Sheng Muxi watched the elevator doors close and burst out laughing. What a bizarre "trash-throwing" coincidence!
On Thursday, Chai Qianning's biological younger sister, Chai Shuqing, who is currently in her first year of high school, sent her a message.
Chai Shuqing attends a private high school, which is the best private school in City A.
Generally speaking, students who can get into the school either have exceptionally good grades or come from exceptionally wealthy families, and Chai Shuqing is both.
Since it's the best private school, its facilities are naturally the best in City A. The dormitories are double rooms, resembling high-end apartments, but you can also apply for a room to yourself.
Chai Shuqing usually lives at school and goes back to her parents' home on holidays or weekends. She occasionally comes to her sister's place when she needs help with something.
When Chai Qianning saw that the other party had sent several cute emojis, she knew that she had caused trouble at school again.
Chai Shuqing: [Sister, the teacher is going to make a home visit tomorrow. Can I take the teacher to your house?]
To make her point more convincing, Chai Shuqing added, "[My parents aren't home on Friday, so I had to bring the teacher to your place. (Hands on hips)]"
Chai Qianning replied: 【Tell your mother about the teacher's home visit. It's only a few hours; your mother can make time.】
Chai Shuqing: [Mom said you have more free time, so she asked you to greet the teacher.]
Chai Qianning: [Really? Mom really said that? I'll go ask her.]
Chai Shuqing: [No, no, sister, my dear sister (pleading eyes)]
Chai Qianning: [My dear sister, have you gotten into trouble at school again?]
Chai Shuqing: [Hmm...yes, that's true, and that's not true either. Anyway, don't tell Mom, or I'll be in big trouble. (crying)]
In the end, Chai Qianning agreed to her sister's request to bring a teacher to her home for a home visit. To prepare, she even cleaned the house on Friday.
When high school was almost over in the afternoon, she saw a message from Chai Shuqing: "Sister, I'm on my way with the teacher."
After replying, she went to her room to change into her pajamas and put on lipstick to make herself look more energetic.
She still needed to be mindful of her image in front of her younger sister's teacher.
However, when she heard the doorbell ring and went to open the door, she found Chai Shuqing and Sheng Muxi standing together.
Chapter 7 Mind's Eye
Chai Shuqing, carrying her schoolbag and holding onto the straps with both hands, stood obediently a little behind Sheng Muxi.
"Sister, this is my class teacher, Ms. Sheng," Chai Shuqing introduced.
Sheng Muxi gave her a faint smile.
Chai Qianning was dumbfounded.
She remembered that when Chai Shuqing was in the first semester, her homeroom teacher wasn't Sheng Muxi yet.
During the first semester of her first year of high school, it was raining heavily one time. Chai Qianning went to pick her up from school and accidentally met their homeroom teacher, a short and chubby girl who could not possibly be Sheng Muxi.
Moreover, Chai Shuqing had sent her the contact information of all the subject teachers, and she remembered that Sheng Muxi's name was not among them.
If she had a good memory, even if she only glanced at it briefly, she would feel a sense of familiarity when she first heard Sheng Muxi's name, even if she couldn't recall it.
But when she first heard the name Sheng Muxi, she didn't recognize it at all. Even when Sheng Muxi said that she was a teacher, she didn't expect that she would be her younger sister's teacher.
If she had known this would happen, she should have had some self-respect when she flirted with Sheng Muxi.
Now, her image as a parent is completely ruined.
Sheng Muxi saw surprise on the other person's face, and she herself was quite surprised. Especially when she was walking with the student along this familiar route that she often took home, she assumed that the student's parent lived in the same neighborhood as her, but she didn't expect it to be Chai Qianning.
Chai Qianning tightened her grip on the doorknob, but quickly composed herself, opened the door, and stepped aside to let them in.
"Professor Sheng, please come in."
Sheng Muxi looked her over; this person was finally not wearing pajamas anymore.
Upon entering, she noticed that Chai Qianning's house was very clean and tidy, unlike the house she had stayed in that night.
For some reason, she felt it was somewhat like how they dealt with visiting leaders at school, and she couldn't help but want to laugh.
But as a teacher, she knew she was there for a home visit. So she didn't show any mockery, but simply smiled at Chai Qianning and said, "What a coincidence, neighbor."
"Yes, it is quite a coincidence." Chai Qianning lowered her eyelashes and made tea for the guest.
Chai Shuqing overheard the entire conversation between the two, and suddenly seemed to have discovered something incredible. Her pupils dilated in shock. Her sister and the teacher seemed to know each other!
What a terrible fact.
She hoped it wasn't like that.
But the next second, Sheng Muxi shattered her hopes.
“Teacher, I live upstairs from your sister,” Sheng Muxi said to Chai Shuqing.
"Well, that's a really good coincidence. It'll be convenient for you to go back after your home visit, teacher." Chai Shuqing forced a smile.
Seeing her younger sister's varied expressions, Chai Qianning couldn't help but smile. Then, when she brought the tea to Sheng Muxi, her fingers trembled slightly, causing a little tea to spill.
In the afternoon, after cleaning her house, she went to the community service station to pick up a package when she encountered an uncle who was delivering water who accidentally slipped and fell on the steps at the entrance of the first-floor hall.
