Though Yang Yun wasn’t her own daughter, seeing her bullied like this still made Lin Xiangxiu’s heart ache.
She touched the bruise, feeling both furious and helpless, unsure of what to say.
Lin Xiao also came over and, upon seeing the numerous injuries on Yang Yun’s arm, instantly teared up. “Sister, who did this to you? Let me blow on it for you.”
“Blow, blow, the pain will go away.” Lin Xiao puffed her cheeks and blew vigorously until her face turned red.
Her saliva sprayed directly onto Yang Yun’s arm with each puff.
Lin Xiangxiu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry as she pulled Lin Xiao away. “You’re getting saliva all over your sister.”
Yang Yun also curved her lips into a faint smile. In this moment, she felt an unprecedented sense of relief. With delicious tofu baozi and adorable Lin Xiao chattering and laughing beside her, her tightly wound nerves relaxed considerably.
She sniffled, suddenly leaning back and covering her eyes with her hands, her voice choked with tears. “It wasn’t my parents—it was people at school.”
“You’re being bullied at school?” Lin Xiangxiu said.
Yang Yun nodded and explained the situation to Lin Xiangxiu.
After listening, Lin Xiangxiu learned that the girl had been cornered by several older students at school, and not just once or twice.
These students, both boys and girls, were all hopeless good-for-nothings who refused to study properly. They spent their days wandering around the school and specifically targeted younger students.
This time, they had set their sights on Yang Yun.
According to Yang Yun, it had been going on for a semester, starting from the beginning of the year. Every day after class, these students would gather at her classroom door, call her out, and intentionally or unintentionally say threatening things to her.
Later, seeing that Yang Yun didn’t dare to fight back, they escalated their behavior.
A few of the troublemakers among them were particularly vicious. Noticing her introverted and quiet nature, they would push her around or grab her arms and pinch her.
In short, they had many ways of bullying others.
“What about not eating? Is that related to them?” Lin Xiangxiu grew angrier the more she listened, wishing she could rush to the school and confront those troublemakers. “Did they steal your meal tickets to prevent you from eating?”
Yang Yun shook her head: “Not exactly… They just mocked me for being fat, saying ‘ugly people cause more trouble.'”
“You’re fat? You’re so thin you’re practically a stick.” Lin Xiangxiu quickly retorted.
Yang Yun smiled bitterly, hesitating for a few seconds before finally telling Lin Xiangxiu the truth.
“Earlier, I liked a boy at school and wrote him a love letter. Somehow, someone found it and spread it everywhere. When those people found out, they came over and called me fat, saying ‘ugly people cause more trouble’…”
“Bah! They’re the ones causing trouble! What’s wrong with liking a boy? Who didn’t have a crush when they were young? What does it have to do with them?” Lin Xiangxiu cursed.
Yang Yun: “I don’t know how I offended them either. Anyway, they started picking on me. At the time, I was indeed a bit chubby, so I thought if I lost weight, they’d have nothing to say. But after starving myself for a while, I just lost my appetite.”
Lin Xiangxiu: “Are they still bullying you now?”
Yang Yun took a deep breath. “Yes, they often corner me after school and said they’ll come for me again tomorrow after class.”
“Were you hiding here just now because you were scared?”
Yang Yun smiled sheepishly, “Sister, you won’t laugh at me, will you?”
“Why would I laugh at you? You’re the one being bullied – there’s nothing funny about that.” Lin Xiangxiu sneered, “What I find ridiculous are those bullies who pick on you. They think they’re so powerful by ganging up on you at school, but outside these walls, nobody takes them seriously.”
“Listen, Xiao Yun, you don’t need to be afraid of these people. Right now it might feel like your world is ending when they bully you, but they’re actually paper tigers that collapse at the slightest touch. Have you told your teachers?”
Yang Yun replied, “I did, but it didn’t help. The teachers spoke to their homeroom teacher, and while they promised not to bother me again, they still wait for me in the alley outside school after classes end.”
“Have you told your parents then?” Lin Xiangxiu pressed, “Your parents really care about you – last time they even took time off work specifically to take you to the hospital.”
“They’re both too busy.” Yang Yun covered her eyes, as if speaking to Lin Xiangxiu or perhaps to herself, “One’s busy catching criminals, the other’s busy making money. When would they have time for me?”
Lin Xiangxiu patted her shoulder comfortingly, “That can’t be true. They just don’t know you’re being bullied. If they knew, they’d definitely fight for you! I’m a mother myself – I understand how parents feel.”
“How could my mother possibly fight anyone? She cares too much about her image – she’d argue for hours over smudged makeup.” Yang Yun said self-mockingly.
