After Being Scummed – Chapter 38

Are you dating?

In mid-March, the weather was still a bit cool, and Yin Bai was worried that Zuo Jingyou might catch a cold, so she urged her to lie down on the bed. Zuo Jingyou couldn’t resist her, so she obediently went back to bed.

Considering that Zuo Jingyou hadn’t eaten anything at noon, Yin Bai came to Zuo Jingyou’s bedside with her cane and sat down. She took out an apple and started peeling it for her to eat.

Zuo Jingyou had initially wanted to decline, but when she saw how skillfully Yin Bai handled the knife, she gave in. Zuo Jingyou leaned against the bed, gazing at Yin Bai’s serious expression as she peeled the apple and asked, “How do you know how to do this?”

“Practice, just practice,” Yin Bai replied without looking up, focusing on peeling the apple with dedication and turning it into little rabbit shapes.

Zuo Jingyou, looking at the “little rabbits” that sprang from Yin Bai’s palm, whispered, “Some things depend on talent; they can’t be achieved just through practice. For example, I’m terrible at handcrafts. I can’t even peel a whole apple properly, let alone make cute little rabbits.”

Soon, Yin Bai arranged a row of apple “little rabbits” on a plate and placed it in front of Zuo Jingyou. She exclaimed, “Ta-da! Look, aren’t they adorable?”

Zuo Jingyou nodded with a smile, “Yes, they’re very cute!” She had witnessed this trick several times thanks to Tong Tong!

Yin Bai playfully asked her, “Is your mood a little better now? Do you have a particular craving?”

Zuo Jingyou, with a raised eyebrow, smiled, “I’m craving it!” Even though she had seen it several times, Zuo Jingyou still felt exceptionally happy when it was her turn.

Yin Bai then placed the fruit plate in front of Zuo Jingyou and generously said, “Then please enjoy!”

Zuo Jingyou took the fruit plate and didn’t rush to eat. Instead, she tilted her head and asked, “Teacher Yin Bai, may I take a picture of your little rabbits?”

Yin Bai gladly agreed, saying, “Of course!”

Zuo Jingyou handed her the phone, and she took a photo of the plate of little rabbits. After taking the photo, Zuo Jingyou asked, “Teacher Yin Bai, can I post your little rabbits on Weibo?”

Did she really need to ask? She could do it regardless!

Yin Bai nodded again and used a fork to pick up a piece of the little rabbit and placed it in front of Zuo Jingyou, smiling, “Alright, Teacher Zuo, don’t just play with your phone. Eat quickly!”

“Eat some appetizing fruit; we’ll have dinner later.”

Zuo Jingyou held her phone, posted on Weibo, and simultaneously took a bite of Yin Bai’s fork, bringing the “little rabbit” into her mouth.

In no time, Zuo Jingyou posted a Weibo update: “Feeling a bit unwell today, but I received a gift from the Little Prince! [Image]”

After posting, she put down her phone and, when she looked up, Yin Bai had picked up another piece of apple and offered it to her, bringing it close to her lips, “Ahh…”

Zuo Jingyou looked into the deep, gray-blue eyes of the other person, paused for a few seconds, brushed a strand of hair away from her temple, and then gently bit into the apple placed at her lips.

At that moment, Zhang Yu and Yang Yi, the two assistants, entered with dinner boxes in hand and happened to witness the scene of Yin Bai feeding Zuo Jingyou an apple. The two assistants paused in their steps, turned to look at each other, and shared the same look of puzzlement. Their eyes seemed to convey the same question: What’s going on here?

It appeared strange, as if they were in a romantic situation!

While the assistants were silently speculating, Zuo Jingyou calmly swallowed the “little rabbit” in her mouth and, along with Yin Bai, turned their gaze towards the two of them.

Yin Bai looked at the food containers held by Zhang Yu and cheerfully clapped her hands, saying, “Alright, dinner is here, let’s eat!”

Zuo Jingyou nodded, ignoring the inquisitive glances from her own assistants, and agreed.

That evening, while Xiao Nian was on her way back home after visiting a sick family member, she came across Zuo Jingyou’s Weibo post. Sitting in the dark back seat of the car, she felt a vague sense of familiarity when she saw the plate of “little rabbits” posted by Zuo Jingyou.

Xiao Nian clicked on the Weibo image and carefully examined the plate of “little rabbits.” She recalled what Zuo Jingyou had mentioned about the “Little Prince.” This sparked a thought in her mind.

Could it be that the friend Yin Bai visited today was Zuo Jingyou?

With this thought, Xiao Nian couldn’t help but smile. If it was indeed Zuo Jingyou, then Yin Bai had made a good friend. After all, Zuo Jingyou had a great reputation in the industry.

But then, what did this have to do with her?

With that in mind, Xiao Nian let out a sigh, closed the Weibo image, and decided not to dwell on the matter concerning Yin Bai any further.

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Zuo Jingyou spent a day at the hospital and was then discharged. When she left, she also took Zhang Yu along. For the following period, Zuo Jingyou traveled with Zhang Yu to various places.

There were many preparations to be made before the movie’s release, such as promotions, various announcements, and the like. Zuo Jingyou was as busy as a spinning top.

But luckily, even in her busyness, she didn’t forget to celebrate her daughter’s birthday. On April 17th, which happened to be Tong Tong’s sixth birthday, Zuo Jingyou met with He Zhiwen. The three of them had a joyful day at an amusement park. The next day, when Tong Tong went to Yin Bai’s house to play, she vividly described their adventures at the amusement park.

