Chapter 10

Fu Xizhou didn’t get angry at her outburst. On the contrary, he offered smooth, gentle words of comfort through the receiver.

Before long, Su Ran’s anger dissipated. Holding the phone to her ear, she listened to his low instructions and gave a firm nod. “Fine. I’ll find a way.”

Hanging up, Su Ran’s eyes narrowed into sharp slits.

This time, Fu Xizhou was stepping in personally! All she needed to do was orchestrate a way for Fu Xizhou to gain entry into the Su family’s corporate operations.

Which meant her immediate priority was buttering up Su Hang and Wen Jiu. As for Su Miao?

She couldn’t be bothered to waste any more effort kissing up to that spoiled idiot. Su Miao was too brainless to pose any real threat anyway.

However, at the dinner table that evening, Su Miao took a direct jab at her.

“Oh? Cousin Ran, you’re still here? I assumed you had already packed up and left!”

Those were the exact words Su Ran had dramatically declared in the kitchen earlier.

Su Ran felt a wave of sheer humiliation, but her thick skin prevailed. Lowering her head to fight back fake tears, she murmured softly, “I don’t have many relatives left… Aside from here, where else could I possibly go?”

Su Miao smiled sweetly. “Back to your own house! Your family’s estate is still standing, isn’t it?”

Su Ran: “…”

Wen Jiu stepped in to smooth things over, worried that if the girls kept going, someone was going to flip the dining table.

She shot a quiet, assessing glance at Su Ran, taking mental note of her reaction.

Su Ran definitely had an ulterior motive.

The problem was pinpointing what she was actually after.

Under normal circumstances, after being repeatedly embarrassed and pushed away by Su Miao, any self-respecting person would have packed their bags and left. Yet Su Ran clung to the Su residence as if her life depended on it.

Which proved beyond a doubt that the Su household held something Su Ran desperately wanted to steal…

For several days in a row, Su Miao vanished to Feng Bai’s apartment every single morning, only returning home right before dinner.

It wasn’t just Su Hang who had an issue with it; even Wen Jiu was starting to find the routine bizarre.

That afternoon…

Wen Jiu checked her watch, nearly four in the afternoon. Su Miao wasn’t due back for another hour. Pulling out her phone, Wen Jiu initiated a direct video call to her daughter.

When Su Miao saw her mother’s face pop up on her screen, her heart skipped a beat. Oh boy! A video call?!

She blurted out quickly, “I’m on my way back right now!”

Wen Jiu frowned. “Where are you? Send me the address. I’ll pick you up. I happen to have something important to discuss with you.”

Cornered, Su Miao had no choice but to slowly read out Feng Bai’s apartment address.

The moment the video call ended, Feng Bai walked over, looking at her with a quiet, remorseful expression.

“You’ve been coming over every day because of me. Is your mother upset? I can speak to her and explain.”

Su Miao waved a dismissive hand. “No need to explain anything. My mom is completely different from my dad—she’s super easygoing.”

Besides, Feng Bai lived all by himself; if she didn’t visit regularly, he’d be lonely, not to mention his injuries weren’t fully healed…

She was certain her mother would understand once she saw the situation.

Before long, the apartment doorbell chimed. Su Miao sprinted to the door ahead of Feng Bai, pulling it open.

She gave her mother an immediate, pleading look. “Mom, if you’re going to scold me, please wait until we get home. Give me a little face here!”

Wen Jiu: “Am I really that unreasonable?”

Pushing Su Miao aside, Wen Jiu stepped into the apartment, her sharp eyes sweeping over the space in a single, calculating glance.

Feng Bai didn’t shrink from her intense gaze, standing straight with cool, unbothered composure.

Wen Jiu offered a subtle smile, turning back to Su Miao. “Miao Miao, you run over here every single day, can you actually offer Feng Bai any real help?”

Su Miao defended herself earnestly. “I’m here to take care of him! I keep him company! His injuries aren’t fully healed yet, if an emergency happens, I can call an ambulance for him!”

Wen Jiu’s eyes flicked over to the trash can, which was overflowing with takeout containers. “…” Eating takeout every day, is this what you call ‘taking care’ of someone? Aren’t you worried he’ll end up malnourished?

Following her mother’s gaze, Su Miao felt a sudden rush of embarrassment.

