Extra Chapter 03

Zhong Yu Bai, a person who overlooks everything, naturally wouldn’t waver in his decision just because Ji Zhen Tang’s mother nodded or shook her head. He didn’t need to go out of his way to please his mother-in-law, let alone resort to bribery.

In other words, whether his mother-in-law agreed or not was irrelevant.

The decision he made after weighing everything was just to make her feel loved and at home. The dance hall stayed open half an hour later for them. After a simple dance, Ji Zhen Tang said she wanted to go for a walk.

The light of “Dance by the Bay” went out the moment she stepped out the door.

Ji Zhen Tang turned back and saw a line of small Chinese characters below, “Bay Dance Hall.”

All the designs here had a kind of old-fashioned modernity. In the hazy moonlight, it seemed like cobwebs had formed between the words, but once the door was pushed open, the interior was completely new, continuing the prosperity and charm.

“You always seem to have many fresh and unexpected ideas,” Ji Zhen Tang couldn’t help but say, half complimenting, half admiring Zhong Yu Bai.

“That day we talked about greed. Greed, anger, and ignorance are human nature. Everyone has them, but what they seek is different, and so is their pain.”

Just like dealing with her father, money was enough. To bribe her mother, money alone wasn’t enough; there had to be feelings too. She looked at him, half understanding, and after a moment said she didn’t want to think about it anymore, and stepped forward.

Under the starry night, Ji Zhen Tang said she wanted to take a walk. She and Zhong Yu Bai strolled from one end of the street to the other. The narrow alley perfectly cut the night sky into a galaxy of the same direction.

She looked up at the sky.

Thinking of some times spent with her mother, Ji Zhen Tang opened up today and talked to Zhong Yu Bai about how her parents met. He might not have been that interested, but as a good listener, he didn’t get distracted at all, responding appropriately and throwing out topics.

“I can feel that my mother has some insecurity after being hurt, but it’s not her fault. Some people say she has poor judgment and blame her for part of it, but meeting the wrong person is an unsolvable problem. Everyone knows that people’s hearts are fickle, and everyone is gambling.”

“My father has never been a very responsible person. To be a man to his extent is a kind of failure, right? I don’t know if he will ever repent,” Ji Zhen Tang said, sighing and criticizing, “He probably won’t. Bad men will just keep being bad and then talk about their basketful of excuses.”

Zhong Yu Bai listened to her words, slightly curling his lips. He didn’t argue, otherwise it would seem like he was taking it personally.

After a moment of silence, he continued her words, saying, “Excuses are also fabricated, living in excuses.”

Ji Zhen Tang nodded, “To show how helpless they are, speaking insincerely. Just like Zhong Heng.”

Ding Jialing’s car slowly followed behind them. When they reached the end of the street, he got out of the car to help Ji Zhen Tang open the door.

She sat inside, the cool indoor breeze falling on her shoulders. She then contradicted herself, “Is Zhong Heng really suffering? I heard you arranged a marriage for him.”

Zhong Yu Bai said candidly, “Even if it happens, it won’t be the man who suffers.”

Ji Zhen Tang pondered his words carefully, finding them very reasonable, and nodded quickly in agreement.

“A man with moral flaws will never suffer himself,” she said, then added, “But now, it doesn’t matter much to me.”

“In what way?” Zhong Yu Bai asked her.

“The attachments you mentioned, other than you, other people’s attachments.”

He raised his eyebrows slightly in surprise, “You don’t need them?”

“I’ve grown up,” she lifted her bare face, looked at him seriously, and said, “A butterfly has to fly after breaking out of its cocoon. How can I let romantic feelings affect my journey in the world?”

Zhong Yu Bai smiled, as if humoring a little girl’s joke. Ji Zhen Tang then added more seriously, “Besides, having you is enough.”

His brows relaxed a bit, her simple sweet words sweeping away the day’s accumulated fatigue. Zhong Yu Bai, with a bit of a joking tone, said, “You love me very much.”

Ji Zhen Tang replied, “It’s because you love me that I have confidence.”

