Chapter 94: Mom, I’m Doing a Part-time Job
Chapter 94: Chapter 94: Mom, I’m Doing a Part-time Job
After leaving his girlfriend’s house, Jiang Xia, with his bag on his back, saw Jiang Wende’s taxi parked by the side of the road at the community entrance.
"Dad." Feeling a little guilty, he opened the car door and got into the passenger seat.
"Mm. Are you hungry?"
"A little."
"Your mom should have dinner ready at home by now. We can eat as soon as we get back."
Jiang Wende shot him a placid glance. Ever since learning that his son had spent the whole day at a young girl’s house, his worries had inexplicably shifted.
He was worried he’d suddenly get "upgraded" from Dad to Grandpa. After all, boys and girls experiencing their first love were the most likely to have an accident and, due to a lack of basic knowledge, get someone pregnant.
"Even though you’re on vacation now, you shouldn’t always be running over to a girl’s house. It doesn’t look good."
The corner of Jiang Xia’s mouth twitched. "...Got it."
’But I’ll do it again next time.’
’My wife is here. Where else would I go?’
"Have you met Yanwan’s parents?"
"I’ve met Mom."
Seeing Jiang Wende turn his head with a strange look, Jiang Xia quickly and awkwardly corrected himself, "I mean, Yanwan’s mom."
Jiang Wende’s cheek twitched. ’Well, I’ll be. The kid really did call her "Mom." And with such a practiced tone, you’d think he’d been saying it for the past seven or eight years.’
"Whoa, whoa! Dad! The car! The car! Don’t look at me! Look ahead!"
Jiang Wende calmly snapped back to reality. Seeing the oncoming car, he unhurriedly tapped the brakes and corrected his steering.
"Your old man has been driving for decades. I’ve seen plenty of complicated road situations. This is nothing."
Hearing this, Jiang Xia pursed his lips. ’Your skills are good, sure, but even you can’t guard against a momentary lapse from driving while tired. Otherwise, how did the accident happen in my past life?’
’But he didn’t dare say that out loud.’
"So, you two are dating. Does Yanwan’s mom know?" Jiang Wende asked casually.
"She... probably knows," Jiang Xia said, scratching his neck.
’The adults on both sides aren’t stupid. Even that dolt Wang Ming could tell at a glance. His mother-in-law probably suspected something the first time he called her "Mom."’
"What do you mean, ’probably’? Does her mom approve?"
"Maybe, possibly, probably."
Jiang Xia mulled it over. ’In his past life, his mother-in-law had quite liked him, so it should be about the same this time around. It was his father-in-law who was a bit harder to win over, but in the end, they’d become sworn brothers under the influence of alcohol.’
’One called the other "Little Brother," and the other called him "Father-in-law." They just called each other what they wanted, and it didn’t cause any conflicts.’
"Feeling good about yourself isn’t always accurate. Yanwan is pretty, gets good grades, has a gentle personality, and is polite. But you run over to her house every day like a shameless punk. You think her mom is going to like you?" Jiang Wende shot him a sidelong glance.
Jiang Xia was speechless. "Dad, it’s true she’s outstanding, but your son isn’t bad either, okay?"
"It’s not my call whether you’re bad or not."
Jiang Wende suddenly remembered his wife’s instructions and warned him with a grave expression, "Also, I’m warning you. You’re an adult now. Dating is dating. Holding hands, a little hugging, that’s all fine. But you need to know where to draw the line. Don’t you dare do anything out of line, you hear me?"
"Dad, what are you even thinking? My relationship with Yanwan is perfectly innocent right now."
"Well, I’m telling you now, if you dare to mess around, I’ll break your legs!" Jiang Wende glared at him fiercely.
"...Since you put it like that, I wouldn’t dare even if I had a hundred times the nerve."
"Wipe that cheeky grin off your face."
"Yes, sir!"
When the father and son got home, Xia Shanshan had already finished stewing the cured pork soup. The pressure cooker was hissing and letting off steam.
Jiang Xia first went to his room to put away the contract and other documents, then went to the kitchen to help.
"Go scoop the rice first. We’re about to eat," Xia Shanshan said, glancing at him before continuing to stir-fry the shredded pork with garlic scapes. The aroma wafting through the air was incredibly fragrant.
"Oh."
He brought the rice and dishes to the table, and Xia Shanshan followed with a large tureen of the cured pork soup. The air conditioner was on in the living room, so drinking hot soup in the middle of summer didn’t feel too hot.
"How long until the Gaokao scores are out?" Xia Shanshan asked during dinner.
"Around the 20th, I think," Jiang Xia said after a moment of thought.
"That’s soon." She nodded. It was June 13th, so there was about a week to go.
"You’ve got one more week of easy living. If you don’t do well, you’re repeating the year. The family doesn’t have extra money for you to attend some useless vocational college," she said.
"Not gonna happen."
Jiang Xia was full of confidence. ’Compared to how he’d anxiously scratched his head in his past life, this time around he felt like he knew the answers to almost every question. So this is what it feels like to be a top student.’
"By the way, Yanwan mentioned you’ve been very busy lately. What exactly have you been busy with?" Xia Shanshan suddenly asked.
Jiang Xia never thought he could keep this from his parents forever, so he had prepared an excuse long ago.
"Just a summer part-time job."
"You really think your parents are idiots, don’t you? Take a guess whether I believe you or not," Xia Shanshan said irritably. ’What kind of part-time job involves running to your girlfriend’s house every day? Part-time husband?’
Jiang Xia’s eyelid twitched. He explained, "Didn’t I start out learning to draw from Teacher Li?"
"Who?"
"Li Weiya, Wang Ming’s mom."
"Mm-hmm, go on."
"She works at an animation company, and they’ve been really busy lately. Since Wang Ming and I both study drawing, we’re helping out as her assistants. We can even get paid 600 yuan a month."
"Oh..."
Xia Shanshan nodded. She remembered her son calling her yesterday to say he was having dinner at Wang Ming’s house. This must have been what he was talking about.
Besides, his story was quite detailed and sounded believable.
"The problem is, if it’s for work, shouldn’t you be at Wang Ming’s house? Why are you always running over to Yanwan’s place?" she asked, keenly spotting the loophole in his story.
"Looking at my beautiful girlfriend keeps me happy and motivated. My work efficiency doubles," Jiang Xia admitted openly. It had to be said, his skin had gotten much thicker after being reborn.
Xia Shanshan and Jiang Wende: "..."
’Shouldn’t having a beauty by your side be more of a distraction?’
The couple exchanged a look, both seeing the speechless disbelief in the other’s eyes. When had their son become so shameless?
"Fine. Everyone has their own way of working. Just make sure you’re not getting in your Aunt Li’s way."
"How could I? She even praised me for drawing better than Wang Ming."
Jiang Xia suddenly looked at his mom with a wary expression. "Mom, you’re not thinking of confiscating my salary, are you? That’s my hard-earned money, made with every single brushstroke."
"Get out of here. Who cares about that little bit of money you’re making?"
Xia Shanshan couldn’t help but roll her eyes. "The part-time job is a small thing. I’m more worried about you causing trouble and disrupting her work. I hear that animation has very high standards for art style."
"You don’t have to worry about that. I’m just an assistant, not the lead artist."
"That’s good. The amount of money is secondary; what’s important is that you’re learning from your Aunt Li," his mother advised.
...