The man was quite old and had fallen quite hard, but he was worried about not finishing his work and getting his wages docked, so he insisted on delivering the rest of the goods before going to the hospital.
Chai Qianning couldn't stand by and watch, so she helped deliver the remaining bottled water to each household, finishing up the work for him.
There were six buckets left in total. She didn't have the strength to carry two buckets at a time, so she had to deliver them one bucket at a time.
Although there is an elevator, the water truck is parked outside the building entrance, and she has to walk a distance through the lobby to carry the water. Then, once she reaches the corresponding floor, she has to walk through a corridor to deliver it to the door of the corresponding resident.
The consequence of being so helpful was that after completing all of this, she was completely ruined.
Before the home visit, Chai Qianning had rested for a while and her energy had returned, but her hands were still shaking, probably because she had been carrying heavy objects and there was still some lingering fatigue.
Sheng Muxi watched this, took a sip of tea thoughtfully, and noticed that Chai Qianning looked better today because she was wearing lipstick.
Sheng Muxi wondered if it was just his imagination, but he felt that Chai Qianning looked very pale when she didn't wear lipstick.
Chai Qianning herself may have noticed this, so when she came to receive her younger sister's teacher for a home visit, she deliberately wore lipstick.
If she remembered correctly, Chai Qianning didn't wear lipstick the night she went to the bachelorette party.
This made Sheng Muxi feel that Chai Qianning seemed to be hiding something.
The body doesn't lie; Chai Qianning's fingers were trembling just now.
Besides, Chai Qianning isn't socially anxious, and they're not strangers, so why is she trembling?
Sheng Muxi suddenly remembered what Chai Shuqing had said to her in the office.
Chai Shuqing slept in her dormitory in the afternoon and did not take the exam. Originally, her parents were supposed to be called to the school for this.
But Chai Shuqing said that her parents were too busy to come.
Sheng Muxi noticed in the form that Chai Shuqing had an older sister, but Chai Shuqing's handwriting was so messy that her name was illegible. However, Chai Shuqing had filled in the "occupation" section, which meant that her sister was already an adult and working.
So she asked her sister if she could come to the school.
Chai Shuqing added that her sister was in poor health, frail and breathless, and had a hard time coming to school. She vividly portrayed her as a sickly person who was "weak and unable to take care of herself".
The little girl was very articulate, turning red into white. Sheng Muxi didn't expose her, thinking she might be trying to avoid having her parents called to school.
After all, it seems that students are very afraid of having their parents called in by the teacher, which is understandable.
If it were any other teacher, they would have let it go, but Sheng Muxi is a teacher who cares a lot about her students, so they proposed a special home visit for her.
However, now that it seems to Sheng Muxi, she feels that Chai Shuqing wasn't lying.
Chai Qianning does look rather sickly.
Sheng Muxi casually asked Chai Qianning, "Don't you live alone? Does your sister live here too?"
"Teacher, I occasionally stay here to keep my sister company, but I usually stay at school," Chai Shuqing answered first, as if afraid that Chai Qianning would let something slip.
"Where are your parents? They don't live here, do they?"
"No, teacher, my parents are very busy, and I only see them a few times a year."
“So that’s how it is.” Sheng Muxi took a sip of tea, glanced at Chai Shuqing who was sitting obediently, and at Chai Qianning’s curled-up fingers.
Chai Qianning saw right through her younger sister's little scheme; the child was definitely lying to the teacher to avoid the matter.
Then, unexpectedly, the teacher knew her older sister and they were neighbors, so she panicked a little.
She smiled without saying a word.
Sheng Muxi went to the restroom halfway through, and Chai Shuqing immediately moved closer to her and whispered, "Sister."
"Um?"
Chai Shuqing glanced in the direction of the restroom, then lowered her eyes and whispered in her ear, "You've graduated for so many years, why are you still afraid of your teacher?"
Chai Qianning: ?
"Who told you I'm afraid of teachers?"
"Your fingers were shaking when you served tea to Teacher Sheng."
Chai Qianning: "..."
Chai Shuqing pressed her knuckles to her lips: "It's not that I'm afraid of the teacher, it's that I'm making you angry?"
Chai Qianning: "You know you always make me angry."
Chai Shuqing: "No way, I haven't even told you the truth yet, and you've already guessed?"
Chai Qianning: "Then tell me, what trouble did you get into at school, and why did the teacher come to visit your home?"
Hearing the sound of the bathroom flushing, Chai Shuqing knew that Teacher Sheng was about to come out, so she quickly cut to the chase: "Sister, I described you as Lin Daiyu in front of the teacher."
Chai Qianning: "..."
Chai Shuqing: "Then please don't give me away later, please, otherwise I won't be able to stay in Teacher Sheng's class anymore."
Lying may feel good for a moment, but covering it up will bring tears to your eyes. Seeing Chai Shuqing pleading with her with her hands clasped together, Chai Qianning was amused by her anger.
She shook her head helplessly and gently rubbed Chai Shuqing's head: "Let's go into the room."
Chai Shuqing obediently went into her room.
At this moment, Sheng Muxi also came out of the bathroom and sat back down on the sofa.