The fate of the tree is not in its own hands....
The story was finished, and Mrs. Tsurumi seemed thoughtful, while Rumi suddenly stood up.
"Mom, I want to go to Shuchiin! That is my own choice!"
Mrs. Tsurumi: "Children shouldn't interrupt when adults are speaking!"
Rumi: "Mom! You said if I got first place in the grade on this exam, you would agree to one request of mine. I want to go to Shuchiin to study!"
Mrs. Tsurumi seemed to get a little angry. This child, who had never contradicted her since childhood, had actually learned to resist.
"So what if you got first in the grade? You're proud just because you got first in the grade, aren't you? If you were really hardworking, why didn't you go get first in the entire prefecture!"
"But... but you clearly promised me."
Mrs. Tsurumi: "Reward? I promised to give you a reward, not to let you leave home to attend that aristocratic academy! The water runs deep there, you can't handle it!"
Rumi gritted her teeth. "If you don't let me try, how do you know I can't!"
"Going to that kind of place is useless. Isn't it good for us to stay in Chiba to study? If you want to learn better knowledge, I can hire a tutor for you...."
Tears welled up in Tsurumi Rumi's eyes.
"But here.... I can't make friends. They are... very childish. I can't connect with them deeply. Is it wrong for me to just want friends who are like-minded?"
Mrs. Tsurumi chuckled. "In the end, you're not doing it for study at all, just to make friends at school. And isn't that because of yourself? Staying cooped up at home all day, it would be a ghost if you could make friends!"
"Look at Shirosaki Hana in your class. She is the same age as you, yet she is sunny and cheerful in class. Why can't you be like that?!"
Shirogane Miyuki saw that the mother and daughter were tending towards an argument and was about to speak, but was interrupted by Uchiha Ryo raising his hand.
Only by gaining courage oneself can one walk a golden path in the wilderness.
Tsurumi Rumi: "Why I don't like to talk, why I can't communicate with my peers, Mom, do you really not understand? If I pour out my troubles to you, you double the troubles. If I analyze my happiness with you, you only make the happiness disappear! From beginning to end, the only thing you tell me is to hurry up and study!"
Mrs. Tsurumi also had a personality that refused to admit defeat. She seemed to have also forgotten that there were two guests in the house.
"Rumi, I feed you and clothe you, am I wrong? Then tell me where I am wrong!"
Tsurumi Rumi: "Just like the Hana you mentioned, her mother is especially gentle and supports her in whatever she does. But I don't get a bit of support. You reject everything I want to do, and in the end, make me go study, go think!"
"What you want and what you like have to be useful for your future! If I don't support you.... could it be that I should allow you to do whatever you want?!"
Tsurumi Rumi: "But the Shirosaki Hana you mentioned, her mother supports her in doing what she wants."
"That is because Hana is outstanding!"
"....."
Tsurumi Rumi smiled, speaking as if deflated, "So even though I work so hard, you have never felt that I was outstanding?"
Mrs. Tsurumi's face was calm. "What do you think? Hana is sunny, cheerful, confident, and obedient. But what about you? I still need to force you in your studies, and you even learned to talk back to me here."
"If you were as outstanding as others, would I not support you?!"
Tsurumi Rumi: "The reason they are outstanding is because they have the support of their families!"
Uchiha Ryo coughed lightly, finally interrupting the conversation between mother and daughter. In this battlefield belonging to the Tsurumis, Rumi had already been defeated.
Without even a moment to mourn for the lost Rumi, joining the battlefield immediately is Uchiha Ryo!
"Look, isn't the problem—right here. Mrs. Tsurumi! Excellence is the result of being loved! Not the reason for being loved...."
Mrs. Tsurumi: "Then what do you want me to do? Listen to whatever she says! Children nowadays cannot be spoiled. I am doing this for her own good, for the sake of her future!"
Uchiha Ryo: "But you deny her efforts like this? What will you use to define her success or failure in the end!"
Mrs. Tsurumi: "It will be fine once she gets into university according to my plan."
"Will it be fine once she gets into university?"
Mrs. Tsurumi: "Then it will be fine once she graduates and works!"
"Is she successful once she works? What about her marriage, having children, the education of the next generation? Will she have to oppress her children like you do, repeating the cycle all over again!"
"....."
Mrs. Tsurumi looked at Rumi, whose eyes remained determined despite the tears flowing out.
"But.... when I was young, I was educated this way too. I just hope she can become better...."
Uchiha Ryo: "Hoping she can become whatever you want doesn't exist! That is just your idealization! All parents in the world hope their children will become dragons, but you.... have you lived up to the way your parents hoped you would?"
.....
When the three left the Tsurumi house, both Shirogane Miyuki and Tsurumi Rumi breathed a sigh of relief.
Uchiha Ryo said calmly, "The matter is resolved. After the end of the term, you can go to Shuchiin to take the grade-skipping exam."
Tsurumi Rumi nodded. "I understand. Then where will I live in Tokyo? Mom and Dad might not come over often."
Rumi didn't need to worry about this. Uchiha Ryo repeated Yukino's words. Anyway, the high-end apartment had rooms, and Yukino lived alone, so it would be nice for the two to keep each other company.
Returning to the inn at the foot of the Chiba Forest mountain, Uchiha Ryo told the story of how he "peacefully" persuaded Mrs. Tsurumi, and Yukinoshita couldn't help but smile.
"You did well."
Uchiha Ryo: "I did well, is there a reward?"
"Hmm, how about I treat you to a meal?"
Uchiha Ryo: "I don't want to eat food, I want to eat candy."
Yukinoshita rolled her eyes. "No candy for you. I'm going back to my room to rest."
"That's not up to you!"
Finding that there was no one nearby, Uchiha Ryo pulled the beauty directly into his arms and gave her a peck like a dragonfly skimming the water.
However, Uchiha Ryo wouldn't do anything more. Although no one saw it now, it would be hard to explain if Chitanda and the others came over.
Yukinoshita glared at Uchiha Ryo speechlessly. "Humph, it seems that letting Rumi live at my place is really great."
Hmm? Wait a minute! Was this also in your calculation, Yukino!
Uchiha Ryo suddenly realized that if Tsurumi Rumi lived at Yukino's house, wouldn't he be unable to go to Yukino's house every day to... cough cough... mooch off the air conditioning?!
"Uh, well, how about letting Rumi live at my place?"
Yukinoshita revealed a victor's smile. "Do you think Rumi would agree, or Mrs. Tsurumi would agree? Rumi will live at my house from now on. Less coming up to get handsy!"
Really, what kind of person did she take him, the dignified Uchiha Ryo, for! The naturally kind Uchiha Ryo was just afraid that the Uchiha bloodline would be cut off in this world. He just wanted to restore the Uchiha in his own way~