It was Lunar New Year’s Eve, everyone was heading back home.
Nobody could blame Bai Muchuan for going back to the Capital.
However, for Xiang Wan… leaving Jin City was equivalent to her leaving home for the Lunar New Year.
“Aye!” Xiang Wan’s mom puffed a sigh. “When are you leaving?”
She didn’t have any objections.
Her sigh had a hint of regret though.
“Afternoon,” replied Xiang Wan after some pause.” Little Bai is getting some sleep now. He also needs to clear some matters at work.”
“Alright then!” Her mom got up from the sofa. “I’ll go to the kitchen now. Let’s have our Reunion Lunch at noon instead.”
…
An Ying’s case was a major one. Last night, Bai Muchuan had interrogated him once, but this wily old fox refused to say anything at all.
Due to that, Bai Muchuan knew that being anxious wouldn’t help, so he might as well relax.
Since it was the Lunar New Year, just lock An Ying up for a few days before interrogating him again.
Bai Muchuan woke up when lunch was ready. After having their Reunion Lunch, he went to the Criminal Investigation Unit for his work matters while Xiang Wan stayed at home to accompany her mom and relatives.
He only came back when it was half-past four in the afternoon.
By then, Xiang Wan had already gotten her luggage ready. Under everyone’s reluctant gazes and constant reminders to take care of herself et cetera, she and Bai Muchuan hopped on Uncle Zhao’s car and headed straight to the airport.
Besides their intimate time together, the two of them always seemed to be talking about cases, which was a common topic between them.
They were waiting for their plane—it was not a suitable place to be talking about romance.
Hence, the two only talked about the case.
“Will another person be made Boss and lead the Dark Clan now that An Ying’s arrested?”
When Xiang Wan thought about this possibility, her scalp went numb.
Bai Muchuan felt amused to hear that.
“That’s actually inevitable.”
“Eh? Why did you say that?”
“How should I say this?” Bai Muchuan heaved a sigh. “In this world, there can never be real peace. Even though we caught An Ying, there will still be others.”
“…”
That seemed to be the case.
Xiang Wan was a little discouraged. “Then that means you can’t rest all year round? And the cycle repeats year after year, it’s so tiring.”
“Silly girl!” Bai Muchuan chuckled, his gaze was on her face, warm and firm. “This is the reason why detectives exist.”
“…”
Yeah.
Crime and detectives seemed to coexist together.
After Xiang Wan thought about it, she couldn’t help laughing.
“I suddenly thought of something.”
“What is it?” Bai Muchuan turned to look at her.
“There was a strange comment in my reviews and comments page yesterday,” said Xiang Wan and she took out her mobile phone and showed the comment to Bai Muchuan. “I think it’s hinting something at me…”
Bai Muchuan seemed a little grim.
Xiang Wan glanced at him. “So I went through all the cases that I’ve written in my novel yesterday, and I didn’t find anything that suggests I was related to them. Don’t you think this is strange?”
She looked at Bai Muchuan, with a glimmer of expectation in her eyes.
Bai Muchuan stared at the mobile phone for a long time and slowly held her hand in his palm.
“Don’t you think that you’re overthinking this? Isn’t this just a normal comment?”
“It’s normal?” Xiang Wan tilted her head and took another glance at the comment.
“Of course.” Bai Muchuan smiled. “How are you going to concentrate on writing if you’re so bothered by each and every comment you get?”
“Umm… Okay.”
…
…
The Bai Family in the Capital.
All members of the Bai Family had shown up.
Bai Zhenhua, Bai Musi, Bai Muxuan and Bai Lu were all there.
It was Lunar New Year’s Eve. This was a day where all members of the family would go home and spend time together. Grandma Bai wore the traditional Chinese clothing as usual. She was all smiles but the next moment she would remark that she didn’t know any of them.
“Who is this big boy? He’s quite good-looking.”
“… Mom!” Bai Zhenhua pointed at Bai Muxuan with a helpless expression. “This is Xuanzi, your grandson.”
“Oh, oh, oh, my grandson. When one gets old, one becomes muddle-headed.”
