“What is your dream?”
“Huh?”
Cornelia was taken aback when she heard Su Cheng's question. She didn't understand why he would bring up this topic. Then she realized, what was her dream?
Did she even have a dream?
What was her dream?
This was a heavy and stressful question that made her feel confused. Did she even have a dream?
She remembered she did have a dream when she was a child.
But thinking about it carefully, was the dream she had as a child really a dream?
In elementary school, she used to boast about her dream. In middle school, she was embarrassed to talk about it. By high school, she had buried her dream deep within her.
And now, when asked again, she felt ashamed to admit her dream.
So, she no longer had a dream.
Cornelia took a deep breath to calm herself and looked at Su Cheng, trying to sound composed as she said, "I don't have a dream."
Su Cheng, on hearing this, lowered his head to look at a diary on the table, then looked up at Cornelia with a serious expression, leaving no room for misunderstanding.
“Ah!”
Cornelia realized what was happening and exclaimed, quickly shoving her diary behind her. She glared at Su Cheng, her face flushed with indignation. "You… You were peeking at my diary! That's so rude of you!"
At that moment, she suddenly understood why Su Cheng had been smiling. It was because he knew about her childish and laughable dream from her childhood, which was why he had that expression.
“Sorry. I accidentally saw it,”
Su Cheng said with an apologetic expression.
"You were shamelessly laughing at me!!"
Cornelia glared at Su Cheng, her cheeks red.
"That's because when I saw your dream, I suddenly remembered that I had many similar dreams too."
Cornelia was stunned for a moment, then asked out of curiosity, "What were yours?"
Su Cheng sat down, looking thoughtful. "Well, I wanted to be a chosen child."
“Your dream was to save the Digital World?”
Cornelia's eyes lit up as she guessed Su Cheng's dream.
“Exactly, I've always wanted to be the protagonist!”
Su Cheng nodded seriously.
Cornelia couldn’t help but laugh at Su Cheng’s serious demeanor. She said, "You're so childish. How could that ever come true?"
Su Cheng suddenly turned serious and asked, "Actually, I wanted to ask why you had that dream."
“None of your business,”
But the next moment, seeing Su Cheng still so earnest, Cornelia couldn't help but also become serious. She crossed her arms and sat on the sofa, looking intently into Su Cheng's eyes as she said, "When my parents didn’t spend time with me, I used to cry and run to my grandfather. Then my grandfather would lecture them, and they would start spending time with me and comforting me…"
As she spoke, Cornelia lowered her head and continued to recount her childhood. "When I started elementary school… my grandfather passed away. After that, my parents stopped caring about me… So when I was in elementary school, I wanted to be like my grandfather, to lecture my parents and make them spend time with me…"
After saying this, she remained with her head down.
"……I'm sorry, I shouldn't have laughed at you, nor should I have asked."
Seeing this, Su Cheng hurriedly stood up to wipe away Cornelia's tears, apologizing with sincerity.
Cornelia lifted her head, shaking it while crying, "It's not your fault. It's just that my dream was too ridiculous…"
After saying this, she lowered her head again.
“Wait, become like your grandfather?”
Suddenly, Su Cheng caught onto the key point. He swallowed hard and asked, "What was your grandfather?"
“The former Prime Minister.”
Cornelia answered succinctly and then kept her head down, not saying another word.
Upon hearing Cornelia's words, Su Cheng was completely shocked.
"What… what? Former Prime Minister?"
Su Cheng looked at Cornelia in disbelief, his eyes filled with astonishment. This wasn't mentioned in the system resume at all!
Could it be because he had passed away?
He swallowed again, looked at the silent Cornelia, and couldn't help but feel a strange thought rising in his mind. Maybe Cornelia could really become…
Thinking of this, Su Cheng couldn’t help but feel motivated, but he also felt that this matter seemed a bit difficult.
“Please stick to this dream!”
Su Cheng clenched his fist and spoke passionately, looking at Cornelia and saying earnestly, "As long as you hold onto this dream, I believe it will come true one day!"
Cornelia was stunned, then looked up at Su Cheng. Seeing the seriousness and sincerity on his face, her heart inexplicably sped up, but she still shook her head, "That's impossible."
Su Cheng continued to persuade, "I’ll support you. Don't you want to lecture your parents anymore?"
His tone was full of certainty.
