Chapter 88 - I am not childish at all!

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Pei Ge fetched the key to the door from her bag once she got home. However, upon opening the door, she was greeted by the quiet and dark living room. She called out in confusion, “Mom?”

Silence was her only reply.

“Did she go out?” she muttered under her breath. Switching on some lights and changing into her indoor slippers, she went straight to her bedroom.

Her hand phone rang just as she put down her handbag.

Retrieving the hand phone from her handbag, her mouth curled up and her eyes wrinkled at the corner at the caller ID she saw.

“Hello, Xiaoyu—” Before Pei Ge could speak further, a series of blathering came through the phone first.

“Pei Ge, I tell you; no matter how cowardly you are, you must look for that man tomorrow!”

“Puh!” Pei Ge burst into peals of laughter at Tang Xiaoyu’s opening sentence.

“Laugh! What are you laughing for?!” Tang Xiaoyu felt exasperated when she heard Pei Ge laugh.

“I’ve already looked for him, so I guess I’m no coward after all!” Pei Ge sat on the chair beside the computer desk with a cheeky grin on her lips.

“You did?! You’re not bluffing, are you?!” Tang Xiaoyu’s disbelieving voice came through the phone.

“I’m not. I really did see him. However, the ending is quite embarrassing.” Pei Ge felt sheepish.

“Hah? Did that jerk refuse to take responsibility?!” her best friend furiously shrieked.

“No, but...” At Pei Ge’s narration of today’s event, it was Tang Xiaoyu’s turn to burst into an uncontrollable laughter.

“Ha ha ha! Oh, my gosh! Ge Ge, I can’t believe you! Ha ha ha! I can’t take it anymore! My stomach hurts from laughing too much!”

Pei Ge was slightly miffed by her best friend’s inconsiderate laughter and she muttered softly, “You heartless person. I’ve already lost so much face today, yet you’re still laughing at me like that.”

“Ha ha! Alright, alright. I’ll stop laughing now.” Tang Xiaoyu immediately halted her laughter. “Still, I really don’t know whether this misunderstanding is good or bad for you.”

“Sigh... I won’t know which one is it, either, as I’ve decided to resign!” Pei Ge declared.

“Resign? You lass, are you okay? Aren’t you doing fine at work right now? You even told me just recently that your superior treats you very well.”

“Sigh... I was given a promotion again and, this time, it’s to be the CEO’s assistant.”

“Isn’t that pretty good? Why are you resigning? Have you lost your marbles?”

“Have you forgotten? The CEO and that annoying fellow are the same person. It would’ve been fine if that incident hadn’t happened, but...” Pausing for a bit to tug at her lips, she proceeded to correct herself, “That’s not right. Even if this didn’t happen, I still wouldn’t want to be his assistant and see him every day.”

“...Pei Ge, can you not be so childish?” Tang Xiaoyu felt slightly exasperated with her declaration.

“Who’s being childish? I merely see no point in continuing my job there since I’m no longer happy with it,” she reasoned.

“Forget it, forget it. As long as you don’t regret your choice later on, I have no say in it.” Tang Xiaoyu knew that her best friend would not change her mind once she made a decision. Unless Pei Ge herself was hesitating over it, then no amount of persuasion from others would make her change her decision.

After chatting for a while longer, Pei Ge hung up the phone and retrieved the resignation form from her handbag.

She stared at the form with some reluctance. Ignoring this feeling, she started filling it out.

Pak! After filling out the form and as she was surfing online, she heard a ruckus coming from outside her room. She stood up and opened the door to her bedroom.

“Mom, where did you go?” Pei Ge asked her mother this the moment she spotted the latter changing into her indoor slippers by the doorway.

“I didn’t go anywhere. I just chatted with our neighbors outside for a bit.” Zhang Manhua smiled at her daughter.

“Oh.” Pei Ge nodded her head.

“Oh, right! Your Second Uncle’s family invited us to lunch tomorrow.” Zhang Manhua suddenly recalled Pei Shishi’s call that afternoon.

“Why did they suddenly invite us to lunch?” Pei Ge asked, slightly perplexed.

“You child, we are all one big family. We don’t need a reason to have a meal together.” Zhang Manhua looked at her daughter with amusement.

Although Pei Ge thought it was a little odd, as her Second Uncle’s family had never once invited them to have a meal before, she did not bother pursuing the matter.

“Okay, I understand. Where will we go for lunch tomorrow?”

“Shishi told me that it will be at their house.”

Hearing this, Pei Ge blinked her eyes in confusion. “Is Cousin treating us?”

“I guess so. It was your cousin who called me this afternoon to invite us over for lunch.” Zhang Manhua nodded her head in affirmation.

Somehow, it reminded Pei Ge of her encounter with Pei Shishi just that afternoon as well.

Her eyes suddenly widened as panic set in when she thought of something.

She remembered that nurse earlier saying that only two people with the surname ‘Pei’ went to the hospital for a checkup.

Cousin wouldn’t be... Pei Ge shook her head to discard this thought. It shouldn’t be. Such coincidences never happen in real life.

“Ge Ge, why are you shaking your head?” The mother asked upon seeing the daughter suddenly do this.

Pei Ge returned to her senses and shook her head again before replying, “No – No particular reason.”

Her cousin would not have noticed that she was lying this afternoon, right?

However... Let’s forget it. Whether Cousin noticed it or not, I turned out as not pregnant, anyway. Therefore, I have nothing to worry about.

...

“My good daughter, why did you suddenly invite Pei Ge’s family over for lunch?” Liu Yan picked up a slice of meat with her chopsticks as she asked this in an unhappy manner.

“Mom, we are all connected by blood. There’s nothing wrong with us treating them to a meal.” Pei Shishi smiled, obviously understanding her mother’s mentality.

“Why does that lunch date need to be held in our house, though? I don’t want those two polluting our house.” Liu Yan did not hide her disdain.

“Alright. That’s enough, Liu Yan. No matter what, Manhua is still my elder sister-in-law and Ge Ge is still my blood-related niece. You should stop saying this kind of things.” Pei Zhenghui, who was who sitting on the main seat, chided.

“Yo, ‘Manhua’! How close you two sound! Pei Zhenghui, what’s wrong with me talking about her?! Don’t tell me that you actually have feelings for that jinx of a widow!” Liu Yan mocked while she stared intensely at her husband.

“You – you, stop spouting nonsense!” Pei Zhenghui was so enraged that his face turned ghastly white. Forget about eating, he even smashed his chopsticks on the table.

“You yourself know it best whether or not I’m spouting nonsense!” She coldly harrumphed at his display of anger and smashed her chopsticks on the table as well.

“Dad, Mom, what are you guys talking about?” Pei Shishi was perplexed by her parents’ argument. Everything was fine and dandy just moments ago, so how did the topic develop in this direction? She totally did not believe that her father would be in love with Zhang Manhua.

“Let me tell you, Liu Yan. You should not spit garbage every single day! Even if you don’t care about your face, I do!”

“You’re saying that my mouth is full of rubbish? Touch your conscience and answer me; how much money have you given Zhang Manhua all these years?!”

Seeing her parents start to quarrel again, Pei Shishi did nothing to stop them but merely continued eating with poise.

She was very clear on what her parents were like. They had quarreled many times over this issue of her father giving Pei Ge’s family money.

Nonetheless, she also thought it was rather odd for her stingy father to help Pei Ge’s family and give them so much money time and again.

Could there be a secret behind this?