Downstairs in the dining room, the servants had already prepared dinner, with plates of all sizes laid out on the table, looking quite plentiful.

When Mu Yiran got closer and saw the dishes on the plate, her worldview was once again severely shocked.

No wonder Shi Youxi looks malnourished.

Is it enough to have coffee and salad for dinner?

Moreover, Shi Youxi is at an age where he urgently needs to absorb nutrients and has a big appetite.

These things would be dismissed as afternoon tea.

This child, is he really their biological son?!

However, besides her, there were also the housekeeper and several servants in the restaurant, so Mu Yiran was too embarrassed to speak up.

Besides, all wealthy families have their secrets, and the Wen family is no exception.

She stood beside Shi Youxi, watching the boy sit alone at the huge dining table, mechanically swallowing and finishing his dinner in measured portions.

But he didn't drink a drop of that coffee.

Mu Yiran had just secretly asked the other servants that Shi Youxi was going to the main house to see Shi Yan and Bai Shengsheng.

They're family, yet they never eat together and only meet at set times. This cold and oppressive environment explains why Shi Youxi has this kind of personality.

As agreed, Shi Si arrived at the restaurant on time.

When Shi Youxi saw him coming, he wasn't in a hurry and turned to look at Mu Yiran.

They stared at each other, both completely bewildered.

Mu Yiran: "?"

Wipe your mouth.

"Oh ho." Mu Yiran picked up the wet towel from the side of the plate and shoved it against his face.

Shi Si stood quietly at the door, and only then did he take a closer look at the woman dressed in strange clothes.

Is she the new maid who serves the young master?

He has a very ordinary appearance.

......

It's not far from the East District to Zhongzhai, but you need to take a car.

Mu Yiran, who had also experienced the life of a pampered young lady, now wore the expression of a country bumpkin entering a big city.

No wonder this family can't eat together; given the distance, they're either eating or on their way to eat every day.

For a brief few minutes, Shi Youxi remained silent.

You were so excited this afternoon, why do you look so unhappy now? Are you too nervous?

Mu Yiran followed his movements and saw his rough, calloused fingertips, which had been scratched until they bled.

She grabbed the boy's hands tightly. "Oh, I'll disinfect them for you in a bit. Don't pick at them, doesn't it hurt?"

"Weren't you having a great time this afternoon? Why do you look like you're constipated now?"

Luckily, she had stuffed a bunch of handkerchiefs into the pocket of the skirt. She took one out and wiped the blood off the boy's hands while teasing him.

Shi Youxi felt the warmth of her palm, and her hand felt comfortable being squeezed by her. Her free left hand then began to dig and pick at her.

"Yeah, I'm happy now." So I need to vent.

Shi Si sat in the front row, silently listening to the conversation in the back row. In the past, Shi Youxi was always alone in the back seat, but the situation changed starting today.

The car stopped in front of a row of manors. Shi Si got out and opened the door for Shi Youxi, but she didn't get out herself.

Before he could react, he saw Mu Yiran get out of the car on the other side, and the boy followed her out of the car on the other side.

Shi Si: "..."

From the moment she got out of the car, Mu Yiran could clearly feel the difference between this place and the East Residence; the air was filled with a tense and suffocating atmosphere.

The most obvious sign was the rows of men in black standing after you entered the gate, layer upon layer, even more heavily guarded than the Ministry of National Defense.

She followed Shi Youxi into the room, and as soon as they entered, someone came up and asked to search Mu Yiran's body.

"No need." Shi Youxi frowned as he looked at the woman.

"I'm sorry, young master, but the master instructed that there are no exceptions," the woman said matter-of-factly. The other men in black nearby also noticed the commotion and focused their attention on them.

Shi Youxi's expression instantly soured, and he stood irritably in front of Mu Yiran.

Mu Yiran was startled by the sudden change in atmosphere, so she took the initiative to come out and let her search.

Who would have thought she was dressed so strangely? They probably worried she was some kind of secret agent.

But why is the Shi family so wary? Could it be that Shi Yan has joined the army? No, that doesn't make sense. If it were, the reports she read would definitely mention it.

If the Shi family's background wasn't mentioned, could it be...?

After the woman coldly finished searching, she confiscated Mu Yiran's Nokia phone and let her in.

Shi Youxi, who was waiting inside, was clearly impatient. He grabbed Mu Yiran's hand and led her upstairs.

The situation inside was even worse than outside, with bodyguards everywhere.

Just by looking at the tattoos that these tall, muscular bodyguards occasionally revealed, Mu Yiran became increasingly certain that the Shi family must have a criminal background.