Ding Jialing, in front, said sourly, “You’re killing me with your lovey-dovey talk.”

She leaned her head over, made a face at him, then leaned back gently into Zhong Yu Bai’s arms, “When do you plan to bring mom for a visit?”

Zhong Yu Bai thought for a moment and said casually, “You arrange it, I’m always ready.”

He rarely let her arrange anything, always taking care of everything himself.

But this matter was significant, and most importantly, it couldn’t be decided by him. Zhong Yu Bai, in a situation where he had to go with the flow, could only do his best and leave the rest to fate, having no initiative.

After returning home, Ji Zhen Tang sorted through some old photos. They were old photos taken in Xingzhou, given to her by her mother when they met a few days ago. It seemed they hadn’t been touched for many years, a thin layer of dust covering the pages, turning yellow when brushed off by her fingers.

She thought to herself, it seemed her mother didn’t miss her much when she wasn’t around.

Zhong Yu Bai didn’t disturb her.

He idly picked up a book to read. The study was next to the garden, with a gentle fragrance in the air, like his scent.

When Zhong Yu Bai was quiet, a scholarly aura naturally emerged from him. Immersed in the reading, he seemed oblivious to everything else. Ji Zhen Tang glanced at his book, seeing a black cover with the faint name of Hermann Hesse.

He was reading an English translation of Hesse’s poetry.

Zhong Yu Bai was so engrossed that even when Ji Zhen Tang stood in front of him for a while, he didn’t lift his eyelids.

“What’s so interesting about poetry?” Ji Zhen Tang stood on the other side of the table, gently pressed his book down onto the table, and looked up at his eyes, “Isn’t it boring? I can’t understand foreign love words.”

She didn’t admit her lack of literary cultivation, emphasizing the word “foreigners,” implying that their writing was too abstract.

“Just reading casually.”

Zhong Yu Bai took the photos she handed over, quickly closing the book, which fell lonely to one side.

Ji Zhen Tang pointed at the photos and asked, “What do you think of these?”

The photos were of her and her mother, three in total. Her childhood appearance awakened some of his memories. Zhong Yu Bai smiled, his gaze slowly sweeping over the smiling face of the little girl in the photos.

“Very cute,” he said, referring to her as a child.

“Don’t say cute, say beautiful.”

Zhong Yu Bai asked, “Are these two points in conflict?”

Ji Zhen Tang argued, “There are many cute children, but not many beautiful ones.”

“Beautiful children, I think these photos are great.” He handed the photos back to her, “You decorate them, and mom will definitely be pleased.”

So, it was finally decided that Ji Zhen Tang would put these three old photos on the wall of the Bay Dance Hall. She raised her finger and lightly touched one of the photos, which was taken when she was seven years old, under a tree at the Chen residence.

“This tree, I remember it had a very nice name, what was it called…” Ji Zhen Tang frowned in frustration, thinking hard until she had a bit of a headache.

Zhong Yu Bai walked over, looking at the shadow of the tree under her finger, the lush green also faded with the photo.

He said, “Acacia.”

Her eyes lit up, “Yes! I remember its name was very nice, and I asked my mom what acacia meant.”

Zhong Yu Bai turned to look at her, smiling slightly, “What does it mean?”

“Mom said, if one day I’m not by her side, even if we’re separated by mountains and seas, we’ll still be connected at heart.”

She recalled that year, how to translate the word acacia. Qin Meilan first blurted out “miss,” which was fine but seemed thin.

So she added: love, memory.

Love and memory, the memory of love.

A tree witnessed two loves.

But later, separated by mountains and seas, everything seemed to be lost in the vast sea of people.

This gift was heartfelt enough. When Ji Zhen Tang brought Qin Meilan that day, she felt no anxiety, only anticipation. Ji Zhen Tang told her mother, “He renovated the old dance hall, you can come and dance anytime.”

Qin Meilan was surprised all the way, finally standing under the sign, the evening breeze sweeping through her hair, revealing a brief and gentle smile, saying, “Such an old shop, I haven’t been here for many years.”

