Chapter 69
Li Chi'an speaks calmly and meaningfully during her live streams, which unexpectedly garnered strong fan loyalty and attracted a steady stream of high-quality followers. As a result, the products in the small shop linked to her account have achieved good sales volumes.
Li Chian is grateful for the support of his fans and readers, so he puts his heart into both creating content and doing live streams.
She pushed open the door, and the aroma of home-cooked stew wafted out, instantly washing away the fatigue of her day.
Before she could even change her shoes, a small figure rushed into her arms like a cannonball.
"Mother!"
Chen Zui's bright eyes curved into crescent moons with laughter, and his small hands tightly wrapped around her waist.
Li Chi'an's heart softened, and he picked his son up and kissed his soft cheeks repeatedly. "What were you playing just now?"
"Playing with warship building blocks, huh?" Chen Zui chuckled, his little hand touching her soft waist.
"Daughter's back?" Li's mother poked her head out from the kitchen, still holding a spatula in her hand. "I just finished preparing the dishes, and the ribs are stewing."
"No rush, Mom."
Li Chi'an put his son down and took out an exquisite gift box from his handbag. "Sweetie, Mommy brought you a gift."
"Wow! Mom, what did you bring me?" Chen, the youngest child, stared wide-eyed at the package in his mother's hand.
"It's a gift for Aunt Yinxi's birthday party."
Li Chi'an handed him the pinkish-purple package directly.
Chen excitedly opened the package and found it contained lots of chocolates, candies, and cookies.
He cheered and eagerly popped one into his mouth, his cheeks immediately puffing out.
Li Chi'an looked at him with a smile, her gaze gentle.
Besides snacks, the gift box also contained a beautifully packaged cosmetics set. She glanced at it and saw it was a makeup set from a luxury brand.
"Mom, what is this?" The youngest child, Chen, didn't recognize it.
He picked up an exquisitely packaged lipstick and curiously twirled it around.
"It's lipstick and eyeshadow." Li Chi'an ruffled her son's hair. "Mom will go take a shower and change her clothes first."
"Go on, Mom." Chen was most focused on playing with the cosmetics in her hands.
As Li Chi'an turned around, he heard his mother nagging in the kitchen, "Why are you back so late today? Weren't you just having dinner?"
"Something came up unexpectedly, and it delayed me a bit," Li Chi'an said. "I sent you a WeChat message before, didn't you see it?"
"I was sleeping this afternoon. After waking up, I went to pick up Zui Zui. I didn't have time to look at my phone," said Li's mother, her voice full of energy as she chopped seasonings.
As Li Chi'an walked towards the bathroom, he said, "Mom, I'm not hungry. Cook a little less, and I'll just make myself a pot of coffee later."
"Why drink coffee so late? It's bad for your stomach! Have some soup. I made lotus seed and pork heart soup; it's calming." Li's mother was always worried about her daughter's poor appetite.
Li Chi'an smiled and said, "Thank you, Mom. Then have a bowl of soup. I have a live broadcast later, so I can't eat too much, otherwise I'll be uncomfortable talking while sitting."
Warm water washed over his body. Li Chi'an closed his eyes, letting the water droplets patter on his cheeks, and his chaotic thoughts gradually became clear.
Taking a shower is always when she clears her mind and is bursting with inspiration.
After taking a shower, she changed into comfortable loungewear, dried her hair, and walked into the living room.
The living room was unusually quiet.
She suddenly realized something; her son hadn't made a sound for too long.
If a child is quiet, they're definitely up to no good.
"Zui Zui?" she called out, but there was no response.
Li Chi'an quickened his pace and entered the living room, then froze on the spot.
On the carpet next to the sofa, Chen, the youngest child, was facing an open, exquisite eyeshadow palette, carefully applying a bright blue color to her eyelids with the matching brush.
His cheeks were covered in rainbow colors, his left cheek was bright red, his right cheek was bright green, and his lips were painted with lipstick into a huge, crooked "bloody mouth" that extended all the way to his cheeks.
Her first reaction was shock. Her son had dismantled the cosmetics set like this; she wouldn't be able to keep it for long.
The cosmetics set that Gao Yinxi gave her was quite valuable; it was a limited edition from a high-end brand. She originally planned to open it after she finished using the makeup she was currently using, but her son didn't tell her anything and just violently opened it, then haphazardly scooped out the product and applied it to his face.