Lin Xiangxiu tried to persuade Yang Yun to tell her parents, but there seemed to be some misunderstanding among the three family members. No matter how she tried to convince her, Yang Yun refused to tell the truth.
The girl had become as thin as a rail, looking utterly pitiful. Lin Xiangxiu couldn’t force her to speak against her will.
“What will you do if they block your way again tomorrow?” Lin Xiangxiu couldn’t help worrying for her.
Yang Yun pressed her lips together, “At worst, I’ll drop out and find work in another city. Don’t lots of people go work elsewhere these days?”
Lin Xiangxiu’s eyes widened, “Those are people who can’t afford schooling! Your family’s well-off – why would you want to work? Labor jobs are really tough.”
Yang Yun’s voice trembled with tears, “But I really don’t want to go to school anymore. I’m scared every day at school, and when I see them waiting at the school gate after class, my legs shake uncontrollably.”
“You’ve been frightened out of your wits by them.” Lin Xiangxiu sighed, then took Yang Yun’s hand sympathetically.
This poor child – clearly from a decent family with capable parents, yet she could be bullied to this extent.
“If you don’t want to tell your parents, how about I pick you up from school tomorrow? I finish work by two in the afternoon anyway. Maybe if they see you have an adult picking you up, they won’t dare bully you anymore?” Lin Xiangxiu suggested.
This was according to her own way of thinking.
If she or Lin Xiao encountered this kind of situation, they’d directly confront them with bricks in hand. These idle hooligans were all paper tigers – they might appear tough and lawless on the surface, but after getting hit by one brick, they’d never dare bully anyone again.
Looking at Yang Yun’s fragile appearance, it was hard to say whether she’d be hitting others or getting hit herself. So Lin Xiangxiu kept this particular idea to herself.
Yang Yun sniffled, “Sister, you’re so kind. Will you really come to pick me up tomorrow?”
She gazed at Lin Xiangxiu with wide, dependent eyes.
Lin Xiangxiu immediately responded, “I’ll definitely come get you tomorrow. I want to see for myself what these lawless hooligans look like!”
Lin Xiao also puffed out her chest, tilting her head high. “That’s right! My mom is the best. She’ll definitely scare them away!”
“Xiao Xiao, you make me sound like some kind of ferocious monster,” Lin Xiangxiu complained.
Yang Yun burst into laughter, the gloom in her eyes fading somewhat.
Lin Xiangxiu glanced at her, thinking to herself that she needed to see these troublemakers for herself—preferably memorizing their faces to decide whether to quietly inform Yang Yun’s parents later. This child was only in eighth grade, with over a year left until graduation. She couldn’t escort her every day, but she also couldn’t stand by and watch Yang Yun get bullied like this. Best to leave it to Yang Yun’s parents to handle.
While lost in thought, Lin Xiangxiu noticed Yang Yun grabbing another baozi and stuffing it into her mouth.
This time, it was a Xiao Roubao.
The meat baozi was still warm. As Yang Yun broke it open and popped it into her mouth, her eyes instantly lit up.
She had never tasted such delicious meat baozi before! The seasoning wasn’t overly salty, and the filling was tender yet springy.
With a gentle bite, rich meat juices burst forth, so fragrant she felt like she could swallow her own tongue.
Feeling more relaxed, Yang Yun could better appreciate the flavors and found herself unable to stop after just one bite.
She finished a palm-sized, oil-glistening baozi in three mouthfuls and reached for another, but Lin Xiangxiu wouldn’t allow it.
Holding the plate out of reach, Lin Xiangxiu smiled and said, “If you like them, I’ll make more and bring them to your house next time. I can afford to give you these baozi.”
“But you really shouldn’t eat any more right now. From the looks of it, you haven’t been eating properly for a while. Suddenly eating so much, especially greasy food, will upset your stomach.”
Yang Yun didn’t even waste the meat juices on her fingers, licking them clean as she sighed sincerely, “Sister, are you sure you can’t come work as a nanny at my house? My mom has plenty of money—if I ask her, she’d definitely hire you.”
Lin Xiangxiu chuckled, “Your dad said the same thing, but I really can’t. I have a job now, and Mr. Lu needs me here.”
Yang Yun looked disappointed but didn’t press further. She hugged her knees and sat under the shade of a tree, watching the sunset for a long time.
As dusk approached, Yang Yun snapped out of her reverie. “Sister, I’m fine now and don’t feel like crying anymore. You should head back—aren’t you off work already?”
Lin Xiangxiu agreed it was getting late. She took Lin Xiao’s hand, stood up, bid Yang Yun goodbye, and headed home with her child.
