Madam, Please Behave-Chapter 234: The Opening

October 21st.

The sun was shining, and the sky was clear.

Today was the school’s sports day, and for the occasion, the school had allowed visitors from outside to come and watch. Normally, at this hour, students would be immersed in their studies, soaking up knowledge like hungry little fledglings.

But today was different.

Because of the sports event, the school was buzzing with excitement. Parents could be seen everywhere, mingling among the crowd.

Lan Yixian had put some effort into her appearance for the day.

She wore an outfit that she considered presentable, had carefully styled her hair, and even applied a light touch of makeup.

The result was pleasing to the eye.

She had come with her daughter, and now she stood outside the classroom, waiting while her daughter changed into her uniform for the event.

Zhou Shiyan had joined a small cheerleading squad with a few other girls from her class—though calling it a cheerleading team was a bit of an exaggeration. Including her, there were only five members.

The wait wasn’t long.

Before long, the girls came out of the classroom, chatting and giggling. Lan Yixian’s gaze naturally fell on her daughter, who was the last one to step out.

She was wearing a pink short-sleeved top with a printed design, a white knee-length skirt, white socks, and white sneakers.

In her hands, she held a pair of cheerleading pom-poms.

As she exited, she instinctively turned her eyes toward her mother, who had clearly dressed up more than usual for the occasion.

The four girls who had come out first quickly gathered around.

“Hello, Auntie~”

The girls greeted Lan Yixian in unison.

Hearing their polite greetings, she responded with a warm smile and nodded in acknowledgment.

After chatting for a bit, the four girls went ahead to make preparations, leaving just Lan Yixian and her daughter behind.

They didn’t linger for long either.

Zhou Shiyan took a moment to check the classroom, making sure all the clothes they had changed out of were properly placed. Once everything was in order, she followed her mother down the stairs toward the sports field.

As they walked, Lan Yixian noticed something.

“Where’s Zhiyue?”

She found it strange that she hadn’t seen Liu Zhiyue anywhere near her daughter.

“He went ahead to prepare with the other participants,” Zhou Shiyan explained.

“Ah… that makes sense.”

Lan Yixian nodded in understanding, but then something else came to mind.

“You know, for a while, Zhiyue was training with his dad every morning. He’s got a solid foundation in sports. He should be able to achieve a good result in this competition, right?”

“That… I’m not sure.”

Zhou Shiyan didn’t want to overhype Liu Zhiyue’s abilities.

Sure, he had been exercising daily for months due to his weight loss journey, but whether that was enough to compete against athletes from other classes—that was hard to say.

As they chatted, they soon arrived at the venue where the sports day was being held.

A large crowd had already gathered, waiting for the opening ceremony to begin.

The open-air bleachers were filled with parents, all eager to watch the event unfold.

Instead of immediately heading to where her class was gathering, Zhou Shiyan first took her mother to the section reserved for parents.

Following her daughter’s lead, Lan Yixian sat down, glanced around curiously, and then looked up at Zhou Shiyan just as she was about to turn away.

Her tone carried a subtle hint of expectation.

“Shiyan… didn’t you say Zhiyue’s dad was coming too?”

Zhou Shiyan paused, looking at her mother.

Ever since she had casually mentioned to her mother that Liu Changqing would be attending the sports day, she had noticed a subtle change in her mother’s demeanor.

A certain anticipation.

Because today, before leaving the house, her mother had stood in front of the mirror for a long time, carefully grooming herself.

That was rare.

Even during last semester’s parent-teacher meeting, she hadn’t spent nearly this much time on her appearance before heading out.

Now, looking at her mother’s lightly made-up face, Zhou Shiyan hesitated for a moment—then finally spoke.

“He’ll be here. Maybe he just hasn’t arrived yet.”

“…Alright then. You should go. Don’t keep the others waiting.”

“Mm.”

Watching her daughter walk away, Lan Yixian sat down and quietly observed the surroundings.

Time passed, and the parents around her gradually started chatting, mostly about their children’s academics.

A few of them tried to strike up a conversation with her as well, but whether it was a lack of common ground or something else, Lan Yixian often found herself unable to fully join in.

All she could do was smile and listen attentively.

Just as she always had.

After a brief period of preparation, the event officially began.

First, the school leaders took turns giving speeches from the stage. Once that was over, the student parade began.

A long table was set up on the platform, where school officials sat while the student council announced each class’s entrance. The students marched in neat formations, stepping in sync as they passed.

When her daughter’s class was introduced, Lan Yixian immediately spotted Zhou Shiyan at the very front.

Perhaps because of her smaller stature, she had been positioned at the very front row.

After the opening ceremony, the competitions began, spread out across different sections of the field.

On the track, runners were getting into position.

Not far away, long jump participants were warming up.

And in another corner, students were preparing for other events.

Among the crowd, Lan Yixian quickly spotted Liu Zhiyue.

