Chapter 23. Mother and Daughter

Gu Family.

A beautiful middle-aged woman in an apron was busy in the kitchen.

Her name was Yao Qian, the mistress of this building and also Gu Yanxi’s mother.

Just as she finished plating a dish and was about to bring it to the living room, her daughter’s voice suddenly sounded from outside the kitchen.

“Mom, I’m going out for a bit. I won’t be eating dinner tonight.”

“I just finished making dinner for you, what are you talking about? Who are you going out with?”

Yao Qian set down the plate, responding rather irritably.

Since her husband had passed away from illness five years ago, it had just been her and her daughter relying on each other.

Fortunately, her husband had left this building behind before he died, so despite the lack of other income, the rent alone was enough to support the two of them.

After her husband died, considering that her daughter was already grown up and might feel uncomfortable, Yao Qian had chosen not to remarry.

Because of this, all her love and affection had been devoted entirely to Gu Yanxi.

At this moment, hearing that her daughter actually wanted to go out at night, Yao Qian suddenly felt a wave of anxiety.

Her precious daughter wouldn’t be thinking about dating, would she…?

Sure enough, her daughter’s voice from the room suddenly became hesitant and bashful: “With… a friend…”

At that moment, Yao Qian felt as if she had been struck by lightning; she set the plate down and stormed over to Gu Yanxi’s room, throwing the door open.

Her daughter was still in pajamas, hastily shutting her wardrobe, with a few skirts and undergarments scattered untidily upon the bed.

Seeing her mother suddenly burst in, Gu Yanxi’s pretty face turned as white as snow. She bit her lip and lowered her head, speechless.

As expected… Seeing her daughter looking so eager to throw herself out there, Yao Qian was practically furious to the point of fainting.

However, not wanting to hurt her daughter’s pride, she took a deep breath and did her best to moderate her emotions, asking as gently as possible, “Xiaoxi, is that friend of yours a boy?”

Gu Yanxi’s fair cheeks flushed with a rosy hue as she explained, “No… it’s Chen Zixuan from next door. He just paid the rent for the last two months and said he wanted to treat me to dinner…”

Is Chen Zixuan not a man?

Yao Qian almost laughed in exasperation at her own daughter.

However, hearing this, Yao Qian was a little relieved.

Since it was just the neighbor next door, there shouldn’t be any problem. As for Chen Zixuan, such a strong and independent child, Yao Qian actually felt quite sympathetic toward him.

At such a young age, his parents barely cared about him. Even though he lived on his own, he managed his life very well.

It had to be said, Yao Qian actually had some goodwill toward Chen Zixuan.

First, there was no way her own daughter could marry out in the future; otherwise, she would be left all alone in this house. Wouldn’t that be a lonely life?

Therefore, long ago, Yao Qian had entertained the idea of finding a live-in son-in-law for her daughter.

The next-door Chen Zixuan was quite suitable—mature, steady, and ambitious.

Entrusting her daughter to him, at least under her own watchful eye, was far better than letting her be tricked away by someone with bad intentions.

Still, regardless of her thoughts, she knew she had to make things clear from the start.

So Yao Qian put on a serious face and admonished, “Even if it’s just Little Chen, as a girl, you should act a bit more reserved. Look at yourself, what are you thinking?”

Seeing her mother’s tone softening slightly, Gu Yanxi felt a trace of joy within and quickly acted spoiled, saying, “Mom, I’ll just be out for a bit—two hours and I’ll be back. Don’t you trust Chen Zixuan?”

Yao Qian thought for a moment. Having been through this herself, two hours really wasn’t enough time for them to do anything too outrageous.

Besides, she had always doted on her only daughter. So Yao Qian finally replied, somewhat helplessly, “Alright, but next time you need to talk to me first, okay?”

Seeing her mother finally relent, Gu Yanxi immediately showered her with affection: “Mm mm, I’ll pay attention next time. Mom, you’re the best~”

Seeing how airheaded her daughter was, Yao Qian grumbled, “What’s so great? Let me tell you, you two are still young, so you need to watch your boundaries. With how silly you are, if you ever get tricked, don’t come crying to me.”

Understanding the meaning in her mother’s words, Gu Yanxi’s face turned even redder and she quickly shook her head. “Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey! That won’t happen to me!”

“It better not,”

Yao Qian snorted.

“Go tidy up and come back early. Don’t make me worry about you at home.”

“Mom, wait!”

Just as Yao Qian was about to turn and leave, Gu Yanxi suddenly called out to her.

“Help me pick—which dress looks nicer…?”

Gu Yanxi picked up a white dress and held it to her front, blushing as she asked softly.

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Elsewhere, Chen Zixuan had been waiting for a long time before he finally saw Gu Yanxi’s reply.

“Where are we eating? Do you know how to cook?”

Of course Chen Zixuan knew how to cook. To save money, he usually bought groceries to cook for himself at home, confident his skills were comparable to most restaurants outside.

However, since he’d made some money today, it was only natural to treat himself for once and eat out.

Besides, he hadn’t gone out to buy groceries today, and there were only a few packets of instant noodles left at home. Eating those on his own was fine, but he couldn’t ask Gu Yanxi to have instant noodles with him, right?

So, Chen Zixuan replied, “I didn’t buy groceries today. Let’s eat out. What do you like?”

This time, it only took Gu Yanxi a few seconds to reply.

“Anything is fine, just don’t make it too expensive. Let’s split the bill fifty-fifty.”

“Don’t waste money. Save it.”

“We need it for medicine later.”

“Yes.”

Gu Yanxi typed rapidly, sending several messages in a row.

“Forget split the bill; I said I’d treat.”

Chen Zixuan glanced at the time and replied, “See you in half an hour.”

He put down his phone and walked to the bathroom, planning to take a hot shower and change his clothes.

The apartment Chen Zixuan rented was a standard one-bedroom, living room, kitchen, and bathroom. Small but fully equipped; apart from a TV and computer, it had all the necessary electronics.

When Chen Zixuan took off his shirt and stood in front of the bathroom mirror, he suddenly froze.

He wasn’t sure if it was the lighting, but he felt like his skin had gotten a little paler, and the contours of his muscles seemed smoother and more defined.

Because he’d been working part-time under the sun and rain, Chen Zixuan’s skin tended to be on the darker side, with very prominent arms and muscle definition—a typical case of looking slim with clothes on and muscular when shirtless.

His facial features weren’t unattractive—on the contrary, there was a bit of that soft-edged, handsome, somewhat androgynous style reminiscent of Japanese “salt-type” boys.

But because his skin was darker, and since he’d always been quiet and low-key, wearing only the cheapest clothes from online shops, he had little presence in class.

To this day, at age seventeen, he’d never been confessed to by a girl.

Yet at this moment, staring at himself in the mirror, Chen Zixuan suddenly felt like something strange was going on.

Apparently, boys have a tendency to think they look particularly handsome after taking a shower and looking in the mirror.

What should I do? Is this just my imagination?

————-= Clacky’s Corner ————-=

Nice, a supportive mother-in-law…

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】

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