"I"ll raise the child!" The voice came from the door.
Murong Yunxi and Murong Ye turned toward the door. There was no expression on Lian Can"s face but her puffy, but her bloodshot eyes were filled with absolute certainty.
She stepped inside and walked over to them, looking as if she had to exert great effort to make every step.
She walked up to Murong Yunxi and brought the young child into her embrace. Having learned the basics of taking care of a baby in the past few days, she could now carry the child with ease.
"Someone from my family will be here to take this child later. I"ll settle Tianxin"s matters. You can leave now." Lian Can sounded both apathetic and distant. Even though she wasn"t blunt, it was obvious that she didn"t welcome them anymore and wanted them to leave.
"Lian Can, you can let us know if you need anything." Murong Yunxi looked calm but her gaze remained fixed on the child with faint sympathy reflected in her pupils.
"That won"t be necessary!" Lian Can firmly and coolly rejected Murong Yunxi"s kind intentions.
Murong Yunxi looked up and glanced at Lian Can. Then, she dragged Murong Ye out of the ward.
"Your sympathy is acting up again." Murong Ye stared icily at Murong Yunxi, who walked ahead of her.
"I"m not sympathizing her. I just find the child pitiful. He reminds me of the child that I never got to meet." Murong Yunxi"s words were imbued with a deep sense of loss. Her heart squeezed as she recalled her child who never took shape.
Murong Ye stared at her from behind, finding her to be such a lonely figure. She looked so frail despite her straight back.
Murong Yunxi might be young, but she was a mother who doted on her child. Even though she didn"t show great despair at the child"s pa.s.sing, it must have left a deep mark on her heart.
Murong Ye took large strides to join Murong Yunxi"s side. Extending his slender arm, he pulled Murong Yunxi into a hug. Together, they moved forward step by step.
In a flash, it was three days after Jia Tianxin"s incident. Lian Can seemed to have become a whole other person. Once an arrogant and willful young lady, she seemed to have grown up overnight to become a career woman who could prop up half the sky.
She had basically dealt with Jia Tianxin"s matter on her own. She even rejected Lian Feng"s attempt to interfere.
Lian Can had adopted Jia Tianxin"s child. They wanted to name the child Jia Lianqi in the beginning, but Lian Can now changed it to Lian Siqi. She didn"t want the child to find out about his terrible past. These were all things that would be sure to wound his heart. She wanted him to live a blissful life.
The sudden appearance of a child caught Lian Feng off guard, but old folks tended to carry particular antic.i.p.ation for children. When he saw how adorable the baby was, he found himself quite happy with it.
It was as if things had gone back to where they belonged and life was heading toward a period of tranquility.
The airport.
Today, Gong Yu and Seventh Brother would be returning. Murong Yunxi arrived at the airport early in the morning to welcome them back. Even though it had just been three days since she last saw them, she missed them terribly. Perhaps it was because people tended to find an escape outlet after experiencing unhappy affairs.
So she was already waiting at the airport before Gong Yu"s plane even touched down.
She placed both her arms on the railing with ease. Her head was lowered as she carelessly scrolled down on her phone. When she thought she heard someone calling her name, she looked up and scanned her surroundings. There were many people around but she couldn"t see the figure that she was so familiar with.
Suddenly, someone patted her on the shoulder. She turned to look. To her surprise, it was Mou Yichen.
"Yichen, why are you here?" Murong Yunxi was stunned. Mou Yichen seemed to have vanished from her life altogether. Her memories of him had been fading. Somehow, their unexpected meeting still caused significant turbulence in her heart. They were friends of many years, after all.
"It"s been a while, Xiao Xi! Such a coincidence to meet you here." Mou Yichen was wearing an elegant and gentle smile. He looked no different than that warm, childish boy of the past.
"Yeah, such a coincidence! It"s been some time since we last met. Did you come here for a business trip?" Murong Yunxi calmly returned his smile, her gaze staying on Mou Yichen"s increasingly handsome face.
"Yep. I spent a few days in France to discuss a project and just came back now." Out of the blue, a slight frown appeared on Mou Yichen"s face. With a disdainful look, he said, "Why did you put on this pair of large gla.s.ses again? It"s hideous! I wouldn"t have recognized you if I wasn"t so used to it!"
"Hehe. That"s what I"m hoping to achieve! I was worrying that it"d be a ha.s.sle to show up at the airport." Murong Yunxi"s smile was tainted with a hint of helplessness.
"That"s right. Things are different now. You"re now a star! You"d create a ruckus if you show up like this." Mou Yichen flashed a bright smile. It was both joyful and sincere without the slightest mockery.
"What star? It"s just a movie. Besides, I don"t plan to continue working in the entertainment world. I"m going to welcome Gong Yu back later, so it"s best to keep a low profile."
"Oh yes, the impressive celebrity couple! I"ve heard of your magnificent feat at the Golden Movie Awards. I"m really proud of you, Xiao Xi. You shine no matter what you do; you make it so that others have no choice but to look at you. You"re outstanding regardless of what you do! You did so well at Xing Shang, and even you"ll continue to prosper in the business world!"
