Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
While she just stared ahead, silent yet focused, her calm little face looked a little pale. A while after that, his fingers tightened and he silently held her hand.
He coughed and took a tissue to cover his mouth. With a deep inhalation, he suddenly said softly, "There are some things that are taboo to bring up to the Mu family. No one has ever mentioned Aunty's name all these years. Everyone feels that time can conceal all this unhappiness."
As he said this, there was a faint smile on his lips. He turned to look at the green weeping willows that they left behind and said lightly, "There'll be some things you want to forget, but it's hard, especially when you've experienced it personally..."
After he said this, the two of them remained silent for a very, very long time. His handsome face was unfathomable in the dim lights as Xi Xiaye quietly drove without speaking. Suddenly, she heard him sigh, "Okay, let's not talk about these unhappy things anymore. Don't tell them that we came here when we get back. Just talk about things that are worth being happy about."
He did not plan to continue, so he bent down and took out a CD to play. Soon, upbeat music quickly poured out of the speakers, flushing out the depressing mood in the car.
Seeing that he was not in a dreary mood, she thought about it and suggested, "These two days, the company is on holiday. There are still some things I left in the office. Now that it's after working hours, let's go get it on the way. Since we don't have to work tomorrow, let's go out tonight to relax. How about that?"
He frowned slightly and looked at her slightly pale face in disagreement. "Those two days are your sick days off. How do you still have the enthusiasm?"
Xi Xiaye shrugged, peering innocently at him. She struggled for a while before saying frustratedly, "Mr. Mu, don't you think that the way we go home to have dinner and rest after work every day without any leisure plans, doesn't feel like the life of newlyweds? Even I feel like I've been married to you for years! Other people who've been married for years still can hold hands and go dancing. You're not exciting at all. I've never seen you ask me out..."
When she pointed this out, Mu Yuchen raised his brows in shock at her. Quite a while after that, he said in a deep voice, "Missus, excitement, is it? Didn't I just satisfy you last night? It was you begged for me to stop..."
"I'm not talking about that! Don't you dare change the topic. I was saying that we aren't like other newlywed couples... Other people are so happy and sweet," Xi Xiaye complained, shooting him a displeased look.
Mu Yuchen looked at her, understanding dawning in his eyes as he laughed. "I've told you many times, your happiness is built in the eyes of others... Can't you just tell me that you want to go for a honeymoon with me?"
She glared at him, yet she did not deny it.
"We can only wait for the first of May. Once the South River project is done, then we can relax. We'll have tons of time to relax afterward. Where do you want to go? Bali? Or France? Your husband will definitely satisfy you."
As he spoke, the gloominess around him faded away too. Now, he was looking at with a faint smile.
Even though she was not a humorous person either, yet behaving foolishly with her and talking to her was a very delightful thing.
"I want to travel the world. Can you satisfy me?" She shot him a sour look and demanded unhappily.
He thought about it, and answered seriously, "I'll go to the city right now to buy you a globe."
"Annoying! Can you not take advantage of my words?"
"Then, how can I take advantage of you?"
"I'll take advantage of you ! I'll let you take it! Take it!"
"Ouch! Missus, is this the finger of a King Kong? How painful!"
When the car slowly made its way to the lobby of Glory World Corporation, the sky had darkened and most of the employees have gotten off work.
The husband and wife just stopped the car at the plaza before the entrance. Then, they made their way up together to pack their things from their offices. Xi Xiaye was pretty quick. She swiftly put all her things into her briefcase and read through two documents that needed her review. Then, she brought them up to the 58th floor.
"Hasn't the government decided on the actual time for the tender meeting? The new policies seemed to have been released. Previously, it was said to be the middle of this month. Why isn't there any news yet?"
Xi Xiaye handed the document to him as he sat at his desk. She remembered bumping into Qi Lei last night and could not help but frown. Truthfully, she was not sure whether or not to tell him.
"I just got off the phone with someone from the other end. It's scheduled to be on the 12th this month, a few days earlier than the initially decided date, so we have to rush a little. Other companies should've finished handing the documents over in the next few days. Today I also asked Li Si to send the additional materials over, so you don't have to worry."
He took the document and flipped it open before briefly looking through it. Then, he signed his name.
She nodded and hesitated for a moment before continuing, "Right, on Yueying's end, VP Liu might need to go to City B with Ah Mo for the whole of next month. He wants to let me take over the other side, and he asked me to ask you..."
