Xue Yue looked at Feng Yujie. "They’re gone now. What difference would it make even if you found out?"

Feng Yujie hung her head. "Yeah, what difference would it make?"

Feng Yujie sat on the floor for a long time without speaking. Xue Yue waited for a while, but she didn’t get up.

"Sister Feng."

There was no response.

"Sister Feng?"

Xue Yue looked down and saw that Feng Yujie had already fallen asleep.

She sighed and helped Feng Yujie up from the floor and onto the bed.

’Her tolerance is so low, yet she’s still trying to drink herself into a stupor. Seriously, she’s heavy as lead.’

Xue Yue sat on the bed, catching her breath. They had to leave the next morning, but Feng Yujie’s luggage still wasn’t packed. With no other choice, Xue Yue helped pack Feng Yujie’s things into her suitcase.

The next morning, Xue Yue woke Feng Yujie up.

"Sister Feng, get up. Our flight is this morning."

Feng Yujie sat up. She was still in last night’s clothes and reeked of alcohol. The smell was rather unpleasant. She pinched the bridge of her nose.

"What time is it?"

"Seven o’clock."

Feng Yujie got out of bed and saw her things were already packed. "You did this?"

Xue Yue nodded.

"Thanks."

Then she went in to take a shower.

When Feng Yujie came out of the bathroom, she was back to her usual, stern self.

Just before they left, she said to Xue Yue, "Forget everything that happened last night."

Xue Yue blinked. "Okay."

Finally on the plane home, Xue Yue could hardly wait.

At five in the afternoon, the plane landed at the Beijing City airport. Xue Yue didn’t leave with the others. Instead, she hailed a cab at the airport and went straight home.

When she arrived, no one was home. The main gate was locked tight. Xue Yue took the key from her bag, opened the gate, and went inside.

The courtyard was quiet and had been swept clean.

Xue Yue entered the house, put her things down, and sat on the bed. Looking around at the familiar objects in the room, the corners of her mouth curved up. ’It’s good to be home. Everything has that familiar scent.’

When Mrs. He came back with the children, she found the main gate ajar.

’Is He Lang home?’ she wondered.

She hurried into the courtyard but didn’t see his motorcycle.

Seeing the door to the main house open, she called inside, "He Lang, is that you?"

Xue Yue came out of the house. "Mom, it’s me."

"Mommy."

"Mommy!"

Shiyi and Ruanruan immediately ran toward Xue Yue, who reached out and hugged them.

"Mommy, why did it take you so long to come back? Shiyi missed you so much."

Shiyi even started to cry as he spoke.

Xue Yue stroked his little face, then leaned in for a kiss. "Mommy had to work, but I rushed back as soon as I was done."

Ruanruan hugged Xue Yue’s neck. "Mommy, I missed you too. You were gone for a long, long time."

Xue Yue smiled. "Mommy missed you all very much, too. I brought you presents. Go wash your hands first, and I’ll give them to you in a bit."

"Yay!"

Xiao Yu tugged on Mrs. He’s clothes, watching them with a hint of envy. Xue Yue beckoned to her. "Xiao Yu, go wash your hands, quick. There’s one for you, too."

Xiao Yu’s eyes lit up. She nodded and hurried off to wash her hands.

Mrs. He looked at Xue Yue. "You were gone for so long this time. You’re finally back. You must be tired, right? Are you hungry? I’ll go make you something to eat."

Xue Yue waved her hand. "I’m not hungry. They had food on the plane. Let’s just eat together tonight."

Mrs. He nodded.

That evening, He Lang came home from work as usual. When he pushed open the courtyard gate and saw the lights on in the main house, he froze for a second. Forgetting all about his motorcycle, he ran inside.

He pushed open the door and saw Xue Yue standing in front of the wardrobe, putting away clothes.

He Lang stood motionless in the doorway, just watching her.

Hearing the sound, Xue Yue turned to look at him. "You’re back."

He Lang paused, then walked over to Xue Yue.

"When did you get back?"

"My flight landed a little after five this afternoon, so I came straight here."

Xue Yue hung the last piece of clothing in the closet, only then noticing that He Lang was still standing there like a fool.

Xue Yue couldn’t help but laugh. "Are you in a daze from seeing me back?"

He Lang mumbled, "I’m trying to figure out if I’m dreaming."

Xue Yue smiled. She walked to He Lang’s side, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and gave him a kiss on the corner of his mouth. Then she looked at him. "Still feel like you’re dreaming now?"

He Lang looked at Xue Yue and reached out to touch her face. Feeling its real warmth, he smiled. He glanced at her red lips and was leaning down to kiss her when...

"He Lang, are you just going to leave your motorcycle there?" Mr. He’s voice came from outside.

He Lang stopped himself. Xue Yue said with a smile, "Go on."

He Lang had no choice but to kiss Xue Yue on the forehead before letting her go and walking out.

"Dad."

"Why’d you leave the motorcycle at the gate? I tried to move it, but I couldn’t push it. Hurry up and bring it in. Don’t want it getting stolen, something that expensive."

Just as He Lang pushed the motorcycle in, he heard Mrs. He call out, "Time for dinner!"

Xue Yue came out.

"Dad."

Mr. He saw Xue Yue. "You’re back."

Xue Yue nodded.

At the dinner table, Mr. He asked about her trip abroad.

"It went well. The process was a bit troublesome, but the result was good."

"That’s good."

"You came back too late, you missed Xiao Yang’s wedding. He Lang even took the kids back for a visit."

Xue Yue looked at He Lang in surprise. "Xiao Yang got married?"

He Lang nodded.

Xue Yue really hadn’t expected it. She had been away for over three months, and not only had Ziqing gotten married, but Xiao Yang had too.

’No wonder they say time flies,’ she thought. ’The children have grown so much.’

After dinner, Mrs. He didn’t let Xue Yue help clean up, telling them to go into their room and rest instead. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

He Lang followed her into the room, and Ruanruan and Shiyi followed them in as well.

"Mommy, can we sleep with you tonight?" Ruanruan asked.

"No." That was He Lang.

"Why not?"

He Lang glanced at Xue Yue, meeting her teasing gaze. "You’re big kids now, so you can’t sleep with Mommy anymore."

Shiyi retorted, displeased, "But Dad, you’re a big kid too. How come you get to sleep with Mommy?"

PFFT! Xue Yue couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

He Lang gritted his teeth. "She’s my wife, so she has to sleep with me. When you have a wife someday, you can sleep with your wife."

Shiyi looked at Xue Yue, confused. "Mommy, Shiyi doesn’t want to sleep with a wife. I just want to sleep with Mommy."

Xue Yue couldn’t bear to refuse them. She said to He Lang, "How about I stay with you tomorrow night? The poor kids..."

He Lang’s mouth twitched. "I’m pitiful too."

Xue Yue patted his cheek. "Be good." With that, she really did follow the children out.

He Lang’s brow furrowed. He suddenly felt that children were just baggage, stumbling blocks on his path to happiness.

Frustrated, he sat down on the bed. His eyes happened to fall upon a black velvet box on the table.

He went over, picked it up, and opened it. Inside was a pair of black cufflinks.

He Lang had only seen something like this once before, back in Shanghai. He knew this must be a gift from Xue Yue.

A small smile touched He Lang’s lips. He opened the wardrobe, took out a dress shirt, changed into it, and then put on the cufflinks.

He Lang looked at himself in the mirror. ’Mm, not bad at all,’ he thought. ’Xue Yue has great taste. With the dress shirt, they change my whole vibe.’