After Transmigrating As The Mother Of The Pitiful Female Supporting Character in a Campus Novel - Chapter 39

Xia Shibai learned about the “fresh flowers” from the Xia Yaozhou who had returned. Thinking back to her reckless “verification” maneuver yesterday, she felt she had to make some kind of gesture—at least to show she had a proper attitude.

If she were to be treated as a sexual harasser, she would truly be like “a mute eating bitter melon”—suffering in silence with no way to voice her grievances.

With that in mind, Xia Shibai circled back to the flower and bird market to select fresh-cut flowers from the lady boss.

The lady boss wasn’t surprised to see her; instead, she wiped the water off her hands and asked, “What’s wrong? Did the mint I helped you plant die too? It shouldn’t have; those were cuttings. Logically, as long as you leave them alone, they should survive.”

“I didn’t come because of the mint…” Xia Shibai gave a soft tsk, thinking of her mint that hadn’t even sprouted a bud; she didn’t want to talk about it. “How much are these flowers?”

“Are you converting your garden to grow flowers?”

“No, how do you deliver these fresh-cut ones?”

“Free SF Express shipping for orders over thirty-five yuan.” The lady boss grabbed a sprig of Lily of the Valley closest to her, pulled it out, and handed it to Xia Shibai. “They are fresh flowers every day. Whatever I can’t sell, I take home to give away; there’s no such thing as overnight flowers here.”

The succulent Lily of the Valley felt somewhat heavy in her hand.

Xia Shibai looked around the shop and felt everything looked good; she was completely unable to decide.

“Who do you want to give flowers to?”

“I don’t know.” Xia Shibai added, “Just giving them to a friend as an apology. I don’t understand flowers; I don’t know what to choose.”

The lady boss gave a light laugh, her eyes curving. “The ‘friend’ you mentioned wouldn’t happen to be the one living next door to you, would it?”

“Yes.”

“Oh…” The lady boss said, “But the two of you don’t look like frie—well, you even have to consider buying flowers to coax a friend when they’re angry? This friend of yours is quite expensive to maintain.”

Xia Shibai’s ears felt hot from the lady boss’s teasing. The only cool part of her body was the hand clutching the Lily of the Valley, which was dampened by the moisture from the stems. She awkwardly shifted the topic, only asking the lady boss when she could deliver them.

“For delivery, the couriers come to collect in the afternoon, so everyone can receive flowers just as they get off work. If you want them in the morning, I’m afraid it won’t work. I have to wrap and select them in the morning; there isn’t enough time.” The lady boss paused slightly. “But you can come buy the flowers and take them yourself; it’s a short drive.”

Xia Shibai thought about it and handed the Lily of the Valley back to the lady boss. “Wrap them up for me then. I’ll come buy them myself when I have time. As for shipping, your delivery time is too late; who arranges flowers at night?”

The lady boss was unwrapping flower packaging; hearing this, her movements paused. Her gaze fell on Xia Shibai, scanning her up and down. She gave a soft tsk but didn’t speak.

However, her expression fully revealed her confusion: “If it’s just an apology between friends, why do you care when the flowers arrive? Just pay the money and we’ll help deliver them to the doorstep!”

In the end, the lady boss helped wrap a large bouquet of Lily of the Valley. Because she bought so many, the lady boss even threw in two stalks of Tiger-head Jasmine. “When you get home, pour some Coke into the water; it will bloom very vigorously on its own. The continuous blooming period is long; it won’t wither all at once.”

“Thank you, I’ll come back next time I need something.”

The lady boss waved her hand. “Doesn’t your neighbor have my WeChat? Just have her message me. She can send me whatever she likes. If I can grab the stock for you, I’ll definitely bring it in.”

Xia Shibai subconsciously wanted to nod in agreement, but quickly realized something was wrong. These flowers were her gift; if she asked Qin Zhijin to message the lady boss, there would be no surprise—instead, it felt strangely awkward.

Xia Shibai pulled her phone out of her pocket. “I’ll just add you myself. I’ll contact you directly if I have a request.”

“That works too.” The lady boss very briskly took out her phone, added her as a friend, and accepted.

She’d be a fool to turn away money!

Xia Shibai got out of the car clutching the flowers. Walking from the underground garage to the ground level, she felt like a thief, her heart filled with guilt.

