Chapter 44 Ignite the Fire: Am I so shameful that I can't be seen by others?
Xinmian's hair stood on end instantly, and she almost jumped out of the window.
"Chi Yu!"
"Let go, let go..."
She kept her voice very low, afraid of being discovered.
Chi Yu was extremely displeased. He grabbed her slender neck with his large hand, forcing her to lift her head back. He then used his thumb and forefinger to hold her chin, forcing her to look into his eyes.
Her tone was icy, "Am I that shameful?"
He controlled his strength so as not to hurt her, but from this angle, Xin Mian even had difficulty swallowing. Her eyelashes fluttered wildly like butterflies, and her gaze went over his tall shoulders and back to the surveillance camera at the end of the corridor.
Her whole body instantly turned red.
"There is surveillance."
“Chi Yu…”
She pursed her lips, looking somewhat aggrieved, and gazed at him with her large, watery eyes.
Chi Yu's heart softened under her gaze, and he finally let go of her hand.
But he threatened her fiercely, "Baby."
"If you don't acknowledge me even once in public, you owe me one."
"How much to pay is up to me."
Xin Mian stared in astonishment, about to say that this was a treaty that ceded sovereignty, when the door to the private room suddenly opened.
When Qin Shengtian and the other two came out, her heart skipped a beat. Like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, she pushed him away and jumped a meter away.
Chi Yu watched her movements coldly, his eyes sharp and frightening.
But Xin Mian didn't have time to pay attention to his reaction, and ran a few steps to take Qin Shengtian's hand.
Qin Shengtian asked her, "How did it go, Mianmian? Did your communication with the store manager go smoothly?"
Xin Mian was still a little uneasy, and smiled awkwardly, "Smoothly, the store manager said he'll send me the proposal later."
"That's good."
......
In the following days, apart from attending classes, Xinmian devoted all her remaining time to drawing. Every day after dinner, she would go back to her room and lock the door to prevent anyone from "sneaking in".
Fortunately, the shop manager approved of her style, and the artwork was used directly with almost no modifications, and the payment was settled quickly.
After Qin Shengtian finished making the DIY cartoon stickers, she gave her a bunch of them.
After the National Day holiday, Xinmian returned to kindergarten.
The weather hasn't been very good these past few days.
The sky was overcast from morning onwards, and the weather forecast said it might rain.
Before leaving in the afternoon, Chen Xiulian specifically instructed Xinmian to bring an umbrella.
At 5 p.m., after the art class, it still hadn't rained.
But the sky outside was dark, as if a haze was spreading.
In the classroom, most of the children had left, leaving only Little Dimple, who sat obediently in her chair, fiddling with the handmade flowers Xinmian had given her.
Xin Mian stood by the podium packing her things, glanced at the sky outside, and whispered to Principal Fang, "Hasn't Little Dimple's brother arrived yet?"
The weather is bad today; it will only make things worse if it rains later.
The parents are so careless; they didn't even come to pick up their child in this terrible weather.
Director Fang checked the time. "It's usually still early at this time."
"It has to be at least 5:45."
But today...
Just as Xinmian was about to continue speaking, Director Fang's phone rang.
She politely stood a little further away, but Director Fang had barely exchanged a few words with the person on the other end of the phone when her tone became anxious.
"...What?"
"Then I'll go there now."
Director Fang hung up the phone and hurriedly went back to her office to get her backpack.
"Teacher Xiaomian, my mother-in-law fell and sprained her leg and was taken to the hospital by the neighbors. I have to go there now."
She glanced at Xiao Diou, "...Xiao Diou, I'll have to trouble you..."
Xin Mian smiled gently, "It's alright, you can go ahead."
"If all else fails, I can just send Little Dimple home."
The weather is unpredictable; if it rains later, it will only cause more trouble.
It would be better to send the child back now before it rains.
"Don't take her straight home..."
Director Fang hesitated, but time did not allow her to explain further, so she simply looked at Xiao Liwo.
"Little Dimple, you know your brother's address, right?"
Little Dimple nodded obediently.
Principal Fang then said, "Then tell Teacher Xiaomian the address, and Teacher Xiaomian will take you to find your brother, okay?"
"good."
As soon as she finished speaking, her phone rang again in her bag.
Xin Mian knew she was anxious, so she took the initiative to speak up, "Director Fang, don't worry."
"I'll send you a message after I deliver Little Dimple."
Although Xin Mian is not a full-time teacher at the kindergarten, she was introduced by Qin Shengtian, so Principal Fang naturally trusts her.
