Chapter 5 – Pocket Money
Except for Zheng Hong, none of the other teachers said anything when they saw Li Shu sleeping on her desk.
And so, Li Shu dozed off drowsily for the whole day.
When the final bell rang, she packed her empty backpack and carried it out of the classroom.
The Fu Nan campus playground was wide and flat. Passing by, Li Shu glanced at Jiang Yi, who was playing basketball, with a few of the troublemakers from the back following and making noise.
“Jiang Yi, that little beauty in Class Five. Don’t you want to reconsider? I thought you two had a chance.”
Jiang Yi tossed the basketball back to the speaker, smiling indifferently.
“I was just playing with her before.”
Just after saying that, he looked up and saw Li Shu holding a sun umbrella, walking step by step toward the school gate.
Her hand gripping the umbrella was so white and soft. He wondered what it would feel like to touch.
He couldn’t help but snap his fingers.
“You don’t understand anything. Those flashy girls are not my type. I’ve found my muse goddess.”
“Yeah, sure. Last time you ‘ruined’ a girl, you said the same thing.”
“Exactly, every time you break up, it’s the same story.”
……
The family driver’s wife was about to give birth, so she took a week off. Li Shu had to get home by herself during this time.
Stepping out of the school gate, she just turned on her phone, planning to call a ride.
After fingerprint authentication, the screen lit for a few seconds and then went completely dark.
Dead battery.
Li Shu’s baby-faced expression showed nothing. She put the phone away and headed for the bus stop.
But after a few steps, she realized she didn’t have any coins.
She lowered her gaze and slowly walked along the street, watching the crowds, the chatter, the ringing bells—all of it irrelevant to her.
The sky darkened.
She walked through several streets, not even knowing how long she had been walking, until she finally reached the bustling city center.
“Oh, can’t you spend a little more time with me? Who cares about your wife, I’m better, right?” A curly-haired woman in designer clothes, voice sultry, collapsed against a suited man as if she had no bones.
“Alright, the bag you liked a few days ago, I had Secretary Liu buy it. Lin Ying, I like obedient people.”
The man was well-maintained. He adjusted his tie, peach-blossom eyes full of affection, words soft and lingering, carrying casual elegance.
Li Shu didn’t expect such a coincidence.
She stopped walking.
She had always known Li Maoguo kept himself well and was generous. Such a man, even in middle age with a wife and daughter, still attracted women’s attention.
Her gaze slowly moved upward.
Five-star hotel.
Yesterday Li Maoguo stormed out; today, she just happened to run into him.
Really a coincidence.
Li Maoguo was about to say something more when he noticed the girl standing behind Lin Ying. She had folded her umbrella. Her skin was pale, almost glowing, and she stood quietly.
Her peach-blossom eyes, inherited from him, were as clean as a clear lake, with not a trace of brightness.
Their gazes met. Li Maoguo felt uncomfortable, sensing her eyes were too pure, and instinctively distanced himself from Lin Ying.
He looked awkward.
“Xiao Shu, why haven’t you gone home yet?”
After saying that, he realized it sounded off.
The driver was on leave, Li Shu’s home was far from school, and he had forgotten to give her pocket money yesterday after the quarrel with Shu Xiao.
Meeting her here now, Li Maoguo’s guilt surged like a tide.
Li Shu slowly stepped forward. Her soft, innocent voice matched her appearance, making it hard for anyone to refuse or rebut.
She looked at Li Maoguo, a slight smile at the corner of her lips:
“Pocket money.”
Li Maoguo had never been stingy with her materially. Feeling guilty now, he immediately transferred money to her via WeChat. He also took out a stack of cash from his wallet.
Li Shu’s phone was dead, so she couldn’t confirm the transfer immediately. She accepted the red bills, giving a gentle, light smile:
“Thank you, Dad.”
Chapter 6 – How Many Women Has He Gotten?
Li Maoguo was thoroughly embarrassed. It would have been one thing if his wife Shu Xiao had seen the incident, but for his daughter to witness it left him somewhat at a loss.
He quickly sent away the woman who had been merely playing along at his side.
Li Shu watched the curly-haired woman reluctantly walk away in her high heels, showing no emotion at all in her eyes.
She was simply thinking: besides the college student Shu Xiao had mentioned yesterday, plus today’s sultry curly-haired woman, exactly how many women was Li Maoguo keeping now?
“小书, let’s go home with Dad,” Li Maoguo said, quickly adjusting his composure.
No sooner had he said this than his phone rang.
He answered, listened for a moment, then said after thinking:
“I understand. I’ll be there right now.”
It was probably something work-related.
Li Shu secretly let out a breath of relief.
“Dad, you go handle your business.”
After parting with Li Maoguo, she didn’t go home directly. She stopped by the nearest ATM, withdrew a few bills, and deposited the rest.
Looking at the long string of numbers in her account, her eyes finally showed a hint of color.
……
By the time she returned to the villa, it was completely dark.
Li Shu walked under the streetlights along the road, stepping lightly under the moonlight. She authenticated with her fingerprint and entered, changing her shoes in the foyer.
The housekeeper, who had worked there for five or six years, heard the noise and immediately came forward to take her backpack.
“You’re finally back. The food’s cold—Aunt Xu will heat it up.”
Li Shu wasn’t hungry at the moment. She smiled at Aunt Xu, scanning the room and seeing no other figures.
“No need, this is fine,” she said.
Slipping into slippers, she sat at the dining table and ate a few casual bites.
“Where’s Mom?” she asked.
Aunt Xu’s smile faltered for a moment.
“Madam went out.”
Out at night?
Li Shu put down her chopsticks, recalling the scene with Li Maoguo earlier. Her chest felt heavy, yet she also found it ironic.
This marital situation was strange beyond words. She wondered how they could tolerate it for so long.
Li Shu ate quietly, little by little, without speaking.
Aunt Xu felt troubled but powerless, watching Li Shu go upstairs. She felt some pity—parents’ mistakes always burden the child—but it wasn’t her place to speak on the master’s affairs.
Li Shu went to her room, washed up, then turned on her charging phone. She opened WeChat and accepted Li Maoguo’s transfer.
Having finished this, she let her thoughts go blank.
In fact, this wasn’t the first time she had encountered women outside Li Maoguo’s household.
Three years ago, it had already happened.
That woman had been daring and dazzled by jewelry. After learning about Li Maoguo’s estrangement from Shu Xiao, she tried to make a move, tracking down Li Shu at school.
“You must be Li Shu. I’ve heard about you from your dad. You really are as sensible as he said—a very understanding child.”
“Auntie, I feel like we’re destined to meet.”
The woman had tried to use Li Shu as a trigger to stir conflict between Li Maoguo and Shu Xiao.
At that time, Li Shu was in the ninth grade.
Yet she was not foolish.
She immediately called Li Maoguo in front of the woman.
“Dad, there’s an auntie here looking for you. She said her surname is Zhou.”
Li Shu didn’t say anything else, but Li Maoguo assumed she was too young to understand.
Li Maoguo had always preferred obedient women—those kept privately, who would not harm family or interests. A scheming woman like that could never remain around him.
He told Li Shu it was a work partner and immediately sent the woman away, throwing money at her on the spot.
Li Shu stared at the white ceiling, no longer thinking about it, and exhaled a long breath.
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