"What the heck, I"m just a small potato! I"m no match for you. You managed Mou"s Group so well that I"m still playing catch up behind you."
"Oh, that"s quite enough! Xiao Xi, I"m really happy to see you like this. Life is finally bringing you a fortune."
"Yichen, thank you for helping me all these years. I owe it to you and Xuanxuan for making it this far."
"Oh right, how"s Xuanxuan recently? I haven"t heard anything from her for a long time!"
"Xuanxuan? She"s doing alright! She was a little unhappy before, but things should be better now."
"Hmm. Life can never be smooth-sailing forever. I"m happy as long as you two are doing well."
"Yichen, how are you lately?"
"Me? I"m doing well. Things are fine at the company; the only complaint I have is that I"m far too busy. I keep having to go on business trips. Oh... and I have a girlfriend now."
A bright light flitted across Mou Yichen"s unfathomable pupils but soon disappeared within the dark pools. His emotion disappeared as soon as it appeared.
"Girlfriend? Wow... What girl is that fortunate?" Murong Yunxi"s eyes brightened. She stared at Mou Yichen with exceptional excitement.
"I think you all know her. Jiang Xiaonuan."
"Jiang Xiaonuan? Oh, wow. How did you two get together?"
"Well, we met at Sanya back then. Then... Then we got together."
"Oh, not bad! Xiaonuan is a great girl. You need to treasure her!"
"Yeah, she"s a good girl. That"s why I"m honored to be with her." There was an inexplicable and unreadable emotion crossing his pupils.
Mid-conversation, the PA system announced that Gong Yu"s plane had landed.
"Oh, Gong Yu"s plane has landed! Do you want to go back together, Yichen? We can grab a meal together!"
"I"ll have to take a rain check. My chauffeur is waiting for me outside. Next time. Next time I"ll bring Xiaonuan along and we"ll have dinner together."
"Sounds great!" "Oh, but I"ll be leaving for the US the day after tomorrow and will stay there for a short while. I probably won"t be back until just before the end of the year. Let"s meet tomorrow if you have time."
"Sure. I"ll give you a call tomorrow. Bye then."
"Sure. See you!"
Putting down the suitcase in his hand, Mou Yichen opened his arms and gave Murong Yunxi a gentle hug. The simple embrace wasn"t tainted with complicated emotions. It was just a greeting hug between two good friends who hadn"t meet for a long time.
Murong Yunxi watched Mou Yichen"s tall and straight figure disappear amid the crowd before turning her head. She happened to see Gong Yu standing several meters away, staring at her with an apathetic expression.
She hastily walked up to him with a smile. "Gong Yu."
Mid-speech, she gently hugged his arm. Smiling, she asked, "How was it? Are you tired? Did things go well?"
There was no change in Gong Yu"s indifferent expression. He quietly scoffed. "Hmm." Then, he walked out of the door without another word.
Behind them, Seventh Brother was hauling their luggage. Murong Yunxi was startled. She turned around in bewilderment and asked, "Seventh Brother, did your trip not go well?"
Seventh Brother casually replied, "Nope. Things went very smoothly. Plus, we even got a bonus!"
Murong Yunxi pointed to the gloomy man in front of them. "What"s wrong with him then?"
Seventh Brother gave Murong Yunxi a meaningful look. "That"s a problem between you two!"
"Our problem? What problem do we have?"
"Well, go home and reflect on exactly how you offended your family"s Mr. Iceberg! Can you stop him from hurting the innocent with his iciness? We"re in the middle of winter, you know." Looking like he was enjoying watching the show, Seventh Brother calmly rolled his eyes at Murong Yunxi. He swiftly chased after Gong Yu.
Murong Yunxi was left standing in place, looking bewildered. Moments later, she abruptly ran after them.
Inside the car, Gong Yu leaned against the seat and rested with his eyes closed. Seventh Brother was playing with his phone in the pa.s.senger seat.
Murong Yunxi felt unease all over. Right now, she felt like an unnecessary presence here. Suddenly, she felt somewhat aggrieved.
She came to the airport early in the morning and waited for more than two hours just to welcome Gong Yu home. Yet what she received in return was such treatment.
The more she thought about it, the sullener she became. In the end, she leaned against her seat and closed her eyes, pretending to be dozing off.
The atmosphere inside the car seemed to get colder and colder. Seventh Brother, who sat in the pa.s.senger seat, felt a chill on the back of his neck. Ultimately, he decided to get off early when they were near his house.
The mood lingered until they reached Murong Ye"s villa.
When the car stopped, Gong Yu got off first and went straight to the trunk to retrieve his suitcase. Then, he walked to the door by himself.
Murong Yunxi sulked even harder. She opened the car door with force and slammed the door. Seeing Gong Yu"s back made her even angrier.
With her rage skyrocketing, she threw her handbag straight at his back and it hit him squarely. Gong Yu felt a stab of pain and whipped around in anger.
Murong Yunxi glared at him with her large, black, and gleaming eyes. "Gong Yu, you b.a.s.t.a.r.d!"