Chapter 11 Adopted Daughter Isn't this my room? Am I sleeping in my own bed? Wearing my strawberry pajamas? I got drunk last night and don't remember anything, how did I get home? And who's on my bed...?! Suddenly, a spark of clarity struck me, and I jumped up with a start, grabbing the pillow to smash it down. In the dim light, I took a closer look, and it was actually Ruo Xi, her posture extremely ungraceful, sleeping like a dead pig, hugging a ball of air-conditioning blanket, drooling from her mouth, with an unclear white line on the left side of her lip to her chin.

  "Ah~" The tense nerves relaxed, taking a deep breath, the mouth still had a faint smell of alcohol. I quickly tidied up my clothes and rushed to the bathroom. The person in the mirror had a huge black eye circle, puffy eyelids, a greasy face, shiny and oily.

  After washing up, I patted my face in front of the mirror and slightly curled up the corners of my mouth. Except for a slightly bigger face and some small pimples on my forehead, everything else looked normal.

  The TV was on in the living room, Dad leaned back on the sofa, looking distracted, holding the remote control and constantly switching channels. Mom was preparing dinner in the kitchen, stir-frying vegetables with a loud clanging sound, the wok scraping against the stove making a sharp noise. A strong pungent smell wafted through the air, I couldn't help but thump my chest and cough several times.

  "Dad..." I stuck to his side and sat down, pouting and pulling on his arm, "I'm sorry for coming home late last night, don't be mad! And mom shouldn't be mad either!" The last sentence was shouted into the kitchen in a raised tone, mixed with the sound of pots and pans clanging, but there was no response.

  Although I don't remember how I got home, admitting one's mistake is always necessary.

  Dad couldn't take my antics anymore, finally putting down the remote control and taking my hand from his arm, placing it in his large palm. Then he gently patted it, letting out a long sigh through his nose, looking at me with complex eyes.

  "Rice Rice, what's your relationship with that boy who sent you back last night?"

  I suddenly opened my eyes wide, sat up straight with a gasp, and my hand slightly curled up in his palm.

  "Dad, I don't know..." Lowering her voice, she had already guessed roughly and didn't dare to look into his eyes.

  Mother walked out with a bowl of freshly stir-fried vegetables, "clunk" and placed it on the dinner table, the sound of slippers shuffling footsteps gradually approached.

  "Didn't I tell you not to provoke Ji Dong again? Why didn't you listen?" Mom's tone was very severe, her voice raised by an octave, looking down at me condescendingly. "Your class teacher has already informed us about this, and we just believed in you blindly. Look what happened now!"

  "Mom, I'm sorry, I got drunk last night and really don't remember anything."

  "You never used to drink before! You got so drunk that you had to be carried back by a boy, and you even threw up all over him. How embarrassing if this gets out?"

  My mother stood with her hands on her hips, her eyebrows almost furrowed together. I let go of my father's hand, stood up, walked to her side, stretched out my hands and smoothed her eyebrows, calmly smiling: "Mom, frowning doesn't suit you, don't be angry! I'm not a kid anymore, I know what's right and wrong, this kind of thing won't happen again! I promise! Please rest assured!"

  My mom was stunned after I finished speaking, and I stuck my tongue out at her again. When she came back to her senses, her eyes softened, the corners of her mouth curved up slightly, and she finally patted my face gently, with a hint of moisture in her eyes. Her voice returned to its usual gentleness: "My baby has grown up... Mom didn't mean to scold you, I was just worried about you... Seeing how you are now, Mom won't say much else. However, you absolutely cannot let it affect your studies..."

  "Good job! Mom's outburst can be calmed down! Dad will be proud of you!" Dad, who was about to return to the kitchen to continue his busy work, was met with a white eye from Mom, and immediately lowered his voice to my ear: "Is it love that has made our baby mature? Dad supports your free love! Tell Dad about it! Dad has experience!"

  It's a bit unbearable to look up and see the expectation in Dad's eyes, even if it's my dad, it's not good for girls to say such things. And there's nothing to begin with, what can I say? It's best to wait for this wave of trouble to pass, and then pretend that nothing happened.

  "Dad! I just have some things to take care of, it's not as complicated as you think!" I pretended to be wronged and frowned, "There are already rumors circulating at school, so don't add fuel to the fire! As long as you believe me, after a while, everything will be fine!"

  He made a face at me, then hummed a tune and skipped to his room. I pulled open the curtains, opened the window, and the summer breeze blew in with a hint of heat, outside was another brilliant starry sky, that brightest golden star still twinkling its eyes.