“Me too,” Ji Zhen Tang naturally replied.

Qin Meilan smiled, not mocking her strange words.

She entered and saw the photo wall her daughter had carefully selected, standing quietly for a while, perhaps recalling the past, finally saying softly, “You put a lot of thought into this.”

Ji Zhen Tang smiled and asked, “Will you come here to dance?”

Qin Meilan thought for a moment, “If it’s for reminiscing, isn’t it quite unnecessary?”

“Not necessarily, it can also be to pass the time.” She didn’t immediately grasp the deeper meaning in her mother’s eyes.

“An old body, how can I dance?” she said.

Ji Zhen Tang immediately flattered, “You’re not old! Young and beautiful, people would believe you’re twenty.”

Qin Meilan smiled helplessly, knowing she was being flattered, but her face turned more serious afterward. She looked at the light in the dance floor, slowly gathering some moisture on her eyelashes.

“Mom, people are different.”

Ji Zhen Tang saw her vulnerability and spoke emotionally, “I know you no longer believe in love because of your experiences. I also lost faith in people for a while because of your experiences. But later, under your influence, I regained a bit of energy. I don’t expect to share this energy with you, but I hope you can still retain a bit of trust in me and Zhong Yu Bai because of it.”

Qin Meilan looked at her, “Does it matter to him whether I trust him or not?”

Ji Zhen Tang was stunned and couldn’t continue.

Her mother also knew that Zhong Yu Bai was a big figure, and when a big figure wants to marry a wife, how much say does she have?

But Ji Zhen Tang said, “After all, you are his mother-in-law, and he respects you very much.”

Qin Meilan was silent; there was no flaw in her words.

Ji Zhen Tang continued, “Anyway, I hope you like this dance hall. We don’t look back; we only look forward. I still remember how you danced, and I hope you remember too.”

After a moment, her mother looked at her and finally smiled genuinely. Because the weather in Xingzhou is unpredictable, rainbows often appear here. Ji Zhen Tang and her mother took a small train to the beach for sightseeing, the red sightseeing car meandering through the coconut and banana trees.

“How are my brother and sister doing recently?” She was so excited earlier that she forgot to ask.

After getting married, Qin Meilan had her own family and gave birth to a son and a daughter.

This was probably the reason why her so-called love and longing gradually faded. That day, holding the dusty photos, Ji Zhen Tang softly said to Zhong Yu Bai: “It seems mom hasn’t looked through this album for many years.”

She didn’t need to say much; just a bit of expression in her eyes revealed her disappointment to him. Zhong Yu Bai, flipping through the photos, calmly said, “Not necessarily. If it’s in an exposed place, dust can settle quickly.”

A simple sentence slowly raised her spirits a bit.

He continued, “Nowadays, there are many electronic photo albums. This kind of outdated thing is also hidden deep in my house. I can’t find it easily.”

Her spirits continued to rise.

Finally, he said, both cruelly and realistically, “Moreover, family and friendship are not exclusive. You have to slowly adapt to the possibility of sharing with others. On the bright side, you enjoyed 100%, but your brother and sister did not, and they won’t have the chance to experience it. This is your privilege, not your mother’s fault.”

Although it was a very calm analysis, it hit her, and Ji Zhen Tang was deeply moved, nodding frantically.

Zhong Yu Bai smiled and asked, “Isn’t that the truth?”

Ji Zhen Tang was thus coaxed back to full health by his few words.

“But love is exclusive.”

Zhong Yu Bai said, “So we can’t share it with others.”

At this moment, when talking about her family in front of her mother, Qin Meilan replied, “Pretty good, your Uncle Wu manages the house well, and I don’t have to worry about many things.”

Her current husband is named Wu Jiaming, also Chinese. Ji Zhen Tang had seen his photo, a very honest and gentle man. He might not be Qin Meilan’s true love, but he was definitely a suitable person.

