Transmigrating into the Genius Cannon Fodder’s Aunt

Chapter 106 Part 1 – Whoever Loses Doesn’t Need to Restrain Themselves (I)

Xia Mian was so busy calming her furious heartbeat that she didn’t remember when she finally fell asleep. It felt like she had just closed her eyes when sounds from the yard woke her—her aunt was already up.

When she opened her eyes, she found herself tucked in tightly, with a towel draped over her eyes to block the light. Beside her, the two boys were similarly covered, but Ning Shaobai’s spot was already empty.

Climbing down from the roof, the aunt-in-law saw Xia Mian bleary-eyed and chuckled, “You said you’d keep Dr. Ning company, but it was you who fell asleep up there, wasn’t it?”

Xia Mian rubbed her nose and asked, “Where’s Dr. Ning?”

“He came down a bit after midnight. Still sleeping now, keep your voice down—let him get some proper rest.”

“Okay,” Xia Mian replied. “I’ll go pack my things.”

“Alright,” her aunt said. “Later, I’ll have your Brother Chuan bring you the wood ear mushrooms and the rest.”

Ning Shaobai didn’t have many days off. He had stayed two more days in Ming City to visit his grandparents, so he was only stopping here for a day before they set off tomorrow.

Xia Mian spent the entire day behaving herself. It wasn’t just the aftermath of the previous night—she was busy packing, so the two of them had no time alone together.

Word spread that Xia Mian and Xiao Feng were heading back to Yan City, so relatives and friends of the Xia family came by with local specialties and mountain goods to see them off.

Since it would take a while until the two visited their hometown again, people ended up sitting and chatting longer than expected. Visitors came and went all day at her house.

Since Ning Shaobai had driven over, the aunt-in-law packed up everything they could take and loaded it into his car. By evening, they had four full bags of luggage. After tidying up the house one more time, everything was finally done by midnight. Xia Mian, exhausted, collapsed into bed and fell asleep instantly.

At dawn the next day, they were woken up. Xiao Feng was surprisingly energetic. Knowing they were leaving today, he and Qiangqiang were reluctant to part. The two kids had slept together the night before and were now all packed up, holding Ning Shaobai’s hand as they waited for Xia Mian.

Xia Mian saw Ning Shaobai smiling and immediately gave him a glare. He reached out and tugged at her tuft hair.

After eating dumplings made by Hong Juan, the group finally got ready to leave. For some reason, although Ning Shaobai had driven himself there, he had arranged for a driver for the return trip.

Xia Mian was surprised when she saw Xiao Liu. “Brother Xiao Liu, what are you doing here?”

“I called him,” Ning Shaobai paused before continuing. “Didn’t get rested well the past couple of days—my head’s all foggy. Not want to risk driving.”

Xia Mian thought he was referring to the aftermath of their bet. Her cheeks flushing, she didn’t dare to ask further, so she completely missed the sly smile that flickered in Ning Shaobai’s eyes.

The luggage was packed into the trunk. The three of them sat in the back seat. Xiao Feng was supposed to sit in the middle, but he was too busy leaning against the car window, unwilling to part from Qiangqiang.

Goodbyes are always hard. In the end, Xia Hai had to forcibly pull Qiangqiang away, and the car finally started moving.

Xiao Feng slumped into Xia Mian’s arms, a bit down. It was Ning Shaobai who broke the silence, “Your brother Chenchen misses you too. We’ll go swimming when we’re back—there’s a water slide.”

“Water slide?” The boy’s attention shifted.

Xia Mian smiled, “It’s like that mud slide your brother Qiangqiang plays on, but this one’s on water. You can play too.”

Xiao Feng seemed to recall Qiangqiang’s antics and burst out laughing, finally cheering up. “Brother Chenchen.”

He missed his Brother Chenchen too.

To get from the county town to the national highway, they had to pass through a bumpy dirt road. The car jolted so much that Xia Mian kept leaning into Ning Shaobai.

He didn’t avoid her either. Whenever she leaned over, he would place his hand on her shoulder to steady her, his movement smooth and natural.

Xia Mian grabbed the handle on the ceiling, trying to sit upright. Ning Shaobai looked at her with amusement, then picked up Xiao Feng from the side and placed him between them. He glanced at Xiao Liu in the front and mouthed at her: Keep your distance, thank you.

Xia Mian: “…”

She had been thinking the same thing, but why did her rebellious streak start itching the moment Ning Shaobai acted on it?!

This guy even had the audacity to grin at her, clearly pleased with himself. Xia Mian, annoyed, swatted at him.

Ning Shaobai reached out and tugged at her tuft hair again.

It was in the middle of this silent battle that the car suddenly braked hard.

Xia Mian’s first reaction was to shield Xiao Feng in the middle, and Ning Shaobai immediately stretched his arm across both of them, pressing them firmly into their seats. His own shoulder, however, slammed into the seat in front.

