Lin Wan has once again taken over the responsibility of leading the choir. But unlike before, this time there would be no distractions caused by irrelevant matters and people.

She was hired as a teacher by invitation. Being both the choir’s leader and tutor, she was given absolute authority. She never had to worry about getting herself into a mess like before anymore.

Lin Wan was happy with this arrangement. With only ten days left until the finals, she decided to use this time well to rehearse a few times with the students, so they would be in their best condition to compete with their opponents.

Who’d knew one trouble would follow the other? The external interference was now gone, but now there was a problem within the choir itself. To make things worse, the problem was at the core of the choir, which stressed Lin Wan out.

The person who had issues was Lu Jiaxue. She was fine in the first two rehearsals, but at the third rehearsal, she started to behave abnormally. She was either two beats too fast or two beats too slow, or she would be out of tune and all over the place.

At first, Lin Wan thought that the competition stressed the little girl out, which affected her performance negatively. However, she gradually sensed that something else was wrong, as the little girl constantly looked distracted as if she had something on her mind.

Lu Jiaxue played a crucial role, as she was the leader and the soul of the choir. If she gave up, Lin Wan's choice of repertoire would be highly reduced, and even the songs they were most confident in would be affected.

It was definitely too late to train another lead singer in such a short time. The only way now was to let Lu Jiaxue return to form as soon as possible, Even if all it took was for her to grit her teeth and keep going on, she must pull through till the end. This victory was the wish of many, hence Lin Wan did not dare to act rashly.

Truth be told, Lin Wan had never given much thought to what the future holds for the school’s choir.

She would leave the country soon after the finals. With all her heart, she sincerely wished for the best and a bright future for her students. But she was also aware that this might very well be their last performance together.

It was with this extra consideration that she agreed to take over the responsibility again. She wanted to round off the choir with an outstanding performance that would not only be her pride, but also her students’.

After all the trials and tribulations, who would have thought that problems would arise in such a crucial spot near the match. This made Lin Wan feel very distressed.

Lin Wan had no choice but to coach Lu Jiaxue after group rehearsals by giving her special one-on-one coaching classes.

The little girl was very happy though, and kept calling Lin Wan “mummy”. She even threw a tantrum from time to time, scolding Lin Wan for not paying attention to her anymore, which made Lin Wan frustrated and amused at the same time.

Lin Wan felt a little guilty when she was with Lu Jiaxue. She agreed to be Lu Jiaxue’s tutor, but in reality, Lin Wan only tutored her once before and never contacted her again.

Of course, this wasn’t her fault. After Wu Heping's death, Lin Wan was partially resigned from her job and didn't even go to school much anymore. It didn’t make sense for her to go to school on purpose just for one student.

It had nothing to do with selfishness or responsibility. Agreeing to tutor Lu Jiaxue was something she did out of convenience. Hence if it was no longer convenient for her, this unpaid tutoring of hers would definitely not work out anymore.

Because of this incident, Ms. Tian and Lin Wan’s friendship was in shreds. Even when the former meets Lin Wan coincidentally, she’d not pay her any attention. Lin Wan also felt sorry for betraying that child’s trust.

Lin Wan felt relieved that she now had the opportunity to make it up for them. Hence she was fully prepped, both in terms of attitude and degree of seriousness.

However, she still encountered the same old problem. Lu Jiaxue's learning attitude caused her a major headache. She took her efforts of teaching Lu Jiaxue seriously, but the latter thought otherwise. One wanted to teach, yet the other wanted to play. Hence, the two of them could never get on the same bandwagon.

The little girl's mischievous character made Lin Wan helpless. Children nowadays are very pampered. They can't be beaten, scolded, nor reprimanded. To make things worse, this little kid was also the star of the choir. If you really pissed her off, it would be game over if the little girl decided to ruin the show on stage.