On the way back, Lin Xiangxiu couldn’t help but sigh, hugging Lin Xiao tightly. “Xiao Xiao, if you ever face anything like this, you must tell me. I’d risk my life to make sure no one bullies you like that!”
Lin Xiao blinked her innocent big eyes and nodded.
The next noon, Mr. Lu came home for a quick meal before leaving again.
He seemed particularly busy these days. When he returned for lunch, his time was always rushed. Sometimes, as soon as the food hit the table, he’d eagerly grab his chopsticks and wolf it down.
After finishing her meal, she pushed the bowl aside and hurried off again.
That noon, even after work hours, Lin Xiangxiu didn’t leave. She stayed until evening, timing it just as Yang Yun finished school, and went to the school gate. While waiting, she looked around, hoping to spot any troublemaker-like kids nearby.
But after searching for a long time, she only saw parents picking up their children.
Lin Xiangxiu, holding Lin Xiao’s hand, waited a while longer. As the crowd thinned out, she still hadn’t seen Yang Yun.
Growing anxious, Lin Xiangxiu searched the nearby alleys over and over, afraid that Yang Yun might have been taken away.
Finding no one in the alleys either, she returned to the school gate.
Lin Xiangxiu approached the gatekeeper. “Uncle, my child hasn’t come out yet, and almost all the other children have left. Could I go in and check?”
“What grade and class is your child in?”
“I don’t know which class, but she’s in eighth grade. Her name is Yang Yun.”
The gatekeeper fetched a register, put on his glasses, flipped through it, found the eighth-grade section, and located Yang Yun’s name.
Seeing Lin Xiangxiu holding a child’s hand and looking sincere, not like a troublemaker, he opened a small door next to the gatehouse.
“Hurry in and look, but don’t wander around. Come out as soon as you find your child.”
Lin Xiangxiu agreed immediately and led Lin Xiao inside.
Before leaving, she didn’t forget to ask the gatekeeper for directions to the eighth-grade classrooms.
After just a few steps, Lin Xiao called out, “Sister, Mom, I see Sister!”
Lin Xiangxiu looked up and saw Yang Yun trudging dejectedly out of the school building. She was small and thin, carrying a large backpack that seemed to weigh her down like a mountain.
The girl’s hair was messy, her hands stuffed in her pockets, and she walked with her head hung low.
Lin Xiangxiu pulled Lin Xiao forward and asked with concern, “Xiao Yun, why are you so late today? I’ve been waiting for you at the gate for a long time.”
Yang Yun looked up, her eyes swollen like peaches, her voice choked with tears. “Sister, I’m fine. Let’s just go home.”
Lin Xiangxiu sensed something was wrong and held her back. “What happened? I checked the alleys earlier—those people weren’t waiting for you there. Why are you crying? Did they come into the classroom after school?”
Yang Yun’s tears flowed like a burst dam. She shook her head repeatedly but said nothing.
Lin Xiangxiu studied her closely, feeling something was off. She brushed Yang Yun’s hair aside and nearly jumped in anger. “Who hit you? Why is there a slap mark on your face?”
“Let’s go tell the teacher. If the teacher won’t handle it, I’ll take you to report it to the Public Security Officer. How can this be allowed? A good child being bullied like this at school.” Lin Xiangxiu’s anger flared up instantly.
“Sister, no! I don’t want to go to school anymore, and I don’t want to see them again.” Yang Yun cried, clutching Lin Xiangxiu’s hand, refusing to let her go to the teacher.
Lin Xiangxiu tried to persuade her to report it to the Public Security Officer, but Yang Yun shook her head, even more resistant.
Yang Yun was more distraught than the day before, crying uncontrollably and insisting on going home.
In the end, Lin Xiangxiu had no choice but to take her and Lin Xiao onto the bus and head home.
When entering the Family Compound, Yang Yun kept her head down, letting her hair cover the slap mark on her face, so no one noticed.
Lin Xiangxiu stood downstairs, watching her go up and seeing the lights turn on in her home before finally breathing a sigh of relief.
Lin Xiao was also furious, clenching her little fists. “Mom, how could those people bully Sister like that? It’s too much! Let’s find the Public Security Officer and have them arrested!” Lin Xiao waved her small fists.
If there was one big change since coming to Shencheng, this was it for Lin Xiao.
Back in their hometown in the northeast, many children in the village used to bully Lin Xiao. Back then, she would just wave her little fists and beat up those kids who mocked her for not having a father until they were crawling on the ground looking for their teeth.
Because of this, Lin Xiangxiu had to apologize to people countless times.
But ever since coming to Shencheng and starting work at Mr. Lu’s home, Lin Xiangxiu noticed that Lin Xiao had never hit anyone again. Now, at the slightest provocation, she wanted to find a Public Security Officer to arrest the bad guys.