Qin Meilan was too beautiful, attracting men with bad intentions because of her beauty, but also having devoted protectors because of it. For a woman, being beautiful is a good thing, but being too beautiful is a risk. Ji Zhen Tang was very grateful that her mother had survived that risky period.

She suddenly asked her mother, “Do you want to be the boss here?”

Qin Meilan said, “Without the right skills, I wouldn’t take on such a job. I have my own work.”

Ji Zhen Tang smiled and said, “Alright, I’ve also been influenced and now have a capitalist mindset.”

She tilted her head, her gaze meeting the tear mole on her mother’s face. Although it was a sign of suffering, it was very beautiful.

Qin Meilan smiled faintly.

Then she asked her some details about her love life.

Ji Zhen Tang, with a look that said “I’m not sleepy anymore,” instantly became enthusiastic: “We have a little greedy cat named Dika. He gave it to me because he was afraid I would be lonely. The kitten is fluffy, but it sheds a lot. However, Zhong Yu Bai has many robots, and they are very diligent, cleaning and mopping the floor all day, so we don’t have to do any chores.”

“When we rest, we go for walks by the sea. I love the sea, and he knows it, so our house is a sea-view house. It’s like the line from the book I read as a child, ‘Facing the sea, with spring flowers blooming.’ I didn’t expect to realize it so early, haha.”

“And he is the most ceremonial person I’ve ever met. There’s a contrast in him. At work, he’s very serious and doesn’t smile much, but you wouldn’t guess that such a person would be so considerate and meticulous. He thinks of things I can’t even imagine.”

As she spoke, Ji Zhen Tang felt that a few words couldn’t describe his goodness, “Not only that, he has given me a lot of encouragement. He once told me that I would have a rich spiritual world, but it seems that it only became rich after meeting him. Although it’s not a prophecy, it feels like a Möbius strip, with the head connected to the tail.”

She pondered and thought of a recently popular term: “Do you understand the sense of destiny?”

Qin Meilan didn’t try to understand deeply, but she looked at Ji Zhen Tang calmly, feeling a thousand emotions. When Ji Zhen Tang talked about her lover, her eyes sparkled, as if a galaxy was flowing in them.

A beautiful woman who meets the wrong person has to take many detours.

In the end, what made Qin Meilan let down her guard was not the dance hall arranged by Zhong Yu Bai, but the happiness in Ji Zhen Tang’s eyes, a happiness that only she could truly understand.

Ji Zhen Tang liked to use the term “small but certain happiness,” referring to small, definite happiness. Unfortunately, the happiness in her daughter’s eyes took many years to find.

Qin Meilan smiled self-pityingly and gratefully, nodded, and said she understood.

“Do you quarrel often?”

Ji Zhen Tang shook her head quickly, “You don’t know how good his temper is. He’s like an enlightened monk, able to chant ‘Amitabha’ while holding prayer beads.”

As she spoke, she mimicked holding prayer beads with one hand.

Qin Meilan was amused and laughed.

Ji Zhen Tang, remembering something, suddenly changed the topic, “Mom, I’m graduating soon. Can you come to the ceremony if you have time?”

Qin Meilan readily agreed, “Sure.”

Ji Zhen Tang exclaimed “Yes!” and then ran towards the beach with open arms.

Her mother could see that she was slowly growing, ready to face the unknown with a stronger attitude. However, in love, she still seemed like a child.

In April, the weather was getting warmer.

Ji Zhen Tang was busy with her studies, while Zhong Yu Bai had some free time. With nothing to do, he delved into recipes whenever he had the chance, almost becoming a chef, and he enjoyed it, thinking it was also a good way to cultivate himself.

At first, cooking was a way to prove he still had a bit of down-to-earth charm, but now it was purely for interest.

While Zhong Yu Bai was beating eggs in the kitchen, Ji Zhen Tang appeared behind him. Despite her light steps, Zhong Yu Bai heard her and, without turning his head, asked softly, “Are you tired today?”

Ji Zhen Tang had planned to jump and scare him, but hearing this, she stopped tiptoeing and leaned on the kitchen island, watching the sunlight on his shoulders. “Not too bad. The ring I designed is finished. Do you want to see it?”