"Mmm, as you wish. If you don't want to go, I can arrange for someone else to take over. I'm sure you know that Elder Madam Xi is planning to hand the company to Xi Xinyi to handle. Because she left the industry just like that, I think she'll let Xi Xinyi take over Yueying as quickly as possible. That way, the Yue family will step in, and then they can stabilize the Han family for now." Mu Yuchen had already analyzed everything clearly.
Xi Xiaye nodded and sighed, "I almost forgot about the Yue family. With the Yue family, even Grandfather and Father can't curry their favor. Besides, the Yues and the Qis do have a very subtle relationship. Xi Xinyi can't count on Han Yifeng, so the Yue family is still her strong backup in the end just like this time. If it weren't for them, Yang Jianfeng wouldn't have taken the fall so quickly..."
Now that she thought about it, she really was reluctant, but well she had no other choice. It was true that she did stab Yang Jianfeng's eye until he went blind.
He looked at the way she was so dejected, and could not help but grin. "Giving up so quickly already?"
She lifted her head a little defeatedly and lamented, "What else can I do then? I've finally made a breakthrough, but... Forget it. This time, I'll just consider her lucky. I'm afraid there'll be more friction after this."
"You don't have to worry about the other side. Just let VP Liu handle it. Okay, let's go home. Tonight I'll watch a movie with you."
"Have you bought the tickets already?"
"Who says we have to go to the cinema to watch movies?"
"Mr. Mu, why aren't you romantic at all?"
"Shall I have a candlelight dinner with you?"
"Tacky!"
...
It was Qingming. Drizzle fell and after a few light showers, the entire City Z was engulfed in haziness. The cold winds continued and it was so gloomy that even the skies feel depressing.
Inside the CEO's office of the Han Corporation, Han Yifeng who had vanished for several days was currently leaning against the sofa in his office and downing glass after glass of spirit.
His usually stern and dashing face was no longer that charming. Now, it was only left with loneliness and desolateness. He looked completely dispirited.
The office was on a break, so the entire company was empty. There was no one at all. Engulfed in the gloomy rain, it was so still and quiet that one felt suffocated.
On the table beside him was a handphone that kept buzzing. It did not seem to stop, yet its owner did not pick up a single call. The sweet-sounding ringtone flowed in the silent and stifling space, seeming particularly eerie.
It was not sure how long passed before the ringtone finally fell silent again, yet there came a knocking from outside the door. Before he could respond, the person outside had already pushed the door to enter.
As expected, the person who came was Han Yu!
Han Yu had just entered when the strong smell of alcohol assailed his nostrils. He immediately frowned and looked ahead to see the inebriated Han Yifeng.
"Yifeng!"
Frowning, Han Yu walked up to Han Yifeng is a few huge strides. He snatched the wine glass from his hand and then noticed that on the table, quite a few empty bottles were toppled all over while cigarette butts littered the floor.
"Don't drink anymore. Look at how you are now! How unreasonable!"
Han Yu's face sank as he pulled Han Yifeng up, yet he was shoved away with a feeble struggle of the hand. He looked at Han Yu with blur, bloodshot eyes. He pulled at the tie on his chest and spoke hoarsely, "Father, don't stop me. I want to be alone."
"Yifeng, that's enough! Everyone couldn't find you these past few days. What do you want? Your grandfather's very angry. You should get home by now!"
Han Yu was furious! He knew his son too well. Since he was young, he had always been treasured. He always prided himself upon his abilities and was insufferably arrogant, especially since he had never been sharpened on the grindstone or down. Now with something like this, he knew that he would not be able to accept it, just like how he was now; he had become a drunkard!
"You're a man! How can you disappoint us, your grandfather, and your mother and I? You let our expectations of you down by turning yourself into this useless sack because of this little problem?" Han Yu was extremely disappointed as he looked sadly and worriedly at Han Yifeng.
Han Yifeng breathed in heavily and sat on the sofa weakly. He said, feeling worn out and with a raspy voice, "Then, what do you think I should do? The woman I thought I'd been loving deeply has been treating me like a fool and toying with me. Because of her, I didn't spare bearing the accusation of being a heartless rat by abandoning my initial fiancè. Because of her, I was willing to leave the country for a few years just to settle the resentment between Xiaye and I. Because of her, I endured unfair treatment time and time again, tolerating her, accommodating her, and in the end? What did I get?"
When Han Yifeng rambled on about this, he suddenly stopped to sweep a hand across the table filled with empty glass bottles that fell to the ground and shattered loudly.
"What I got were lies from her! Can you imagine that the woman you share a bed with every night would turn out to be that kind of woman? If you were me, wouldn't you find it hard to accept? Wouldn't you feel pain?"
