Chapter 130
When Sheng Mumu encountered a mischievous child at the wedding banquet, she was secretly relieved that being a stepmother was easier than she had anticipated. Qi Shaobai was a tall and robust man, not as difficult to handle as a child.
But now, she deeply felt that she had underestimated the challenges of dealing with the stubborn and temperamental young master of the prestigious Qi family.
Not only was he difficult to deceive due to his age and wit, but he also frequently criticized and attacked her.
Sigh.
She had endured too much.
Fifty thousand yuan as her monthly allowance.
It was what she deserved!
Feeling in a good mood today, Sheng Mumu couldn't be bothered to argue back. Instead, she smiled kindly and gently patted the back of Qi Shaobai's head, saying:
"As everyone knows, not criticizing others will not land you in jail."
Qi Shaobai was stunned by the patting and remained speechless, "..."
Before he could recover and prepare to retaliate, Sheng Mumu leisurely climbed the stairs without looking back, saying to him:
"I'll ask your dad if he's coming."
Qi Shaobai's head still throbbed from the patting, but his voice concealed a faint smile as he lazily replied, "Oh."
That evening, Sheng Mumu told Qi Mo about the coming-of-age ceremony at Jing City No.1 Middle School.
Qi Mo checked his schedule and found that he had free time on that day, so he agreed to accompany them.
Sheng Mumu felt like a messenger between the two Qi men and sent a message to Qi Shaobai:
"Your dad is going too."
Qi Shaobai felt happy inside but didn't want to show it. He coolly replied with a single digit, "1."
Looking at the indifferent "1" on the screen, Sheng Mumu's lips twitched.
She regretted that she had slapped him too lightly.
*
Qi Shaobai knew that both his father and stepmother would attend the school's coming-of-age ceremony, and his good mood lasted until Monday.
His usually straight lips were slightly upturned.
He was attentive during class, and he even broke his usual habit and asked the physics teacher for help with a difficult problem after class.
At noon, it started raining outside.
Raindrops pattered against the windowsill.
Qi Shaobai leaned against his desk, lazily looking out the window.
His mouth sank, and a hint of bitterness appeared on his usually aloof face.
Speaking to himself:
"I hope it won't rain on Wednesday." Wei Zhaonan, sitting in the front row, had already noticed that Qi Shaobai was acting strange today.
Upon hearing his remark, his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
The usual Qi Shaobai wouldn't even bother to carry an umbrella when it rained.
He always adhered to the belief of "deal with problems as they come, never anticipate difficulties."
Yet today, he was here, seemingly bothered by the light rain.
Wei Zhaonan turned his head, leaning against the backrest of his chair, and asked:
"Qi Shaobai, what's wrong? Feeling sentimental today?"
The corners of Qi Shaobai's eyebrows lifted slightly, and he lazily glanced at Wei Zhaonan, "Are you... concerned about my dad?"
Wei Zhaonan lowered his eyelids halfway, as if he had already expected that Qi Shaobai wouldn't have anything nice to say. He responded with a mouth-shape, "...Bro, you're right."
Around them, classmates who had finished lunch gathered in small groups, chatting away.
Almost everyone was discussing the coming-of-age ceremony.
Two girls from the neighboring group sat in their seats, unable to hide their excitement in their voices:
"My mom said she'll give me a set of T-brand lipstick in all shades for the coming-of-age ceremony."
"Wow! Your mom is so great!" the girl next to her exclaimed. "My dad said he'll buy me a basic platinum bag. I'll finally have my own designer bag."
Jing City No.1 Middle School was an elite school, where it seemed necessary to mention gifts of such value.
A few boys sitting in the back row also joined the conversation with the two girls.
"I won't receive any gifts. My parents won't come, so most likely they will just give me some red envelopes as a perfunctory gesture."
"Sigh, my dad plans to give me his old car as a coming-of-age gift and buy a new one for himself. Can you believe it?"
As the words fell, laughter filled the air.
Wei Zhaonan shifted his gaze and asked Qi Shaobai:
"Did your aunt and uncle prepare any gifts for you?"
Qi Shaobai lifted his eyelids indifferently and shrugged, "Doesn't matter."
It had to be admitted that when he found out that his dad and stepmother were coming, there was a flicker of anticipation in his heart.
But it passed in an instant. Based on his understanding of his dad, he never treated any special occasion differently.
Anticipating a gift from his dad was no different from anticipating the sudden cancellation of the English subject, which was his most dreaded part of the college entrance examination.
And what about his stepmother?
There was some anticipation, but not much.
After all, she was the person who gave him a stack of past exam papers as a gift.
Let's not dwell on that memory.jpg
At the same time that Qi Shaobai was feeling sentimental and conflicted, Sheng Mumu came out of the company.
She gracefully sat in a red Porsche, purposefully started the car, and drove out of the parking lot.
Today, she had already informed Jia Mu and Cheng Zhuo in advance that she had some personal matters to attend to in the afternoon and wouldn't be returning to the company.
She arrived at the mall where she had previously bought skiing equipment.
After parking the car, she entered the elevator hall and pressed the floor button for the men's clothing section without hesitation.
She wandered around this floor for a long time.
Looking for a coming-of-age gift for Qi Shaobai. Her expression went from relaxed to increasingly troubled.
It was so difficult to choose!
It seemed that the men's section of the mall only targeted adult, wealthy men.
Suits were a waste of money since Qi Shaobai rarely had a chance to wear them.
Leather shoes didn't match his youthful vibe.
As she was pondering, she walked into a shop with a slow pace.
Suddenly, her sparkling eyes widened.
She saw a gift that was perfect for Qi Shaobai.
Out of habit, she flipped open the price tag.
Astounded.
As expected, her sense of aesthetics was still excellent.
The desired item had an exorbitant price.
Outrageous.
Sheng Mumu took a deep breath and pursed her lips.
A coming-of-age ceremony only happened once in a lifetime.
It was worth spending the money on this.
With determination in her heart, she took out her own bank card and made the purchase.
*
The day of the coming-of-age ceremony arrived.
In the villa, apart from the butler and servants, Qi Shaobai was the first one to wake up.
The school had relaxed the rules for today, allowing the third-year high school students to attend the collective activities without wearing the school uniform.
He searched through the wardrobe, skimming over the various black and gray T-shirts he usually wore, and picked a dark blue shirt.
Qi Shaobai, like Qi Mo, had naturally pale skin.
Wearing dark blue, a color that complemented his complexion, made him appear even paler.
After changing into the shirt he rarely wore, Qi Shaobai stood in front of the mirror, examining himself from different angles, feeling like something was missing.
The young man nodded slightly, raised his eyes, and looked at his somewhat unkempt hair in the mirror.
Yes, he needed a matching hairstyle.
It took Qi Shaobai about twenty minutes to come out after he finished styling his hair in the bathroom.
Sheng Mumu was having breakfast in the dining room when she heard some noise and turned her head to look.
Her eyes widened abruptly, and a mouthful of porridge got stuck in her throat, neither going up nor down.
Sensing her gaze, Qi Shaobai raised an eyebrow slightly, looking somewhat embarrassed as he touched his nose.
"What are you staring at?"
Could it be that his first attempt at styling his hair was not bad at all?
Sheng Mumu took a shallow breath and said, "Qi Shaobai, how much do you want to make your hair look like an adult?"
Does he... need half a pound of hair wax for that?