“Eat your meal properly.”
Yao Yun glanced at her son, then smiled at the girl.
“Shuoshuo will definitely take good care of Xiaxia in the future. Even though he’s young, he’s actually quite sensible.”
“He spends all day either playing games or running around, never attending to his studies at all. He’s old enough now, but you’ve all spoiled him rotten.”
Lu Jinnian’s face darkened.
“No matter how much money you give him, if he doesn’t study on his own, how will he keep up with the times in the future?”
Lu Qihui also frowned slightly, glancing at his son who was burying his head in his meal.
“From now on, your monthly allowance will be cut in half. You’re not allowed to step out of the house during summer vacation. Stay at home and take your lessons seriously.”
Upon hearing this, Shuoshuo immediately lifted his head, wanting to protest, but after glancing at Bai Xia, he could only let out a cold snort and lower his head again.
So what? Mom will give him money anyway.
“Don’t let me catch you giving him money.”
Lu Qihui shot his wife a sidelong glance.
Yao Yun wanted to say something, but in the end, she said nothing.
She picked up her glass and took a sip of water.
Was it really all her fault that the child turned out this way?
Now everyone was blaming her.
Besides, Shuoshuo was still so young.
It was normal for children to like playing.
Who knows what would happen if you suppress their nature too much.
After dinner, she told her son to go to his room and play games quietly, not to make a fuss, then went to the studio to find her husband.
Looking at the room full of paintings, she couldn’t help but get angry.
If her husband had taken over the company, she wouldn’t have to bow to Lu Lin now.
“Lawyer Wang came today. Did you know?”
She leaned against the table with a cup of coffee in her hand.
Lu Qimo was carefully tidying up the studio, afraid of knocking something over.
“Father changes his will every few years. It’s normal.”
Hearing his indifferent attitude, Yao Yun frowned.
“Normal? He suddenly called the lawyer over, probably for Xiaxia’s sake. The Old Master is just short of plucking the stars from the sky for her now.”
At this rate, even plucking stars might not be impossible.
Lu Qihui looked up at her.
“So what? The Lu family owes Xiaxia to begin with. She was lost outside for years. It’s only natural for Father to feel sorry for her.”
“She already has Lu Lin to dote on her, isn’t that enough? All of Lu Lin’s shares will be hers in the future. Now the Old Master is suddenly changing his will—who knows how much more he’ll give her? Shuoshuo is your son too. Why don’t you think about him?” Yao Yun closed her eyes in anger.
Lu Qihui walked over and pulled her aside.
“Be careful, or you’ll get paint on your clothes.”
Seeing her husband still cared about her, Yao Yun’s expression softened a little.
She could only cling to his arm and speak softly, “Lu Lin doesn’t like Shuoshuo. He definitely won’t get into the company in the future. He’ll need money to get by. If we don’t think for him, what will he do later?”
Lu Qimo didn’t even look up as he arranged the paint on the table.
“When Shuoshuo grows up, Lu Lin will be older too. He’ll definitely accept Shuoshuo then. Family ties run deep. Don’t overthink it. How the Old Master distributes things is his business—we can’t control it.”
At this, he finally looked up and patted his wife’s arm.
“Don’t worry, I’ll set up a trust fund for Shuoshuo. His future will be secured.”
Yao Yun said nothing.
She didn’t know if her husband was truly naive or just didn’t understand their son.
There’s no way someone like Lu Lin would ever accept Shuoshuo.
Who knows how he’ll suppress him in the future?
If she didn’t make plans for her son, she’d really end up drinking Xibei Wind one day.
“You’re right. Shuoshuo can’t keep going on like this. I won’t give him a single cent anymore. Let him stay at home and take classes, just like Xiaxia.”
Hearing his wife’s words, Lu Qihui was quite relieved.
This should have been done long ago.
Yao Yun didn’t disturb him further, but left the studio with her coffee.
Her face gradually grew clouded.
The Old Master likes children who study well, so she’d make sure Shuoshuo studied hard.
Only by pleasing the Old Master could Shuoshuo get more inheritance.
***
Late at night, Bai Xia had another video call with the female lead.
She’d already thought of a name for the Media Company—all that was left was for the female lead to register it.
She’d already recruited most of the staff, just waiting for the female lead to handle the interviews.
Now that the milk tea shop’s business was booming, she felt it was about time to expand with new branches.
She had plenty of funds on hand anyway.
Rather than letting it sit idle, she might as well invest.
As for choosing the location, she left it to the company staff to screen potential sites.
She’d just make the final decision.
The next day at school, He Yuehua once again persistently asked her which school she’d attend for first grade.
Bai Xia could only tell her she was going to Huayue Elementary School.
That was a prestigious school—otherwise, with Shuoshuo’s grades, who knows how many times his parents would be called in.
“What a coincidence! My mom is planning to send me there too. I’ll ask her to talk to the teachers so we can be in the same class!” He Yuehua hugged her arm.
Bai Xia nodded slightly, then took a small cake out of her desk. “Try it. I asked the chef to use less sugar. Don’t you dislike sweets?”
Upon hearing this, He Yuehua immediately picked up a little fork and took a bite.
Her eyes lit up.
“It’s delicious! Even better than the ones my mom’s pastry chef makes!”
Seeing the two of them arm in arm, sweet as honey, Lu Qimo in the back row could only fiddle with his robot in secret.
He Yuehua had scolded Bai Xia at first too, so why could she still play with her, but disliked him so much?
Wasn’t it just one tooth?
His new one had already started to grow in.
By the end of summer, it would be fully grown!
Huayue Elementary School?
His eyes spun, and he immediately took out his phone to message his mom.
He wasn’t going to any international school.
He wanted to go to Huayue Elementary School too.
