### 321. The Little Princess of the Tutoring Class
“Hey Ning Chu, when are you coming back to visit your grandparents?”
While munching on breakfast, Mom—clenching a dumpling in one hand—glanced up at her daughter.
“Um…” Ning Chu hesitated, the gears of her brain spinning. “Maybe around New Year? Perfect timing for a visit.”
“That works.”
“Is Uncle coming with us?”
She hoped to throw someone else into the line of fire, to keep the spotlight off her and save herself from her grandparents’ probing questions.
Uncle paused mid-dumpling, shooting an uncertain look at Mom.
Mom took a sip of soy milk, her gaze wandering: “Oh, he’s not going…”
Turns out, even Mom gets butterflies when introducing her little boyfriend to the family!
And she wasn’t just hiding this from Ning Chu and her older brother; she had been keeping it from Grandma and Grandpa too! Probably only a handful of friends knew Mom had a boyfriend.
Watching Mom squirm in a situation Ning Chu had been in before made her chuckle inwardly—her mood immediately brightened.
“When does this holiday even end?” Mom decided to change the topic.
“Let me check…” Ning Chu glanced at the class group chat, replying, “We go back on the 17th of the first month.”
“Then it’s about a month at home.”
“Yep~”
She couldn’t shake the feeling that Mom was somewhat fed up with her presence: “Mom, why do I feel like you can’t wait for me to leave?”
With a teasing smile, Mom let out an exaggerated sigh: “It’s fine for the first couple of days, but by the third day, seeing you becomes a bit annoying~ You don’t help around the house at all, just taking up space!”
Clearly, she was just miffed about losing her alone time with Uncle because of Ning Chu being home.
“So I go back once a month.” Ning Yuan piped up from the side, “Coming back that frequently is too much. Back in college, I came home once every six months, and Mom would prepare delicious meals. Now, I can barely sleep on the floor!”
“It’s not that far! What’s wrong with returning weekly for a meal?”
“Uh, I’m worried you’ll find me annoying.”
Amidst teasing banter, the lighthearted vibe made Ning Chu feel at ease.
Compared to the suffocating atmosphere she faced during her first months of being reborn, this family interaction was like a breath of fresh air.
“Ning Xin, stop eating! You’ll be late!”
Mom turned to Black Bean, who was chomping down on dumplings, urging, “Go grab a hair tie, I’ll do your hair.”
“Okay~”
Black Bean slathered the last few dumplings in ketchup, shoving them all into her mouth like a chipmunk before springing up to grab the hair tie.
That tiny figure had crushed at least twenty dumplings—way better appetite than Ning Chu!
“Ning Yuan, are you taking her later?”
“I’ll go.” Ning Chu chimed in. “I have somewhere to be anyway.”
Mom instantly understood where she was headed, giving her a playful glance as she pushed over a plate of freshly made dumplings: “Take these and boil them. Uncle and I haven’t eaten yet.”
The dumplings had shrimp and pork filling mixed by Uncle, tasting way better than anything from a shop outside.
Ning Chu thought that big, burly Uncle would be a bit rough around the edges, but after spending some time with him, she found him surprisingly thoughtful and his cooking skills were quite impressive. With him in the kitchen, Mom mainly just assisted.
From a critical perspective, Uncle didn’t have any glaring flaws apart from his smoking and drinking habits.
As for Uncle and Mom’s relationship… they had been together privately for three to five years. If they weren’t getting along, things would have fallen apart ages ago.
When Ning Chu brought the freshly boiled dumplings to the table, Black Bean had just finished getting pigtails done by Mom.
With her little catgirl appearance, that hairstyle suited her age perfectly—it was incredibly cute.
“Mom, where’s the tutoring class?”
“Over at Nanshan Street, she knows the way.”
Mom handed Ning Chu the keys to the electric bike: “Be careful on the way.”
“Got it, Black Bean, let’s go! Remember to lead the way!”
“Don’t worry!”
Perhaps it had been a while since Ning Chu rode, she found the bike hard to handle, feeling like the front was far too heavy, making balance tricky.
She wobbled through the community, trying to get the hang of riding again, with Black Bean’s face going pale as she clung tightly to Ning Chu’s waist, “Sis~ you okay?”
“Shouldn’t we just take a taxi?”
“When have I not been fine?” Ning Chu turned slowly, but stomped her foot to the ground just in time to save the bike from tipping over, “We’re gonna be late, let’s call a taxi.”
After returning the bike to storage, Ning Chu hurriedly hailed a ride, whisking Black Bean off to Nanshan Walking Street.
“Sis.”
“What is it?”
“When are you and Brother-in-law getting married?”
“……”
Who’s got a crystal ball for that?
At least there was no chance of marriage during school, after graduation, who knows how long it’ll be until Wen Yang buys a car and a house.
Not that she was particularly keen on the house and car concept, but it was her way of dragging things out… Though, to be fair, her aversion to the whole idea had lessened significantly, and maybe she was even a little curious.
But Wen Yang’s prowess was unreasonably strong. The way the book described his prowess had her worried she might just explode.
“Hey Sis, why do you have clothes with you? Are you going to Brother-in-law’s place?”
“Um… yes.”
Ning Chu was holding a bag filled with clothes, determined not to get them dirty when visiting Wen Yang, so Mom wouldn’t spot them right away.
Not two minutes later, Black Bean rested her head on Ning Chu’s shoulder, dozing off.
When she woke up again, they had arrived at Nanshan Walking Street, and she guided them to the tutoring class.
“This is my first time at a place like this.” Ning Chu admired her surroundings, her family never had the funds for extra lessons back in the day.
As soon as they entered the tutoring center, Black Bean was instantly energized, completely awake.
“Ning Xin, little sister~” The receptionist lit up upon spotting Black Bean, “Want some sunflower seeds? I can share a bag!”
Black Bean perked up her ears, cutely calling, “Sister!” before shaking her head, “No, I can’t snack during class, Mom will scold me if I bring it home.”
“Ning Xin~ I brought meat floss buns! Do you want some?”
A little boy bolted over, shoving a bag of buns into Black Bean’s hands.
“Thanks, big brother~”
Her sweet little voice made the boy blush furiously and run away, flustered.
“Little Ning Xin~ over here, over here!”
Within the tutoring center, every person from staff to kids were showering Black Bean with treats—all just from the brief distance between the entrance and the classroom, her clothes and pockets were already stuffed with snacks.
Ning Chu watched from behind, her eyes nearly popping out.
This little cat was ridiculously popular! She was being treated like a little princess.
No wonder Black Bean was so enthusiastic about tutoring classes!
“Here, have a bun, Sis.” Black Bean turned back, pulling out a meat floss bun from her pocket and stuffing it into Ning Chu’s hands, casting a guilty glance around, “Don’t tell Mom! I’m treating you!”
“……”
Ning Chu’s smile froze, rubbing her temples in frustration: “Are you a little vixen with such charm…?”
“I’m just an adorable little cat~”
——————
Today’s double update because of some matters!
