A perfect life begins with changing the timeline.

Chapter 265 Sticky Notes

He abruptly hung up the phone, leaving only silence in the room and the humming of the kitchen exhaust fan.

No one spoke.

Li Muxin said, "You've really put me in a terrible situation..."

Just then, Fan Tao took a step:

"Xiao Li, come help me."

Li Mu was taken aback, then immediately stood up:

"Okay... Auntie, I'll go help Uncle now."

"Go."

Zhang Chuanmei's gaze was somewhat vacant at this moment.

To be honest, it's only now that she's belatedly realizing what's happening and can't accept it.

Although she knew her daughter would eventually fall in love and get married. Besides, Xiao Li was quite a likable boy; he wasn't the kind of boy who made people uncomfortable.

Whether I'm satisfied or not is another matter, but at least I don't dislike it.

But then, when she heard her daughter's sweet, cloying words on the phone... as a mother, she was utterly shocked.

My daughter...how did she suddenly become like this?

But she was shocked; Fan Tao, on the other hand, became clear-headed.

Men are generally more rational in these kinds of situations. Although he felt uncomfortable, the die was cast. He wasn't thinking about "who my daughter learned from," but rather whether this boy could take good care of his daughter.

Didn't you say you can cook?

Come.\

Show off your skills.

Whether it's true or false, we'll see in the end.

So Li Mu followed him into the kitchen. He didn't say what he was making, but Fan Tao pointed to the bowl of condiments with only a few slices of ginger left:

"Could you chop some ingredients for me? Do you know how to prepare oysters?"

"meeting."\

"Okay, you handle that bag of oysters, remember to wear gloves."

"OK."\

Li Mu obediently picked up the kitchen knife.

Fan Tao, who was cleaning crabs, soon heard a "clattering" sound. He turned around and saw Li Mu slicing ginger into thin, almost translucent strands.

Judging from the child's skillful knife work alone, he could roughly guess that the kid could indeed cook.

How many people are in your family?

"I have two older sisters; I'm the youngest."

"Oh~ they're all married?"

"Yes. My older sister's child is already in fifth grade."

"Which part of Henan Province is your hometown?"

"A county town under the jurisdiction of Kaifeng."

"Kaifeng...I've been there before."

In fact, Li Mu had heard this sentence countless times since he was a child... his ears were practically calloused from hearing it.

But at this moment, they were genuinely grateful for Kaifeng's status as a tourist destination, which allowed them to chat and avoid running out of things to talk about:

"Where did Uncle go when he went to Kaifeng?"

"Bao Gong Temple... I even ate Bao Gong beans from your area."

"Those black peanuts?"

"Yes, it's quite delicious..."

They chatted back and forth, and soon a plate of ingredients was chopped. Fan Tao started cooking, while Li Mu, following his instructions, opened the oysters.

Fan Tao also paid special attention, because while people from inland areas might know how to eat seafood, they might not know how to prepare it properly.

Especially with live oysters, opening the shells is a major challenge.

He was worried that the child might hurt his hand while messing around.

That would be bad.

He was only judging the child from the perspective of his daughter's boyfriend, but he certainly didn't want to hurt Li Mu.

But after watching the child skillfully pry the shell opener into the oyster, and with a clever twist, remove the oyster with the meat still intact, the child stopped worrying.

This technique is no less skillful than that of people from coastal areas.

At some point, Zhang Chuanmei also came over, holding Fan Chengcheng who was sucking on a pacifier, and just watched Li Mu work.

"Little Li is really quick and efficient."

"Uh... haha, it's alright."

"Bingbing can't do anything, so you usually take care of her, right?"

"..."\

Li Muxin said, "Auntie, please stop making things worse..."

But they still answer every question:

"They take care of each other, and she... is doing quite well."

"So you were here during her May Day holiday, right? You two were together? What do you usually do?"

Fan Tao, who was beating the eggs, paused.

Li Mu could only bite the bullet and answer:

"I...I come to see her in the morning, we exercise together, play tennis, come back for lunch, and in the afternoon we either study or play chess."

"Did you buy those books for her in the bedroom?"

"……right."\

"Can she even concentrate?"

Zhang Chuanmei looked on in astonishment.

She knew her own daughter's character very well.

You can actually concentrate on reading?

"Yes, Auntie. She reads quite quickly; she can usually finish a book she likes in seven or eight days."

"Just kidding~"

Zhang Chuanmei exclaimed in surprise, then asked:

"Did you teach him how to play chess too?"

