Xi Xiaye sighed deeply and finished the red wine in her glass with a frown. “Sometimes, I just can’t bear to see them unhappy.”

“Getting emotional? Well, it’s something that had to be done, so don’t overthink,” he comforted her and thoughtfully poured half a bowl of soup for her. “Eat more and stop worrying. Just go with the flow. Although you can finally take a breather, you don’t seem to be putting on any weight.”

“I know there’s no point worrying about it. Take it slow, Mr. Mu. There’s a long road ahead of us. I hope Lingshi can adapt to the new city as soon as possible. Fortunately, there are projects there, so if there are any business trips, we can still visit her. Otherwise, I really can’t stop worrying about her. Do you think Gu Qiwu will genuinely treat her well?”

Mu Yuchen’s eyes darkened when he heard this. “If he ever hurts them, I won’t let him go.”

Zhuang Shurong found it hard to accept Mu Lingshi and Ah Mo’s decision to leave, and it took her a while to process it. It was already one o’clock in the morning after they had dinner. Suddenly, Mu Yuchen’s cell phone vibrated.

Mu Yuchen was drying his hair at the time while Xi Xiaye was still in the shower.

“Mother?”

Mu Yuchen was surprised to receive Zhuang Shurong’s call.

“Yuchen, I thought you’d probably still be awake. Let’s talk for a while.” On the other end of the line, Zhuang Shurong deliberately lowered her voice, “Your father just fell asleep. His workload has been heavy lately, and he’s been very busy.”

“What do you want to talk about?” Mu Yuchen sat down by the bed and asked calmly.

Zhuang Shurong sighed. “Yuchen, is there no other way to deal with Lingshi’s matter? How could she just leave like that? Although I do support her decision, for so many years, I…”

“Mother, I know you’re unwilling to see her leave, but this might be the best option for them. I’m sure you don’t want to see them depressed. All the things that have happened to Aunt, Lingtian, and Grandmother are pain that will constantly haunt them. Maybe a change of environment will make their lives easier, and relatively speaking, they’re also safer there.”

In Zhuang Shurong’s eyes, Mu Lingshi and Ah Mo had been just like her own children for so many years, but they were suddenly being taken away from her. She was certainly upset and unwilling to see them leave…

“Sigh, I’ve been thinking about it these days and I’m just unsettled. I raised these children for years. How is it fair for Gu Qiwu to just take them away?”

“Mother, they’re all your children wherever they go, so what’re you worried about?” Mu Yuchen was a little surprised that Zhuang Shurong, who had always been a strict mother, would say things like that. If this happened in the past, he probably could not understand it, but now that he was a father of two children, he could empathize with her feelings.

“How could I not be worried? You knew Lingshi wasn’t in a good place before this, so I can’t just let her go. Can’t she just wait until the baby is born first? It’s her first child, and if no one can take care of her when she needs help, it will take a toll on her body in the future.”

“Xiaye just mentioned that Aunt Lin should follow her. Don’t worry, Mother. We can work this out, so don’t think too much. You should rest early. I’ll go back with Xiaye tomorrow.”

“Okay, we’ll talk about it when you come back.”

The mother and son then hung up the phone.

“Was that Mother?” Xi Xiaye sat down next to him and glanced at him suspiciously, “It’s already so late.”

“It was about Lingshi.”

“Is she reluctant to see her leave?”

“Yeah.”

…

Gu Qiwu was notified on Tuesday that he could leave City Z and return to City B, but he could not leave City B that easily. He initially thought that he could still make it in time to celebrate New Year, but it seemed like he could not make it.

With so many things happening there, Gu Qiwu was struggling to cope. After receiving the notice, he had no plans to stay anyway. He asked his subordinates to pack up his belongings, and he planned to return to City B in the next few days.

“Boss, the arrangements have been made. Do you want to call Miss Lingshi now and inform them to get ready as well?” Ah Yong said to Gu Qiwu, who was sitting on the sofa in the living room of the Gu’s family old residence with his eyes closed.

“Let the helpers over there prepare everything, and find a few assistants that are more agile to help her out. By the way, send this to Lingsha.” Gu Qiwu slowly opened his eyes and handed Ah Yong a folder that was on the desk in front of him. He continued in a firm tone, “There’s also a letter to Qi Feng in it. Give it to him in private and don’t let anyone find out.”

Ah Yong stayed alert as he listened. “Yes, Boss! I’ll send it by myself. By the way, Boss, are you sure you don’t want to see Miss Lingsha?”

“Yes, I’m sure. Even if I saw her it wouldn’t change anything,” Gu Qiwu responded lightly, obviously not willing to explain much.

He wished that she could understand his good intentions as he certainly did not want history to repeat itself or for the sisters to go through whatever that had happened to Lingtian.

“By the way, Boss, Master Mu asked Li Si to give you a message.”

“What is it?” Gu Qiwu responded as he straightened up slightly.

“He said he will always be watching you…” Ah Yong said in a low voice.

Gu Qiwu paused and his stern face dimmed. After a long silence, he still did not say anything. He bent down, poured himself a glass of water, and drank it.

“Boss…”

“Go and do what you’re supposed to. We’ll leave the day after tomorrow, so go and book the flights first, including Lingshi’s and Ah Mo’s,” Gu Qiwu said as he put the cup down, got up, and walked towards the staircase.

Ah Yong could only nod and agree.

Gu Qiwu hesitated for a long time after he went upstairs and decided to call Mu Lingshi. He initially thought that she might not answer so quickly, but surprisingly, she picked up the call almost immediately.

“Lingshi, I’ve arranged for our return to City B the day after tomorrow. You can still decide when you want to leave. If you don’t feel ready yet, you can go back next year.”

“I’ll tell Ah Mo. What time will the flight be?” Mu Lingshi asked calmly.

“At two in the afternoon, so it will be dinner time when we arrive. What would you like to eat? I’ll ask them to make it for you.” Gu Qiwu sounded like he had been through a lot to be where he was now.

“It’s okay. We can just eat whatever there is. I’ll wait for you at the airport with Ah Mo at two o’clock in the afternoon the day after tomorrow. Besides Ah Mo, the family has also arranged four other assistants to go there with me. You can make the necessary arrangements for that. ”

“Okay, I’ll let them go ahead with that.”

“Sure. Lingshi—”

However, upon hearing Gu Qiwu’s response, she hung up the phone before he could continue.