"Finished whispering?"
Father stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray, got up to open the window for ventilation, and let the smell of smoke disperse from the living room.
Ever since her younger sister had been born, he had rarely smoked at home.
He only took a few puffs after her sister had gone back to her room to rest, then aired the place out once he was done.
"Mm..."
Yao Wan murmured softly, but for a moment, she did not know what to say.
Things between them had always seemed to be like this.
Father had always been a man of few words, while she had naturally feared him.
Yet for some reason, her younger sister was the opposite. She could joke and roughhouse with Father, but always became timid around Mother.
"You're leaving already? Won't you stay a little longer?"
Yao Wan merely shook her head. "I still have things to do."
"Oh."
Father simply responded in understanding. It was so familiar it could not have been more familiar. The way she turned people down now had naturally been learned from him from the very beginning.
"Then go. Be careful in everything. Be bold, but meticulous."
Father fell silent again. "That little brat... how does he treat you?"
"Pretty well."
"He doesn't look like a good person."
Yao Wan frowned and was about to refute him when she heard him sigh.
"Mm... if he isn't a good person, then so be it. Being a good person isn't easy. It's better to be a little bad—at least he won't let others bully him."
In the end, Yao Wan held back the urge to argue with him. Though the memories of the past had gradually faded, the impression they had left had never changed.
"I'm leaving, then."
She unconsciously took