She peeked at the neighbor’s house and found that Qin Zhijin wasn’t outside. Xia Shibai relaxed slightly and ran toward her house as if fleeing, holding the flowers.

As soon as she opened the door, a group of one adult and two children were sitting neatly on the sofa. Three pairs of eyes were filled with confusion, expressing a total lack of understanding of Xia Shibai’s behavior.

Xia Shibai, who had been hiding for half the day: “…”

So you’re all hanging out at my house?

A biology documentary was playing on the TV. There were sliced cakes and mint tea on the table. No matter how you looked at it, life seemed very comfortable.

Xia Yaozhou sat huddled on the sofa clutching a cushion. She pointed at the flowers in Xia Shibai’s arms and asked curiously, “Mommy, why did you buy so many flowers? You can’t even eat them.”

“These were never meant to be eaten.” Xia Shibai’s mind raced, trying to think of how to give the flowers away without it being incredibly awkward in this setting.

Qin Zhijin leaned back on the sofa with her legs crossed, an eyebrow raised. “Where did President Xia just get back from? To receive so many flowers?”

Xia Shibai gripped the flowers tightly and beckoned Xia Yaozhou and Gu Mingyi to come over. She handed the two stalks of Tiger-head Jasmine to the children. “These are for you, but if you want to keep them alive, you need to use Coke.”

“Use your watches to go buy a few bottles of Coke from the neighborhood store, okay?”

Xia Yaozhou looked at the double-petaled Tiger-head Jasmine and was incredibly happy. Hearing this, she nodded hurriedly. “Okay! I’ll put the flowers at home first, and after I buy the Coke, I’ll put them in a bottle!”

“Okay, go ahead.”

After Xia Shibai tricked the two children into leaving, she gave a light cough, hoping to draw the attention of the person seriously watching the video.

Once, twice—she failed both times.

Qin Zhijin was clearly refusing to give a response on purpose.

Xia Shibai held the flowers right in front of Qin Zhijin’s eyes.

When a patch of white and green appeared before the person on the sofa, she finally frowned slightly and looked up at the Xia Shibai standing beside her. “What does President Xia mean by this? Having received flowers, you insist on showing them off in front of me?”

“No.” Xia Shibai pushed the flowers into Qin Zhijin’s arms. “These were bought specifically for you.”

“I apologize for what happened yesterday. I didn’t mean to touch you. Since I didn’t know what you liked, I took the liberty of buying fresh flowers. If there’s something you like, just tell me, and I’ll buy it for you next time.”

Qin Zhijin was stunned by the armful of flowers pushed at her. For a moment, she didn’t even understand what Xia Shibai had done wrong.

Following the clues in Xia Shibai’s words, she only remembered the “waist-touching” incident from yesterday.

How small a matter was that? She wasn’t even angry; the memory was almost gone. Yet Xia Shibai actually cared in her heart—cared about such a tiny thing?

Qin Zhijin didn’t quite understand if it was remembered because it involved her, or if Xia Shibai viewed the matter as very serious.

Either way, it was hard for Qin Zhijin not to be charmed by this bouquet.

Qin Zhijin clutched the wrapping paper tightly, making a crumpling sound.

From the flurry of words, Qin Zhijin picked out the part she couldn’t understand: “What do you mean by ‘if there’s something I like, tell you and you’ll buy it for me’?”

“I meant, if I make a mistake next time and want to apologize or compensate…”

“There’s a next time?” Qin Zhijin squinted at Xia Shibai.

Xia Shibai, who had been prepared to continue explaining, simply gave up.

Fine, there’s no way to talk through this. Every answer felt a bit strange.

Xia Shibai had Qin Zhijin unwrap the Lily of the Valley and accompanied her home to fill the vase with water, waiting for the two children to return with the Coke.

The Tiger-head Jasmine, which was more expensive per stalk than the Lily of the Valley, was left on the table unattended.

A large bundle of Lily of the Valley was gently placed into the water, waiting for the slightly wilted blossoms to “awaken” and gradually reveal their beautiful form.

If the lady boss were here, she might have cursed them for wasting such a treasure!

The value of an object clearly depends on the status of the owner.

Invisibly, Xia Shibai had already elevated Qin Zhijin’s status to a significant position.

Qin Zhijin spread the flowers out in the water, her finger gently touching a curved sprig of Lily of the Valley. Then, as if there was something stinging on it, she quickly pulled her hand back.

