Chapter 6 — The Fluffy-Haired Vixen and the Cold-Faced Professor

Four years passed in the blink of an eye. Chu and I remained blissfully inseparable, and now we were simply waiting for me to graduate so we could get married. I had secured a suitable job, and my parents had already met Chu. When he came to visit my hometown, even my sharp-tongued younger brother had to admit that Chu was faultlessly perfect. The brat could only mutter some nonsense: "Men go downhill after twenty-five. Your boyfriend is almost thirty, you need to hurry up and lock that down!"

Downhill my foot! I shot him a sideways glance and scoffed, "My boyfriend is in tip-top shape, you don't need to worry about him! You should worry about yourself instead—you are already twenty-four, only one year left!" I taunted mercilessly. "What a pity, still without a girlfriend at your age!"

Hitting him right where it hurt, my brother flew into a rage. "You are so bewitched by a handsome man that you've completely forgotten about your own brother!"

I laughed with unrestrained glee. My parents were utterly charmed by Chu, declaring that he possessed every imaginable qualification: university professor, a fine family background, handsome, and courteous—the absolute epitome of a dream son-in-law. Chu likewise adored the cozy atmosphere of my home, remarking how lively and cheerful it always was. And it was true—though my family was not wealthy, we were perpetually warm-hearted and harmonious, and both my brother and I possessed inherently optimistic outlooks on life.

Following the pleasant family dinner, Chu and I returned to our own apartment. Ever since we made our relationship official two years prior, we had moved in together, clinging to each other like magnets day by day. The moment we stepped inside the doorway, Chu pushed me gently against the wall and bent down to capture my lips in a kiss.

I breathed heavily against his mouth. "Turn on the lights first..."

He whispered between kisses, "Do you remember years ago, during that blackout, what I wanted to do?"

I looped my arms behind his back, my fingers tracing the line of his waist as I purred, "What did you want to do?"

Chu let out a soft chuckle, sweeping me up effortlessly into his arms so that I had to wrap my legs around his waist. Pressed tightly against one another, he murmured right beside my ear in a low, husky voice: "I wanted to do this... and that... and then this too..."

I wound my arms around his neck, teasingly nibbling the edge of his earlobe while my voice dripped with saccharine sweetness: "Teacher~ please don't bully me~ I'm still just a little girl~ I'm so scared~"

Chu's Adam's apple bobbed as his gaze darkened—finally reaching the end of his restraint, he carried me straight into the bedroom. He leaned over me, gentle yet fiercely intense. "Now then... class is in session."

That night was nothing short of delirious. The following morning, both of us overslept. I woke up first and went downstairs to buy breakfast. The moment I stepped through the front door, I heard his voice on a phone call with his mother. Presumably, he had not yet realized I was back. The phone was on speaker, and I inadvertently caught a fragment of their conversation:

"You are a grown man now, you need to start thinking about getting married. I have found a very nice young lady, and you must go on a blind date this time."

A blind date?! For all these years, Chu's mother had never stopped trying to force him into blind dates. Moreover, the women she introduced were invariably meticulously selected daughters of wealthy families, yet Chu had rejected every single one of them.

At that moment, his resolute voice came through the receiver: "Mother, I have already told you. I am in love with someone and intend to marry her. Sometime soon, I will bring her home to meet you."

Chu's mother instantly countered, "Meet who?! I've heard all about it, the person you fancy is just some poor college student! What is there to meet? Casual dating is fine, but marriage is entirely out of the question!"

Hearing this, my heart plummeted to the very depths of an abyss. No matter who a person was, when it came time for marriage, everyone hoped for the blessings of both families. Yet Chu's mother... did she only care about wealth and status?

Right then, Chu noticed I had returned and hurriedly hung up the phone. He walked over and gently stroked my head. "My love, don't take it to heart. She was just speaking off the top of her head, I pay no mind to words like that."

I gave a soft nod. "I know."

I trusted Chu. But even so... being looked down upon by someone else still stung terribly. To cheer me up, he specially took me out to eat my favorite meal, and that evening he "served" me with the utmost diligence and thoroughness.

Several days later, my mood gradually improved. While cleaning up around the house, I unexpectedly discovered an old, granny-style floral shirt tucked away in the closet—the exact kind I used to wear when pretending to be Aunt Liu. I held the shirt up in front of him. "Where did this come from?"

Chu looked momentarily flustered. After I pressed him relentlessly, he finally confessed, "...I bought it."

I burst out laughing. "Did you miss me so much that you bought a shirt to commemorate me? Don't tell me you've... been up to any 'unseemly' activities with it?"

Chu: "..."