"You think just because you support me, it will come true!"
Cornelia huffed in annoyance.
Although Su Cheng's words did make her happy, she also knew that this was impossible.
"Not necessarily!"
Su Cheng said confidently. He glanced at Cornelia and suddenly stood in front of her, his lips slightly parted, saying something that left Cornelia completely petrified.
"When next year’s trilateral meeting comes, if you declare your dream is to become the Prime Minister, then I will also declare my dream at the trilateral meeting."
Su Cheng announced loudly, "To make Cornelia the Prime Minister!"
Hearing Su Cheng's words, Cornelia was completely dumbfounded. Her mind went blank. What on earth had he just said?
Su Cheng's dream was to make her the Prime Minister?
The trilateral meeting referred to a gathering involving teachers, students, and parents.
Declaring a dream at this meeting was no longer a child's jest.
It required immense courage to say such a thing in front of parents, and what was said would be recorded in the school annals.
Cornelia stared at him for a long while, finally managing to blurt out, "Are you serious?"
Su Cheng nodded without hesitation.
“Even if you say that, I would never say something so ridiculous.”
Su Cheng shrugged, not saying anything more.
"Alright, I'm going to prepare lunch."
After saying this, she hurriedly ran out.
Su Cheng watched Cornelia's retreating back and called out, "It's never too late to have a dream!"
“Shut up, you're annoying!”
Cornelia didn't even turn her head, replying as she ran to the kitchen. Once there, she kept patting her chest, her heart almost leaping out of her chest.
He had just said that his dream was to make her the Prime Minister.
Isn't that practically dedicating his life to her?
Those words were too powerful, leaving Cornelia unable to calm her tumultuous emotions.
However, this dream had long been buried by her.
If she had to say she had a dream now, it would be for Su Cheng to confess to her.
Thinking of this, her face heated up.
She rubbed her cheeks with her small hands, took a deep breath, and entered the kitchen. She picked up a cookbook to study the food combinations, put on an apron, and stood on a small stool to start cooking.
“Hmm, not bad. Isn’t this simple?”
Cornelia looked at the boiling oil in the pan and couldn’t help but feel excited. Her beautiful eyes shimmered with anticipation.
Then she opened her phone to watch short videos and followed the steps meticulously.
“Huh, why did the oil decrease again? Add some more.”
“Put in more sugar, make it sweet.”
In the meantime, Su Cheng secretly observed her, noticing that although Cornelia was clumsy, she was very serious about following the cookbook and videos. So he felt reassured.
…
Time passed quickly.
“Come out for lunch!”
While Su Cheng was playing on his phone in the bedroom, Cornelia's call brought him back to reality.
"Coming, coming."
Hearing Cornelia's call, Su Cheng immediately turned off his phone and walked outside.
Upon seeing the dishes on the table, his face darkened. He thought, "As expected of a woman who is going to be the Prime Minister, she can start a war just by casually making a dish."
There was simply too much oil!
"How is it?"
Little chef Cornelia looked at Su Cheng expectantly, not blinking.
Su Cheng looked at the dishes on the table and was instantly overwhelmed. "For a beginner, this is already very impressive."
“Right, right!”
Cornelia proudly raised her eyebrows and quickly ushered Su Cheng to take a seat.
"Go ahead, try it and tell me how it tastes!"
Cornelia asked enthusiastically.
Su Cheng nodded and picked up a piece of spare ribs with his chopsticks. As soon as he took a bite, his mouth exploded with flavor—or rather, lack thereof—and he barely managed to swallow it without spitting it out.
"How is it?"
Cornelia immediately asked as soon as she saw him eat, her expression of impatience almost unbearable.
"It's great, really delicious! In your native British lingo, I'd say it's Very good!!"
Su Cheng gave her a thumbs up, praising her with words that were practically blasphemy to his taste buds.
"Really?"
Cornelia was overjoyed, her expression lighting up like a child’s. She then picked up her chopsticks and took a bite herself, savoring it with great interest.
But the next second, her face contorted.
There was a loud *spat*...
Cornelia spat it out.
"Pwah, why did you lie to me!"
Cornelia suddenly reprimanded Su Cheng, her cheeks reddening. She couldn’t believe that something so unpalatable had been praised by him!
"How could I lie?"
