novelraw Chapter 95: A Complete Mess
Chapter 95: A Complete Mess
She had at least that much confidence in herself.
Since the day she was born, she’d never been afraid of anyone.
What more could Ling Anxun say?
He sighed softly.
"Alright, Dad believes you. But if anything like this happens again, remember to tell an adult right away. Don’t try to handle it all by yourself."
Word of the incident spread like wildfire. Soon, the entire elementary school had heard about it.
The older students treated it as a joke, but the younger kids took it to heart.
Many of them already liked Shanshan and were happy to be her friend.
On top of that, plenty of others were eager to curry favor with the Ling family.
As a result, nearly the entire class automatically sided with Shanshan.
And Cao Jiajia?
The few girls who used to flock around her with flattery now went out of their way to avoid her.
Anyone who saw her couldn’t resist making a few cutting remarks.
"Well, well, if it isn’t the Queen of Tattletales."
"Watch out. Don’t let her set her sights on you, or next thing you know, she’ll be accusing you of stealing her pencil."
If she dared to talk back, the others would only get worse.
"Quit playing the victim! The whole school knows you’re the one with the guilty conscience!"
"I’m going to tell the teacher! You guys are bullying me!"
she yelled, wiping away her tears.
But no one was afraid of her. In fact, it only spurred them on.
"Go on, tell on us, you little snitch! Isn’t that what you do best—turning things around and blaming others?"
Several kids took turns, shouting the nickname at her.
Tears streamed down Cao Jiajia’s face.
The children didn’t scatter back to their seats until their teacher, hearing the commotion, hurried over.
At first, the teacher had intended to say a few comforting words.
But one look at the pathetic state she was in—her hair a mess, her face smeared with snot and tears—and the teacher’s expression immediately soured.
"Stop crying! You’ve made your bed, now lie in it. It serves you right! Why didn’t you think about the consequences when you were telling lies? If you dare to lie again, we’ll see if anyone pays you any mind!"
Cao Jiajia sobbed, looking up at the teacher with pleading eyes.
The moment the final bell rang, Cao Jiajia snatched her schoolbag and bolted for the door.
She couldn’t stand to be there any longer, couldn’t bear to face all those stares.
A few of the more mischievous kids followed behind, deliberately stepping on her shadow and shouting all sorts of nasty names.
"The little snitch is running away!"
"Stop crying! Go run home and tattle to your mommy!"
But once they reached the school gate, they didn’t dare to shout anymore.
Cao Daqiang was standing right there, his hands stuffed in his pants pockets.
His gaze swept over the jeering children, and his eyes went cold, making the kids shrink back in fear.
Crying, Cao Jiajia threw herself into her dad’s arms.
But Cao Daqiang didn’t say a single comforting word.
"All you do from morning till night is cry! Look at the other kids! Is any of them like you? Stirring up trouble all day—aren’t you ashamed? Get on the bike, now! Stop making a scene and embarrassing yourself out here!"
Frightened by her father’s cold expression, Cao Jiajia didn’t even dare to cry loudly.
She obediently climbed onto the back of the bicycle, curling herself into a small ball.
She held back her tears the entire way home. Only when she saw her mother did she finally break, letting out a loud, "WAAAAH!"
"Oh my goodness, what happened? Who’s been picking on you?"
Liu Yingzi immediately rushed out from the kitchen and pulled her daughter into a tight embrace.
Cao Daqiang threw up his hands, his brow furrowed.
"How should I know what’s wrong? She started crying the moment she stepped out of the school gates. I asked her over and over, but she wouldn’t say a word. Just sobbed the whole way home. My ears are about to fall off from all the crying."
Cao Jiajia just clung tightly to her mother’s neck, her small hands clenched so hard they turned white.
"Alright, alright, stop asking. Let me calm her down."
Liu Yingzi said in a low voice.
"The vegetables are still simmering in the pot. Don’t let them burn. You go watch them."
