A stay at the Thatched Cottage

A Volkswagen Phaeton drove down the road.

Like its owner, Ye Zi, the car had plenty of power, though most people would never know it.

Song Meiqi had already fallen asleep, her head tilted to one side in her child safety seat.

Luo Yang sat beside her. He wanted to straighten her head but was afraid he would wake her.

In the driver's seat, Ye Zi glanced up at the rearview mirror just in time to see Luo Yang reach out and pull his hand back. A faint smile appeared on her lips.

She had never met a man as caring as Luo Yang.

"Ye Zi, that five hundred thousand... I can't afford to repay you right now. I'll pay you back once I've saved enough." Luo Yang broke the silence. The words had been weighing on him, and he finally got them out.

Ye Zi replied, "That five hundred thousand was my money to give. It has nothing to do with you."

"How can you say that?"

"You call me your big sister, and I'd like to think of you as my little brother. If you really see me as your sister, don't bring this up again."

Luo Yang could hardly argue with that.

Still, he felt Ye Zi really hadn't needed to give Liang Hong five hundred thousand. If Liang Jun and the man in the tank top had attacked him, he might well have beaten them. The ancestral witch spirit body was incredibly agile, and the Primordial Medical Finger could hurt people as well as heal them.

As though she had guessed what he was thinking, Ye Zi said, "I know you don't agree with how I handled things. Let me explain my reasons."

Luo Yang glanced at her, but all he could see was a stretch of her fair, delicate, swanlike neck and one small, finely shaped ear.

Ye Zi explained, "Liang Hong only cares about money. If you broke up with her without giving her anything, she'd keep pestering you. When she came to make trouble, yelling at her wouldn't help, and hitting her would break the law. Whatever happened, your reputation would suffer. I was helping you cut your losses before things got worse."

With that explanation, Luo Yang understood. "Thank you, Ye Zi."

"There's no need to be so formal with me. Anyway, I promised to treat you to dinner. What would you like to eat?" Ye Zi changed the subject.

If it hadn't been for that dinner invitation, she wouldn't have driven Luo Yang back to his rented place to collect his things, and none of what followed would have happened.

Before Luo Yang could answer, Song Meiqi suddenly opened her eyes and said sleepily, "I want hot pot."

Luo Yang reminded her, "You're still recovering. You can't have hot pot. You need light, nutritious food."

Song Meiqi didn't answer.

Luo Yang took a closer look and was speechless. The little girl had already fallen asleep again.

Ye Zi glanced at the rearview mirror again. That sharply defined, naturally refined face came into view, and for some reason, it suddenly reminded her of someone.

Song Dongshan, her late husband.

After dinner, Ye Zi drove past the Thatched Cottage of Du Fu, then continued a few hundred meters farther before turning into a residential estate.

It was Ba City's premier villa estate, the Thatched Cottage by Huanhua Creek.

Luo Yang had agreed to stay there to make treating Song Meiqi easier, but he hadn't expected it to be this estate. Villas here routinely cost forty or fifty million each, and the residents were all celebrities and wealthy people. Anyone with assets below a hundred million simply couldn't afford to live in a place like this.

And this was merely one of her unused houses.

Ye Zi drove to Villa 30, parked in the garage, then led Luo Yang into the living room.

With a ceiling seven or eight meters high, the living room was spacious and imposing. Expensive timber and stone featured heavily throughout the interior, with luxury evident in every detail.

"This house has been empty for over a year, but a housekeeper cleans it, so it's perfectly clean. The fridge is empty, though. When I come over tomorrow morning, I'll bring some vegetables, fruit, milk, and things like that," Ye Zi said.

Luo Yang said, "You don't need to go to all that trouble. I'll leave once I've cured Meiqi."

"Uncle Luo, you're staying right here. You're not allowed to go anywhere," Song Meiqi declared.

Luo Yang patted her little head and said with a smile, "Let's treat you first. We can talk about everything else later."

Ye Zi took Luo Yang into a guest room and helped him settle in.

When she came out of the room, she saw that Song Meiqi had gotten out of her wheelchair and was limping toward them.

Ye Zi hurried over to support her. "What are you doing?"

Song Meiqi said, "I want to stay here too."

"Stop being naughty." This time, Ye Zi was genuinely angry.

"Uncle Luo is going to treat me tomorrow. What's wrong with staying here?" Song Meiqi countered.

Ye Zi felt a headache coming on and didn't know how to answer.

It would certainly be convenient for her and Song Meiqi to stay here. But she was a single mother sharing a roof with a young man. If word got out, who knew what the Song Family would think of her? People would certainly gossip behind her back.

Luo Yang gave a dry cough. "Meiqi, listen to your mother. She must have important things to take care of back home."

"Then I'll stay here by myself," Song Meiqi said.

Even Luo Yang's words had no effect.

"Meiqi, do you want a spanking?" Ye Zi snapped.

Song Meiqi pouted, looking terribly wronged.

Ding-dong! Ding-dong!

The doorbell suddenly rang.

"I'll get it." Ye Zi headed toward the door.

Luo Yang picked Song Meiqi up and placed her in the wheelchair, then said softly, "Meiqi, listen to your mother. Don't make her angry, all right?"

Song Meiqi glanced at Ye Zi's retreating back, then lowered her voice. "Dummy. If I don't stay, how will you get a chance?"

Luo Yang froze, completely caught off guard.

"My mommy is a single girl. She's a really good cook, and she can do laundry too." Song Meiqi listed her mother's strengths.

Luo Yang finally understood what the little girl was up to. He didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He looked at Song Meiqi, surprised and curious. Were children these days all so precocious? She was so young, yet she already knew how to find her mother a partner!

The door opened.

A middle-aged man appeared in the doorway. His medium-length hair was immaculately combed, and his somewhat lean face was utterly expressionless. Despite the scorching weather, he wore a black suit and tie, his leather shoes polished to a shine. He gave off a stern, unapproachable air.

"That's my second uncle, Song Dongming," Song Meiqi murmured. "He's really mean. I don't like him."

Luo Yang knew little about the Song Family's circumstances and had no particular opinion of Song Dongming.

"Dongming, what brings you here?" Ye Zi hadn't expected Song Dongming to come and looked a little surprised.

Song Dongming glanced at Luo Yang, a suggestive smile appearing on his lips. "Sister-in-law, is this a bad time to let me in?"

Ye Zi frowned slightly and stepped aside.

Song Dongming walked in and gave a loud cough.

Two burly bodyguards suddenly entered through the doorway.

Ye Zi's expression turned cold, and she snapped, "Who are you? Get out!"

The two bodyguards ignored her entirely. One of them headed straight for Song Meiqi.