Slow to mature after marriage

Zhou Xubai finally turned his gaze from Zhou Yu'an to Bo Yan.

The streetlight shone on the silver-haired man's face, highlighting his deep features and cold, stern eyes. He leaned casually against the car door, but there was an undeniable sharpness in his eyes. Zhou Xubai stared at that face for two seconds, his pupils contracting slightly.

"A thin inkstone?"

What is he doing here?

In the dead of night, at the scene of a car accident, a man stood beside his sister. Being together so late—he was either her boyfriend or—

"He is my husband," Mu Siwan said, tugging at the man's sleeve.

Zhou Xubai suddenly realized.

It turned out to be the case.

So, the younger sister is Mrs. Bo from the cruise ship last time.

They once brushed past each other.

No wonder Bo Yan suddenly asked to meet him these past few days; it's probably because of his sister.

My younger sister is already married.

He should have prepared for this long ago. His sister is almost twenty-six. But in his memory, An'an is still that little girl with two braids, clutching a lollipop, squatting in the garden watching ants move. He didn't have time to teach her to ride a bicycle, didn't have time to stand up for her when she was bullied, didn't have time to stand outside the exam hall waiting for her to come out during her college entrance exams—

She is already married.

Bo Yan remained standing outside the car door, not getting in.

He leaned against the wall, took out a cigarette from his pocket, pulled one out, and without lighting it, just put it in his mouth. The light from the streetlamp fell behind him, casting a cold white glow on the outline of his silver hair. He had reserved this small, enclosed space for the brother and sister who had been separated for twenty-one years.

"Should I call you Mu Siwan now?" Zhou Xubai asked cautiously.

He had previously tried to send someone to investigate "Mu Siwan's" information, but found nothing. If she is now Bo Yan's wife, given the Bo family's power, it's possible that it's due to their effective privacy protection.

Zhou Yu'an lowered her eyes and remained silent for a moment. Her fingers rested on her knees, the fingertips slightly curled, as she made her decision.

"Can I be called Zhou Yu'an?" she asked. "I don't want to be called Mu Siwan."

Zhou Xubai's eyes reddened instantly.

"Yes, of course." His voice was hoarse, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down several times before he finally managed to utter those two words, "An'an."

Zhou Xubai finally couldn't hold back when he called out that name.

He lowered his head, burying his face in his hands, his shoulders beginning to tremble violently. He didn't want his sister to see him like this.

A thirty-year-old man cried in front of his sister like the boy who had gone mad searching for her at the dock years ago. He tried to hold back his tears, but the more he tried, the more intense they became, until finally they turned into silent, suppressed sobs that spilled from between his fingers.

"I'm so sorry, An'an." His voice came from his palm, muffled, "It's been so many years since I finally found you. How come you're already married? You should still be so young."

Zhou Yu'an stared at him blankly, reluctant to say it was okay.

Because she did feel a little wronged.

"How have you been all these years? Have your adoptive parents treated you well? How is your current husband?"

He asked a lot of questions. One after another, as if trying to fill in all the gaps of those twenty-one years. He wanted to reach out and hug her, but felt it was offensive—she was his sister, but she was also Mu Siwan, someone else's wife, a stranger who had grown into an adult during the twenty-one years he had been absent. His hand froze in mid-air, and he finally withdrew it, burying his face in his hands again, trying to hide his embarrassment as an older brother.

How can one person have so many tears?

Zhou Yu'an never expected that this thirty-year-old man would break down so completely. In her mind, Zhou Xubai should be calm, restrained, and as dignified and proper as those elites on TV.

Instead of—instead of lying in front of him crying like a child who can't find his way home.

She blinked slightly, looking a little lost, then reached out and gently patted his back.

"I'm doing fine now," she said dryly to her brother. "Yeah... I'm doing fine, don't worry."

It took Zhou Xubai a full five minutes to calm himself down. He wiped away his tears, took a deep breath, and tried his best to appear as a normal, reliable brother who could talk to his sister properly.