Xia Mian was startled, and she quickly leaned over to check on him. “Are you okay?”

Ning Shaobai rubbed his shoulder. “I’m fine.”

“Damn, is this woman crazy or what?!” Xiao Liu cursed, then quickly turned around to apologize, “Sorry, Mr. Ning, a woman just ran out in front of the car.”

Just as he spoke, a woman practically threw herself at the car, frantically knocking on the window—it was Ma Lili.

Ning Shaobai recognized her too and turned to confirm with Xia Mian, “The one who said she had a hard life and claimed she was better than you?”

Xia Mian nodded. She’d told Ning Shaobai about Ma Lili before, especially those ridiculous things Ma Lili had said, which she’d shared as jokes.

When Ma Lili tried to block the road a couple of days ago, Ning Shaobai had already guessed who she was, but he didn’t want to deal with such a woman. He hadn’t expected her to be this persistent.

“Let’s see what she wants.” Ning Shaobai narrowed his eyes slightly and said coolly.

Xia Mian looked over his shoulder, holding the still-startled Xiao Feng. She was angry too. This person never put in real effort and only thought about shortcuts, so it was easy to guess what she was planning.

Xiao Liu rolled down the window. Ma Lili was still wearing the same clothes as two days ago, clutching a worn-out bag. Her face looked dirty, like smudged makeup, making her look extremely disheveled. Sure enough, she pleaded, “Dr. Ning, please help me!”

Ning Shaobai said coldly, “Sorry, I don’t know you. I can’t help you. Please step aside.”

But Ma Lili didn’t listen at all, speaking rapidly, “If you leave, Hao Xufeng won’t let me go! And my parents—they’re leeches, they’ll sell me to him themselves! Hao Xufeng already tortured his wife to insanity…”

“I want to live a good life. I want to escape this fate of being at someone else’s mercy. Please, only you can save me! I’ll repay you however you want, I’ll work like a mule for you, just take me away from here!”

Xia Mian was at a complete loss for words. Just because only Ning Shaobai could save you, he is obligated to? What kind of bandit logic is that? Why not go cry to the county mayor? He could probably save you too!

Then she heard Ning Shaobai say, “And how exactly do you expect me to help you?”

Ma Lili, seeing a glimmer of hope, lit up. “I won’t trouble you—just take me away from here, that’s all.”

Ning Shaobai said, “So what you really need is just a way out of here, right?”

Ma Lili nodded vigorously. “Yes! Just give me an opportunity, and I’ll prove myself to you!”

Xia Mian rolled her eyes. Prove yourself to Ning Shaobai? For what?

Ning Shaobai didn’t comment either way, but said to Xiao Liu, “Let her in.”

Xia Mian looked at him in confusion. This wasn’t like him at all.

Xiao Liu didn’t ask questions, just opened the front passenger door. “Thank you, Dr. Ning!” Ma Lili immediately got in, all smiles. Her usual cold demeanor was gone—she looked like she could burst with joy, as if she already saw herself soaring to success.

At first, she tried to act reserved and just kept thanking him. But once the car was driving smoothly along the highway, Ma Lili visibly grew more excited and tried to strike up a conversation. “Dr. Ning, you’re a doctor, right? How should I address you?”

Ning Shaobai ignored her completely, but she kept going, happy to talk to herself. “What hospital are you with in Yan City? Oh, what a coincidence, I’m a nurse! I’ve decided to find a hospital job as soon as we get there. Maybe we’ll even be colleagues!”

Xia Mian rolled her eyes and said mockingly, “Didn’t you already quit your nursing job? Aren’t you an actress now?”

“By the way, you’ve already started acting, haven’t you? Running off like this—what’s the director supposed to do?”

Ma Lili hurried to explain to Ning Shaobai, “I never wanted to be an actress. It’s just that, um, when I was walking down the street, Hao Xufeng took a liking to me…” Her face flushed slightly, like she was embarrassed by the indirect self-compliment.

“He kept showing up at my workplace, so I had no other option but to resign.”

“I really had no options left. I thought joining a film crew would at least let me avoid him, since there are so many people there…”

“But then I realized the director wasn’t any better—he was in cahoots with Hao Xufeng. That’s why I ran away…”

She turned back to look at Ning Shaobai. “Honestly, I still prefer being a nurse. I was at the top of my class at nursing school. If I don’t keep working as a nurse, all that studying would’ve been wasted.”

Xia Mian was too annoyed to even roll her eyes again. Ning Shaobai patted her head and said bluntly to Ma Lili, “Please be quiet. I get carsick and need to rest.”

Ma Lili froze, her face stiff. She turned back around awkwardly, not daring to speak again.

Xia Mian quietly gave Ning Shaobai a thumbs-up, and he gave her a smile back.

Xiao Feng did get a little carsick, while Xia Mian herself hadn’t slept well for two days. Holding the child, drowsiness hit her quickly.