The eyeshadow palette had several pigments that were pitted and scratched by his little hands.
But then, seeing her son intently trying to apply purple eyeshadow to his eyebrows in the small mirror of his eyeshadow palette, she couldn't help but laugh.
"Chen Zuizui." She tried to keep her voice calm.
The child was startled and turned around.
On his colorful little face, his eyes blinked, and when he realized it was his mother, he habitually flashed a big smile.
That smile is kind of adorably ugly.
Li Chian laughed heartily, covering his face.
Just then, Li's mother came out of the kitchen carrying a bowl of soup. "An'an, drink the soup quickly—" She stopped mid-sentence, saw her grandson's face, and exclaimed in surprise, "Good heavens! Chen Zui! What are you doing? You're a boy, why are you wearing makeup! And it looks so awful!"
"Do you know how expensive your mother's cosmetics are? All you do is frivolous things!"
Chen's youngest child immediately lowered her head, her little mouth pouting, on the verge of tears, "Mommy, I'm sorry, I ruined your cosmetics..."
Li Chi'an suppressed his smile, and almost choked on his breath because he did so abruptly.
She turned to her mother, gently shook her head to signal her to stop talking, then walked to her son, squatted down, and looked him in the eye.
“Zui Zui,” her voice was gentle but earnest, “do you know where you went wrong?”
The little boy nodded, sobbing, "I shouldn't have touched Mom's things..."
"No." Li Chi'an gently lifted her son's face. "Mom is asking you, whose cosmetics are you holding?"
"your."
"Since it's mine, shouldn't you ask me if you can touch it before you use it?"
This is something Li Chi'an had discussed with Chen Zui when he was very young: to distinguish between one's own things and other people's things, one's own affairs and other people's affairs.
It's his own business, he should make his own decisions.
If it's someone else's business or property, he should ask for their permission before he can touch it.
It's obvious that the child was engrossed in playing by himself today and forgot that he shouldn't touch this thing.
"Your mistake was not that your drawing was bad, but that you didn't ask Mom if you could touch my things."
Chen Zui froze, blinking his eyes which were covered in blue eyeshadow.
Li Chi'an continued, "You know what? This is the first time you've ever done your own makeup, and to do it like this is incredibly amazing. Mom thinks you're a little genius, a little artist, you can even paint with your own face!"
The little boy's tears stopped instantly, replaced by doubt and a hint of joy. "Really?"
“Of course it’s true!” Li Chi’an took out his phone. “Come on, let Mom take a picture to remember this moment. When Zui Zui grows up, she’ll know what she looked like the first time she wore makeup.”
She took a few photos, then carefully admired her son's "work," and suddenly asked, "Do you like this cosmetic?"
Chen nodded cautiously.
"Then Mom will give it to you. Anyway, Mom has a lot of cosmetics. That way, Mom and I will both have cosmetics in the future."
"Really?" The little boy's eyes lit up, but then he hesitated and looked in his grandmother's direction. "But Grandma said..."
“Grandma was worried that Mom’s things would get broken,” Li Chi’an continued. “But now that Mom has given them to you willingly, it’s okay. But remember, in the future, if you want to use someone else’s things, you must ask them first, okay?”
"Really?" Chen Zui's eyes lit up instantly, all the gloom vanishing. "Mom, do I really draw so well? Am I really a little genius and an artist?"
"Of course it's true!" Li Chi'an nodded firmly and hugged him tightly. "When has Mom ever lied to you?"
Having received her mother's authoritative affirmation, Chen the youngest immediately puffed out her little chest, turned to her grandmother who was still shaking her head helplessly, and retorted with a touch of pride, "Grandma! Listen! Mom said I'm a little genius! My drawing is beautiful! I'm not ugly at all!"
Looking at her daughter and grandson, one big and one small, one offering unconditional encouragement and the other overflowing with confidence, Li's mother could only sigh with a wry smile. "Yes, yes, whatever your mother says is right. As long as you two are happy, that's all that matters. I haven't finished cooking the dishes in the kitchen yet, so I'll go back to cooking and leave you two alone."
As she spoke, she shook her head and went back to the kitchen, but a smile unconsciously crept onto her lips.
After his grandmother passed away, Chen, the youngest child, completely let loose and became even more unrestrained.
