Chapter 17: Mother’s Phone Call

Xue Ning waited for a reply about the tigers, but Jingwei remained ominously silent. He wasn't really intending for her to feed the tigers, was he? Wouldn't rich people hire people specifically for that?

Before she could contemplate the intricacies of feeding recently revived sabre-tooth tigers, her phone rang loudly.

It was her mom. Oh dear.

"Hello Mother?" She asks cautiously.

"Xue Ning! I saw the drugging news about Sun Jingwei - didn't it happen at the club you said you were working at?"

"Ah… yes…I'm fine though," Xue Ning replies hesitantly. If her mom found out she was the one who got drugged she'll probably book a plane ticket and drag her back home by her hair.

"I told you not to work at this sort of place! It's so dangerous, especially for a young woman living by yourself! If anything bad happens to you, it'll take days before anyone finds out!"

Oh, if only her mom knew how true it was.

"It'll be fine! I might have a new job." Xue Ning says. It wasn't technically untrue.

"Oh good! Finally you're taking my advice… your new job will be something safe right? Not dangerous at all?" Her mother asks, nosy with worry. Xue Ning feels the slightest hint of guilt at the lie, but when it came to her family, it was often easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.

"Yeah, it should be. It's an office job after all." If Sun Jingwei stayed in the office then she would also be in the office. It's not a lie. If he made her feed tigers, she could tell her mom she was working at the zoo.

"That's great to hear, my good daughter," she can feel her mother's warm smile from over the phone. Xue Ning determinedly ignores the guilt that's growing stronger. "Remember, you can always come home! Mom and Dad will always welcome you with open arms!"

"I know, but I won't come back so early. You know that," she replies to her mom.

Even if her family loved to have her back, working at their family's restaurant, she personally couldn't stomach the thought of possibly spending the rest of her life behind a stove, cooking meals for the rest of the townspeople. She wasn't good at cooking and didn't love it the way her parents seem to, in a way that they would eagerly devote their lives to the craft.

"How is Gege and sister-in-law? Are they okay?" Xue Ning asks instead, to get rid of that elephant in the room.

"They are fine, and they've been helping with the restaurant." 'Unlike you', a malicious voice in her head whispers. It sounded suspiciously like her old school bully. 'Some daughter you are, leaving your family behind.'

How could she have left the town to grow up in when she should have stayed to help her parents, and perhaps marry one of the boys she grew up with in that same small town?

Simple: Xue Ning didn't like the town, nor most of its people. They found her crass and unladylike, spreading gossip about her and her family when they thought she was out of earshot. Some even did it right in front of her on purpose!

The most common gossip she heard was that her parents must have offended someone so powerful that they were forced to leave their cushy jobs in Shanghai to move to such a small town to raise a family.

She used to wonder about it too, but after living in Shanghai for the past 6 months, she thinks it might have just been to save more money on living expenses. One would have to sell a kidney here to raise a family out of a shoebox apartment. She was already having trouble feeding herself.

Ironically, the best food she has eaten since she arrived was after she was hospitalised.

"Xue Ning, are you still listening?" Her mother asks.

"Ah yes, that's good," she replies hastily, looking down at the blanket. "So has Ge gotten any better at cooking noodles yet?"

"He has improved, our regulars can't tell the difference between his and your father's anymore!" Her mom replies delightedly. Xue Ning is also relieved; at least her parents have one child that's capable enough.

"That's good to hear," she says.

"Nevermind about him, he is fine! You're the one that we worry about the most!" Her mother says. "I hope you're working hard on building a proper career and finding a husband. Do you remember your classmate Shunxi from school? She's already married to that boy… I think it was Junhui?"

"Ah. Good for her," she replies, face twitching in irritation. Of course Zhang Shunxi, with her pretty face and prettier manners had gotten married, nevermind that she spent her schooling years making snide comments about Xue Ning. And of course she married the one boy Xue Ning had a crush on.

"It's not that Mother wants to rush you, but you really should start looking!" Her mother continues, getting more anxious with each passing word. "You're already 25 and you still have no one - if you don't hurry, all the good ones will be snapped up!"

