Upon hearing this, Yang Haoran felt as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped over him on a hot day, a chill running down his spine. Stockings?
Could it be the one given to him by Xiao Shaowan?
The one he had hidden under his pillow, originally intending to find a better hiding place for it later, but then forgot to deal with? Had Mother discovered it?
The more Yang Haoran thought about it, the more panicked he became. The panic in her son’s eyes was not lost on Liu Ruoxi. Her expression turned slightly cold, her tone deceptively mild, as if offering a well-meaning reminder: “You can make up a story. I’ll listen. But before you speak, Haoran, you’d better think carefully about whether you can fabricate something believable enough for me.”
“This… I can explain…”
Yang Haoran stammered, his mind racing. What should he do?
Should he tell the truth?
Or should he actually try to fabricate a story for her as she said?
But Mother’s current composure, as if she had everything under control, reminded him of the time she discovered the ‘learning resources’ on his computer. That incident had ended with him being punished so severely he landed in the hospital.
Yang Haoran’s eyes darted around shiftily. He was so anxious he felt like scratching his ears and cheeks. Right at that moment, his mother’s cool, clear voice sounded by his ear, like an impending judgment, filled with immense pressure, making him feel as if he were falling into an abyss.
“Finished fabricating your story?”
Her light tone and indifferent expression made her seem like a lofty queen, intimidating and captivating, causing Yang Haoran to tremble with fear. He couldn’t figure out what his mother was thinking now, so he tentatively said: “Your Majesty, Mother, if your humble son were to find a girlfriend, what would your opinion be?”
“Hmm!”
Hearing her son’s slippery words, Liu Ruoxi suddenly felt an uncomfortable sensation welling up inside her. She clearly knew she shouldn’t be feeling this emotion. Suppressing it slightly, she coldly stared at Yang Haoran’s apprehensive face: “What do you mean? What difference does it make whether I watch sitting down or standing up?”
Wow… Mother, you’re also an expert at playing dumb.
Yang Haoran thought, his heart sinking like a stone in ice-cold water. However, since he had already started, he could only brace himself and cautiously explain: “I recently started dating a girlfriend at school. She’s a classmate.”
Yang Haoran spoke while observing his mother’s expression. Seeing her face darken, he hurriedly added: “She has very good grades, and she’s also very pretty.”
However, the part about her having good grades caused Liu Ruoxi’s expression to soften slightly, while the comment about her being pretty made her face turn cold again. That uncomfortable feeling became more pronounced. She suppressed it and coldly demanded: “What’s her name? No first name, no last name? If you’re going to make something up, at least make it sound plausible.”
Xiao Shaowan… Yang Haoran was about to blurt it out, but then he changed his mind and said: “Her name is Ji Youxi. She’s a transfer student who just arrived. The teacher assigned her to be my deskmate. We hit it off immediately and a romance blossomed.”
However, he found that his explanation only made his mother’s expression grow icier, emanating a bone-chilling coldness. Before she could scold him, he quickly mustered his wits and complained aggrievedly: “Your Majesty, Mother, did your humble son not merely get a girlfriend? Is it really necessary for your expression to be so frightening? Besides, Shiwen also found a girlfriend, and Auntie Shen didn’t say anything.”
Sorry… Shiwen… Good buddies are meant to take the fall. I’ll make it up to you next time, Yang Haoran silently apologized in his heart.
Hearing her son bring up her close friend Shen Qing and her son, Liu Ruoxi’s eyebrow twitched. She had been present the other day and knew that Shiwen had indeed found a girlfriend. Shen Qing had even asked Shiwen to bring his girlfriend for her to see. If she flew into a rage now, it wouldεθ seem like she was making a mountain out of a molehill.
Liu Ruoxi took a deep breath, suppressing the emotions within her, and pretended to be nonchalant as she said: “Then find time to bring her home for me to meet. That’s not too much to ask, is it?”
Unlike parents who worry about their children puppy love affecting their academic performance, Liu Ruoxi was fully aware of Yang Haoran’s abysmal academic level. If anyone’s studies were to be affected, it would be the girl’s, disrupted by her son.
She planned to meet Ji Youxi and counsel her.
Yang Haoran inwardly groaned. If he had known this would happen, he would have just said it was Xiao Shaowan. How could he possibly manage to bring Ji Youxi?
At this point, Yang Haoran had no choice but to brace himself and say: “Okay, I’ll ask for her opinion. We have to respect the other person’s wishes in such matters, right, Mother?”
Yang Haoran gave a slippery response, not committing fully. If he confidently promised to bring her and then failed to deliver, what would he do then?
Liu Ruoxi was not satisfied with her son’s eel-like, evasive answer, but there was reason in his words, so she couldn’t refute him. She nodded with a faint expression and said: “Let’s eat.”
Thus, she let the topic drop.
Seeing his mother’s expression improve, Yang Haoran’s mood instantly cleared up, as if the rain had stopped and the sky cleared. He picked up a large prawn, shelled it, and diligently placed it in his mother’s bowl, saying: “Mother, after we finish eating, let’s go out to the hot springs.”
“Okay.”
Liu Ruoxi accepted her son’s kind gesture, placing the prawn between her rosy, full lips, chewing it slowly and carefully, savoring the soft, sweet, and tender prawn meat as it spread across her taste buds, and agreed.
Sheζ£ε₯½ couldι‘ΊδΎΏ complete her mission!
After the meal, Yang Haoran volunteered to handle the dishwashing. Liu Ruoxi, meanwhile, used her phone to book reservations at Yunman Resort.
Yunman Resort was a high-end leisure complex located in the suburbs of G City. It featured a restaurant, hot springs, beauty spa, private cinema, golf, yacht tours… and more, all located on a developed small island. It was membership-based, offered strong privacy, and catered to the upper-class circles. Therefore, even during the National Day holiday, Liu Ruoxi could easily secure a reservation.
Both she and Shen Qing were top-tier clients of Yunman Resort, not necessarily because of money, but because Shen Qing was one of the investors behind Yunman Resort. Although her shareholding wasn’t high, she was still considered a shareholder.
After packing up, Yang Haoran took the passenger seat, and Liu Ruoxi drove towards the suburban port.
To get to Yunman Resort, one had to take a boat from the port. Given Liu Ruoxi’s membership level, the resort would dispatch a yacht in advance to the ferry terminal she selected to pick her up.
An hour later, the mother and son pair arrived at A6 Port. After parking the car, they walked for a few minutes before spotting numerous boats bobbing on the azure sea surface in the distance. Most were fishing boats, among which a blue yacht stood out conspicuously.