Zhong Yu Bai slightly turned his head, giving her a side profile, and said, “Wait a moment, one thing at a time.”

His hands were covered in vegetable juice, so he couldn’t look at her ring.

Ji Zhen Tang waited for him, picking up a book nearby and flipping through it quickly. “This cookbook is so thick. Are you getting old?”

She didn’t even bother to disguise her sarcasm now, but he wasn’t annoyed at all, like a monk with deep cultivation, calmly responding, “Playing with food is interesting.”

“Old people are like that, enjoying cooking, opera, and other leisure activities like fishing.”

Ji Zhen Tang moved closer to him.

Zhong Yu Bai gently moved her head out of his line of sight and said, “It’s just a leisurely lifestyle.”

“Alright, I know you don’t want to admit you’re getting old.” She laughed, watching him seriously study the recipes, and added, “Why don’t you stay home and be my chef? I’ll earn the money to support you, okay?”

Zhong Yu Bai replied without hesitation, “I’d be happy to.”

Whether he was truly happy or not, Ji Zhen Tang imagined the scenario and laughed heartily.

When Qin Meilan visited their little universe, Zhong Yu Bai was still calmly studying recipes in the kitchen. He came out, intending to go from the living room to the dining room, and saw someone sitting on the sofa. He stood still for a moment, observing the aunt he hadn’t seen in over a decade.

Then he slowly placed the dishes on the dining table and walked gracefully to Qin Meilan, smiling and saying, “Aunt Qin, long time no see.”

“Long time no see, Young Master Zhong.”

Zhong Yu Bai smiled, half-jokingly, “I’m no longer a young master.”

“—You’re President Zhong!”

Someone interjected from behind.

Both of them laughed.

Ji Zhen Tang thought he would be startled by her mother’s surprise visit, but he wasn’t.

Zhong Yu Bai remained calm, nodding slightly to her mother, then looking back at the nervous Ji Zhen Tang, saying softly, “I’ll go change my clothes.”

He changed from his pajamas into a neatly pressed black shirt, buttoning the cuffs and straightening his collar as he walked downstairs. A dinner that wasn’t very formal, but due to the presence of his mother-in-law and out of courtesy, Zhong Yu Bai dressed meticulously.

When he sat down, Ji Zhen Tang looked him over and said, “You’re so formal. Should I change out of my pajamas too?”

As she spoke, Ji Zhen Tang glanced at her mother for approval.

Zhong Yu Bai told her it wasn’t necessary, lowering his voice slightly, and said softly, “Beautiful people are always beautiful, only those who aren’t beautiful need to rely on clothes.”

This compliment was skillfully delivered. Even though it was clearly a compliment, it wouldn’t make anyone angry. Ji Zhen Tang smiled happily, “I believed your flattery, and that’s why I keep getting more beautiful.”

She meant that he should continue to praise her in the future.

Zhong Yu Bai smiled warmly and politely.

Qin Meilan observed him for a moment, and with a hint of satisfaction in her voice, said, “You’ve grown into what I imagined.”

Zhong Yu Bai didn’t ask her what she imagined him to be, he simply replied, “Not disappointing people is my good fortune.”

He said, “You are even more ideal than I remember.”

“What do you mean by ideal?”

“Young, beautiful, full of possibilities.”

Qin Meilan smiled.

At the four-person dining table, it seemed like nothing had changed, except for one missing seat. She said, “Your mother wouldn’t be disappointed to see you.”

Zhong Yu Bai’s smile faded slightly, and his eyes deepened with thought. After a while, he responded softly, “I know.”

Qin Meilan asked many questions about the Zhong family, and Zhong Yu Bai answered them all in detail. Even if she hadn’t brought them up, he would have mentioned them to reassure her. The Zhong family was different now, and he needed to clear away her concerns.

When old matters were brought up, he had to be as tactful as possible to maintain the hard-won peace.

Finally, he said, “I’m sorry for the trouble my family caused you before.”

