Chapter 46

It was impossible for Mi Zhao to say he didn’t care about the relationship between Li Sipei and Li Yan, but that wasn’t the main factor.

Originally, Mi Zhao had only intended to use Li Sipei to move past the shadow that Li Yan had cast over him. So, Li Sipei’s identity, status, and profession didn’t matter—what mattered was that he paid the money on time.

But it turned out that not only was Li Sipei not in that kind of business, but he also had an impressive background that neither Mi Zhao nor Yan Qinting could have imagined.

The situation had gone beyond expectations, leaving Mi Zhao both confused and at a loss.

Seeing that Mi Zhao remained silent for a long time, Li Sipei slowly read something from his expression. “Is there another reason?”

At that moment, the waiter arrived, carrying a tray with two lattes.

Mi Zhao, who had finally opened his mouth to speak, immediately shut it again. He waited until the waiter set down the lattes and walked away before leaning forward and cupping the warm coffee cup with both hands.

The heat from the cup seeped into his palms, barely calming the restlessness in his heart.

He raised his eyes to meet Li Sipei’s gaze and spoke softly. “We’ve known each other for three months now, right? I don’t think I’ve ever heard you talk about your family.”

Hearing this, Li Sipei’s expression stiffened slightly. After a long moment, he said, “There’s nothing to say.”

“You see, there are so many things I don’t know about you. Our relationship feels…” Mi Zhao thought for almost half a minute before coming up with a word. “Strange.”

Li Sipei stared at him intently. “You want to meet my mother?”

“…”

Mi Zhao froze in shock. Dear God, that was not what he meant!

Li Sipei ignored his panicked reaction and calmly pulled out his phone, lighting up the screen to make a call.

Startled by how decisive Li Sipei was, Mi Zhao sprang to his feet and snatched the phone away in one swift motion.

Li Sipei was momentarily stunned, looking up at him in confusion.

Glancing at the phone screen, which was already on the contacts page, Mi Zhao still felt lingering fear as he gasped for breath and glared at Li Sipei. “You were really going to call her?”

“If you want to meet her, I can have her come over right now,” Li Sipei said calmly.

To Mi Zhao, that sounded so terrifying that he got goosebumps even in the warmth of the café.

Was Li Sipei crazy?

Asking the powerful Madam Li—who practically ruled not only the Li family but also the entire upper-class social circle—to come meet him? He’d probably have to leave this café lying flat!

Did he really look like someone with that kind of influence?!

Mi Zhao even suspected that Li Sipei was deliberately messing with him. Annoyed, he tossed the phone back onto the table. “Does your mother know about us?”

Li Sipei didn’t know whether Pei Yu was aware of Mi Zhao’s existence, but he gave a definite answer. “If you want her to know, I can tell her right now.”

Mi Zhao: “…”

This conversation was going nowhere.

In reality, Mi Zhao wasn’t someone who liked to dwell on things for too long. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have decisively broken up with Li Yan the moment he discovered the cheating.

But his relationship with Li Sipei had started in a way that was difficult to explain. He couldn’t just outright say that he had only wanted to keep Li Sipei as a sugar baby and, since Li Sipei turned out to be wealthy, their arrangement should end.

Feeling frustrated, Mi Zhao ran a hand through his hair. “I need some time to think.”

Then he looked at Li Sipei expectantly. “Can you give me a few days?”

Even if he ultimately decided to end things, it would be easier to do it over WeChat or on the phone rather than face-to-face. At least that way, he wouldn’t have to see Li Sipei’s reaction, and it wouldn’t feel as awkward or suffocating.

Li Sipei studied his expression carefully, as if assessing whether he was telling the truth.

Then, he said, “Okay.”

Mi Zhao called the waiter to settle the bill, then walked out of the café with Li Sipei. The cold wind hit them again, making him shiver and hunch his shoulders.

The next second, the scarf was back around his neck.

A hand slowly and methodically wrapped the soft, fluffy scarf around him. It was still warm, and for a moment, even the wind didn’t seem as cold.

Mi Zhao froze and turned to see Li Sipei’s now-bare neck.

Noticing that he was about to take off the scarf again, Li Sipei lightly pressed a hand against his chest.

Perhaps because the glass door was still open, the wind howled even louder. In the midst of it, Li Sipei’s deep, pleasant voice carried over.

“I was wrong before—I always just passively accepted your messages. From now on, I’ll try to be the one to take the initiative. If you want to know more about me, I’ll tell you. If you want to meet my family, I’ll take you home. I can tell you about my injury too.

For the past few years, I’ve been used to shutting myself off. But now, I want to open up to you—if you’ll give me the chance.”

He knew how passive he had been in their relationship. The clearest sign was how he rarely messaged Mi Zhao first. Instead, he was always waiting for Mi Zhao to come to him.

Waiting had become a part of his life. Before he met Mi Zhao, he spent every day idly waiting for time to pass.

But after waiting for a week, all he got was a message through a roommate, telling him to end things cleanly.

If he had known it would come to this, he might have forced himself to take that step earlier.

Mi Zhao lowered his gaze to his own toes.

Suddenly, a wave of sourness surged in his chest.

His heart felt heavy and tight.

It hurt.

—

Ruan Xin had been freezing in the wind for over half an hour when she finally saw a small truck pull up in front of the orphanage.

