Perks of acting like a child

I was thinking about what to talk about when I'll meet Qiu Si, when mom called me out. "Hua, what did the letter say?" She asked.

"Well, it seems like she wants to meet me." I replied.

"Again?" Mom sighed.

Initially, I was confused as to why my mom termed it as again, but then I was reminded of the lie. So, I quickly regained my composure before replying. But before I even got a single word in, mom jumped in yet again.

"Now that I think about it, it's really suspicious. I mean, you just came back after meeting with her, so why did she feel the need to send you a letter? And even if she wanted to because of some random reason, why does she want to meet you now, huh? Don't you feel weird about it as well, Hua?" She asked.

I unconsciously gulped. I had to think of a good lie that was gonna make her believe me. However, nothing really came to my mind at that moment. So, I just told her the first thing that came to my mind.

"Mom! That's what friends do! I mean, we had a lot to talk about when I returned from her house, but I couldn't talk about it since I was worried about what mom would think if I didn't make haste. I guess she missed saying something to me back then and wanted to have another proper chat with me." I tried bullshitting my way through.

However, my mom was too smart for her own good. "You spent an entire week there and yet you felt like the time was not enough? What in the world does that mean?" She asked, astonished by my explanation.

"Mom, it's like that at times… I mean, the entire week felt like a day for me… No kidding!" I spoke.

"Ha, it really is a hard pill to swallow, but I'm gonna believe you for now." Mom sighed.

"Thanks, mom. I knew you wouldn't doubt your precious daughter." I gave out the best smile that I could dish out at that moment.

"Aww! Mom's really happy since Hua got herself a nice friend now!" She couldn't resist my charm and pinched my cheeks. "So, what did you two talk about in that one week?" She asked.

I knew that this question would come by at one point or the other. So I had prepared my answer on my journey back to the sect base.

"Ah, we talked about a lot of things. We talked about Qiu Si's victory in the tournament, about our previous institution, about boys and a lot other things." I spoke.

I even added a giggle in the end for extra effect.

"Boys, huh? Did our little Hua fell in love with someone?" Mom asked with a sly smile on her face.

"Mom! We were talking about boys in general. I don't have any personal preferences—not yet at least." I replied, before thinking of an even better reply. "Humm, but if you're gonna ask about my preference anyway, I'd say that I'd like to marry someone like my dad, who supports mom all the way through." I replied with a little cough in the end.

"Oh man, I feel bad for your dad! He would've jumped up and down had he heard what you said just now." Mom chuckled as she patted my hair.

I guess my words had the desired effect of gaining them brownie points. But it sure felt weird for me to say something like this. I mean, this body is fifteen, right? Which fifteen-year-old talks like that, huh?

[You did!]

Goldy's been having too much fun lately. I mean, I can hear him giggle even now! I swear I'll get back to him one day or the other.

"So, what was this so-called boy talk about then?" Mom asked again.

I guess she's a bit interested since this is the first time she's having such a conversation with her daughter. I understand the sentiment, but I'm still not gonna lie about some imaginary guy that I have a crush on! Instead, I just have the person to throw under the bus.

"Well, the person on focus wasn't actually me. It was Qiu Si." I replied.

"Oh, my! Is she interested in someone?" She asked.

I mean, it's fine being invested in my words, but don't make it so obvious, mom!

"Yea. Remember Zhangsun Shan?" I asked.

"Wait, isn't that the name of the kid from the Taiyi sect who won the male category in the tournament? She's in love with him?" Mom looked amazed as she said it.

"Yup. And I believe that the feeling is mutual." I nodded my head along as I said that.

I mean, I don't know if the wheels have technically turned just yet, but if there's gonna be something constant in this world with the game, it would be the protagonist's romance. So technically, it isn't a thing just yet, but it's a spoiler.

[Ha, I just can't… I simply can't…]

I heard Goldy groan. I wanted to ask him what happened, but mom was with me and I didn't want to miss her words and promise to do something outrageous.

"My, my... Taiyi sect's two bright stars of the future loving each other. Isn't that a wonderful thing?" She asked.

"Of course, it is! And that's exactly why I want you to promise me that you're not gonna tell anyone about this." I spoke.

Well, if she tells this to someone and that deviates the main plot, it would be a terrible event. So, it would be great if we were to keep it to ourselves.

[Plot deviation, huh? That's actually pretty funny!]

At this point, I treated Goldy as if he was nothing because I simply couldn't afford to snap back at him for now. Anyhow, once again I turned my attention back to my mother. I extended my pinky finger towards her.

"Pinky promise?" I asked.

She smiled before entangling her pinky with mine. "Yup. Pinky promise!"

I know for sure that she ain't gonna break her promise now. I guess acting like a child has its perks.

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