“Thank you, I already like the flowers very much.” Qin Zhijin said with a smile, “Actually, that matter was just a trifle. You really didn’t need to take it to heart. If you hadn’t mentioned it, I would have already forgotten what happened yesterday.”

“I’m sorry, I was too impulsive.” Xia Shibai pursed her lips slightly. “As long as you like them. If you do, I can go again next time.”

“These flowers… did you buy them yourself?”

This morning, Qin Zhijin had seen Xia Yaozhou standing alone at the door, her face damp. Upon seeing her, the girl said Mommy wasn’t home, but there was breakfast and bottled milk on the table.

Xia Yaozhou had only come out after eating her fill at home. Seeing Qin Zhijin across the wall, she quickly reached out and said she was hungry.

Because of this, the scene Xia Shibai saw upon her return occurred.

Qin Zhijin had always assumed Xia Shibai went out for business, didn’t have time to settle Xia Yaozhou properly, and then bought flowers on the way back. Who would have thought the flowers were bought specifically?

“Yes, I bought them from the lady boss who helped plant the mint.” Xia Shibai was honest. “I thought I’d be back soon, so I didn’t think to bring Zhouzhou along. Who knew there would be a car accident on the road? That road was surprisingly congested early in the morning, so I was late.”

There was no accident on the way back, but Xia Shibai couldn’t find a suitable excuse to give the flowers, so she wasted a lot more time.

If Qin Zhijin hadn’t been at her house, whether this bunch of Lily of the Valley could have found a home in a vase so quickly today would be a question.

Qin Zhijin didn’t know how to respond. Under Xia Shibai’s burning, inquisitive gaze, she subconsciously took a step back. Catching a glimpse of the loss for words on Xia Shibai’s face, she instinctively wondered if she was being too harsh.

But quickly, Qin Zhijin realized…

She hadn’t done anything. Why should she be so flustered?

No, hadn’t Xia Shibai come over to apologize to her in the first place? Why had the situation flipped entirely, making it feel like she was the one who did something wrong?

Qin Zhijin was bewildered, not even knowing where the problem lay.

Fortunately, this eerie atmosphere was soon interrupted by the two children returning from outside.

Xia Yaozhou and Gu Mingyi worked together to carry a convenience store plastic bag inside, containing Coke, Sprite, and a bunch of probiotic milk.

As soon as she entered, Xia Yaozhou let go, letting the drinks hit the floor. She waved her aching hands and turned to run back to her house to get her flowers. She originally wanted to bring a vase, but discovered that when she stood in front of one, she wasn’t even as tall as the opening, so she decisively gave up.

She held the flowers and went to find Xia Shibai. “Mommy, the vase is tall. Help me and Xiao Yi put the flowers in.”

Xia Yaozhou pointed at the already arranged Lily of the Valley and said, “Just like that!”

“…” Xia Shibai was speechless.

She looked at the two stalks of Tiger-head Jasmine in her hand. She didn’t want to dampen the child’s enthusiasm, but couldn’t help saying, “Baby, the antique vases in our house are decorations. They aren’t meant for your… little things.”

This is like pinning a sprig of osmanthus on a two-meter-tall giant; it’s asking too much of the vase.

Xia Yaozhou looked at the jasmine in her hand with disappointment. “Then what about the flow-flow? It doesn’t have a home.”

Before Xia Shibai could speak, Gu Mingyi, standing nearby, reacted quickly. She squatted by the plastic bag, took out a Coke bottle, used her fingers like scissors, and mimed a cutting motion at the top of the can.

Gu Mingyi raised her childish face and said to the adults, “Just use scissors to cut the cans open. We don’t have to buy bottles, and we don’t need antique vases to keep these two flowers.”

Most importantly, when they were carrying the drinks back, Xia Yaozhou said they should keep these cans. When the old man organized by the property management came to collect scrap, they would sell the cans to him.

“Even though it’s not much money, one or two yuan is still money!” The more Xia Yaozhou spoke, the more she felt she was right, nodding her little head. “When we save up enough, we can buy lots of things we like!”

When Gu Mingyi first heard this, she looked at Xia Yaozhou hesitantly. On the way back, she had been wanting to say, “If you’re short on money, I can give you some. Auntie Lin is gone; there’s no need to collect things to sell like this.”

