Leaves' Mom

Around six o’clock, the parents began arriving one after another. Each student sat next to their own parent, but the seat beside Yezi was still empty at the moment.

The homeroom teacher stood at the podium. She first glanced around at the parents in the classroom, then noticed the empty spot next to Yezi and asked, “Yezi, haven’t your mom and dad arrived yet?”

“No, not yet,” Yezi replied.

“If they’re not coming, you need to let me know, okay?”

“I know, but Mom and Dad will definitely be here.” After Yezi said this, the teacher looked at her a moment but didn’t say anything more.

At that point, Hao Hao, who sat next to Yezi, snickered. “What if your parents are too scared to show up?”

Yezi glanced at him and made a blank-faced expression.

“You laugh like a monkey.”

“You’re the monkey!” Hao Hao shot back, but before he could continue, the parent beside him tapped his head. “Little Hao, stop shouting.”

“Dad, she said her dad is a big boss.”

“Whether he’s a big boss or not, that’s got nothing to do with you.” Hao Hao’s words were cut short as his ear got pinched.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow—”

Meanwhile, Yezi looked at her phone, hesitating whether to call Ye Shuang.

Did Mom and Dad forget?

A few more minutes passed. The homeroom teacher, seeing that almost everyone had arrived, picked up her portable microphone and spoke. “Good evening, dear parents.”

“Sorry we’re late.”

Just then, a voice came from the doorway.

The teacher paused and looked over. A handsome man and an incredibly beautiful young woman stood outside.

She hesitated. “You are…”

“Oh, we’re Yezi’s mom and dad. Parking outside was a bit difficult, so we got delayed.” The speaker was, of course, Ye Shuang. Dressed in a sharp suit, he gave an apologetic smile. Beside him stood Bai Yuyou, whose very appearance immediately drew the attention of nearly every parent in the room.

“Dad, Mom, over here!” Yezi’s eyes lit up as she spotted Ye Shuang and raised her hand.

“Mom… Mom?” The teacher stared blankly at Bai Yuyou’s face. She looked so young—like a college student!

How did a seven- or eight-year-old come from her?

That father was seriously pushing it, wasn’t he?

Ye Shuang led Bai Yuyou to sit beside Yezi. He reached out and gently ruffled her hair. “Sorry, did we keep you waiting? It was probably because of the parent-teacher meeting—no parking spots left.”

“It’s fine.” Yezi just smiled.

“We’ll get you something to eat later to make up for it,” Bai Yuyou said to Yezi.

“Is that really what Mom wants to eat?”

“We’ll eat together.”

By the time the teacher snapped back to reality, she noticed that almost every parent in the room was sneaking glances at Ye Shuang and Bai Yuyou. The mothers were looking at Ye Shuang, the fathers at Bai Yuyou. The pair was like a magnet, drawing all eyes toward them.

Just a moment ago, when she was speaking, quite a few parents had been scrolling on their phones and not really listening.

“Ahem… yes, could everyone please look this way?” The teacher cleared her throat, trying to redirect everyone’s attention. Perhaps because the microphone’s amplification worked well, her voice managed to coax many parents into turning back.

The theme of the meeting was safety. The teacher followed the usual format and went through the slides on the PPT. Down in the audience, Ye Shuang casually crossed his legs and watched with an attentive gaze. In his suit, he gave off the vibe of a CEO rather than someone selling insurance—a look most people in such attire could never pull off.

Bai Yuyou sat quietly, while Yezi occasionally turned her head.

Some of her classmates had already stared over, making exaggerated gestures and mouthing words silently. Though no sound came out, the meaning was clear: “Why are your parents so good-looking?”

“Next up are our most improved students this semester.” The teacher moved to the recognition portion, and a list of names appeared on the screen beside her.

Per regulations, lower-grade students weren’t supposed to be assigned homework or exams. So at the elementary school level, teachers had come up with new ways to present grades and assignments obliquely. The PPT didn’t show any scores—just a few names.

“Oh?” Ye Shuang noticed that Yezi’s name was among the recognized students and smiled. “Looks like Yezi has been doing well lately. What’s this? Most Improved?”

“Yezi’s amazing,” Bai Yuyou said, reaching over to stroke Yezi’s head.

The two of them really looked like a married couple. Ye Shuang took out his phone to snap a picture of the screen, while Bai Yuyou chatted with Yezi.

They just appeared far too young. If Yezi hadn’t called Bai Yuyou “Mom,” she would have been mistaken for an older sister.

“Yezi, if there’s anything you don’t understand in your studies, you can ask your mom or Sister Keke,” Ye Shuang added. He didn’t pressure her about academics.

“I will.”

Time flew, and soon the parent-teacher meeting was wrapping up. There wasn’t much special to discuss—the main point was face-to-face communication with parents. Some parents almost never looked after their kids; sometimes they couldn’t even be reached by phone, didn’t reply to messages, and ignored requests for class fees. So teachers had to make an effort to talk to them, even conducting home visits one by one.

When dealing with those who only had children but didn’t raise them, the teacher would likely have a headache. Students from such families were often very unruly. They had little fear of being reported to their parents, because their parents didn’t care. Teachers couldn’t resort to physical punishment, verbal reprimands went in one ear and out the other, and expulsion wasn’t an option.

“Thank you for your hard work, Teacher.” After the meeting, Ye Shuang approached the homeroom teacher with Bai Yuyou and Yezi.

“Sorry, I’ve been busy with work and haven’t kept in touch much.”

“Oh, it’s fine. Yezi is a very well-behaved and sensible child,” the teacher replied. Seeing Ye Shuang’s smile, she felt a bit flustered and tucked her hair behind her ear.

“By the way… did you ask Yezi about our family situation earlier?” Ye Shuang asked.

“Ah, yes, that’s a school requirement.”

“I understand. Yezi told me earlier. Everything she filled in is true.” Ye Shuang smiled. “Yezi didn’t write anything wrong.”

“Uh…”

The teacher thought back to what Yezi had written on the form and then glanced at the mother, Bai Yuyou...

Maybe… it was possible after all?

“Is Yezi’s mother really a college student?”

“Yes, she is.” Ye Shuang seemed to understand the teacher’s misunderstanding, but he didn’t explain further.