Dressed in sportswear, he was on the rubberized track, stretching and warming up.

Lan Yixian clapped her hands a couple of times and called out a soft but encouraging, “Go for it!”

This was Liu Zhiyue’s first event: the 100-meter dash.

From her viewpoint, his competitors looked quite strong. It didn’t seem like this would be an easy win.

On the track, Liu Zhiyue finished his warm-up and took his place at the starting line.

Meanwhile, Zhou Shiyan and the other four girls stood nearby, waving their pom-poms and cheering loudly.

“Go, Liu Zhiyue! You’re the best! Liu Zhiyue, charge forward!!”

Their synchronized voices were bright and clear.

However, for some reason, hearing their energetic cheers filled Liu Zhiyue with secondhand embarrassment.

The runners beside him didn’t seem too happy either.

One of them, clearly annoyed, muttered to a teammate, “Who the hell is this Liu Zhiyue guy? He’s got girls cheering for him? Why don’t we have that?”

Liu Zhiyue heard every word, and his expression subtly shifted.

He lifted his head slightly and glanced at the speaker—a runner from another class who hadn’t even noticed his reaction.

The guy continued watching the cheerleaders with a mocking tone.

“Hey, look at that tiny one in the middle. The other four are hyped up, but she’s not even opening her mouth! She’s just bouncing around, totally out of sync!”

“Haha! That’s hilarious!”

His friend laughed along, their voices carrying a hint of ridicule.

Liu Zhiyue glanced at them, his expression darkening slightly.

Of course, their chatter didn’t go unnoticed by the referee.

Without hesitation, the referee walked up behind them and kicked both of them on the backs of their legs.

Then, removing his whistle from his mouth, he yelled.

“You’ve got time to laugh but not to focus?! Get your act together! If I hear another peep out of you two, you’re disqualified!”

Caught red-handed, the two boys didn’t dare to argue.

They muttered under their breath, rubbing the spots where they’d been kicked, before begrudgingly assuming the starting position.

The athletes crouched into their starting stances.

With the sound of the starting whistle, they shot forward like arrows released from their bows.

Meanwhile, Liu Changqing was running late.

By the time he arrived at the school, he noticed that most parents were already inside—there was barely anyone left near the school buildings.

He had lost track of time preparing food for An Yuanyao at home, which was why he had been delayed.

Since An Yuanyao’s injured foot made it difficult for her to walk, Liu Changqing had suggested bringing her along.

But she had refused.

Just the thought of hopping around in front of a crowd, or having to lean on Liu Changqing—or worse, being carried—made her feel unbearably embarrassed.

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Since the sports day wouldn’t last too long, she decided to wait at home.

Liu Changqing agreed and promised to return as soon as it was over.

Once inside the venue, he hurriedly made his way to his son’s class section before heading up the stands to the parent seating area.

There were quite a few parents watching, and since the competitions were already in progress, some were cheering loudly.

As he moved through the crowd, squeezing between people and looking for an empty seat, a familiar voice called out.

“Liu Changqing!”

“Hm?”

He turned his head toward the source of the voice.

And then he saw her.

Lan Yixian, slightly dressed up for the occasion.

It had been a while since he last saw her.

The last time they had met was when she came to his house to repay her debt.

Now that he thought about it, that was almost a month ago.

Seeing her here at the sports event was a bit unexpected.

Smiling, Liu Changqing squeezed out of the packed aisle and walked toward her.

Coincidentally, there was an empty seat right next to her.

But it was odd…

The stands were full, yet there was an empty seat beside her?

After maneuvering his way through the crowd, Liu Changqing plopped down into the seat, exhaling a long breath.

Stretching his legs out a little, he adjusted his posture to get comfortable.

“You’re late,” Lan Yixian teased, turning slightly toward him with a faint smile.

She leaned in just a bit as she spoke.

Hearing her words, Liu Changqing casually responded,

“I was preparing some food at home… Didn’t realize how fast time flew. The moment I parked my car, I ran all the way here. The entrance was practically empty.”

“You’re not that late. Zhiyue just finished his first event.”

“Huh? The first event’s over already? That fast?”

Just as Liu Changqing exclaimed in surprise, a high-pitched cheer erupted from below.

“Aaaaaahhh!!! Liu Zhiyue, you’re the best! Liu Zhiyue is the fastest!! FIRST PLACE!!”

“……”

Hearing the enthusiastic voices of several young girls, Liu Changqing didn’t find it unusual.

But…

As they chanted, Liu Changqing turned his gaze toward them.

He quickly spotted Zhou Shiyan standing at the very edge of the group.

And she stood out.

Not because of enthusiasm.

But because, every now and then, she would sneak glances at the others and then awkwardly mimic their movements.

Her timing was off.

Her arm movements lagged behind the rest.

She looked completely out of sync—like someone with absolutely no coordination.

In short…

She didn’t fit in at all.