Grandma Bai looked at Bai Muxuan with a smiling face.
“Are you used to eating at home? Grandma will make you dumplings later, okay?”
It was rare for Grandma Bai to talk to him like that. Bai Muxuan nodded his head repeatedly. “Of course I’m used to eating at home. Everything tasted nice at home.”
“So you never tasted Grandma’s dumplings before?”
“Yeah…” He had not eaten that before.
Grandma Bai had not cooked for a long time, how could there be dumplings?
“Do you want to try them?” Grandma Bai asked with a smile.
“I want to,” replied Bai Muxuan with a smile. Immediately, Grandma Bai said, “You can get to eat them when my grandson is back.”
“…”
Bai Zhenhua sighed inside his head whereas Zhu Xueyan’s gaze dimmed slowly.
She had anger inside her but she didn’t dare to show it.
It was Lunar New Year after all, how could she flare up at such a happy occasion?
Other than the fact that Bai Zhenhua might have cheated on her in his younger days, he was still kind to her. As long as she didn’t do anything that would make him take drastic measures, their marriage should not fall apart. Wasn’t that the same as most married couples? Zhu Xueyan had already bowed down to fate, but when she saw that her son had to put up with all these humiliation, she felt that her blood would flow in the opposite direction; the flames of anger burned so furiously within her that she wished she could kill someone.
However, Grandma Bai never had the intention of humiliating Bai Muxuan.
In fact, she even liked this good-looking young man whom she thought was someone else’s grandson.
She held Bai Muxuan’s hand and couldn’t stop talking to him.
She would talk about those things when Bai Muchuan was a kid, all those things that Bai Muxuan was not a part of…
After that, Grandma Bai even examined Bai Muxuan closely and kept nodding her head.
“You and Chuanzi are so alike! You two are really related by blood!”
The words ‘related by blood’ almost made Zhu Xueyan die from anger.
Bai Zhenhua cleared his throat to change the topic. “Mom, don’t you want to make some dumplings? Come, I’ll help you out.”
“What’s the hurry?” Grandma Bai shot a glance at him. “My grandson’s not back yet. I want to wait for him to come back then I’ll make that for him…”
“…”
It was obvious that the atmosphere was much colder in the Bai Family compared to Xiang Wan’s family in Jin City.
Bai Lu was pouting as she slouched on the sofa, playing mobile games on her phone. Bai Musi broke up with her boyfriend recently and was not in a good mood. She sat beside her daughter, Bai Lu, in a daze, and did not move for a long time.
When it was six o’clock in the evening, the Reunion Dinner had been served on the dining table.
Bai Muchuan was yet to be seen.
The old lady pushed her wheelchair to the door and looked outside twice, sighing again and again.
Nobody dared to move as she didn’t start the dinner.
And so, everyone waited.
Seven o’clock in the evening.
Eight o’clock.
Nine o’clock…
Until half-past nine, a car drove into the Bai Residence.
Bai Muchuan and Xiang Wan finally arrived, even Zhu Xueyan felt relieved.
This was because she was also worried that if Bai Muchuan didn’t come back, she couldn’t imagine how Grandma Bai would act up.
Xiang Wan could feel the heavy atmosphere in this family the moment she stepped inside the house.
No one showed her a friendly expression except for Grandma Bai.
“Aiyo, my good grandson, you’re finally back. Grandma has been waiting for so long that my hair became white…”
Grandma, your hair has been white for many years already…
Bai Muchuan felt amused and helped to push Grandma Bai’s wheelchair. “Grandma, why are you at the door?”
“Grandma wanted to see if you’ve arrived. All the ingredients are ready. I’m just waiting for you to come back to make dumplings for you.”
After a pause, Grandma Bai furrowed her eyebrows and sounded grim. “My good grandson, have you been going hungry again?”
Going hungry again…
That sentence brought back a distant memory…
Bai Muchuan’s gaze turned somewhat cold and he glanced at everyone in the family.
Zhu Xueyan, who was sitting in the living room, picked up a glass of water as though to hide something. Her eyes were turning slightly reddish.
