"That's not true..." Her voice trembled as her face suddenly turned pale. She quietly covered her face with both her hands as her whole body started quivering as well.

"It's impossible. I cannot be Qi Qiming's daughter... I'm not..."

She started sobbing. Her throat felt stuck and she seemed to be suffocating as her consciousness was fading.

Ah Mo's expression changed. He hugged her and comforted her, "There's no proof right now. Don't make any rash conclusions. Even Master isn't sure about this, so we shouldn't scare ourselves right now."

"Rash conclusions? Right now, it all shows that it's most likely Qi Qiming, doesn't it? No wonder you stopped me from continuing when we reached this point. Did you already know? Is it really Qi Qiming? Tell me!"

Mu Lingshi took a deep breath after she let all her emotions inside her out. She stared at Ah Mo coldly. With the scar on her face seeming extremely clear right now, she looked ferocious.

"I've delivered both yours and Qi Qiming's DNA samples for a test, so we'll find out in a few days." Ah Mo held her shoulders as he explained, "Before we get the results, our guesses mean nothing. We didn't want to let you know because we didn't want you to worry. Calm down, Lingshi."

"Calm down?" Mu Lingshi snorted. "I can't stay calm! Would you be able to stay calm if you were in my position? How is it any different than betraying my own family? He's the cause of all the tragedy. Is he even worthy of becoming my father? If it really is him, I'd never forgive him!"

She suppressed her remaining rage and ran out of the room.

Ah Mo's expression darkened. It took him a moment before he chased after her.

...

The next morning, Mu Yuchen woke up early as usual. Xi Xiaye had become even more of a sleepyhead. Her morning sickness symptoms were pretty bad earlier on and only became better recently. Although he had been managing her diet, she hardly gained any weight. While the little chap inside her womb was growing quickly, she did not seem that much different from before. Her chin was still pretty sharp and her features were bony.

He put his hand on her baby bump as his eyes calmed down. He studied her for a while and then smiled. "You have to be a good little baby, you hear that? Otherwise, your father will punish you!"

He felt a living presence inside her and he smiled before leaving the bed a while later. He then carefully set the blanket over her.

When he washed up and went downstairs, Sis Wang and the servants were already preparing breakfast.

"Morning, Master!" Sis Wang and the servants greeted him.

Mu Yuchen responded, "Morning, you guys can take a day off today. Let me make breakfast." He elegantly unbuttoned and rolled his sleeves up.

Sis Wang beamed. "Master, are you going to make breakfast for Missus again? Well, I suppose Missus prefers the food you make. She hasn't been having a great appetite lately. Elder Madam prepared some tonics for her. However, Master, I'd like to learn something from you since you'll be leaving for some time and I'm worried that Missus isn't going to be used to it."

Mu Yuchen smiled as he nodded humbly. "Sure, after I leave, please report Missus's condition to me every day. Unless she gives explicit permission, don't let anyone come in, and don't let anyone go upstairs. Understood?"

Sis Wang nodded. "Noted, Master, don't worry."

Sis Wang still called Mu Yuchen "Master" as usual after she started staying in Maple Residence since it felt more familiar.

"By the way, Master, Elder Madam told me to prepare two empty rooms. Is she going to stay over?"

"Don't bother about it for now. Your job is to take care of Missus. Let her be alone. If she starts having difficulty going out after a few months, I'll make arrangements then."

Both Xi Xiaye and he liked to the quiet environment, so it was easy for him to imagine how Wang Hui would definitely tire her out. The reason he moved out was that he preferred a peaceful environment too.

"Yes, Master."

"The weather will get colder as autumn comes. Remind her to put on more clothes when she's heading out, and please accompany her when she's going out on weekends. As for Ji Zitong, give her a call every time she heads out, alright?" Mu Yuchen's worrisome reminders went on.

He probably did not notice his behavior right now. He never would have worried about such trivial matters before.

