After Being Scummed – Chapter 88
by Little PandaHmph!
A child? Her and Zuo Jingyou’s child? A child that looks like her, and also looks like Zuo Jingyou?
To be honest, Yin Bai had never thought about this problem. Even when she was head over heels in love with Xiao Nian in the past, she had never considered having a child with the other person.
But now that Zuo Jingyou had mentioned it, she actually began to consider it very seriously.
Yin Bai knitted her brows and thought for a moment, then said seriously: “You’re right, this is a matter more important than a marriage contract. Because gestating a life, bringing her into the world, and fulfilling the obligations of an elder is a very complex and tedious matter.”
“Regarding this issue, I need to consider it carefully.”
At this moment, she no longer had the time to think about marriage; her mind was completely filled with whether she and Zuo Jingyou needed such a “crystallization of love”.
For the entire Spring Festival, Yin Bai was looking up information and consulting people about the “child” issue.
The first person she consulted was Jin Xiangyu, whom she considered very reliable. Jin Xiangyu seemed very surprised, raising her volume on the phone and saying: “Yi? BOSS, you want to have a child?”
“But giving birth is very painful, and children are very difficult to raise, needing wholehearted love and care… Do you think you can do it?”
Before Yin Bai could say anything, Jin Xiangyu chattered on: “But you do indeed need a child, with such a large family business, someone needs to inherit and manage it in the future. You’re the only one in your family, wouldn’t it be very good for you to have one more relative with a blood connection?”
After getting such a traditional answer from Jin Xiangyu, Yin Bai politely said thank you, then added a sentence: “But I don’t feel that my assets must be left to my descendants or anything. I plan to donate everything in the future, to be managed by a foundation.”
Jin Xiangyu was silent for a moment, then said: “That really is your style.”
After getting the needed answer from Jin Xiangyu, Yin Bai asked Zhang Yu. Zhang Yu’s way of speaking was largely the same as Jin Xiangyu’s, with no reference value, so Yin Bai hung up the phone without hesitation.
After making all the comparisons, before the end of the holiday, Yin Bai hugged Zuo Jingyou while leaning on the bed and replied to Zuo Jingyou: “I believe that between us, we don’t need to have another child.”
“Because I love you, our love is already a very precious thing. For us to have another child, this seems to be something that would only benefit me.”
Zuo Jingyou blinked, looking at her curiously: “How so?”
Yin Bai smiled, and answered Zuo Jingyou very briskly: “Because for most people, the most important meaning of a child is that you have gestated a life, allowing her to carry on a part of your life. But in terms of this meaning of inheritance, your movies, your art, have actually already achieved it.”
“In addition, you already have Tongtong. You already have the cutest child in the world, my cutest partner, so I believe you don’t need another child to share Tongtong’s maternal love.”
Yin Bai paused, holding Zuo Jingyou’s hand and saying with considerable sincerity: “I also don’t wish for such a thing to happen. I believe my friend deserves a one-of-a-kind maternal love.”
Zuo Jingyou couldn’t help but smile: “But isn’t it a very good thing for Tongtong to have a sister? Just like me and my older sister, we are each other’s support in this world.”
Yin Bai looked at her quite seriously: “I believe Comrade Sun Jingwen is a considerably reliable friend, and she is also Tongtong’s most reliable sister.”
Zuo Jingyou’s eyes curved into a smile, and she leaned on her shoulder, saying softly: “So you’re saying you don’t want a child?”
Yin Bai nodded solemnly: “Yes, besides all these reasons, there is another very important problem. I think giving birth is really too painful!”
Yin Bai squeezed Zuo Jingyou’s hand tightly. Thinking of the childbirth videos she had watched before, she felt as if all the bones in her body were aching.
She couldn’t help but tremble, saying with lingering fear: “Even though I suffered tragic hardships in my youth, I don’t believe my fragile mind can withstand the consequences of childbirth. And with my method of education, I may not necessarily be able to raise a child well.”
“So Zuo Jingyou, let’s not consider gestating a life, okay?” Right, let’s just decide it this happily!
Yin Bai lowered her eyes to look at Zuo Jingyou, her own eyes sparkling.
Zuo Jingyou was lying on her shoulder, looking up at her. She blinked and asked: “You don’t necessarily have to be the one to give birth, I can give birth.”
“So, you don’t have to experience this kind of pain either.”
Yin Bai took a deep breath and looked at Zuo Jingyou very seriously: “Dear Teacher Zuo, conception is not just your own affair. I’m not a male who is incapable of procreation, so why, when we need a child, should this pain of pregnancy be handed over to you to bear?”
“What’s more, your body has already gestated a lovely angel. This angel caused you to encounter so much suffering, how could I let you go through it one more time?”
Yin Bai raised her volume, speaking these words to Zuo Jingyou with rare solemnity.
