Chapter 457 Are you waiting for me to have security kick you out?

The reporters who were secretly taking pictures were dumbfounded and stood there stunned.

Cui Xiao raised an eyebrow and said, "Why aren't you leaving yet? Are you waiting for me to have security kick you out?"

Throughout the entire process, Cui Xiao remained expressionless, as calm as if she were asking about today's weather.

The reporter snapped out of his daze and hurriedly left.

Then, Cui Xiao picked up the broken phone from the ground and casually threw it into the trash can.

A breeze lifted the hem of her dress, causing her pearl bracelet to sway gently on her wrist. She gazed thoughtfully at the pleasure boats gliding across the river.

After a long while, Cui Xiao withdrew her gaze and turned to walk into the bustling area.

The celebration banquet wasn't over yet; she was the star of this grand event and had no right to dwell on the past on the terrace.

More than the lavish banquet, she was concerned about the phone in her pocket that had lit up three times.

As he turned to walk into the banquet hall, he bumped into Xiao Chen, who was waiting at the door. Xiao Chen immediately handed him a neatly folded cashmere coat. "Vice President Cui, your car is waiting for you in Area A of the underground parking garage."

She nodded slightly to the coat Xiao Chen handed her, quickly tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her voice carrying a barely perceptible hint of relaxation, "I'll leave the finishing touches to you. Thank you for your hard work."

As she walked through the crowd, many people still held up their glasses and wanted to strike up a conversation, but she politely declined, citing other commitments.

Just then, the phone in my pocket lit up again; it was a message that Sister Zhang had sent five minutes earlier.

[Little Nuomi had just counted to the thirtieth sheep when she found your photo and kissed it twice, saying she wanted to remember Mommy's scent.]

Cui Xiao looked at the words on it and smiled.

The black sedan drove smoothly across the overpass, the driver deliberately slowing down to avoid startling the people in the back seat who were resting with their eyes closed.

The neon lights outside the window cast flickering shadows on Cui Xiao's face through the tinted car window, slightly concealing the weariness in her eyes.

She rubbed her throbbing temples, her fingertips unconsciously caressing the pearl bracelet on her wrist. The cool beads rolled down her fingertips, evoking fragments of faded memories.

This was the first gift Zhou Mubin gave her. Although it was originally intended for his girlfriend, they broke up before he could give it to her, so he gave it to her instead.

But this was indeed his first gift, and it's what Cui Xiao has kept to this day.

When she left Hong Kong that year, she took nothing with her except this pearl bracelet.

Oh, you can't say that.

She also took their child with her.

Cui Xiao never expected that that absurd encounter would result in pregnancy.

Originally, Cui Xiao wanted to have an abortion, but once she was in the operating room, she couldn't bear to do it.

This is her child. Since she has the ability, why can't she give birth to it and raise it?

Cui Xiao was also extremely grateful for her decision. Her daughter was soft, sweet, and incredibly cute, and she was her only motivation to work hard.

She recalled those nights when she held her feverish daughter and revised plans until the early hours of the morning, her daughter's little head resting on her shoulder as she dozed off, her drool soaking her shirt cuffs.

On those afternoons spent revising contracts in the hospital corridor, she didn't feel bitter at all, as she stared at the legal terms on her phone while coaxing her little one who was crying because he was afraid of injections.

The light citrus scent from the car air freshener wafted into her nostrils. This was a scent she had specially chosen, matching the aromatherapy at home, so that her daughter could more quickly adjust to the smell when she came home late.

She opened her eyes and looked at the street scene rushing past outside the window. Suddenly, she felt that those days of gritting her teeth and persevering had never gone away. They had all turned into the warmth in her palm at this moment, becoming the most solid foundation that supported her in overcoming obstacles in the business world.

The car was parked in the underground garage. Cui Xiao took the elevator and it slowly went up. When the number jumped to the 15th floor, he could faintly hear the soft rustling sounds coming from the crack in the door.

It was Xiao Nuomi speaking to her doll in a low voice, probably complaining about why her mother hadn't come back yet.

The moment the door opened, before Cui Xiao could even change her shoes, a chubby little figure, smelling of milk, pounced towards her like a small cannonball ready to fire.

The little body bumped into her with a bit of force, its chubby little hands gripping the hem of her suit jacket tightly, its fluffy little head rubbing against her neck. "Mommy, I've been waiting for you for so long, I've counted a hundred sheep and still haven't seen you."

Cui Xiao quickly bent down and caught her daughter steadily. She placed her palm on her daughter's warm back and could clearly feel the little one's slightly rising and falling breaths due to excitement, as well as the soft cotton texture of the nightgown.

She picked up her daughter and let her little face press against her own. The familiar scent of baby bath wash filled her nostrils, and her heart instantly melted into a warm, sweet sip.

As Sister Zhang carried a warm cup of formula milk out of the kitchen, she saw the mother and daughter's affectionate interaction and smiled lovingly. "Miss Cui, you're finally back! After reading Winnie the Pooh tonight, this little girl refused to go to bed. She insisted on sitting on a small stool in the entryway and waiting. I tried to persuade her several times that Mommy was busy, but she just hugged that picture of you in your white dress, touching it and counting sheep, saying she wouldn't go to sleep until Mommy came back and kissed her sweet cheek."

Cui Xiao looked down at her daughter in her arms. Four-year-old Nuomi had two crooked, round buns with the little bows on her hair ties drooping down. Her pink nightgown with a bear pattern was wrinkled, indicating that she had been sitting on the stool for a long time.

But her eyes shone like stars in a summer night. She cupped Cui Xiao's face in her little hands, looked her up and down, then stood on tiptoe to reach the silk scarf around her neck. In a sweet, childish voice, she said, "Mommy smells so good, even better than the butter cookies Aunt Zhang baked this afternoon. I want to sleep smelling Mommy's fragrance."

Cui Xiao smiled and gently supported her daughter's bottom, saying affectionately, "Okay, Mommy will put our little Nuomi to sleep."

As she spoke, she turned and walked towards the bedroom, making a point of avoiding the scattered building blocks and plush toys on the floor as she passed through the living room.

The little one in her arms stirred restlessly, her tiny hand suddenly grasping the pearl bracelet on her wrist. The round pearls pressed against her palm, and she shook it curiously, tilting her little face up to ask, "Mommy, do you really like this pearl bracelet? When I grow up, I'm going to buy you lots and lots of pearl bracelets."

Cui Xiao lowered her head and kissed her daughter's soft cheek, gently stroking her little nose with her fingertips. "Then thank you, my darling. But now, we need to lie down in our little bed, give Mommy a kiss, and then go to sleep."

She put Niannian into the children's bed covered with a teddy bear sheet, and just as she was about to get up to turn off the light, the little one hugged her neck and gave her a big kiss on the cheek.

The warm, milky breath brushed against my skin, carrying a faint milky scent.

Cui Xiao sat on the edge of the bed, watching her daughter's eyes gradually close, staring at her pretty little face, her gaze unconsciously falling on her thick, long eyelashes.