Cen Lan finally smiled.

She beckoned Ai Cao to sit down beside her and said, "You don't seem like someone who runs a company. Let me explain. My little company is currently competing with that brat's company for the same piece of land."

"If we want to compete, we need to show the landowner the conditions for acquiring the land—including but not limited to what we will do with the land, how much money we are prepared to spend, how many years we are prepared to use it, and other miscellaneous details that should be written in the tender documents."

“My company may be a bit small, but it’s still much bigger than that kid’s company has been in the last ten years or so,” Cen Lan said with a smile. She confirmed the details of the slogan with her secretary before waving them out.

Feng An said softly, "Madam, the saline infusion has been completed."

"Call the nurse." Cen Lan closed her eyes slightly and leaned back against the headboard. "After the needle is removed, we'll go home to rest."

Feng went out again to find a nurse.

Cen Yu whispered, "Mom, the house has been sold."

After Cen Lan woke up, Cen Yu changed her previous tough attitude and became a child snuggling up to her mother.

Cen Lan didn't even open her eyes, but said with a slight smile, "Oh, it's just a house registered under your father's name. I divorced your father before he declared bankruptcy—we had a few other houses under our names, didn't we?"

Cen Yu touched her nose and whispered, "I don't know."

She paused, then said, "I made so many calls, but I couldn't get through... I thought..."

"What did you think?" Cen Lan asked, her eyes half-closed, as she reached out and poked Cen Yu's forehead. "Your phone number is your father's family number, and it's already been deactivated."

Cen Yu puffed out her cheeks and remained silent.

The nurse followed Feng An back, removed the IV needle from Cen Lan's hand, and then hurriedly left.

Cen Lan seemed to have recovered some of her energy from her rest, and opened her eyes to ask Feng An, "Didn't you tell Yu Yu about her property?"

Feng An nodded.

Cen Yu opened her mouth, looking like she wanted to get angry but couldn't.

She asked, "Why...why didn't you tell me?" It seemed like she had mustered all her courage to ask that question. After saying that, Cen Yu quickly pursed her lips and looked away, her eyes darting to the other side.

Feng An replied matter-of-factly, "Because Madam did not instruct me to tell Miss."

Cen Yu took a breath.

The hesitation on her face just now gradually turned into anger. She strode over to the desk and punched its arm hard a few times.

She raised her hand to hit again, but Feng An gently stopped her.

Feng An said, "Miss, be careful not to hurt your hand."

Cen Yu gritted her teeth and sat back down next to Cen Lan.

Feng An naturally squatted down next to Cen Yu and rubbed her hands.

Cen Lan smiled and looked at Ai Cao, saying, "Look at these two children, aren't they close?" She smiled and patted Cen Yu's head, then patted Feng An's head.

She said, "With Feng An by my side, I'm not afraid that Yu Yu will be deceived by anyone." She smiled and asked Ai Cao, "Good child, you helped Cen Yu, would you like to come to my house for a cup of tea?"

The mugwort nodded.

She felt that her mission in this world was complete—Cen Yu now had friends and a mother, and shouldn't need her anymore.

A woman's soft laughter echoed in her mind. But when Ai Cao listened carefully, the laughter disappeared.

Then came a woman's indistinct voice, completely different from the system's voice.

The woman said, "Whether you're an observer or a participant... you should at least look at the future."

She only said this one sentence before her voice faded away.

The pendant on Ai Cao's chest felt slightly warm.

The system's mechanical voice rang out: "Artemisia, I was right, wasn't I?" Its voice carried a hint of pride, "The tasks in this world are very simple."

Artemisia smiled but didn't reply.

She already had some guesses about who the voice belonged to. But now was not the time—not the time for her to lay it all out in the open.

The thought appeared for only a moment before she erased it herself. It was so brief that even the system residing in her mind, capable of detecting all her thoughts, failed to detect that fleeting idea.

Cen Lan called her private driver, and the group got into the Audi. Feng An rummaged through the package and handed two sets of keys to Cen Yu.

Cen Lan smiled and said, "Now that you're back in China, I'll give you the keys to these rooms. You can do whatever you want with them."

She told Cen Yu the locations of the rooms, and seeing that Cen Yu had noted them down on her phone, she chuckled and took another key from her keychain, handing it to Ai Cao.

Cen Lan said, "Good child, this is a house in the suburbs. I bought it because it was cheap, but it's been sitting vacant. If you need to do anything, just use it for now."

Ai Cao took the key and listened to Cen Lan tell her the exact location of the house.

She hesitated before saying, "I didn't help Cen Yu for that reason."

Cen Lan smiled, her eyes crinkling: "I know. But you helped Cen Yu, and as her mother, I can't just leave without saying anything, can I?"

After hesitating for a moment, Ai Cao put the key into her pocket.

The car slowly drove into a courtyard. Although it was winter, the winter flowers in the courtyard were blooming in a riot of color. Evergreen trees and deciduous trees were planted alternately, their dark brown, withered branches contrasting beautifully with the dense, dark green leaves.

The house is just a three-story villa.

However, according to Cen Lan, this was designed by a well-known architect and implemented by her own company's construction team.

Cen Lan slowly walked into the living room on the first floor. Feng An took the down jacket that Cen Lan and Cen Yu were wearing as outerwear, and hung it up.

Freed from the constraints of her down jacket, Cen Yu cheered and pounced on the sofa, triumphantly taking up a corner.

Warm air rose from the ground, making her feel cozy and cozy in her black dress.

Cen Lan sat down on another sofa and made a phone call.

Ai Cao looked at the remaining seats in the living room and chose to stand with Feng An.

Cen Lan put down her phone and waved cheerfully to Ai Cao: "Good girl, come sit over here."

Ai Cao glanced at Feng An and, seeing that the bodyguard showed no intention of moving, sat down next to Cen Lan.

Cen Lan asked with a smile, "Your short hair is quite unusual. Did you cut it yourself?"

The mugwort nodded.

Cen Yu abruptly sat up from her comfortable sofa cushions, her lips trembling as she called out stiffly, "Mom..."

Cen Lan was completely unaffected by her daughter's words and continued asking, "I'm old, so I don't really understand what's popular among young girls these days."

"I'm just asking, you don't necessarily have to reply."

Cen Yu waved her hand frantically, trying to stop Cen Lan from continuing to speak by covering her mouth.

Cen Lan asked with a smile, "Did you cut your hair short because you like girls?"