Rebirth: I Am Not the Movie Queen This Time-Chapter 37 Conclusion

Glass Factory Family Quarters, Wan Family.

After Xiao Bai left, Bai Zhixi walked to the photo frame, her expression complex as she looked at the family portrait.

That too, was once a happy family of four until it fell apart overnight when she was sixteen. She left the warm home with her mother, or rather, was driven out of the Bai Family.

Why did Xiao Bai just ask about that person?

From among all the people in that photo frame, why did he ask specifically about her former father?

Bai Zhixi thought carefully about the Bai Brothers’ appearances, trying hard to recall her elder brother’s youthful face. Her heart skipped a beat - Dabai and Xiao Bai were probably her nephews.

They really are cousins to Chuchu!

Bai Zhixi looked toward Chuchu’s closed bedroom door and chuckled bitterly. No wonder Xiao Bai was so kind to Chuchu; blood relations are truly a wondrous thing.

In the room, Wan Chu’er was immersed in her studies. She had spent most of the day outside managing the soy sauce business, and once home, she buried herself in studying, racing against time, indifferent to the happenings outside. Unaware, the light dimmed.

Wan Chu’er reached out to turn on the desk lamp and listened for any noises outside but heard nothing.

After pondering for a moment, she stood up, opened the door, and walked out.

The living room was dark; she faintly saw a figure sitting by the dining table, much like Bai Zhixi.

Wan Chu’er called out, "Mom?" but got no response. She quickly turned on the lights in the living room.

The sudden brightness made Bai Zhixi raise her hand to shield her eyes, returning to her senses.

"What’s wrong, Chuchu?" Bai Zhixi looked at her daughter.

Wan Chu’er looked at Bai Zhixi questioningly and noticing the tear stains on her mother’s face, asked in bewilderment: "Mom, have you been sitting here all this time? Did something happen?"

Seeing her daughter looking at her like that prompted Bai Zhixi to subconsciously wipe her face and disguise it with: "It’s nothing."

Wan Chu’er’s expression grew serious; she walked up to Bai Zhixi, squatted down, took her hand, and said earnestly:

"Mom, is there something troubling you? Don’t hide it from me; I am your daughter. Tell me anything. If you can’t tell me, who can you tell? I don’t want you to harbor any worries; it’s not good for your health. I hope mom is healthy and happy, able to stay with me for a lifetime."

Bai Zhixi felt a mixture of sadness and gratitude. Sad that her daughter, at such a young age, was without a father and only had her, a mother of no great talent, and moved that her daughter cared for her so much.

She patted Wan Chu’er’s hand and said with a smile: "Mom really is fine, I was just thinking about Grandma, so I felt a little sentimental."

Subconsciously, she didn’t want Chuchu to know about the Bai Family affairs; she wanted to protect the honor of her mother.

Wan Chu’er thought for a while then noticing that Bai Zhixi’s face didn’t show any particular sadness or worry, she finally relaxed, nodded, and said: "Mom, next time we have a break, I’ll accompany you to burn some paper offerings for Grandma."

"Ah, alright." Bai Zhixi agreed with a smile, then changed the subject: "Chuchu, what do you want for dinner? I’ll cook you something so you can focus on your studies," she said as she stood up to head to the kitchen.

The time was already half past seven in the evening, which was over an hour later than their usual dinner time.

Wan Chu’er laughed: "Whatever mom cooks, I like to eat. You decide."

Bai Zhixi entered the kitchen with a satisfied smile.

After dinner, the mother and daughter sat under the light to tally the accounts, sorting out the business of the day.

In the end, Bai Zhixi held a stack of money and said, "As of now, we have established steady cooperation with fifteen restaurants, among which Jinghua Hotel and County Hotel are our biggest clients. We can make a profit of about US$ 15 a day from the pickles, which is enough for both mother and daughter to eat and drink, and we can also save five yuan a day. By the time you go to college, we could have saved up 2,000 yuan, and together with some savings we have at home, it should just cover your first year’s tuition."

She furrowed her brows and added, "That’s not enough, we need to save even more. If you eat at home every day, we can save a bit more."

Seeing the worry on Bai Zhixi’s face, Chuchu smiled to reassure her, "Nowadays universities offer student loans and scholarships, and by then I can also work part-time to pay for my tuition. Don’t worry about it, there’s always a way out."

Bai Zhixi didn’t want her daughter to worry about money either, so she went along with her words, saying, "That’s right, we will find a way when we get there, no need to worry." But in her heart, she thought she still needed to figure out some other way.

That night, before going to bed, Chuchu suddenly remembered An Lian mentioning that she wasn’t strong enough. She got up from the bed without turning on the lights and started doing push-ups in the dark. She could barely manage ten push-ups before she was panting heavily and couldn’t push herself up anymore.

She felt her arms and shook her head in disdain, "Too weak, I need to start training harder."

The next morning, when she arrived at school, Liu Li blocked Chuchu on the playground.

Chuchu glanced at her and noticed Liu Li’s lips were unusually red. She smirked, suspecting that Liu Li had applied lipstick and then tried to wipe it off, obviously not thoroughly.

Heavenly World truly is a fine place!

Liu Li looked at Chuchu arrogantly, and after a few seconds, just as Chuchu turned to walk away, Liu Li finally spoke:

"Chuchu, hand over the IOU."

Chuchu coldly replied, "We’ll talk about that when you have enough money to pay back."

Liu Li took out a stack of money from her pocket and flicked it with one hand, making a "slap, slap—" sound, her face full of arrogance, as she waited for Chuchu to be surprised.

Unfortunately, after a long wait, Chuchu’s face remained indifferent, she didn’t even bother to take a proper look at the stack of money.

Liu Li was so angry she gritted her teeth, cursing inwardly, what’s there to pretend, who else in the whole school can take out so much money at once apart from me!

Chuchu let out a cold laugh and asked, "What, is this money meant to pay me back? You still owe me nine hundred seventy-five yuan."

Hmph! Liu Li snorted.

"There’s one thousand yuan here, you give me twenty-five yuan as change, and bring out the IOU."

Chuchu took out US$ 15 from her pocket and bent down to take out the IOU from her backpack.

When Liu Li reached out to take it, Chuchu stepped back, dodging her hand.

"What? Changed your mind?" Liu Li glared.

Chuchu calmly said, "Cash and delivery at the same time, don’t you understand? Also, the twenty-five yuan I have is crystal clear, are you sure your thousand is truly one thousand yuan?"

Liu Li, looking at Chuchu’s irritating face, couldn’t help but feel that Chuchu was looking down on her. She couldn’t help puffing out her chest and lifting her chin even higher, her voice shrill, "Watch carefully, bumpkin!"

She counted the money slowly, one bill at a time, each number squeezing out from between Liu Li’s teeth.

Eventually, both exchanged what they held in their hands.

Before Liu Li rolled her eyes to leave, Chuchu mocked, "Liu Li, what’s there for you to be proud of? Even if you’re capable, you still have to pay me, don’t you!"

After saying that, Chuchu turned and started running on the track, she had wasted too much time with Liu Li, she had to speed up today.

After a moment of stunned silence, Liu Li, her chest heaving, clenched her fists and yelled, "Chuchu, you bitch!"

Then, she saw Chuchu suddenly turn and sprint back towards her, and feeling somewhat scared, she hastily fled the playground.