Chapter 5 Meet Again (Part Two)

Hearing that, Edmund was obviously stunned for a second. Soon, he realized his niece was taking his side. Pretending to be a little angry, he frowned and looked at her. "Yes, don't you dare try to run away again. I'll be taking you home."

"Humph..." Taking a glance at him, Shirley stood straight. "I think you are busy with your work. Go ahead and finish your business. I am going to go and play some video games. Bye!" She pointed at the game room and walked towards it.

"Shirley!" Edmund grabbed Shirley by the collar and pulled her aside, glaring at her.

Shirley looked at him and fear crept through her skin. Well, there was a part of her that wanted to escape from him.

However, that wouldn't work. Her only choice was to help him. Staring back at him, she asked, "What? Can't I?"

"Get in the car."

'Car? Which car?' she wondered. She had never seen his car.

"Get in!"

Edmund opened the door of the car she was leaning against. "Sit straight!" Then he slammed the door.

Another realization struck her. 'I was such a dummy! I chose his car as a shield from him!' she thought with disbelief. He didn't come searching for her. Instead, he was making his way towards his car.

Putting aside these thoughts, Shirley peeped through the window and saw Mr. Yu's expression. After her lively performance, Mr. Yu's impression of her had changed. He didn't think of her as a child who could be ignored easily. A few minutes later, Edmund got into the car. Letting out a sigh of relief, he started the engine.

When Mr. Yu was out of their sight, Shirley realized she didn't have to hold back her laughter. "Ha-ha! That was hilarious!" She couldn't stop thinking about the embarrassed expression on Mr. Yu's face. She clapped her hands and covered her belly. "God! Did you see his face? I will never forget it."

The smile on Shirley's face froze as she turned to look at Edmund.

Edmund was driving attentively and his face was bereft of any expression. She couldn't risk angering him. Sitting quietly, she gazed outside the window, lost in thoughts.

Suddenly, something occurred to her. She sat up straight, getting ready to talk. But she was afraid to disturb him. Since she was in a dilemma, her gaze kept flitting from him to the window. She couldn't make up her mind. However, Edmund had already noticed that something was bothering her.

"What is it that you want to say?" Due to traffic, the car had come to a halt. He sensed something was wrong and wanted to know what it was.

In spite of his probing, Shirley seemed hesitant. Seeing the traffic police at the intersection, she became even more worried. Moving close to him, she whispered, "Uncle, cross the road first."

Edmund looked at suspiciously. Her behavior was a bit odd. Now, he became even more curious to know what the matter was.

When the car finally left the intersection, Shirley took a deep breath and looked at him.

She leaned against the back of the seat and asked in a low voice, "Uncle, you know drunk driving is illegal, right?"

Surprised, Edmund turned to look at her and saw lines of worry in her eyes. Now he understood why she seemed so concerned.

"I am not drunk, Shirley," he assured her.

Hearing that, Shirley was relieved. She looked at Edmund and understood he was speaking the truth. From what she heard, people normally drank alcohol during business meetings. Hence she assumed he must have had a glass or two.

"Why were you there?" he asked, turning the tables and steering the conversation to her.

Shirley was silent for a few seconds. She realized he wanted an explanation as to why she stood outside the game room. She waved her hand and explained, "Uncle, I was just taking a stroll. I didn't intend to go in." She raised her hand and pouted. Deep down, she prayed he would stop asking questions.

However, he wouldn't let he go so easily.

"Really? Your mother informed me you were at school, helping your teacher tidy up."

'Oh God! Why is he asking questions like a detective?' Shirley bit her tongue.

"At the last minute, my teacher got an important call. She let us go." Shirley couldn't remember the last time she had lied so much. Guilt turned her face red.

"Okay," he said and they remained silent for a couple of minutes.

Shirley thought his queries had come to an end, but to her disappointment, he went on. "How's your school event going? Last time I came, your mother told me that you had a meeting at school. She told me you are a great help to your teacher."

"It's going perfectly well. Our enthusiasm to study has greatly increased." She lied and kept her head down.

"Okay."

After a short break, he asked, "Have you found all the astronomical materials in the library? You've spent quite a lot of time there with your classmate."

"Yes, we got everything we needed. The next day, when our teacher asked questions, my friend and I had almost all the answers prepared." Her guilty conscience wanted to stop lying. This was getting out of hand.

"Okay."

If he continued to ask more questions, she knew she would speak the truth. 'One more question and I will spill the truth! I don't care about the consequences, ' she thought to herself with determination. Also, something about his way of questioning made her feel he knew she was lying.

"Have you made any plans for the National Day holiday?" This time, he didn't ask anything related to school. She relaxed a little.

"No, I haven't," she answered quickly.

"Okay, I see." Edmund nodded.

'Huh? What does he mean by that?' Shirley was suddenly confused. She had expected him to pry more.

After taking a turn, Edmund stopped the car. Looking tired, he rubbed his eyebrows and said to Shirley, "I won't be coming in. I have something important to do later."

He had no idea how happy his words made her. It took a lot of effort to remain calm. In a low voice, she said, "Sure, I will tell my mother."

After unfastening the seat belt, she turned around, ready to go home. Suddenly, a thought came to her mind. She leaned towards him and said, "Uncle, you should go home and take a good rest."

"Okay." For the first time, she saw a genuine smile on his face. Stretching out his hand, he caressed her hair lovingly.

Being so close to him, Shirley suddenly felt her face flush. She analyzed his face and realized what a handsome man he was! Nobody at her school looked half as handsome as him.

"Uncle, bye." Shirley got out of the car in a hurry and continued to wave at him.

Looking at the expression on Shirley's face, Edmund started the car. He still had a smile on his face.

Once his car was out of sight, Shirley let her exhaustion show. Today had been a long day. Only proper amount of sleep could restore her energy.

When she arrived at home, Shirley lay down on the sofa. With a facial mask on her face, her mother came out and saw her. "You are back early! Unfortunately, your uncle didn't come today."

Shirley didn't dare to raise her eyes and look at her mother. Instead, in her mind she thought, 'Of course, I know Uncle didn't come today. After all, he was with me the whole time!'