Lin Xiangxiu patted Lin Xiao’s head, picked up the child, and turned to leave. “You’re right, let’s go find a Public Security Officer and have all those bad kids arrested.”
She took Lin Xiao to the Public Security Bureau. When they got there, she originally wanted to find Yang Yong – after all, it was his daughter. As parents, they couldn’t just stand by when their child was being bullied.
Yang Yun’s current state was also quite strange. Lin Xiangxiu felt like she was holding on by a thread, as if one more stimulus would make her completely break down.
To prevent things from escalating further, she needed to quickly inform Yang Yun’s parents.
But when she asked there, Yang Yong was out on duty, and even Mr. Lu wasn’t around.
Recently, Shencheng had been hit by a series of major cases. Every single one of them was swamped with work, all putting in overtime right now.
After waiting for over ten minutes with no sign of Yang Yong returning, Lin Xiangxiu went back to the Family Compound.
She returned with one purpose – to ask around about where Yang Yun’s mother worked.
Lin Xiangxiu initially thought this would be easy. After all, they lived in the same compound – surely people would know where everyone’s wives and husbands worked?
Unexpectedly, people in the compound really didn’t know.
Lin Xiangxiu asked several people about information regarding Yang Yun’s mother. Some said they didn’t know and weren’t familiar with Zou Yanhong, while others said Zou Yanhong seemed to run a shop, but no one knew exactly where the shop was or what it sold.
After running around for most of the afternoon, with dusk approaching, Lin Xiangxiu’s throat was dry from all the asking, but she still hadn’t managed to get any information about Zou Yanhong. This woman left early and returned late in the compound – too mysterious.
Just as she was about to go back and wait to approach Zou Yanhong directly upstairs the next day, an aunt stopped her.
This aunt, surnamed Wu, looked quite familiar to Lin Xiangxiu. She had often seen her shelling peas and preparing vegetables downstairs before. There wasn’t any gossip in this compound that she couldn’t find out about.
Now Aunt Wu grabbed Lin Xiangxiu’s arm and asked curiously, “Aren’t you Xiao Lu’s new nanny? What do you want with Yanhong?”
“It’s hard to explain, I just need to talk to her about something. Do you know where she is right now, Auntie?” Lin Xiangxiu said.
Aunt Wu thought for a moment. “She runs a shop in the city center, selling cosmetics. She should be there.”
“What time does she usually come back?”
Aunt Wu looked at her even more curiously. “Around ten o’clock. Her shop makes good money – she’s probably the highest-earning woman in our Family Compound. She usually doesn’t even give us the time of day.”
She loved makeup, was haughty, and sounded like a very difficult woman to get along with.
Zou Yanhong returned home late, but Lin Xiangxiu couldn’t wait until that hour. Lin Xiao was still waiting for her at home, so she needed to quickly inform Yang Yun’s parents about the matter, after which she could consider her mission accomplished and withdraw.
“Aunt Wu, do you know the exact address of her shop?”
Aunt Wu actually did know and provided an address. After jotting it down, Lin Xiangxiu headed straight for the city center.
She rushed hurriedly to the shop in the city center, only to find it empty. The shop assistant on duty looked at her in confusion, “Our boss Zou has opened another counter at the city department store. She should be there now.”
Enduring the curious gaze of the shop assistant, Lin Xiangxiu turned and went to the department store, where she finally found the elusive Zou Yanhong.
Zou Yanhong had been summoned by an employee. As she walked over, Lin Xiangxiu was truly stunned, feeling that this was the most beautiful person she had ever seen.
It wasn’t that she was exceptionally pretty, but she was dressed in a very fashionable and luxurious style, making it clear at a glance that this woman lacked neither money nor material possessions.
The temperature in the department store was low. Zou Yanhong wore a slightly form-fitting silk dress, draped with a thin scarf whose ends were tied into a bow at her chest, making her look like a wealthy lady from somewhere.
The click-clack of her high heels echoed as she approached, and Lin Xiangxiu was still in a daze when she reached her.
Zou Yanhong wasn’t bothered by Lin Xiangxiu’s scrutiny; in fact, she was somewhat curious about Lin Xiangxiu and had long wanted to meet such a person.
Previously, Old Yang had gone to Xiao Lu’s house for a meal and returned full of praise for the new nanny at Xiao Lu’s home, saying that even the chefs in restaurants couldn’t compare to her culinary skills.
Coincidentally, with her own family often missing hot meals, Zou Yanhong had been itching to poach Lin Xiangxiu.
Unexpectedly, Lin Xiangxiu had come to her on her own.