Sis Wang laughed in amusement. "Master, you've said it plenty of times already. We know. Don't worry and leave Missus to us. We won't disappoint you and we'll take good care of her."

He nodded before getting to breakfast.

It was a fusion of a Chinese and Western-style breakfast. As soon as the hand-pulled chicken porridge was done, his phone started ringing and he picked it up. It was an unexpected call from Qi Lei.

"Do you have time today? Let's meet up. I have something to discuss."

At the Grand Lake Villa Area, Qi Lei had just woken up. He was by his balcony, drinking some coffee as he looked at the morning view. Some cheerful music was drifting from the room as well.

Mu Yuchen was not surprised to hear Qi Lei's voice. In fact, it seemed like he expected it. "Anytime before lunch. You can decide on the place."

Qi Lei raised his eyebrows and smiled. "Can I go to your place for a meal again?"

"We're not cooking today," Mu Yuchen replied calmly. It took one to wonder what he was feeling at the moment.

"I just thought that you're pretty generous, but you're rejecting me now? Never mind. We'll meet on the 27th floor of the Galaxy Tower. It's my turf and we can have some privacy there. I'll be waiting for you."

On the 27th floor of the Galaxy Tower, up on the rooftop.

It was a breezy day. Even though the sun was still up, it was still chilly up there. The cold wind made the shirt hems flutter and the whooshing sound by one's ears only made the place seem even quieter.

Qi Lei liked tall places like this since he could feel closer to the sky and freedom. Everything at the bottom looked so small. Then, he could feel that he was not as tiny as he thought. At least, right there, he could still gaze upon the whole city and even the world.

Some time ago, Yang Sheng asked him if he was feeling lonely. Actually, he did not really feel lonely because he did not want to use loneliness as an excuse to self-indulge. Overall, he just felt tired.

A contented person would never feel lonely. Even if there was such instance, it would just be a little spice in life.

Qi Lei had always hoped he could become someone like that.

He was always wondering if there would ever be such a person who felt the same way as him. He did meet an amazing girl who was beautiful and elegant many years ago. She was very understanding and recognized everything that he felt. However, she did not belong to him.

Many years later, he got the same feeling from another girl. It made him realize that the happiness or sadness felt in the past should not be lingered on, and was only temporary.

He thought about people struggling on the verge of death or poverty. At the very least, he knew that he was far luckier than them.

He suddenly realized that he was not struggling as much as he thought anymore. Even though he could not ask for much, he could at least protect what he had right now. Hence, he made a phone call to Mu Yuchen.

A smile appeared on Qi Lei's face. He took a pack of cigarettes out and lit three of them before putting them onto the railing. Then, he lit one up for himself before handing the pack over to Mu Yuchen.

Mu Yuchen glanced at him. His sunglasses were hiding his eyes. While he did not take the pack of cigarettes from him, he looked at the three cigarettes on the railing instead. His expression was shaken up slightly. The wind blew, making everything seemed unreal.

He knew very well who it was for.

Between them, there was only one person worth remembering.

"Lingtian didn't like to smoke," Mu Yuchen spoke up suddenly after a long silence.

"He was very much addicted to smoking by the year he passed away."

Qi Lei casually put the pack of cigarettes back into his pocket. Then, he released a puff of smoke and watched it fade quietly away in the air. "To be honest, although you call yourself his brother, you don't really know him that well. I know you two aren't on the best of terms. I thought you'd be unaffected by his death because you do look like a cold-blooded person from our perspective." His tone was not very friendly.

Mu Yuchen faced his accusation with ease, his expression still appearing calm as usual. "I've always thought of him as a brother. He's my legal younger brother."

Qi Lei turned towards him and asked with a tint of sarcasm in his tone, "Do you mean that he didn't see you a brother?"

"I don't want to talk about Lingtian's past with me. He's already dead, and I don't have anything to say if you want to blame all of it onto me. What's done is done. I've never regretted what I've done. If I could turn back time and make a choice again, I would do the exact same thing." Mu Yuchen took off his sunglasses and revealed his eyes.