She couldn’t help it, she hadn’t mastered the art of cooking yet! Before she learned how to cook properly, what if she accidentally gave him food poisoning and sent him right back to the hospital?

Wen Jiu shifted her gaze back to Feng Bai, her sharp eyes lingering on him for a long, unreadable moment.

Just as Su Miao was frantically guessing what her mother was about to do, Wen Jiu suddenly broke into a warm, graceful smile.

“Feng Bai, my little girl runs over to your place every single day. I can’t seem to stop her, but running back and forth like this is quite a hassle.”

Su Miao muttered under her breath, “…It’s not a hassle at all.”

It’s just a quick drive!

She could handle it!

Wen Jiu shot her daughter a stern look before continuing smoothly, “How about this: since you’re living here all by yourself anyway, why don’t you move into our house for a while? Once your injuries are completely healed, we can figure out your next steps.”

Su Miao: “???” Wait, did she mishear her own mother?!

It wasn’t just Su Miao, even Feng Bai was caught momentarily off guard.

This sudden turn of events… was entirely unexpected.

Su Miao looked at Feng Bai with wide, expectant eyes, desperately wanting him to agree, yet terrified of putting him on the spot.

After all, if he moved into her family’s estate, there was no telling how much high-society gossip it might spark.

She’d rather just keep making the daily drive herself!

Once the semester started, she could simply buy an apartment nearby.

Suddenly…

Su Miao heard a single, clear word fall from Feng Bai’s lips: “Okay.”

Su Miao stared at Feng Bai in total shock, then turned to her mother in complete bewilderment.

Her mind was a wall of giant question marks.

This script development…

Hold on, she couldn’t keep up with this pace at all!

It wasn’t until Feng Bai packed a simple bag of essentials and boarded the car with them that the reality of the situation finally sank in.

Su Miao leaned in close to Wen Jiu’s ear, whispering, “Mom, what made you come up with an idea like this?”

Wen Jiu glanced at Feng Bai seated in the front passenger seat, her voice neither loud nor soft. “He’s your friend. Taking care of your friend, isn’t that what a mother should do?”

Su Miao: “…” She literally couldn’t argue with that logic.

Wen Jiu’s eyes narrowed into a thoughtful gaze.

Truth be told, she wanted to see for herself what kind of man Feng Bai truly was under her own roof.

He was undeniably brilliant, but he possessed a deep, unreadable complexity that nagged at her intuition.

Consider this his ultimate trial!

If he passed her test with flying colors, the Su family would gladly welcome him into their inner circle long-term.

If he failed, then she would cut him off without hesitation.

She trusted that a young man as sharp as Feng Bai understood her implicit message clearly. Some things were best left unsaid.

Her daughter was deeply smitten with him, and Feng Bai clearly harbored strong feelings for Miao Miao in return. Yet neither had torn down the paper wall separating them into an official couple—perhaps waiting for the right moment, or perhaps held back by other hidden reasons.

As a mother, she refused to let her daughter get hurt.

Wen Jiu hadn’t given Su Hang any advance warning about bringing Feng Bai home. So when the group walked into the grand living room together, Su Hang froze, and the freshly peeled orange in his hand slipped from his fingers, tumbling onto the plush carpet.

“…” Why on earth was Feng Bai here?!

Su Ran, stepping out of her room at that exact moment, halted in her tracks as she caught sight of Feng Bai. Her eyes swirled with a complex, dark confusion.

Why was HE here?!

Wen Jiu casually laid out the situation, announcing that Feng Bai would be staying with them for a while to recover.

Su Hang voiced his immediate opposition!

“Absolutely not! Letting him stay here is basically giving him official permission to march straight into our family!”

Wouldn’t their daughter be glued to his side twenty-four hours a day now?!

Wen Jiu turned to Su Hang with a sweet, dangerous smile. “What did you just say? My hearing must be failing me. Let me give you one more chance to repeat that.”

Su Hang’s courage evaporated instantly. “…I said I have no objections whatsoever.”

Su Miao: “…”

She glanced thoughtfully at Feng Bai. Hmm, it was hard to imagine Feng Bai ever caving as fast as her father just did…

Then again, a man as cool and distant as Feng Bai wouldn’t cave so easily, right?