Chapter 24: Can You Call Me “Mom”?

The next day, Qi originally planned to go to the classroom, but on the way, she ran into Liang Qiaoqiao — one of the girls in her class who had lured her into their small three-person group with chocolate.

Then, she was pulled by the other girl into the Grand Theater inside the School Arts Center.

This was Qi’s first time here.

It was said that the school usually held performances and events in this place.

The space certainly lived up to the word “Grand,” with nearly 10,000 seats in the audience area, making it more than enough to accommodate all the students in the school.

Even when there were no official campus events, the Grand Theater did not remain idle.

Students were usually allowed to perform various shows inside.

The current atmosphere of the Campus Forum was more or less influenced by this place, because campus idols truly existed in this school.

Just as the area centered around the Library was under the full control of the Study Council, the power over the area dominated by the Grand Theater also belonged to the students.

However, that had nothing to do with their purpose for coming here.

It wasn’t until she was pulled into a seat in the audience and saw the bustling crowd that Qi was informed of the reason.

Whenever the results of the Monthly Exam were announced, the current President of the Study Council would give a speech, announce the top ten students of each grade, and personally distribute scholarships.

As for the rankings of the other students, those would be announced by the Class Monitor after they returned to their classrooms.

Except for the teaching aspect, the school administration remained almost entirely invisible.

Thus, the President of the Study Council was the person with the most authority in this school.

Speaking of which, Qi had not yet seen what the legendary President looked like.

She was somewhat curious.

That curiosity lasted until she saw Jiang Wanli, dressed in an incredibly formal gown, step onto the stage and stand before the microphone with a confident smile.

“Hello, everyone. I am Jiang Wanli. I am very honored to stand in this position as the President of the Study Council.”

Deafening applause erupted from below the stage.

Liang Qiaoqiao, who was sitting next to the black-haired girl, also appeared extremely excited.

“Ahhh! Qiqi, she really did it! Jiang Wanli actually won the election for President! You must be happy too, right?”

Happy? No, Qi’s expression was nothing but blank.

“Wait, why is Jiang Wanli standing there? Isn’t she a transfer student?”

“Qiqi, do you not usually browse the forum? How could you not know about something as big as Jiang Wanli running for President of the Study Council?”

‘Where would I even know that from? I spent the whole day yesterday sleeping; where would I have the time to check the forum?’

On the day Jiang Wanli joined the Study Council, Qi had learned about the election rules for the President.

But even if Jiang Wanli was first in the internal assessment, she couldn’t have been elected all at once, right?

The reason the rule for becoming President wasn’t just being first in the assessment was that a vote had to be held.

First, it was to prevent the President from changing too frequently, and second, because besides grades, the candidate needed popularity.

Jiang Wanli was just a transfer student.

What right did she have to compare her popularity to the old President?

How could she take office in a single election?

“Why are you so excited about her becoming President?”

“Because I bet on Jiang Wanli in the forum’s prediction pool!”

“…”

They even had a prediction pool.

Qi didn’t know what to say.

From the moment Jiang Wanli stepped onto the stage until the scholarships were fully distributed, a total of over half an hour passed.

During that time, Jiang Wanli stood alone on the stage, drawing everyone’s gaze without a hint of stage fright.

‘Perhaps someone like her — someone whose appearance, character, and academics are all flawless — has always been the center of attention and long ago became used to these kinds of occasions?’

From a corner of the audience, watching the girl shining brilliantly on the stage, Qi didn’t know what she was thinking.

They clearly hadn’t interacted many times, yet the other girl had left an inexplicably special emotion in Qi’s heart.

It was a very awkward feeling.

It was like this now, and it had been the same when they held hands last time.

There was always a reason to care for someone or hate someone.

She didn’t believe in so-called love at first sight at all.

Bai Qiaoyu’s “like” was nothing more than attention paid to her face, a case of lust at first sight.

But for herself, Qi found it difficult to find a sufficiently persuasive reason.

This feeling was like a thorn stuck in her heart; she cared deeply about it, yet was helpless to do anything.

As Jiang Wanli left the stage, the students also began to leave one after another to return to their classrooms.

Qi returned to her class as well and saw the transcript already placed on her desk.

She picked up the transcript, feeling a sense of nervousness.

She spread it open and, as expected…

It was simply disastrous.

Forget about passing; even if she were ranked among those who only took three subjects, she would still be at the bottom.

“Wow, Qiqi, your scores are this low?”

Liang Qiaoqiao leaned over in surprise.

“Even if my parents don’t care much about my grades, if I took home a last-place ranking in the whole school, I’d still be punished with the family belt, right?”

“It’s fine. Nothing will happen.”

The black-haired girl pretended to be calm as she folded the transcript and put it away.

In any case, Luo Qing wasn’t her real mother; she couldn’t actually beat her, could she?

Moreover, she had left her Bank Card, phone, and everything else in the dormitory this time.

Even if Luo Qing wanted to snatch her money, there was no way.

She had no weaknesses on her!

Holding that thought, the morning classes ended, and noon arrived.

Qi took the transcript and, with a slightly heavy heart, left the school and headed toward that familiar place.

Since it was Monday, there wasn’t much customer traffic in the shop.

The black-haired girl quickly found Luo Qing sitting in a corner.

This person hadn’t suddenly appeared at some random moment for once, but was waiting for her in the shop in advance.

The moment Qi’s gaze landed on her, Luo Qing also noticed her arrival.

