Translated by newbienoona

Edited by anks

“Then… buy him a lighter? No, no. He always gets a light from someone else when he's out.” Jiang Yuan shakes her head.

Naturally, they can't finish the two buckets they purchased. But as she chews on her egg tarts, An Chuxia comes up with a brilliant idea.

“Cake?!” Jiang Yuan is starting to have a headache. “I can't make one.”

“What are you afraid of? You have me!” An Chuxia tries to convince her as the older lady stares at her with suspicious eyes. “I worked at a cake shop last summer. I'll definitely help you, Mommy!”

Finally, Chuxia is able to convince Jiang Yuan to make a cake for Han Liuhai for their anniversary. They call the driver once they're done with their meal.

It is past two o'clock when they finally get home. Han Qilu is staring at the sky as he stands on the lawn. Batian is unleashed, excited to play frisbee catch with his master.

“That kid is good today,” Jiang Yuan murmurs as she walks in the villa.

[Mankui called Qilu when he was resting. He didn't say anything about Han Liuhai calling him back home. Instead, he told her he has an affair in the evening. She asked if he wanted company as he bought clothes. He naturally refused her. He didn't know An Chuxia ran into her.]

An Chuxia hesitates before walking over. Batian runs to catch the frisbee while Qilu waits for him to return.

“That… .” An Chuxia suddenly remembers, and Han Qilu turns around swiftly. Their eyes meet, and her face flushes.

“What?” He seems to be back in the state when he didn't know her.

“Do you know about tonight? Steward Han said we are going somewhere together tonight.” The car was still running, and the fumes spouting made her sneeze.

Before Batian returns, Han Qilu looks back at her.

“I know.” As he speaks, he takes off his coat, and throws it at her. “Since you know there's a banquet we have to attend tonight, don't catch a cold.”

Since he states this with conviction, she clenches the coat as she shoots him with dark eyes. “I know. I'm leaving.”

Jiang Yuan is sitting on the sofa, drinking her tea while watching a variety show on TV. She is laughing when she sees An Chuxia enter with Qilu's coat at hand. Then, her facial expression changes. “The coat… Qilu gave it to you?”

An Chuxia thinks before responding. “He said not to get sick before tonight's celebration so he gave me his coat.”

Her hand on the tea cup stiffens, to the point she almost spills its content. She pa.s.ses the cup to the maid next to her before standing. The maid starts wiping the tea that spilled.

She looks at An Chuxia and smiles. “That kid has a sharp mouth with a tofu heart. The dinner party is only an excuse. Truly, he cares about you. You see, my Qilu's heart still belongs to you.”

Jiang Yuan's in a good mood. Qilu is considered “good” if she refers to him as “my”. If he causes her to be in a bad mood, she calls him “bunny”. This contrast really complements her personality.

Chuxia remains unmoved as she looks at the coat. She just grasps it a bit tighter.

“I'm changing clothes,” An Chuxia says as she realizes she's wearing tight leggings.

Jiang Yuan watches An Chuxia go up the stairs. Then, she proceeds to take a step outside.

By that time, Qilu has played enough with Batian. He hands the dog over to the special breeder, and as he turns, he encounters Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan, acting like a cop who caught a robber, places her hands on her hips and poorly states, “You've missed a lot of homework recently. At least, An Chuxia has gotten some tutoring, and was able to make up for her missed school work. How about you?”

The wind blows a little stronger, and gray skies seem to roll in quickly. It looks like heavy rain is headed their way. Qilu looks at her crossly. “[Learning in] School isn't everything.”

This is what a typical adolescent would say. Jiang Yuan, fighting iron with steel says, “You, bunny, why don't you learn from An Chuxia? If you don't learn from school, how would you know you're learning well?”

“Oh!” Han Qilu loses his patience and walks away.

Little does he know that Jiang Yuan let him off easily because she has her own calculations.

