The Yuan Family had informed the Zhao Family about Zhao Yanni’s funeral arrangements. Although Zhao Yanni had left home for many years, she was still able to assist the Zhao Family as she was related to Shu Heng by the law of marriage. However, the Zhao Family completely severed their ties with Zhao Yanni after the scandal that occurred later on.
As of today, her two older brothers were the only surviving members of the Zhao Family and neither of them cared about her at all. There was actually no response when news of Zhao Yanni’s death was communicated to them.
The world treated you based on your successes and people did not necessarily wish you the best.
Although the Zhao Family did not care much for one of their own, the Old Mistress of the Yuan Family could not ignore this for Qinger and Ruoxin’s sake.
Thus, she bought a favorable plot in the cemetery and buried Zhao Yanni there.
On the day of the burial, the seasonal cloudy weather brought about the pitter-patter of light rain.
The Old Mistress did not personally attend the funeral instead she arranged for Wen Ya and Mu Chenyan to accompany Zhao Ruoxin instead.
Despite everything, she was Zhao Ruoxin’s only living relative left on this earth. To be more exact, she was Shu Qinger’s sole surviving relative!
Her father had abandoned his wife and daughter while her younger sister had died to protect her. As of today, her only relative had also passed away. Shu Qinger’s heart of stone must have felt at least a sliver of emotion.
Zhao Ruoxin leaped forward and attempted to snatch the box of ashes just as the coffin was about to be buried. She miserably screamed out, “Mother, don’t… don’t go…”
The burial workers exchanged glances but none of them dared to make any rash movements.
Mu Chenyan believed that at that very moment, Zhao Ruoxin’s true feelings and emotions were finally revealed.
Unfortunately, it was too late as both of them were on opposite sides now.
Since Wen Ya was the eldest sister-in-law and had been sent to the funeral by the Old Mistress, she had no choice but to fulfill her duties during these occasions.
She brought the maids to pull Ruoxin away before she consoled her, saying, “Ruoxin, control yourself. Aunty Zhao is gone…”
Zhao Ruoxin began to cry uncontrollably as she was pulled aside. When she saw that Yuan Xuan who had been standing beside her, holding a black umbrella to shield Mu Chenyan from the rain, she suddenly threw herself into his arms and loudly wept. “Brother Xuan, I… I’m a real orphan now…”
Zhao Ruoxin’s body was damp with the rainwater that had just splashed while her little face was pale with shock. Moreover, her dark purple lips and dripping wet hair that stuck to her forehead made her look pitifully frail.
Mu Chenyan and Wen Ya were both shocked.
This somber occasion was certainly not an appropriate time for arguments. Mu Chenyan remained silent and simply fixed her gaze on Yuan Xuan.
Zhao Ruoxin hugged him tightly and miserably wept while Yuan Xuan’s face clouded over with uneasiness. He held the umbrella with one hand and continued to shield Mu Chenyan while his other hand gently patted Zhao Ruoxin’s shoulder. “Ruoxin, your grandmother still loves you so don’t worry.”
Yuan Xuan then turned towards Wen Ya and whispered, “I’m sorry for troubling you, sister-in-law.”
Wen Ya knew what he meant and went over to drag Zhao Ruoxin off Yuan Xuan’s body. Zhao Ruoxin’s emotions were still agitated. She wailed loudly, “I need you… I need you to love me…”
Mu Chenyan’s heart thumped in excitement.
Although she looked calm, Mu Chenyan actually felt as though that in a certain corner of her heart, a bottle had been knocked down causing jealousy to spill out everywhere uncontrollably.
She was the only person here who knew of Zhao Ruoxin’s unsavory past.
Zhao Ruoxin’s brazen actions were, in fact, unsurprising since she knew that Qinger was still present in one corner of Yuan Xuan’s heart…
This woman seemed to have lost her mind due to sorrow. She cried and kicked up a fuss in the cemetery before fainting from exhaustion not long after.
During their journey back to the mansion, Mu Chenyan sat in the passenger’s seat of Yuan Xuan’s car while Zhao Ruoxin slept soundly in the back seat.
The three of them had slowly but surely returned to their original state of coexistence.
Yuan Xuan had taken both women to watch a circus performance in this manner during Christmas one year.
These three individuals had a delicate relationship with each other.
Before Mu Chenyan returned to Luo Hai from Xi Fan, the person who was by Yuan Xuan’s side was Shu Qinger.
Thus, Shu Qinger had always been regarded as Yuan Xuan’s childhood sweetheart.
Mu Chenyan was considered her successor.
Due to that, the young Mu Chenyan was extremely confident in herself. In her mind, it did not matter who loved him first because only one person would win out in the end.