  "It's on fire! It's on fire! It's on fire!" He mischievously shouted at Ruoxi, who was lying stiffly in bed. He had always wanted to try it out, but never had the chance. Seeing Ruoxi sleeping soundly, he suddenly felt a strong urge to play a trick and unexpectedly got a reaction.

  Suddenly, she was startled awake, her head jerking up at a 30-degree angle like a reflex, her eyes wide open and bloodshot. She saw my face with a sly smile, then rolled over and fell back asleep.

  "Hey! Sister! It's time to eat! You've slept away a third of the holiday, and you still won't get up!" The students aren't the only ones taking advantage of the Gaokao holiday to slack off, "tea enthusiasts" are also closing their doors for a break. Ruoxi has been eagerly awaiting this holiday, and it definitely won't be spent sleeping it away.

  Under my gaze, she reluctantly stretched out a big lazy waist, rolled over and over, and finally buried her head in the quilt, making a low, intermittent but prolonged roar. Then quickly knelt on the bed, a bitter melon face stared at me for half a day, I just held my chest with both hands, showing an attitude that it's up to you whether to get out of bed or not. She went crazy again, shaking her head, instantly turning into a little lion, and finally got out of bed very reluctantly, holding onto the bed frame.

  Four people at the dinner table.

  "Mmm! Auntie, this dish is too delicious! Absolutely five-star standard!" Ruoxi's mouth was still chewing on the spicy beef with chili peppers, and she praised vaguely.

  "Hehe! Eat more, eat more! Come back often, Auntie will stir-fry the best dishes for you!" Mom had a big smile on her face, so happy that she couldn't close her mouth, warmly welcoming Ruoxi.

  "Why don't you just move in with us? It's so lonely living by yourself, and you can enjoy delicious food every day! My sister and I will also have each other's company!" I said to her very seriously.

  Ruoxi's parents went out to make money at the beginning of this year, and they also took their eldest son to study in a big city, leaving Ruoxi behind. Her family has an extremely severe preference for boys over girls. According to her mother's old-fashioned thinking: "A woman without talent is virtuous", what's the use of reading so many books? She'll get married sooner or later, it's better to find a good husband early on. So Ruoxi started working at that milk tea shop before graduating from junior high school. She said she knew I would definitely be admitted to the best high school, and she went ahead to help me explore the way first.

  She and I are as close as sisters, my parents also treat her like a daughter. We have invited her to live with us many times, but she refused, saying that she didn't want to trouble us. I know she has always been very strong, carrying everything on her own. Since childhood, she hasn't received much attention from her family, yet she remains optimistic and cheerful every day. Logically speaking, this kind of outgoing personality should be quite likable, but strangely, the only one on her list of close friends is me.

  "Me... me..." Ruoxi's eyes darted around the three of us, I had already stretched out my claws to her, and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mom and Dad nodding and smiling in encouragement for Ruoxi to agree. Ruoxi was hesitant, with a hint of excitement and difficulty in her eyes.

  "Ruoxi ah ~ Auntie has always treated you as her own daughter, don't be embarrassed, look at the two of you together and still have someone to take care of each other, right?" Mom said gently.

  "Ruoxi, Uncle is the same. You can move over and treat this place as your own home!" Dad said with a smile.

  "Hey, Dad and Mom! Why not make Ruoxi our adopted daughter? Then we'll be a family of four!" I exclaimed excitedly, slapping my palm, and for the first time discovering that I'm quite clever too.

  "Ruoxi, are you willing?" Mom held Ruoxi's hand on the dinner table, and Dad patted her shoulder while nodding.

  "Really? I...I'm willing...a thousand, ten thousand times willing...Uncle, Auntie and Mimi, thank you!" Ruoxi excitedly stood up, deeply bowing her head. When she lifted it again, her eyes sparkled brightly.

  "When did you little girl become so polite to me? I still have to call you older cousin, it seems like I'm at a disadvantage!" I teased her.

  "Honestly, Mimi, with such great family members like you, I'd rather have you as my sister!" She said it with a straight face, making me feel a bit embarrassed.

  "Alright, alright! Tonight is extraordinary! Welcome our new family member - Ruoxi!" Dad ran back to the table, picked up his chopsticks and tapped them rhythmically on the edge of his bowl.

  "Alright, now you have no choice but to move here!" I was overjoyed too.

  "Let's open a bottle of red wine to celebrate, and have a small drink! You two are still sober from the last time, don't get drunk again!" Mom said, and immediately walked into the kitchen. When she came out, she was holding a bottle of "Great Wall Cabernet Sauvignon" with the cork already removed, as well as four transparent engraved glass cups.

  "Cheers!"

  The four of them laughed and raised their cups, meeting in the middle of the round table, the four cups clinking together, making a crisp and pleasant sound.