Su Cheng looked at Cornelia, his expression one of innocence. To prove his honesty, he picked up another piece and stuffed it into his mouth, mumbling through his chewing, "I’m not tasting the flavor, but your effort and sincerity. To me, this dish is more than edible—it's delicious."
"You... you..."
Cornelia glared at Su Cheng, her cheeks puffing in anger, but inwardly, a strange warmth flowed through her. She never expected him to say something so sweet and flattering, yet it was oddly satisfying.
"Could you help me get some rice?"
Su Cheng interrupted Cornelia and handed her his bowl.
Looking at the bowl in her hand, Cornelia was momentarily stunned, then she awkwardly lowered her head and whispered, "Uh... I forgot... I..."
"It's fine, I’ll just have the side dishes."
Su Cheng shook his head and continued to pick at the ‘oil spill’ stir-fried beef on the table, commenting seriously, "Sunday’s rendezvous, savoring the delicious!"
Cornelia: "......"
Su Cheng ate with gusto, even shouting out strange slogans like some madman, while Cornelia looked on, on the verge of tears. She had tasted it herself; the oily, greasy flavor made her want to retch, and she couldn’t imagine how Su Cheng could eat it so enthusiastically.
"Should we just order takeout instead?"
"No way!"
"Stop eating, I’m scared."
"I won’t."
"I’m begging you."
"No."
"Waaah... I’m never cooking again~"
Cornelia finally broke down, sitting on the stool with tears welling up in her eyes, looking utterly wronged.
"Hey, I told you not to, you know this is a waste of food, right?"
Seeing her distress, Su Cheng immediately dropped his chopsticks, walked over to Cornelia, and poked her head.
"You’re not allowed to eat anymore!"
Cornelia covered her head, looking up at Su Cheng with puppy dog eyes.
"Alright, fine."
Seeing her like this, Su Cheng decided not to push it further and let it go.
They cleaned up the kitchen together, and after Su Cheng went to the bathroom, Cornelia sat down on the couch in the bedroom.
"Plans A and B... failed."
Cornelia lowered her head, her face filled with disappointment.
But soon, she composed herself.
When Su Cheng returned, she looked up at him and said, "Oh, by the way, I was originally supposed to watch a movie with Aria this weekend. But she suddenly had something come up."
As she spoke, she pulled out two movie tickets from her skirt pocket and continued, "If we don’t go, they’ll go to waste."
She looked at Su Cheng with a hint of regret, signaling her intention clearly.
"Should we go to the cinema now?"
Su Cheng sat down and took the tickets from her hand, then asked thoughtfully, "Just the two of us?"
"Yes."
Cornelia nodded vigorously, pleasantly surprised that Su Cheng caught on so quickly. She quickly added, "Yeah, since it’d be a waste otherwise, we might as well watch it together."
"Okay!"
The two agreed, and Cornelia went to change into her outfit to head out.
...
At the cinema entrance.
Su Cheng handed several bills to Cornelia and said, "Here, take this."
"Thank you."
Cornelia accepted the money instinctively, smiling and thanking Su Cheng, but then her expression turned puzzled.
Why did he suddenly give her money?
Just moments ago, she had assumed he had gone off to buy popcorn.
So why was he giving her money now?
What was going on?
Realizing this, she stared at Su Cheng, horrified, and asked, "Why... why are you giving me money?"
"Well."
Su Cheng nodded, then pointed to a man wearing a cap behind him and explained, "You said it’d be a waste, right? So I just sold the tickets to a scalper. And guess what? They’re in demand, so he even paid us an extra hundred bucks on top of the original price!"
With that, he proudly lifted his head.
Hearing this, Cornelia’s face went blank, her hand trembling as she clutched the money. She widened her eyes, mumbling, "How could you do that?"
"Didn’t you say you didn’t want it to go to waste?"
Su Cheng shrugged, looking innocent.
"That’s not what I meant!!!"
Cornelia stomped her foot, tears streaming down her face. She was completely shocked that Su Cheng would do something so ridiculous.
"Uhm... uhm... uhm..."
Cornelia stuttered, unable to form a coherent sentence.
"Are you saying you wanted us to go watch it together?"
Su Cheng stared at Cornelia, his expression devoid of emotion.
"I..."
Cornelia blushed slightly.
That was indeed what she had wanted.
But now that Su Cheng had pointed it out, the decision lied with her. What could she say?
