Chapter 13: Far Too Rich

The lady, eager to learn more and completely disregarding Mo Liping's feelings, couldn't help but blurt out, "Oh? I see! You're a mistress, aren't you?"

I grabbed the mother's arm tightly, trying to stop her from being so blunt.

The lady, however, retorted, "What is there to be ashamed of? In our residential complex, there are at least ten young women working as mistresses. Everyone knows it, so what?"

Mo Liping looked furious and couldn't help but snap, "Ma'am, could you please say a little less?"

This silenced the mother, who swallowed her resentment and held it in. Not long after leaving the garage, a food delivery electric scooter was waiting there.

Mo Liping walked up to the rider, spoke for a moment, and received several plastic bags. She handed them to me, then led the way through a maze of turns to a thirty-one-story elevator building. We climbed to the second floor and stopped in front of a brown solid wood door. Only then did I realize that she lived on the second floor. I didn't know which building or unit it was, but what puzzled me was: why didn't we take the elevator?

The door opened, and she let the lady in first, then me, with Mo Liping closing the door behind us.

The mother walked around, peeking into every room—the bathroom, the shower room, and the kitchen were not spared. She exclaimed, "This shower room is huge! It's as big as Zhengtai’s bedroom. There’s a bathing pool about six square meters inside; you can soak or shower. I don't know how many times better it is than mine!" Returning to the luxurious sofa in the living room, she shouted excitedly, "It's so big! It’s beautiful! Is this house yours?"

Mo Liping was deeply annoyed by the lady's behavior, which felt like an interrogation. Though unhappy, she still managed to respond.

"I bought it with my own money. It occupies 165 square meters and is currently one of the largest commercial properties available. Ma'am, do you like the color scheme of the decor?"

The lady blurted out, "I do, it's gorgeous! It really can't compare to the house I live in. It's fifteen years old, bought the year Zhengtai was born! Back then, her father was young, could earn money, and house prices weren't high, so we bought it. Although the house isn't big, two bedrooms and a living room are enough. When you have a chance, you should come and see it."

The fast food was opened, one portion for each of us. A magazine on the second tier of the coffee table caught my eye. I wanted to move it so the lady wouldn't see it, but she reached out and pulled it out, flipping through it openly in front of us. She remarked, "Women shouldn't look at this sort of thing; just finding a husband is enough!"

At first, I didn't understand why she was looking at the magazine in front of me, but I later realized she viewed the three of us as women. She was especially afraid that I might see the content, so she flipped through a few pages and handed it to Mo Liping to put away.

It was my first time being this close to the lady, and I didn't know her personality; I felt quite awkward.

Mo Liping took the magazine and, instead of hiding it, placed it back on the coffee table, saying, "Ma'am, if you want to understand this kind of knowledge, I have a few more copies. Since we have nothing to do, feel free to flip through them."

The mother couldn't resist taking the magazine and reading it quietly on her lap. I had seen the content inside before... She was actually reading it with great interest, even forgetting to eat.

The bowls and chopsticks we used were tossed directly into the trash by Mo Liping, leaving only the mother's fast food on the table.

The lady glanced at me, then at the wooden stick tucked into my waistband. A strange feeling washed over her. She shifted her gaze to Mo Liping's face and asked, "Is it custom-made?"

I thought this tool would embarrass Mo Liping, but unexpectedly, she explained nonchalantly, "Yes, it is. It has three main uses!"

"Three uses? I thought there were only two. I didn't know there was a third."

The lady stared at the magazine, flipping through it frantically without finding the answer, and speculated based on her own thoughts, "I only see two: for hitting the body and one that's too embarrassing to say."

My eyes widened. I had never heard such strange terms and couldn't help but ask, "What is 'too embarrassing to say'?"

The lady wouldn't let me look and didn't want to tell me either; in her heart, I was her daughter.

Mo Liping leaned in and whispered into my ear, "It's used for..."

The words sent a jolt through every nerve in my body. My body was still aching, and I could hardly believe it was related to this short wooden stick.

The lady didn't need to hear it to know what Mo Liping was saying. She expressed strong disapproval: "Don't fill Zhengtai's head with these things in the future. She's still a student; it will affect her studies!"

Mo Liping thought for a moment and had nothing to say. After all, she was the one taking advantage of the situation.

A ringtone came from the sofa. Mo Liping recognized it as her own, pulled it from her small handbag, glanced at it, and answered, speaking in a sweet, sugary voice, "Hello?"

