After finishing the story, he showed no reaction, his eyes slightly closed as if he had fallen asleep. “Hey!” I whispered to him. “Hmm?” His voice was alert, “Finished?” “Oh! You weren’t even listening properly!” He glanced at me sideways, “That story was really uninteresting, not nice to listen to.” “What!” I blushed slightly, remembering how the story Aunt Min told me when I was little made me feel sad for a long time, “Don’t you think it’s a pity? Happiness was within reach, but he lost his love forever because he couldn’t control his curiosity.” He looked at me with a smile for a while, “What curiosity? He was just overwhelmed by concern. He couldn’t be sure if the girl was really following him, so he turned to check. It’s understandable.” I said solemnly, “If it were me, I would not look back if I promised not to.” He slowly lost his smile, becoming serious, leaning against me for a long time without speaking. “Hey, your turn.” “What?” He frowned, eyes still closed, “I need a little nap.” I pushed him, half laughing, half crying, “You’re such a cheater! It’s your turn to tell a story!” “Alright, I’ll tell one. Listen up!” He didn’t open his eyes, his voice flat as he said, “Once upon a time, there was a mermaid princess who fell in love with a prince. She drank poison to become human, but the prince fell in love with someone else, and she, mute, eventually turned into foam and disappeared into the sea. That’s it.” I turned my head to hide my laughter; this was my most beloved “The Little Mermaid,” and he had just summarized it in a few words. Even the all-powerful President Song had things he couldn’t do well. “How was it? Not good?” He gently pinched my chin, “Then I’ll tell another one.” He squinted his eyes, looking far towards the horizon, his stern face softened by the night’s veil, becoming gentle and mysterious, his voice drifting as if from afar. “There was a country girl who fell in love with a young nobleman from a big city. She gave him her heart and body, even bore his child. This man, although not disliking her, was from a noble family, hiding out here due to family strife. He had to return to the bustling, cutthroat urban jungle. As he was about to leave, she was about to give birth. He promised to come back for her, and he kept his word, but by the time he saw their child, the boy was already five. In a small town, a single mother raising a fatherless child faced much scorn and prejudice. When the man returned, he had some power and influence; he settled them down, but then left again for several years. When they met again, the boy was almost ten, holding the hand of his five-year-old sister. The man was pleased, for although he had many lovers, he only had these two children. This time, he returned because his grandmother wanted to see her grandchildren. Over the years, the woman had seen through the man’s fickleness, but she couldn’t bear to be separated from her children. For their future, she reluctantly let the man take them away. The children entered a new environment, discovering their father had a vast family. They had many grandmothers, only one grandfather, and countless uncles, aunts, and cousins. The boy had little time to adapt, busy learning many things while protecting his sister from being bullied. Their father cared only about his education and performance, caring only if he was favored by their grandfather. The boy missed his mother terribly, often dreaming of the old locust tree in the countryside where his mother would steam elm seed rice, waiting for him and his sister to return from catching frogs in the fields. But he was allowed to see his mother very rarely. He had to study hard, please the old grandfather, and use this to negotiate with his father. The grandfather valued this grandson highly but was worried that too much affection would soften his resolve, so he secretly sent the boy’s mother away. The boy, after crying and searching in vain, gradually realized that only by becoming stronger could he protect those he loved…”
I was lost in the story, “What happened next? Did he find his mother?” Song Li remained silent for a moment, then nodded, “Yes, but he could only occasionally bring his sister to see her, and in front of others, he had to maintain an indifferent facade.” I snuggled into his arms, staying quiet for a while before lifting my face to look at him, “And now? You’re the CEO of New Song, with all the power, can’t you make your own decisions?” He leaned down, gently kissed my face, and smiled, “Clever, aren’t you? You figured out that the boy was me.” Ha, I had known he was talking about himself all along.
“Now, I can finally rightfully let everyone call her Mrs. Song with respect. Anyone who dares to defame her, no matter who they are, I will make sure they regret it.” He paused, giving a self-deprecating smile, “Although this isn’t really what she wants.” I smiled and said slowly, “Actually, she would be happy just to see you and Xiao Ying often, right? Who cares about titles or those superficial honors?” He smiled lightly at me, “Exactly.” Suddenly, he wrapped his arms around me, whispering in my ear, “I’ll take you to meet her if there’s a chance.” My heart skipped a beat, and I quickly turned to look at him, “Really?” My heart felt both sweet and melting, filled with mixed emotions. He actually agreed to take me to meet his mother. I knew that the current Mrs. Song living in the Song family’s old mansion wasn’t Song Li’s mother, and I also knew how important his mother was to him. What does this mean? Is he… finally… even if just a little… “Hey, honey, what’s with that look?” He laughed happily, “It’s not like you’re crying or laughing, it’s so unpredictable, too complicated. Do you want to go or not?” I threw myself onto him, “I want to go, of course, I want to go. I’m going!” I hugged him, swaying back and forth, “That’s great!”
Chapter 28: Crisis
In the blink of an eye, we’ve been back for a week. I’m still often lost in the joy of those days on the island, which felt unrealistically beautiful, making me forget about the world. Since we returned, Song Li has been swamped with work, often coming home late at night, looking utterly exhausted. I never interfere with his work, but once I heard him complaining that it was because of the backlog of work from our trip, implying that it was my fault he was so busy now, and I should compensate him, which made me laugh and cry at the same time. But deep down, I was still happy.
Since I started assisting Aunt Min, he hasn’t let me go to New Song. Although he doesn’t have much time to spend with me now, the feeling hasn’t changed. Like yesterday, he probably returned around midnight and nearly fell asleep in the bathroom. I managed to wake him up, half-dragging, half-carrying him to bed, tucked him in, but he suddenly flipped over, pinning me down, and while I was still in a daze, he stripped off my nightgown, his spirits high, and we ‘exercised’ wildly all night. In the morning, I felt him kiss my cheek before he left for work. I woke up naturally, looking at the bright sunlight filling the room, lazily hugging the blanket, reluctant to get up, thinking about last night, my heart fluttered, and I couldn’t help but bury my head in the pillow for a while before emerging, letting out a long sigh.
