Next door, at Mu Sijueâs villa.
As soon as they came back, Xu Youning let go of Mumuâs hand and said, âGo back to your room, okay?â
Mumu nodded obediently and went to the second floor.
There were only Ah Guang and Xu Youning in the living room.
Xu Youning pointed to the sofa and asked Ah Guang to sit down.
Ah Guang glanced around the whole villa and asked in confusion, âIs this the place where Seventh Brother lives?â
Xu Youning admitted without precaution, âYes, weâve been living here all the time.â
âI see!â Ah Guang teased her with a smile, âI felt you are the hostess here since we came in!â
Only then did Xu Youning realize that she had fallen into Ah Guangâs trap. She smiled and said, âAh Guang, when did you become so facetious?â
âSister Youning!â Ah Guang sat down and began to complain, âDo you know that after you left, Seventh Brother had been working every day. He was totally a workaholic! If I didnât tell jokes, we would be bored to death even if we were not killed by our enemies.â
Xu Youning didnât reply Ah Guang. Instead, she asked, âAh Guang, what on earth do you want to say?â
âItâs pretty obvious!â Ah Guang cleared his throat and continued, âSister Youning, I just want to tell you that Seventh Brother had never dated others since you left last time! At first, we thought he just liked you, but later we found it was true love!â
âI know...these things.â Xu Youning was somewhat embarrassed. But in front of Ah Guang, she had to maintain calm. âMu Sijue has already told me,â she added.
Ah Guang opened his mouth wide in surprise for a long while. Then he asked, âDid he tell you in person?â
Xu Youning neglected Ah Guangâs shock and nodded.
âD*mn it!â Ah Guang couldnât help swearing, âIs he still the same Seventh Brother we know? He used to be mild and boring.â
Xu Youning had once suspected that Mu Sijue had changed, too.
However, Mu Sijue had proved to her with practical actions that he had never changed. When there was no need for him to behave like a gentleman, he would release the wild tiger in his heart and tell erotic jokes at any time.
Ah Guang... still didnât know Mu Sijue well enough.
Ah Guang sighed for a moment and suddenly changed the subject. âSister Youning, long time no see!â He said.
âShouldnât you say âlong time no seeâ when we just met?â Xu Youning couldnât help but smile, âAh Guang, are you dull, or you just donât follow the common template?â
âAnyway, Sister Youning, Iâm very happy to see you again! When I set you free back then, I thought we would never meet again in the rest of our lives,â Ah Guang said with his face full of the purest pleasant of boys.
âIâm happy, too,â Xu Youning replied. After a pause, she continued, âAh Guang, thank you. If you hadnât let me go, I wouldnât have a chance to live till now.â
âOh, forget it,â Ah Guang patted his chest with lingering fear, âI finally realized that Seventh Brother gave the task to me because he was sure that I would let you go. If I hadnât had selfish ideas and had shot you, he would have killed me when I went back.â
Xu Youning was shocked and said, âItâs not that... exaggerated, is it?â
âIâm not exaggerating at all!â Ah Guang suddenly became excited, âI let you go, and Seventh Brother acted like that. If I had killed you, Iâm afraid he would have become a bloodthirsty demon!â
This time, Xu Youning didnât speak.
Then Ah Guang calmed down and finally talked business. âSister Youning, why did you ask me to come back with you?â He asked.
âI want to tell you about the schedule tomorrow,â Xu Youning said, âif Mu Sijue and Kang Ruicheng reach an agreement, your Seventh Brother will ask you to send Mumu back tomorrow.â
Ah Guang shrugged and asked in confusion, âSo?â
âYou should be careful of Kang Ruicheng,â Xu Youning didnât say too much, âKang Ruicheng is more cunning than you think.â
Ah Guang couldnât help laughing. He said, âSister Youning, do you regard me as a greenhorn? Iâve seen many cunning people. Of course, Iâll be wary of Kang Ruicheng!â
âOkay,â Xu Youning said, âitâs good that you are aware of the risks...ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Ah Guang looked at Xu Youning carefully and felt that she still had something to say, so he took the initiative to ask, âSister Youning, in addition to watching out for Kang Ruicheng, what else do you want to say to me?â
Xu Youning changed her tone to a pleading one, saying, âI want to ask you not to hurt Mumu when you send him back. Mumu is just a four-year-old child. He has nothing to do with the grudges among us adults.â
âI donât like Kang Ruichengâs son, and I donât like the way you protect him.â Ah Guang looked unhappy, but he suddenly changed his attitude, âHowever, for your sake, I promise you.â
Xu Youning breathed a sigh of relief and said, âThank you.â
Hesitating for a while, Ah Guang asked, âSister Youning, can I ask you a question?â
âSure,â Xu Youning said, âbut if itâs that unanswerable question, donât worry, I wonât answer you.â
âHaha... I see,â Ah Guang gave a hollow laugh to respond to Xu Youningâs cold jest, âI want to ask you that have you addressed the misunderstanding between you and Seventh Brother?â
â...â
Xu Youning didnât speak for a long time.