Qin Meilan shook her head, “It’s nothing. After all, we didn’t suffer any substantial harm back then. After we lost contact, there were no more entanglements. But it’s a pity what happened to your mother. It must have been a big blow to you.”

Ji Zhen Tang was quietly startled.

She only heard Zhong Yu Bai say, “Perhaps the human body has a self-protective consciousness, and after so many years, the trauma has healed.”

At this point, Dika jumped onto the table, gently diverting the sad topic. Ji Zhen Tang picked her up and put her aside, but she jumped back. Zhong Yu Bai then took her upstairs. The cat was free-range; they insisted on not using a cage to protect its freedom.

When he returned, his shirt was covered in fur, so he didn’t get close to the dining table. From a distance, he wiped the cat hair off his sleeves with a wet wipe and asked softly, “Have you seen the dance hall?”

Qin Meilan said, “I heard there’s a dance tomorrow. I’m planning to take my husband to see it.”

So, Zhong Yu Bai arranged for someone to pick them up and drop them off for the dance.

Ji Zhen Tang went with him to the Bay Dance Hall, following behind Qin Meilan and Wu Jiaming’s car. She said, “You don’t have to be so considerate. Mom doesn’t mind these things.”

Zhong Yu Bai simply said, “If you don’t know, it’s fine. But if you know and don’t take good care, I consider it my dereliction of duty. However, doing a favor is no big deal.”

She could always be easily persuaded by him and fell silent.

Ji Zhen Tang was also slowly accepting that she didn’t need to worry about anything; she just needed to remember that Zhong Yu Bai had his reasons for doing things.

The dance hall was quite large, but the dance party was not very big. Since it was a Chinese-owned establishment, it naturally welcomed the local Chinese community, so there was a lot of Chinese spoken today.

The second floor was made into a modern bar, from which you could watch the dancing below.

It was somewhat like a nightclub in China, but more elegant, with the sound waves rising and falling like ocean waves.

Ji Zhen Tang watched Qin Meilan dancing.

Today, she wore a dress from when she was twenty years old. Because her eyebrows and eyes resembled her daughter’s, Ji Zhen Tang thought of her mother’s youth and her own youth as she watched her mother dance to the Spanish music.

“Do you remember the play I did last year? The dance I performed was taught by my mom. She was really amazing when she was young. It’s a pity she was taken away by that scumbag Ji Huan.”

Zhong Yu Bai didn’t look down, but quietly looked at her, smiling gently, “I’ve seen it.”

Ji Zhen Tang’s expression changed visibly, sometimes moved, sometimes playful.

“I wonder if I’ll still have this energy when I’m forty.”

She suddenly thought, “Did you recognize me because my dance moves are similar to my mom’s?”

They had danced on the plane.

Zhong Yu Bai said, “After recognizing you, capturing your characteristics became a matter of nostalgia.”

Ji Zhen Tang thought of the acacia tree, “If love is exclusive, will you always keep ‘love and memory’ for me?”

Zhong Yu Bai responded without hesitation, “A verbal promise of longing is not as good as letting you feel it genuinely. If you always feel it, it means I always love you.”

At that time, she was already a bit tipsy, her head feeling a bit swollen. She puffed her cheeks and said, “What? You always speak so profoundly, I don’t understand.”

He held Ji Zhen Tang’s hand and gently kissed her fingertips, “I will always love you.”

Surprisingly, she laughed, “You never seem to say ‘always.’”

“Maybe it’s because the feelings haven’t reached their peak yet.”

That night, Ji Zhen Tang’s lips felt numb from the alcohol, as if they were swollen, though they weren’t. This illusion made her uncomfortable. Zhong Yu Bai carried her upstairs, and as soon as her feet touched the ground, she stood on tiptoe and bit his shoulder hard.

Through the soft fabric of his shirt, her bite wasn’t too hard. Zhong Yu Bai endured the pain for five seconds, and the fierce bite turned into gentle kisses.

She kissed him through his shirt before he even had a chance to take it off.

