The dessert after dinner was lemon yogurt ice cream.
The creamy yogurt ice cream melted in the mouth.
Refreshing, sweet and sour.
But Sheng Mumu's mood was not refreshing at all...
She felt uneasy under the burning gaze of the man before her.
Qi Mo's eyes contained emotions she could not discern, staring at her unblinkingly.
Sheng Mumu thought to herself.
It's not the first time.
He always seems to have something behind his words.
Sheng Mumu could not figure out what kind of feeling it was.
She simply did not try to figure it out.
Following Qi Mo's words, she replied naturally:
"Yes, I was thinking the same thing. Actually, the important thing I wanted to discuss with you today is..."
Qi Mo's eyes narrowed, and his brows raised slightly: "What is it?"
Sheng Mumu smiled brightly, "Can I pay you back later for the money I owe you?"
As soon as she finished speaking, she saw the man's shoulders sink almost imperceptibly.
Qi Mo pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a sudden throbbing pain in his temples.
"That's the important thing you wanted to talk about?"
Sheng Mumu grinned and nodded.
Qi Mo was silent.
After a while, the corners of his lips finally curved up in a helpless arc, and his voice was low and gentle:
"Okay."
In the car back to Xiyu Yutian,
Sheng Mumu noticed that Qi Mo's mood seemed a little low.
He kept looking out the window, lost in thought.
After thinking for a while, she patted his arm and smiled, saying in a voice only the two of them could hear:
"Let's not count today."
The Rolls-Royce was driving through a dimly-lit tunnel.
Half of Qi Mo's face was shrouded in shadows, and his voice was as dark and ambiguous as the light:
"Don't count what."
Sheng Mumu: "Let's not count today's meal as my treat. Another day, I'll properly invite you out to eat again, okay?"
When they left the private room earlier, the two rows of employees who stood neatly to see them off bypassed the step of paying the bill.
The money she had prepared to spend today remained unspent.
She should find an opportunity to make up for it.
The tunnel was very short.
The Rolls-Royce drove out of the tunnel.
The streetlights suddenly shone in the man's deep and obscure eyes.
Tiny specks of light, profound and attractive.
A trace of delight was slowly rising.
Driver Wang didn't say a word as he gripped the steering wheel.
He saw the boss's expression clearly in the rearview mirror.
He couldn't hear what they were saying, but he saw it all too clearly, and couldn't help but look surprised.
Boss Qi's face was clearly gloomy just now, yet after Madam said a few words, he actually smiled.
Who would've thought that Boss Qi was so easy to coax.
Indeed.
The soft can overcome the hard.
Even Boss Qi can't escape this law.
When they returned to Xiyu Yutian, it was close to nine o'clock.
Qi Shaobai heard the sound of the door and gripped the things in his hands a little tighter.
Then, as if wanting to let Dad and Stepmom know he was there, he cleared his throat twice.
"Cough, cough—"
After changing her shoes, Sheng Mumu walked in and found Qi Shaobai.
He was neither watching TV nor playing on his phone, just sitting on the sofa.
Sheng Mumu suddenly had a bad premonition.
When she was little, she would sit obediently like this waiting for her parents to come home after doing something wrong, not daring to do anything.
What mistake did this kid make?
Qi Mo followed behind Sheng Mumu and casually handed his thin coat to Butler Zhang.
When his gaze swept over Qi Shaobai, his brow furrowed slightly.
As the saying goes, it takes one to know one.
With just a glance, he could tell from Qi Shaobai's expression that something was off.
Qi Shaobai's current appearance was exactly like a subordinate in the group who had just completed a big project and wanted to be praised for it, but was too shy to actively invite merit.
Sheng Mumu asked in confusion:
"Why are you just sitting here blankly? Have you finished your homework?" That was exactly what Qi Shaobai was waiting for her to say!
"Yeah, I'm done." He lazily stood up, waved the test paper in his hand a few times, and said arrogantly, "The monthly exam results came out today. Do you want to see?"
Upon hearing this, Sheng Mumu walked over briskly and peeked at the test paper, "Let me see."
His scores in Chinese, math, and science were stable.
It wasn't until she saw the English test paper.
A hint of delight gradually appeared on Sheng Mumu's bright and fair face. She exclaimed in surprise:
"You passed, your score is 29 points higher than last time!"
With his hands in his pockets, Qi Shaobai lifted his chin slightly, a hint of pride in his upward lilting tone: "Mm-hmm."
Sheng Mumu smiled and took away the English test paper, holding it up for the mature man behind her to see, unfolding it:
"Look, the English failure Qi Shaobai has made progress on his exam."
Qi Mo's eyes were gentle as he slowly moved his gaze away from her smiling eyes and scanned the test paper.
Next to Qi Shaobai's name, the red number 91 stood out clearly:
91.
The darkness in his eyes suddenly contracted, gentleness no more.
After improving by 29 points, he still only got 91.
Qi Shaobai's eyes didn't look at Dad.
But his full attention was on this side, his heart hanging in midair.
The exchanged gazes between father and son.
Each had their own thoughts, and neither spoke.
Qi Shaobai looked slightly innocent, cautious.
Inner os: 29 points, 29 points isn't a small number.
Qi Mo was deep in thought, his brow furrowing gradually.
He remembered that sister Gu Wan's grades were always excellent.
But Qi Shaobai...
Seeing their awkward father-son interaction, Sheng Mumu was anxious.
Qi Mo ah Qi Mo, is it going to kill you to praise him a little?
Little Qi ah little Qi, if you're happy, hold your dad's hand and spin around in circles. Don't tell me you think being silent makes you look cool.
Sheng Mumu looked at Old Qi, then looked at Little Qi.
Just as she was about to say something, she saw Qi Mo seem to have figured something out, his eyes softening.
The cold and overbearing aura surrounding him eased, and he said to Qi Shaobai:
"You've improved a lot this time, keep up the hard work."
His tone contained affirmation.
Although it was very reluctant affirmation.
But still affirmation.
Qi Shaobai's body stiffened, his expression unchanged, but it was as if fireworks had exploded in his heart.
Did he hear that right?
Dad was praising him?
The teenager lowered his head to hide his excitement, not wanting to look too much like a child.
His lips, originally pressed in a straight line, twitched, wanting to smile but holding back.
He responded in a curt and certain tone: "Mm, I'll work hard."
Sheng Mumu smiled like a loving mother.
That's right.
This is how it should be.
Positive encouragement, yay!
After Dad went upstairs, Qi Shaobai completely relaxed.
It was as if he had become a different person, instantly transforming from an obedient puppy into a cocky kitten.
He bragged to Sheng Mumu:
"I had the biggest increase in single subject scores in the class, pretty awesome right?"
Sheng Mumu: ......
She didn't want to discourage him. The big improvement was because he started from a low base.
Adhering to the principle of petting the cat in the direction of fur growth, she encouraged him along his train of thought:
"Awesome, I should give you something as a reward for your exam improvement."
Upon hearing the word "gift", Qi Shaobai instantly froze.
He held up his hands in an X shape and firmly refused:
"I appreciate the thought, but no need for gifts, I'm scared."
He hadn't finished the past papers she gave him last time yet.
He didn't want to reminisce about that.
Sheng Mumu tapped her chin in thought as she headed upstairs.
She casually responded:
"Pshh, no need to stand on ceremony with me."
Qi Shaobai: ............????
No.
Who's standing on ceremony with you.
How do you get that meaning?