"Mother, you say it like it's that easy," she replies, half-grumbling. "Am I supposed to find a guy from the supermarket?"

"Make sure you actually dress up when going to the supermarket then!" Her mother scolds. "I've seen what you wear on a daily basis - how will you attract someone like this?"

"There's nothing wrong with the way I dress!" Xue Ning protested. She just preferred to wear simple T-shirts and jeans, or long pants, or shorts, with a hoodie if it was cold. Nevermind if it made her look like a first-year university student.

"My dear daughter, your father and I believe that you'll definitely find someone if you doll yourself up more often!" Her mother continues. "You are very pretty! Have more confidence!"

"Thanks mom," she replies dryly, not believing it for a moment. Parents always thought the world of their children, which was why they were often disappointed. Just look at Sun Jingwei and his father.

"But there's no rush. Brother is already married - you should ask him for grandchildren instead!" Xue Ning exclaims.

"Exactly! You said it yourself, your brother is already married despite being only 3 years older than you. How can I not worry about my favourite daughter, when I've not seen the head or hair of any future boyfriend?"

"I'm your only daughter," Xue Ning points out, choosing to ignore the rest of her words.

"That's exactly why I worry," her mother exclaims hotly. "I finally agreed to let you stay in Shanghai because I hoped you would build a career and find someone you like there. Shanghai has a lot more men after all!"

"Let me stay?" Xue Ning squawks in disagreement. "You didn't 'let' me stay, I left for Shanghai by myself!"

"And you think I can't book a plane ticket and haul you back just as easily?" Her mother replies. "Don't be ridiculous!"

Xue Ning sulked, knowing that her mother wasn't joking. Which was why she never had to find out about Xue Ning's new job, or she'll probably be kept under house arrest until she reached 50 years old.

"From now on, don't spend your time in unsavoury places, focus on getting a good job and finding a good man to marry, okay?"

"I'll do my best Mom," she replies, with no intention of doing so. Thankfully, her mother seemed to be nearing the end of her talk.

"You'd better! You're only young once, don't waste your youth like this." Her mom concludes passionately. "Make sure to find someone by the time Chinese New Year rolls around next year, or I'll start introducing my friends' sons to you. Come to think of it, are you sure you wouldn't want to meet -"

"Hello? Mom? I can't hear you… the connection is weak… I think it's time... Bye Mom!" Xue Ning knows it's a cowardly way to end a conversation, but this wasn't the first time her mother suggested matchmaking her. She heaves a sigh, hopefully when she becomes an actual bodyguard, her mother would eventually come around to accept her new job and stop the matchmaking attempts.

Ha. And maybe pigs can fly. Fat hope.

Her phone rings again, she immediately picks it up, expecting it to be her mother calling her to continue her matchmaking spiel.

"Mom, I don't want to meet your friends' sons!" She exclaims irritably.

"Good, because I'm not giving you time to go on dates," was the amused reply. Xue Ning startles and checks the caller ID.

It wasn't her mom. She flushed in embarrassment, and is horribly glad he can't see her in person.

"Yes, I realised," she says, pretending to be unaffected. "Are you calling me to tell me about the tigers?"

"Not exactly," Jingwei replies loftily. "But you'll be glad to know that despite my best efforts to sabotage you out of a job, you're now my unofficial bodyguard."

"Really? That's great!" Xue Ning nearly leaps off the bed in excitement, before she registers the rest of his words. "You tried to do what?"

"As my unofficial bodyguard, you are not allowed to harm my person, it's in your contract," he adds hurriedly, probably sensing the less-than-friendly thoughts she had over the phone. "I'll ask your doctor when you can be discharged and then we'll meet to sign the agreement if you're okay with the terms."

"Fine," she settles back into the bed. "I think I can be discharged by tomorrow."

"Right. I'm still asking the doctor," he retorts. Xue Ning can hear the shuffling of papers on his end.

"Trust me, once you start work, you're gonna wish you didn't."

With this ominous parting line, Sun Jingwei hangs up.