Kindergarten classes were too basic.
Bai Xia was always doing high school math problems in class.
She needed to review so she wouldn’t forget everything.
The male lead came back a few days later and even brought her a gift—a crystal magic ball that was voice-activated.
Even in the middle of the night, as long as she gave a command, it would light up with magical white light and even sing.
Because of this, Shuoshuo pestered her for days, insisting on trading his Transformer for it.
Bai Xia ignored him.
With kids like him, you couldn’t give in or he’d think he could get anything he wanted.
***
On the day of the final exam, she looked at the test full of basic questions—so simple she felt embarrassed to even write.
After the morning exam, the next day the teacher posted the results and prepared rewards.
“I’m very happy to have spent these two semesters with you all.
You’ve all seen the final exam results.
Bai Xia is ranked first in the whole school.
Even though she joined late and is the youngest, her attitude toward learning has always been exemplary.
She’s a role model for everyone.
But there’s no need to feel anxious—you’re all excellent, and I believe you’ll all do even better in the future!”
As the teacher finished, the room erupted in applause.
Everyone looked at Bai Xia with blazing admiration.
Full marks in all five subjects—amazing! Especially since many of the questions were only taught at the elementary level.
The hardest was history.
The last question was so tough almost no one got it, yet Bai Xia managed a perfect score!
“Bai Xia, would you like to come up and give a speech as our outstanding student?” the teacher asked politely.
Under the burning gazes around her, Bai Xia stood up, walked to the podium, took the mic from the teacher, and spoke calmly, “Even though we’re only in kindergarten, we are the flowers of our motherland, and more importantly, its future. The country needs us to build it. I hope everyone can stay true to their beliefs, become law-abiding youths with a sense of social responsibility.”
“Reading helps us understand the world. Grades aren’t everything—they’re just one way to measure our studies. Once we leave school, there are many other ways to be tested. But we must remain steadfast, protect and build our country, and contribute to its development. Only then will society become more beautiful.”
“The most important thing is to have a clear conscience. Don’t cut corners for profit or add all sorts of additives to food. Don’t exploit employees’ wages just to make money. Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. Money can lift us up, but it can also bury us deep. As long as we hold firm to our beliefs and don’t become unscrupulous entrepreneurs, every cent we earn will be well deserved.”
“Thank you, everyone. I’m happy to study with you, and I appreciate all the care you’ve shown me. I really enjoy our time learning together.”
After she finished, Bai Xia bowed and returned to her seat.
The classroom fell silent.
The teacher was stunned for a long while.
She’d only asked Bai Xia to speak on the spur of the moment—there was no way she could have prepared.
How could such words come from a three-year-old?
When she came to her senses, she quickly led the applause.
The class erupted in cheers, except for Lin Yan, who looked at Bai Xia with a complicated expression.
Fine, his sense of social responsibility really was a bit lacking.
Lu Qimo looked at his deskmate in confusion.
“That’s what my dad says at the company annual meeting, but he needs a script. Bai Xia’s memory is even better than my dad’s. How did her brain grow?”
Such a long and complicated speech—he couldn’t even read it smoothly off a script.
“She’s definitely a prodigy. Let’s not compare ourselves to her,” his deskmate said, full of admiration.
Bai Xia didn’t expect these kids to really understand, but she’d said what she needed to say.
If one or two took it to heart, that was already good enough.
Ordinary people breaking the law already burden society, let alone these rich kids.
She didn’t expect much else—just hoped everyone would obey the law.
That in itself was a contribution.
It was because the male lead never received a good social education as a child that he grew up so arrogant.
He lived up to his own standards, but didn’t care about anyone else’s life or death.
***
Today was the last day of school.
After saying goodbye to everyone, Bai Xia got in the car with her award book.
Even though she already knew her grades, the butler kept praising her as if he’d only just found out.
When she got back to the villa, Lu Jinnian even called Shuoshuo over and rewarded Bai Xia with a card right in front of him.
“There’s a million in here. This is your great-grandfather’s reward.”
After he finished, he looked at the jealous-faced Shuoshuo.
“When you’re ranked first in the whole school, I’ll give you a million too.”
Hearing this, Shuoshuo crossed his arms and looked up at the ceiling.
“What’s so great about that? I could be first in the school at gaming.”
“Shameless! You, first in the school? More like last!”
Bai Xia gave him a sidelong glance.
Seeing her look down on him, Shuoshuo could only swallow his anger.
He’d challenged Bai Xia many times, but always lost.
He didn’t know what was in that instruction manual—every time she read it, she became amazing, but he never figured it out.
When Lu Lin returned, he saw two kids arguing—though it was really more like Bai Xia schooling Shuoshuo, who kept his head down and didn’t dare make a sound.
He hadn’t expected the male lead to return so early today.
Bai Xia handed him the award book, and he sensibly took out a card from his bag and slipped it into her small pocket.
“I brought you some books,” Lu Lin said gently.
Bai Xia saw he was holding a file folder, not sure what was inside, looking all mysterious.
She could only follow him upstairs, where he led her into the study and handed her the folder.
When Bai Xia opened it, she found a series of bank transaction records—almost all her transfers to the female lead, and all that money had ended up invested in her company.
No wonder he’d come back so early—she’d almost forgotten that the male lead loved investigating people.
Clearly, he thought it suspicious for her to have such large sums of money moving around, so he’d had someone look into it.
“Why did your mom start a business and have you give her money?”
Lu Lin’s gaze locked onto his daughter.
No one knew Ruan Wen better than he did—she would never take a cent from the Lu family.
Bai Xia blinked.
“Who said it was my mom’s business? I’m the one starting a business. What, you think kids can’t do it? You’re already a public company president, but you won’t let someone else outdo you?”