Sheng Mumu said she would come the next week, but she knocked on Qi Shaobai's door that very night.
A burst of messy sounds came from inside the room.
After about a minute, Qi Shaobai came to open the door.
The door was opened halfway.
Qi Shaobai leaned against the door frame with an unruly look on his handsome face. He lazily said,
"I'm doing worksheets. I don't want to eat anything."
Usually when Sheng Mumu knocked on his door, nine out of ten times it was to bring him food, so he reflexively answered as such.
Sheng Mumu's eyes narrowed as she glanced into the room.
Qi Shaobai warily shifted his body a little, as if to block Sheng Mumu's line of sight.
"You..." Sheng Mumu saw through him in a second. She held out her palm to Qi Shaobai and sternly said, "Hand over the stuff before I get angry."
Qi Shaobai's pupils abruptly shrank. He pretended not to understand, "...Huh?"
Sheng Mumu's brow quirked up. Having caught his micro-expression, she crossed her arms over her chest.
She had an "Are you still trying to fool me" look on her face as she smiled at Qi Shaobai.
"What are you talking about?" Qi Shaobai said guiltily. In his panic he blurted out, "I'm building with Lego. What worksheets?"
As soon as the words left his mouth...
The air froze.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
Sheng Mumu: "..."
Qi Shaobai's eyes grew wider and wider: "!!!"
How did I just expose myself, damn it!
"Student Qi Shaobai, do you want to listen to what you just said?"
Sheng Mumu calmly reached out and grabbed Qi Shaobai's hoodie. She pulled him out of the room with one firm yank.
"Get out here!"
"Hey, don't pull--you're choking me--"
In the midst of it, Qi Shaobai accidentally lost one of his slippers from walking backwards. Seeing Sheng Mumu's strict attitude, he didn't dare pause to pick it up.
Sheng Mumu ignored Qi Shaobai's shouts. She scanned the spacious living room, considering where would be best to drag Qi Shaobai.
Lately the little brat had grown taller. Having to look up to scold him diminished her imposing manner.
After a moment, Sheng Mumu pushed Qi Shaobai down onto the sofa in the adjoining room.
With the choking sensation around his neck gone, he coughed a few times.
"Cough cough--"
Sheng Mumu stood opposite him with arms crossed, face stern as she asked:
"Speak. How many all-nighters have you pulled recently to build Lego?"
"None--"
Qi Shaobai caught sight of Sheng Mumu balling her hands into fists. He gulped and didn't dare lie again.
"I didn't stay up all night. I did rest."
"You call sleeping during class rest?" Sheng Mumu looked down at him, her volume not raised but still giving off an intimidating aura.
Qi Shaobai's gaze darted around uneasily. "No...I slept two or three hours at night too."
Just as Sheng Mumu was about to explode with anger--
"I know I was wrong!"
Qi Shaobai raised his voice to cut her off and quickly admitted he was wrong.
He looked up at her. His usually unruly, handsome face now held an pitiful expression that Sheng Mumu had never seen him make before.
Qi Shaobai repeated himself: "I know I was wrong."
Sheng Mumu pressed her lips. "In the future--"
"I won't dare do it again!" Qi Shaobai interrupted.
"..." Sheng Mumu was rendered speechless for a moment.
Her two rebukes were blocked.
She didn't know what else to scold him for.
This kid admitted defeat pretty quickly.
Wonder where he learned that.
Seeing Qi Shaobai's good attitude in admitting his mistake, Sheng Mumu's anger dissipated by more than half. But she still confiscated all his Lego and locked them away in the collection room. She would personally keep the key.
After taking care of everything, Sheng Mumu sat down opposite Qi Shaobai.
She heaved a deep sigh, still deciding they needed to properly talk things through.
Sheng Mumu relaxed her posture and patted Qi Shaobai's shoulder, signaling him to stop being so tense too.
"Student Qi, I accept your apology. But we need to communicate the deeper significance behind what happened today."
"Otherwise my anger today would be pointless, and your apology meaningless too."
"Tell me your thoughts first, say whatever comes to mind."
Qi Shaobai hung his head low and reflected sincerely: "I shouldn't have pulled all-nighters playing with Lego and let it impact my classes--"
"No." Sheng Mumu suddenly interrupted him.