"She did lie to you, but what else can you do now? Do you think you can change reality by being completely drunk? You two are already married! And Xinyi has your child! Your grandfather is hoping that you can recover quickly. Everyone can't talk about this incident anymore. We'll discuss it again once the child is born. In fact, Yueying and the Han Corporation have just settled down. Whatever it is, you have to get back up. Do you understand?" Han Yu held onto Han Yifeng tightly and said earnestly.
"I don't know, Father. I want to be alone for a while. Is that so hard? Can't you guys just pause for a while and let me be myself for a while?"
Han Yifeng pulled the part of his shirt that Han Yu held onto back, staring at Han Yu with bloodshot eyes. His gloomy face almost could not contain his anger and because of his huge movements, Han Yu stumbled.
"Yifeng!" Han Yu widened his eyes and looked at Han Yifeng.
Han Yifeng just picked up the car keys on the table and turned to walk outside!
Bam!
The loud sound of the door slamming came, shocking Han Yu again.
...
Han Yifeng held his car keys and walked out unsteadily, yet he did not expect that as soon as he walked out of his office, he would find a frail Xi Xinyi standing in the empty corridor ahead.
Dressed in a flowy, white dress, she seemed thinner compared to the past few days. She looked haggard and her face was pale. She was so weak that she seemed like a crystal between one's fingers. One tap could shatter her...
Looking at her made one pity her.
She stood there silently and covered half her face with one hand, the other lightly holding onto her belly that was still flat. She looked tearfully at Han Yifeng and called out to him in a raspy voice softly, "Yifeng..."
Han Yifeng leaned a hand onto the cold wall. He also stopped walking in that instant as he looked up with exhausted, bloodshot eyes at Xi Xinyi who suddenly appeared. His dispirited face sank slightly and his eyes shifted with a complicated look.
"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry... It's all my fault, but I'm begging you to not be like this... I really didn't do it on purpose. I was just too afraid of losing you... If I can make it up to you, I'm willing to do anything... Just don't abandon me and the baby, okay?"
Xi Xinyi was worn out mentally and physically. Her tears were about to run dry, and now her eyes were tearful and red, yet not a single tear fell. Even her voice sounded weak too.
She sniffed, her body trembling as she looked at Han Yifeng. Underneath the dim lights, she already looked extremely frail and almost could not bear another oncoming gust of cold wind.
"I'm really sad and I'm suffering too... It wasn't easy for us to reach this point, so I'm begging you not to give up just like that, okay? I know that I have a lot of weaknesses, and a lot of things you can't stand, but I promise you, I will change from now on. I will... Just give me one more chance... Don't give up just like that, alright, Yifeng?"
Xi Xinyi's voice shook weakly, mixed with a trace of anxiousness. Her frail body trembled slightly too, but she feigned strength as she looked at Han Yifeng.
Han Yifeng did not answer. He just widened his eyes that felt hot with anger and disappointment and looked at Xi Xinyi in front of him.
Almost every time he saw her like this, he would not be able to help but feel his heart ache, yet now he seemed to feel numb.
He breathed in deeply, and suddenly closed his eyes to calm down for a while before slowly opening them again. The emotions in his eyes seemed to have been tamped back as they returned to be still and clear.
He looked at Xi Xinyi and was about to say something, yet when the words reached his lips, he did not know what else he could say. He fell silent for a moment, then finally lowered his gaze and decided to just silently walked over with his head lowered.
He desperately needed a quiet space to arrange his messy emotions. He needed to let his heart that felt so tense that it could break down to finally have a chance for a momentary rest.
However, Xi Xinyi seemed like she could not wait. As Han Yifeng walked past her indifferently, her heart that had already been emptied suddenly felt sliced. She seemed to be able to envision a sharp knife stabbing into her heart, fresh blood starting to drip down. She felt her body go weak, and she could not bear it anymore. Her vision turned black as she fell to the ground.
"Xinyi!"
Han Yu who had followed Han Yifeng out saw this scene, so he cried out in alarm immediately. The sharp-sighted Han Yifeng also ran to hold Xi Xinyi as she fell.
Han Yu frowned, his expression tensed as he walked up and quickly said, "Quick! Quickly go to the hospital! Why did she come?"
Han Yifeng's expression darkened while he looked gloomily at the weak Xi Xinyi in his arms. He breathed in deeply and had to carry her before rushing to the elevator.
...