Lin Wan told herself when selecting choir members in the future again, she must not only focus on the appearance and musicianship, but also the children’s determination and quality in character. She would never recruit disobedient children who acted like pampered princesses and princes anymore.

Thinking about it, it was pretty hilarious. She wouldn’t be recruiting anyone anymore. This was only a one-shot deal. She’d better to find a way to please this mischievous little girl.

Having no choice, Lin Wan turned herself into a moral teacher and lectured Lu Jiaxue patiently. She taught Lu Jiaxue the importance of collectivism, individual responsibilities and so on.

At first, Lu Jiaxue listened playfully without paying any attention. But later on, she started to shed tears.

Lin Wan was surprised. She didn't say anything that’d offend her though, she didn't criticize her nor accuse her, she just reasoned with her. Wasn’t she a little too sensitive to cry just because she didn’t like what she heard?

“Mummy, do you hate me?” Lu Jiaxue asked aggrievedly.

“No, how would teacher hate you? You're the best student I have ever had, and I have always been proud of you.”

“Then why are you leaving me behind? Ms. Tian said you've resigned and won't teach me after this. Did you resign on purpose just because you don’t like me anymore?”

Lin Wan couldn't help but smile. She wiped away Lu Jiaxue's tears and said gently, “Jiaxue, I resigned due to some family matters. It has nothing to do with you. Even though I won’t be teaching you anymore, we’re still good friends and can always keep in touch. How could I bear to leave you behind?”

“Will you still be my mummy then?”

“Of course, all of you are my children, and I would love to be your mother!”

“I don't like that kind of mum, that's not the kind of mum I want!”

What she said made Lin Wan laugh. She couldn't help but tease her, “What kind of mother do you want then?”

The little girl cocked her head for a moment and twirled her fingers, “I want a mother who can cook for me, stay together with me, tell me stories, play games and be there for me as I grow up.”

Lin Wan was startled. The kind of mother Jiaxue meant was a biological mother. She couldn’t provide this kind of mother’s love. Not that she couldn’t, but definitely not to the little girl in front of her.

“Jiaxue, I'm sorry, but I can't be that kind of mother. Teacher can only act as a mentor in your life, encouraging you when you are lost and giving you a hand when you are in need. I have my own family and life, so I can't act as your biological mother.”

Seeing that Lu Jiaxue started to cry again, Lin Wan had to soothe her gently. After a long talk, the little girl finally stopped sobbing and looked up to ask, “Mummy, will we never see each other again after the finals?”

For some reason, Lin Wan didn't want to lie to her. Hence she nodded her head and admitted, “Yes, I will be leaving the country soon and probably won't be back for a long time. It will indeed be difficult for us to see each other again in the future.”

“Mummy, can you fulfill a request of mine then?”

After Lu Jiaxue finished speaking, she looked at Lin Wan with her clear, big eyes, making the latter unable to refuse her request.

“Alright, go on me, what request do you want me to fulfill?”

“Teacher, can you spend more time with me these few days? I lost my mother when I was very young, and now you’re leaving me too. Can I request for you to be by my side for a few more days?”

Lin Wan's heart ached upon hearing these words. Her life was very similar to Lu Jiaxue's, just that hers was much more miserable. Lu Jiaxue lost only her mother, but Lin Wan lost both her parents when she was very young.

Although all the other family members showered her with love and affection, none of them could replace her parents. It was said that a father's love was like a mountain, and that a mother's love was like the sea. Alas, she could never experience such emotions.

“Okay, I promise to spend more time with you in the next few days, but you’ll have to promise me something back in return!”

“I know, I know, I'll make sure to sing properly and never mess up on purpose again.”

“You little mischief!” Lin Wan snapped and scraped the tip of Lu Jiaxue's nose with her hand, “So you were really messing up on purpose! I’ll really get mad at you if you do that again.”

“I won’t, I won’t, I definitely won't mess up anymore. Mummy, don't worry, I'll sing well and make you proud by winning the championship for you.”