Zou Yanhong fiddled with her curly hair and invited Lin Xiangxiu to sit inside the counter, “What brings you here, Miss Lin? Have you thought it over and decided to switch jobs?”
“What are you talking about? I don’t want to switch jobs.” Sitting inside this stylish and glamorous counter, Lin Xiangxiu felt entirely out of place. “I came to talk to you about Yang Yun. Have you noticed how excessively thin your child has become? She hardly eats, and there are always wounds on her body.”
Zou Yanhong’s expression instantly changed, “What wounds? Since when? How come I never knew?”
“Are you too busy and usually overlook the child? Your little Yun has suffered greatly this time!” Lin Xiangxiu sighed. “I’m not here for any other reason, but there’s something I feel I must tell you. You need to stand up for your child and support her.”
Then, Lin Xiangxiu recounted everything she knew to Zou Yanhong in detail.
From discovering the bruises on Yang Yun’s body to going to the school and finding out that Yang Yun had been slapped, she told Zou Yanhong everything exactly as it happened.
Zou Yanhong’s expression shifted from initial indifference to later becoming terrifyingly grim. Lin Xiangxiu even heard her grinding her teeth, her fists clenched tightly, as if she wished she could rush out right then and confront those bad kids.
Seeing Zou Yanhong’s furious demeanor, Lin Xiangxiu finally breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully! Thankfully, things weren’t as she had imagined. Thankfully, Yang Yun was an unfortunate yet fortunate child—she had parents who loved her deeply.
“I never knew all these things happened to Xiao Yun, and she never showed me her wounds either,” Zou Yanhong said, fighting back the heartache.
Lin Xiangxiu could understand how she felt.
Any mother would be heartbroken to have this happen to her own daughter.
Zou Yanhong blamed herself, murmuring, “We’re home every day, yet we never noticed our child was suffering like this.”
“No wonder she wore a jacket every day, no wonder she wouldn’t let me in when she bathed. If you hadn’t come to tell me, who knows how long it would’ve taken for me to find out?” she said brokenly.”
“She hasn’t been eating lately—the doctor said it’s anorexia. I thought she’d gotten sick from being too desperate to lose weight, but it turns out someone had been saying things to her.”
Lin Xiangxiu added, “Those kids said terrible things to her—calling her ‘fatso’ and ‘fat pig.’ You need to stand up for her properly so they never dare bully her again.”
“If it comes to it, I think we should just transfer her to another school. I know studies are important right now, but we can’t ignore bullying. The teachers at her current school don’t seem very responsible.”
At this mention, Zou Yanhong gritted her teeth so hard they creaked. “I’m going to her school tomorrow to see exactly who’s been bullying my daughter.” She felt like tearing someone apart.
She took several deep breaths before managing to suppress her rage. When she turned to Lin Xiangxiu, her face was filled with gratitude—the earlier distance and scrutiny gone, replaced by boundless appreciation.
Thank you for specifically coming to tell me this. My daughter is introverted and usually doesn’t share these things with anyone. If it weren’t for you, who knows when I would have learned about this.”
Lin Xiangxiu waved her hand. “It’s nothing. I have children too—I just can’t stand seeing young girls get bullied.”
“Um… Xiao Lin, could you…” Zou Yanhong looked at Lin Xiangxiu, opening her mouth as if to say something, but ultimately didn’t speak.
Noticing it was getting late, Lin Xiangxiu stood up to leave. After taking just a few steps, Zou Yanhong came chasing after her.
As Lin Xiangxiu turned back, Zou Yanhong wordlessly shoved a gift bag into her hands—the kind of specialty paper bag used at cosmetics counters, with gilded edges and the silhouette of a woman in a black dress wearing a top hat printed in the center. It looked particularly high-end.
Then again, considering it came from a department store counter, it couldn’t have been cheap.
Lin Xiangxiu held the bag bewildered. “What are you doing?”
“It’s a thank-you gift. Please don’t refuse—if it weren’t for you, who knows how much longer our Xiao Yun would have suffered.” Zou Yanhong’s eyes were still slightly red, but her tone turned firm. “You must accept it. If you don’t like these, I can exchange them for something else—Oil of Olay? Little Nurse? Little Nurse sells very well now—should I get you a couple of those too?”
Lin Xiangxiu looked down and saw several unopened cosmetics inside the bag.
“I really can’t accept these. I don’t wear makeup—they’d be useless to me. Besides, I only said a few words. One shouldn’t receive rewards without merit.”
Lin Xiangxiu genuinely felt she hadn’t done much, unaware that her actions had saved Yang Yun’s future. She thought a few words weren’t worth such expensive gifts.
