Her clear voice brushed past his ears. When Mu Yuchen turned to look at her, she was holding up her chopsticks and raising her brows as she looked at him, bemused.

"Does it make my Missus feel threatened?" His calm voice was softly heard and it came with a sensitive depth.

Xi Xiaye looked at him from the side, her calm expression flashing with disregard. Then, she continued to eat her food while across her, Shen Yue had already continued to get Mu Yuchen to drink up.

After dinner, Xi Xiaye tidied up and then went to Shen Wenna's study room while Mu Yuchen played chess with Shen Yue.

Knock knock!

The rhythmic sound of the door being rapped was heard. Immediately from the study room came Shen Wenna's clear voice. "Come in!"

Xi Xiaye reached out to push open the door, walked in, and then looked up to see Shen Wenna who was currently sitting before the spacious and tidy study desk. She was currently looking down and writing at a tremendous speed. It looked like she was marking assignments...

"Mother..." Xi Xiaye stood at the door and called out softly.

Shen Wenna lifted her head unhurriedly to see Xi Xiaye who stood at the door. Quite a while after that, she set aside the pen in her hand and nodded to indicate for her to walk over. As she turned to pull a file out from the shelf, she took the document inside out.

Xi Xiaye walked over and stopped by Shen Wenna's side, then she followed her mother's gaze and looked at the document in her hand. It was right. It was that document that Xi Mushen had given Shen Wenna back then...

"If you didn't bring this up, I would've forgotten all about it."

Shen Wenna casually flipped the document in her hand, then looked up at Xi Xiaye. Her gaze was calm. "Actually this should be yours. After all, I'm not good in business. In fact, I hope that you won't be taken advantage of too."

Then, she picked up her pen and quickly signed her name on the inscription. She put it back into the folder and handed it to Xi Xiaye.

Xi Xiaye slowly accepted it as she quietly watched her. She did not know what to say. She thought about it for a long time before finally finding a topic. "Is the school about to go on break?"

"Mmm, there aren't many classes recently either. I'm only taking on two classes, so it's much easier-going than the years before. Sit and have some tea." Shen Wenna arranged the stack of documents on her desk and put them onto the shelf behind her. Then, she got up and walked towards the sofa.

Xi Xiaye fell silent for quite a while before following her. Shen Wenna had already very quickly brewed some tea. She picked a cup up and carefully took a sip. "Fresh Pu Er?"

"Mmm, take some back later. I don't like tea," Shen Wenna plainly responded. After a moment of silent thought, she continued, "Are you planning to stay in Glory World forever? Your grandpa's spirits aren't like the years before. A few months ago, he mentioned to me that he was planning to let you go abroad to advance your studies. You should know what he means."

Xi Xiaye paused and lowered her eyes to stare at the swaying tea in her hands. Suddenly, she did not know what to say.

"Because of your father and me, we ruined your childhood. All these years we've given you too little care. Xiaye, do you think that as your mother, I feel like a stranger to you?"

Shen Wenna's eyes suddenly revealed a hint of darkness. Her hands slowly gripped the teacup tightly as she looked up at Xi Xiaye.

Xi Xiaye was dazed for a moment, then she gently shook her head. "No..."

In her impression, her mother, Shen Wenna, was actually a very cold person. She always maintained her elegant and calm demeanor. Even if Father had cruelly betrayed her, she kept her sadness and disappointment to herself. After being dispirited for a while, she picked herself back up. Xiaye wanted to say that her mother had actually always been a very healthy role model to her.

When she heard Xi Xiaye say that, Shen Wenna suddenly chuckled elegantly. Despite her age, her attractive face revealed a rare smile filled with warmth. "When I look at you, I always think about my younger self. In the blink of an eye, I'm old now. As beautiful as the memories were, they can't resist the fleeting time that passes by abundantly. In a flash, everything has become unadulterated."

She could vaguely feel the bleakness in Shen Wenna's words, so Xi Xiaye softly called out to her, "Mother..."

Still, Shen Wenna just calmly inhaled and lifted a hand to massage the fatigued space in between her brows and said with waning interest, "Okay, it's very late now. I'm worried you guys aren't used to being out so late either, so it's best to go back earlier. Does Ah Chen still have to go to work tomorrow?"

Shen Wenna had always kept a lot to herself and was not willing to talk about anything with anyone. Even if it were her daughter, Xi Xiaye, she would never complain in front of her.

When Xi Xiaye saw that she seemed a little down, she consoled her, but noticing that she continued to keep silent, she left.

Xi Xiaye drove back to Maple Residence. Mu Yuchen had drunk quite a bit with Shen Yue, so once he got into the car, he immediately leaned back to rest with his eyes closed.

The car was very quiet. In fact, they could vaguely feel an out-of-the-ordinary stifled sort of quiet.

After he felt more at ease, Mu Yuchen opened his eyes to look at the petite woman driving beside him. When he saw her calm expression and her intense focus on the road ahead with a cold aura all around her, he pondered for a moment, then said softly, "What's wrong? Weren't you just fine earlier? Did your mother criticize you?"

His sudden voice startled the driving Xi Xiaye. She looked at him from the side then shook her head. "No, I just don't know whether what I'm doing is right or wrong. She didn't even ask me what I wanted to do. I thought she wouldn't give it to me..."

When he heard her, Mu Yuchen's eyes revealed that he was puzzled.

Xi Xiaye could only sigh to herself. Holding the steering wheel steadily with one hand, she took the two files beside her to hand them to Mu Yuchen. "Look for yourself."

Mu Yuchen took it and opened the first file. It was that document that Shen Wenna had signed while the second file was the copy of the document that Xi Xiaye had signed in West Park the other day, attached with a cheque for $5 million.

His eyes suddenly revealed a cold light. It was hard to read emotions in his gaze as his expression remained very calm. His long fingers held onto the cheque and he turned to fix his eyes on Xi Xiaye. "What does this mean?"

"This is the so-called 'compensation' that they're giving me. Xi Xinyi called me this afternoon to ask me out," she answered plainly.

"So, did you go?"

Mu Yuchen frowned and subconsciously looked at her. He did not notice anything odd, so he said, "You know that they will do this to you, yet you still went. Xi Xiaye, should I be praising you for your bravery?"

"Why wouldn't I have the guts to go? The person who's in the wrong isn't me. Do they think I'm Mother? I'll take however much the compensation is! I'd be a fool if I didn't!"