Madam, Please Behave-Chapter 161: Lan Yixian’s Helplessness

When his father asked the question, Liu Zhiyue was momentarily dazed. A hint of panic flickered in his eyes, but he quickly concealed it, pretending to be in thought.

“Not bad, the person’s alright. Why are you suddenly asking about this?”

“No reason, just curious.”

Liu Changqing said this casually, shifting his gaze away from his son and toward the TV screen.

Hmm… Animal World…

Lying on the sofa, Liu Zhiyue let out a quiet sigh of relief when he saw that his father wasn’t pressing the issue. He pretended to focus on the TV as well.

Just as he started to relax, his father’s voice rang out again.

“What do you think of Zhao Xuanwen?”

“Huh? Zhao Xuanwen? Uh… they’re okay, I guess. Pretty interesting person.”

“Interesting, huh…”

“Dad…”

“Just keep watching TV.”

“…Oh.”

Liu Zhiyue shifted his gaze back to the screen, but even though his eyes were on the TV, his attention kept drifting toward Liu Changqing.

His father’s expression was calm.

So calm that it was as if he hadn’t just asked those strange questions.

Since there was no follow-up, Liu Zhiyue gradually lowered his guard.

“Which one do you like more?”

“I like… wait, hold on! Dad, what exactly are you asking?!”

He almost blurted out an answer but caught himself just in time. Sitting up from the sofa, he turned to face Liu Changqing.

From the moment his father walked into the room, he had felt that something was off.

“I’m just a middle schooler! My main priority is studying, not thinking about stuff like this!”

“Alright, alright, I got it. Study hard, focus on your books.”

Seeing his son get worked up, Liu Changqing decided not to press the issue. After saying that, he got up from the sofa and walked over to Liu Xiazhi, who was happily devouring a watermelon.

With a swift motion, he took the watermelon from her arms.

Liu Xiazhi had been enjoying her treat when it suddenly disappeared. She stretched her arms out, hopping up and down in an attempt to grab the watermelon back.

“I can still eat more!” she pouted.

“You’ve already eaten so much today, and you drank a ton of soda. And now you want to eat watermelon too? You shouldn’t eat so much at night—you don’t want to turn into a little chubby girl.”

“I won’t get fat!” Liu Xiazhi retorted defiantly.

Hearing this, Liu Changqing simply chuckled, then placed the watermelon on the coffee table. Reaching out, he gently patted her slightly bulging tummy.

“You won’t get fat? Then what’s this?”

“This… this is…”

“From now on, you need to control your diet. Starting today, no more afternoon snacks.”

His words hit Liu Xiazhi like a hammer to the head.

Her eyes went blank in an instant.

Her happiest time of the day…

Snack time, two hours after lunch.

Gone… just like that…

Her neck moved stiffly as if it had rusted. Slowly, she lowered her head and stared at her round belly. She had eaten a lot today—so much that her stomach no longer looked as flat as usual.

Shaking her head in denial, she took a few steps back, eyes filled with disbelief.

“I don’t want to be a chubby girl!” she wailed.

With that, she turned and bolted toward her room, screaming as she ran.

Bang!

The door slammed shut.

Silence filled the living room once more, leaving only the father and son staring at each other.

After a moment, Liu Zhiyue broke the silence.

“She does need to watch her diet. Her face is looking a bit round.”

“Good point,” Liu Changqing nodded in agreement. He thought for a moment, then asked, “If you’re not going to shower, I’ll go first?”

“Mm.”

With that, Liu Changqing grabbed a change of clothes and walked toward the bathroom. He placed his hand on the doorknob but didn’t turn it right away.

After a brief pause, he turned back and looked at his son, who was still pretending to watch TV.

After a long moment, he spoke softly.

“Remember… don’t hurt others.”

“Huh?”

The sourc𝗲 of this content is frёeωebɳovel.com.

Liu Zhiyue turned his head, but all he saw was his father stepping into the bathroom.

The lock clicked.

With no need to pretend anymore, Liu Zhiyue stared blankly at the screen.

His mind echoed with his father’s words.

Don’t… hurt others…?

Zhou Shiyan sat by the bed, staring at the hair clip in her hand.

It was adorned with fake diamonds, shimmering slightly under the light.

Her gaze was distant as she looked at it. Then, as if something had come to mind, she got up from the bed, walked to the desk, and pulled the small mirror closer, adjusting the angle.

Her reflection appeared in the mirror.

She first ran a comb through her hair, then slowly lifted her hand and clipped the hairpin onto her bangs.

Once it was secured, she lowered her hand and gazed at her reflection.

A faint smile appeared on her face.

That afternoon, when Liu Zhiyue suggested going out for a walk, she had unexpectedly agreed. Maybe it was because she had been cooped up at home for too long, or perhaps for some other reason. Either way, she nodded.

The two of them went out in the late afternoon and returned after dark.

And this hair clip—Liu Zhiyue had taken it out and handed it to her when he walked her home.

A gift… just for her.

Staring at the hair clip, Zhou Shiyan murmured softly, almost as if talking to herself.

“It’s so pretty…”

The sound of keys turning in the lock came from outside.

She froze for a moment, then reacted as if she had been caught doing something sneaky, like a child afraid of getting scolded by their parents.

Hurriedly, she removed the hair clip and clenched it tightly in her hand.

Then, she turned toward the door.

Lan Yixian walked in, carrying some pastries.

Because of debt collectors, she had stayed at Liu Changqing’s house for a while, which meant she hadn’t been able to go to her previous job at the supermarket.

Once the situation was resolved, she found work at a pastry shop instead.

She had a special talent for making pastries and dough-based foods, so the shop allowed her to work only in the afternoons. In exchange, the pay wasn’t very high.

But the owner, knowing about her family's situation, let her take home any leftover pastries at the end of the day.

What she was carrying now were today's leftovers.

After entering the room, Lan Yixian placed the pastries on the table, then poured some hot water from the thermos into the washbasin. She added some cold water, preparing to freshen up.

Zhou Shiyan hesitated for a moment as she watched her mother’s tired expression. Then, in a soft voice, she asked,

“Mom, didn’t Uncle Liu say we didn’t need to rush to pay him back? How about—”

“It’s better to pay it back early.”

Before she could finish, her mother interrupted.

“As long as you owe someone money, the relationship isn’t equal. Only when that debt is gone can we truly face each other with ease.”

“Mom…”

“There are pastries on the table. Have some. We don’t have a fridge, so they’ll go bad overnight.”

“…”

Zhou Shiyan watched as her mother bent over to wash her face.

She clenched the hair clip in her hand a little tighter.