Mu Zirui was pretty tired after all, so he fell asleep soon after he said good night.

Xi Xiaye wanted to just sleep right away, but then she remembered that she only had sent Mu Yuchen a text message ever since she got back, so she then grabbed her phone and quickly dialed a number.

However, the call was terminated after just a beep.

Xi Xiaye frowned as she suddenly felt uneasy. She sat up and dialed the same number again after some hesitation, but then the number was not reachable anymore!

What could have happened?

Xi Xiaye was getting worried. She was reminded of the uneasiness she felt in Los Angeles, and her mind started to imagine the worst.

Her phone suddenly rang after a while. She answered when she saw the man's name, "Hello? Mr. Mu?"

The man coughed several times. "It was rather inconvenient to answer just now. It should be pretty late already. Why are you still awake?"

"It is late. I just had to call you when you didn't call me. What are you doing? Inconvenient? You must have some girls over with you, huh?" she teased him with a warm tone in her voice.

He sounded amused as well. "Who else is worthy to be by my side except for you?"

"I'm just kidding!" Xi Xiaye chuckled, "The whole family had dinner together tonight. Your parents seemed pretty busy, and they left soon after dinner. Everything's fine at home. By the way, as you expected, Xi Xinyi called me just now. I told her to meet me tomorrow at noon."

"Mmm, be careful since I'm not there. It won't hurt to bring more bodyguards with you. Do you understand?" he reminded her.

"I know, I know. You too!"

"How're our sons doing?" Mu Yuchen asked.

Xi Xiaye turned towards her sleeping sons and smiled. "They are doing great! Xiao Rui seems taller, and his homework is pretty good. Xiao Cheng can already walk several steps while leaning onto the sofa. He quickly crawls over to me whenever I appear near him."

"My sons are smart. I'm sure the little guy will remember me when I return." Mu Yuchen's words were filled with the pride of a father.

"We'll be waiting for you. Alright, it's time for me to sleep now. I have to send Xiao Rui to school tomorrow. Take care of yourself."

"Mmm, you too. Take care of yourself. Good night."

"Good night, Mr. Mu…" Xi Xiaye then hung up.



The next morning, Xi Xiaye was woken up by the alarm clock. She woke Mu Zirui up, and Mu Xiaocheng woke up after they finished getting ready as well.

After a simple breakfast, she left Mu Xiaocheng to Sis Wang and Aunt Fang. Then, she sent Mu Zirui to school before heading over to Fuhua.

Having been absent for some time, several thick stacks of documents were waiting on her table. Xi Xiaye had no time to spare. She started working once she returned to the office and almost forgot about the time as she started working.

She suddenly remembered her promise with Xi Xinyi when Xiao Mei came into her office with some documents and reminded her to have lunch.

At the Bamboo Teahouse, Xi Xinyi arrived roughly around 12 p.m. She ordered some snacks and a pot of chrysanthemum tea before she flipped through some magazines and listened to music as she waited for Xi Xiaye.

Xi Xiaye only arrived at the appointment half an hour later.

"I thought you were trying to make a fool out of me by making an empty promise." Xi Xinyi's eyes looked complicated as she looked at Xi Xiaye who was helping herself to some tea.

"Do you think I'm that silly?" Xi Xiaye glanced at her as she replied.

Xi Xinyi gave a bitter smile. "I suppose I should be thankful that you came at all."

"I didn't expect the two of us could have a moment like this, sitting down, having some tea, and talking peacefully." Xi Xiaye found it ironic. She calmly sipped the tea as she looked out of the window from which she could see the bamboo leaves falling to the ground.

Xi Xinyi was looking at her instead. She felt like she had never really taken a good look at her sister before.

Now that she was focused on her, she noticed that Xi Xiaye had the silhouette of their father, but the aura and mannerisms of her mother, Shen Wenna.

To be frank, Xi Xinyi was jealous of her. She remembered how she had been attracted by Shen Wenna's aura and beauty the first time she saw her. She was envious that Xi Xiaye had a mother like Shen Wenna while her mother was like that.

She would have surely felt unbalanced before, but as a mother herself, she felt something different now.

One could not choose their birth, and God did not have the duty to make sure everyone was born lucky and prestigious, just like her child.

She was worried that her son might be ashamed of having a mother like her in the future.

She thought that she only lived for herself all these while. She hardly cared about others, and then she pushed the people who cared about her further and further away till she felt bitter inside.

The sisters sat there quietly for a long while. Although Xi Xinyi felt bitter, she was unwilling to just admit her fault here. After some time, she mumbled, "True enough. I never expected for us to meet under these circumstances."

Her tone sounded cold and was colored with a tint of self-mocking. She did not want to expose her weak self in front of Xi Xiaye even though she was already defeated.

Xi Xiaye's expression was calm as she sipped on some tea and did not say anything.

'I thought you were lost for a while. I thought you'd return when you were tired. The story behind the complications...I heard about them all from my friends, walking amidst the cold wind during a winter night…'

Xi Xinyi listened to the song which sounded like it was describing their situation right now. She felt her chest hurt as she listened on. Eventually, she could not help but take a deep breath.