So Bai Shengsheng is still the eldest brother's woman?

In this way, Shi Youxi's subtle violent tendencies can be explained.

Upon arriving on the second floor, there was the standard door and a few small black men.

Mu Yiran sighed inwardly, feeling like she had been playing some kind of level-based game since she transmigrated here.

She also raises children and does cosplay.

She's mastered all the skills, but she still doesn't even understand the game's background.

Mu Yiran regained her composure and wanted to go forward for another body search, but this time it was different because she simply couldn't go in.

Shi Youxi released her hand, turned her head and said, word by word, "Sister, wait for me here. Don't take a single step."

"I see."

After Mu Yiran sat in the spot designated by Shi Youxi, he and Shi Si entered the room together.

Mu Yiran pouted. She glanced at the two men in black on her left and right, and thought that they could easily kill her with a single punch, so she gave up her desire to chat.

He could only stare blankly at the room.

…

After entering, Shi Si stopped following Shi Youxi and walked alone down the dark corridor. At the end of the corridor, in the only place with light, stood a tall figure.

That was his father, Shi Yan.

Shi Youxi walked over. He had grown a little taller during this time and could see his father's face more clearly than before.

He squeezed his trousers, glanced at them once, then pulled them back, bowing his head and calling out, "Father."

Shi Yan looked at the report in his hand and said, "Your mother has been waiting for you for a long time. Go inside." After saying that, he went directly to the study next door, leaving the boy alone.

Shi Youxi stood outside the door, and after a while he let go of his grip on his trousers and straightened his bow tie.

He pushed open the door and went in, a smile spreading across his face. "Mother, I'm here."

The woman sitting by the window stood up abruptly upon hearing the sound, "Xiao Xi, you're here—"

The next second, Bai Shengsheng's gentle smile vanished instantly, her eyes widened, and she suddenly lunged at Shi Youxi.

Shi Youxi opened his arms to catch her, but a sharp pain shot through his collarbone.

Bai Shengsheng ripped off his yellow gemstone bow tie and threw it on the ground. "Who gave you permission to wear these? I told you, you can only wear this outfit!"

"Cheng Mo wouldn't do that. He always wears a clean white shirt. He's not like this. He's not like this. He's not..."

Bai Shengsheng grabbed him and repeated the sentence incoherently, her eyes swollen and her expression crazed.

Shi Youxi looked at his mother, his body feeling as if it had been pierced by the brooch of that bow tie, his body torn apart, painful and numb.

The yellow gemstone on his bow tie was broken, and the broken diamonds were scattered all over the ground, just like him being cut into countless pieces.

After a while, Shi Youxi smiled again. He hugged Bai Shengsheng and said, "Shengsheng, I'm Cheng Mo. I'll play a tune for you, okay?"

The woman in his arms fell silent. She raised her head and touched Shi Youxi's face. "Cheng Mo?"

Shi Youxi rubbed her palm and asked again, "Shall I play a tune for you?"

"well."

Bai Shengsheng pulled him to a cello in the room. Seeing the button on his collar that had popped open, she said, "Cheng Mo, how did your clothes get torn? I'll make you a new one, okay? I'll sew it on quickly."

"Okay." Shi Youxi's fingers trembled slightly before he replied.

Bai Shengsheng pressed her hands to the corners of the boy's mouth, "Aren't you happy? Aren't you happy that I made clothes for you? Smile, Cheng Mo, you love to smile the most."

Her nails dug into the boy's delicate skin, and his phoenix eyes stared straight at her until his lips seemed to split open, before he finally nodded.

Bai Shengsheng was still not satisfied and scratched his face, saying, "You're happy because I made clothes for you, and you're happy."

Shi Youxi let her pull him along, his phoenix eyes calm and indifferent. "Sheng Sheng, I'm very happy."

Bai Shengsheng sat contentedly in front of the cello, watching the boy smile as he played the strings.

As the melodious, deep sound of the cello filled the air, Bai Shengsheng swayed to the music, her eyes filled with the intense love she felt for her lover.

Under the light, her skin was as smooth as snow, and the same white silk fabric rippled. Shi Youxi trembled, feeling the stinging pain of the needle and thread piercing her flesh, again and again, until it seemed to stop hurting and became numb.

Sweat streamed down his forehead from the pain, stinging his eyes. He looked at Bai Shengsheng's smiling face and thought of what Shi Yan had said.

His mother loved him very much.

Therefore, he didn't even have the right to refuse, because he was born to make Bai Shengsheng happy.

Really? You love him very much...?