Confirming the logo on the truck, she quickly jogged over in her high heels.

Twenty-something plush toys weren’t that many, but each one was half a meter tall. The factory had carefully packed them in sturdy cardboard boxes, wrapped them in colorful gift paper, and tied different-colored ribbons into neat bows—clearly, a lot of thought had gone into the presentation.

Ruan Xin and the two young men from the factory responsible for the delivery carried the twenty-something boxes of plush toys into the orphanage’s yard. By the time they were done, they were sweating all over.

It was at this moment that Li Zhixuan leisurely strolled in from outside.

Ruan Xin immediately got annoyed. “If I had known, I wouldn’t have told you about the delivery. You showed up on purpose at the perfect timing, didn’t you?”

Li Zhixuan glanced at the pile of gift boxes, which was stacked up like a small mountain, and chuckled. “Third Master assigned the task to you, not me. Why would I rush over to do the heavy lifting?”

Ruan Xin scoffed, too tired to even argue with him. She leaned against one of the plush toy boxes, panting and occasionally fanning herself with her hand.

Only after the factory workers finished checking the boxes and had Ruan Xin sign off on them did Li Zhixuan finally sit down on a box beside her.

“You should’ve told me earlier that Third Master started using a cane,” he said, sounding rather aggrieved.

Ruan Xin loved seeing Li Zhixuan’s resentful expression and smugly replied, “Third Master didn’t let me say anything. Why should I have rushed to tell you?”

Li Zhixuan: “…”

“If you know, that means the Old Madam knows too. Do you think I don’t understand how loose-lipped you are?” Despite constantly bickering with Li Zhixuan, Ruan Xin had developed a kind of battlefield camaraderie with him over the years while working under Third Master Li. She grew serious and added, “Besides, Third Master has been in a bad mood for the past two weeks. If you knew, you’d only end up getting burned—he’d use you as a punching bag. It’s better for you to find out later rather than sooner.”

“In a bad mood?” Li Zhixuan had managed to stay in the Old Madam’s inner circle for years, which meant he wasn’t clueless. He immediately guessed the reason. “Because of that college student?”

Ruan Xin glanced at him but said nothing, pressing her lips together.

Li Zhixuan rubbed his chin and lowered his voice. “I just don’t get it. What’s so special about that college student? Not only is Third Master completely wrapped around his finger, but he even stopped using a wheelchair for him.”

Ruan Xin folded her arms, her expression complicated as she stared at the ground in silence.

Li Zhixuan had set up the conversation perfectly. Now, he turned to look at Ruan Xin intently and slowly voiced the suspicion that had been weighing on his mind. “Don’t you think Third Master and that college student don’t seem like just friends? They’re more like…”

Before he could finish saying the word “couple,” Ruan Xin suddenly sprang up from the box.

At the same time, a Bentley smoothly pulled into the orphanage’s yard.

The driver’s door opened, and Mi Zhao hurriedly unbuckled his seatbelt and got out. He walked straight up to Ruan Xin and said, “Sister, you should take him home.”

Ruan Xin had no idea where Mi Zhao and Li Sipei had gone earlier or what they had talked about. But when she got into the car, she noticed that Li Sipei’s expression wasn’t as grim as it had been before.

That made her feel relieved.

If they were showing signs of making up, that was good—it meant their cold war wouldn’t end up hurting innocent bystanders like herself.

However, the moment Li Zhixuan started walking toward the car, Li Sipei’s face visibly darkened again.

“Drive,” he ordered.

Ruan Xin cast a sympathetic glance at Li Zhixuan through the window, then stepped on the gas without hesitation, leaving behind a trail of exhaust.

Standing in place, Li Zhixuan shook his head slightly. Then he turned to see that Mi Zhao was still standing there, in the exact same position, staring intently in the direction the car had disappeared.

Recalling the words he hadn’t been able to say earlier, Li Zhixuan thought for a moment before smiling and walking over. “The car’s long gone, and you’re still looking?”

Mi Zhao snapped back to reality, suddenly realizing his loss of composure. He quickly averted his gaze and asked Li Zhixuan, “Aren’t you leaving with them?”

Li Zhixuan gestured toward the road. “I drove here. I’ll just follow them in my car later.”

Mi Zhao nodded absentmindedly. He wasn’t in the mood to chat with Li Zhixuan, so he lowered his head and began checking the names labeled on each box.

But when he finished, he turned around to find that Li Zhixuan still hadn’t left.

Li Zhixuan seemed to have been observing him the whole time, his gaze never straying. When Mi Zhao looked over, Li Zhixuan even gave him a polite smile.

Mi Zhao felt inexplicably uneasy. The discomfort in his chest only grew stronger. He walked over and asked, “Mr. Li, do you need something?”

Li Zhixuan hesitated for a moment before saying, “There’s something I’ve been curious about for a while.”

“What is it?”

“The watch Mr. Li wears—was that a gift from you?”

Mi Zhao’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. “Yes, I gave it to him. Is there a problem?”

Li Zhixuan studied him in silence for a moment, then suddenly smiled. “No problem. I just figured something out.”

Mi Zhao wanted to ask what he meant, but before he could, Li Zhixuan had already turned around and walked away.

After getting into his car, the first thing Li Zhixuan did was pick up his phone and dial the Old Madam’s number.

“Madam, I just saw Mr. Li…”