Xia Ruoxin left without waiting for Chu Lui’s answer. She changed into her heels at the door and left, minimizing her contact with anyone at the Chu family household.

Returning to the Lu family, Lu Ke’en and his wife had just returned from overseas.

“Dad, Mom, you’re back.”

She walked over and hugged Jian Qingying and Lu Ke’en, just like she would with her real parents. She had won them over with her sincerity.

“Welcome back.”

“I’ve missed my Xiaohua.” Jian Qingying pulled Xia Ruoxin aside and sized her up. “Wearing office wear, you really do look like an OL1.”

What look? She already was an OL.

Lu Jinrong walked over with a smile. “Okay, come here Xiaohua, I need to talk to you about something. Dad and Mom just got back; let them get some proper rest.”

“I don’t want to rest; I want to talk to my daughter. I haven’t seen her for half a month. My daughter still looks the best. After looking at your dad’s face for so long, I’m tired of it.”

Lu Ke’en’s expression immediately turned gloomy. What did he do to deserve this?

“Let’s go, Xiaohua. Mommy brought a lot of things back for you. You’re sure to like it.” As she spoke, she pulled her daughter away, without regard for her husband or son. In their household, women reigned supreme. Men were at the bottom of the hierarchy. That was the case of Lu Ke’en, not to mention Lu Jinrong.

Lu Jinrong touched his nose, and the father and son stared at each other.

“It’s all your fault. You brought a sister back, and I’m without a wife now.”

Lu Jinrong dared not say anything. He just stood there and let his father put him down. He knew that his dad did not mean anything he said. His dad was actually really happy. He had not spoken so much in a really long time. The house had been gloom and doom since they lost his sister. Now, it was finally beginning to feel alive again.

In the room, Jian Qingying opened the big box. It was filled with women’s products—clothes, jewelry, makeup, and some trinkets. They filled the box to the brim. There were more than ten sets of pajamas alone.

Xia Ruoxin was wondering when she would be able to wear all the clothes. She lifted the luggage into her room and took its contents out. The clothes, jewels, jewelry, and bags had filled out a few shelves already.

No one had ever bought her so many things. It was nice to have a mother.

It was nice to have a daughter.

…

“Is it here?” Lu Jinrong asked Xia Ruoxin, who was seated next to him. They came out this late just to be at this place.

“En, it’s right here. Brother, wait for me a little bit.”

“Okay.” Lu Jinrong agreed and parked the car on the side of the road.

Xia Ruoxin got out of the car and then tightened her clothes. She walked to the door of the apartment where she used to live. She pulled the mat aside and took out a bunch of keys from underneath it. She then opened the door and entered the apartment.

There was a stale and musty smell when she entered the place. This place had been vacant for a really long time, without anyone to clean it. The apartment was fully paid for so it was under her name. However, she probably would never live in it. Even if the place was left vacant like that, she would never sell it.

She walked into the bedroom. The blankets were still folded at the end of the bed, just like she had left it when she left six months ago. She walked over, reached into the blanket, and pulled a doll out. She then locked the door and placed the key in its original position before she left.

“This is what you’re looking for?” Lu Jinrong took the old doll from Xia Ruoxin’s hands.

“My little niece’s.” He knew without thinking who the doll belonged to. The doll was old, but they could not bear to throw it away. Some people were sentimental, but some were good at forgetting.

He placed the doll back into Xia Ruoxin’s embrace. “Hang on to it well; we’ll find her.”

Xia Ruoxin hugged the doll tightly. However, was that possible? Could she really be found? She did not know.

Once again, she was standing at the door of the Chu family home, knocking on their door.

The caretaker was there to open the door promptly. Since her first time there, the number of times she had been here increased. Secretary Xiao Chen happened to be sick recently so Xia Ruoxin was here rather frequently.

“Ms. Lu, you’re here.” The caretaker was polite and friendly towards her.

“Hello,” Xia Ruoxin greeted her. She then changed into the slippers and walked in.

“The younger Mr. Chu is in the study,” the caretaker said hurriedly.

“En, I know, thank you,” Xia Ruoxin said as she went up the stairs. She gently pushed the door open. Surprisingly, Xia Yixuan was not there today.

Didn’t she report for duty here every day?

After a while, Xia Ruoxin stood before Song Wan’s bed. A vegetable had a low chance of regaining consciousness, but Song Wan was well taken care of. They turned her every hour, and there were two nurses hired to take care of her. Half the time she was unconscious, Song Wan not only did not lose weight but gained weight.

“Auntie Song, why do you think they are such unjust things in the word? People like you and Xia Yixuan can lead a happy life even though you’ve done bad things.

“Auntie, do you believe in retributions? I do. If the gods won’t punish you, I’ll do it myself.”

Song Wan was still unconscious. Other than breathing, she was like the living dead.

She turned and walked out, only to see Chu Xiang at the door.

“Auntie, are you here to see Daddy?” Chu Xiang looked up and held Xia Ruoxin’s hand. “Auntie, I’ll bring you to him.”

However, Xia Ruoxin pulled her hand out. She was not particularly fond of Chu Xiang.

Chu Xiang had been trying to get closer to her recently. She finally knew how tough surviving in the Chu family was. Even a small child was scheming and calculating in this household.

Did Song Wan do a good job teaching her? Or was the child made for a family like this? She had no idea; neither was she interested in finding out. There was no way Xia Yixuan would accept this child since she was still dreaming of having a child with Chu Lui. That was the only way she could hold everything the Chu family owned in her hands. However, she did not know that Chu Lui could never have any more children for the rest of his life.

People were too idealistic sometimes. So what if they were calculative and scheming? Their plans still rested on the will of the gods.

1 This simply means ‘office lady’.