Madam, Please Behave-Chapter 16: Stay for Dinner

After entering the house, Zhao Xuanwen’s eyes scanned her surroundings.

The interior showed signs of age. In the corners of the ceiling, faint patches of mold could be seen, and the overall atmosphere of the home felt a bit damp. However, the coolness offered a small reprieve from the sweltering summer heat.

But Zhao Xuanwen paid no mind to these details.

She trotted over to the sofa, tossed her small backpack onto it, opened her notebook, and spread it out on the table.

Her movements were smooth and practiced, so much so that Liu Zhiyue couldn’t help but wonder if this was really her first time in his house.

Why does she seem so at home?

“What are you standing there for?”

Turning her head to look at him, Zhao Xuanwen’s face showed a hint of dissatisfaction. Her cheeks puffed out in mock anger as she patted the spot next to her on the sofa.

“Come on, sit down already.”

“Anyone watching would think this is your house…”

After a moment of hesitation, Liu Zhiyue gave in and sat down.

Seeing him comply, a flash of triumph crossed Zhao Xuanwen’s face, but it quickly disappeared.

Hunching over, she pushed the notebook across the small coffee table toward Liu Zhiyue, pointing proudly to the page filled with her handwriting.

“Well? Pretty impressive, right?”

Glancing at the densely packed notes, Liu Zhiyue could easily detect the self-congratulatory tone in her voice.

He focused on the notebook for a moment, but his expression began to darken as he read further.

Looking up at Zhao Xuanwen, he saw her face full of confidence.

“What’s this section about?” he asked, pointing to a specific part of the notes.

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“It’s what the teacher said in class!”

Liu Zhiyue felt a headache coming on.

“That was a joke the teacher told to lighten the mood. Did you just copy it down verbatim?”

“Well, it’s still part of the lesson!” Zhao Xuanwen retorted, her tone unapologetic.

Liu Zhiyue smacked his forehead in exasperation.

He’d always known Zhao Xuanwen was a bit of an airhead, but he hadn’t realized she could be this outrageous.

If you only looked at her outward appearance, it was easy to be fooled.

She gave off the impression of an exemplary student—diligent, free of bad habits, and always appearing attentive in class. Sometimes, she would even nod along as if understanding everything the teacher said.

In reality, she was near the bottom of the class rankings.

This was why, from the moment she had shown up with a notebook of “helpful” notes, Liu Zhiyue had felt a mix of amusement and resignation.

Sighing, he turned to her.

“Did you bring today’s test paper? The math one.”

“Yep, I did.”

The most recent mock exam paper had been handed back earlier today, but Liu Zhiyue, being suspended for a week, hadn’t received his copy.

Zhao Xuanwen rummaged through her backpack for a while before finally pulling out a crumpled test paper.

She unfolded it and placed it on the table.

The glaring score of 32 stood out, stark against the page.

“This time, I got lucky! I only got four out of ten multiple-choice questions wrong!” she said cheerfully.

Ignoring her proud declaration, Liu Zhiyue picked up the paper and flipped it over.

The back of the test paper was also filled with answers, but none of them seemed remotely correct.

One question involved a triangle, where two side lengths were given, and the task was to prove it was an isosceles triangle.

Zhao Xuanwen’s written response read:

"Proof: I used a ruler to measure the sides, and their lengths don’t match. Therefore, it’s not an isosceles triangle."

“Are you an idiot?”

Feeling like his intelligence had been insulted, Liu Zhiyue raised his voice slightly.

“You’re the idiot! I measured it with a ruler. The lengths don’t match, so the question must be wrong. I’ll go talk to the teacher tomorrow and make him admit his mistake!”

She remained adamant about her reasoning.

Having a strong opinion and working hard to defend it was commendable, but blind persistence was not. To Liu Zhiyue, she was like a duck—stubborn and unyielding.

He grabbed her bag, pulled out her pencil case, and took out a pen. Writing beside her incorrect answer, Liu Zhiyue began solving the problem.

“Watch closely and learn how this question is actually done!”

When Liu Changqing got off work, he bought a chicken.

It had been a while since he’d made a special meal for the kids. Plus, with his novel contract successfully signed and sent, he wanted to celebrate a little.

Instead of heading straight home, Liu Changqing stopped by the nearby market, carefully selecting ingredients for dinner. Only then did he carry the large bag of groceries home.

When he opened the door, he was greeted by the sight of a pair of small women’s leather shoes by the entrance.

A bit surprised, Liu Changqing changed his shoes and entered the living room.

There, he saw a girl sitting on the sofa with a pouty expression, staring at a book, while Liu Zhiyue was animatedly pointing at a test paper and raising his voice.

The noise from the door drew their attention, and both of them looked up.

The girl reacted quickly, standing up and greeting him.

“Hello, Uncle! I’m Liu Zhiyue’s classmate, Zhao Xuanwen.”

“Uh… oh, hello,” Liu Changqing replied, slightly confused.

After a moment, he glanced at the girl again.

She was quite pretty.

Then he looked at Liu Zhiyue, whose face seemed a bit tense.

It all clicked for Liu Changqing.

Suddenly, he smiled.

“Are you two studying? Don’t mind me. Keep going.”

Lifting the bag in his hand, he added, “Stay for dinner before heading home. Let Zhiyue walk you back afterward.”

“Dad!”

Liu Zhiyue called out in protest, but before he could finish, Zhao Xuanwen responded cheerfully with a big grin.

“Sure, I’d love to!”

“…”

Liu Zhiyue stared at her in disbelief.

I was just being polite. Did you really take it seriously?

“Alright then, you two keep studying. I’ll get dinner ready. You’ll get to taste my cooking tonight.”

“That’s so kind of you, Uncle! Thank you!”

Her smile seemed ready to spill over as Liu Changqing nodded and headed into the kitchen with his bag.

The more he looked at the girl, the more he liked her.

Once Liu Changqing disappeared into the kitchen, Liu Zhiyue turned to Zhao Xuanwen and tugged at her sleeve.

She looked at him, puzzled, as he leaned in and whispered, lowering his voice as if afraid of being overheard.

“What are you doing?”

“Huh? What did I do?”

Equally confused, Zhao Xuanwen tilted her head and looked at him.

Rubbing her stomach, she added, “I’m hungry, you know.”

“…”

Oblivious to Liu Zhiyue’s expression, she suddenly seemed to remember something and grabbed his arm excitedly.

“Uncle was carrying chicken, wasn’t he? I love chicken! I wonder if he’ll make it braised or something else. If it’s spicy, that’d be amazing!”

Liu Zhiyue’s face twitched, and he deadpanned: “Raw.”

“Raw?!”

Zhao Xuanwen’s eyes widened in shock.

Lowering her head, she seemed lost in thought for a moment before carefully raising her head to look at him.

“Raw… would it taste better that way?”

Slapping his forehead, Liu Zhiyue let out a deep sigh.

He concluded that this girl was beyond saving.