After returning home with the child, her ex-husband knelt down and gently coaxed her.

The second year begins.

The girl took out two sticky notes and two pens as usual, "Quickly write down your birthday wishes for this year."

The man was sitting on the sofa watching a car race when he pulled her into his arms, stroking her soft hair. "So eager, writing on the first day of the Lunar New Year?"

"New year, new wishes, easier to achieve, right?" The girl nestled in his arms, placed a sticky note on his lap, and began to write earnestly in that position.

The first thing they did after writing down their wishes was to steal glances at each other's sticky notes, as usual.

"Why is it this again?" The man frowned slightly. "The same as last year?"

The girl nodded with a smile, "I achieved it last year, and I'll keep up the good work this year."

"No challenge." The man was a little dissatisfied, his lips curling down. "Baby, can't you make it a little more difficult? Your wish is too simple, it makes me look useless."

"But that's my biggest wish." The girl cupped his face in her hands, her fair skin flushed pink. "I just want you to be with me every year, that's enough."

After saying that, she looked at the man's note card—"Win this year's CGT championship, put the championship ring on my baby's hand, and publicly declare her ownership. Lu Xiyan belongs solely to An Ning."

The girl's heart skipped a beat, her whole being softened, and her eyes immediately welled up with tears.

The man panicked immediately, quickly putting down his pen and paper. "What's wrong, honey? Why are you crying?"

The girl shook her head, wrapped her arms around his neck, and said, "west Yan, how can you be so good to me..."

The man chuckled, then tenderly patted her head. "What's so great about me? I haven't done anything yet."

"You've always tried your best to give me the best life, and you've given me so much security..."

The girl lowered her head and leaned on his shoulder, not letting him see her tears. "I often think, is it because God felt that my past life was too hard, so He gave me such a big treat like you?"

The man held her tenderly in his arms, kissing her hair, his voice gentle and husky, "Ningning, you deserve better. As long as you feel happy with me, everything I do is worthwhile."

"Lu Xiyan..."

The girl raised her tear-filled eyes, her gaze sincere and passionate, "I will love you, always love you, forever love you... You must always love me too, okay?"

She spoke softly, yet with a hint of pleading.

The man's eyelashes trembled, and the next second, his dark pupils met her passionate yet sincere and clear eyes. "Ningning, you are all I have in my heart and in my eyes, and it will always only be you."

As soon as he finished speaking, his burning lips met her crimson lips, his tongue probing inside, a tingling, numbing sensation washing over her every sense, leaving her both shy and satisfied.

For a moment she forgot to close her eyes, her gaze reflecting the man's impeccably handsome face, the mole between his brows and the bridge of his nose shimmering in her eyes.

The next second, everything went black before her eyes as his hand covered them.

"Baby, focus when you kiss."

......

Pulling herself away from the intense memories, Anning felt as if her chest was blocked by a sponge, tight and suffocating.

My gaze fell on the wish cards on the background wall.

Anning's 22nd birthday wish has come true.

Lu Xiyan's 24th birthday wish has come true.

Anning's 23rd birthday wish has come true.

Lu Xiyan's 25th birthday wish has come true.

An Ning's 24th birthday wish: To spend it with Lu Xiyan.

Not achieved.

[Lu Xiyan's twenty-sixth birthday wish: Ningning, if you wear a wedding dress for me once, I will be your lifelong believer, devoted to tranquility.]

Not achieved.

Tears suddenly blurred my vision, gathering in my eyes, making it impossible to read the words on the wish card.

With trembling fingertips, she peeled off the two wish cards that had not been fulfilled and placed them in her palm.

Tears fell, landing on the words "wedding dress," blurring the ink and making the characters illegible.

"Mother......"

Suddenly, a pair of small hands hugged her legs. "Why are you crying?"

An Ning lowered her eyes and met Xiao Anxian's clear black and white eyes. Looking at the child whose features were exactly like the man's, her heart ached beyond measure.

"Mom..." Xiao Anxian asked softly, "Is this big house where Mom and Dad used to live?"

Anning squatted down and gently stroked his tender face. "Yes, it's Mommy and Daddy's home, and it's your home too."

"Then... will Daddy come back?"

An Ning was speechless for a moment. She kept telling An Xian that he had a father who was a very, very good person.

But she never told him whether her father would come back.

She couldn't tell him that his father would have a new family, have a baby, and become the father of other children.

"Xianxian..." She hugged him tightly, "From now on, you'll live here with Mommy and Grandma, okay?"

Xiao Anxian was very sensible. She didn't press him about her father and nodded emphatically. "As long as I'm with Mom, I'm fine living anywhere."

......

Outside the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, the sun shines brightly.

The indoor temperature is comfortable.

The man standing by the window was dressed in black, his expensive suit fabric perfectly pressed without a single wrinkle.

The white shirt was buttoned up to the top, the black tie was neatly tied, and he exuded an aloof and restrained aura.

The man's jet-black hair was meticulously styled, his brow bones were high, and his features were smooth; even his profile was so perfect that it seemed as if it had been measured precisely.

When Jiang Yao opened the office door and saw this scene, he couldn't help but wonder—what could a man like President Lu, with such an illustrious family background, outstanding abilities, and top-notch looks and physique, possibly have to be unhappy every day?

Since he started following President Lu, he has seen many polite and distant smiles on President Lu's face, but he has never seen him smile from the bottom of his heart.

No matter how big the project was or how many billions it earned annually, he would just smile calmly.

That smile was only on the surface, not from the heart.

Jiang Yao shook his head; he really couldn't understand the world of the rich.

They couldn't even share joy, anger, sorrow, or happiness.

The man standing by the window glanced sideways. "What are you doing standing there?"

The cold words made Jiang Yao gasp.

He quickly stepped closer, keeping two steps away from the man, and said in a low voice, "Mr. Lu, the house you were selling has already been bought by Miss An."

The man frowned; she had indeed bought it.

"It was bought with cash." Jiang Yao added, then asked with a puzzled look, "I didn't expect Miss An to be so rich. She doesn't need to live in that small suburban town with her child."

Lu Xiyan chuckled softly, a slight smile playing on his lips, as he recalled the day they broke up, when she held the bank card in her hand and looked at him with utter disdain.

He would never forget that money-grubbing manner.

He knew that she wouldn't have spent all the money she got from the old man so quickly.

But why did she insist on buying that house?

The man's eyes were deep. Could it be that she still had a lingering attachment to the past?

He raised his hand, gesturing for Jiang Yao to leave.

"Mr. Lu," Jiang Yao reminded him of his work schedule, "we're going to the US the day after tomorrow. The private plane is scheduled for 9 a.m., and the return flight is at 5 p.m. the day after that."

"understood."

Lu Xiyan returned to his desk and glanced at the calendar on it casually.

"Jiang Yao," he suddenly spoke, his eyes fixed on the calendar, "the day after tomorrow is the 7th?"

"Yes, Mr. Lu," Jiang Yao said. "The day after tomorrow is July 7th, the day you and Mr. John agreed to discuss cooperation."

Seeing his deeply furrowed brow, Jiang Yao immediately asked, "Mr. Lu, should we change the itinerary?"

Her gaze quickly shifted from the calendar. "No need."

The man turned on his computer, his slender fingers tapping on the keyboard, while the number "7" on the calendar kept jumping in his peripheral vision.

After a while, feeling irritated, he covered the calendar on the table.

Out of sight, out of mind.