After Being Scummed – Chapter 13
by Little PandaA Small Token of My Appreciation
Under Zhang Yu’s astonished gaze, Yin Bai took the phone, cleared her throat, softened her tone, and said to the little one on the other end of the line, “What do you need me for? Your injury’s healed? You’ve been discharged?”
On the phone screen, Tongtong tilted her head up, eyes crinkling into a smile. “Mm-hm… all better… Fairy Sister, thank you for the storybooks you sent me. I came over today to thank you!”
Yin Bai smiled. “You’re welcome.”
Tongtong said with a beaming smile, “Fairy Sister, we brought you a gift. Can you let me in?”
Yin Bai’s lips curved into a rather smug smile. “Sure. For the sake of the gift.”
Tongtong was immediately delighted. “Thank you, Fairy Sister!”
“You’re welcome. I’ll wait for you on the first floor and open the door for you,” Yin Bai replied.
Tongtong said okay, and Yin Bai hung up and pressed the door release. She tossed the phone back to Zhang Yu and said cheerfully, “Come on, come downstairs with me.”
Zhang Yu scrambled to catch the phone, looking thoroughly bewildered. “Fairy Sister… Boss, where did you kidnap this kid from? Her mouth is so sweet!”
Yin Bai leaned on her cane, turned to glance at her, her expression rather cocky. “I told you, she’s the kid from next door. What do you think? I lured her over with a few storybooks. Pretty good glowing praise1, right?”
“Next door?” Zhang Yu pocketed the phone and hurried to keep up with her, puzzled. “That kid whose toy plane flew onto your balcony and almost cracked your skull open?”
Yin Bai shook her head. “No, that’s her younger sister.”
Zhang Yu was stunned. “She has a younger sister?”
Yin Bai nodded, tapping her cane tap tap tap as she headed downstairs. “Mm, a cousin… or maybe a paternal cousin, I forget. Either way, much cuter than that little brat with the sour face.”
Yin Bai leaned on her cane, trying to pick up her pace, and limped her way downstairs. Stepping out from the lobby, she spotted from afar two figures standing at the front gate—one large, one small.
The small one was Tongtong, and the large one was naturally Zuo Jingyou.
Zuo Jingyou wore a deep blue polka-dot spaghetti-strap dress with her long hair loosely pinned up, standing gracefully under the archway before Yin Bai’s gate. She held a gift box in her hands, waiting for the villa’s owner with quiet elegance and poise.
Tongtong, dressed in a matching child-sized version of the same dress with her hair in a bun, held a small bag in one hand and tugged at the silk sash hanging from her mother’s waist with the other, peering eagerly into the villa.
When she spotted Yin Bai’s cane-bearing figure emerging, Tongtong’s eyes lit up at once. She let go of the sash at Zuo Jingyou’s waist and waved joyfully at Yin Bai. “Fairy Sister, here, over here!”
A smile spread across Yin Bai’s face too. “I see you. Stop waving—you’re standing right at my front door!”
Yin Bai leaned on her cane and quickened her pace toward the little one.
Zhang Yu hurried after Yin Bai, and when she caught sight of the woman standing beside the child, her heart skipped a beat.
Wait—Zuo Jingyou?
The Zuo Jingyou who’d just announced her divorce a few days ago, setting the internet ablaze with gossip? The Zuo Jingyou who, at such a young age, was already a double Best Actress winner? The Zuo Jingyou who was Xiao Nian’s sworn rival?
So her boss’s little friend was actually Zuo Jingyou’s daughter? Zuo Jingyou lived next door to the boss?
How had she never noticed?!
While Zhang Yu was still reeling, Yin Bai had already stepped outside and reached Tongtong. Leaning on her cane, she bent down to look at the little one from next door and gave a soft cough, slightly softening her tone. “So, you’re all healed up? What did you come find me for?”
Ah, was she here to play?
Tongtong looked up at Yin Bai, bright-eyed and happy, and said in her sweet little voice, “Mm, I’m all better. Thank you for checking on me, Fairy Sister.”