Was she really going to admit it?
It was far too embarrassing for her.
Seeing Cornelia silent, Su Cheng’s face turned serious. "If you don’t speak up, you won’t get what you want."
Cornelia lowered her head, her hands fidgeting nervously.
She was caught in a dilemma.
Seeing that she was hesitating, Su Cheng continued, "If that’s not the case, then let’s just go home and play games."
Having said that, Su Cheng turned to leave.
"Wait!"
Cornelia suddenly raised her head and shouted, clenching her teeth and making up her mind.
After all, it was already like this. There was no point holding back now!
Besides, this movie was something she really wanted to watch with Su Cheng. Not only because watching a movie as a couple could foster romance, but also because it was her Plan C.
With that thought, she looked at Su Cheng and said, "I... I want to watch it with you!"
As soon as the words left her mouth, Su Cheng froze for a moment, then smiled and took the money from her hand, saying, "Why didn’t you say that earlier?"
Then, he turned and walked towards the man in the cap.
Seeing this, Cornelia nervously watched Su Cheng’s back, hoping he would manage to get the tickets back. The tickets, after all, had cost her ten times the original price to buy from someone else.
But what Cornelia didn’t know was that Su Cheng simply pocketed the money and retrieved two tickets from his own pocket. He hadn’t sold them at all—he had merely wanted Cornelia to learn to be straightforward.
After all, how could one be a successful 'father' with an obstinate child?
'Fatherly love' often manifests in unexpected ways to help their child grow.
Then, to maintain the act, Su Cheng pretended to inquire about the film’s timing with the man in the cap, then held the two tickets and walked back to Cornelia.
"Let’s go."
Seeing this, Cornelia excitedly took the tickets from Su Cheng’s hand.
She hadn’t expected that Su Cheng would actually manage to get the tickets back, and it was truly impressive. She was beginning to see a new side of Su Cheng!
Arriving at the cinema, Su Cheng noticed that the audience was almost entirely couples. He immediately caught on to Cornelia’s scheme.
No doubt, Cornelia had probably hired a few 'atmosphere assistants' as well.
At the climax of the film, they would likely egg him on to confess his feelings.
Of course, that didn’t pose any real problem.
Soon, the movie began.
Beside Su Cheng, Cornelia noticed the couples around them holding hands, whispering sweet nothings, and even kissing. Her face turned crimson, but secretly, she envied them.
She wanted to hold hands with Su Cheng while watching the movie...
Thinking this, she turned her head to look at Su Cheng—only to freeze.
Because Su Cheng had his eyes closed and was fast asleep!!
"Hey!!"
Cornelia couldn’t help but call out softly.
But Su Cheng didn’t react as if he hadn’t heard her and remained soundly asleep, leaning against the back of the chair.
Cornelia glared in frustration but eventually refrained from waking Su Cheng up, letting him sleep on.
After an unknown period, Cornelia had an idea. She closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair, slowly letting her head drift toward Su Cheng's shoulder. Just as she was about to succeed, Su Cheng suddenly moved.
Cornelia peeked through a barely open eyelid, watching Su Cheng cautiously. Finding that he hadn't woken up, she relaxed slightly.
Then she moved her head to Su Cheng's other side. Just as she was about to touch his shoulder, Su Cheng shifted again, causing her to bump into empty air.
"Darn it!!"
Cornelia muttered under her breath, then glanced at Su Cheng again, ensuring he was still asleep.
Reassured, she mustered her courage and decided to go for it. Her face flushed like a ripe apple as she glanced at Su Cheng, now confident that he was soundly asleep. Boldly, she leaned her head on his shoulder—and succeeded.
The familiar scent wafted over, making Cornelia's heart race uncontrollably.
This feeling… it was wonderful!
Cornelia glanced at Su Cheng, now fully assured, and closed her eyes, gradually slipping into a peaceful slumber.
...
After some unknown time.
A strong light pierced her eyes, waking her up. When she opened them, the entire cinema was as bright as day, with all the lights on.
Cornelia was momentarily stunned, then suddenly sat upright. Noticing the surrounding silence and a few staff members cleaning up, she realized she had overslept!
"Plan Three failed…"
Cornelia was disheartened. She turned to look accusingly at Su Cheng, only to find him already staring at her. Hastily, she looked away.
"You're awake?"
Su Cheng asked with a smile.