She smiled lightly and raised her hand to beckon Qi over.

The black-haired girl sat down opposite her.

“You’re dressed very cutely today,” Luo Qing spoke first.

Hearing her words, Qi looked down at her clothes and realized she had come over wearing her Academy Uniform skirt.

After all, the speech at the Grand Theater was a public event for all students.

Before going to bed last night, she had been reminded by the Class Monitor to wear her uniform.

She had actually forgotten to change before coming out.

The black-haired girl frowned slightly.

‘But why? There’s no way I would forget something like this…’

Without giving her more time to think, Luo Qing spoke again.

“How have you been lately?”

“Not great. You didn’t give me any living expenses, so I had to find a job myself, and then I was cheated out of 150,000 Yuan.”

Qi looked up at her.

“Hmm, that really isn’t a very good experience. Qiqi, you need to increase your vigilance.”

Qi stared tightly into her eyes.

“As a God, would you be unaware of what I went through?”

“I truly didn’t know.”

Luo Qing shook her head with a smile.

“Although I can know anything I want to know, as a mother, I must leave my child enough privacy, mustn’t I?”

As she spoke, her fingertip tapped on the table.

“So, how did you do on the exam?”

The matter of the Monthly Exam was finally brought up.

Qi’s palms tightened slightly.

She pulled the transcript from her pocket and pressed it onto the table, sliding it in front of Luo Qing.

But just as the other woman was about to take the transcript, Qi pulled it back.

“Before you look at the results, shouldn’t you listen to my situation first?”

“If my daughter wants to complain to her mother, I’m certainly willing to listen.”

Luo Qing didn’t seem to be in a hurry.

She picked up the steaming coffee in front of her and stirred it slowly with a spoon, looking like she was all ears.

The black-haired girl took a deep breath.

She hadn’t accomplished what the other woman requested.

Once Luo Qing saw her grades, she would have a reason to refuse Qi’s request, so some things had to be said before that.

“Someone is using a 150,000 Yuan debt to threaten me into dating her. You always claim to be my mother, and now that I’m in danger, don’t you plan to help me out?”

“I actually advocate for free love. Regarding my daughter’s relationship issues, I don’t plan to interfere too much.”

“?”

Qi almost laughed out of anger.

“So, when I was pestering others, it was me deceiving a girl’s feelings. Now that I’ve been turned into this and someone else is pestering me, it’s ‘free love’ and you don’t want to interfere?”

“Also, do you call a threat ‘free love’? Just tell me if you’ll help or not. Don’t act like a hypocritical good person!”

“Of course I will help you.”

Luo Qing smiled.

“The prerequisite is your attitude.”

Her gaze fell once again on the transcript in the black-haired girl’s hand.

“If… if you don’t want to help, then forget it…”

Qi felt a bit guilty, and her tone immediately weakened.

It seemed that seeking help from Luo Qing wouldn’t work, so she would have to think of another way.

Since that was the case, there was no need for her to clutch the transcript anymore.

She pushed it back in front of Luo Qing.

“Let me see… Hmm…”

Luo Qing picked up the transcript and opened it.

Looking at the contents, she pursed her lips slightly as if in thought.

Watching her, the black-haired girl became inexplicably nervous.

She placed both hands on her thighs and waited for a response.

“I remember the total score is 750 points, right? And this is only a little over 100 points?”

Hearing her score being read aloud, Qi’s face turned slightly red.

“My academic performance wasn’t good to begin with. In such a short amount of time, how could I possibly pass every subject…”

“Qiqi, what I want is not the result, but the attitude.”

From this sentence, Qi detected a hint of coldness.

This made her subconsciously feel uneasy, as if something terrifying was about to happen.

But she still forced her tone to remain firm.

“So what? Haven’t you also never helped me with anything? Why should I agree to your demands?”

“Then, are you ready to accept your punishment?”

“I—don’t you even think about it! I left my wallet, phone, and everything in the dorm. I need them to pay back the debt later. You aren’t allowed to take them!”

The black-haired girl began to panic.

Luo Qing looked at her with a smile and didn’t give any answer.

Under the other woman’s gaze, Qi felt increasingly uneasy.

She felt a chill spread across her entire body.

Goosebumps appeared on her arms, and her neck and cheeks began to heat up.

It was as if someone were silently stripping her clothes away, leaving her privacy completely exposed to the air.

An unavoidable sense of shame flooded her entire body, and the primary source of this shame was her own two small feet.

“You… You! What did you do to me!”

She almost subconsciously pulled her legs up onto the chair and hugged them tightly.

She was so ashamed she could hardly speak clearly.

When she questioned Luo Qing, she had to suppress her voice as much as possible, for fear of attracting the attention of those around them.

She desperately wanted to cover the skin of her legs that was exposed to the air, but her arms and the hem of her skirt simply couldn’t do it.

When a female customer passing by the glass wall glanced at her, Qi wished she could faint on the spot.

“It seems it has already taken effect.”

The culprit chuckled.

The black-haired girl glared at her fiercely.

She wanted to leave this place immediately and find a place with no people to hide, but the sense of shame left her body almost entirely drained of strength.

She couldn’t do it and could only curl into a ball.

At that moment, Luo Qing stood up from her seat and leaned down close to Qi’s face.

“Do you want to leave?”

She asked in a low voice.

This wicked woman…

Qi had no choice.

She could only close her eyes and nod gently.

“Then, can you call me ‘Mother’?”