Chapter 98 — Defying the Morning Glow

As the eastern sky began to pale and the hazy light of dawn spilled over the earth, Cheng Yishu finally understood what a foolish thing he had done.

He had sat in the car all night, and his long-numbed legs moved slightly at last. A wave of aching pins and needles shot through his nerves like electricity.

Staring at that tiny window, never lit once through the whole night, Cheng Yishu felt that he had truly gone mad.

The Si family had already acknowledged them. How could she still be living in such a shabby place?

Perhaps she had long since moved into the castle-like home that man had prepared for them, and at this very moment she might even be facing this same beautiful sunrise...

Thinking of that, Cheng Yishu mocked himself again for how absurd he had been.

Such a lovely dawn, after all, no longer belonged to the two of them.

The car slowly started up, heading in the opposite direction of the rising sun.

The expressionless man appeared before Xu Ningning and said only a few words before she followed him without the slightest hesitation.

"Miss Lin asks that you come with me."

There had been no news of Lin Xiaowen for several days. Her phone was unreachable, no one was home, and even Ranran had not been to kindergarten...

Her first instinct had been to call the police, but after reading the headlines, she realized Lin Xiaowen’s disappearance was most likely connected to Si Nan.

Only then did Xu Ningning suddenly realize that she did not even have Si Nan’s contact information. Every time she wanted to see him, he would appear.

Or perhaps it was more accurate to say that they only met when Si Nan needed to see her.

A faint unease crept over Xu Ningning. How had she fallen so deeply for such a man?

And yet, was it not precisely because Si Nan was so mysterious and so coldly remote that he had once held her so completely in his grasp...

The car drove for a long time before finally stopping amid Xu Ningning’s wandering thoughts.

"Miss Xu, please."

The driver opened the door politely and gestured for her to go ahead. Xu Ningning tightened her grip on the fabric at her chest and got out of the car...

She had no mind to admire the garden before her, where flowers and shrubs had been expertly tended by professional gardeners.

She also had no desire to look up at the castle-like villa that only in front of a television screen had she ever dared to imagine entering one day herself...

Xu Ningning’s hands, clasped before her, were faintly damp with sweat. The female housekeeper leading the way wore the same expressionless face as the driver. Coupled with the eerie silence that hung over the entire house, Xu Ningning’s unease only grew more obvious.

The cool touch of the white-veined marble banister on the stairway brushed her palm, and Xu Ningning managed to steady herself a little.

At the end of the corridor on the second floor, the half-closed door was softly knocked on by the housekeeper.

"Miss Lin, are you awake? Miss Xu is here to see you."

Xu Ningning listened closely but heard no response. Her worry rose at once, and then she heard the housekeeper continue.

"May we come in then?"

"...Let Ningning in. You can go out."

It was Lin Xiaowen’s voice. Hearing that familiar sound, Xu Ningning finally let out a breath of relief.

The housekeeper, however, took it in stride. She merely glanced at Xu Ningning and said calmly, "Mr. Si’s meaning is that he hopes Miss Xu will keep Miss Lin company and help her feel better, so that her body may recover sooner. After all, the little miss still needs her biological mother’s care..."

Lowering her eyes, the housekeeper added, "Then I won’t delay Miss Xu any further. If you need anything, you can use the internal line. I’ll be here at any time."

Without waiting for any reply, the housekeeper nodded and turned away. Her back was ramrod straight, and her flat, uninflected tone made Xu Ningning almost feel as though she were a robot.

Rolling her eyes at the utterly unlikable "robot," Xu Ningning gently pushed open the door and stepped inside.

A curtain of cream-colored gauze covered an entire wall of windows, drawing the room tightly shut. Faint light seeped through and lay softly across the thick carpet beneath her feet...

The room was not very large, but it was a suite.

Though the details were not fully visible, it was easy to tell she was in the living room. Everything around her was decorated in cream, clean and refined.

"Ningning..."

"Xiaowen..."

The two spoke each other’s names almost at the same time. Xu Ningning froze, then followed the sound toward the bedroom.

The bedroom door stood wide open. The moment Xu Ningning stepped inside, she collided full on with Lin Xiaowen, who was just about to come out...

"Oh my heavens..."

"Ouch... hiss..."

Each clutching her forehead, they both looked up at the other at once. Then Lin Xiaowen suddenly laughed.

"What are you scared of? You couldn’t even recognize my voice?"

Because she had been afraid Xu Ningning would worry, Lin Xiaowen had planned to go out and meet her, but in the end she still gave Xu Ningning a fright.

Xu Ningning frowned at her.

"It’s broad daylight, and you’ve got the curtains drawn so the room is dark as night, and you’re all disheveled too... What are you doing, trying to play a ghost and scare people?"

Lin Xiaowen was wearing a white silk nightgown that fell to her ankles, with a sash of the same color loosely tied at the waist. Her long hair hung loose, leaving only her face exposed.

At a glance, she really did look a bit like a ghost.

Xu Ningning stepped closer to inspect her. Aside from a somewhat haggard complexion, she did not seem any different from usual.

"It’s been days since we last saw each other, and not only are you not worried about me at all, you’re calling me a ghost... It seems my years of devotion were in the end wasted on you. Sigh."

With feigned hurt, Lin Xiaowen turned and walked back into the bedroom.

"You heartless thing!"

Xu Ningning made as if to pinch her, and as she passed by, she reached out and squeezed Lin Xiaowen’s face.

But the cheek beneath her fingers held hardly any flesh at all, and Xu Ningning’s hand froze in midair.

The bedroom curtains were drawn tight as well, so she could not see Lin Xiaowen’s deliberately exaggerated smile clearly.

"You start hitting the moment you arrive. Are you even my friend anymore? Come on, sit down and talk."

Lin Xiaowen spoke lightly, and her icy fingers wrapped around Xu Ningning’s hand. Only then did Xu Ningning come back to herself. The two sat down together, facing each other in silence, each looking at the other.

"Xiaowen, you..."

Xu Ningning’s straightforward temperament could no longer be restrained, yet she was afraid of hurting whatever was being hidden. She stopped and started, distressed beyond words, not knowing what to say first.

Lin Xiaowen knew Xu Ningning’s nature best. She gave a silent smile.

"I know what you want to ask. That’s also why I had you come here. You can see it for yourself—I’m doing just fine, aren’t I? I’m living well, eating well... Oh, let’s have lunch together here. I’m telling you, the cook here is incredibly skilled. Supposedly he’s a five-star Cantonese chef... And the Hong Kong desserts are really delicious..."

Still pretending to be at ease, Lin Xiaowen took Xu Ningning’s hand and chattered on and on. Yet Xu Ningning could clearly feel the cold hand in hers trembling faintly.

"Xiaowen..."

Xu Ningning softly cut her off, tightening her hold on Lin Xiaowen’s hand as she looked into her eyes.

"Tell me the truth. What are you planning to do? Are you going to live here from now on? And Ranran? I went to the kindergarten, and the teacher said Ranran hasn’t been there for several days. She isn’t here either. Then where is she? Where is she?"

Xu Ningning’s voice was gentle but urgent. Her anxious expression made it plain how deeply she worried about the little child’s situation at that very moment.