Chapter 534: Xu Chan: Be Safe (2)
He even subconsciously raised a trembling hand, stiff knuckles pointing first at himself, then at the face in the kitchen doorway—a face filled with innocence, confusion, and a hint of a smile.
The expression was a mixture of extreme bewilderment and a soul-searching ‘Who am I? Where am I? What did I just say?’.
‘Mom!!!’
‘My own mother!!’
‘Isn’t this backstabbing a little too fast?!’
‘Selling out your son without even batting an eye?!’
In that instant, as silent bewilderment and accusation intertwined, a series of irrepressible, crisp laughs suddenly erupted from across the sofa.
Li Zhi, who had been maintaining the aloof air of a little queen, now seemed as if her most sensitive funny bone had been tickled.
She bent over completely, one hand gripping the back of the sofa for support while the other clutched her stomach, her shoulders shaking violently.
On the beautiful girl’s delicate face, those pretty eyes that had previously held anger and reproach were now completely filled with a laughter as bright as the stars.
The corners of her eyes even glistened with tiny flecks of moisture from laughing so hard.
Li Zhi’s “resentment” over her father forgetting her exam, and the stern “lecture” aura she’d deliberately put on, completely fell apart. The sight of Shen Yuan’s utter bewilderment after being so precisely sniped by his own mother was just too much.
She looked at Shen Yuan’s face, which was a mask of disbelief, and then at Ms. Zhang Yuyan in the kitchen doorway, with her innocent yet playful “I don’t know anything” expression.
The powerful comedic effect, like a torrential flood, washed away the last shred of “anger” Li Zhi was trying to maintain.
Li Zhi laughed so hard that involuntary tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.
That unrestrained, brilliant smile acted like the most potent stress reliever, instantly dispelling the tense atmosphere that had filled the living room.
All that remained was the girl’s crisp, genuinely hearty laughter, echoing cheerfully in the warm space.
Old Li and Shen Yuan secretly exchanged a glance, then both sighed in relief at the same time, feeling the danger had passed. They broke into grins as well.
Just then, Ms. Zhang Yuyan, leaning against the kitchen doorway, watched the two relieved men on the sofa.
Her gaze subtly traveled across the living room, precisely landing on Xu Chan, who was sitting in the armchair.
Xu Chan was resting her chin in one hand, having watched her husband and… her daughter’s boyfriend? with great interest from the very beginning.
Now, she caught the look Zhang Yuyan threw her way—a look full of mutual teasing and the distinct pleasure of someone who enjoys watching drama unfold.
The smiles on both mothers’ faces deepened in unison.
As for Old Shen, he had already taken out his phone.
Li Zhi’s shoulders were still trembling with laughter. She slowly composed herself, teary traces of mirth still glistening at the corners of her eyes.
She raised the back of her hand to dab at her damp eyes and took a deep breath.
The relaxed atmosphere from her burst of laughter hadn’t completely dissipated, but her glistening eyes narrowed slightly, her focus locking precisely back onto her own father.
The lingering laughter in the living room seemed to be instantly sucked away by this silent gaze.
The “survivor’s” smile hadn’t yet faded from Old Li’s face when he felt his daughter’s all-too-familiar gaze lock onto him again. His heart, which had just started to relax, leaped back into his throat.
“Ahem…”
Old Li cleared his throat, trying to diffuse the low pressure that was building again.
Li Zhi didn’t give him a chance to talk his way out of it. A smile still lingered on her lips, but the warmth in her eyes had dropped several degrees, clearly sending the message: ‘This isn’t over.’
She lifted her chin slightly toward Old Li and asked, slowly and clearly, word by word, “Dad—this matter. What do you propose we do about it?”
Just as Old Li was starting to sweat, feeling like he was about to be executed by his daughter’s gaze as he sat pinned to the sofa…
In a flash, Old Li saw Old Shen’s phone.
Inspiration struck Old Li.
Old Li whipped out his phone with incredible speed and transferred 1,000 yuan to his daughter.
“Go buy yourself something nice to eat!”
Old Li’s voice was filled with an urgency to escape judgment, his gaze still not daring to fully meet his daughter’s.
“Don’t ask anymore, Dad was wrong! Take this for now! I’ll definitely give you a big red envelope for the New Year!”
“…”
Li Zhi glanced down at the transfer notification on her phone, then looked back at her father’s face—a mixture of embarrassment, helplessness, and a hint of a ‘look how sensible I am, now hurry up and calm down’ expression.
The anger and grievance that had been brewing on the beautiful girl’s face for so long instantly froze.
A complex series of expressions flickered across her delicate face: ‘He’s actually trying to brush me off like this,’ ‘But I guess I came out ahead,’ and ‘I don’t know whether to stay angry or laugh.’
Finally, her tense little face relaxed as she let out a quick breath. The beautiful girl shot Old Li a fierce glare.
“I’ll deal with you when we get home!”
Meanwhile, next to Old Li, Shen Yuan witnessed Old Li’s divine move of using his “cash power” to buy off the beautiful girl and nearly burst out laughing.
‘How similar!’
‘How very similar!’
Thinking of this, Shen Yuan turned his head to look at Ms. Zhang Yuyan.
Her Majesty, his mother, was still standing in the kitchen doorway, a look of confusion and amusement still lingering on her face.
Without hesitation, Shen Yuan extended his hand, palm up. He even gave his fingers a playful wiggle. The gesture was crisp and clean, his eyes filled with a knowing and expectant look that said, ‘I get it. Let’s skip the formalities.’ The meaning was self-evident.
‘A hundred yuan and I’ll throw a tantrum. Two hundred and I’ll be perfectly calm. Three hundred and I’ll have total amnesia!’
Zhang Yuyan was amused by Shen Yuan’s sudden offensive. Half-annoyed and half-laughing, she instinctively glared back at him.
Nearby, Old Shen’s expression didn’t flicker in the slightest. Or perhaps it was more accurate to say he deeply approved of this method of “crisis management.”