528. Before the Certificate
“Get up! Sis!”
“It’s already eleven in the morning!”
Ning Chu felt a heavy weight pressing down on her, making it hard to breathe. In an instant, her sleep-fogged brain jolted awake.
She opened her sore eyes to see her lively Black Bean sprawled on her, looking utterly oblivious.
“I’m so sleepy…”
“Who told you to chat with Brother-in-law so late last night!”
Ning Chu yawned and rubbed her eyes. “We only talked until past midnight.”
“Ha! You definitely stayed up all night playing games!”
It appeared that this cat had slept deeply last night, completely undisturbed by their mother’s racket.
She had to admit, Uncle may have put on a little weight, but his stamina was still impressive. The noise was making her feel utterly drained… With a sigh of defeat, she turned her face into the pillow.
“You were snoring last night, and it kept me awake.”
“Huh? Was that me?”
“Yup.”
Black Bean, slightly embarrassed, rubbed her tiny nose and tried to change the subject. “Sis, Mom says it’s time for lunch!”
“Okay… Has Uncle left yet?”
“Not yet! They said they’re going out again in the afternoon and are taking us to a hotel for a feast tonight!”
Upon hearing this, Ning Chu immediately tugged the quilt up to her shoulders.
Although she had a good impression of Uncle, now that she was a beautiful succubus, she couldn’t help but be a bit wary. After all, in her royal-themed plots, there had never been any ghostly father scenarios, right?
Calling Wen Yang “Dad” doesn’t count.
“Close the door, I’m changing.”
“Okay~”
Black Bean jumped off the bed, scampering to close the door. Turning back, she found her sister had already tossed her nightshirt aside and was pulling out some underwear from the drawer.
“That’s huge~” she gawked at Ning Chu, her mouth forming an O shape. “Isn’t it heavy?”
Even though Ning Chu had long adjusted to her gender and had been open with Black Bean before, she couldn’t help but feel a blush creeping onto her face at Black Bean’s stunned expression. Instinctively, she covered her chest and rolled her eyes. “Stop staring. It’s not like you don’t have any.”
“I don’t have that big~” Black Bean gestured with her hands.
Ning Chu, suppressing her shyness, replied smugly, “Are you jealous?”
“Not at all~ How cringe…”
Being called “cringe” as a succubus was probably a badge of honor, right?
Although she’d like to cool her flushed cheeks with such thoughts, she still looked down shyly and quickly slipped on her underwear and conservative nightgown, mumbling, “You’ll be jealous soon enough.”
“Not happening!”
Just then, there was a knock at the door, followed by their mother’s impatient tone. “Why aren’t you up yet? It’s time to eat!”
“Coming, coming!”
Ning Chu opened the door to find her mother standing there, arms crossed, giving her an unhappy glare, while still nagging, “You don’t wake up for breakfast; you sleep like a dead pig. When you were in school, did you ever miss class in the morning?”
“Mom…”
“How are you supposed to work if you keep sleeping in like this?”
Her mother kept rambling, and Ning Chu finally couldn’t hold back. In a low voice, she said, “Wasn’t it your noise that kept me up? You were loud until three or four!”
“……”
The nagging abruptly stopped. Her mother awkwardly turned her head, a hint of pink creeping onto her cheeks.
It was already deep into the night, and who knows why Ning Chu was still awake.
As for Black Bean, that cat wouldn’t wake up no matter how much noise there was!
Thankfully, Ning Chu was a rather capable succubus…
Seeing her daughter about to say something else, their mother, feeling embarrassed, gave Ning Chu a light shove on the back. “Time to eat!”
“Oh~”
Before Ning Chu could take two steps, her mother called after her softly, “What about Ning Xin? She was asleep, right?”
“Yeah, she was snoring like a pig after you stopped with your noise.”
She yawned as she answered.
“After lunch, you can take a nap.”
“Next time, keep it down! We don’t want to spoil Black Bean…”
When Ning Chu and Wen Yang were home, they always kept a low profile, trying not to disturb anyone.
Not like their mother, who was so loud.
Her mother rapped her knuckles lightly on Ning Chu’s head, keeping her teasing remarks to herself, and that finally got her to behave.
She sat down at the dining table, and their mother shot a fierce glance at Uncle, frowning as she picked up her bowl to eat.
Uncle, looking bewildered, touched his bald head and happily served a piece of braised ribs into Ning Chu’s bowl. “Sit down and eat!”
“Mm.”
The dishes on the table were definitely different from usual—probably all cooked by Uncle, while their mother had been glued to the TV all morning.
Black Bean, fashionably late, quickly dashed over to sit down.
“Dad! What are we having for dinner?!” she asked, her face lit up with excitement, her tail wagging eagerly.
“We’re going to a restaurant for seafood,” Uncle replied with a smile, “But you need to dress up pretty; some relatives are coming.”
“Relatives?!”
Suddenly, the food in Ning Chu’s mouth didn’t taste so good anymore.
She twitched her lips and looked at her mother. “Who’s coming?”
“Your grandparents, your uncle and aunt, cousins, and some people from your uncle’s side. There should be about ten of them.”
“……”
Ning Chu started to panic. Ever since she became a girl, the only relatives she faced were her grandparents—the rest she made sure to avoid like the plague. Even during the New Year family visits, she’d hide at home.
And this time, she instinctively chose to escape. “I’m not going.”
“Your cousin has been talking about you for ages, saying he hasn’t seen you in years.”
“I’m not going, just tell them I’m abroad and didn’t come back.”
Her mother sighed, resting her chin on her hand, looking at her anxious daughter. “They’re all family; you can’t avoid them forever. Your relatives might help you out one day.”
“No way…”
“They know a little about your life.”
Ning Chu buried her face in her food, silent.
“Are you seriously not coming to my wedding banquet?”
After a moment of hesitation, she shook her head vigorously. “Let’s just eat together at home later…”
Her mother had no more tricks up her sleeve, and she exchanged a helpless smile with Uncle.
Aside from her grandparents, Ning Chu had no fondness for any other relatives. She would never forget the predatory glint in their eyes when her mother passed away.
Eating in silence, the mood at the table became a bit stiff because of her.
Today was the day her mother and Uncle were getting their marriage certificate…
“Mom, congratulations on your new marriage,” she forced herself to forget the unpleasant memories and smiled sweetly. “You’re not planning to move in at Uncle’s place, are you?”
Her mother shot her an eye-roll and tapped her on the head with her chopsticks. “If you’re not going to eat, then it’s off to the civil affairs bureau with us!”
“Ah~”
Perfect! She’d get a quick tutorial and see how the marriage process works, so she wouldn’t be clueless when her time comes to marry Wen Yang!