Perhaps Yuan Xuan did not understand the true meaning of love when he was younger. Although Shu Qinger had been by his side for more than a decade, he still thought of her as his little sister.
Conversely, Yuan Xuan had just entered his youth when she arrived. Moreover, he also happened to meet her at that age…
Mu Chenyan had never thought that Yuan Xuan might have chosen Shu Qinger if she had neither followed him to England nor pestered him the same way Little Ginger Fur Ball hung around Briquet…
Unknowingly, her chaotic thoughts caused her emotions to manifest onto her face.
When he saw that Mu Chenyan beside him looked unwell, Yuan Xuan gripped the steering wheel with one hand and held her hand with the other. His large hand was warm and dry as heat continuously radiated from his palm.
“Drive safely!”
Mu Chenyan pulled her hand away and fixed her collar while her gaze drifted off into the distance.
Yuan Xuan laughed bitterly to himself. He had been given the cold shoulder. It was inevitable that she would grow up one day. No longer would Mu Chenyan be a fearless person who insisted on having her own way when it came to love.
The car drove down a winding path that led to Luo Hai’s Yuan Family mansion. Mu Chenyan thought to herself that she must have traveled along this road several thousand times before.
The scenery was the same but everyone was in an unusually melancholic mood.
…
Yuan Xuan and Mu Chenyan returned to the Hibiscus Garden after sending Zhao Ruoxin home.
The moonlight was bright and clear. The ground was slightly slippery as it had just rained so Yuan Xuan held his wife’s waist firmly as they walked across the lawn.
The fresh scent of soil permeated through the air. May was supposed to be a month when everything came back to life but it had been filled with a succession of deaths instead.
“Yuan Xuan, if I hadn’t pestered you in the beginning…” Mu Chenyan suddenly paused her steps while her pupils seemed as though they were filled with stars.
“You would still be Mrs. Yuan! Don’t let your imagination run wild.” Mu Chenyan’s sentence was cut off quickly as Yuan Xuan already knew what she was about to say.
Mu Chenyan contracted her body in his warm embrace while her gaze was filled with confusion.
Apparently, her heart could still be swayed by Yuan Xuan.
After becoming aware of the relationship between him and Shu Qinger, Mu Chenyan had initially assumed that she would slowly give up chasing him and distance herself from Yuan Xuan. However, she had instead discovered that whenever she encountered situations like this, her first response would be that she was afraid of losing…
The Hibiscus Garden
When Ah Fu took the suit jacket from Yuan Xuan that he had taken off, she murmured, “Since the weather is cold and it’s been raining the entire day, I boiled some chicken soup. Once Mistress has showered, come downstairs and I’ll have it ready…”
Mu Chenyan had already walked towards the corner of the stairs when she suddenly heard Yuan Xuan say, “Ah Fu, throw that suit away!”
His voice was frosty and devoid of a single hint of warmth as though he had put up with these clothes for a very long time.
Ah Fu was shocked. A troubled expression appeared on her face when she looked at the black suit in her hands.
After being by his side for three years, Ah Fu knew that the Young Master was extremely particular about his clothes. All of his suits were custom-made by hand and worth several hundred thousand…
“Young Master, you’re probably just upset that these nice clothes are dirty. I’ll take them to be washed and I’ll properly iron them…”
“Nonsense. If I tell you to throw them away, just do it!”
Mu Chenyan had never seen Yuan Xuan behave this way before.
Ah Fu was startled. She jogged the whole way and stuffed the suit into a garbage bag before she placed it in the garbage bin at the entrance.
Yuan Xuan snatched a white towel and gently wiped his chin as Zhao Ruoxin’s hair had stroked that area in the afternoon…
“Why haven’t you gone upstairs yet?” Yuan Xuan returned to his usual aristocratic manner when he came upstairs and noticed that his wife was standing there, lost in a daze. He was humble and gentle now, as though the man who had recently demanded in an extremely disgusted tone for his suit jacket to be thrown away earlier was a completely different person.
“They were such nice clothes…” Mu Chenyan could not comprehend Yuan Xuan’s unpredictability either.
“It’s not a big deal. I didn’t want them anymore because they were dirty. If Mistress is upset, I’ll go out and work hard to earn more money.”
Yuan Xuan said this as though he was really worried that Mu Chenyan was upset. “Mistress will be in charge of managing our household funds in the future. I can earn money but I don’t know how to manage it. As a matter of fact, I just wasted several hundred thousand today!”
Mu Chenyan was amused by his false modesty. She coyly whined, “You sound as though you really mean it!”
