After four years of living alone after marrying far away, he went back to his parents' home and

Lan Yujuan was certain that the little guy had put something else in his schoolbag.

"Really not?"

"Come here, let Mom take a look at your schoolbag."

Lan Yujuan waved to the little guy, ready to check him immediately.

The little guy shook his head vigorously, his eyes red, trying hard to hold back his tears.

"Mom, do you believe me?"

"I didn't do anything bad. Grandpa said I can play with anything in the study."

Lan Yujuan looked at her daughter's pitiful appearance but did not soften her heart at all.

It's so abnormal!

Lan Yujuan, with a serious expression, beckoned to the little one:

"Come here first, I'll take a look."

At this point, the little guy completely broke down, letting out a loud "Aww!" as he slowly walked over, wailing loudly.

Before Lan Yujuan could even open her schoolbag, her father, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it anymore. He rushed over to comfort his granddaughter while scolding her.

"Why are you yelling at her so late at night?"

"Don't you know our family's situation? What else could there be in the study besides a few tattered books and calligraphy and paintings?"

"Look at this little backpack, what can it even hold? Let her do whatever she wants!"

With his grandfather's support, the little guy's crying finally subsided, and he started to sob intermittently, observing his mother's expression and attitude as he cried.

Seeing this, Lan Yujuan's face darkened, and she whispered:

"Dad, just keep spoiling her!"

"I bet she has something in her bag, that's why she's trying to cheat me by relying on the two of you!"

"She would never dare to do this when she's at home with me!"

Mr. Lan ignored him completely, waving his hand and saying, "I don't care!"

"She's so young, what does she know?"

"Give it to her regardless of whether she took anything from the study or what was in her bag."

"Alright, alright! You should take the child and go home now!"

"Anyway, even when you're home, you're not allowed to go through her bag without her permission, understand?"

Lan Yujuan nodded helplessly, "Okay, I understand!"

"Even if she takes away the Imperial Seal of the Lan family, I promise I won't rummage through your schoolbag, okay?"

As Mr. Lan reluctantly watched his daughter lead his granddaughter down the stairs, skipping and hopping, he muttered to himself:

"Even if our Lan family truly possesses the Imperial Seal of the State, it will ultimately belong to Xiaoman. What's wrong with letting her play with it a little earlier?"

Lan Yujuan smiled and sighed, realizing she really couldn't do anything about her own father.

The mother and daughter left the residential compound and walked home hand in hand.

It was not yet 9 p.m., and there were still many pedestrians on the street, most of whom were elderly residents living nearby who were taking a walk after dinner.

When they reached the intersection, the mother and daughter stopped at one end of the zebra crossing and waited quietly for the traffic light to turn green.

As Lan Yujuan watched the red light countdown, for some reason, she suddenly remembered seeing her ex-husband downstairs a few days ago during the Qingming Festival holiday.

He said he found a new job in southern Hunan and will settle there in the future.

Where is his new workplace? And where does he live now?

Since they broke up, he would always appear suddenly and then disappear just as suddenly, like a time bomb hidden next to you.

A faint sense of anxiety rose in Lan Yujuan's heart.

With the red light countdown less than 10 seconds away, she instinctively turned around and looked around.

I could vaguely see a figure flash by in the darkness not far away.

Her heart raced, she froze on the spot, and couldn't help but take a second look.

Until the little one beside me gently shook the hand I was holding and whispered a reminder:

"Mom, the light's green! Time to cross the street!"

Lan Yujuan then snapped out of her daze, subconsciously patted her daughter's head, and responded with a smile:

Let's go!

She took her daughter's hand and started crossing the street, telling herself not to be suspicious.

At the same time, she secretly resolved that from now on, she would try to take a taxi back to her own home after dark to avoid unnecessary interactions.

Along the way, the more Lan Yujuan thought about it, the more suspicious she became, and she kept looking back.

Even the little one beside him gradually sensed something was wrong, and tilted his head up to ask in a low voice:

"Mom, what's wrong?"

"What's behind us? Is someone following us?"

Lan Yujuan patted her daughter's head, smiled, and gently shook her head. "No, Mommy is just looking around."

Only after swiping her card and entering the residential compound did Lan Yujuan finally breathe a sigh of relief.

But she didn't notice that as the gate to the residential complex behind her slowly closed, a foot stretched out from the side, blocking the closing door. Just as she relaxed her guard, the foot followed her from a distance and entered the building.

The motion-sensor lights in the hallway turned on and off repeatedly.

In the darkness, Liu Zhiyuan took out a cigarette, lit it by leaning against the elevator, and then watched the elevator go up.

"Ding~" The elevator stopped on the eighth floor and then went silent.

Liu Zhiyuan decisively entered the elevator next to him, wanting to follow him up to the eighth floor to take a look.

Unfortunately, the elevator required a card, so he couldn't get on.

Liu Zhiyuan cursed under his breath, stepped out of the elevator, turned around and started climbing the stairs, his blood boiling as he headed straight for the eighth floor.

But what he didn't expect was that when he finally climbed to the eighth floor, panting, he discovered that the door leading from the stairwell to the corridor was only for exiting, not for entering.

He could see his ex-wife and daughter living on the other side of the door, but he couldn't get in no matter what!

Liu Zhiyuan paced back and forth in the stairwell in anger, cursing for a long time, but in the end he could only helplessly return the way he came.

When I went downstairs, my legs were weak and trembling, and my steps were unsteady.

In the darkness, he lost his footing and almost tumbled down the stairs.

*

Lan Yujuan returned home and only felt at ease after locking the door from the inside.

After entering the house, she began to pack her things, preparing to wash and put the little one to bed.

Before nine o'clock, the little guy fell asleep as soon as he got into bed.

On the contrary, Lan Yujuan, after all the commotion, suddenly calmed down and her mind became clearer.

She gently closed the door, took her notebook, and went to the living room.

Lan Yujuan sat cross-legged on the sofa, preparing to write something.

Turning my head, I saw the food on the dining table, and a feeling of longing immediately arose in my heart.

Chen Mo left in a hurry in the evening, it seems there must be something urgent at the company.

I wonder if Chen Mo has had dinner yet at this time.

She stared blankly at the food on the table, lost in thought.

Suddenly, her phone started vibrating. She picked it up and saw it was a local, unfamiliar number that had been marked by many people, so it didn't seem like a spam call.

She immediately got up and went outside to the balcony to answer the call.

"Feed?"

On the other end of the phone, the delivery guy's hurried voice immediately came through.

"Hello, Ms. Lan!"

"Your husband ordered a bouquet of flowers online, and you need to sign for it in person!"

"I'm at the elevator entrance right now, but I can't get up. The elevator requires a card."

Lan Yujuan immediately turned around, and as she walked towards the door, she said in a low voice:

"Okay, please wait a moment, I'll go press the elevator button for you now."

Two minutes later, the elevator doors opened.

An anxious deliveryman emerged from the elevator carrying a large bouquet of roses and lilies.

After taking a photo to confirm receipt, she signed for the package in person and then left.

Lan Yujuan returned home with flowers in her hands, feeling both surprised and delighted.

After returning home and closing the door, she placed the flowers in the most conspicuous spot, and then carefully opened the greeting card attached to the flowers.

[Wife, I hope you are happy! I'm willing to stay with you and our daughter until the end of time!]

When Lan Yujuan saw the two words at the beginning of the card that had changed the way she addressed him, her heart skipped a beat and her face turned red.

She carefully collected the card and put it in the drawer.

Then, I lay down beside the flowers, happily admiring them, and murmured softly:

"I didn't expect him to be so particular about rituals..."