A man's voice came through immediately: "Come over quickly. I have guests tonight who want to meet you!"

Mo Liping, considering she had guests at home, didn't want to go and took the opportunity to ask, "About the money you were going to transfer to me—have you thought about it?"

The man's hesitant voice replied, "I don't know why you need so much money. That's a huge sum. It’s more than enough to start a small factory, or if you used it to play the stock market, you could be a major player!"

Mo Liping swayed her body and whined, "I don't care. Are you going to give it to me or not? If not, I'm ignoring you!"

There was a long silence on the phone before he said, "How about this: I'll give you half first, and give you the rest once I've earned it?"

Mo Liping replied in a soft, coaxing voice, "Husband, you have to keep your word, okay? If you don't, I won't even let you into the house!"

Finally, the voice on the phone said, "Fine, it's settled. I'll transfer it to you later via mobile."

The mother didn't understand what was going on, watching as Mo Liping continued her call.

I had to whisper into the lady's ear, "She wanted a hundred million. If he transfers half, that's fifty million!"

The lady's eyes nearly popped out of her head. "My god! She's so rich! Fifty million, a hundred million—those are astronomical figures!"

I whispered again, "Her husband has assets worth ten billion. Giving this little bit of money is like a drop in the ocean."

The mother was so shocked she nearly jumped up. "My god! Ten billion! I wonder how many boxes that would take to fill sixty tons of trucks?"

Mo Liping knew I told the lady everything, but she didn't mind. For some reason, she continued to flirt and chatter with her husband for a long time before hanging up.

The lady, being fifteen years older than Mo Liping and more experienced, took the initiative to suggest, "You go see your husband. Zhengtai and I will take the bus home!"

Mo Liping had intended to drive them, but considering the potential trouble, she said, "I'll walk you to the gate of the complex."

The lady grabbed her handbag and clutched my shoulder tightly, saying, "Zhengtai, read your books well when we get back. You have school tomorrow!"

I remembered the Fifth High School; I could surely find it by asking for directions, so I agreed. Looking back at Mo Liping's bare wrists, I suddenly remembered the green jade beads. I had wanted them, but they were too precious. I was hesitant about whether to tell the lady the secrets of the green jade beads.

Mo Liping primped in front of the vanity before leaving, satisfied only after checking herself in the mirror, and then grabbed her little purple handbag. Outside the complex gate, the lady and I waved goodbye to her.

She smiled—a natural and graceful movement. A breeze blew, causing her short skirt to flutter, revealing a devilish figure. If you didn't know, who would believe she was a "male-girl"?

Once Mo Liping left, we had to find the bus stop.

The lady's excitement had been suppressed for too long. With Mo Liping gone, she finally burst out, whispering, "She's so rich! Really so rich! Why don't I have such good luck? Living on my husband's measly three-thousand-a-month salary is so miserable. What should I do? What should I do?"

I didn't understand, as if the mother had some wild idea, and I asked, "Ma'am, you aren't thinking of..."

She heard me call her that again and almost went crazy. "Don't call me 'Ma'am'! I am your own mother! There is expert opinion here, in black and white—absolutely correct!"

To convince me, she took a medical record out of her handbag, found a slip of paper, and handed it to me.

I knew better than anyone that the slip meant nothing to me. In truth, I was more concerned with whether the green jade beads were in her bag. "Ma'am..." I started.

She was so angry she nearly jumped. "How many times do I have to tell you? I am not a 'Ma'am'! I am your mother! Why can't you remember that?"

I was used to her roaring, but since she had handed it to me, I feigned a look. In the blank space provided by the expert, a few words were written: "Gene match confirmed, parent-child relationship established!"

I knew everything about it, but I didn't understand why it said "parent-child relationship established." I was clearly a girl; it shouldn't have used that term.

The lady had asked the expert about this, and the answer was simple: "Regardless of gender, they are all children. 'Parent-child' refers to biological offspring."

We talked as we walked to the bus stop. A bus pulled up, and before I could react, the lady grabbed my hand tightly and squeezed onto the vehicle.

The driver saw the lady drop the coins in.

On the bus, the things I feared most were pickpockets and perverts. I had seen plenty of such information online, so I remained vigilant. I kept one hand on the wooden stick at my waist, looking around constantly, keeping my eyes on the lady to make sure no one took advantage of her. Several men stood behind her during the ride, but I saw no untoward behavior, and we finally got off the bus in a state of nervous tension.