…
It was Lunar New Year’s Eve, everyone was heading back home.
Nobody could blame Bai Muchuan for going back to the Capital.
However, for Xiang Wan… leaving Jin City was equivalent to her leaving home for the Lunar New Year.
“Aye!” Xiang Wan’s mom puffed a sigh. “When are you leaving?”
She didn’t have any objections.
Her sigh had a hint of regret though.
“Afternoon,” replied Xiang Wan after some pause.” Little Bai is getting some sleep now. He also needs to clear some matters at work.”
“Alright then!” Her mom got up from the sofa. “I’ll go to the kitchen now. Let’s have our Reunion Lunch at noon instead.”
…
An Ying’s case was a major one. Last night, Bai Muchuan had interrogated him once, but this wily old fox refused to say anything at all.
Due to that, Bai Muchuan knew that being anxious wouldn’t help, so he might as well relax.
Since it was the Lunar New Year, just lock An Ying up for a few days before interrogating him again.
Bai Muchuan woke up when lunch was ready. After having their Reunion Lunch, he went to the Criminal Investigation Unit for his work matters while Xiang Wan stayed at home to accompany her mom and relatives.
He only came back when it was half-past four in the afternoon.
By then, Xiang Wan had already gotten her luggage ready. Under everyone’s reluctant gazes and constant reminders to take care of herself et cetera, she and Bai Muchuan hopped on Uncle Zhao’s car and headed straight to the airport.
Besides their intimate time together, the two of them always seemed to be talking about cases, which was a common topic between them.
They were waiting for their plane—it was not a suitable place to be talking about romance.
Hence, the two only talked about the case.
“Will another person be made Boss and lead the Dark Clan now that An Ying’s arrested?”
When Xiang Wan thought about this possibility, her scalp went numb.
Bai Muchuan felt amused to hear that.
“That’s actually inevitable.”
“Eh? Why did you say that?”
“How should I say this?” Bai Muchuan heaved a sigh. “In this world, there can never be real peace. Even though we caught An Ying, there will still be others.”
“…”
That seemed to be the case.
Xiang Wan was a little discouraged. “Then that means you can’t rest all year round? And the cycle repeats year after year, it’s so tiring.”
“Silly girl!” Bai Muchuan chuckled, his gaze was on her face, warm and firm. “This is the reason why detectives exist.”
“…”
Yeah.
Crime and detectives seemed to coexist together.
After Xiang Wan thought about it, she couldn’t help laughing.
“I suddenly thought of something.”
“What is it?” Bai Muchuan turned to look at her.
“There was a strange comment in my reviews and comments page yesterday,” said Xiang Wan and she took out her mobile phone and showed the comment to Bai Muchuan. “I think it’s hinting something at me…”
Bai Muchuan seemed a little grim.
Xiang Wan glanced at him. “So I went through all the cases that I’ve written in my novel yesterday, and I didn’t find anything that suggests I was related to them. Don’t you think this is strange?”
She looked at Bai Muchuan, with a glimmer of expectation in her eyes.
Bai Muchuan stared at the mobile phone for a long time and slowly held her hand in his palm.
“Don’t you think that you’re overthinking this? Isn’t this just a normal comment?”
“It’s normal?” Xiang Wan tilted her head and took another glance at the comment.
“Of course.” Bai Muchuan smiled. “How are you going to concentrate on writing if you’re so bothered by each and every comment you get?”
“Umm… Okay.”
…
…
The Bai Family in the Capital.
All members of the Bai Family had shown up.
Bai Zhenhua, Bai Musi, Bai Muxuan and Bai Lu were all there.
It was Lunar New Year’s Eve. This was a day where all members of the family would go home and spend time together. Grandma Bai wore the traditional Chinese clothing as usual. She was all smiles but the next moment she would remark that she didn’t know any of them.
“Who is this big boy? He’s quite good-looking.”
“… Mom!” Bai Zhenhua pointed at Bai Muxuan with a helpless expression. “This is Xuanzi, your grandson.”
“Oh, oh, oh, my grandson. When one gets old, one becomes muddle-headed.”
