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Shen Yu had come from the company, wearing a sharply tailored, expensive light gray suit.
Time had left no marks on his refined face, and the gaze he cast upon her was still the same as Shuangxu remembered.
Gentle, steady.
But even though Shen Yu had visited her every year, at this moment, she suddenly felt a wave of unfamiliarity.
Seeing that she hadn’t gotten into the car for a while, Shen Yu called out to her, “Xiao Jiu.”
As soon as that deep, calm voice sounded, an unspoken pang of bitterness flooded Shuangxu’s nose.
She quickly lowered her eyes to the ground, bent down, and got into the car, calling out softly, “Brother.”
The vehicle glided smoothly through the evening rush hour traffic, the cabin enveloped in quiet silence.
Shen Yu crossed his legs and asked her, “What time was your flight?”
“It landed just after two.”
“Why didn’t you ask me to pick you up?”
“I was afraid of disturbing your work,” Shuangxu replied. “Taking a taxi from the airport is very convenient.”
Shen Yu’s gaze shifted from the other side, observing her lowered head and the way she kept her eyes down.
She used to be cheerful, a child raised on his indulgence, the one who loved him the most and relied on him the most. She was fearless and carefree around him.
But now, she was very obedient.
Yet, being too obedient felt distant, lacking intimacy. Even her posture seemed formal and cold.
Ever since she had been forcibly sent abroad, she hadn’t returned even for the Chinese New Year. Perhaps it was out of spite, or perhaps simply because she didn’t want to face the people back home.
The last time Shen Yu saw her was last year, on her birthday. She had a high fever and was curled up alone in her apartment abroad. Shen Yu had flown over to see her.
She had changed a lot compared to when she was still by his side.
The youthful innocence of her teenage years had disappeared after several years apart, replaced by the elegance of a young woman.
Shen Yu lowered his gaze to watch her for a moment before saying, “Xiao Jiu has become distant from her brother.”
“No, I just…”
I was afraid of troubling you—perhaps that’s the same as becoming distant.
Shuangxu quickly forced a smile and said, “I wanted to give you all a surprise.”
For adults, a surprise has a 50% chance of turning into a shock.
When Shuangxu and Shen Yu returned to the Shen family home, Shen Changyuan and his wife were already waiting for them.
As soon as they entered, Fu Yun was overjoyed and pulled her over, inspecting her from every angle—up and down, front and back. One moment she said Shuangxu had grown taller, and the next, she said she hadn’t changed much and looked just the same as before.
“You video call her every month, so of course you wouldn’t notice any difference,” Shen Changyuan said, in a good mood. He then asked Shuangxu, “Why didn’t you let us know you were coming back? We weren’t prepared for anything.”
“I came back suddenly because of something urgent,” Shuangxu explained. “It was a rushed decision, and I didn’t have time to tell you.”
“Coming back so late, you’re probably starving, right?” Fu Yun said. “The dishes tonight are all your favorites. Wang Sao knows you’re back, and she’s so happy!”
The dining table was filled with all of Shuangxu’s favorite dishes from when she was a child. The East Star grouper was placed in front of her, and the black-bone chicken soup was delicious and fragrant.
Fu Yun kept serving her more food, and Shen Changyuan asked a few questions about her life abroad, then they eventually got to talking about her return trip.
“How long did you take off for this holiday?”
Shuangxu knew she was approaching a sensitive topic, but she didn’t want to lie.
She put down her chopsticks, raised her head, and, with a serious expression, said, “I resigned.”
Once she said this, the living room fell into a moment of silence.
“You resigned?” Fu Yun’s chopsticks froze mid-air as she looked at Shuangxu in surprise, then glanced at Shen Yu. “You never mentioned this before. Why so sudden?”
Resigning from her job abroad meant that she might not leave Yancheng this time.
The warmth and joy from earlier seemed like a delicate, finely crafted piece of glass—beautiful, but fragile.
“You resigned from the airline. Does that mean you’re planning to develop your career here?” Shen Changyuan asked.
Shuangxu didn’t answer right away. Instead, she asked, “Can I come back?”
