There's Something Wrong With My Little White Flower - Chapter 43

Chapter 43: Elder Sister of a Brother-Obsessed Family X University Professor

The phone rang three times. Cheng Nuoe looked at the unfamiliar landline number and answered it with some caution.

“Hello, may I speak to Ruan Jiyun’s parent?” The voice on the other end had a slight rolling R, sounding very gentle. “I’m from the Admissions Office of Chengjing University of Science and Technology. My surname is He.”

The office was a bit noisy, forcing Cheng Nuoe to raise her voice: “Could you please repeat that?”

After hanging up, she was still a little dazed. Teacher Xu, a fellow teacher at the tutoring center, patted her on the shoulder: “Who called? You look completely stunned.”

“Chengjing University of Science and Technology…” Cheng Nuoe was still processing it. “They said Xiao Yun scored nineteenth in the entire province and asked if we plan to apply to their school…”

“Aiya! This is huge news! CST is a national top university. Your daughter is incredibly impressive… Teacher Cheng, you absolutely must treat us…”

Everyone present was an educator, and upon hearing that Cheng Nuoe’s daughter had scored so well, they immediately crowded around to congratulate her.

“Xiao Yun’s score is that good? You never mentioned it. You’re too humble!”

“You definitely have to treat us—first things first, I’m booking a copy of Xiao Yun’s high school notes right now…”

“Where is the child? Has she gone home yet? Hurry back and celebrate with her!”

The teachers chattered excitedly, but Cheng Nuoe was still dizzy. She knew Ruan Jiyun’s grades were always good. Back when she took the middle school exam, the admissions director from the City No. 1 Middle School had personally called to offer her free tuition for three years.

However, she thought her daughter’s score would at most be borderline for a first-tier university. But the nineteenth place in the entire province? Was it really her daughter who had never attended a single tutoring class?

Carrying a mind full of congratulations, Cheng Nuoe left work in a daze. When she reached her neighborhood, she paused, eventually turning into the small convenience store by the road.

“Give me… no, just grab some of this Mengniu ice cream.” She hesitated for a moment, then walked out of the supermarket carrying a bag of popsicles.

Ruan Jiyun had already finished cooking at home. Ruan’s father was sitting on the sofa watching TV, and Ruan Jiabao was, for once, not playing a game, eating ice cream nearby.

“Why are you eating snacks when dinner is ready?” Cheng Nuoe lightly reminded her son.

Ruan Jiabao didn’t take it seriously, taking the bag from her hand: “Why didn’t you buy Zhongjie 1946? That chocolate ice cream is delicious…”

“It’s over ten yuan a stick. Do you think money grows on trees?” Cheng Nuoe replied casually, her gaze falling on her daughter, who was coming out with bowls and chopsticks. “Besides, these are for your sister. You are not allowed to snatch them.”

The moment she said this, the other three people in the room froze.

Ruan’s father tore his gaze away from the TV, looking quietly at his wife. Cheng Nuoe looked at her husband and announced: “Xiao Yun’s score is out. Nineteenth in the province. The admissions teacher from Chengjing University of Science and Technology just called me personally to tell me.”

“That high?” Ruan’s father was clearly surprised. After a moment, he seemed a little proud: “As expected of my daughter.”

“Nonsense! If she took after you, she wouldn’t be this good,” Cheng Nuoe laughed. “Don’t just stand there, eat quickly. It’s not easy to score this well. Oh, right… Xiao Yun, organize your notes and things later. I’ll take them to be photocopied this afternoon.”

Ruan Jiyun gave a dazed reply, her attention fully captured by the words “Chengjing University of Science and Technology.” She quickly set the table, then hid her face behind her rice bowl, letting out a small sigh of relief.

Cheng Nuoe, for the first time, proactively put a piece of vegetable in her daughter’s bowl. She also selected a soft, stewed pork rib for her son, talking all the while: “I don’t expect you to achieve the same scores as your sister, but your middle school exam results should be out in a couple of days. As long as you can meet the admission score for Chunfeng Middle School, I’ll buy you a new phone.”

Ruan Jiabao stammered: “…We’ll see about that later.”

The promise of a new phone caught Ruan Jiyun’s attention. The old phone Cheng Nuoe phased out last year had been coaxed out of her by her younger son, and she still didn’t own a phone herself. She cautiously asked: “Then… can I have this old phone later?”

She also wanted to call Jiang Peifeng and tell her the good news.

Cheng Nuoe, in a good mood, said: “Fine, you can have it if you want, but—be careful with it. Don’t spend all day playing on the phone. Data isn’t cheap.”

Ruan Jiyun nodded obediently.

The old phone never ended up in her hands.

Not only did she not get it, but even the usually favored Ruan Jiabao was not spared from a severe scolding this time.

“You’re trying to kill me with anger!” Cheng Nuoe felt as though she had first experienced the warmth of heaven, immediately followed by a visit to hell these past few days. She trembled, staring intently at the screen, feeling dizzy and faint.

Today was the official release of the middle school exam scores. Cheng Nuoe intentionally took time off from the tutoring center, staying home to watch Ruan Jiabao check his scores.

The result nearly made her faint from anger.

Out of a total score of 750, Ruan Jiabao only scored a pitiful 436. Chunfeng Middle School, where Ruan’s father worked, was a district key school. Even with the consideration points for faculty children, the admission line in previous years required at least 450 points.