Moreover, after spending a month together, she knew that Xinmian was a kind and upright girl.
Therefore, I trust her completely.
Time waits for no one. Director Fang nodded and jogged out while answering the phone.
The main building of the kindergarten suddenly fell silent, leaving only Xinmian and Xiaoliwo.
Xinmian squatted down in front of Xiaoliwo, patted her head, and asked gently, "Xiaoliwo, do you know where your brother is right now?"
The girl with dimples smiled and nodded, "I know."
"My brother is very busy. He's playing video games."
Xinmian's heart sank suddenly, and the smile on her lips faded slightly.
Little Dimple's brother has been unable to pick her up on time because he's playing video games.
What about the rest of her family?
But she didn't show much negative emotion towards the child. She took her hand and led her out of the classroom, asking, "Where is your brother playing games?"
Little Dimple looked up at her, her big, grape-like eyes sparkling with anticipation, "Teacher Xiaomian, are we really going to go find my brother?"
"certainly."
"yeah!"
Little Dimple jumped around excitedly.
Her brother rarely takes her to places where she plays video games, but she longs to be with him.
"Teacher Xiaomian, the internet cafe where my brother plays games is called 'chidao'."
The child is still young and doesn't quite recognize these two characters yet, but she heard them from her brother and wrote them down, though her pronunciation wasn't quite accurate.
But Xinmian recognized it immediately.
"...'be late'?"
That...
She suddenly remembered something and asked, "Is Little Dimple's brother named Li Ke?"
Little Pear's dimpled eyes suddenly lit up with surprise, "Teacher Xiaomian knows Brother!"
Xinmian: ......
It really was Li Ke.
From the first time she went to Chi Yu Internet Cafe, Li Ke always sat at the front desk playing games without fail.
Qin Shengtian had previously said that he was working a summer job at an internet cafe, and she hadn't thought much of it. However, after school started in September, she still frequently saw Li Ke at the internet cafe.
So the reason why Little Dimple used to be the last one to leave every day was because she had to wait for Li Ke to finish his game before he could pick her up?
It would be a lie for Xinmian not to be angry.
Being late to pick up my sister from school because I'm playing video games is hardly a valid reason.
Does Chi Yu know about this?
If they had known, would they still have continued to indulge Li Ke like this?
Outside the kindergarten, as dusk fell, leaves were blown down by the wind, swirling and landing on the ground.
Xinmian hailed a car and headed straight to the internet cafe with Xiaoliwo.
Before 5:30, the ride-hailing car stopped on the road in front of the "Late Arrival" restaurant.
Little Dimple was clearly excited because she recognized the internet cafe entrance. As soon as she got out of the car, she grabbed Xinmian's hand and ran straight to the entrance.
"Slow down, little dimples..."
The glass door was heavy, but she was focused on her dimples and didn't pay much attention. Just as she put her hand on the doorknob, the glass door was pulled open from the inside.
Due to inertia, she leaned forward, but was caught by someone who reacted quickly.
The man's clean yet familiar scent wafted over, and Xin Mian subconsciously looked up to see Chi Yu's handsome, cold, and roguish face.
"Xin Xiaomian, throwing yourself into my arms?"
Not a single serious word was uttered.
Xin Mian's ears turned slightly red. Remembering that there was a little dimple next to her, she immediately covered her ears and glared at Chi Yu.
Xiao Fa was furious. "Speak properly."
It wasn't until this moment that Chi Yu noticed that Little Dimple was with her.
The little girl tugged at his clothes and obediently called out, "Brother Chi Yu."
Li Ke, who was sitting behind the front desk, noticed the commotion at the door, looked up, and exclaimed in surprise, "Little Dimple?!"
Upon hearing her brother's voice, the dimples on her lips immediately blossomed into smiles, and she was overjoyed, exclaiming, "Brother!"
She broke free from Xin Mian's hand and, with her short legs, tumbled towards Li Ke, crying, "Brother! Brother!"
Li Ke caught her and asked in a low voice, "Why did you come here?"
She raised her little head and said, "Teacher Xiaomian brought me here."
Li Ke then noticed that it was already dark outside.
He glanced at the clock on the wall, and Xin Mian said gently, "It's not 5:30 yet."
“I teach the children to draw at the kindergarten. The weather forecast said it would rain later. Principal Fang had to leave first, so I brought Xiaoliwo over on my way.”
After saying that, she went to the front desk, turned her head slightly, and sure enough, she saw the screen of a game that had just ended on the computer next to the front desk.
