When they were about finished eating, Xue Xingzhou went out to pay the bill. Someone else was already at the counter.

He was a middle-aged man, stout and fleshy-faced, with a prominent beer belly. He was holding a wallet, revealing a thick wad of cash inside. The man pulled out a few large bills and slapped them on the counter.

"Keep the change."

He spoke in Cantonese, and Xue Xingzhou glanced up at him.

Standing beside the man was a fashionably dressed woman. She had long, wavy hair, and wore a red cashmere coat that reached her calves and a pair of black high heels. Her head was lowered as she examined her red-polished fingernails.

Xue Xingzhou stared at the woman for a moment longer. The woman, perhaps sensing his gaze, looked up at him and offered a charming smile.

"Alright, let’s go."

At the man’s words, the woman took his arm and they left together.

Xue Xingzhou narrowed his eyes and watched their retreating figures for another moment.

When he returned, the others had already finished eating and were helping the children into their coats.

As the group left the restaurant, Xue Xingzhou’s gaze drifted, his thoughts turning to Xiao Yu.

Zhang Qian nudged Xue Xingzhou. "What’s wrong?"

Xue Xingzhou gave her a slight smile.

"It’s nothing."

He then looked down at Tun Tun.

"Do you want to walk by yourself, or should Daddy carry you?"

Tun Tun reached his arms out to Xue Xingzhou, who promptly scooped him up.

He Lang had to go to the food factory that afternoon, so he wouldn’t be going back with them.

After picking up their things from the supermarket, they were about to leave when Xue Xingjun returned.

He was panting from running.

"Big Bro! Sister-in-law! What brings you here?"

Xue Xingjun caught his breath, and his face lit up when he saw Tun Tun.

"Tun Tun, you’re here too! Come on, let your uncle hold you."

Xue Xingjun took Tun Tun from his brother’s arms and planted a big kiss on his cheek. Tun Tun squinted and tried to dodge, then shot Xue Xingjun a look of what seemed to be disdain.

Xue Xingjun roared with laughter.

Xue Yue said irritably, "You little rascal, didn’t you see your own sister? So rude."

Xue Xingjun grinned. "I saw you! Come on, Sis, we’re family. Don’t be so formal."

Xue Yue just smiled.

"Uncle, you didn’t say hi to us either," Ruanruan said.

Xue Xingjun looked down at the three little ones. "Hehe, your uncle sees you."

Xue Xingzhou said, "We’ll let you get back to work. We have to head home; it’s time for Tun Tun’s afternoon nap."

Xue Xingjun gave Tun Tun one last look before reluctantly handing him back to his brother.

"Stay up a little late tonight. Wait for Uncle to come home and play with you."

Tun Tun just glanced at him without a word.

Xue Yue said to He Lang, "We’re heading back, then."

He Lang nodded.

Watching them walk away, He Lang asked Xue Xingjun, "Is it settled?"

Xue Xingjun shook his head. "Brother-in-law, they’re still insisting on meeting you specifically. I guess they look down on me. If I could’ve settled it, I would’ve been back ages ago instead of wasting all this time."

He Lang frowned. "I’ll stop by this afternoon on my way."

Meanwhile, the others returned home. Tun Tun was already dozing off. Xue Xingzhou dropped Zhang Qian and the kids off at their place, then came back over.

By now, the children had gone to their rooms.

"Why are you back again?"

Xue Xingzhou said to Xue Yue, "I came back to tell you something. At the restaurant just now, I think I saw someone we know."

Xue Yue poured him a glass of water and asked casually, "Oh? Who?"

Xue Xingzhou said, "Your sister-in-law. Xiao Yu’s mother."

Xue Yue froze, wondering if she had misheard.

She looked at her brother. "Who did you say?"

Xue Xingzhou repeated himself. "Xiao Yu’s mother. What was her name... Gu something? He Ze’s wife."

"Are you sure you weren’t mistaken?"

Gu Yuwei had been gone for several years. If her brother hadn’t suddenly brought her up, Xue Yue would have had trouble even picturing her face.

Xue Xingzhou shot her a look. "Have you forgotten what I do for a living? I wouldn’t make a mistake like that."

Xue Xingzhou had met Gu Yuwei before. While someone else might have forgotten her face by now, Xue Xingzhou never forgot a person he’d seen, even just once.

The Gu Yuwei of today was very different from the woman she’d been in the countryside. Her clothes and style had changed, but her face was the same.

"Gu Yuwei ran away before. Do you think she’s run back to Beijing City?" Xue Yue asked, puzzled.

Xue Xingzhou shook his head. "I doubt it. She doesn’t have an official letter of introduction, so even if she came back, she’d have nowhere to hide. The checks in Beijing City are much stricter than elsewhere. Besides, I saw her with a man, and he seemed to be from Hong Kong."

"You think she ran off to Hong Kong? That’s so far away... all the way across the sea."

The corner of Xue Xingzhou’s mouth twitched. "For a woman like her, with all her schemes, even going abroad wouldn’t be surprising."

Xue Yue glanced outside and shushed her brother. "Don’t let my mother-in-law hear you. If she did, there’s no telling what she would think."

Xue Yue figured that in a city as big as Beijing, the odds of her and Gu Yuwei ever crossing paths were practically zero.

But to her surprise, just a few days later, she actually saw Gu Yuwei at her workplace. Gu Yuwei was following a middle-aged man—the man from Hong Kong her brother must have been talking about.

They were there to discuss a partnership, and Zheng Guofeng was the one meeting with them.

’I wonder if Gu Yuwei and Zheng Guofeng have ever met,’ Xue Yue thought. ’Even if they have, they’ve both changed so much from how they were before, they probably wouldn’t recognize each other anyway.’

Xue Yue followed Feng Yujie into the meeting room and sat in the back, listening as Zheng Guofeng spoke with the man at the front.

Gu Yuwei sat next to the man, holding a pen and notebook, occasionally jotting things down like a secretary.

Xue Yue understood the gist of the partnership discussion.

They wanted to build a factory in Beijing City to produce plastic toys.

However, given the current political climate, they would need approval from the higher-ups.

The situation in Hong Kong was also complicated at the moment, and its relationship with the mainland was in a delicate, observational phase.

Xue Yue lowered her head and took notes on the meeting’s content.

When they finished their discussion, Xue Yue stood up with the others.

She watched as her superior and the visitors walked toward the door.

As Gu Yuwei was walking, she glanced casually in Xue Yue’s direction, and her eyes met Xue Yue’s. She froze, stopping dead in the doorway.

Her abrupt halt made everyone in the meeting room turn to look at her, confused.

"Rose?"

the man called out.

Gu Yuwei snapped back to reality. A flicker of panic crossed her face as she glanced at the man.

The man narrowed his eyes. "What’s wrong?"

Gu Yuwei shook her head. "It’s nothing. I just spaced out for a moment."

The man gave her a look, then turned with a smile to apologize to the others before walking out of the meeting room.

By the time Xue Yue finally came out, they were already gone.

She followed Feng Yujie back to the office.

"Do you know that woman?"

Xue Yue glanced at Feng Yujie and nodded.

Feng Yujie didn’t ask any more questions.

But as Xue Yue sat at her desk, she found she had completely lost her motivation to work.