After Being Scummed – Chapter 26

Teacher Zuo is the best in the world

Upon receiving work assignments from Yin Bai, Xiang Qiu quickly drafted three travel guides for European countries. After some consideration, Yin Bai ultimately chose Austria.

Austria is renowned as the land of music, with its capital Vienna earning the title of the “World’s Music Capital.” In this place, the ambiance is saturated with classical music and opera, making it an ideal environment to nurture children’s emotions and cultivate their aesthetic sensibilities. Furthermore, Salzburg, the hometown of the musical genius Mozart, is famous for its skiing resorts and hot springs, perfectly aligning with the purpose of their upcoming journey.

Zuo Jingyou had no objections to this arrangement, and with her consent, Yin Bai shared the news with the children. The children cheered with excitement and eagerly prepared for their upcoming trip.

However, being friends with Yin Bai, the children knew that things wouldn’t be that straightforward. Capitalizing on the opportunity presented by the trip, Yin Bai encouraged her two little friends to gather information about Austria on their own. This included details such as the capital of Austria, its culinary delights, famous personalities associated with the country, and more.

With the approach of the Spring Festival, the two children who were already on holiday were predominantly occupied with these tasks.

Soon, the Spring Festival arrived. On the 27th day of the lunar year, Zuo Jingyou finally managed to fly back to Haicheng.

Upon her return, Zuo Jingyou was immediately surrounded by Tong Tong and Wen Wen, and they didn’t come to play with Yin Bai. The following day, at noon, Yin Bai sat on the swing in the balcony on the second floor, reading a book. She happened to see Zuo Jingyou with the children and their toys, gathering on the lawn to wash them.

Even though it was winter, Haicheng was unusually warm. The children, wearing knitted sweaters, held their toys and handkerchiefs as they ran around the lawn, their laughter echoing against the clear sky.

Yin Bai closed the book she held in her hands, looked up at the sky, and then down at the lawn. Gazing at the distant, cheerful figures, she couldn’t help but feel a pang in her heart, thinking, “With a mother around, they’ve forgotten their good friend who has accompanied them through thick and thin.”

Yin Bai snorted, deciding that “out of sight, out of mind” was the best course of action, and she began to walk upstairs.

Just at this moment, Zuo Jingyou, who was trying to keep the children from being noisy, looked up and saw Yin Bai walking inside.

For some unknown reason, Zuo Jingyou stood on the lawn, raised her hand high and shouted, “Hey!”

Yin Bai heard the voice, turned her head to look at Zuo Jingyou. She saw Zuo Jingyou leading the two children, vigorously waving her hands towards Yin Bai in the distance. Yin Bai, leaning on her cane, stood still, and when she saw the full smile on Zuo Jingyou’s face, she suddenly wasn’t as annoyed anymore.

Children, well, it’s quite normal for them to enjoy playing with their mothers.

With this thought in mind, Yin Bai put on a smile and waved back to Zuo Jingyou in the distance.

Zuo Jingyou in the distance chuckled, pointed at the plastic toys in the water basin where the children were playing, and asked loudly, “Do you want to come and play together?”

Yin Bai shrugged and waved off the invitation, saying, “No!” She gestured indoors and explained loudly to Zuo Jingyou, “I’m going to read.”

Zuo Jingyou nodded and said, “Alright, goodbye!”

“Goodbye.”

Saying this, Yin Bai held her book and headed to the study. She spent the afternoon in the study, and at around three o’clock, Tong Tong and Wen Wen knocked on Yin Bai’s door.

In fact, Yin Bai had previously set up facial recognition for them, so the two children didn’t actually need to ring the doorbell. However, as a matter of politeness, Tong Tong still pressed it every time.

When they received the video call at the front door, Yin Bai answered without hesitation.

In no time, Tong Tong’s rosy face appeared on the phone screen, and with her eyes squinted, she asked, “Sister, sister… where are you? We’ve come to play with you.”

Yin Bai became instantly delighted and responded cheerfully, “I’m in the study; come on up.”

After saying this, she hung up the call, and after a while, she heard the hurried footsteps of the two children outside the study.

Hearing this sound, Yin Bai picked up a bookmark and placed it in her book, then looked toward the doorway. Just at that moment, Tong Tong, with Wen Wen in tow, pushed the door open and saw Yin Bai cheerfully call out to her, “Fairy Sister!”

Yin Bai was seated behind the large study desk, legs crossed, hands resting on her abdomen, leaning comfortably against the back of the chair, and lazily asked, “My little Princesses, what can I do for you?“

Tong Tong and Wen Wen, as if carried by a gust of wind, circled around the long table from both sides and came to her side, saying, “Come on, we invite you to have some snacks!”

Yin Bai was quite surprised and looked at Wen Wen by her side, saying, “How strange, isn’t it usually you two who come to my place and share my food and drinks? Today, you’re so generous, inviting me to have cake?”

Wen Wen pouted and said with discontent, “Oh, come on, you’re such a big fairy, don’t be so stingy. Didn’t I share my ice cream with you last time?”

