Cui Xuemei
Parachuting into a Dating Show, I Take the Entertainment Industry by Storm with Mind Reading
Biodata
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Name | Cui Xuemei (崔雪梅) |
| Gender | Female |
| Age | In her forties 42 |
| Occupation/Role | Chu Ci’s biological mother; habitual gambler with no proper job 39 43 |
| Status | Estranged from Chu Ci after recording a statement severing their mother-son relationship 45 |
| First Appearance | Chapter 37, “Family love” 37 |
Background / History
Marriage and abandonment
Cui Xuemei met Chu Guoqiang at a mahjong parlor. Known locally for her beauty, she had many suitors, but Chu Guoqiang distinguished himself by genuinely wanting to marry her. She became pregnant outside marriage at eighteen and subsequently married him. Their relationship deteriorated through repeated arguments over money 38 42.
After Chu Ci’s birth, Cui Xuemei continued smoking and drinking, sometimes lashing out at him or hitting him while drunk. Chu Guoqiang eventually took the child to his paternal grandmother, who raised him from before he was a month old 38 43.
Cui Xuemei showed no interest in supporting Chu Ci’s education. Although she knew he had entered a high school in the provincial capital, she avoided involvement, including any prospect of paying university tuition. His grandmother instead used her retirement savings and earnings from odd jobs to support him 38.
Reconnecting for money
After more than a decade without contact, Cui Xuemei encountered an online video of Chu Ci and realized he had become a celebrity. Expecting that fame meant substantial earnings, she obtained his phone number and contacted him. During their later confrontation, Chu Ci dated this first call to May 2020 38 43.
She claimed that she had stayed away because she could not give him a comfortable life. The original Chu Ci, deeply affected by her apparent concern, offered to support her and transferred 50,000 yuan out of his total savings of 55,000 yuan 38.
| Money received | Circumstances | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 50,000 yuan | Initial reunion; Cui Xuemei presented herself as struggling financially 38. | She increased her mahjong stakes from a few yuan to 1,000–2,000 yuan and lost the money 39. |
| 10,000 yuan | Claimed she could barely afford food 39. | She lost the money in one night of gambling 39. |
| 20,000 yuan | Falsely claimed she had suffered a car accident and needed surgery 39. | Chu Ci borrowed from his company to pay her; she gambled with the money and won 10,000 yuan 39. |
| Rent money; amount unspecified | Demanded money after Chu Ci had already given his remaining savings to his father 40. | Chu Ci surrendered money intended for the home he had rented for Grandma 40. |
The nineteen-year-old Chu Ci discovered the surgery lie after taking leave from work and searching nearby hospitals. He found Cui Xuemei leaving a mahjong parlor unharmed and initially told her never to ask him for money again. She stopped him, pleaded not to be abandoned, and used her winnings to buy him clothes. Her declaration that he deserved the best persuaded him that she cared, leading him to forgive her repeatedly afterward 39.
When online abuse later damaged Chu Ci’s mental health, Cui Xuemei refused his requests for comfort and companionship, prioritizing mahjong instead. Nevertheless, she visited his home when he stopped answering her demands for money 40.
Appearance
- Beautiful features: Cui Xuemei was a well-known local beauty in her youth and retained a charming smile in her forties 42.
- Family resemblance: She boasted that Chu Ci had inherited her good looks 42.
Personality
Cui Xuemei treats giving birth as grounds for financial entitlement despite acknowledging that she did not raise Chu Ci. She repeatedly invokes pregnancy, motherhood, and filial duty when he resists her demands. She even threatens to expose him online as unfilial 37 40 43 44.
She understands the original Chu Ci’s longing for maternal affection and exploits it through tearful apologies, claims of hardship, and occasional gifts. Although she briefly feels guilty about deceiving him, that guilt does not stop her from gambling with money he borrowed for her supposed surgery 38 39 41.
Her son’s celebrity status also becomes a source of prestige. She enjoys her mahjong companions’ flattery even while knowing it is deliberate, and begins considering their families beneath her. She hopes Chu Ci will marry into a powerful family so that she can enjoy a comfortable life in the city 42.
Story Role / Major Arcs
Renewed demand and public exposure
Following Chu Ci’s appearance on Weibo’s trending searches, Cui Xuemei demands 30,000 yuan, lowering the amount first to 20,000 and then to 10,000 when he refuses. The current Chu Ci—the interstellar newcomer occupying her son’s body—agrees only on the condition that he deliver the money in person 37 38.
He finds her in room 203 of a mahjong parlor, boasting about his fame. Before his arrival, she falsely tells another player that sharing his contact information could incur enormous contractual penalties. Chu Ci exposes the excuse as an attempt to keep the woman’s daughter away from him because Cui Xuemei wants a wealthy match 41 42.
Instead of handing over money, he publicly recounts her abandonment, fabricated medical emergency, and repeated demands. Cui Xuemei tries to move the discussion home, but he refuses to let her conceal her conduct from her companions 43 44.
Severing ties
When Cui Xuemei attempts to slap him, Chu Ci catches her wrist and pulls the cloth from the mahjong table, scattering the tiles. He declares that their relationship is over and that the money already given to her can serve as retirement support 44.
Cui Xuemei initially resists losing her source of gambling money. Chu Ci then bluffs that a lawyer has confirmed he can recover the transfers through a lawsuit. He cites at least 700,000–800,000 yuan in transfers, plus roughly another 100,000 yuan in holiday transfers and red packets. These figures are presented during his threat, not as a verified accounting 45.
Afraid of repayment and public humiliation, she agrees to record a separation statement. Chu Ci makes her repeat it with a more natural expression, intending to keep the video as protection against future harassment or accusations of being unfilial. No court ruling or legal dissolution is shown 45.
Relationships
- Chu Ci — Biological son and former source of financial support. The original Chu Ci repeatedly forgave her in the hope of receiving maternal affection; his successor exposed her conduct and secured a recorded agreement to go their separate ways 38 39 44 45.
- Chu Guoqiang — Husband and Chu Ci’s father. Their shared interest in mahjong brought them together, but repeated financial disputes destroyed their affection. Cui Xuemei later resented Chu Ci giving him money 38 40 42.
- Grandma — Chu Ci’s paternal grandmother, who assumed responsibility for raising and educating him. Cui Xuemei later dismissed the need for Grandma’s comfortable accommodation while demanding its rent money 38 40.
- Mahjong companions — Regular gambling partners who flatter her to encourage her spending. They witness Chu Ci’s exposure of her lies and demands 42 43 44.
Notable Quotes
“Our Cici deserves the best.” 39
“I voluntarily sever my relationship—my mother-son relationship with Chu Ci. From now on, Chu Ci and I will go our separate ways and never interfere in each other’s affairs again...” 45