Cornelia nodded but didn't answer, instead directing her gaze to the black movie screen.
“There’s no atmosphere team…”
Su Cheng felt quite strange. He had expected Cornelia to arrange some special segment to stimulate him, but it turned out to be a purely casual movie outing.
What a sin, he had overthought it.
The innocent Cornelia wouldn't do something like that.
Hearing this, Cornelia coughed awkwardly. "Well, let's… let's head home."
She stood up and turned toward the exit.
Su Cheng followed, but as they reached the door, Cornelia suddenly stopped.
"Oh no, we left Yaya at home!"
Cornelia suddenly slapped her forehead, looking anxious. "We need to get back and check on him!"
She was about to execute her ultimate plan.
"I let him out to play," Su Cheng explained.
"What?!"
Cornelia was shocked. "How could you let him fly out alone? What if something happened to him?"
"He'll be back by six," Su Cheng reassured her. "And he's very smart, you don't need to worry."
"But…"
As she spoke, Cornelia took out her phone and saw it was 5:30, half an hour until six.
"What's the problem?" Su Cheng raised an eyebrow at her anxious demeanor.
"But… he doesn't know how to tell time."
"He’ll be back when the sun sets."
"I’ll wait for him to come home then."
"Alright."
At 5:55.
Cornelia and Su Cheng returned to their apartment. Cornelia kicked off her shoes, put on her slippers, and darted to the balcony.
Su Cheng shook his head and headed to the bathroom to wash his hands.
"Yaya isn't here," Cornelia said, looking at the empty balcony, feeling a bit disappointed.
But behind the balcony curtain, a single rose remained hidden, a flower she had prepared the day before.
While Cornelia waited, a black dot appeared in the sky, growing larger. Seeing Yaya returning, she excitedly pointed to the area below the curtain.
Yaya landed on the balcony windowsill, nodded, and then picked up the rose, flying into the room. Hearing the noise, he then flew into the bathroom.
Seeing this, Cornelia excitedly straightened her attire, her heart brimming with joy.
Finally, she had perfectly executed her plan!
She walked to the bathroom door, waiting for Su Cheng to come out!
A few seconds later—
Sure enough, Su Cheng exited with Yaya perched on his shoulder, looking puzzled as he held a single rose in his hand.
Witnessing this, Cornelia's face lit up with a victorious smile as she stepped forward.
"So, is this your sudden attempt to confess your feelings with a rose?"
Cornelia crossed her arms, posing triumphantly.
"Hmph. Alright. This time…"
But before she could finish.
"What rose?"
Su Cheng looked up, confused, cutting her off.
Seeing Su Cheng's expression, Cornelia's smile faded. She pointed at Su Cheng's hands. "Isn't that the rose you…"
But before she could finish, she froze on the spot, because Su Cheng's hands were empty.
The rose was gone?
Cornelia was stumped. Where was the rose?
It had been in his hands just a moment ago!
Had it flown away on its own??
In a panic, Cornelia frantically checked around Su Cheng, even patting his pockets, but found nothing.
"You mean the rose Yaya brought from outside? It's in the trash."
Su Cheng turned to the bathroom trash can and retrieved the rose, dropping it in.
At this, Cornelia was completely bewildered.
This wasn't logical!
She had clearly seen the rose in Su Cheng's hands. How had it disappeared?
Determined, Cornelia ran to the bathroom trash can and, to her astonishment, found a fresh, vibrant rose!
At that moment, her thoughts became muddled.
Her mind raced, teetering on explosion, as various ideas buzzed through her head. All her plans had failed…
"What are you doing?"
Seeing Cornelia dazed, Su Cheng asked knowingly.
Hearing his voice, Cornelia snapped back to reality. Taking a deep breath to suppress her disappointment and despair, she walked to the sofa and sat down. "I want something to drink."
"Alright."
Su Cheng walked to the fridge, deliberately avoiding the "Six Nuclear Bombs," and instead grabbed a bottle of milk, diluting it slightly with some water.
Fake "Eight Walnuts."
He handed it to Cornelia.
Cornelia accepted it, noting the same familiar pattern. Nothing seemed amiss.
"Thanks."
She took a sip, but as soon as the liquid hit her mouth, she sensed something was off. The drink wasn't "Eight Walnuts"—it was…
"No good, it's fake milk!"