The Yuan Family had informed the Zhao Family about Zhao Yanni’s funeral arrangements. Although Zhao Yanni had left home for many years, she was still able to assist the Zhao Family as she was related to Shu Heng by the law of marriage. However, the Zhao Family completely severed their ties with Zhao Yanni after the scandal that occurred later on.
As of today, her two older brothers were the only surviving members of the Zhao Family and neither of them cared about her at all. There was actually no response when news of Zhao Yanni’s death was communicated to them.
The world treated you based on your successes and people did not necessarily wish you the best.
Although the Zhao Family did not care much for one of their own, the Old Mistress of the Yuan Family could not ignore this for Qinger and Ruoxin’s sake.
Thus, she bought a favorable plot in the cemetery and buried Zhao Yanni there.
On the day of the burial, the seasonal cloudy weather brought about the pitter-patter of light rain.
The Old Mistress did not personally attend the funeral instead she arranged for Wen Ya and Mu Chenyan to accompany Zhao Ruoxin instead.
Despite everything, she was Zhao Ruoxin’s only living relative left on this earth. To be more exact, she was Shu Qinger’s sole surviving relative!
Her father had abandoned his wife and daughter while her younger sister had died to protect her. As of today, her only relative had also passed away. Shu Qinger’s heart of stone must have felt at least a sliver of emotion.
Zhao Ruoxin leaped forward and attempted to snatch the box of ashes just as the coffin was about to be buried. She miserably screamed out, “Mother, don’t… don’t go…”
The burial workers exchanged glances but none of them dared to make any rash movements.
Mu Chenyan believed that at that very moment, Zhao Ruoxin’s true feelings and emotions were finally revealed.
Unfortunately, it was too late as both of them were on opposite sides now.
Since Wen Ya was the eldest sister-in-law and had been sent to the funeral by the Old Mistress, she had no choice but to fulfill her duties during these occasions.
She brought the maids to pull Ruoxin away before she consoled her, saying, “Ruoxin, control yourself. Aunty Zhao is gone…”
Zhao Ruoxin began to cry uncontrollably as she was pulled aside. When she saw that Yuan Xuan who had been standing beside her, holding a black umbrella to shield Mu Chenyan from the rain, she suddenly threw herself into his arms and loudly wept. “Brother Xuan, I… I’m a real orphan now…”
Zhao Ruoxin’s body was damp with the rainwater that had just splashed while her little face was pale with shock. Moreover, her dark purple lips and dripping wet hair that stuck to her forehead made her look pitifully frail.
Mu Chenyan and Wen Ya were both shocked.
This somber occasion was certainly not an appropriate time for arguments. Mu Chenyan remained silent and simply fixed her gaze on Yuan Xuan.
Zhao Ruoxin hugged him tightly and miserably wept while Yuan Xuan’s face clouded over with uneasiness. He held the umbrella with one hand and continued to shield Mu Chenyan while his other hand gently patted Zhao Ruoxin’s shoulder. “Ruoxin, your grandmother still loves you so don’t worry.”
Yuan Xuan then turned towards Wen Ya and whispered, “I’m sorry for troubling you, sister-in-law.”
Wen Ya knew what he meant and went over to drag Zhao Ruoxin off Yuan Xuan’s body. Zhao Ruoxin’s emotions were still agitated. She wailed loudly, “I need you… I need you to love me…”
Mu Chenyan’s heart thumped in excitement.
Although she looked calm, Mu Chenyan actually felt as though that in a certain corner of her heart, a bottle had been knocked down causing jealousy to spill out everywhere uncontrollably.
She was the only person here who knew of Zhao Ruoxin’s unsavory past.
Zhao Ruoxin’s brazen actions were, in fact, unsurprising since she knew that Qinger was still present in one corner of Yuan Xuan’s heart…
This woman seemed to have lost her mind due to sorrow. She cried and kicked up a fuss in the cemetery before fainting from exhaustion not long after.
During their journey back to the mansion, Mu Chenyan sat in the passenger’s seat of Yuan Xuan’s car while Zhao Ruoxin slept soundly in the back seat.
The three of them had slowly but surely returned to their original state of coexistence.
Yuan Xuan had taken both women to watch a circus performance in this manner during Christmas one year.
These three individuals had a delicate relationship with each other.
Before Mu Chenyan returned to Luo Hai from Xi Fan, the person who was by Yuan Xuan’s side was Shu Qinger.
Thus, Shu Qinger had always been regarded as Yuan Xuan’s childhood sweetheart.
Mu Chenyan was considered her successor.
Due to that, the young Mu Chenyan was extremely confident in herself. In her mind, it did not matter who loved him first because only one person would win out in the end.