“Dad and I rode the carousel together, and he even took me on the haunted house ride! Wow, those skeleton ghosts looked so scary!”

Upstairs in the living room, Yin Bai and Wen Wen sat on the couch, listening to Tong Tong enthusiastically recount the events from the previous day. “Dad also bought me a delicious cake. I felt so happy!”

While watching Tong Tong, her hands folded in a cheerful manner, Yin Bai’s thoughts drifted. She thought, “My dear friend, you are indeed happy. Your mom probably felt really left out yesterday!”

Should she call Zuo Jingyou tonight and offer some words of comfort for her wounded heart?

Just as Yin Bai was lost in her thoughts, Tong Tong’s voice suddenly turned somber. She let out a sigh and said with a touch of sadness, “But when I said goodbye to Dad yesterday, he told me that he might not be able to visit me often in the future. Because he and Mom are getting a divorce, and they will be living separately.”

Tong Tong moved over to sit beside Yin Bai, looking up at her and asking, “Fairy Sister, is divorce a really bad thing?”

Yin Bai, faced with the innocent gaze of the child, had a moment of hesitation. On the other side of the room, Wen Wen felt she should share her opinion and turned her head to look at her little sister, swinging her legs as she spoke, “Not really, Tong Tong. My mom said that divorce isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

“Even though my dad and my mom don’t live together anymore, both my dad and mom still love me a lot.”

Wen Wen furrowed her brows for a moment before concluding, “Of course, I think my mom loves me a little more. Because my dad got married last year and has a new child now! While my mom, she has only me!”

Tong Tong bit her lip and lowered her head with a hint of disappointment, saying, “Mom also told me the same thing. But other kids’ parents are still together, and my dad and mom are apart. It doesn’t seem good after all.”

Yin Bai hadn’t encountered such a situation and wasn’t sure how to comfort Tong Tong. After some thought, she gently patted Tong Tong’s head and said in a soft voice, “It’s not quite like that… Think about it, your dad and mom both have very busy jobs, right? So whether they live together or not, what does it really matter? Besides, your dad is a director, so he can’t come home to see you very often anyway.”

Tong Tong found this logic to be flawed and thought hard for a moment before saying anxiously, “But… but before, my dad and mom weren’t separated. If they hadn’t separated, my dad wouldn’t have the chance to be like Wen Wen’s dad and have a new child, right?”

“He would… he would have only Tong Tong!”

Yin Bai sighed and thought, “Silly child, your dad has already abandoned you for another man, and you still want to fight for his attention?”

She reached out and pinched Tong Tong’s cheek, looking at her with great affection as she said, “But it was your dad’s choice to get a divorce, to leave you. Tong Tong, you have to understand, it means that when he left you, he may have decided that you might not be his only child in the future.”

Tong Tong lowered her head and, feeling sad, buried her face in Yin Bai’s lap, sniffing as she said, “So, you mean, Dad is bad… I shouldn’t go see him anymore!”

Yin Bai felt like she had inadvertently instilled a wrong perception in the child. She raised her hand and patted Tong Tong’s back, reassuring her, “There, there, don’t be sad. Even if you don’t have your dad, you still have us, right? Wen Wen and I will be your lifelong good friends!”

The child, who was already feeling sad, became even more upset upon hearing Yin Bai’s words. She lay on Yin Bai’s lap and burst into tears.

Yin Bai had never encountered such a situation and quickly turned to her little companion for help. Upon hearing the crying, Wen Wen jumped off the couch, ran to Tong Tong, and embraced her. She lay on her and consoled her as well, saying, “Yeah, don’t cry, Tong Tong. You still have us. From now on, you don’t need your dad, okay?”

“Wah!” Tong Tong suddenly cried out loudly while lying on Yin Bai’s lap.

Yin Bai was taken aback by the crying and didn’t know how to handle the situation. She quickly lifted Tong Tong from her lap and held her, patting her back to soothe her, saying, “There, there, don’t cry… even though your parents are divorced, your mom still loves you!”

“Wah!” Tong Tong didn’t listen and continued to cry, clutching Yin Bai’s clothes.

Wen Wen whispered, “Sister, it’s not working. By saying that, you’re making her even sadder! Tong Tong loves to eat, you should give her something delicious!”

Yin Bai quickly rubbed the back of Tong Tong’s head and tried to comfort her, “Alright, alright, we won’t talk about this anymore. I’ll take you to eat something delicious!”

“We can have cake! Pudding, delicious strawberry cake, caramel pudding, crepes, ice cream, yogurt salad… today, what do you want to eat? We can have whatever you like!”

Yin Bai listed a bunch of foods, and the child in her arms sniffled, wiping away her tears. She straightened up and looked into Yin Bai’s eyes, asking, “Really… really?”

Tong Tong wiped away her tears and, with a sob, asked, “Today… today, can I really eat so much?”

Yin Bai held the little tearful bundle in her arms, looking at the tear-streaked face with a nod. “Really!”

Tong Tong pouted and managed to muster a smile. “Then I… I won’t cry… I won’t be sad anymore…”

Seeing the child’s tearful face transform into a half-hearted smile, a thought crossed Yin Bai’s mind: Maybe your dad isn’t as important to you as food is! Why are you crying so hard then?

Could it be that you’re just trying to get treats and drinks? Well, it seems that a father’s love is nothing special!

In the future, she should remind Tong Tong more often that it’s Mom who’s the best in the world!

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