Cheng Nuoe was aghast at the score: “I spent so much money on tutoring for you! And the practice papers, worth thousands of yuan, that your Sister Jiang gave you—did you just feed it all to the dogs?”

The more she spoke, the more she felt a crushing tightness in her chest. Chunfeng Middle School had slots for sponsored students, but they came with a clear price tag: for every point below the cutoff, five thousand yuan had to be paid. Even if Ruan Jiabao was only measured against last year’s cutoff, they would still need to fork out a full seventy thousand yuan!

Thinking of all this money they would have to spend, Cheng Nuoe’s anger flared. She snatched the phone from Ruan Jiabao: “It’s all because of this lousy game… not studying properly, just causing me trouble with useless things!”

Ruan Jiabao’s reaction was completely unexpected. He stepped back, desperately hiding the phone behind him, saying as he did: “Don’t touch my phone!”

His behavior was highly suspicious. Cheng Nuoe angrily demanded: “I’m your mother. It’s only right for me to take your things. Give me the phone!”

Ruan Jiabao looked at his enraged mother and dared not say anything more. He hesitated for a moment, then finally handed over the phone with trembling hands.

Cheng Nuoe took the phone, lecturing her son: “I’m going to uninstall all your cursed games, make you focus on your studies… Huh? What is this?”

She usually didn’t pay attention to these kinds of games, but having so many kids play them at the tutoring center, Cheng Nuoe had heard things. Looking at the golden, glittering titles on the interface, she felt something was very wrong.

“This game of yours, why does it look fancier than others?” She suspiciously scrolled the screen, ignoring Ruan Jiabao’s increasingly pale face.

When she saw the glaring “Recharge History” at the bottom, Cheng Nuoe felt like the sky was falling. Blood rushed to her head, making her feel almost unable to stand.

Without her knowledge, Ruan Jiabao had secretly used the bank card linked to the old phone to recharge the game, spending over twenty thousand yuan!

“Bang—” Accompanied by a loud shattering sound, Cheng Nuoe hurled the phone against the wall, smashing it completely!

Anxiety and stress plunged the Ruan family into a low-pressure atmosphere for the next few days. Ruan Jiyun’s successful college entrance exam seemed insignificant amidst the chaos.

She didn’t dare to bring up the issue of the phone again, hoping only to find an opportunity to give Jiang Peifeng the good news after submitting her university application in a couple of days. After all, Jiabao scored poorly and committed such a huge mistake. Cheng Nuoe’s face was as dark as a pot bottom.

Cheng Nuoe was in a terrible mood. After the game recharge incident was exposed, she and Ruan’s father quickly contacted the game platform. However, the company repeatedly dodged responsibility and claimed that too much time had passed. Even though Jiabao was a minor, getting the money back would take a lot of effort.

Back and forth, Ruan Jiabao alone had unexpectedly created a shortfall of nearly 100,000 yuan for the family. Thinking of this, her gums started to hurt again, and she couldn’t help but groan softly, covering her mouth.

“Drink some mung bean soup. Take your time with the child’s issues; don’t make yourself sick.” Her colleague, Teacher Xu, was considered Cheng Nuoe’s “best friend.” Although Cheng Nuoe was a bit stingy in her daily life, they had been close for many years.

“How can I eat anything…” Cheng Nuoe sighed bitterly, complaining to her friend: “The older one is about to apply for university, and the tuition is undecided. The younger one caused such a huge mess. Sister Xu, they say children are debts, and I’m so worried I don’t know what to do.”

Teacher Xu offered sympathetic comfort: “It’s tough for everyone. Our tutoring center pay is low, and Old Ruan’s school is strict now. Your burden with two students is indeed heavy…”

As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something: “You know my sister-in-law? She’s at Z City Normal University. I heard her say the other day that they seem to have some scholarship program. They not only waive tuition fees for excellent students but also give them a cash reward.”

“Z City Normal University?” Cheng Nuoe snapped back to attention. “Isn’t that also just a first-tier university?”

“Exactly. My sister-in-law said the university is trying to improve its ranking and really values the quality of incoming students. Your daughter’s score is so good. Should I ask for you?”

No tuition fees, plus a cash reward?

To Cheng Nuoe, who was strapped for cash, this was an extremely tempting proposition. She immediately grabbed Teacher Xu’s hand: “Please, quickly ask for me. What exactly did she say?”

Teacher Xu acted fast, immediately pulling out her phone to call her sister-in-law. The information she got was essentially the same as what she had mentioned. Upon hearing that Ruan Jiyun was the nineteenth in the province, the sister-in-law immediately stated that as long as Ruan Jiyun applied to their university, she could choose any department and would receive an extra reward of thirty thousand yuan on top of the waived tuition.

“I’m telling you this because I know your family is struggling,” Teacher Xu warned. “But you should still discuss it with Xiao Yun. Although Normal University is a good school, it’s not as prestigious as CST. If the child has ambitions, we as parents should support her.”

“For a girl, making it into a first-tier university is good enough,” Cheng Nuoe said. “Besides, I really wouldn’t feel comfortable with her going to A City alone. Staying local for university is more suitable for us.”

When Ruan Jiyun finished her chores at the tutoring center and returned home, she was surprised to see both her parents sitting on the sofa waiting for her.

“We have a major family decision, and we want to hear your thoughts,” her mother said to her with a serious expression.

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