Zhong Yu Bai gently stroked the back of her head, making Ji Zhen Tang look up. He brushed her flushed cheek with his knuckles and said with a smile, “You’ve become a tipsy cat again. Since when did your alcohol tolerance get so low?”

She stood up straight, even more rigid than a soldier, to prove herself: “I’m not drunk!”

Today, she was actually fine, but borrowing his words—”When feelings are strong, it’s hard to resist.”

Ji Zhen Tang exhaled, finding the smell of alcohol unbearable. She quickly took a shower and rinsed her mouth.

When she came out of the bathroom, Zhong Yu Bai was squatting on the floor, playing with Dika and a ping-pong ball. The ball rolled silently on the carpet, and the kitten pounced on it playfully.

“This little dummy finally reacted?” Ji Zhen Tang clapped her hands in relief, “It’s not easy to get her to play.”

The kitten had a bit of a lazy personality, to put it nicely, she was quiet and didn’t like to move. She didn’t play much and spent most of her time curled up in a corner sleeping.

Ji Zhen Tang had jokingly complained several times, “Zhong Yu Bai, can you train her a bit? All she does is eat and sleep. What kind of kitten is so distant from her owner? No wonder they call them cat lords.”

So soon, the house was filled with various toys.

A ping-pong ball, a cat teaser stick.

In the end, Zhong Yu Bai put them all away and said, “She can play with you now. I’ll be on a business trip in a few days, so you can practice her energy at home.”

At this point, Ji Zhen Tang changed her tune and said, “Why? Are you going to send Dika to be an athlete? Kittens are naturally lazy and love to eat. What’s there to train?”

Zhong Yu Bai was speechless, smiling helplessly at her.

Ji Zhen Tang knew what he was speechless about.

She sat on his lap and asked with a smile, “Are you very worried that I’ll be lonely by myself?”

Zhong Yu Bai said, “Very worried.”

“No need to worry, I’ve grown up.” She said, both touched and sincere.

Zhong Yu Bai looked down at her water-washed eyes, which were the most moist and moving at this moment. He gently smoothed the hair on her forehead and said softly, “You haven’t grown up yet.”

Ji Zhen Tang’s nose tingled, “Really.”

He said, “In the past, you had classmates with you at school. Here, in a place where you don’t know anyone, if I’m not around, who will be there for you?”

She said, “I have many good friends here in Xingzhou, and a very nice boss. When you’re not around, I might be out having fun with them. Last month, I even went to a resort.”

Zhong Yu Bai looked at her, listening to her finish, and slowly smiled, “As long as you have company.”

Ji Zhen Tang pointed at Dika and said, “She’s silly, but that’s okay. Don’t suppress the kitten’s nature to please me. Watching her sleep makes me happy too!”

He smiled more deeply, reassured that she was truly happy, and nodded, “Okay.”

“When I saw Mom and Uncle Wu dancing today, I felt that she is really happy now, so I am also very relieved and happy. Then I thought of a song, can we listen to it?” Ji Zhen Tang said, running to the bedroom to find the record player, “I happen to have this one.”

She chose a song called “Spring Blossoms to Meet You.”

She explained, “Although there are no distinct seasons in Xingzhou, life has its seasons. My mom’s life has also welcomed a springtime moment. Even though it came a bit late, she still got to experience her spring blossoms.”

Zhong Yu Bai lay on the bed, gently holding her waist, quietly enjoying the melody of the song, until her thin clothes were suddenly lifted.

She said, “Let’s take advantage of the moment. Don’t you think the atmosphere is perfect?”

The atmosphere was indeed nice.

Just as things were about to escalate, Zhong Yu Bai pressed his forehead with a bit of frustration, slowly releasing his grip on her waist. He said, “At this pace, maybe we can try this when we’re seventy or eighty.”

Ji Zhen Tang was stunned for a moment, then laughed so hard her stomach hurt.

Zhong Yu Bai closed his eyes, gently embraced Ji Zhen Tang, and despite his own urgent needs, he believed that enjoying the music was equally important. So he said softly, “Let’s finish listening first.”

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