Suddenly Became a Boy – What Should I Do? - Chapter 74.1

“Sweetheart, did you miss me? I’m back!”

Cheng Shiyin’s mother hung her puffy down coat on the door with a sigh. “The Arctic is no place for humans. It’s way too cold there—our warm little city feels like paradise in comparison.” She slipped into her house slippers, pulled a large polar bear plushie from her oversized backpack, and added, “This is from your dad. He’s still stuck playing with the real polar bears for a while, so he got you this as a token of apology. Looks like he won’t be able to make it back this year either.”

She stood there, arms outstretched, waiting for a response. One minute. Two minutes. Three minutes. Silence.

She paused her unpacking, tossed her backpack aside, and frowned, uncertainty flickering across her face. “Hmm? Where’s my darling girl?”

Sighing, she grabbed a cup of water from the dispenser, already resigning herself to the fact that she’d have to repeat everything she just said.

Fortunately, before panic could set in, she remembered Cheng Shiyin mentioning her internship. With that, she swapped out her cold-weather gear for something more comfortable and set off for the experimental elementary school.

The school was well-known in the area, so getting directions was easy. Entering the campus, however, was a different story. It wasn’t an issue of registration or strict security guards—it was the sheer number of people. Even though it was Friday after school hours, the grounds were as crowded as a rush-hour subway.

Navigating through the chaos wasn’t easy, but thankfully, the children’s small size made it easier to move through the crowd. All she had to do was look for someone sitting near the podium or one of the two taller figures standing in the middle of the field.

After weaving through a sea of excited children—dodging a few accidental stomps along the way—she finally spotted her daughter.

The moment Cheng Shiyin saw her mother, her eyes lit up. Even after years apart, her mom hadn’t changed one bit—still elegant, beautiful, and mischievous. Without waiting for her mom to wave, she rushed forward, throwing herself into a tight hug. “Mom! When did you get back? I missed you so much!”

“Is Feng Gong still performing at the Spring Festival Gala?” her mom teased. “How many years has it been now?”

Knowing her mother’s penchant for humor, Cheng Shiyin didn’t bother answering—even though Feng Gong had, in fact, missed the Gala this year. Instead, she clung to her mom like a koala, soaking in the warmth of the embrace she hadn’t felt in years.

In her excitement, she completely forgot about Lin Xin standing awkwardly nearby.

Lin Xin stood frozen, his muscles locked in tension, afraid to make even the slightest movement. A bead of nervous sweat rolled down his forehead as he stole glances at his future mother-in-law, marveling at how Cheng Shiyin’s beauty would surely remain undiminished in twenty years. Desperate for an introduction, he blinked rapidly at Cheng Shiyin, but she was too caught up in the moment to notice.

His eyelid twitched from the strain before Cheng Shiyin’s mother finally turned her attention to him.

Prying her daughter off, she asked, “Aren’t you going to introduce him?”

But before Cheng Shiyin could respond, her mother had already pieced it together. After all, the bright yellow “Boyfriend Award” medal hanging around his neck made it painfully obvious.

“Ah!” Cheng Shiyin’s mother exclaimed as the realization clicked. She recalled her daughter mentioning a boyfriend—his name even came to her after a moment’s thought. Skipping formalities, she turned to Lin Xin and said, “Young man, why don’t you come upstairs for a bit?”

Before he could process what was happening, Lin Xin was already sitting on a familiar couch, wearing his designated house slippers, tea in hand—the very mug set he and Cheng Shiyin had bought together.

He sat quietly as mother and daughter chatted away, years of separation giving them plenty to talk about.

Huddled in the corner of the sofa, Lin Xin tried to shrink into the cushions, willing himself to be unnoticed. Though Cheng Shiyin’s mother seemed to ignore him during her conversation, she kept a keen eye on him from the corner of her vision.

She didn’t need to look hard to see the countless signs of his presence in the apartment. From the way he instinctively found his slippers to how effortlessly his phone connected to the Wi-Fi, the evidence was everywhere.