“This time, Auntie is back, and she made pudding, so we’ve come to invite you for afternoon tea!”

Tong Tong nodded and tugged at Yin Bai’s clothing, saying, “Yes, Mom’s pudding is so delicious; you have to come.”

Yin Bai thought for a moment and looked at Tong Tong, asking very seriously, “Tell me honestly, did your mom invite me, or was it your own idea?” She felt that, given the two little rascals’ nature, inclined to be both greedy and forgetful, it was probably Zuo Jingyou who reminded them to come find her.

But Tong Tong was having none of it; like a mischievous imp, she blinked and smiled sweetly, “Fairy Sister, of course, it was us who invited you. We asked Mom if we could invite you for afternoon tea, and she agreed.”

Wen Wen chimed in, “Exactly, didn’t you say before that you don’t visit homes with unfamiliar adults? So, since Auntie is here, we came to find you.”

Wen Wen patted her chest and said very earnestly, “I’ve been thinking about you whenever I have something good!”

“Alright,” Yin Bai picked up the cane hanging next to her chair, stood up, and said to the two children, “Since you’ve kindly invited me, it would be impolite not to go.”

She held Tong Tong’s hand with one hand and her cane with the other, and looked down at the little bean sprout beside her, asking, “How many puddings did your mom make?”

Wen Wen, while holding the belt hanging from Yin Bai’s coat, lowered her voice and said, “A lot, but Auntie only lets us have one.”

Yin Bai, understanding the situation, said mysteriously, “How about I help you so that you can have one more?”

Do we even need to say it? The two children exchanged a glance and promptly said, “Yes!”

So, Yin Bai followed the two children and headed to the neighboring house.

It had been over half a year since she last set foot in this house. This time, as a visiting guest, Yin Bai, holding the hands of the two children, carefully assessed the layout of the house.

Their section of the house was built in a Western-style villa design, perhaps due to Professor Sun’s influence, while the interior decoration of Zuo Jingyou’s house leaned more towards Chinese aesthetics. Although it didn’t have the same traditional charm as a fully Chinese-styled decor, it possessed an elegance and refinement of its own.

Yin Bai, whose taste leaned more towards Western aesthetics, found herself appreciating this type of decoration.

The two children led her through the entrance, bypassing the living room and hallway, and proceeded directly to the back of the villa. The winter day was warm, with sunlight streaming through the windproof glass and casting diagonal rays on the ground. Yin Bai, using her cane, followed the children through the hardwood-floored hallway and spotted a small, fully glass-enclosed tea pavilion at the end of the corridor.

Zuo Jingyou was sitting in the center of the tatami mat within the tea pavilion, currently bowing her head to brew tea. Outside this glass room, several clusters of green bamboo and a few white plum trees were planted. Despite it being winter, the warmth of the southern climate had the bamboo flourishing, and the white plum blossoms were already in full bloom on the branches.

Yin Bai halted her steps, fixing her gaze on Zuo Jingyou at the end of the corridor. The exquisitely made-up woman was wearing a qipao with a white base embroidered with ink plum blossoms. Her long, jet-black hair was elegantly pinned up with a black wooden hairpin, revealing her delicate and fair neck. Her slender figure exuded an alluring charm.

Perhaps upon hearing the footsteps, the woman who was brewing tea slowly raised her head and looked in their direction. In that fleeting moment when their gazes met, a gentle smile gradually graced the woman’s lips.

She called out, as if a gentle breeze was sighing, “Ah… Teacher Yin Bai, you’ve arrived.”

Yin Bai gripped her cane, and at that moment, it seemed as though she could hear the rustling of bamboo leaves beyond the glass or the plum blossoms opening in the wind.

She silently gazed at Zuo Jingyou and, at an inopportune moment, thought of a poem: “The grass ties up its seeds, the wind sways its leaves, we stand there, not speaking, and it’s perfectly beautiful.”

After a brief silence, Yin Bai finally spoke, smiling, “Yes, you’re right, I’m here.”

“For the sake of your pudding,” Yin Bai added, readjusted her cane, took a step forward, and led the two children towards Zuo Jingyou.

Zuo Jingyou chuckled, her gaze still lowered as she continued to brew tea. Once they entered, she looked up at Yin Bai and asked, “Would you like some black tea? You don’t mind black tea, do you?”

Black tea tends to be on the sweeter side, and Zhang Yu mentioned before that Yin Bai enjoys sweet treats, so Zuo Jingyou thought she might like black tea.

Yin Bai nodded, saying, “Yes, I can have some.”

She found her seat, stepped up onto the platform, and sat across from Zuo Jingyou. When the two children saw this, they cheered, kicked off their shoes, ascended the platform, and took their places in the center of the tatami mat, surrounded by numerous cushions.

Once the children were seated, they began chattering excitedly, praising Zuo Jingyou and then Yin Bai. The two adults were busy entertaining the children and hardly had any private conversation.

