Editor: MinMin
On the day of Bai Xi’s business trip, Qi Xun went back to his parents’ home.
But his father was not home, only his mother was as she walked down from upstairs. When she saw him, she smiled and glanced behind him, asking, “Where is Xi Xi? Is he right behind you?”
Qi Xun came in and handed his coat to the family’s caretaker.
“He is still away on his business trip,” Qi Xun replied, “It is just me today.”
Xu Jingwan uttered “Oh”, sounding disappointed, only slightly because she still felt joy seeing her son home as she continued to walk down the stairs.
Her relationship with Qi Xun was never close, so she just carefully brushed away the invisible dust on his shirt.
“Your father has a meeting today and will come home very late. Dinner will be just us two.” She informed.
Qi Xun nodded. “That is fine. I am here to visit you two in the first place, so I will be staying here tonight.”
Xu Jingwan was happier.
She requested the caretaker, “Tell the kitchen to prepare food, it is time for dinner.”
.
During supper, Qi Xun had been having a conversation with his mother.
He had moved out since college and was always independent. The conversation topics between the parents and son had always revolved around the family business. He had never taken the initiative to talk about life outside of work or about his opinions.
Xu Jingwan sighed internally as she drank the fruit snow fungus dessert soup after dinner.
She could not blame Qi Xun for this, because it was her and her husband as parents who raised their son like this.
She wished Bai Xi was here right now, at least Qi Xun would have more to say.
Thinking of this, she asked, “Isn’t Bai Xi’s birthday coming soon? Will he return in time?”
“Yes,” Qi Xun confirmed, “He will be back the day after tomorrow.”
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She was worried about Qi Xun’s lack of understanding of romance.
Even if her son is outstanding in everything, he is not an expert at being passionate or romantic. Bai Xi was not short on money or things, so gifts had to be picked out carefully and with consideration. Throwing money alone would not do.
Qi Xun thought of his birthday gifts for Bai Xi and smiled faintly, but he still remembered how his mother almost exposed his marriage proposal.
So he took a sip of tea and coldly replied with two words, “Confidential information.”
Looking very speechless, Xu Jingwan almost rolled her eyes unladylike. She could not even get him to share the secret with his mother.
.
After dinner, Bai Xi finished a segment of his work and seized this chance to video chat with Qi Xun.
Qi Xun handed the video over to his mother and allowed Bai Xi to greet Xu Jingwan. Once they said a few words, he took the phone and stood by the window.
He did not hide from his mother, nor did he lower his voice.
Sitting in the living room, she could vaguely hear what they were talking about.
It was raining outside. The raindrops pattered against the window. In the courtyard, the blossomed pear flowers with snow-like petals were scattered on the ground in the rain.
In the video, Bai Xi was eating a sandwich with a piece of egg on his face as he complained about how much walking he did today, enough to get blisters on his feet.
“But at least I was wearing flat shoes. My colleagues were wearing high heels and even walking faster than I was,”Bai Xi exclaimed. He felt nothing but praise for those ladies in high heels. They were the heroes. “If the world ever ends, there is no way that I can outrun them.”
Qi Xun said, “Fortunately, you will be done in two days.”
Bai Xi stuffed the last bite of the sandwich into his mouth. “Yes, that is what is keeping me going right now. I have two days off once I return.”
He was happy again. Easy to coax like a child, just one candy was enough.
The two chatted intermittently, mixed with the sound of rain outside, a kind of peaceful and happy time.
.
Xu Jingwan had the TV playing, yet her mind was not on it. She glanced at Qi Xun from time to time.
Qi Xun, who was chatting with Bai Xi, obviously did not notice the change. He was still in his indoor outfits with a straight face, not laughing loudly at all. But anyone could see that he was in a good mood. His whole temperament had mellowed down, no longer had the sharp edges like earlier. He was like the rock by the shore, polished and smoothed by the ocean waves.
About half an hour later, Bai Xi ended their video call.
Qi Xun went back to the sofa with a smile on his face.
He continued to watch TV with Xu Jingwan, took a mandarin, peeled it, and handed it to his mother.
Xu Jingwan accepted the fruit, but her mind was still on Qi Xun and not on what was playing on the TV.
Qi Xun sensed her eyes. “Something the matter?”
She smiled. “Just thought of something.”
She looked at Qi Xun. “Do you know that I have long suspected you have feelings towards Xi Xi?”
Qi Xun was stunned. “How is that?”
Xu Jingwan recalled, “You spent time with him on his birthday for the past two years. You cleared out your work schedule on those days, just to free up time for him. I do not see you doing things like this for your other friends. But when you invited Bai Xi over, I thought I was just overthinking it because the interaction between you two was nothing special.”