Qi Shaobai froze and lifted his head to look directly at her.
No?
"That's not the main issue here."
Sheng Mumu pressed her lips. Her gaze turned gentle as she slowly said:
"Staying up all night does affect grades, but you can make up for lost time by putting in more effort later on."
"If I guess correctly, that was your plan when deciding to pull those all-nighters. Right?"
As if his thoughts were seen through, Qi Shaobai nodded slowly.
Sheng Mumu entered the crux of the matter:
"I remember at the beginning of this semester when you packed up all your Lego into the collection room, you made a bold declaration that you 'would not touch them again until the college entrance exam'. Isn't that right?"
"Mm." Qi Shaobai remembered this incident.
But as time passed, he had gradually forgotten the flag he set back then.
Sheng Mumu said gently: "Student Qi, more than your grades, I care about you keeping your word."
Qi Shaobai didn't grasp her meaning right away.
Sheng Mumu relaxed back into the sofa and handed him a grape soda.
She shared the life lessons she had summarized, in a not overly preachy way:
"If you make a promise, you should see it through. If you feel unable to do it or sense you won't be able to keep it, best not to make the commitment in the first place."
"When you grow up, there will be many misunderstandings because of careless words and willing ears. People will judge whether you are reliable and trustworthy often based on such details. Understand?"
Qi Shaobai was stunned into silence for a long while before slowly reaching out to take the soda Sheng Mumu held out to him.
His long eyelashes fluttered. He digested her words.
The teenager who would soon turn eighteen had never in his decade-plus of life been taught such things by anyone.
Hearing them all of a sudden, it was as if that empty space in his heart labeled "maternal love" was wrapped up by a pair of warm hands, wisps of comforting warmth trailing through.
Not wanting the atmosphere to become too somber, Sheng Mumu shifted into a more casual sitting position, tucking her legs beneath her on the sofa. She nudged Qi Shaobai's arm with her elbow and asked:
"By the way, student Qi, what kind of adult do you want to become in the future? I never asked you that before."
As soon as she finished speaking...
Qi Shaobai answered almost instantly.
"Like my dad."
This was a question Qi Shaobai had asked himself many times in his heart.
Each time, his dad's silhouette would appear in his mind.
"Awesome!"
Sheng Mumu's bright eyes curved into crescents. She lavished praise without restraint:
"Your dad is super incredibly awesome. With him as your goal, you will also become super incredibly awesome in the future. I believe in you!"
Sheng Mumu wasn't only making judgments based on her reading of Qi Shaobai's future as a business tycoon and male lead.
After interacting with him for a long time, this was her sincere opinion.
She seized the chance to use Qi Mo's good qualities to educate Qi Shaobai.
Counting off on her fingers, she tallied it for him.
"Student Qi, look. Firstly, your dad is an extremely reliable person. No matter how small, he remembers every promise he makes and sees them through. You definitely have to learn this from him."
Qi Shaobai nodded firmly. "Mm!"
Sheng Mumu held up a second finger:
"Secondly, not only is your dad smart, he's hardworking too. He's earned so much money yet still works every day. If it were someone else, they might have given up long ago. Right?"
Qi Shaobai, diehard dad fanboy, nodded frequently. "Right, correct."
"So you should learn this point too."
"Mm."
"Thirdly, he's handsome." While listing things off, Sheng Mumu oddly veered the focus.
"...Uh, wait." Qi Shaobai tilted his head, confused. "Do I have to learn this too? Is it because I'm not good-looking--"
He didn't get to finish his sentence. Qi Shaobai's gaze abruptly froze in place.
His line of sight fell on a spot not far behind Sheng Mumu. His pupils slowly widened.
He exclaimed in surprise:
"....Dad?"
Sheng Mumu whirled around.
She saw Qi Mo's tall figure lazily leaning against the sofa backrest. His black coat was draped loosely over his forearms. His striking brows and eyes held a smiling expression as he watched them.
Sheng Mumu was dumbfounded.
"When...when did you come back?"
The corners of Qi Mo's lips threatened to lift. He slowly loosened his tie with one hand. His pitch black eyes narrowed slightly.
"Let me think--"
His voice softened at the end, betraying a hint of joy that could not be concealed.
"It started when you praised me for being serious, dignified and prim and proper."
