MAMA-40: Mommy loves you.
Jian Wanji understood instantly. A few seconds later, she gave a hum of acknowledgement and hung up, calming her breath.
“You’re really not going?” Xiao Zhao also liked Mi Shanxin a lot. “Come with us, Teacher Shanxin~”
“She goes to bed very early. Don’t push her. It’s good enough that she even came to dinner,” Xiao Zhou urged.
Mi Shanxin just gave a sound of agreement. At that moment, someone rushed out from inside, not having had time to change. The wide legs of the golden pleated pants fluttered, resembling a skirt as she hurried over—
“Mi Shanxin!”
Teacher Xiao Zhao let out an “Ah!” and wore a teasing expression. “Little Sister Shanxin, is there something going on here?”
Senior Zhou wanted to say something but hesitated, as if she had heard rumors about this person.
Their car had arrived, and they couldn’t linger at the entrance. Mi Shanxin took her backpack and watched them leave.
“Mi Shanxin, do you really not remember me?” The tall girl stopped in front of Mi Shanxin. “Then don’t you want the thing I tricked you out of back either?”
She wasn’t holding the actual item, but had a photo on her phone.
It was a scarf. If Li Yin were here, she would definitely recognize it. It was a gift Mi Shanxin’s mother gave her daughter at her second wedding. Very rare; it could even sell for a lot of money secondhand.
Too bad Mi Shanxin later said it went missing.
Mi Shanxin looked at the photo, then at the girl in front of her, whose style was completely different from the yellow-haired person back then. Puzzled, she asked, “Did you get plastic surgery?”
“What?” The other girl was amused by Mi Shanxin’s words. She leaned closer, gesturing for Mi Shanxin to inspect further. “Tell me what part is surgically altered?”
She was a little too close. Mi Shanxin stepped back, but the girl stepped closer again, as if she would pursue relentlessly unless Mi Shanxin answered.
If Jian Wanji’s act of seeking Mi Shanxin out to be her mother was like unshakeable chewing gum, then this person following step-by-step was like a ghost.
Mi Shanxin recalled taking the bus home from night self-study sessions. This person had taken the same route, gotten off at the same stop, and watched Mi Shanxin reach the intersection before turning to leave.
Initially, Mi Shanxin thought she wanted to extort more money. When she stopped appearing, Mi Shanxin realized that this person seemed to have been walking her home.
They were both girls. Even if the other one was a full head taller than Mi Shanxin, it wasn’t safe for either to walk alone in the dead of night.
But before Mi Shanxin could ask anything, before she could even get her scarf back, this person had vanished from her sight completely.
Honestly, Mi Shanxin had never carefully looked at her face. Now, frowning, how could she pinpoint what plastic surgery had been done? She could only say, “Your hair. It’s not yellow hair anymore.”
The other girl laughed. “That doesn’t count as plastic surgery. That’s just a hairdo.”
She hadn’t changed out of her server’s uniform, her name tag pinned to her right chest. She pointed at the name on it. “My name is Wen He.”
Mi Shanxin’s professional ailment kicked in; her frown deepened. “So many strokes.”
Wen He remembered she studied calligraphy. Occasionally, she carried a long black tube, probably for holding paper or artwork. “Aren’t you a professional?”
Mi Shanxin didn’t answer that, remembering her shattered screen protector from being knocked over. “Didn’t you say you’d pay for it?”
She waggled her phone. “Transfer me the money.”
The phone was bought for her by Jian Wanji. If Jian Wanji hadn’t insisted on the full package deal, Mi Shanxin would never have bought a phone case and screen protector at a phone store.
Even though it was Jian Wanji’s money, her heart ached at the waste. She’d rather have just been given the money directly.
Even asking her parents for money was a struggle for Mi Shanxin, let alone reaching out her hand to someone unrelated by blood.
Perhaps when she was older, she would evolve into a cold, ruthless “cash on delivery” part-time job queen.
Currently, she was still in the vocational development stage, with no significant effective experience.
“No rush, let’s just go to a store and get the screen protector replaced.” Wen He’s features were a bit fierce-looking, maybe due to her thin lips. Her smile seemed more like a threat. She wasn’t as casually shameless and giggly as Jian Wanji. Perhaps without a mole under her eye to add charm, she lacked some of that atmospheric allure.
Mi Shanxin silently measured Wen He’s height and thought: Seems like Jian Wanji is still taller.
But Jian Wanji seemed to always wear shoes with heels—boots, leather shoes, high heels. The sound of her footsteps matched her unhurried, casual temperament. Ta, ta-tap. But never ta-ta-ta.
Sometimes, Mi Shanxin, counting down the seconds waiting for the subway, would inexplicably think of her.
“Can’t.” Mi Shanxin refused her. “I have things to do.”
Wen He working here was purely her parents’ demand. The shift supervisor didn’t even know this restaurant would eventually be hers, just assuming she was some low-level connection hire.
When she’d crashed into Mi Shanxin earlier, it wasn’t on purpose. Her colleague on the walkie-talkie had been urging her nonstop to deliver tea to a private room.
She was very sorry she’d knocked Mi Shanxin over, and also very glad she’d knocked her over.
Luckily, the brittle human wasn’t injured. The brittle human’s phone was also brittle, which conveniently gave her an opportunity.