These things wouldn’t sell for much money anyway.

So Gu Mingyi wanted to find a use for all these cans so that Xia Yaozhou wouldn’t keep thinking about them.

“What does Zhouzhou think?”

Xia Yaozhou looked at the cans in the plastic bag with lingering affection, but finally grit her teeth and nodded in agreement. Watching the Coke being poured out, she didn’t even care if she could drink the Coke herself; her eyes were only on the can pieces being cut up by Xia Shibai with large scissors.

Snap, crackle, pop. Xia Yaozhou felt her heart breaking into pieces.

Xia Shibai, who was being accused by the child’s eyes: “…”

Huh? Didn’t she already agree to cut the cans? Why the face like she’s being bullied?

Xia Yaozhou was aggrieved, but her movements in unwrapping and placing the flowers into the cans were very practiced.

“Pretty!”

Gu Mingyi’s can was a Sprite one.

The two children each held their own cans and found a beautiful spot for the Tiger-head Jasmine. At a glance, the only pure white presence formed a sharp contrast with the simple cans beneath.

It looked incredibly good.

Qin Zhijin shared the poured-out Sprite and Coke with Xia Shibai. It’s easy for sex hormones to stimulate growth and development if children drink sodas, and it affects bone growth too, so it’s better for the little ones to drink probiotics.

Xia Yaozhou felt bad for the two cans, but on second thought, exchanging the cans for two beautiful flowers didn’t seem like such a loss.

There are many cans in the world to collect, but a beautiful flower only blooms once.

With that thought, Xia Yaozhou comfortably consoled herself and continued to squat on the ground to admire the layered Tiger-head Jasmine.

Looking at the room full of Lily of the Valley, Dr. Qin, who usually disliked taking photos and exposing her private life to others, unusually picked up her phone to take several pictures. Lily of the Valley doesn’t have a particularly overpowering scent, but scattered around the house, they looked exceptionally beautiful.

An indescribable beauty.

There were only three photos, but no shortage of likes and replies beneath.

Song Ling: “Why buy so many flowers all of a sudden? Didn’t you use to say flowers and perfume were taboos in your career, especially since your patients are pregnant women and children?”

The flower shop lady boss silently gave a like: “[Thumbs up] My flowers are just beautiful.”

The rest of the messages were mostly from hospital colleagues; some even asked when she would return to work.

Qin Zhijin picked a few she wanted to answer; the rest of the words she just let fall away. Not everyone could see her Moments anyway.

Soon, however, Dr. Qin learned to categorize these relationships.

Just as Xia Shibai said, if you don’t want to maintain them, just block them.

She even dared to block her own parents; what were these people?

Qin Zhijin just wanted to show off the room full of Lily of the Valley, not chat with people. After showing off, she closed her Moments, having no urge to look further.

She was just telling everyone that this had happened today.

Xia Shibai, seeing everyone in the house happy, couldn’t help but feel happy as well. Buying fresh flowers on a whim had satisfied everyone, which meant this method was a good one.

The “Straight-A Student” President Xia recorded this effective method in her memos, intending to continue next time.

Although her mind was thinking “continue next time,” in reality, every few days Xia Shibai would personally run to the flower and bird market, clutching a large bouquet of fresh flowers and bringing two extra stalks of something else back.

The flowers inside the house occupied the large vases, while various cans under the eaves held different flowers.

Xia Yaozhou went from initial joy to being unable to even force a smile as she watched the cans being cut up. She aggrievedly placed the flowers into a finally emptied can and complained, “Why does Mommy bring so many flowers back?”

Clearly, Xia Yaozhou didn’t realize that “trouble comes from the mouth.”

The person who caused this current situation was none other than herself.

Xia Shibai used a tissue to wipe the sweat from her running around. “Do you not like it?”

“I like it, but it really wastes cans!” Xia Yaozhou did a frantic set of Tai Chi moves in the air.

Ah—

Those were all, those were all my little bits of money!

Compared to Xia Yaozhou’s slightly poor mood, Gu Mingyi was very happy. She not only researched hydroponic fresh-cut flowers in cans but also started using cans to grow small vegetables.

It was better if the cans were gone; then Xia Yaozhou wouldn’t be thinking about them every day.

Xia Shibai rubbed her daughter’s cheek, avoiding the topic. “The teaser is going to be broadcast online tonight. Do you want to watch?”