Ah Guang had to break the awkward silence by himself. He joked, âWhat a coincidence. It happened to be an unanswerable question.â
âNo,â Xu Youning said slowly, âin fact, there is no misunderstanding between Mu Sijue and me.â
In other peopleâs eyes, the misunderstanding between Mu Sijue and her probably began from the death of her grandmother.
However, she knew Mu Sijue was not the murderer.
Now, Mu Sijue also knew that she knew the truth.
Therefore, strictly speaking, there was no misunderstanding between them.
Ah Guang responded confusingly, âAlthough I donât quite understand, it seems to be good news.â
âUh-huh,â Xu Youning nodded, âyou can rest assured.â
Ah Guang looked at the time and suddenly stood up. He said, âItâs late. I should go. If Seventh Brother knows that Iâm still with you at such a late time, Iâll be in serious trouble.â
Xu Youning smiled as a response to Ah Guangâs humor. After seeing him out, she went to the second floor.
There was a small living room at the end of the corridor on the second floor. The sofa was facing the French windows that could give a wide field of vision.
Mumu was sitting on the sofa, looking up at the night sky outside the window.
Xu Youning walked over and patted his head, asking, âMumu, why donât you sleep yet?â
âIâm waiting for you,â Mumu nestled against Xu Youningâs chest and asked, âAuntie Youning, can I sleep with you?â
âNo problem,â Xu Youning took Mumuâs hand and said, âIâll take you back to your room. Letâs go.â
They returned to Aunt Zhou and Mumuâs room. Mumu took off his shoes, washed his hands and feet, and climbed into bed.
As soon as Xu Youning lay down, Mumu crawled over like a caterpillar. So she took advantage of the opportunity to hug the little guy.
âAuntie Youning,â Mumu said, âtomorrow, can you tell Auntie Jianâan that this is my happiest birthday. Thanks for her cake.â
âSure,â Xu Youning agreed, âIâll tell her.â
âWhen I go back, will daddy will let Granny Zhou go?â Mumu cared for Aunt Zhou most.
Xu Youning thought for a while and told Mumu, âSomething might happen tomorrow. Granny Zhou may not be able to come back.â
Mumu suddenly got up, widened his eyes, and asked, âWhy?â
âI canât explain it to you now,â Xu Youning looked at him and said, âBut if Granny Zhou canât come back tomorrow, do you know what to do?â
Mumu didnât even think about it. He immediately nodded and said, âI know. I will protect Granny Zhou.â
âThereâs another grandma,â Xu Youning said, âher surname is Tang. She is the babiesâ grandma. Can you protect her as well?â
âThe babiesâ grandma?â Mumu nodded, âOf course!â
Xu Youning kissed Mumu and said, âWell, go to sleep.â
Mumu got back into the quilt and looked at Xu Youning with eager eyes, asking. âAuntie Youning, if I go back, will you miss me?â
âYes,â Xu Youning replied, âMumu, I will miss you very much.â
Like a child who got candies, Mumu smiled happily and said, âIâll miss you too!â After that, he couldnât help asking, âAuntie Youning, will we meet again in the future?â
He should look forward to meeting Xu Youning next time.
However, when he asked this question, he wasnât as excited or as expectant as before.
In fact, Mumu knew that the chance of meeting Xu Youning in the future was very slim.
Xu Youning didnât want Mumu to hear the answer, nor did she want to face the fact. She could only hold Mumu tighter.
But, there were some things that no one could be sure of.
For example, in the past, she had thought she would never see Ah Guang again. But just now, they met each other.
Xu Youning stroked Mumuâs hair and said, âIf possible, I will definitely go to see you.â
âOkay!â A smile finally appeared on Mumuâs face. He got into Xu Youningâs arms and closed his eyes.
After all, he was still a child. He fell asleep restfully in a few moments.
Xu Youning looked at Mumu and didnât feel sleepy at all.
After an unknown period, her mobile phone on the bedside table vibrated slightly. She picked it up and found it really was Mu Sijueâs call.
Xu Youning walked out with her phone and answered the phone. She just said âHelloâ and did not continue to speak.
After a while, Mu Sijue finally asked, âHas Ah Guang arrived yet?â
Xu Youning didnât answer him directly. She said, âIf you want to know, why donât you call him by yourself?â
âXu Youning,â Mu Sijueâs voice sounded dangerous, âdo you think I canât do anything to you when Iâm not at the top of the mountain?â
âAh Guang is here.â Xu Youning admitted that she was threatened, so she could only answer Mu Sijueâs question. Then she asked, âHave you contacted Kang Ruicheng?â
âNot yet,â Mu Sijue said, âbut we have Mumu. Kang Ruicheng doesnât dare to do anything to Aunt Zhou and Auntie Tang for the time being.â
âMumu... what are you going to do?â Xu Youningâs voice sounded a little uneasy since she didnât know Mu Sijueâs plan.
âWeâre going to send him back,â Mu Sijue said, âthatâs why Iâm calling you. Tell Mumu to be prepared.â
âMumu has already known that Aunt Zhou is kidnapped and that you will send him back. Heâs ready.â
Then, Xu Youning told Mu Sijue what Mumu had said after blowing out the candles.