Grandma Bai looked at Bai Muxuan with a smiling face.
“Are you used to eating at home? Grandma will make you dumplings later, okay?”
It was rare for Grandma Bai to talk to him like that. Bai Muxuan nodded his head repeatedly. “Of course I’m used to eating at home. Everything tasted nice at home.”
“So you never tasted Grandma’s dumplings before?”
“Yeah…” He had not eaten that before.
Grandma Bai had not cooked for a long time, how could there be dumplings?
“Do you want to try them?” Grandma Bai asked with a smile.
“I want to,” replied Bai Muxuan with a smile. Immediately, Grandma Bai said, “You can get to eat them when my grandson is back.”
“…”
Bai Zhenhua sighed inside his head whereas Zhu Xueyan’s gaze dimmed slowly.
She had anger inside her but she didn’t dare to show it.
It was Lunar New Year after all, how could she flare up at such a happy occasion?
Other than the fact that Bai Zhenhua might have cheated on her in his younger days, he was still kind to her. As long as she didn’t do anything that would make him take drastic measures, their marriage should not fall apart. Wasn’t that the same as most married couples? Zhu Xueyan had already bowed down to fate, but when she saw that her son had to put up with all these humiliation, she felt that her blood would flow in the opposite direction; the flames of anger burned so furiously within her that she wished she could kill someone.
However, Grandma Bai never had the intention of humiliating Bai Muxuan.
In fact, she even liked this good-looking young man whom she thought was someone else’s grandson.
She held Bai Muxuan’s hand and couldn’t stop talking to him.
She would talk about those things when Bai Muchuan was a kid, all those things that Bai Muxuan was not a part of…
After that, Grandma Bai even examined Bai Muxuan closely and kept nodding her head.
“You and Chuanzi are so alike! You two are really related by blood!”
The words ‘related by blood’ almost made Zhu Xueyan die from anger.
Bai Zhenhua cleared his throat to change the topic. “Mom, don’t you want to make some dumplings? Come, I’ll help you out.”
“What’s the hurry?” Grandma Bai shot a glance at him. “My grandson’s not back yet. I want to wait for him to come back then I’ll make that for him…”
“…”
It was obvious that the atmosphere was much colder in the Bai Family compared to Xiang Wan’s family in Jin City.
Bai Lu was pouting as she slouched on the sofa, playing mobile games on her phone. Bai Musi broke up with her boyfriend recently and was not in a good mood. She sat beside her daughter, Bai Lu, in a daze, and did not move for a long time.
When it was six o’clock in the evening, the Reunion Dinner had been served on the dining table.
Bai Muchuan was yet to be seen.
The old lady pushed her wheelchair to the door and looked outside twice, sighing again and again.
Nobody dared to move as she didn’t start the dinner.
And so, everyone waited.
Seven o’clock in the evening.
Eight o’clock.
Nine o’clock…
Until half-past nine, a car drove into the Bai Residence.
Bai Muchuan and Xiang Wan finally arrived, even Zhu Xueyan felt relieved.
This was because she was also worried that if Bai Muchuan didn’t come back, she couldn’t imagine how Grandma Bai would act up.
Xiang Wan could feel the heavy atmosphere in this family the moment she stepped inside the house.
No one showed her a friendly expression except for Grandma Bai.
“Aiyo, my good grandson, you’re finally back. Grandma has been waiting for so long that my hair became white…”
Grandma, your hair has been white for many years already…
Bai Muchuan felt amused and helped to push Grandma Bai’s wheelchair. “Grandma, why are you at the door?”
“Grandma wanted to see if you’ve arrived. All the ingredients are ready. I’m just waiting for you to come back to make dumplings for you.”
After a pause, Grandma Bai furrowed her eyebrows and sounded grim. “My good grandson, have you been going hungry again?”
Going hungry again…
That sentence brought back a distant memory…
Bai Muchuan’s gaze turned somewhat cold and he glanced at everyone in the family.
Zhu Xueyan, who was sitting in the living room, picked up a glass of water as though to hide something. Her eyes were turning slightly reddish.
…
