Teacher Liang

In the blink of an eye, it was the last day of the May Day holiday, and the day of Liang Zhirou's first lesson.

Chen Mo had to report back to school at six, so they agreed to move the lesson up to the afternoon.

Liang Zhirou had obediently listened to Chen Lu and hadn't gone out to hand out flyers, so she agreed without hesitation.

That afternoon.

Chen Lu and his family sat on the sofa, ready to see what sort of person his classmate was.

As for who was coming, Wang Xiaoxia already had an inkling, though she still couldn't be sure.

Chen Guanglin and Wang Xiaoxia chatted about the neighbors, while Chen Mo showed none of the nerves one might expect from someone about to meet her teacher. Her eyes were full of anticipation.

Clearly, she was more interested in who the girl coming over was than in the lesson.

"Let me give you a heads-up first. She's very, very introverted and doesn't like talking. Try not to ask her too many questions when she gets here."

Chen Lu rarely spoke so seriously. Knowing their son's character, the couple both nodded.

"You really should have gone to pick her up," Wang Xiaoxia chided. What kind of friend was he?

"I offered ages ago, but she wouldn't agree." Chen Lu took a bite of watermelon. "It's like she was born in the year of the ox. Stubborn as can be."

Otherwise, your son wouldn't have had to go to so much trouble to trick her into being a tutor.

He grumbled to himself and could only take his frustration out on the watermelon.

His secret savings were the only ones taking a hit from this arrangement. He'd spent quite a bit coaxing Chen Mo into agreeing, and Liang Zhirou's wages would have to come out of his account too.

Hmm... though, compared to that, spending money on a necklace for Chen Mo seemed to hurt more.

After a while.

"It's the girl who answered my call, isn't it?" Wang Xiaoxia finally couldn't hold back and asked.

"Yes. I went to see her about this that day." Chen Lu admitted it readily. There was nothing to hide at this point.

He was more curious about how his mother had managed to wait until now to ask.

Wang Xiaoxia nodded in understanding, then suddenly said, "I thought you had a thing for Yuqing. You've been following right behind her since you were little."

"..."

Chen Lu glared wide-eyed at Chen Mo, who was sitting beside him, frightening her into hurriedly shaking her head.

She really wasn't the one who had let that slip.

Seeing his sister's expression, he was sure she hadn't snitched either.

Good grief. So the whole family knew I used to like Mo Yuqing after all.

And I thought I'd hidden it so well.

I was careless.

The more Chen Mo thought about it, the stranger it seemed. She wondered whether she should message Mo Yuqing and ask what exactly was going on between them.

When she was little, she had truly thought Mo Yuqing would become her sister-in-law one day.

After all, Mo Yuqing was not only so beautiful that even Chen Mo, a girl herself, drooled over her, but also never begrudged spending money on her. Ever since Chen Mo was little, Mo Yuqing had bought her things costing hundreds of yuan without batting an eye.

That had made Chen Mo very fond of her. She felt she would be very happy if Mo Yuqing became her sister-in-law.

But now someone was about to steal her home, and there still wasn't a peep from her.

After mulling it over, Chen Mo quietly sent her brother a message first. Her curiosity couldn't wait another moment.

The two of them conducted an encrypted conversation on their phones right in front of their parents.

Chen Mo: What exactly happened between you and Sister Yuqing? Why did you suddenly stop pursuing her when everything was fine?

Chen Lu: It's simple. She doesn't like me. She even turned me down when I confessed, so why would I keep pursuing her?

Chen Mo froze, then slowly put her phone away and quietly looked at her expressionless brother.

She really hadn't considered that. She had always thought the tsundere Mo Yuqing was playing hard to get with her brother. After all, she had seen everything her brother had done for her over the years.

She had never dated while she was young because she had never met a boy more devoted than her brother. None of those casual ones caught her eye.

And yet Mo Yuqing didn't like him??

Wasn't this a joke?!

Knock, knock.

A very, very soft knock sounded at the door.

Chen Lu had just started to get up when Chen Mo dashed to the door.

She gave Liang Zhirou, who wasn't mentally prepared yet, a fright.

"Hello!" Chen Mo waved in greeting, then hooked her arm through Liang Zhirou's and pulled her inside.

Liang Zhirou wore her long hair loose and had apparently gone out of her way to put on clean clothes. Without a trace of makeup, she looked especially lovely.

