Just how terrifying Zhang Shutong's mother was is recorded in Tong Tong's childhood life. When he was four or five and had just started elementary school, using a phrase that had recently become popular, he was considered a "cute kid" and was extremely popular, all thanks to his mother.
His mother loved to do one thing: show off her child. But while most parents would show off their child to relatives and neighbors, his mother was very innovative and targeted Zhang Shutong's classmates. Especially the girls.
So Zhang Shutong was extremely popular when he was little. Every time it was his birthday, a bunch of elementary school students would be tricked by his mother. Some would cry and ask their parents to send them, while others would get straight into his family's car. By the time they realized it, everyone was already sitting inside a KFC.
Back then, KFC also offered birthday party services. Several family-sized buckets would be placed on the table, and the staff would gently sing "Happy Birthday," clapping their hands and dimming the lights in the store a little. The birthday boy would sit in the middle of the booth, looking at the large circle of familiar and unfamiliar classmates in a daze, wondering when he had invited them all.
Then his mother would be gnawing on an egg tart and ask him if he was happy. The young Zhang Shutong, of course, nodded happily, completely forgetting to ask why his own birthday hat was on his mother's head.
Then his mother would smear the cake's cream on his face and say seriously: "Tong Tong is one year older, but do you know that for every year a child gets older, they need to have cream smeared on their face one more time? Count how old you are this year. Are you going to smear it on yourself or do you want Mommy to help you?"
Although the feeling of having his face covered in cream was uncomfortable, birthdays were quite memorable. So Zhang Shutong endured the humiliation and took the initiative. His mother would laugh uncontrollably, taking photos on the side, and saying, "My son, I'll save this for you. When you get a girlfriend later, you can show her."
Zhang Shutong once again mistakenly believed his mother's words and truly thought he was popular. He was tricked badly. Until he went to other kids' birthday parties. And a little girl invited him to be the dad in her role-play. And finally, a group of little girls asked him to be the dad in their role-play.
From then on, Zhang Shutong spent his birthdays alone. Only later did he realize that his mother had always been this kind of mischievous person, afraid that the world would be too peaceful. But Zhang Shutong was always completely controlled by her. Since he was a child, every time he jumped out of a big pit, his mother was already standing at the next pit, waving at him and waiting for him to fall in.
And this time, just looking down, he knew the pit was bottomless.
He stood alertly between the two women. When facing his mother, Zhang Shutong's mind worked even faster than when he was catching murderers. First, although his mother loved to show off her child, she wouldn't randomly show him off to any pretty girl she met on the street. Second, since she was wearing sunglasses and a mask, it meant she didn't want to show her true face. But she had never seen Gu Qiumian before, so this was not to hide from her, but from someone else. Or rather, it could only be him.
The final conclusion was—maybe the moment he and Gu Qiumian walked into the mall, his mother saw them. It goes without saying what she imagined they were doing, otherwise she wouldn't have come to talk to Gu Qiumian. But this was exactly why Zhang Shutong felt so much pressure. To give a more vivid example, it was even worse than the moment that draft paper was projected.
While he was on high alert, his mother was giggling. She simply stopped pretending. She took off her mask and sunglasses and shook her chestnut-colored wavy hair. She was a woman who looked much younger than her actual age and was very well-maintained. Her pair of phoenix eyes were beautiful. The corners of her eyes turned up slightly. When she squinted, you knew there would be trouble; but when she smiled, the corners of her eyes curved, and she was unexpectedly amiable.
Zhang Shutong was truly helpless against his mom, who was a living treasure. His dad once told him that she had a mischievous personality when she was young, and a slight smile from her could bring down a city. But in reality, she was a scientist. She was very serious when she wore a lab coat, and it looked pretty cool when she put her hands in her pockets.
But this appearance was limited to the lab. Outside the lab, she was a completely different person. For example, at this moment, the woman squinted her eyes and smiled: "Son, did you miss your mommy?"
"...I did."
In fact, Zhang Shutong really did miss her. Although his parents were always safe and sound, his mother wasn't a real witch after all. Time was merciless. Eight years later, she was no longer this mischievous and playful, smart and evil little demoness in high boots. At that time, she no longer dyed or permed her hair, and her beautiful hair had grown silver threads, and wrinkles had begun to grow at the corners of her eyes.