The program team was ready and intended to start filming this month, editing as they filmed.

The teaser originally only featured the four of them—Xia Shibai and company—but later the directing team worried this would draw unnecessary public outcry, so they took the filming crew to shoot for the other two groups as well.

This invisibly divided the groups. Given the relationship between Xia Shibai and Qin Zhijin, they would definitely choose to team up first as they familiarized themselves with the rules in the first episode.

The stereotype of two-by-two grouping would be deepened.

The director felt it wasn’t ideal, but had no choice.

Aside from one starlet, there were no participants with high traffic. If they didn’t generate interest with a teaser, it would be very difficult to move forward later.

Although the sponsors were all from Lan Sui and the participants were Lan Sui executives, the director didn’t film a variety show just for it to flop, so naturally, they couldn’t let nature take its course.

Xia Yaozhou had long since forgotten she was going to participate in some variety show, and she also forgot her heroic gesture of offering “bonuses” to the photography crew. Hearing this, her eyes widened slightly. “What’s that?”

“You’ll know when you watch tonight.”

“Watch it on TV?”

“Yes.”

Ever since Xia Yaozhou witnessed the new viewing equipment in Xiao Yi’s home, besides chasing cats, teasing dogs, and acting as the neighborhood loiterer while tending flowers, her biggest interest was waiting for Xiao Yi to invite her to watch TV at her house in the evening.

“Then I’m going to see the ‘tee-tee-teaser’ at Xiao Yi’s tonight!” Xia Yaozhou jumped up and gestured. “It’s so-so-so clear, super big, I like it very much!”

Qin Zhijin, sitting on a nearby chair, felt her money hadn’t been wasted. It was originally for Xiao Yi to watch physics documentaries, but who knew it could also be used to enjoy an audio-visual masterpiece of a special effects family bucket? It even lured the adult from next door over.

Qin Zhijin handed a peeled orange to Xia Yaozhou. “Then does Zhouzhou want to buy one for herself too?”

Xia Shibai also had this idea. After all, what was the deal with going to someone else’s house every day to watch the Ultraman family bucket? It’s not like they couldn’t afford a projector at home.

Unexpectedly, as soon as Qin Zhijin spoke, Xia Yaozhou—who was stuffing an orange into her mouth—screwed up her little face.

She looked like she’d been soured by an unbitten orange.

“No, it’s so expensive, so expensive, it costs so much money!” Xia Yaozhou refused hurriedly. “It’s enough that Xiao Yi has one.”

“Xiao Yi doesn’t like watching Ultraman. The things you watch, Xiao Yi doesn’t like very much. You’re at someone else’s house; you can’t exactly keep snatching the remote control rights from Xiao Yi, can you?”

“I didn’t snatch it.” Xia Yaozhou, a mouthful of orange juice, took the remaining orange and ran toward Gu Mingyi, who was still researching can-planting. After stuffing it into her mouth, she trotted back. “Xiao Yi let me watch it!”

“And I also watched with Xiao Yi… watched holes, stars, ugly fish with lanterns on their foreheads, and poisonous octopuses and jellyfish!”

Xia Shibai didn’t give up. “Do you really not want to change? If we change it, you can watch Ultraman at home freely.”

Xia Yaozhou squinted her eyes, stuffed the remaining orange into her mouth, and used the table to stand on tiptoe to grab a whole orange. Her little hand pressed it and rolled it a few times on the table until it reached Qin Zhijin’s hand.

“Mommy is a liar. If we change it at home, won’t I just be told by you to do homework? Then after watching for a little bit, I’ll be pinched by the ear and made to get up and study and do homework. I’m not stupid!”

Watching on Gu Mingyi’s sofa, Xia Shibai clearly couldn’t use force on her.

She was small, not stupid.

Who are you trying to fool here?

Qin Zhijin couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Exactly how did your family produce a child who is both stingy and smart, with a look that suggests clear-eyed stupidity?”

Xia Shibai: “…”

Good question.

Xia Shibai looked at Xia Yaozhou, who was proudly holding her head high, and found it hard to look at.

This child even thought those words were praising her.

The generation gap is as wide as the East African Rift Valley; it’s hard to comment on.

Xia Shibai decided to add more educational content tonight; she must pass the assessment before being allowed to sleep in bed!