Chapter 49: Parents

Chapter 49: Chapter 49: Parents

Whenever mealtime rolled around, Chen Qiyun would automatically spawn like an NPC with a fixed routine in a video game.

Her nose twitched. Upon catching a whiff of the rich aroma, she hurriedly slipped into the kitchen.

Lifting the fly cover, her eyes instantly lit up. "Whoa! It’s chicken feet! Hei’s chicken feet!"

"???"

The slight smile on Chen Jingle’s face instantly vanished. What did it feel like to have your younger sister spew dumb internet memes right in front of you? All he could say was that his fists clenched involuntarily.

"They’re phoenix claws!" Chen Jingle corrected deadpan.

Chen Qiyun turned around in confusion, but insisted firmly, "They’re chicken feet!"

"Phoenix claws!"

"Chicken feet!"

Chen Jingle pointed out the door and snapped, "I made phoenix claws. If you want chicken feet, go make them yourself."

Chen Qiyun pouted. Taking exactly half a second to think it over, she drastically changed her tune and flashed a flattering smile. "Phoenix claws, phoenix claws! You’re the big boss here; whatever you say goes."

Chen Jingle crossed his arms and sneered. "I told you that you shouldn’t be playing on your phone all the time. Instead of learning anything useful, you’ve picked up a bunch of stale memes. If your sister were here, she would have slapped you by now."

Chen Qiyun clutched her behind in terror, recalling the fear of being dominated by her eldest sister.

"Alright, alright," Chen Jingle waved his hand impatiently. "Eat! Stop looking at those brain-rot memes. Even if you do learn them, don’t just blurt them out casually. You have to read the room before making jokes. Otherwise, you’ll just look incredibly stupid and foolish, and it won’t do you any good."

Chen Qiyun shrank her neck back. "Got it."

When Chen Jingle was truly angry, it was best not to provoke him. After being thoroughly scolded, Chen Qiyun didn’t dare say another word out of line during the meal, quietly shoveling rice into her mouth.

Of course, her chopsticks never stopped moving. Such delicious chicken—er, phoenix claws—naturally demanded a second helping.

As for the plate of choy sum on the side, it was completely ignored at first. She was not a fan of vegetables. However, after eating several phoenix claws in a row, she felt her palate getting a bit heavy. Thus, she reluctantly picked up a piece of the greens.

Taking a bite, she was absolutely blown away. Without hesitation, she reached for a few more.

Ah, as expected of Brother Le! Even simple greens tasted heavenly when he cooked them. The crisp sweetness of the choy sum perfectly neutralized the greasiness of the phoenix claws, resetting her appetite. She felt like she could easily polish off two more large bowls of rice!

Unsurprisingly, her belly was perfectly round by the end of the meal. Even though there was no dessert today, she was still completely satisfied.

After finishing her meal, Chen Qiyun fidgeted before finally speaking up. "Um, Brother Le, our teacher wants you to visit the school this afternoon."

Chen Jingle immediately sensed something was off. "Me? Why would I go to your school? I don’t even know your teacher. Did you get into trouble and get your parents called in?"

"No, I didn’t!" Chen Qiyun vehemently denied.

"Then why call a guardian in all of a sudden?" Chen Jingle frowned. "It’s not time for the monthly exams, nor is it midterms or finals."

"How should I know!" Chen Qiyun pouted, clearly getting a little moody. "My teacher just told me to bring a guardian over, saying she wanted to chat about my studies."

Her teacher, Li Beixing, had stopped her to say this right after classes ended at noon. When she first heard it, she was utterly paralyzed with shock. She had wanted to refuse, but Li Beixing didn’t give her the chance at all, shooing her away right after dropping the bomb. Left with no other choice, Chen Qiyun could only seek help from Chen Jingle.

"Are you the only one?"

"Yeah."

Chen Jingle didn’t even bat an eyelid. "Then you should ask your parents to go, or Grandpa and Grandma."