The festive holidays went on for three days, and Xi Xiaye was lazy for once. Last night, she watched movies with Mr. Mu till midnight. They had watched quite a few newly released Western blockbusters in a row all the way until they could not open their eyes any longer. Then, they were happy to go to sleep.
They slept all the way until 10 a.m. When she woke up, the man was no longer beside her. His warm spot in the bed had also cooled, but his smell was still faintly in the air.
Xi Xiaye got up unhurriedly. She pulled at her messy head of hair, changed into a simple home outfit from the wardrobe, and then walked to the bathroom.
A short while after, she was done washing up and walked out with her tidily combed, waist-length hair, she looked around the corridors upstairs and did not see him. She was to go downstairs when she heard the lapping of water.
She raised her brows and hesitated. Then, she turned to walk to the balcony.
She had just pushed open the glass door when the cold wind poured in, causing the muslin curtains to rustle and sway gently in the air. A light, cold moistness met her face. Before her was still the gloomy sky engulfed in clouds and mist amid the drizzle as the light rain fell...
She walked to the railing and looked down. Indeed, in the wide swimming pool, she saw the man swimming. On the soft couch underneath the beach umbrella by the side were his clothes and a book.
Was he crazy?
It was a cold, rainy day and he was swimming?
In fact, he had not even fully recovered. Last night, she vaguely heard him suppressing his cough, and now...
Xi Xiaye frowned in silence for a while. Then, she looked up at the gloomy, hazy sky and the drizzle that kept falling. A long while after that, she finally could not help but sigh softly, and abruptly turned to leave the balcony.
After another solid lap, he heard the splashing of water. He emerged from the water, breaking the momentary silence on the surface.
Mu Yuchen lifted a hand to wipe the water droplets on his face away. He breathed in, turned around, and leaned against the cold wall of the pool to catch his breath. His long and delicate lashes fluttered for a while, and silently watched the ripples that continued before him.
"Going swimming so early in the morning on a cold rainy spring day. You sure have pretty good hobbies."
Suddenly, Xi Xiaye's calm and peaceful voice came from behind. It sounded a little raspy because she had not recovered from her cold yet.
He blinked and looked toward the source of the sound. He then noticed that she had already stopped behind him and was handing him a clean towel, watching him from above.
"You're awake."
His low and husky voice blurted out these two words and before Xi Xiaye could answer, he dove into the pool once again, creating a splash.
After a lap, he then unhurriedly climbed up to the side and took the towel she handed him. He put it over him and looked at her pale little face to say softly, "I thought you'd sleep into the afternoon."
"I was woken up by hunger. Let's go back. You're swimming when you haven't recovered. You really treat your body like nothing."
She looked calmly at him. Without waiting for his answer, she already bent over to pick up the things on the table.
"It's just a way of training. Today, I'll go out with you," he answered softly, then put an arm around her shoulder and walked into the villa with her.
Xi Xiaye carried his clothes and followed his lead as she answered, "I'm not going to be tormented anymore. We'll stay home to rest well the next two days..."
Yet, before she could finish, the sound of the phone suddenly rang. It was coming from the clothes in her arms.
"Answer it," he said as he dried his wet hair with a towel.
Xi Xiaye swiftly took out the phone, and without even looking, she answered it casually while carrying the clothes in her arms. Before she could say anything, a clear voice had come from the other end.
It was a girl's voice, and it sounded very sweet. "Bro, I'm arriving at City Z's XX airport tomorrow afternoon at 4 p.m. Come pick me up."
When the voice finished, Xi Xiaye was stunned. She subconsciously raised a brow and turned to the man who was drying his hair...
Had the person on the phone called him her brother?
Then, she must be...
She must be the legendary sister-in-law. No, no wait. It should be his cousin... Mu Lingshi?
"Bro?"
When the person on the other end did not get an answer, she started to call out in confusion. Then, Xi Xiaye handed the phone to him and softly, "I think it's..."
He glanced at her and noticed her odd expression, so he took the phone.
"Hello?" His low, raspy voice was heard very quickly.
"Is there someone beside you? Why didn't you answer for such a long time? I'm arriving in City Z tomorrow at 4 p.m. Pick me up," Mu Lingshi said very quickly.
"Have you told Grandfather and Grandmother?"
Mu Yuchen's handsome face darkened slightly although his raspy voice sounded like it contained gentleness.
"No, I'll give them a surprise, I guess. Right, you should come back to the Mu residence tomorrow night too. Bring Sis-in-law along! I'm quite interested to know the kind of woman that made you willing to get married..."
"Mmm, you'll meet her." When Mu Yuchen said this, he glanced at the woman beside him.