He slowly recounted the Zhou family's situation over the years, talking about his father, his mother, and their days in Haicheng. He omitted the hardships of their search for relatives, the countless times their hopes were dashed, the dishes his mother broke when she was ill, and the image of his father sitting alone in his study late at night, staring blankly at a yellowed photograph. He only spoke of the good parts.

"We're doing well too, An'an. Please don't worry."

"Is there anything else you want to know?" Zhou Xubai asked, his voice very soft. "I can tell you anything."

Zhou Yu'an fell silent, then finally asked in a low voice, "May I know my birthday?"

Zhou Xubai paused for a moment. His eyes began to sting again, but his expression softened even more, a softness that left Zhou Yu'an somewhat at a loss.

"Yes, of course," he said. "An'an was born around 4 p.m. on April 23, 2000. At that time, the news was still on TV. Every time my mother mentions it, she laughs and complains, saying, 'You child, even your birth has to be on time. You have to wait until the whole country hears it before you come out.'"

Zhou Yu'an was stunned: "So it was April 23rd?"

"Speaking of which, An'an's twenty-sixth birthday hasn't passed yet," Zhou Xubai said, looking at her. "But Mom has already prepared your birthday present. This year, our family can celebrate your birthday together."

He suddenly paused, and his emotions began to break down again.

"How could An'an forget her own birthday? How have you spent your birthdays all these years?"

As he spoke, his voice began to tremble again. Every year on April 23rd, the family would order a cake, light candles, as if their youngest daughter had never been lost. But what about An'an all these years? Had she ever eaten a bite of her own birthday cake? Had anyone ever lit candles for her or sung a birthday song for her?

Zhou Yu'an watched as the thirty-year-old man covered his face and cried bitterly to the side, blinking blankly.

Brother...why are you such a crybaby?

She wasn't good at comforting people. She just sat quietly beside him, patting his back gently, just like Bo Yan had done to her before.

After Zhou Xubai calmed down, he slowly said, "After the paternity test is done, would An'an like to go to Haicheng for a visit? You grew up there."

Zhou Xubai thought of what Zhou Yu'an looked like when he was a child, and he felt like crying again.

My younger sister probably has no idea how cute she was when she was little.

Of course, it's even cuter now.

Calm and aloof, yet adorable.

Zhou Yu'an nodded: "Okay, it's too late today, how about we talk again tomorrow?"

Zhou Xubai was reluctant to part with his sister, but he also knew that they needed to separate to calm down. So he nodded, then asked anxiously, "Where should I look for you tomorrow? Can we add each other on WeChat? You'll still be at the testing center, so I won't be unable to find you, right? An'an."

"Would it be convenient for you to tell me your current address? Don't worry, I won't bother you, I'm just afraid..."

Before Zhou Xu could finish speaking, the car door opened, and Bo Yan appeared in the doorway with an expressionless face.

"Brother-in-law, you talk too much. Shut up and get out of here, okay?"

Zhou Xubai: "..."

Before recognizing Zhou Yu'an, Zhou Xubai was satisfied with Bo Yan as his partner, but now that they have recognized each other, he feels a subtle dissatisfaction.

With such a bad temper, can he really take good care of his An'an?

Furthermore, judging from An'an's reluctance to discuss her adoptive parents, it can be inferred that her adoptive parents were not very good to her. So, was her marriage to Bo Yan voluntary? Or was it forced by her adoptive parents?

The Bo family is large and powerful with many rules. My sister has no powerful backing. Will she suffer a lot of grievances after being married into the family for three years?

Zhou Xubai's heart, that of an old father, was gripped again.

He immediately sent the paternity test sample over as soon as possible. It was already dawn when he finally returned to the hotel. He paced back and forth, his mind racing with excitement and fear, unable to sleep at all.

On the other hand, Mu Siwan had experienced too much that day and worked until 3 a.m. She was so tired that she fell into a deep sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow when she got back to Mu Yan Garden.