Tongtong lifted the books she was carrying and gave Yin Bai a sweet smile. “Thank you for the books, Fairy Sister. I came over today to return them to you. They were all really interesting. I liked them a lot.”
Yin Bai reached out and pushed them back. “No need—I gave them to you. I have tons of books. Take them home.”
Tongtong looked at her, a little uncertain. “But…”
Tongtong bit her lip with her small white teeth and looked up at Zuo Jingyou beside her, eyes asking for help.
Zuo Jingyou glanced down at Tongtong, reached over to ruffle her hair, and said with a smile, “If Fairy Sister says they’re a gift, then you should keep them.”
Yin Bai couldn’t help looking up at Zuo Jingyou when she heard “Fairy Sister,” feeling rather conflicted.
Hey, hey, hey—that’s what kids call me. Doesn’t a grown adult feel embarrassed using that?
Her little friend, however, paid no attention to her feelings. With her mother’s permission secured, Tongtong looked up at Yin Bai and said earnestly, “Then thank you, Fairy Sister! I have a gift for you too!”
Tongtong looked up at Zuo Jingyou and sweetly made the introductions. “This is my mama. Mama made me delicious cake. I got discharged from the hospital yesterday, so today Mama made cake and brought one over for Fairy Sister, to thank Fairy Sister for helping me.”
Yin Bai made an acknowledging sound and looked down at the gift box in Zuo Jingyou’s hands, her heart drumming with uncertainty.
Would this thing actually taste good?
She couldn’t help but think of the culinary disasters Xiao Nian used to whip up on a whim, with a vague sense that big-name actresses in the entertainment industry probably weren’t great cooks.
But… since the little one had already said as much, she ought to show some response. So Yin Bai put on a proper smile and replied politely, “Thank you for the thought!”
Zuo Jingyou smiled and offered the gift box. “I made a little dessert. Just a small token of my appreciation. I hope Chairman Yin will accept it.”
“My little one will probably be coming over to pester Chairman Yin quite often from now on.”
Yin Bai took the cake and replied with a smile, “Of course, of course. We’re neighbors.”
After the pleasantries, Tongtong looked up and said to Yin Bai with a grin, “Fairy Sister, Mama says I’m going to live with my grandma from now on, so I can come over and play with you a lot.”
Tongtong paused, then asked a little cautiously, “Can I come over and play with you?”
Yin Bai, having accepted her bribe, said very happily, “Of course. You’re welcome anytime. Just no sports or running games—my leg isn’t great.”
“Okay, Fairy Sister!”
The two little friends exchanged farewells and agreed on a time to play, then Tongtong skipped off after Zuo Jingyou back next door.
Yin Bai stood holding the cake, watching her little friend go home with her mother, feeling a twinge of reluctance to see her go.
Zhang Yu stood to one side, watching Yin Bai lean on her cane and gaze after Zuo Jingyou’s retreating figure with visible reluctance. A thought rose unbidden in her mind. She reached out and tugged at the lace cuff of Yin Bai’s shirt, calling out to her with a cheeky grin, “Boss! Boss!”
Yin Bai turned her head and shot her a glance. “What?”
Zhang Yu leaned in to her ear and whispered, “You’re not thinking of falling for Teacher Zuo, are you? Ready to move on to someone new?” Otherwise, why would she go from flat-out refusing to collaborate to already cozying up to her daughter?
Yin Bai looked her up and down, eyes full of disdain. “Is something wrong with your brain? Do you think every two single women you see must be involved?”
“Lunatic!” Yin Bai shoved the cake into Zhang Yu’s arms, her tone less than friendly. “Her daughter is way more interesting than she is. Can’t you tell her daughter is my new friend?”
“Also, you try this cake first. If it’s good, come tell me!”
Yin Bai couldn’t be bothered to humor her dimwitted assistant. She leaned on her cane and headed upstairs, tap tap tap.
The author has something to say:
Same old rules—leave a comment up front and I’ll pick fifty lucky readers for a red envelope!
Aaaah, yes, right now she’s just the little friend’s mama! But who knows about the future!
zhang yu is sharp eyed…
zhang yu is sharp eyed…
She’s calling herself a kid. Love it.
She’s calling herself a kid. Love it.