She thought more about it and realized she might have been in the right direction at least.
Qi Xun did not refute either.
When he lowered his gaze, they landed on his wrist. Bai Xi also gave him the cufflinks he was wearing today. Ever since Bai Xi gave him these, he wore them the most, even though he had a variety of cufflinks in his cabinet.
He was always more aware of Bai Xi in the past.
He always treated Bai Xi like his younger brother because the other man was two years younger, not to mention the good temper, lovable face, and naive and likable person Bai Xi was.
But whether those treatments were mixed with other feelings, not even he could tell.
Xu Jingwan added, “I am glad you are together with Bai Xi, not just because I like the kid, but because you are much happier with him. Your father and I were always busy with work when you were a child, so we didn’t spend as much time with you. We did not attend a single one of your parent-teacher conferences, but we are still hoping for you to do your best and be more outstanding than others. You listened to us and did all of that. Now, look at you. You ended up better than either of us expected. But deep down, I knew you were never very happy.”
Xu Jingwan felt quite sad talking about this.
She always felt sorry for Qi Xun in this matter.
When they were young, they focused mainly on their work and neglected Qi Xun. Every time they got the time to spend with Qi Xun, they would only ask him about his academic competitions or his plans for the future. They rarely cared about what was on their son’s mind.
By the time she realized something was wrong, Qi Xun had already grown up as a calm, independent, and mature young man who no longer needed them.
She sighed sadly, “We have not told you this, but we will always love you even if you are not outstanding.”
Qi Xun could hear the pain in his mother’s words.
But he was not a kid anymore. He did not care for these things anymore.
What was more, there was already someone beside him who firmly and gently told him that he would love him unconditionally whether he was perfect or not.
“It is all in the past. Don’t worry about it.” He replied faintly.
Xu Jingwan knew he did not want to bring this up, so she restrained her feelings.
Qi Xun took the initiative to change the topic to “Do I look happy when I am with Bai Xi?”
When he mentioned this, his mother smiled brightly again.
She looked at him gently. “Definitely, and very obvious as well. Maybe you have not realized it yet. Every time Bai Xi is with you, your eyes will always focus on him. No one can capture your attention as long as Bai Xi is present. People may be able to pretend to love someone and act kindly, but seeing the other’s happiness and then smiling when you see them, is a normal human reaction. I know that no matter who your partner is, you would aim to be the best partner, like getting the best achievement in a career.”
“But as your mother, I still want to see my son be happy.”
At her age, although like any other parent who hoped for their children to have a bright future, she knew that finding happiness was harder to achieve in a person’s lifetime.
With that hope, she was even thankful to Bai Xi, because she had never seen her son so relaxed and comfortable as by Bai Xi’s side.
Maybe outsiders would think Qi Xun was tough and indestructible, but in her eyes, Bai Xi was like Qi Xun’s harbor, the only place he could rest at ease.
Qi Xun did not reply for a moment.
After a while, he chuckled, “I thought I was hiding it well.”
Xu Jingwan huffed lightly, “I am your mother.”
Others might not see it, but that did not mean she could not either.
Such a pleasant read. Thank you :))
thanks for the update~(≧▽≦)/~
🥰🥰🥰
Thank you for the chapter ❤️
This chapter make my heart feels warm :”)
Thank you so much for the chapter
That made my heart feel warm, thank you for the chapter 🥰
When you tell your successful son that you would love him unsuccessful, after you raised him like that, all your child can do is grin to himself. Wouldn’t you just hire him a tutor if he was unsuccessful? If he didn’t find a good job, wouldn’t you get him a job somewhere, even if he doesn’t want to?
I understand that she realized her mistake, but such words will not change anything, in my opinion.
Thank you very much for the translation 🤍🤍🤍
Well yeah, i’m pretty sure she’s aware it won’t change anything either. It’s too late since he’s an adult already. But it’s still better to say it now rather than never.
It’s still possible to (kinda) change their parent-child relationship over time, especially since Bai Xi is here now.
I agree. They are empty words said to make herself feel better.
Thank you for the warm chapter💜💜💜
Thank You for the new chapter ♥(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)
thanks for the chapter!
Thanks for the chapter.
».. walking faster than I was, ”Bai Xi exclaimed.« was,” Bai
BX is so right, it’s time and again astonishing to see how fast some women can walk in high heels. Even in winter. Whereas my humble self can slip and fall with flat shoes on every slippery part lolol
Wow, she needed 18-20 yrs to realize that she neglected her child? That was fast lol Aside from that it was a sweet chapter :3
Thx for the ch ٩(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )و
Crap! I thought I caught all the weird spacing at the end of the quote. Thank you for catching that one 😀
Wuww really sweet
~\(^∆^)//~ 🥰