She reaches out for Han Qilu's hand and gives him sage advice. “Mommy thinks your education is of utmost importance right now. Since you don't like tutors, let An Chuxia teach you. Despite being a soph.o.m.ore, An Chuxia's grasp of the subjects is better than yours. I don't think she'd mind helping you out if you ask.”

He says nothing. He knows his mother is calculating, but upon hearing her say that An Chuxia is involved, he is willing to ignore his mother's interference.

“Why are you still standing? Follow me. Today, An Chuxia can teach you Chinese. How can a Chinese not learn Chinese?” Jiang Yuan pulls him inside the villa.

At first, he is reluctant to follow. But when Jiang Yuan tells the servants to grab his textbooks, and they hand them to him as they get to An Chuxia's door, he suddenly feels that this is a rare opportunity where his mother hasn't upset him.

“I'll call you guys when dinner's ready. Otherwise, you're not allowed to leave the room.” She leaves the stern instructions before dragging the two maids away. Now, he stands alone in front of her room.

Should he enter, or not? Han Qilu clenches his books and sighs.

“Why are you just standing there?” Jiang Yuan asks as she turns to check up on him. “Are you afraid to knock?”

Is she kidding? He is not afraid to knock on this little door.

Jiang Yuan sniffs and before he knows it, she knocks on the door for him.

“Hey, who asked you to knock?” He frowns at her, slightly displeased.

A small smile appears on her lips before chuckling. “I thought about it for a bit, and I thought I should tell her myself. What if she doesn't take you as a student?”

“She won't?” His brows knit. “Why would she reject me?”

He is too handsome to get rejected.

While Qilu bathes himself in his narcissistic thoughts, the door opens, and An Chuxia appears wearing a lounging outfit. She looks at both of them in confusion.

“An Chuxia.” The smile on Jiang Yuan's face deepens. “Mommy is asking for a favor.”

“What's the matter?” An Chuxia asks wearily.

“It's this little bunny!” Jiang Yuan pulls Han Qilu's arm and shoves him up front. She says, “His language skills are poor. He pa.s.sed his last exam but he was ninth from the bottom of his cla.s.s. Mommy knows you're excellent in this department, so I was hoping you can help him with his lessons.”

Chuxia is dumbfounded. There are people who speak the native tongue who still fail?

Of course, Jiang Yuan left out the fact that he scored a nine points out of a ten point question test, and composition was graded separately.

“Hey!” He doesn't appreciate how his own mother is degrading him, especially in front of her.

“Okay, Xiao Xia? Mommy knows you're the best!” Jiang Yuan turns and flashes her a coquettish smile.

“All right.” An Chuxia glances at the textbooks in his hand. It is intended for the seniors in school, but the book doesn't state specifically what age range it covers.

“Mommy entrusts him to you. Teach him well. I'm leaving first.” She leaves in a good mood.

Han Qilu looks strange, standing so tall by her door as he clenches the small book in his hand.

She can see he's embarra.s.sed. She steps back and says, “Come in.”

Her tone is calm as he enters her room. She has a lot of shopping bags on her bed. None of them have been opened. Intrigued, he drops his book and heads for the bed. “Did you happen to pick anything up for me while you were out shopping?”

As he asks, he opens one of the bags. He pulls out a sweater, and by looking at the color, it makes him feel warm. It is suitable for her.

An Chuxia picks up the handout lecture papers he threw aside, before reluctantly saying, “Han Qilu, this is my room.”

“This is my home.” He is back to his natural way of speaking.

She stiffens. She has no comeback.

He realizes he said something wrong. He puts the sweater down and rubs his hands together. “I'm sorry… I shouldn't have casually touched your stuff.”

“It doesn't matter.” She looks at him frankly. “This was all purchased by your family, and you have the right to touch it.”

Her words are calm, but he can tell she is peeved.

“I don't mean it that way… ,” he tries to explain.

“It's okay. I'm not angry,” she says unwillingly before sitting at her desk. “Come on. Let's get your tutoring session started.”