Chapter 163

Chapter 163

By the time the guests at the Xie Family wedding banquet on the nineteenth floor finally trickled out, Jiang Baichuan and Yun Li were already lying in bed in the top-floor suite of the Interstellar Bay Hotel.

Once the guests had left, a few relatives close to the Xie Family remained, exchanging pleasantries.

Xie Qiyan sat upright and composed. Someone was speaking to him, and while he listened, his attention had already wandered. His gaze cut straight through the crowd and landed on one person.

His eyes narrowed slightly, carrying a trace of hostility.

Before leaving, Xie Qiyan patted Xie Tan on the head and instructed, “Take your sister-in-law to the car and wait for me.”

“Ayan…” Xia Wanzhi called after him, but Xie Qiyan did not stop.

Xie Tan watched him stride aggressively in Zhou Yu’s direction and shivered for no reason. “Sister Wanzi, did he swallow gunpowder or something? On a happy day like this, it wouldn’t be good to draw blood, right…”

Xia Wanzhi smiled helplessly. “No. He knows what he’s doing. Come on, let’s wait for him in the car.”

Whether Xie Qiyan had swallowed gunpowder was hard to say, but with that posture, he did indeed look like he was about to start a fight.

The instant Zhou’s Mother saw Xie Qiyan walking over, her body tensed instinctively. Forcing a smile, she greeted him. “Ayan, you haven’t left yet? Come visit your aunt’s house another day…”

Xie Qiyan was stopped, but he did not get angry. He looked past Zhou’s Mother and spoke directly to Zhou Yu. “Keep an eye on your woman.”

Zhou Yu’s expression froze. “What do you mean?”

“The Zhou Family’s affairs should be handled behind your own closed doors. If Sun Lingzhi approaches my wife again, I don’t mind taking care of her along with the entire Zhou Family.” Xie Qiyan said only that much. He had no interest in paying attention to the expressions on the Zhou Family’s faces. After issuing that warning, he turned and left.

Xia Wanzhi was still waiting for him. He did not want to waste his time on these people.

“Son…” Zhou’s Mother’s face went deathly pale. She turned and grabbed Zhou Yu’s arm tightly. “Did that woman go looking for the Xie Family? This matter absolutely cannot get out, do you understand?”

“How would I know!” Zhou Yu shook her off impatiently and walked away.

Zhou’s Mother had wanted to pull him back, but realizing the occasion was inappropriate, she forced the words back down.

When it came to this son of hers, she had always spoiled him.

After the engagement was called off, Zhou Yu had fallen into a miserable slump. Even though she knew Sun Lingzhi was a woman who could never be brought into respectable society, she had still chosen to turn a blind eye.

But she had never imagined that woman would be so difficult to deal with. Not only was she pregnant, she even wanted to use the child to marry into the Zhou Family.

Zhou’s Mother was still counting on Zhou Yu entering a marriage alliance to stabilize the current Zhou Group.

The child could not be kept, and Sun Lingzhi absolutely could not be allowed through the Zhou Family’s doors.

And this matter absolutely could not get out.

In her heart, Zhou’s Mother quietly made a ruthless decision.

Outside the hotel, Xia Wanzhi waited alone in the car. When they came downstairs, they had run into Xie Tan’s Little Stepmother. The woman had told Xie Tan to go back with her, and Xie Tan had no way to refuse.

Besides, she was going back to the Xie Family Old Mansion anyway. Thinking that Xie Qiyan seemed to be in a rather bad mood, Xie Tan simply left first so she would not be a third wheel to the young couple. It also saved Xie Qiyan the trouble of making another trip to send her off.

Xia Wanzhi had rolled down the window specifically to see if Xie Qiyan had come down yet. In the end, she did not see Xie Qiyan. Instead, she ran into Zhou Yu first.

Their eyes met unexpectedly.

Just as Xia Wanzhi was about to close the car window, Zhou Yu reacted quickly and stepped forward to block it. “Zhi Zhi! I’m sorry…”

Xia Wanzhi paused. “Hm?”

Seeing this, Yu Fei, who was standing guard in front of the car, was about to come over and haul him away. Xia Wanzhi smiled lightly and shook her head. Only then did Yu Fei stop, standing off to the side while keeping a close eye on Zhou Yu’s movements.

“Sun… I didn’t know that woman came to find you. Don’t misunderstand. No matter what she said, don’t take it seriously. I…” Zhou Yu explained in a rush.

“It’s all right. I didn’t care.” Xia Wanzhi brushed the topic aside lightly. When she caught sight of Xie Qiyan, she said politely, “Sorry, please move. You’re blocking my husband from getting in the car.”

Zhou Yu stiffened all over. After he came back to himself, his arm fell weakly to his side.

That was right.

She truly did not care anymore.