“What do you mean ‘no merit’? You’re the hero here—you deserve any reward.” When Zou Yanhong became determined, she could be quite forceful. Seeing Lin Xiangxiu’s reluctance, she pressed the items into her hands. “If you won’t take them, I’ll just throw them away later.”
“How could you waste such good things!” Lin Xiangxiu was heartbroken. Throwing away such expensive, high-quality items was such a pity.
Zou Yanhong: “Then you should take them and use them properly. Let me know when you’ve used them up, and I’ll keep finding suitable things for you. Don’t stand on ceremony with me—you’ve been a huge help to me, little sister.”
She took Lin Xiangxiu’s hand and pleaded, “Tomorrow afternoon after school, I’d like to trouble you to accompany me to my child’s school. I’m afraid if I go alone, Xiao Yun won’t tell me who’s been bullying her. If you come along and persuade her, maybe she’ll open up to you?”
“Alright then, I’ll accept these things and go with you tomorrow. But I have a child too—my daughter is only four years old. I don’t want her to witness something like this,” Lin Xiangxiu said, feeling troubled.
“How about this? Tomorrow I’ll ask my mother—my own mother—to come along. She can follow behind us with your daughter. It’ll only take two hours at most, and we’ll return right after,” Zou Yanhong suggested.
The thought of leaving Lin Xiao with a stranger made Lin Xiangxiu extremely uneasy, and she instinctively wanted to refuse.
But the Zou Yanhong before her was nothing like the aloof, elegant woman from earlier. Stamping her feet while looking at her with a pleading expression, she even raised her hand to swear that the person she’d call was her biological mother—a very reliable former elementary school teacher who’d even let Lin Xiangxiu hold her ID card as collateral.
After some thought, Lin Xiangxiu agreed. “Alright, Sister Zou, I’ll go with you tomorrow. It’s getting late, and my child is waiting for me at home. I should get going now.”
“Okay, be careful on your way back,” Zou Yanhong said, accompanying her a long way until Lin Xiangxiu’s figure disappeared from view before turning back.
Returning behind the counter, she let out a deep sigh.
The shop assistant working nearby kept glancing at Zou Yanhong, feeling utterly perplexed.
After watching for a while, she finally couldn’t resist asking, “Boss, what’s wrong?”
Someone who usually always wore a smile had suddenly replaced it with a worried, distressed expression—it was quite unsettling.
The young assistant was starting to feel a bit scared, wondering if there was some problem with the counter or if the funding chain had broken.
Otherwise, why would the boss look so troubled?
Of course, Zou Yanhong couldn’t discuss her family matters with her employee.
She draped a silk scarf over her face, sank into the sofa, and said in a muffled voice, “I just realized I’m failing as a mother.”
That evening, Zou Yanhong left work early, went to the market to buy groceries, and returned home to personally cook a table full of dishes.
When Yang Yong entered the house and saw the smoky, bustling kitchen, he exclaimed, “Wow, what’s the occasion today? Our Boss Zou is actually cooking herself!”
He took a deep breath of the aromas wafting from the kitchen and teased with a laugh, “It’s been so long since you last cooked—seems like your skills might have slipped a bit.”
Zou Yanhong emerged from the kitchen carrying a plate of Kung Pao Chicken and glared at him. “Stop joking around. Go change and take a shower first. I have something very important to discuss later.”
Yang Yong was baffled. “What is it? Can it wait until after I get off work? I just rushed back to change clothes and grab a bite—I have to leave again soon.”
“No. No matter how important your work is, you need to sit down here and listen to what I have to say. If you don’t, our family could face serious problems,” Zou Yanhong said firmly.
Because his wife’s attitude seemed off and her gaze was overly serious, Yang Yong, who had originally planned to eat just a few bites before leaving, found himself sitting back down at the dining table.
Soon after, three dishes and a soup were served, and Yang Yun was called out to join them.
Yang Yong and Yang Yun exchanged a glance—neither father nor daughter knew what was going on.
Zou Yanhong first placed a piece of her daughter’s favorite braised chicken wing into her bowl before asking, “Xiao Yun, has anything happened at school lately? For example, has any bad kid bullied you or made fun of you?”
Yang Yun’s hand, holding the chopsticks, trembled slightly. “Why are you suddenly asking this?” Could it be that the older sister had told her mother?
Yang Yun wasn’t actually afraid of Lin Xiangxiu telling her parents about the matter; she just felt it was unnecessary.
Her parents were so busy with work. Since childhood, she had been raised by her grandmother and maternal grandmother, and as she grew older, her relationship with her parents remained distant.