Fu Yun hesitated, her expression uncertain. “You were doing fine abroad. Why did you suddenly want to come back?”
Why did she suddenly want to come back?
On one hand, it was because Shu Yang was sick. On the other hand, and more importantly, she just wanted to come home.
But Shuangxu knew they weren’t looking for an explanation.
Life abroad had been good, but it couldn’t compare to the emotional pull Yancheng had on her heart.
The summers here were scorching, the winters long and bitterly cold—yet it was the place where she had grown up.
Unfortunately, no one here was expecting her return.
At that moment, Shen Yu, who had been silent, placed a plate of carefully deboned fish in front of her.
The fish was translucent and tender, served on a white porcelain plate. It landed softly on the table with a faint “thud,” breaking the uncomfortable silence at the dining table.
“How is your senior?” Shen Yu asked.
Shuangxu briefly explained Shu Yang’s condition.
Shen Yu asked, “Do you need any help?”
She shook her head. “The chemotherapy plan has already been determined, and the medications used are the best. We’ll have to see how she responds after the chemotherapy.”
And with that, the conversation shifted to another topic.
After dinner, Fu Yun insisted that Shuangxu stay at their house, not giving her a chance to refuse. She immediately pulled her upstairs.
“Your room was just cleaned today, and nothing has been moved. It’s just like before. Look—” Fu Yun proudly pointed to the brand new pink floral bedsheet. “I specially bought this for you. Do you like it?”
Shuangxu smiled and said, “Thank you, godmother.”
“Stop saying thank you, no need to be so polite with me.”
Fu Yun paused for a moment, then gently held her hand and said, “It’s good you’re back. Being so far away, in an unfamiliar place, I couldn’t help but worry. What if something happened and there was no one to take care of you? I couldn’t rest easy. Last time your brother went to see you, he said you had a fever so high you were delirious, lying at home alone. No one even gave you a drink of water. It made me feel terrible. I couldn’t sleep at all, tossing and turning in bed all night.”
As Fu Yun spoke, her eyes reddened. Shuangxu hurried to comfort her. “I’m fine. I’m grown up now, I can take care of myself.”
“You’re still a little girl, no matter how old you are.” Fu Yun gently stroked her cheek. “You used to never be able to sleep on airplanes. You must be exhausted. Go take a hot bath and get some rest.”
After Fu Yun left for downstairs, Shuangxu slowly walked around the room, her fingers brushing over the desk and the bookshelf against the wall.
This was the room she had lived in for ten years, and the dust in the air carried a familiar scent.
After taking a bath, Shuangxu thought of going downstairs to tell Wang Sao that she would make some soup for Shu Yang. But when she reached the stairs, her steps slowly came to a stop.
Through the gap in the railing, Shuangxu could see the living room. Shen Yu was sitting with his back to her, facing Shen Changyuan and his wife.
“Ah Yu, tell me the truth,” Fu Yun asked. “When Shuangxu came back this time, did you really not know in advance? Did you agree to it?”
Shen Yu crossed his legs, his voice calm and indifferent. “If she wants to come back, she can. No one needs to agree.”
“Then tell me, since she’s back now, what do you think about it?”
Shen Yu replied, “When you and the Song family sent her abroad, you never asked for my opinion.”
“I was doing it for your own good,” Fu Yun said. “The rumors nearly destroyed our family. If it weren’t for her…”
Shuangxu stood against the wall, feeling a cold sensation slowly spreading across her back.
Shen Yu’s tone was calm and undisturbed as he interrupted her, “A child’s bad words and rumors, others believe them, and you believe them too.”
Fu Yun fell silent.
Shen Changyuan patted her hand. “Let’s not bring up the past. She hasn’t wanted to come back these past few years because she probably felt like we didn’t want her to return, which must have hurt her. Now that the child wants to come back, we shouldn’t send her away again.”
“If she wants to come back, this will always be her home,” Fu Yun said sincerely, her love for Shuangxu unwavering.
“But Ah Yu, Shuangxu isn’t a child anymore. Even siblings need to be cautious, let alone you two.”
Shuangxu couldn’t bear to listen any longer. She turned and walked back to her room.