"Uh... sort of. I was the one who helped her with her early education."

"Go? You don't mean Gomoku (Five in a Row), do you?"

"No way, it's just Go..."

"Oh~~~"

At this moment, Fan Chengcheng, who was in her arms, shifted uncomfortably, spat out the pacifier, and began rubbing her eyes.

Seeing this, Zhang Chuanmei

I knew it was time for my son to go to bed.

Children need a lot of sleep; they need to sleep twice a day.

So she said:

"I'm taking Chengcheng to bed. You two keep it down."

"Okay, Auntie."

Zhang Chuanmei led Fan Chengcheng directly to the guest room, but after thinking for a moment, she went out and went to the master bedroom. At her son's urging, she randomly picked out a book.

The book is titled *Political Order in Changing Societies*.

This is the oldest-looking book among them.

It's obvious that someone frequently browses through it.

Back in the guest room, she pulled her youngest son into her arms and let him rummage around as he pleased, then opened the book to herself.

After reading the preface, she was somewhat puzzled...

Books about politics?

Why is my daughter reading this kind of book?

What? Is she going to take the civil service exam?

As she pondered this, she turned to the main text.

The first paragraph states: "The most important political difference between countries lies not in the form of their governments, but in the effectiveness of their governments..."

She didn't pay much attention to the content, but noticed a line of smaller text above the words "分野" (dividing field):

"The scope of division, the boundary between different things."

She recognized the writing; it was indeed her daughter's handwriting.

A mother obviously won't admit her mistake.

Oh? You've actually read it?

She became interested, skipped the first page, and started turning the pages.

She didn't read the book's contents, but she discovered it was filled with her daughter's handwriting.

Then, when I turned to the middle of the book, a sticky note fell out.

She picked it up and saw a line of her daughter's handwritten note:

"The root of the chaos lies in the deterioration of politics; if politicians lack morality and professionalism, politics will also become substandard."

This is the first paragraph.

But below, there is a line of completely different font:\

"A widely accepted answer is that the root cause of the severe deterioration of the global political landscape after the Cold War lies in the West, particularly in the systemic decline of Western politics, represented by the United States. The direct cause is the increasing deterioration of Western politics, as represented by the United States. Politics itself doesn't become inferior; rather, they have turned politics into a low-quality commodity, polluting the entire macro-level market."

This passage was clearly not written by the daughter.

Was that written by that kid, Xiao Li?

Oh?

The two of them are having quite a romantic time, sending messages by carrier pigeon? Or exchanging love letters?

Actually, she's lost her mind.

This was Li Mu's correction after he accidentally saw the note she wrote and felt that her definition of "inferior quality" was incorrect.

However, his girlfriend had already gone to film a movie at that time, and he added the information himself while reading the book.

But it was this very coincidence that gave Zhang Chuanmei a...strange sense of reassurance.

She knew all too well what her daughter was like before.

read?\

It does not exist.

Perhaps she is indeed reading, but mostly books related to acting. These miscellaneous books… especially political books that even she struggles to understand, it would be a miracle if my daughter could even get into them.

But ironically, every detail in this book seemed to be conveying one thing to Zhang Chuanmei…

That is, my daughter is truly watching, reading, and trying.

And all these changes... based on my understanding of my daughter, it's practically impossible for her to change on her own.

So, the root of the problem lies with that child, Xiao Li?

This kid...is pretty good.

A sense of peace welled up inside her for no apparent reason.

And just then... she suddenly heard a voice coming from outside the bedroom:

"Baby, I'm back... Ah!!!!"

"..."\

Her lips twitched, and she glanced at her youngest son who had suddenly sat up…

have to.\

That annoying guy is back.

"Shall we go see your sister?"

Fan Chengcheng beamed with joy.

……\

"ah!!"\

When I saw my boyfriend sitting in the kitchen digging for oysters, and my dad standing by the stove with a spatula in his hand...

Just moments before, Fan Bingbing had been filled with tenderness, contemplating whether to eat first or have her boyfriend first, when she was suddenly taken aback.

Then, an unavoidable urge made her scream.

What...what's my dad doing here?!

Oh no, oh no, oh no, why is he here!

Why did he come?!

Why?!

Just then, she saw a shadow emerge from the bedroom.

Upon closer inspection...

"Ah!! Mom!?"

"Sister! Sister! Hug me, hug me!"

The baby in her mother's arms saw her older sister and immediately opened her arms, wanting to be held.

But Fan Bingbing remained unmoved, only filled with panic.

Why are my parents here?