Although she knew in her heart that her parents loved her deeply, she always felt they were too busy—too busy to care about their daughter. So even if she told them, she believed it wouldn’t change anything.
There was another reason—Yang Yun didn’t want Zou Yanhong to know about her crush on a male classmate.
Her mother would surely have a pile of lectures ready: “You’re still too young; you should focus entirely on your studies,” or “This is the time for studying; thinking about romance is just wasting your youth.”
Faced with such a barrage of reasoning, Yang Yun would lose all desire to communicate. Over time, she stopped confiding in her mother about anything, keeping everything bottled up inside. As a result, she grew increasingly introverted and spoke less and less.
Zou Yanhong’s expression remained relatively calm, but upon closer inspection, her hand holding the chopsticks was trembling.
She took a deep breath, forced a smile, and looked at her daughter. “Mom doesn’t mean anything by it. It’s just that you’ve lost so much weight recently and don’t seem to have an appetite. I was wondering if someone was bullying you or if there’s another reason. Let’s figure it out together—we can’t let you keep losing weight like this.”
Yang Yong felt his wife made sense. “Your mother is right. Have you run into any problems lately? It seemed like you were quite unhappy a while ago.”
Yang Yun looked at her father, then at her mother. Several times, she wanted to speak, but she was afraid of her parents’ lectures.
After hesitating for a long time, she ultimately said nothing.
She lowered her eyes and reluctantly put the chicken wing into her mouth. “It’s nothing. I just don’t feel that hungry,” she mumbled vaguely.
Zou Yanhong grew anxious. “No, something must have happened. Can you tell Mom about it? I know I was wrong before—I was too busy with work and didn’t take good care of you. I sent you to your grandmother when you were little and didn’t look after you properly. But you have to believe me, I genuinely want to help you solve this problem. You’re a part of me; how could I not care about you?”
Since she had been left with her grandmother since childhood, Yang Yun was startled by her mother’s sudden words. “Mom, what’s wrong with you? I really don’t have any problems.”
“No, I know something’s wrong. My daughter was perfectly fine before—eating, drinking, and laughing happily. Now you’ve lost so much weight. Why won’t you just tell me the truth?” Zou Yanhong put down her chopsticks and couldn’t hold back her tears, breaking down in sobs.
The more she acted like this, the more frightened Yang Yun became, thinking her mother must have found out something and was about to explode. She set down her chopsticks and stopped eating.
Yang Yong couldn’t stand watching any longer and quickly interjected, “Alright, Yanhong, don’t be so anxious. Didn’t the child say she’s fine? She might just be feeling down lately.”
“If you want to eat, take some food back to your room. If not, let’s go rest for a while. Don’t worry about your mom, it’s alright,” Yang Yong then comforted the frightened Yang Yun.
“Okay, I’ll go back to my room,” Yang Yun said without another word, dropping her chopsticks and running off.
Once she was gone, Yang Yong spoke up, “I know you’re worried, but you can’t communicate with the child like this. Haven’t you noticed? The conversation you two just had seemed lengthy, but it contained no real substance. The child acts like a mouse seeing a cat when she’s around you.”
Yang Yong set down his chopsticks and sighed.
Zou Yanhong retorted, “All you ever do is talk like this, always smoothing things over without resolving anything. Keep it up, and sooner or later, this family will fall apart because of your appeasement.”
“Let me ask you, which is more important—our daughter or your job? Did you not see the slap mark on her face just now? She kept her head down, hiding it with her hair so we wouldn’t notice.”
“What slap mark? I didn’t see anything,” Yang Yong, who had already picked up his hat ready to leave, froze in surprise at her words.
Zou Yanhong clutched her hair in distress, her carefully styled curls now tousled and messy.
She glanced in the direction of their daughter’s room and lowered her voice, “Our daughter is being bullied by bad students at school. I wondered why she’s been wearing long sleeves lately—it turns out she’s covered in bruises. If it weren’t for the new nanny at Xiao Lu’s downstairs telling me, I’d still be in the dark.”
“I came home early today specifically to talk to her about this, to hear the full story from her own mouth. But you, with your constant mediating, convinced her to go back to her room. Now who am I supposed to ask?” Zou Yanhong couldn’t help but slap the table in frustration.
As her voice rose, Yang Yong hurriedly said, “Keep your voice down. We don’t want our daughter to hear and think we’re arguing.”
“I do want to argue with you! We’ve both been so busy with work lately that we’ve neglected our child. Now she’s developed anorexia. I think we both need to put our jobs aside and spend some proper time with her.” Zou Yanhong suppressed her anger and lowered her voice again.
No sooner had she finished speaking than Yang Yong’s pager buzzed in his pocket.