Chen Lu was speechless at his sister's move. The whole procedure he had prepared had gone unused, so he could only introduce her. "Dad, Mom, this is the friend I told you about, Liang Zhirou."

When he finished, he turned to look at the girl, whose head was bowed deeply in nervousness, and waited for her to speak.

Chen Lu had gone over what she should say with her beforehand, in case this silly girl got so nervous she couldn't say a word.

For example, she was to greet them first, introduce herself, mention her excellent college entrance exam results, and finally say she only planned to charge two hundred yuan an hour—a straight-up bomb.

So even though Chen Mo had made it impossible for him to follow the plan, there wouldn't be a problem as long as Liang Zhirou played her part well.

"Come in and sit down." Seeing that the girl was too timid to speak, Wang Xiaoxia gently took her hand herself and led her to sit on the sofa.

"This child has such a lovely name, and she's pretty too," Wang Xiaoxia said to Chen Guanglin.

Liang Zhirou grew even more nervous at that. She placed both hands obediently on her lap and lowered her head deeply, then suddenly met Chen Lu's eyes.

Seeing his gentle smile, she summoned all her strength to lift her head again.

She was like a blade of grass straightening up after being watered.

Seeing her reaction, Chen Lu's smile grew a little brighter.

Then he abruptly remembered something and kept signaling Liang Zhirou with his eyes to hurry up and follow the plan.

The girl nodded, understanding at once. "Hello, Auntie. Hello, Uncle. My name is Liang Zhirou."

It seemed that once she got nervous, she had completely forgotten that Chen Lu had just introduced her, and she began reciting her prepared lines in her silly way.

Chen Lu froze, and Chen Mo, who had just finished drinking some water beside him, nearly choked to death.

Wang Xiaoxia was taken aback. Then she smiled and stroked Liang Zhirou's head, her eyes full of affection. "I know."

No one could dislike a well-behaved, sensible girl, and Wang Xiaoxia was no exception.

After that phone call, she had a rough idea of what kind of girl Liang Zhirou was, and meeting her in person had made her even more certain.

This sweet, silly girl was so pure there wasn't a trace of impurity in her. There might have been some girls like her in Wang Xiaoxia's childhood, but in this day and age, they were as rare as phoenix feathers and qilin horns.

Most importantly, she could feel that Liang Zhirou's hands weren't as soft and delicate as Chen Mo's. She had clearly done plenty of work...

Even though this was their first meeting, she already felt a little sorry for the girl.

"Zhirou, are you thirsty?"

"Here, have some watermelon. If you don't like it, there are other things."

"Would you like to stay for dinner? What would you like to eat? I'll have Xiao Lu go downstairs and buy it for you. Auntie's cooking is pretty good, you know."

"..."

Wang Xiaoxia was very enthusiastic, and Chen Mo and Chen Guanglin watched with amusement.

Only Chen Lu sat there, stunned.

Liang Zhirou seemed to have made her way into the "enemy" camp in an unprecedented fashion.

But wasn't this scene a little strange? It was like she was meeting the parents.

Soon, Liang Zhirou couldn't take it anymore and looked pitifully at Chen Lu.

This silly girl had even learned to ask for help.

Chen Lu hurriedly changed the subject. "Mom, she's here to tutor. If you keep her chatting, that time counts too. We have to pay her."

"N-no... there's no need to count it." Liang Zhirou hurriedly waved her hands in refusal.

"You and your big mouth! Chen Guanglin, look at your son!"

Wang Xiaoxia scolded him softly, and her opinion of Liang Zhirou rose even higher.

"Your son," Chen Guanglin said, passing the responsibility.

"Your son!"

Seeing Chen Lu passed back and forth like a hot potato, Chen Mo sat to one side grinning foolishly the whole time.

Although she usually got the same treatment, at least it wasn't her turn right now, so she might as well enjoy it.

Liang Zhirou listened to the cheerful chatter and laughter, a trace of bitterness welling up in her heart.

Ever since her father died, it had been so, so long since she had experienced it.

Chen Lu immediately noticed what she was thinking. He speared a piece of watermelon with a toothpick and handed it to her, distracting her.

Liang Zhirou sniffled and reached out to take it.

He added, "Mom, if you keep chatting, it'll be time for Chen Mo to go to school."

Wang Xiaoxia pointed at Chen Mo. "Xiao Mo, take Zhirou to your room."

"Okay."