So, there's actually an unsaid latter half to that sentence, which is that she believes if it were still Lin Xiaolu from half a month ago, she probably couldn't have done what she did just now.
"Ah, you're talking about this."
Having understood, Lin Xiaolu then stuffed the porridge she was holding into her mouth, her gaze lifting as she evidently pondered how to express herself. It wasn't long before she spoke again, "Do you find it embarrassing to act coquettishly towards your mom?"
Qiu Yun's train of thought was interrupted by the sudden counter-question, and after a moment, she answered hesitantly, "I don't know?"
"Don't know? Ah, oh, sorry."
Lin Xiaolu quickly understood her response and looked at Qiu Yun with a bit less rejection and a bit more understanding. She placed the spoon back in the bowl and raised her finger, "Then you can make an assumption, assuming you are still with your mother, what do you feel?"
She didn't respond to Lin Xiaolu's "assumption" with any further memories, and it was unclear whether she was pondering the answer or was immersed in her own memories.
As she didn't react, Bai Jingxuan on the other hand had already gobbled down the egg in her hand in no time, holding a bowl and scurrying into the kitchen with puffed cheeks.
"Five Thunders Breaking Gate!"
Before running into the kitchen, the other two also heard her muffled speech.
Now, there were only the two of them left at the dining table.
Qiu Yun, engrossed in her own thoughts, paid no mind to Bai Jingxuan's actions. She just kept searching her memories for remnants of her mother, trying to piece together an image that had grown somewhat distorted, and then, she came up with an answer that she was still not quite sure about.
She opened her mouth again, wanting to answer with Lin Xiaolu for a discussion, but saw Lin Xiaolu already boldly lifting the bowl in front of her.
Then, under Qiu Yun's astonished gaze, she pressed her mouth against the rim of the bowl.
Heavens have mercy, in order to ensure that all the late risers also got hot porridge, Emerald Sparrow had kept the porridge in the pressure cooker on the stove, reheating it from time to time. In other words, even though Lin Xiaolu was a bit late, the porridge in her bowl was still hot enough to scald.
However, now, in front of Qiu Yun, Lin Xiaolu who was sipping the porridge cautiously just a minute ago, directly went all in.
Then, under her watch, her neck pulsing as she guzzled down the porridge as if it were cold water.
Qiu Yun didn't know the answer, but Lin Xiaolu didn't give her much time to think it over, stuffing an egg from the table into the pocket of her pajamas, then hurriedly rushing into the kitchen with the bowl.
The speed of her actions, the decisiveness of her decision, and the absurdity of her motive left Qiu Yun utterly dumbfounded.
So much so that when Emerald Sparrow's irritated voice came, saying, "It's just two bowls, you two are going to crush each other!", it failed to register in her ears.
And as for why the situation had escalated to this state, if one truly were to trace it back, it actually goes back to a few days ago.
That is to say, it concerns the answer Emerald Sparrow gave to Lin Xiaolu's question of whether she could treat her as a mother.
— "I don't see you as Ying, and I can't possibly be Ying, if you really want to find her shadow in me, the final result might only be disappointment."
She didn't know the mood in which Lin Xiaolu had raised such a request, although for her, no matter what identity she assumed, her daughter depending more on her wasn't really a problem.
But still, she honestly expressed her truest thoughts.
Facing Lin Xiaolu, the identity of Emerald Sparrow was ultimately just a disguise; her real identity was Lin Yun. And in Lin Yun's eyes, she could clearly see the household details back when An Ya was still around.
She knew how much An Ya doted on her daughter and how the daughter deeply clung to An Ya. She was very clear that no one could replace An Ya's place in Lin Xiaolu's heart.
Even if Lin Xiaolu showed reliance and even affection to the identity of Emerald Sparrow at the moment, and even though Lin Xiaolu herself felt that this was genuine, Emerald Sparrow was still concerned that she couldn't play the role of the "mother" that her daughter wanted.
Moreover, she clearly understood that the identity of Emerald Sparrow couldn't last forever.
One day in the future, when she revealed everything and disclosed the fact that "Emerald Sparrow is Lin Yun", all her efforts as Emerald Sparrow would inevitably be re-examined.
Emerald Sparrow believed that so far, aside from lying about her identity, most of her actions were blameless, so there weren't too many issues.
But this time, if she really went along with Lin Xiaolu's wish, wasn't she once again deceiving her daughter's feelings based on a false identity?
And facing Emerald Sparrow's honesty, Lin Xiaolu also responded with utter sincerity, "I still miss my mom, I am very clear that you aren't her."
"It might sound weird saying this out loud, but I have a strange feeling. Although you and mom are nothing alike, when I am with you, I always feel a mood similar to when I was with mom."
"Although not the same person, being together brings the same feeling, no matter how much I think about it, there's only one answer."