"Do you have no feelings for Shasha at all? If not, why did you agree to marry her? I don't believe nothing happened during the period of time when you stayed with the Gu family. Otherwise, it didn't make sense for Qi Feng to rush and run away with Shasha. You're the one who agreed to marry her." Qi Lei voiced out his doubts and hoped Mu Yuchen could provide him an answer.

"Didn't you ask me the same thing before? I cannot answer you, but I can tell you one thing. Aside from my woman at home right now, all the others look the same to me. I'm not a Casanova like you."

"Xi Xiaye doesn't seem any better than Shasha. I don't have faith in your taste," Qi Lei ridiculed.

"Do you think I'm Qi Feng or you? I need an amazing woman to be my partner. I think Gu Lingsha can't even compare to her fingertip." He suddenly became very protective of her as he could not stand people criticizing her.

Qi Lei's expression changed when Xi Xiaye's face suddenly appeared in his mind. He instantly noticed his words were a bit harsh. "I don't mean that Xiaye is bad. They are different kinds of women after all, so they can't be compared."

"According to my sources, she has returned. If you can't move past that, then you can go and meet her. As a partner, I should remind you that Gu Lingsha can be as dangerous as any other man, so you'd better be careful." Mu Yuchen seemed impatient when Gu Lingsha was mentioned.

"I can sense your sincerity, and I'm recognizing you as a partner. I know you guys have been investigating on Mr. Wen, and you suspect Qi Qiming to be Mr. Wen. I asked my mother and found out that Qi Qiming did call himself Mr. Wen in secret before because my grandfather forbade him from fooling around as the First Master of the Qi family. Sis Lan, who's on the verge of death in Hospital T, was one of his lovers. Unfortunately, she was just a replacement because she resembled Qi Feng's mother."

Qi Lei smirked. "The woman Qi Qiming loved the most was Qi Feng's mother, but sadly, she died. Qi Qiming got together with many other women afterward although they were all her replacements. They all resembled that woman one way or another.

Mu Yuchen could hear the grimness from his tone, yet when he looked at him, he saw a cold and demonic smile.

He fell silent for a moment, then said calmly, "I have long heard about your esteemed father and your mother within the circle. I rather admire your mother, Mrs. Wang's courage."

"She's just a tragedy too." Qi Lei had huge prejudice against Wang Qin. When he said that, it was just an indifferent mockery. Only he understood his own feelings as he turned away a little annoyed, and gazed into the blue sky.

Mu Yuchen turned to the side and studied him. "Everyone chooses their own way to live, whether it's a tragedy or comedy. It's the way others see it. If they all have different focuses, the same things might not seem the same to the people involved."

Mu Yuchen obviously knew about Qi Qiming and Wang Qin. Ah Mo had long done a thorough investigation on the Qi family. Qi Qiming and Wang Qin were just marriage partners at most. They did not have any affection between them. Both had people that they fancied before they were married, and because of this marriage, the two of them were tied down to each other. It must not have felt like the best option, but since they wanted to benefit from some things, they needed to first give up on others.

Without love, perhaps they did not have too much of the so-called pain. The fight for benefits was really a conflict of truth between them.

"Mu Yuchen, sometimes I admire you. There's an advantage to being a cold person since you have less to worry about than people like us. I remember that Shasha told me very long ago that you're a very indifferent person. You seem gentle, but in reality, you're the most hostile. I've thought about it this time. No matter what, working with you wouldn't be a bad thing. Even if we can't work together, we should at least coexist peacefully, so I'll accept the things you've handed me. Consider me owing you a favor, but I do want to know why you're helping me. You know that I'm prejudiced against you."

Qi Lei fixed his eyes on Mu Yuchen. Even though he roughly knew the answer, he still would like to see how this man would answer.

Mu Yuchen calmly averted his gaze and reached out to hold onto the cold railing. "I'm preparing for a rainy day."