Still giggling, I bolted into the bathroom, used a hair-crimper to style my hair into wild, auntie-style curls, and immediately slipped on the floral shirt before marching back out. "Little Chu, what would you like to eat today~?"

Roleplaying as Aunt Liu... turned out to be surprisingly fun!

Unable to hold back his laughter, Chu strode over, scooped me up, and set me down on the sofa. "I want to eat you!"

I flipped over to pin him beneath me, pinching his chin playfully. "Confess! Do you have some kind of mother-complex syndrome?!" Otherwise, how on earth could he have fallen for Aunt Liu back then?

Chu replied with absolute solemnity, "I love the person you are, regardless of who or what you might be."

I leaned down and whispered, "Mm... correct answer, you get a prize." With that, I feigned an intent to kiss him, purely to tease him a little.

Never in my wildest dreams did I expect that right as our lips were about to meet... the front door abruptly swung open.

"Ah, ah, ah, ah!!!"

Chu's mother marched inside just in time to catch the compromising scene red-handed! Her eyes widened as large as brass bells as she strode forward, her voice trembling with absolute fury: "Chu! What... what is the meaning of this?! Who on earth is this woman?!"

Though I was initially a bit embarrassed, a sudden thought struck me—It's showtime! This was the grand resurgence of Aunt Liu!

I clutched my frizzy hair and affected a thick, rustic country accent: "Madam, I am forty-five years old this year, and I am Little Chu's girlfriend!"

His mother gasped. "...... Impossible! You are talking nonsense! I do not approve!"

Internally dying of laughter while maintaining a deadpan, utterly serious expression on the outside, I declared, "Rest assured, Madam, Little Chu and I are deeply in love. I will take exceptionally good care of him, and I can even bear him children."

"Don't you worry, at my age I can still have babies. Back in my hometown, I still have two little ones waiting for their mother to return!"

Chu's mother looked as though she might faint on the spot.

One week later, while I was hard at work, Chu called me with an unmistakable note of excitement in his voice: "Have dinner with my mother tonight."

"We're meeting her again?!" Didn't we practically drive her to the brink of the hospital last time?

Chu chuckled. "Don't worry, just go as your normal self this time, she won't recognize you."

Well, that was true... On that previous occasion, I had transformed into the forty-five-year-old Aunt Liu with wild, frizzy hair, whereas now, with a fresh face and light makeup, who on earth would ever connect the two?

That evening, I dressed simply and arrived at the private dining room right on time. The moment the door opened, Chu's mother stood up immediately, beaming with a radiant smile. "This must be Nian, right? Come in, come in, my dear!"

Her unexpected warmth startled me slightly. I glanced sideways at Chu, mouthing silently: "What is going on?!"

He merely smiled and offered no explanation.

Throughout the meal, Chu's mother acted with extreme friendliness, chatting merrily the entire time. Upon learning that I worked at a major corporation, she nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling with approval.

"I hear you also have a younger brother?"

I nodded. "Yes, he just graduated from university and recently passed the civil service examinations."

My brother had worked extraordinarily hard. He once told me: "You've carried the weight of our family for long enough, now it's my turn. I'm going to make sure no one ever dares look down on you because of your hometown or background."

I looked at Chu's mother, my gaze softening into a gentle smile. "He has always been my greatest pride."

That evening's dinner was exceptionally warm and pleasant. Chu's mother was gracious and thoughtful, bearing no resemblance whatsoever to the formidable impression she made during our first encounter. Once the meal concluded, she even handed me a fairly thick red envelope, speaking with utmost courtesy: "Another day, I will invite your parents out to dinner so we can discuss the two of you getting married."

After her chauffeur drove her home, I was still lingering in a state of utter bewilderment, poking Chu in the arm. "What on earth just happened?!" How on earth did his mother pull a complete one-eighty turn like that?

Suppressing a laugh, Chu explained, "You gave such a stellar performance last time that she was scared for life."

"Now she doesn't care about me marrying some wealthy heiress anymore, as long as it isn't a forty-five-year-old mother of two."

"HA HA HA HA!"

I laughed so hard I clutched my stomach, entirely unable to stop. Oh, heavens, I was simply too brilliant! With just a single clever trick, I had neatly handled both mother and son!

Shaking his head with a smile, Chu pulled me into his arms, his voice softening into a tender murmur: "It's time we start preparing for our wedding, Mrs. Chu."

I rested my head against his shoulder, replying softly: "I look forward to your guidance, Mr. Chu."

Like the bright moon that remains forever full, like the sun that ascends every single morning. We kissed, sealing a mutual promise—From this day forward, let us live out every single remaining day in absolute beauty and joy!