A 14- or 15-year-old junior high school boy was so addicted to video games that he didn't notice the approaching rain and was late picking up his younger sister from school.
Li Ke's mistake seems obvious.
Xin Mian pursed her lips and held back, but ultimately didn't say anything more.
Inside the front desk, Little Dimple hugged Li Ke tightly, her big eyes darting around curiously.
Li Ke patted her shoulder lightly, squatted down to be at eye level with her, and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, it's my fault for being late and not being able to pick you up on time."
His expression was somewhat serious, and the curve of her dimpled lips also faded. In her childish voice, she comforted him instead, "Brother wasn't late."
She pointed to her smartwatch; the two of them usually agreed to meet at 5:45, but it wasn't time yet.
So my brother wasn't late.
The group stood near the front desk when a voice came from the lobby, asking Li Ke to bring over drinks.
Just as Li Ke was about to take it, Chi Yu pressed him down and took two bottles of cola from the refrigerator and handed them over.
He didn't speak. Little Dimple thought he was upset because she came to the internet cafe without his permission, so she took his hand and cautiously called out, "...Brother..."
Li Ke patted her head, stood up, and thanked Xin Mian earnestly, "Sister Xin Mian, thank you."
"Thank you for your help."
By this point, even though Xinmian didn't know much about their family, she seemed to sense something unusual from these subtle details.
In all this time, the only family member Xiaoliwo has ever mentioned is Li Ke.
There is no father, and no mother.
Xin Mian smiled gently, her voice soft, "You're welcome."
When Chi Yu returned, Li Ke led Xiao Liwo out, saying, "Brother Yu, I'm taking Xiao Liwo home first."
Chi Yu glanced at the weather outside.
Before I knew it, large raindrops were falling heavily, pattering against the French windows, and the sky was pitch black.
He said calmly, "I've already ordered takeout. I'll take you back after you finish eating."
It's raining quite heavily, so it's hard to get a taxi at this time.
After thinking about it, Li Ke ultimately decided not to refuse.
The internet cafe lobby was bustling with people, and Little Dimple wasn't a good fit for the place.
Xin Mian looked up at Chi Yu, and with just one glance, Chi Yu understood her meaning and nodded slightly to her.
Xin Mian smiled gently, bent down and touched Xiao Liwo's cheek, "Little Dimple, Teacher has some pretty stickers, do you want them?"
"I want it!" Little Dimple's eyes lit up, and she tilted her head back and forth between the group.
very nice!
My brother is here, Teacher Xiaomian is here, and Brother Chiyu is here too.
Everyone she likes is here!
Xinmian picked up Xiaoliwo's schoolbag and water bottle and led her into the lounge inside.
The two, one big and one small, walked hand in hand in front of them, while Chi Yu followed behind with one hand in his pocket.
He stretched out his long arm and took the thing from Xinmian's hand from behind.
She was taken aback and turned to look at him.
The man's dark eyes stared straight at her, his gaze deep and unfathomable, unlike anything she had seen before. The darkness in his eyes was unreadable to her.
Seeing her stunned, Chi Yu loosely put his arm around her waist and gave her a gentle push, leading the two of them into the lounge.
Xiaoliwo had already finished drinking the water in her water bottle at kindergarten, so the first thing Xinmian did when she entered the rest room was to get her some water.
But the kettle was in Chi Yu's hands, so she didn't give it to her, saying, "I'll take care of it."
Xin Mian smiled, "Do you know how to answer?"
Chi Yu laughed along with her, "Xin Xiaomian, who do you think you are?"
It's just getting water, who doesn't know how to do that?
Xinmian laughed at him mercilessly, "The water for children must be at the perfect temperature."
"It's too hot, that won't do."
Children's perception of temperature is also different from that of adults.
What adults consider a perfect temperature might be too hot for children.
Xinmian had spent a month in kindergarten, so she had been exposed to some things from what she saw and heard.
But Chi Yu, being a very straight man, definitely wouldn't understand these things.
She took the kettle, poured in hot water and cooled boiled water, and when it was almost mixed, she poured a little on the back of her hand to test the temperature. Only after confirming that it was okay did she put the lid on.
The series of movements were smooth and complete.
Chi Yu leaned against the wall with his arms crossed, his gaze fixed on her, his admiration almost overflowing.
While Little Dimple was engrossed in playing with stickers and not paying attention to them, he leaned closer.
She whispered, "Teacher Xiaomian is so caring."
I wish I could be this attentive to him someday.
He hasn't even tasted the perfectly warm water she prepared herself.
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