He carefully put the cosmetics his mother had "given" to him into his "collection folder" where he kept his favorite toys, and then ran like the wind to the mirror where Li Chi'an usually dressed up, making several exaggerated funny faces.
Then, facing her colorful reflection in the mirror, she started dancing and singing impromptu, "I'm a little genius~ I'm an artist~ La la la~ I'm the best!"
Li Chi'an followed behind him, watching his son's lively and happy figure again, his eyes filled with tenderness and love.
She quietly raised her phone, switched to video recording mode, and captured the entire adorable moment of her son's childlike innocence and confidence.
After recording the video, she tapped the screen and sent this joyful "little artist performance" to Yu Shi.
The next second, her phone vibrated; it was a video call from Yu Shi.
She answered with a smile, and Yu Shi's face, laughing so hard he was doubled over, immediately appeared on the other end of the screen.
"This makeup is even more avant-garde than some of the backstage makeup I've seen at fashion weeks!"
Li Chian smiled and turned the camera to his son, who was still dancing in front of the mirror, saying, "He's so naughty."
“That’s how it is.” Yu Shi’s voice softened. “My nephew used to rummage through my sister-in-law’s and my mother’s cosmetics for a while, and he broke a lot of them.”
"How so?" Li Chi'an held up his phone and chatted casually with his son and Yu Shi.
After the video call ended, Li Chi'an saw that his son had calmed down and was carefully putting the set of cosmetics into his "treasure box," a metal box filled with various small items that he cherished.
"Mom," Chen Zui suddenly looked up and asked, "Can't boys really wear makeup?"
Li Chi'an thought for a moment, then beckoned his son over, hugged him, and asked, "Zui Zui, do you think colors are differentiated by gender?"
Chen thought for a moment and then shook his head.
“Yes, a color is a color, and whoever likes it can use it,” she said softly. “Just like Mom wears jeans, which were originally worn by male workers; boys can also wear pink, a color that was once considered a color for little boys. There are no absolute rules in the world about what boys should do or what girls should do, only what you want to do and what you are suited to do.”
She picked up her phone, found some pictures of men in makeup—makeup of Peking Opera actors, makeup of Japanese samurai, and works by modern male makeup artists—and showed them to her son.
“Look, many men have worn makeup throughout history. The key is whether you like it and whether it suits you.” She patted her son’s head. “Most importantly, don’t give up what you like because of what others think. As long as you don’t hurt others or interfere with your work, there’s nothing wrong with doing what you like.”
Chen nodded as if he understood, then suddenly asked, "Then why did Grandma say that boys can't wear makeup?"
Li Chian laughed, “Because my grandmother learned different concepts in her time. For example, my grandmother always felt that food should be eaten cleanly because she experienced a time of food shortage when she was a child. But my mother has never experienced hunger, so she feels that we should respect our own feelings, eat when we are hungry and not eat when we are not hungry. Everyone’s views are influenced by their experiences. We should understand, but we should also think for ourselves what is right.”
Just then, Li's mother brought out the dishes and overheard part of the conversation. Her expression was somewhat complicated, but she didn't say anything.
At dinner, Chen's youngest child had already washed off his makeup, but insisted on leaving the cosmetics on his special chair next to the dining table, "so that it can also 'eat' the aroma of the food."
Li Chi'an did not stop her, and Li's mother opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing.
After dinner, Li Chi'an played with his son for a while before starting to prepare for his live stream.
The live stream began, and Li Chi'an greeted everyone as usual, introduced the products, and answered questions from the comments section.
Halfway through the live stream, one netizen excitedly remarked that their child was always disobedient, refusing to do what they were told to do and doing the opposite of what they were told not to do.
Li Chi'an stood up. "Excuse me, please wait a moment. I'm going to get something."
The live stream went blank for a minute or two, then she reappeared. "Mom, I know you're anxious. This is a problem that every mother faces after her child develops self-awareness. I've encountered it too, like this one in my hand..."
She opened the cosmetics she had borrowed from her son and held them up in front of the camera. "Today I want to share something special with you. This is a gift I received today. It's new, and I was planning to keep it for later, but when I got home tonight, I found that my son had already 'tested' it."
She showed photos of her son after he put on makeup on her phone, and the live stream chat immediately went wild, with comments scrolling at an accelerated pace.
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