But just as Zhang Shutong was immersed in his memories, his mother's tone changed: "Then aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?"
Only then did Zhang Shutong look at Gu Qiumian. Gu Qiumian was already red. To be honest, her reaction was similar to this morning. She was first stunned, then her eyes slowly widened. The red on her fair face once again spread rapidly, this time all the way to her ears: "H-Hello, Auntie..."
The girl's voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, which made Zhang Shutong once again marvel at the strength of his mother's position in the food chain. Even the young lady was a step down from her.
"Gu Qiumian, my classmate." At this moment, Zhang Shutong's words were as good as gold.
"No wonder I felt so close to Qiumian when I saw her! She's your classmate!" His mother said as if she had just realized it, but she was not convincing. Zhang Shutong guessed that when she heard the name, she probably thought of something.
She then patted the chocolate into Gu Qiumian's hand. At this time, Qingyi also came over. His mother naturally knew his best friends. She greeted him with a smile and said, "Little Yi has grown taller again. You and Zhang Shutong stand together and let me see who's taller now."
Qingyi also couldn't resist his mother. He obediently stood next to Zhang Shutong. His mother held her chin and looked for a long time, then asked, "Why is it just you three today?"
Zhang Shutong was about to say that there was actually one more person, but as soon as he spoke of her, Ruoping also came in excitedly. She was about to say hello to him, but she found that the scene was a bit strange. Why did their so-called friends' gathering suddenly have two other women?
She didn't turn red, but she was a little stunned. As if there was some kind of magnetic field, the two girls present first met each other's gaze, and the atmosphere became a little stiff.
Zhang Shutong knew that he had to handle this. It was his fault for inviting Gu Qiumian, but before he could even speak, his mother took the initiative.
His mother really liked Ruoping. The woman pulled the girl over and asked her all kinds of questions, asking her where she had been and if she knew that among all of Shutong's best friends, she was the one Auntie wanted to see the most. "Come on, sweetie, give me a kiss."
As she spoke, she gave a kiss to the air. Ruoping was so amused that she couldn't stop laughing, and she even forgot about Gu Qiumian. At this moment, his mother saw the snack she was holding and said that she was a little hungry. There was no need to say anything else. The girl obediently offered the snack she had waited in line for so long, and she did it willingly, asking if it was enough and if she should buy more.
His mother said no, to have fun, that she had something to do at home. Then she took the so-called egg burgers, waved her hand, and left like a gust of wind.
From the time his mother arrived until she left, Zhang Shutong had no idea what she had come to do today. But he felt that his mother's tactics were truly brilliant, and it was no wonder he was always falling into her traps.
The four of them watched the woman walk away and were silent for a while. Zhang Shutong was about to ask Gu Qiumian what she had said, when someone next to him tugged on his arm: "What's going on?"
It was Ruoping: "I don't know. I just suddenly ran into my mom."
"I'm asking what's going on with her?" Ruoping smiled. She was a little devil in the making. "You brought your deskmate without telling me?"
Zhang Shutong was about to answer, but his phone vibrated. It was Qiu Yu Mian Mian typing with one finger. She stood in the crowd, looking a little absent-minded, and asked if she had been impolite to his auntie... Gu Qiumian sent the message and subconsciously looked for him, only to see him and Ruoping standing together.
Although it was noisy around them and the two of them had deliberately moved to the side, Zhang Shutong felt that the invisible magnetic field had started to work again. So the absent-mindedness turned into a vibrant spirit.
Gu Qiumian first glared at Zhang Shutong, then returned to the way she was before she entered the mall. Her back was straight, and her neck, which was exposed from her sweater, was as graceful as a swan's. The girl had deliberately worn a green dress today. The bright and indifferent temperaments were combined, but her eyes were sparkling with pride. She was a young lady again.
Then, Miss Gu took a step with her white sneakers and slowly walked toward them. At this time, another message came to his phone. It was from his mom: "This is the most I can help you, son. You'll have to deal with the rest yourself."
"Also, you'd better explain where you were last night (kitchen knife) (smile)!"