Tang Li returned to her room, knowing without a doubt that she had caused trouble.
She took off her shirt and put on her own clothes, then packed her backpack in a hurry.
Now that Xiao Minglan had arrived, it wasn’t appropriate for her to stay here any longer.
As Tang Li descended the stairs, she happened to run into Aunt Min coming out of the living room. Seeing Tang Li, Aunt Min pursed her lips and smiled, "Came down?"
"Right," Tang Li forced a smile.
"Then come to the living room. The old lady is in there."
"...I’m in a rush to get back to school."
Aunt Min glanced at the wall clock: "It’s already 10:45, you still have to attend classes?"
Seeing that Tang Li was looking for an excuse to escape, Aunt Min chuckled, "No need to be nervous, the old lady just wants to have a chat with you, nothing more. Lunch is being prepared in the kitchen, it won’t be too late if you leave after eating."
Having reached this point, Tang Li couldn’t persist in her intention to leave.
In the living room, Xiao Minglan was placing several freshly cut carnations into a glass vase.
Seeing Tang Li come in with her backpack, she put down her scissors and gestured for Tang Li to sit, as if the scene in the cloakroom earlier had never happened.
As soon as Tang Li sat down, Xiao Minglan asked, "Haven’t been shooting any films recently?"
"I’m heading to Lishan Film and Television City in a few days," Tang Li replied truthfully. "I’ve taken on a period drama, which will probably take about two months to shoot."
Xiao Minglan calculated, "By then it’ll be summer."
As she spoke, her gaze fell upon Tang Li, dressed again in her sweatshirt and jeans, looking like a female high school student.
...In fact, 19 years old isn’t much different from a high schooler.
Xiao Minglan couldn’t believe it if she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes; her son, who’s always been so steady, getting involved with a little girl.
To those unaware, it would seem like her son had lured an underage girl.
With Song Baiyan just settling into his position, Xiao Minglan was also afraid her son might be involved in a scandal, and looking at how Tang Li sat quietly, she thought for a moment and then took the initiative to ask, "Are you feeling unwell anywhere?"
"..." Tang Li looked up, meeting Xiao Minglan’s concerned gaze, and always felt that Xiao Minglan had misunderstood something.
She didn’t want this misunderstanding to grow bigger, so after a few seconds of hesitation, she candidly confessed, "Earlier, it was just me messing around in Mr. Song’s room. I wanted to try on his shirt, and then I saw a nice tie in the cloakroom and picked it up to play with.
As you know, we young people just act on whims.
It was impolite of me to intrude into Mr. Song’s bedroom, and I hope you won’t hold it against me. I’ll apologize to Mr. Song later, and I promise not to do it again."
Xiao Minglan nodded, her gaze on Tang Li turning even more gentle, "Did you stay the night here?"
Seeing Tang Li didn’t deny it, Xiao Minglan smiled faintly, "Being over thirty and without a partner all these years, if he has treated you poorly, as his mother, allow me to apologize first. He’s under a lot of work pressure, and inevitably, he’s lacking in emotional outlet. Please be more understanding."
"I won’t," Tang Li replied. "Mr. Song is very nice."
Xiao Minglan added, "Just be yourself in front of Bai Yan, and the same here with me, no need to be reserved."
Tang Li nodded in agreement, but didn’t dare to actually be casual.
After a while, Xiao Minglan suddenly asked, "You haven’t taken any medicine yet, have you?"
"You’re still young, you should take less of that kind of medicine; it’s ultimately not good for your health." Saying this, Xiao Minglan paused for a few seconds: "Men sometimes lack thoroughness when they do things. I’ll remind Bai Yan later to take precautions."