He pulled it out, and his expression shifted immediately. “It must be a lead on that serial killer. I have to get back to the station right away.”
“Work, work—all you care about is work! Why don’t you just marry your job and treat the criminals like your daughter? Our child is in this state, and you still have the mind to focus on work?”
Being criticized so bluntly by his wife, Yang Yong’s face darkened. He wasn’t angry so much as he felt guilty and remorseful.
He never imagined that their daughter’s recent drastic weight loss was due to being bullied by troublemakers at school.
But even though he knew now, he still didn’t have the time to address it.
Yang Yong looked down at the incessantly beeping pager and sighed helplessly. Work needed him, and his family needed him—he wished he could split himself in two.
“Yanhong, let’s talk this through properly, no need to argue. Wait for me to go back to the office and finish my work first. Later I’ll take leave to go to the school with you to resolve this matter. I’ll also keep an eye on Xiao Yun’s situation. I’ll call her homeroom teacher later – we absolutely can’t let those bad kids bully her again.”
Her husband stood at the doorway, his heart torn between work and their child. Zou Yanhong could clearly see his struggle.
After a long moment, she said softly, “No more arguing. Go to work. I’ll handle this tomorrow.”
“Just stay calm, it’ll be fine to wait until I get back.” With that, Yang Yong hurried out the door.
Zou Yanhong found today’s argument rather ridiculous. She scooped a bowl of rice and reheated some dishes her daughter liked.
“Mom was a bit impatient today. Don’t take what I said earlier to heart. Eat this if you want, or just leave it by the door if you don’t. I’ll come get it later.”
There was no response from the room, as if the child had fallen asleep.
Zou Yanhong waited by the door for a while, then knocked lightly before placing the bowl on the floor. She turned and returned to her room.
Today she had no energy for those troublesome facial masks. She just lay directly on the bed, sighing repeatedly.
What she didn’t know was that after a while, Yang Yun quietly opened the door and tentatively brought the bowl inside.
Yang Yun took a bite of the Kung Pao Chicken and nearly choked on the saltiness of her mother’s disastrous cooking. She stuck out her tongue but still managed to swallow that mouthful of chicken.
…
The moment the school bell rang, the gates of Shenzhen City First Experimental Middle School swung open. Students came pouring out as if being chased by dogs.
With no evening self-study sessions, the children’s faces showed liberated smiles as they left campus. Those with slightly more pocket money would drag a few classmates straight to the snack shops across from the school.
There were numerous snack shops near the school – some selling Changfen, others Kway Teow Soup, plus stalls with fried chicken legs that also served boiled beef and pork balls.
Lin Xiangxiu had arrived early, strolling along this snack street with Lin Xiao. The mother and daughter each had a skewer of beef balls, then found a shop to order an oyster omelet. They sat down to eat leisurely while waiting for Zou Yanhong to arrive.
“Xiao Xiao, later when Mom goes to stand up for Sister Xiao Yun, you stay obedient with Grandma and don’t run around, understand?”” Lin Xiangxiu said while chewing on a springy beef ball.
Lin Xiao was also eating a beef ball, but it was so chewy that the child’s teeth couldn’t handle it. Her cheeks were getting sore from all the chewing, and she looked to Lin Xiangxiu for help.
“Mom…”
“Give it to Mom.” Lin Xiangxiu took the beef ball and handed the oyster omelet to Lin Xiao.
The oyster omelet was crispy outside and tender inside. With each bite, you could hear the crunchy exterior make a “crack” sound, crisp enough to shatter teeth.
Biting through that crispy edge revealed soft, tender oyster meat – likely freshly harvested, incredibly succulent and fresh.
Being from inland Northeast China, they rarely had opportunities to eat seafood back home. This was Lin Xiao’s first time trying oysters.
Her little mouth became greasy as she ate. “Mom, this has the flavor of lard and scallions inside. It’s really so fragrant,” Lin Xiao said while eating.
Finally having a day off from cooking, Lin Xiangxiu sat leisurely by the street enjoying delicious food, so content that her eyes narrowed into slits.
“You can even tell what kind of oil they used—your skills have really improved,” Lin Xiangxiu teased with a laugh.
Lin Xiao licked her lips, looking quite pleased with herself. “Of course! My mom is a master chef, so I’m the junior chef.”
“I’d say you’re more like a little piglet,” Lin Xiangxiu said, noticing the greasy shine around her mouth and reaching out to wipe it with a chuckle.
Suddenly, Lin Xiangxiu’s eyes widened in shock as she stared incredulously into the distance.
Author’s Note:
Another 10k-word day [sunglasses emoji]. By the way, I wanted to ask if you find chapters this long tiring to read? If so, I can split them up.