With that, she gently pushed Cao Daqiang aside and carried her daughter toward the inner room.
She snatched the spatula off the stove and tossed it in Cao Daqiang’s direction.
"Hey, I’ve been at work all day. I’m so tired my back is about to break. And you have the nerve to push a simple chore like cooking onto me..."
Cao Daqiang grumbled under his breath as he bent down to pick up the spatula.
Inside the room, Liu Yingzi gently patted Cao Jiajia’s back.
"It’s okay, it’s okay. Mommy’s here. No one can hurt you."
It took a good half hour of comforting before Jiajia finally began to calm down.
"M-Mom... Mommy... I... I don’t want to go to school anymore..."
"Can I please not go? I really don’t want to go anymore..."
Liu Yingzi’s heart clenched painfully.
"Silly girl, all kids have to go to school."
Swallowing the ache in her heart, she gently stroked Cao Jiajia’s head.
"If you don’t go to school, how will you ever learn anything? How will you grow up? Mommy doesn’t want you to suffer, honey, but I really can’t give in to you on this."
Cao Jiajia’s lower lip trembled, and her eyes instantly welled up with tears again.
"Then... can I transfer to another school?"
"Don’t cry, don’t cry, there’s a good girl."
Liu Yingzi quickly grabbed a tissue and wiped her face.
"If your eyes get all swollen, you won’t look pretty tomorrow."
"If you want to transfer, Mommy will talk to your dad. We’ll find a way, alright? I promise, I really do."
"Okay..."
Cao Jiajia nodded eagerly.
A few minutes later, the acrid smell of something burning wafted into the room from under the door.
Liu Yingzi’s head snapped up.
"Crap!"
She gently set Cao Jiajia down and bolted for the kitchen.
Sure enough, the stew in the pot had long since boiled dry, and the bottom of the pot was charred black.
Cao Daqiang was standing nearby, spatula in hand, a dazed look on his face.
"Can’t you smell that? It’s completely burned! Quick, stir it!"
Liu Yingzi snatched the spatula from him and scrambled to salvage what she could.
Cao Daqiang sneered.
"Since when do I know how to cook? You were just setting me up to fail, weren’t you? You’re the one who always does it. What did you expect would happen when you suddenly told me to take over?"
"Forget it. I knew I couldn’t count on you."
Liu Yingzi said, catching her breath.
"Just get out of here! Stop making things worse! You’re just in the way!"
A small smirk played on Cao Daqiang’s lips.
’Great,’ he thought. ’Now I’m finally off the hook.’
He’d never wanted to do a thankless chore like cooking in the first place.
He ambled out of the kitchen and plopped down on the living room sofa.
The dish was a total loss, and the pot would need to be scrubbed several times before it was usable again.
Liu Yingzi sighed.
Dinner was served nearly half an hour later than usual.
When she called him to eat, Cao Daqiang was still grumbling.
"It’s just cooking one dish, what’s with the dawdling? I’m starving! I’ve been waiting for nearly an hour. How can you not even handle one little thing? This is infuriating."
Liu Yingzi’s hand, holding her chopsticks, froze mid-air.
"Would I be this late if you hadn’t burned the food? The pot was scorched, and the whole house filled with smoke. I couldn’t very well serve a plate of charcoal, could I? It’s easy for you to talk, since you’re not the one doing the work."
"So it’s my fault it burned?"
Cao Daqiang looked up, completely unabashed.
"I didn’t burn it on purpose. Besides, who told you to leave me to watch it? It’s not like the kitchen belongs to just me."
Liu Yingzi struggled to suppress the rage boiling in her heart.
"I’m not going to fight with you. The most important thing right now is our daughter. Jiajia is miserable at school. She’s getting bullied and ostracized every single day. She can’t even eat in peace. This can’t go on. We have to transfer her."
"Absolutely not!"
Cao Daqiang slammed his chopsticks down on the table with a loud CLACK.
Cao Jiajia, who had been eating with her head lowered, flinched in fright.