The Good Blackmailer

Sun Mei was speechless for a few moments. Mr. Wu looked at her expectantly, waiting for her to react to his words.

"Earth to Sun Mei?" he said tentatively after a couple of minutes.

Sun Mei came back to her senses and glared at Mr. Wu. "That is not the loophole you were supposed to find!" she told him loudly. "You were supposed to find a way for me to pay less fees or get a discount or something. I never asked you to find an excuse to pay the fees yourself. That is unacceptable!" she said in exasperation.

Mr. Wu, who stood rooted to the spot, felt compelled to fight back and win this argument. "Why shouldn't I pay them?" he asked rhetorically before answering his own question. "I am a CEO who owns a mansion and drives a car that costs more than the average Chinese citizen's annual salary. I only have one child, when I could afford to raise four. I saved a lot of money by leaving Jenny, who liked expensive clothes more than she liked me. I have no other financial responsibilities. What should I do with the rest of my money?"

"I don't know!" Sun Mei exclaimed. "Donate it to charity!"

Mr. Wu was about to speak before she interrupted him. "Do not call me a charity case!" She warned him.

"I was not going to say that," he said seriously. He took a deep breath before saying, "Okay, how about we make a deal?"

"What kind of deal?" Sun Mei asked suspiciously.

"If you let me pay for your tuition, I will also donate the same amount to a charity of your choice."

"Why not just give the charity all the money?"

"Because this is my money, and these are my terms. This is the deal. Take it or leave it."

Sun Mei glared at him a little. "That is almost blackmail."

"Almost." Mr. Wu nodded. "But it's the good kind of blackmail. You'll get something, the charity will get something..."

"What will you get?" Sun Mei asked him.

"An educated au pair who puts knowledge before her pride."

"Who would want that?"

"I can't speak for other people, but it definitely is on my wishlist," Mr. Wu said with a smile.

"You're unbelievable," Sun Mei said before sighing. "Thank you," she added quietly.

"Nobody thanks a blackmailer," said Mr. Wu. "You might be encouraging me by showing gratitude."

"Well, you said it yourself. You are the good kind of blackmailer."

Mr. Wu lowered his voice dramatically, as though he was about to share a secret, and said, "I made that up."

"You don't say!"

Sun Mei and Mr. Wu spent the rest of the afternoon playfully teasing each other like old schoolmates. Although it was hard to admit, Sun Mei did not feel as bad about taking the money by the end of the day.

After all, Mr. Wu did kind of owe her.

He kept stealing her heart little by little every day.