497. Father and Daughter
The night gradually deepened, and Ning Chu lay lazily on the sofa, her legs wrapped in stockings propped up high on the armrest, with her skirt a chaotic mess exposing the edge of her underwear.
She gently swayed her legs, playing with her mobile phone while poking at the apple slices her mother had cut for her with a toothpick, completely lacking any semblance of a lady-like image. Watching her, her mother could only shake her head.
Thank goodness the house was full of women; no one batted an eye at her daughter’s wild antics.
“I really don’t get how Wen Yang fell for you, you can’t even stand or sit properly!”
Ning Chu retorted confidently, “I’m good-looking! Isn’t that thanks to your genes?”
“Besides, I can totally relax at home!”
Compliments made her mother’s annoyance fade away instantly; Ning Chu’s slightly spoiled tone made her want to drop the lecture. She sat on a nearby armchair and affectionately ruffled her daughter’s hair.
“Your hair has grown fast; how about I take you to get it done tomorrow?”
“Isn’t it good like this? I think it looks pretty nice.”
Ning Chu’s hair had already reached her shoulders, glossy and smooth like silk, with bangs falling naturally, looking a bit messy.
She swatted away the unruly strands, mumbling, “I only need to trim the bangs; otherwise, they get in my eyes.”
“What kind of hairstyle do you want?”
As if summoned, an image of Lily’s long, straight black hair popped into her mind.
“Just long and black is fine!”
Not that she was trying to imitate Lily, but ever since her days as a guy, she had a special fondness for that style.
Now, she was getting closer to the XP she had always fantasized about.
Feeling a bit tired of lounging on the sofa, Ning Chu flipped over and sat up, “I’m going downstairs to find Black Bean to play.”
“It’s nine o’clock; bring her back. She has class tomorrow.”
“Okay~”
“Don’t take her out for a late-night snack; look at her now, she’s getting chubby, with a little belly.”
“I know, I know~ It’s not that bad…”
Ning Chu waved off her mother’s advice, quickly tidied her outfit, and slipped on her slippers before heading out.
Her home was in an old residential community, where there were hardly any buildings left, and property management had vanished years ago. Security relied on the older folks lounging around.
Once downstairs, Ning Chu scanned for the figures of Black Bean and Wen Yang, heading toward the convenience store, the most likely place to find Black Bean.
However, upon arriving, she spotted an unexpected figure.
That silver-haired man was sitting right in front of the convenience store, staring off towards her family’s balcony. Perhaps sensing something, he suddenly turned to lock eyes with Ning Chu.
“Out to play?” Her father immediately stood up, moving closer with an overly eager smile. “Where do you want to go?”
Ning Chu stepped back, resisting the urge to bolt, her brows furrowing slightly.
Honestly, she had never anticipated her father would greet her like this after coming home.
Clearly, his son had turned into his daughter…
Or maybe her father had never been all that attached to his little boy, which made accepting the change so much easier?
“Looking for Ning Xin.”
After an instinctive rejection, Ning Chu stiffened her face, coldly bypassing her father, striding directly for the exit of the community.
Weren’t they supposed to be at a restaurant eating seafood? Why was he here?
Noting the hint of confusion in her eyes, her father followed closely, elaborating, “I rented a place in the community.”
“Oh.”
“Ning Xin should be at the entrance; I saw her earlier.”
“……”
“She’s the one your mom and…”
Ning Chu succinctly interrupted, “Picked up.”
Whether her father believed it or not, that was the truth; after all, when she was first brought home, Ning Xin had been a little black cat.
She used her icy demeanor to fend off her father’s warmth, but that clearly wasn’t working. He continued to dog her like a shadow, earnest as ever.
“It’s still early; how about I take you to buy some clothes?”
“Are you hungry? Want to grab a late-night snack?”
“Are you getting used to the phone? Oh, and I’ve got receipts; I’m not sure if the warranty works back home.”
Why didn’t he just do this earlier…
Ning Chu muttered under her breath, quickening her pace to shake him off.
Upon reaching the entrance of the community, she didn’t see Black Bean or Wen Yang, and her father was still tailing her like a lost puppy.
Trying to strike up a conversation, he said, “Ning Yuan has started making money now; I saw him the other day and he’s taller than me now.”
“When I left, he was still shorter than my legs.”
For some reason, one of her father’s comments triggered an impatient anger deep inside Ning Chu, and she abruptly stopped, taking a deep breath to calm herself.
d*mn it! Can’t hold it in anymore!
“Stop bothering me!”
She spun around, her voice piercing and sharp, even straining her vocal cords.
Her father looked taken aback, frozen for a moment, then turned his head away, a hint of sadness crossing his features.
Seeing that expression made Ning Chu instinctively feel guilty, her eyes darting away as her face flushed hot. After hesitating briefly, she lowered her head and hurried away.
She tried to soothe herself internally, pushing that guilt aside.
What’s with the pity party?!
Where were you when my brother and I didn’t have a father, when mom had to work multiple jobs just to get by?!
Where were you when she fell sick and passed away from exhaustion?!
Now that everything is better, you suddenly want to step back into our lives?
Memories of resentment from both this life and the last crashed over her like a tidal wave, making her nose tingle and her eyes red-rimmed.
After walking a few steps, Black Bean came running toward her.
“I heard my sister’s voice!”
With her eyes sparkling, Black Bean rushed over and grabbed onto Ning Chu’s arm, “Sister! I want to eat barbecue! I haven’t had it in a month!”
“You promised me that if you did a page of your workbook during the New Year, you’d treat me to a late-night snack! No backsies! You still owe me… ten meals?”
Black Bean’s cheerful excitement helped stabilize Ning Chu’s mood somewhat. She took a breath, plastered on her best big-sister smile, “Alright, but we can only spend twenty bucks; mom says you’ve gotten as fat as a pig.”
“No way!”
With a lively bounce in her step, Black Bean led the way to the nearest barbecue joint, singing, “Barbecue~ barbecue~”
Wen Yang followed closely, catching sight of Ning Chu’s unusual demeanor. Glancing back, he spotted the man not far behind.
After piecing it together, Wen Yang asked, “What? Did he upset you?”
Ning Chu’s pretend smile faded, and she pressed her lips together, leaning against Wen Yang’s shoulder, “So annoying.”
Her charming face now displayed the marks of disappointment and a hint of distress, her reddened eyes giving her an almost fragile appearance.
“Just ignore him.”
“Give me a hug…”
Wen Yang wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close, “Alright, alright, your eyes are all red now—are you going to embarrass yourself crying in front of Black Bean later?”
“If he bothers you again, I’ll smack him! He keeps making you upset!”
“Exactly, smack him!”
“With that tiny frame, I could punch him straight into the ICU!”
“Uh… maybe that’s not too great…”