Zuo Jingyou looked at Yin Bai seriously for a moment, then said with a sigh: “Sometimes I think I’m considerate, but it turns out I still can’t compare to you.”
Zuo Jingyou was a little deflated. She relaxed her body and lay on Yin Bai’s shoulder, saying with great emotion: “Think about it again. If one day you really want a child, we can still reconsider…”
“Of course, I will also have a serious talk with Tongtong, hoping she can accept having a younger sister or something like that.”
Zuo Jingyou looked up, raised her hand to stroke Yin Bai’s brows and eyes, and said with a smile: “After all, you are too good-looking. Having a child with you, she would surely be so beautiful that everyone would like her.”
Yin Bai pressed her lips together, suddenly feeling a little embarrassed: “Teacher Zuo, I know you are praising me, but I feel like the way you say it sounds as if you like me just so I can have your child…”
“I’m a very selfish person. I feel that no one can inherit my kind of beauty, so it’s better to let me be beautiful alone in this world!”
A child or whatever, let’s just forget about it!
Zuo Jingyou burst out laughing with a puchi, raised her hand to rub her black hair, and said in a gentle and pleasant tone: “Alright, alright, then let’s let our Xiao Bai be beautiful alone, okay.”
Yin Bai smiled shyly, those gray-blue eyes looking at Zuo Jingyou with deep affection and gentleness: “But Teacher Zuo, I still need to discuss one more thing with you.”
Zuo Jingyou was puzzled and asked: “Hm? What is it?”
Yin Bai looked at Zuo Jingyou very seriously and said: “Regarding our marriage, although I don’t think it’s necessary, I still need to consider it seriously.”
“If possible, are you willing to give me a little more time to reply to you?”
Zuo Jingyou smiled, nodding lightly: “Yes, you can take your time to consider.”
“But no matter when, I will reply to you, I am willing.”
Yin Bai pressed her lips together, feeling that when it came to sugar-coated cannonballs, she had thoroughly lost to Zuo Jingyou. Since she couldn’t win in this aspect, she would just have to make up for it in other aspects.
After the Spring Festival, Zuo Jingyou temporarily halted her film shooting, began to collect material, and traveled to various places to gather inspiration and complete her next movie. Occasionally, when she had free time, she would go on talk shows and the like to repay favors.
In the blink of an eye, it was the end of April, the time for the annual Thorn Flower Awards ceremony.
As the saying goes, eat one moat, grow one wisdom1. This time, when Yin Bai and Zuo Jingyou attended the awards ceremony, they came fully prepared. The reporters had become much better behaved, no longer asking about their relationship, and all questions fell on Zuo Jingyou’s movie.
For example, whether she had confidence in winning an award, and for another example, how she felt about her previous collaboration with Xiao Nian.
Zuo Jingyou answered very officially: “I have great confidence in this movie. I hope it can win an award, because the story of 《Dawa》 is very moving.”
“The collaboration with Teacher Xiao Nian was great. She is an excellent actress. If there is another excellent script, I hope to collaborate with her again.”
After questioning Zuo Jingyou, everyone cautiously turned their microphones to Yin Bai and asked: “What award do you think Teacher Zuo can win tonight?”
Yin Bai pursed her lips for a moment, then said very cheerfully: “You should know, there is a saying, ‘My wife, who finds me beautiful, is biased towards me.’2 According to my award criteria, I would give all the awards tonight to Teacher Zuo’s 《Dawa》.”
This answer received a room full of laughter.
When the video was broadcast, Zuo Jingyou’s fans once again GOT3 Yin Bai’s cute point, only praising her as the king of deadpan humor.
After the two answered everyone’s questions, Zuo Jingyou pushed Yin Bai to the guest seats to sit down. But not long after they were seated, Yin Bai saw a woman who looked very familiar, but whom she found very annoying, leading a seven or eight-year-old child towards them from a special passageway.
Damn it, enemies really do have a narrow road to travel on, hasn’t this person not appeared in front of the media for many years? Why did she come this time.
The other party led the child to the seat next to Yin Bai and sat down. Seeing Yin Bai, she let out a cold hmph: “What a coincidence, to see a conscienceless little cripple of a capitalist just by going out. It seems I should have checked the huangli4 before leaving today.”
The woman tutted lightly, took out a tissue to wipe the armrest, looking as if she was very disgusted with Yin Bai.
Seeing this person mock Yin Bai, Zuo Jingyou couldn’t help but turn her head to look. She saw that there was no sarcastic or mocking look in the other person’s eyes; instead, she looked at Yin Bai rather indignantly, as if she had some old grudge with Yin Bai.
Strange, Yin Bai can also get into conflicts with people.
