi Xianyu raise you? She didn’t have these cute qualities.”

She let go but didn’t let Shi Shuxue hand the card back. She tapped the deep black plastic with her fingertip: “Keep it for now. It’s not for you to spend recklessly, it’s for emergencies.”

Seeing Shi Shuxue about to speak, Chi Yeyu said, “Don’t be so quick to refuse. Think about it, if Grandma feels unwell in the middle of the night and needs to go to the hospital, you can’t just run there with whatever pocket change you have, can you? Or do you want to bring two stalks of green onions?”

Shi Shuxue’s eyes widened. How is she still bringing up those green onions??

Seeing her words take effect, Chi Yeyu pressed on: “Just consider it a loan from me, okay? When little Shi Shuxue grows up and earns her first paycheck, you can pay me back with interest. I’ll definitely be charging interest then.”

Shi Shuxue squeezed the card, thought for a moment, and slowly nodded twice: “Okay. I’ll pay you back in the future.”

Chi Yeyu tilted her head, the laughter in her eyes like crushed starlight, dazzlingly bright. In her twenty-four years of life, this was the first time she had found it so difficult to give someone money.

Before leaving, Chi Yeyu said goodbye to the elderly woman, put on her overcoat in the foyer, and while stepping into one of her boots, said to Shi Shuxue: “By the way, add me on WeChat?”

Shi Shuxue stood beside her, and upon hearing this, an unidentifiable expression flashed across her face.

Chi Yeyu finished putting on her shoes and asked curiously: “What’s wrong? Do you not have WeChat?”

“I…” Shi Shuxue recalled what her homeroom teacher had said that afternoon and felt a bit of agony as she gripped the side of her school trousers. She had a week off and didn’t have to go to school next week, but to get her phone back, a parent had to go to the office for a talk.

She didn’t know many people, and “qualified” adults were even fewer. After thinking it over, the “parachuted” Chi Yeyu was actually her only option.

But no matter what, asking Chi Yeyu to go and listen to the teacher’s lecture as her parent was just too weird.

Her instinct was to resist this choice. But even if she didn’t want the phone back, the teacher would eventually show up at her door, and that situation would be even more of a headache.

“I’ve noticed that some kids love to crawl into their own dead ends,” Chi Yeyu walked closer, smoothed down a stray strand of hair on her head, and lowered her voice slightly: “Clearly something that can be said directly, yet they insist on digging and digging until their heads are full of bumps.”