However...
Jiang Meilin was a little disappointed and asked, "Ningning, why aren't you wearing the clothes I picked for you? Do you not like any of them?" She was not scolding her daughter, but she had been eager to see her wearing the clothes she had chosen. It would have given her a sense of accomplishment that every old mother hoped for.
Now, she doubted her taste. The clothes she had bought might not be worthy of her daughter's beauty.
Looking at her mother's changing expression, Bai Ning was afraid that she would offer to buy her another set of clothes, so she quickly explained, "Mom, I'm not used to wearing dresses. Besides, when I go to school, they'll give me a school uniform. I usually wear a uniform to school."
"Oh, I see." Jiang Meilin thought for a moment, then suddenly said excitedly, "Then I'll go buy some pants for you later! You'll be able to wear them tomorrow."
Even though a soft and cute dress was more suitable for her daughter in her eyes, a cool pair of pants would have to be arranged instead!
Bai Ning was speechless.
In the end, she could not escape her fate of being dressed by her mother.
Bai Shijie, who was reading the newspaper, witnessed this interaction between the mother and daughter. He took out a card and walked over as if he was presenting a treasure. "Daughter, you're going to start school soon. I don't know what gift to pick out for you, so I'll give you a card. You can swipe it and buy whatever you want with it! It has no limit. No need to be shy with me!"
Bai Ning's mouth twitched, and her gaze fell onto the card in her father's hand. It was... a black card!
What happened to the poor family she had heard about? Even if they weren't poor... This was a black card! Had she become part of a secretly rich second generation?
Bai Ning, who was usually calm, had all kinds of guesses in her mind at the moment. She was stunned and did not know how to react.
Seeing his daughter's expression, Bai Shijie realized he might have scared her a little. After all, she had grown up in a small village. It was his fault, giving her a black card so early on, but she would have to get one sooner or later. He firmly stuffed the card into his daughter's hand and said, "Daughter, take the card. The password is your birthday. Use it for a few days. If you really can't get used to it, I'll prepare cash for you to use instead."
Bai Ning was confused. "...???"
Was she being forced to throw money away?
She accepted the black card. Even though she was a little surprised, she could not reject her father's kind intentions.
After breakfast, Bai Ning and her father went downstairs together. In the elevator, while the two were alone, she asked, "Dad, isn't our family supposed to be very poor?"
Bai Shijie was a little surprised. Why did his daughter think that? Who had told her that?
He suddenly remembered something and heaved a sigh. "Daughter, even though our family isn't that rich, Daddy won't let you suffer!"
Not that rich? Was buying her a cabinet full of new clothes and giving her a black card considered poor people behavior?
Bai Ning looked at her father in disbelief.
Bai Shijie felt a little guilty after being exposed by his daughter. When the elevator doors opened, he hurriedly walked out as if he was walking into Heaven.
Seeing her father's reaction, Bai Ning raised her eyebrows playfully and followed him out with a faint smile.
...
Bai Ning's house was not far from First Middle School. It was only a ten-minute drive, so she could attend day school and not live in the school dormitory.
Bai Shijie wanted to drive his daughter to school, but there were too many cars around because it was the first day of school, so there was no place to park. In the end, after his daughter's repeated requests, he dropped her off.
Watching her father's car drive away, Bai Ning slowly walked to the school gate.
The security at the school gate was very good. Everyone who entered and exited the campus had to use the campus' Universal Card. Bai Ning had just transferred to the school, so she did not have a card yet. She was stopped by the security guard at the gate.
She calmly took out the acceptance letter from her backpack and handed it to the security guard, asking, "Is this enough?"
The security guard took it and looked at it. He looked up, looking to be in deep thought. He called another security guard to help him, then said to Bai Ning, "Wait here. I need to go to the Academic Affairs Office to verify this before I can let you in."
After that, he took the letter and left the guardhouse.
Watching at the security guard's back, Bai Ning frowned slightly. Was a transfer notice still not enough? Did things have to be that troublesome?
She could only wait. There was nothing else she could do.
She waited for more than ten minutes. The security guard should have arrived at the Academic Affairs Office a long time ago, but she could not see him walking back. Bai Ning pinched the space between her eyebrows, her face full of helplessness.