Just as Zuo Jingyou was thinking this, Yin Bai suddenly raised her lips in a smile and retorted with sharp teeth and a pointed mouth: “Thank you for the reminder, I’ll check next time too. If I had known you were coming, I wouldn’t have come either, you little pitiful one!”
The very beautiful woman immediately scowled, glaring at Yin Bai: “Who are you calling pitiful!”
“Whoever asked is who I’m talking about~”
“You! Little cripple!”
Yin Bai said with a grin: “Little pitiful one!”
In a matter like a shouting match, whoever cares, loses!
The woman was practically dying of anger. The child at her side couldn’t watch anymore, reached out to pull her hand, and called in a small voice: “Mother, calm down. Don’t argue too much with people, don’t hurt people with your words. If Mama finds out, she will scold you.”
The woman lowered her eyes, looking at the child beside her with a serious and solemn face. She endured and endured, and only then let out a hmph: “Lin Chuchen5, today I’m doing this for your sake, that’s why I’m not bickering with the little… that whoever!”
After the woman finished speaking, she turned her head and hmphed at Yin Bai: “Annoying ghost! Capitalist! All you know is how to snatch my things!”
Yin Bai shrugged, saying with a nonchalant look: “The highest bidder wins, who told me to have money.”
“I have money too, I was letting you have it. If my wife hadn’t told me not to argue with you, do you think you could have won the bid? You don’t even have a wife! What did you bid on that for!”
Wow, how infuriating. Yin Bai felt her fists harden.
Yin Bai was so angry she grabbed Zuo Jingyou’s hand, turned her head to look at the other party and said: “I have a wife now too!”
Zuo Jingyou, who had witnessed the entire argument, was rather speechless. She more or less understood now that these two were probably old acquaintances whose relationship wasn’t too bad. Zuo Jingyou’s gaze passed over Yin Bai and landed on the very exquisite-looking woman next to her, asking softly: “Hello, I am Zuo Jingyou, may I ask who you are?”
The woman hmphed and said sullenly: “Ye Can6.”
After she said this, the little girl sitting next to her stood up and smiled sweetly at Zuo Jingyou: “Hello, Zuo-jiejie. My name is Lin Chuchen. My mama really likes your movies and greatly admires your acting skills.”
“Of course, I especially like you too. I went to see your 《Dawa》 last year, you were very beautiful in it.”
“I hope you can win an award tonight.”
Faced with the child’s heartfelt confession, Zuo Jingyou was very moved. She pressed her lips into a smile: “Thank you for your fondness…”
As she spoke, her gaze fell on Ye Can, and she blinked, saying: “And thank you for Miss Ye’s fondness as well.”
Ye Can hmphed awkwardly and said: “Don’t misunderstand, it’s not me who likes you, it’s my wife who greatly admires your acting skills.”
Zuo Jingyou looked at Yin Bai in confusion, as if asking who this person’s wife was.
Yin Bai smiled and told her: “It’s that Lin Zixi7, the great screenwriter Lin.”
Zuo Jingyou came to a sudden realization: “Ah, it’s actually her. She’s already married?”
LP: Re-translated on August 31, 2025
Footnotes
- 吃一堑长一智 (chī yī qiàn, zhǎng yī zhì): A chengyu (four-character idiom). Literally “eat one moat, grow one wisdom”. It means one learns from their mistakes; a lesson learned from a setback. The English equivalent is “a fall in the pit, a gain in your wit”.
- 妻之美我者，私我也 (qī zhī měi wǒ zhě, sī wǒ yě): A quote from the “Zhan Guo Ce” (Strategies of the Warring States). The story is about Zou Ji, a handsome official, who asks his wife, his concubine, and a guest if he is more handsome than the famously handsome Lord Xu of the north. His wife says yes because she is biased, his concubine says yes because she is afraid, and the guest says yes because he wants a favor. Zou Ji realizes that people’s praise can be influenced by personal feelings and motives, and uses this insight to advise the king. The literal translation is “My wife, who finds me beautiful, is biased towards me.”
- GET: English word used in the original Chinese text, meaning to understand or appreciate something.
- 黄历 (huánglì): The traditional Chinese almanac. It contains a calendar and information about what days are auspicious or inauspicious for various activities like weddings, travel, or starting a business.
- 林初晨 (Lín Chūchén): A character’s name. 林 (Lín) is the surname. 初晨 (Chūchén) means “early morning”.
- 葉粲 (Yè Càn): A character’s name. 葉 (Yè) is the surname. 粲 (Càn) means “beautiful” or “splendid”.
- 林子兮 (Lín Zixī): A character’s name. 林 (Lín) is the surname. 子兮 (Zixī) is a classical-sounding name; 子 (zǐ) is a common character in names, and 兮 (xī) is a classical grammatical particle often used in poetry.
are these new characters?
are these new characters?