“What things?” The restaurant entrance had a large platform area, with many expensive plants arranged according to design. Not far away, a fountain was running under the night lights. Cars continuously pulled up and departed, people getting in and out. They couldn’t stay long at the entrance. From Mi Shanxin’s posture, she seemed to be waiting for someone.
“None of your business.” Mi Shanxin glanced at her screen. No new messages from Jian Wanji. The woman was probably on her way already.
If she hadn’t promised to wait right here, Mi Shanxin would rather have gone to wait outside, where it was much quieter.
“Still so cold.” Wen He wasn’t hurt at all. Back then, she had experienced the concern hidden beneath Mi Shanxin’s cold face. So many people had turned a blind eye; only Mi Shanxin had crouched in front of her and asked if she needed help.
“Aren’t you going back to work?” Mi Shanxin eyed her uniform. She hadn’t expected the girl with short-in-front, long-in-back hair to rip off her pants right then. They were actually fastened with Velcro-like material.
Mi Shanxin: …
Wen He removed her outer jacket while sending a message to someone unknown. “I’m off work now. As for the shift supervisor, just mark me down as absent.”
Head bowed low, Mi Shanxin thought: So confident. I could never just be absent from work.
Then again, for Jian Wanji’s sake, she wouldn’t be absent anyway. There weren’t many days left.
Her lock screen was a countdown, a limited number of days.
Wan Qingqing was still alive. Mi Shanxin had never wished so hard for someone’s longevity.
But what if the old lady really lived to a hundred? Would the contract between her and Jian Wanji continue to renew until then?
No, it wouldn’t.
From what she understood of Jian Wanji, this person always steered clear of long-term relationships. Let alone the… physical relationship between the two of them.
Mi Shanxin held the complete moral high ground due to her age, yet she was also at a complete disadvantage in courtship.
Not everyone liked young flesh and blood. After all, a young body didn’t necessarily house an interesting soul. At Jian Wanji’s age, what she pursued wasn’t shallow physical appearance.
So what kind of person did she actually want?
“What are you thinking about?” Wen He waved a hand in front of Mi Shanxin’s face. “What things do you have to do? Why don’t you come with me first? I drove here.”
Mi Shanxin looked at her, seemingly evaluating something. Wen He hooked her car keys on her finger; Mi Shanxin recognized the logo. It was the same brand as Jian Wanji’s car.
“I have more money now than before. No need to borrow money from you anymore.”
“That was robbery.” Mi Shanxin corrected her. “Criminal.”
The rebellious student from another school back in high school showed no shame. “Then how about I repay you for that all together now? That scarf is still at my place.”
It seemed Mi Shanxin hadn’t grown any taller.
Wen He looked down at her, always reminded of a penguin walking slowly and clumsily.
Mi Shanxin had been as gray and dull as an overcast sky that day, yet she was wearing a bright red scarf.
At the time, Wen He hadn’t considered it might be genuine. A girl so impoverished her backpack even had patches—how could she own a scarf worth thousands? It couldn’t have been a gift; that would be too impractical. Better to give her a new backpack or clothes first.
“Don’t want it.” Mi Shanxin refused her again.
Wen He leaned closer again. This time, Mi Shanxin didn’t step back. She met Wen He’s gaze.
She didn’t know what colored contacts the other wore, but her eyes looked slightly reddish. Even though she wasn’t yellow-haired anymore, it still felt uncomfortable to look at her.
“I said I don’t—”
“Mi Shanxin!” A voice rang out. Mi Shanxin instinctively turned her head to see a car parked at the bottom of the steps. The fake daughter inside had rolled down the window and called to her, “Let’s go.”
Without another glance at Wen He, Mi Shanxin swiftly hopped down the steps, walked around the front of the car, and got in.
The car quickly drove off. Jian Wanji glanced in the rearview mirror at the figure slowly receding and asked, recalling the scene she’d witnessed while driving in, “Was that a colleague from your institution?”
“No.”
Jian Wanji hummed, then smiled. “So, did I interrupt just now?”
“It looked like you were about to kiss.”
Hugging her backpack, everything on her body, from the inside out, was attire and accessories arranged by Jian Wanji. Only her hair wasn’t something Jian Wanji had demanded done.
Hearing Jian Wanji say such a thing made Mi Shanxin angry. “The contract says I can’t date anyone during our collaboration period. I will abide by that.”
Jian Wanji’s hand on the steering wheel betrayed no emotion. It was extremely hard to guess her mood just from her facial expressions. She even let out a small laugh. “It’s fine. Isn’t the contract about to expire soon?”
The girl shook her head. “It matters a lot.”
Jian Wanji had a certain understanding of Mi Shanxin’s social circle, but she still couldn’t shake off what she’d just seen. Just as she was about to ask more, Mi Shanxin asked, “How is your grandmother?”
“I got her to wait at the hospital. Had to coax her for a long time, saying my mom was at rehearsal outside.”
The woman was still getting a headache recalling it. “Her mind was much clearer today. She insisted you couldn’t stay out all night, afraid you’d sleep over with some boy. Absolutely demanded you come home.”
In Wan Lingling’s school days, there were no mobile phones. Wan Qingqing ordered Jian Wanji to call the school, even reciting the landline number of a teacher’s home.
Luckily, the alma mater had long since changed its number. Jian Wanji pretended to make inquiries, saying she would go pick her up.
“…So, I might need to trouble you to go back and put on a little performance again.”
At a red light, Jian Wanji studied Mi Shanxin’s expression.