Xia Wanzhi’s attitude now was that of someone treating him as a stranger.

Xia Wanzhi opened the car door for Xie Qiyan from inside. Xie Qiyan lifted his eyes and glanced at Zhou Yu. Perhaps because he had heard what Xia Wanzhi said just now, his gaze was calm and indifferent, as if Zhou Yu was not worth acknowledging at all.
The car door opened, letting in a gust of wind. After Xie Qiyan settled into his seat, he closed the window. “What did he say to you?”

“He apologized.” Xia Wanzhi pressed back a smile and asked in return, “What about you? What did you say to him?”

Xie Qiyan let out a cold scoff. “Nothing much. I warned them to stay away from you.”

The car drove on. Xia Wanzhi only gave a soft laugh and said nothing more.

Perhaps it had something to do with being married now, but Xia Wanzhi felt very at peace. She had already let go of the past. The person she was now believed, with absolute certainty, that nothing could affect her or her relationship with Xie Qiyan.

After the Lantern Festival, the New Year atmosphere had faded, and the air around them carried only the distinct smell of people going back to work. This year, Zhuzi had traveled from north to south over the holiday, spending a meaningful New Year on the road. When she came back, she brought Xia Wanzhi quite a few treasures she had found along the way.

These included, but were not limited to, local paintings, niche paintbrushes and pigments, and adorable things like doodle boards.

“You have no idea. I spent the longest time in Yuncheng this trip. Beicheng was still freezing cold, but Yuncheng was already warm and blooming, with spring breezes blowing everywhere. If I didn’t have to come back to work, I would’ve stayed there longer.” Zhuzi happily shared all the strange and interesting things she had encountered on the way. The place she mentioned the most was Yuncheng.

Xia Wanzhi had not been busy these past two days. Since she was free anyway, she listened while replacing the paintings from last year that were hanging on the walls with new ones.

“Yuncheng, huh? It is a good place. The people are simple and warmhearted. It really is worth missing.” Xia Wanzhi chatted along. After finishing what she was doing, Zhuzi called her over to look at her sketchbook.

Zhuzi had also studied art. Xia Wanzhi had always felt it was a waste for Zhuzi to work as her assistant, but she could not win against Zhuzi’s desire to stay by her side. So she could only make it up to her through salary and other benefits.

“This is Yuncheng?” Xia Wanzhi was genuinely amazed by the drawings in her sketchbook. She sat down and flipped through them page by page, admiring each one.

“Mm-hmm!” Zhuzi said enthusiastically. “In a little town. The first few drawings were all done there. Look at this one, the sea of poppies. It was right in that town. It covered a hundred mu, with all kinds of flower fields planted there. It completely blew me away! I even took pictures. Here, look!”

“Poppies?” Xia Wanzhi flipped through a few of the actual photos and was surprised to find them somewhat familiar. Sure enough, when she saw a sign she remembered, she smiled. “Youqin Town. I went there too, the summer after my first year of high school.”

Zhuzi’s eyes went wide. “First year of high school? That must’ve been ten years ago, right? This flower-sea town has actually been around for ten years?”

Xia Wanzhi looked thoughtful as she continued flipping through the photos. “No mistake. The sign is right here. It’s just that back then, the flower sea was a vast field of blue nemophila.”

She had been to too many places and seen too many landscapes and people. Xia Wanzhi’s mind could not store them all. Some distant memories had been pressed down to the very bottom, but now, seeing these pictures, those memories were awakened again.

“There’s a love story behind this town.” Xia Wanzhi propped her chin on her hand, a smile tugging at her lips. Under Zhuzi’s expectant gaze, she began to tell it slowly. “The owner of this flower sea was the owner of the guesthouse on the outskirts of town. He planted over a hundred mu of flowers just to please the person he loved and make his beauty smile.”

Zhuzi cupped her face in both hands, her eyes practically sparkling. “What a breathtaking love story. And so extravagant.”

After her envy passed, Zhuzi returned to reality and frowned. “Wait, that’s not right. The owner of the guesthouse on the outskirts of town is a very young woman.”

“A woman?” Xia Wanzhi’s brows drew together slightly, then she chuckled. “Then maybe the owner took the person he loved and left for someplace far away.”

Zhuzi pouted and sighed softly. “What a shame. I didn’t get to meet the owner, or the person the owner loved.”

Xia Wanzhi smiled and lowered her eyes, thinking about something.

“Since you know this story, didn’t you keep anything worth remembering?” Zhuzi leaned closer, blinking at her.

One thing she was certain of was that Xia Wanzhi must have gone to Yuncheng during the summer after her first year of high school to sketch and find inspiration.

With that reminder, Xia Wanzhi suddenly slapped the table. “I remember now. I painted a picture for the owner’s beloved.”