"My parents are at work. They don’t have the time. Besides, if they were the ones talking to the teacher, they’d scold me right away, no matter the reason. Grandpa and Grandma are in their seventies and eighties; how could you bear making them make that trip? Plus, all they know is to tell me to study—they have no idea how I’m actually doing." Chen Qiyun wrung the hem of her school uniform, muttering softly.

No matter how she looked at it, having Chen Jingle act as her guardian to talk to the teacher felt much safer. At the very least, even if there really was a problem, Chen Jingle wouldn’t beat her up. Her parents, on the other hand, were a different story.

Chen Jingle remained silent. He took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. He inexplicably felt his resolve soften. It was as if he could see his younger self—lonely and helpless, with his parents far away.

Second Uncle and Second Aunt left early and returned late. Chen Qiyun was essentially raised by Grandpa and Grandma. While she wasn’t technically a left-behind child, her situation wasn’t much different.

Because he had been caught in the rain himself, should he hold an umbrella for others? Or should he tear theirs apart?

Chen Jingle tapped his fingers lightly against the armrest. After a long moment, he raised his eyes and asked, "What time?"

Chen Qiyun looked up, visible joy blooming on her face. "Anytime between four and four-thirty in the afternoon is fine. After four, my teacher doesn’t have any classes, and after four-thirty, she might already be off work and heading home. When you get to the school, just go straight to the Eighth Grade Group A Office and look for Li Beixing."

Chen Jingle silently committed the details to memory and asked, "Which class are you in?"

"Class 2."

"Alright, got it."

"Remember now, don’t oversleep!" Chen Qiyun added, still lacking confidence in him as she warned him repeatedly.

Even if Chen Jingle were an idiot, he wouldn’t mess up something this simple.

Later that afternoon, after waking up from his nap, Chen Jingle went through his usual routine of completing two lesson sessions before speaking up.

"System, please adjust the time for my third free activity session and move it to tonight. I need to head out soon."

[Understood. The schedule has been replanned for Little Chen Jingle.]

Chen Jingle changed into an outfit that looked a bit less casual, put on proper shoes and socks, and inspected himself in the mirror. Once he was certain there was nothing inappropriate about his attire, he strapped on his helmet, hopped onto his electric scooter, and set off.

Chen Qiyun attended No. 8 Middle School. This school only had a junior high division. It was located in the northwest part of the city, about three kilometers away from Chen Jingle’s home. The quality of education there was average; its only saving grace was being a public municipal school.

Before this middle school was built, the kids from Chen Jingle’s village had to attend a town middle school that was much further away, and they had to board there. This was due to city regulations stating that urban schools were not allowed to directly recruit students from townships to prevent stealing enrollment from rural schools.

Chen Jingle had been lucky. During his year, the Second and Third Middle Schools had obtained a quota for rural student admissions. Chen Xiuyun, on the other hand, had been sent to live and study with relatives starting from elementary school.

Originally, Second Uncle planned to have Chen Qiyun study at a relative’s place as well. But later, No. 8 Middle School was built. Although its educational quality couldn’t compete with the established older schools, it was decent enough, and it had quotas to enroll students from nearby villages and towns. Coupled with the fact that Chen Qiyun herself refused to live with relatives, she opted to enroll at the closer school.

Because No. 8 Middle School was a new institution, it looked quite bright and pristine from the outside, even if it was a bit on the smaller side.

Visitors had to register before entering the campus. After filling in his ID information, Chen Jingle parked his electric scooter under the direction of the security guard. He then began searching for the Eighth Grade Group A Office.

He arrived right during the break between classes. After grabbing a random passing student to ask for directions, he headed straight for his destination.

"This should be it, right?"

Chen Jingle looked up at the sign hanging above the door, glanced at the figures inside the office, and stood at the entrance to knock.

"Hello, is Ms. Li Beixing here?"

The office, which had been buzzing with cheerful chatter just moments before, instantly fell silent the moment everyone caught a clear view of the figure standing in the doorway.