He knew that he was just asking even though he already knew the answer, but he still admitted it very magnanimously. He never worried about being seen through. Since it would be a win-win situation, why not fight for it?

"In fact, Master Qi, I, Mu Yuchen, am just a businessman. I have principles towards my partners, that is that I wouldn't let them suffer a loss. Of course, I can't be on the losing end too. If I can meet both conditions, I would do it. Of course, I'm assured to be working with you too. My Missus... She says you're a good person."

As Mu Yuchen said this, his honorable and handsome face flashed with a plain smile, and you could see some sincerity in his dark eyes.

When Qi Lei heard this admonition, he was momentarily stunned. Xi Xiaye's bright and beautiful little face flashed in his mind.

A good person?

Was he a good person?

He suddenly remembered that time on a rainy day near her apartment, and that night she collapsed beside her car.

Some things were actually quite intriguing. Even if he did not deliberately try to remember them, they would have a way of unintentionally staying in his heart. When he thought about these things, Qi Lei felt at ease for some reason. The smile could not help but widen on his handsome face. "She told you that I'm a good person?"

She did not even admit it to him. What a petty woman!

Mu Yuchen did not answer him. His gaze that was full of depth turned to face Qi Lei. "I said you're a pretty good person, and after that, she reluctantly agreed. In fact, she's my woman. She even has my child now. Can you be less enthusiastic whenever you hear her name? If I wasn't raised so well, you would've been unscathed right now."

When Mu Yuchen said this, Qi Lei was stunned for a while. He never would have thought that the great Master Mu would actually have a dry sense of humor too. After he stared at him for a while, he turned away and laughed. "What a petty man! If I made a move first, you wouldn't even have a chance! Back then, the Xi family was determined to give her to me, and then you showed up unexpectedly and ruined my plan. Now that I think about it, I really can't quite accept it!"

"She wouldn't fancy you." Mu Yuchen's calm and unaffected voice came, his voice filled with confidence.

"You'll never know. How can you be so certain? I, Qi Lei, have never failed whenever I set my heart on going after a woman."

"I do know, just based on the fact that my name is in the column as her spouse," Mu Yuchen answered calmly. He looked up to the faraway sky, paused, and then continued, "Have you never thought of looking for Qi Feng? The entry-exit details show that Gu Lingsha returned alone."

Qi Lei then stopped smiling. "Why should I go look for him? It's only good news to me if he never comes back."

He had also heard the news about Gu Lingsha returning to City B before wandering back to City Z, but he did not find out more. Even though he was not sure what he was afraid of, it had been so many years. Would some things not have changed too?

He was uncertan. He was only sure of himself, sure that he had changed...

Mu Yuchen squinted at him and then nodded. "I'm not agreeing to some beliefs to be so self-sacrificial. Many times, you can only talk about these things if you're capable enough. Things that you have the power to grasp shouldn't be left to others to change. Don't cling onto going after what's right or wrong. There's actually a very simple of way of proving this. Compare the version of you that has a goal to achieve with the version of you right now. As long as you're living better then than you are right now, then it would've been right for you to persist all along."

Then, he suddenly turned away, smiled, and walked towards the stairs.

"But I still wish you all the best. You're a person worth being good friends with. Let's gather more in the future."

Then, he walked down the stairs from the balcony and his tall and lean figure soon vanished at the staircase. Only Qi Lei was left on the empty balcony.

When he saw Mu Yuchen's figure disappear, Qi Lei suddenly shouted after him, "Hey, give me an Imperial Sky Entertainment City VIP card!"

Mu Yuchen instantly stopped walking and suddenly turned to look at him. He smiled coolly. "Next time, when you come over to my company, I'll get Xiaye to give you one."

Then, he finally vanished too.

With an amused smile, Qi Lei reached up to brush his nose.

It felt pretty satisfying to take a little advantage of Mu Yuchen!