The children quickly finished their first serving of pudding, and when Yin Bai noticed this, she promptly devoured her portion as well. She then bit her spoon, looked at Zuo Jingyou, and winked as she said, “Your pudding is delicious. Can I have another, my friend?”

Zuo Jingyou hesitated for a moment, glancing at Yin Bai and then at her daughter, who was also eagerly watching her. She sighed with a touch of resignation and said, “If you’d like, I can have another one sent over in a while.” If she were to give Yin Bai another serving now, the children would undoubtedly want more as well. She couldn’t bear to disappoint the children, and she was sure to fulfill their requests.

But for the sake of the children’s health, it would be best if they ate less sugary treats.

Yin Bai, having made a promise to her little friends, felt that having one more serving of pudding wouldn’t be such a big deal. She quickly responded, “That’s not necessary. I think it’s wonderful to savor the delicious treat while it’s still available.”

She blinked at Zuo Jingyou, attempting to win over the adult’s heart. The little glutton, Wen Wen, also mimicked Yin Bai by blinking and hinting with all her might. She reached out, grabbed Zuo Jingyou’s arm, and coquettishly said, “Yeah, Auntie, you should enjoy good food when it’s available. Fairy Sister is our guest, and we should treat her well.”

Zuo Jingyou finally recognized their little tricks at this point and sighed in resignation, “If that’s the case, then let’s all indulge ourselves.”

Saying so, she got up to fetch the pudding for them in the kitchen.

Zuo Jingyou had only walked a short distance when she heard the children’s excited cheers from behind. “Yay!”

She instinctively turned back and looked down the hallway. There, she saw Wen Wen pouncing onto Yin Bai, planting a sweet kiss on her face, and shouting loudly, “Fairy Sister is the best in the world!”

Yin Bai quickly pushed her away and wiped off the saliva from her face with a handkerchief. She whispered, “Calm down, calm down. If your aunt finds out, you won’t get to eat anymore!”

Wen Wen hurriedly covered her mouth and, along with Tong Tong, huddled close to Yin Bai, chattering away. The two children showered Yin Bai with compliments and praises, each declaring her wisdom and brilliance.

Zuo Jingyou observed their lively and indulgent behavior, shaking her head and sighing before heading to the kitchen.

In a short while, Zuo Jingyou returned to the tea pavilion with fresh servings of pudding.

The children were overjoyed to have received double portions of pudding, and they showered Zuo Jingyou with rainbow-colored compliments, proclaiming her as the world’s most beautiful, kindest, and best.

Zuo Jingyou didn’t fall for their flattery and playfully flicked their foreheads, saying, “Stop talking nonsense. After you finish, make sure to clean your toys tomorrow, alright?”

Wen Wen and Tong Tong held their puddings, happily agreeing in unison, “Okay!”

After pacifying the children, Zuo Jingyou turned to Yin Bai and said, “Teacher Yin Bai, you spoil them too much. You shouldn’t allow them to do this next time.”

Yin Bai, biting her spoon, replied in a sullen tone, “Well, it’s because your pudding is so delicious!” To avoid being held accountable, Yin Bai quickly changed the topic and, lifting her teacup, intentionally raised her voice, saying, “Oh, by the way, I forgot to compliment you!”

“Your qipao today looks super stylish, exceptionally beautiful, even more radiant than the winter’s white plum blossoms!”

Yin Bai finished speaking, giving a thumbs-up to Zuo Jingyou and winking, “You should consider wearing qipaos more often!”

Zuo Jingyou stifled a smile, and after a while, she looked at Yin Bai with a serious face. “Even if you’re complimenting me, I won’t let you indulge them like this again.”

Yin Bai averted her gaze slightly, holding her teacup, and her eyes wandered up and down as she looked towards the sky. “Let’s not talk about that… Ah… the weather is really nice today.”

Tong Tong and Wen Wen chimed in, looking at the sky together. “Yes, the weather is super nice today.”

Yin Bai shifted her focus back to the outside view of the plum blossoms and bamboo in the garden. “Ah… the bamboo leaves are so tenderly green, and the plum blossoms are in full bloom. Spring is on its way, isn’t it?”

Tong Tong and Wen Wen, always echoing her, followed her gaze and harmonized, “Yes, spring is coming!”

Yin Bai finished commenting on the weather and nature, then redirected her gaze towards Zuo Jingyou, full of a smile. “But, after all, no matter what the weather or scenery is, you, Teacher Zuo, always look the best!”

Tong Tong and Wen Wen turned their heads, both looking at Zuo Jingyou in unison. “Yes, Teacher Zuo always looks the best!”

Yin Bai turned to Tong Tong and Wen Wen, winked at them, then turned her attention back to Zuo Jingyou and chimed in, “Teacher Zuo is the best in the world!”

Zuo Jingyou held her hand to her forehead, speechlessly laughing, “Where did you three come up with this strange harmony? You’ve even mastered flattery now. How am I going to discipline you all in the future?”