Perhaps Yuan Xuan did not understand the true meaning of love when he was younger. Although Shu Qinger had been by his side for more than a decade, he still thought of her as his little sister.
Conversely, Yuan Xuan had just entered his youth when she arrived. Moreover, he also happened to meet her at that age…
Mu Chenyan had never thought that Yuan Xuan might have chosen Shu Qinger if she had neither followed him to England nor pestered him the same way Little Ginger Fur Ball hung around Briquet…
Unknowingly, her chaotic thoughts caused her emotions to manifest onto her face.
When he saw that Mu Chenyan beside him looked unwell, Yuan Xuan gripped the steering wheel with one hand and held her hand with the other. His large hand was warm and dry as heat continuously radiated from his palm.
“Drive safely!”
Mu Chenyan pulled her hand away and fixed her collar while her gaze drifted off into the distance.
Yuan Xuan laughed bitterly to himself. He had been given the cold shoulder. It was inevitable that she would grow up one day. No longer would Mu Chenyan be a fearless person who insisted on having her own way when it came to love.
The car drove down a winding path that led to Luo Hai’s Yuan Family mansion. Mu Chenyan thought to herself that she must have traveled along this road several thousand times before.
The scenery was the same but everyone was in an unusually melancholic mood.
…
Yuan Xuan and Mu Chenyan returned to the Hibiscus Garden after sending Zhao Ruoxin home.
The moonlight was bright and clear. The ground was slightly slippery as it had just rained so Yuan Xuan held his wife’s waist firmly as they walked across the lawn.
The fresh scent of soil permeated through the air. May was supposed to be a month when everything came back to life but it had been filled with a succession of deaths instead.
“Yuan Xuan, if I hadn’t pestered you in the beginning…” Mu Chenyan suddenly paused her steps while her pupils seemed as though they were filled with stars.
“You would still be Mrs. Yuan! Don’t let your imagination run wild.” Mu Chenyan’s sentence was cut off quickly as Yuan Xuan already knew what she was about to say.
Mu Chenyan contracted her body in his warm embrace while her gaze was filled with confusion.
Apparently, her heart could still be swayed by Yuan Xuan.
After becoming aware of the relationship between him and Shu Qinger, Mu Chenyan had initially assumed that she would slowly give up chasing him and distance herself from Yuan Xuan. However, she had instead discovered that whenever she encountered situations like this, her first response would be that she was afraid of losing…
The Hibiscus Garden
When Ah Fu took the suit jacket from Yuan Xuan that he had taken off, she murmured, “Since the weather is cold and it’s been raining the entire day, I boiled some chicken soup. Once Mistress has showered, come downstairs and I’ll have it ready…”
Mu Chenyan had already walked towards the corner of the stairs when she suddenly heard Yuan Xuan say, “Ah Fu, throw that suit away!”
His voice was frosty and devoid of a single hint of warmth as though he had put up with these clothes for a very long time.
Ah Fu was shocked. A troubled expression appeared on her face when she looked at the black suit in her hands.
After being by his side for three years, Ah Fu knew that the Young Master was extremely particular about his clothes. All of his suits were custom-made by hand and worth several hundred thousand…
“Young Master, you’re probably just upset that these nice clothes are dirty. I’ll take them to be washed and I’ll properly iron them…”
“Nonsense. If I tell you to throw them away, just do it!”
Mu Chenyan had never seen Yuan Xuan behave this way before.
Ah Fu was startled. She jogged the whole way and stuffed the suit into a garbage bag before she placed it in the garbage bin at the entrance.
Yuan Xuan snatched a white towel and gently wiped his chin as Zhao Ruoxin’s hair had stroked that area in the afternoon…
“Why haven’t you gone upstairs yet?” Yuan Xuan returned to his usual aristocratic manner when he came upstairs and noticed that his wife was standing there, lost in a daze. He was humble and gentle now, as though the man who had recently demanded in an extremely disgusted tone for his suit jacket to be thrown away earlier was a completely different person.
“They were such nice clothes…” Mu Chenyan could not comprehend Yuan Xuan’s unpredictability either.
“It’s not a big deal. I didn’t want them anymore because they were dirty. If Mistress is upset, I’ll go out and work hard to earn more money.”
Yuan Xuan said this as though he was really worried that Mu Chenyan was upset. “Mistress will be in charge of managing our household funds in the future. I can earn money but I don’t know how to manage it. As a matter of fact, I just wasted several hundred thousand today!”
Mu Chenyan was amused by his false modesty. She coyly whined, “You sound as though you really mean it!”
