Seven months later…
Lu Xinyi had just received a call from Chen Anqi and couldn’t help the smile spreading on her lips over the good news she received today. Sun Feiyan had woken up from her coma when Qing Qing was about a month old, and now, her engagement with Ye Xingjie would be announced in public soon.
A pair of arms wrapped around her from behind as Shen Yi kissed her cheek.
“You’re smiling. Something good happened?” he asked.
Lu Xinyi hummed and turned to face him. “I think so. Now that Feiyan is free from the Sun family. It’s G.o.dd.a.m.n time for her to get her own happiness.”
Shen Yi toyed with a lock of hair. Finally, after months of waiting, her hair returned to its previous length. “Then, what do you plan to do with her mother? Release her?”
A year ago, Lu Xinyi told her bodyguards to find Sun Feiyan’s biological mother; but she hadn’t expected to stumble on the secret on Sun Feiyan’s birth. Her mother was indeed a maid from the Sun household; when the woman noticed that Sun Weijun took interest in her, she used this as leverage to step up her status.
During her pregnancy, she used her unborn baby to rip money and advantage over the fact that she was carrying Sun Weijun’s child. Of course, Sun Mingai—the witch that she was—found out her plans. She not only forced the woman to give up the newborn baby’s custody but paid a hefty price to leave her brother and Sun Weijun alone.
Lu Xinyi would’ve a.s.sumed that she would decline Sun Mingai’s offer, but that woman took the opposite turn and sold Sun Feiyan to the Sun family in favor to receive a million yuan in exchange.
However, a few years later when Sun Feiyan turned eight, she reappeared again and asked for more money to the Sun family. If they didn’t, she planned to leak into the public about Sun Feiyan’s heritage.
Sun Feiyan had just lost her father at that time and was oblivious about her biological mother using her as a cash cow to gain money from the Sun family. Sun Mingai had once again blocked the meeting between the mother and child.
This time, Sun Mingai refused to give her anything, not even a cent. Instead, she threatened Sun Feiyan’s mother that if she was to come near the family or Sun Feiyan for money, she would make sure the woman would pay for her arrogance with her own life.
“I already did. She has no use of me anymore. The only reason I bought her back at the capital was for her blood. Nothing else. As a mother, she’d failed Feiyan since birth. Her blood alone wouldn’t be enough to pay the price,” Lu Xinyi said.
Speaking of the Sun family, she hadn’t heard anything new about Sun Mingai except for the rumors that she’d been drowning herself with alcohol every night, not leaving the Sun Estate since the downfall of the family business.
Her dream about her mother when she gave birth to Qing Qing also crossed her mind. Was it really a dream or did her mother really want her to do something for her?
“Yi, do you think you can run a check about my mother’s properties? I really have no idea how many properties or a.s.sets she had when she was still alive, and I keep hearing praises from her acquaintances that she was involved in stock trading.”
She didn’t dare to voice out about her dream, in fear that he might misunderstand it. It was also a daunting task to ask Zhang Qing about it since the woman’s hands were already full of reports and tasks related to her restaurants and other businesses.
“It’s not that hard to find out. I’ll ask Qiao He about it.” Shen Yi a.s.sured her. “Is that all you need?”
Lu Xinyi nodded. Maybe she was crazy about believing her dream, but if it could give her some answers, then she wouldn’t mind the trouble at all.
—-
Shen Yi and Lu Xinyi were invited to attend Li Qiao’s third wedding anniversary with her husband. Lu Xinyi was still not used to attending social events like this, but because she somewhat owed Li Qiao when Zou Yin abducted them, she attended nevertheless.
Shen Yi had never talked about Li Qiao to her, and neither did she question him about her. Li Qiao was from a prominent family while her husband was someone she met abroad while she was studying music. Her husband was a famous composer while Li Qiao was a popular pianist overseas.
Shen Yi must have known about the marriage for some time but hadn’t mentioned it.
Meanwhile, Li Yuren stood over the balcony of his parents’ home, watching the activities taking place downstairs. As expected, his mother’s opulence knew no bounds. Madam Li had set a world-cla.s.s ballroom inside their ma.s.sive home just to throw parties like this.
The floors were marble, and the columns were highlighted with gold linings. On one side, a mirror wall was installed to give the guest an impression of a larger s.p.a.ce.
Only the wealthiest, most prominent figures were invited; and they usually all attended since they knew about Madam Li’s reputation to throw extravagant but rare parties. She also had a reputation for throwing the best events in town that were talked about for months.
This was also a good way to establish a connection with other personalities, which was why Shen Yi chose to attend it with his wife.
Guests enjoyed spectacular dishes prepared by the sponsored students of the Li family at Silver Leaf. This was why Tian Lingyu was back in town and working with Ye Xieren in the kitchen as the Li family hosted the party.
Li Yuren was dressed sharply, wearing black pants and coat with a white s.h.i.+rt underneath. He was rarely at home and wouldn’t have come if it wasn’t for his sister’s insistence.
He preferred to stay away from the crowd because some women would shamelessly throw themselves to him just to get his attention, and he hated that his face and the family name alone could already attract this unnecessary attention. He hated the attention. He would rather stay low-key than flaunt whatever he had to everyone. However, his cold att.i.tude wasn’t enough to stop women to bother him.
Maybe this was the reason why Lu Xinyi’s dismissal over their engagement piqued his attention. He couldn’t understand why she would vehemently disagree if she knew to whom she was going to marry. He was certain that his mother only accepted Tian Lingyu’s deal for sponsors.h.i.+p because she was a close friend of the deceased Sun Meixiu, Lu Xinyi’s mother.
As he watched the guests arrive one by one, he questioned himself again why he was there. He thought that this event was quite boring; he would rather spend his time back in his office, reading the endless reports piling up on his desk. Socializing certainly wasn’t his strong point, and he didn’t care about it one bit.
He continued to scan the crowd until something caught him by surprise. What was she doing here?
Li Yuren’s question was answered instantly when Shen Yi appeared behind Lu Xinyi, his hand resting at her small back as he introduced her to other guests as his wife.