After dinner, Shi Lan saw Cheng Hao off.

Before leaving, Cheng Hao hesitated. After so many years together, he believed he understood Shi's father well. Once his temper flared up, nothing could stop him. The reason Shi's father hadn't given Shi Lan a hard time before was to save face for her and not embarrass his daughter. Now that he was going back, he wondered how Shi's father would scold her.

Seeing the worry on his face, Shi Lan smiled slightly and said, "It's okay, I'll talk to him properly. Marriage is not a game. It's better to separate now than to torture each other later."

Cheng Hao sighed, "Alright then, talk to him nicely, don't rush it. If you can't get through to him, don't argue with him. I'll help you work on it slowly later."

Shi Lan felt a warmth in her heart, nodded, and watched as he drove off with a sullen face.

Back inside, the bright chandelier in the living room had been turned off, with only a few wall lamps emitting a warm glow.

“Come and sit down,” Mr. Shi said, sitting in a corner of the hall with a tea tray in front of him.

Shi Lan paused for a moment, knowing that some things couldn't be avoided no matter how hard she tried, so she took a step forward.

Water was boiling on the tea tray. Mr. Shi opened the exquisitely packaged tea bag and poured the fresh tea into the purple clay teapot.

"Tell me, what exactly happened?"

Shi Lan looked away, glancing at the potted plants by the window, and said in a low voice, "Liu Jinxiang had a woman outside, I couldn't accept it, so we broke up."

Mr. Shi sighed and said, "Tell me the truth. I know your personality. This one thing alone is not something that can make you make a decision so quickly."

Shi Lan sighed inwardly; her father really understood the original owner of this body.

Indeed, the original owner was hesitant and indecisive. Although she spoke harshly, she was indecisive and unable to break things cleanly. In the end, Liu Jinxiang took advantage of her and she was left with many wounds. From then on, she dared not touch the nerve of love again.

"And..." Shi Lan took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "I was pregnant a while ago, but I miscarried. The doctor said that my chances of getting pregnant in the future are very low. After hearing this, Liu Jinxiang never showed up again."

Shi Lan didn't mention Liu Jinxiang's outrageous remarks. Her father was old, and hearing such words would probably make him very angry.

Bubbles rose and bubbled in the transparent glass pot. Mr. Shi slowly lifted the pot and poured water into the cup.

The spout trembled and tilted badly, with most of the water flowing down the rim of the cup into the tea tray, but Shi Fu was completely unaware and continued pouring.

Shi Lan sighed silently, pressed down on her father's wrinkled hand, and then realized that his hand was very cold.

Taking the teapot, Shi Lan held her father's hand and said softly, "Dad, I'm fine. It's his loss that I broke up with him. There are many good men in this world. There will always be someone who doesn't mind my situation and will walk hand in hand with me through thick and thin."

Mr. Shi's eyes reddened, and his lips trembled as he tried to speak, but failed several times.

Shi Lan lowered her head and eyes, filtered the tea, divided it, and placed the small teacup in front of her father. The bright red tea soup rippled under the lamplight. Shi Lan's voice was soft and gentle, "Dad, I plan to take the postgraduate entrance exam. Professor Wang Yanming wants to take me on as a mentor."

"...It's good to take the postgraduate entrance exam, otherwise the brain you inherited from me will be wasted."

After a long while, Shi Lan finally heard her father's trembling voice.

Shi Lan smiled, picked up her teacup, and took a small sip.

A slight astringency, a subtle bitterness, and a touch of sweetness that slowly rises from the back of the tongue when held in the mouth—life is just like that.

After a good night's sleep, when I woke up, I heard my mother's cautious voice at the door, "Her father, go and wake Lanlan up. What time is it? Why isn't she up yet?"

Shi's father did not speak.

A few seconds later, Shi's mother said again, "I made her sweet tofu pudding. It's perfect to eat now. It won't taste right if it gets cold."

Mr. Shi still didn't say anything.

Mother Shi got impatient and slapped Father Shi, saying, "I'm talking to you, are you even listening?"

Mr. Shi snorted, "Didn't hear it."

Shi's mother slapped the table again in anger. Shi's father was not convinced and challenged her. Shi's mother had been in charge of the household all her life and was not willing to be suppressed. The two of them talked back and forth, forgetting about calling Shi Lan.

Listening to the two bickering and arguing like children through the thin door, Shi Lan smiled slightly.

Mr. Shi may still be angry that Mrs. Shi agreed to their daughter's marriage to Liu Jinxiang, but after decades of living together, the two are inseparable. As they argued, the stubborn old man stopped being angry, which is also a way to relieve his emotions.

Sunlight streamed through the curtains, and the wall still showed that it was past eight o'clock.

"I really can't sleep anymore," Shi Lan stretched, slipped on her slippers, lazily opened the door, and walked out.

Upon hearing the noise, Shi Mu immediately lowered her voice by several decibels, "Lanlan, you're awake."

Shi Mu's voice was soft, with a hint of flattery and a touch of caution.

Shi Lan nodded with a smile, "Yes, I haven't slept this well in a long time. Mom, did you make me some sweet tofu pudding? I've been craving it since I was at school."

"It's done, it's done, just right, Mom will serve it to you right away," Shi's mother said, grinning broadly, her previous cautiousness gone.

Shi Lan smiled and said, "Thank you, Mom," before turning and going to the bathroom.

Seeing how eagerly Shi's mother was to please her daughter, Shi's father scoffed, "If you had known this would happen, you wouldn't have done it in the first place."

Shi Mu rolled her eyes at him and said in a low voice, "I was just blinded by a sparrow, wasn't I? You old fool, can't you just shut up?"

Mr. Shi snorted, but ultimately said nothing more.

After washing up, Shi Lan sat down at the table.

In front of me were steaming hot sweet tofu pudding, freshly fried minced meat pancakes, and several pan-fried buns that were golden on the bottom and white on the top, sprinkled with sesame seeds. They were also served with spicy and sour cucumber strips, cold bamboo shoot salad, and Shi Mu's signature dish, five-spice braised beef.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!