At first, she thought it was normal not to have a mother in this world because, after all, her mother was in a fairyland.

But now there was a dad, and a brother… surely the mom from the books must exist too!

However, after being in the house for so long, she still hadn’t seen her mother.

“When will Mommy come back?” The little girl nudged her head closer to the photo, trying to inch nearer. “Yuanyuan hasn’t seen Mommy in a long, long time.”

Yu Mingxi was silent for a while, his voice becoming hoarse and choked with emotion. “Mommy and Daddy aren’t together anymore. She’s not coming back.”

“Huh?” The little girl was confused. “What do you mean, ‘not together’?”

“They got divorced.”

Divorced?

Yuanyuan had a vague understanding of the word—she had heard it in TV shows before.

Let her think—she could definitely remember what it meant.

For Yu Mingxi and Yu Yingze, their parents’ divorce had a huge impact. But Yuanyuan was adopted, so he felt it was okay to be straightforward with her about some things.

“It means they live apart now. Mommy won’t come back to this house, and Daddy won’t go to Mommy’s house,” Yu Mingxi tried to use words the little one could understand. “It’s like… they don’t know each other anymore, and it doesn’t really matter.”

Boom!

A sudden shock hit the little girl’s mind like a clap of thunder.

She stared blankly at her brother, her tiny face scrunching up, and she began to cry, “Why? Why?! Mommy can’t just leave us!”

Yu Mingxi was taken aback by her crying.

Are kids these days this empathetic?

Yuanyuan had never even met their mom, yet she was so upset, almost to the point of tears because of what he said.

Quickly, Yu Mingxi scooped her into his arms, patting her back and gently comforting her. “Mommy and Daddy are adults, and it’s hard for kids to change the decisions they make. But I think… maybe… they’re just apart for now because it’s hard for them to let go of the past. Maybe… one day… they’ll get back together.”

His reassurance didn’t sound very convincing, even to himself.

He knew his parents too well.

Maybe they separated in the heat of the moment, but getting back together… well, that would be a long and winding road.

In Yuanyuan’s simple world, the moment she heard there was a chance her parents could reconcile, her tears stopped instantly, and her curiosity shifted elsewhere.

“Who’s that little baby?” Her chubby finger pointed to the middle of the photograph. “The one Brother is holding.”

“That… that’s our other sister.”

“Huh?” Yuanyuan looked puzzled. “But I’m your sister too, right?”

Yu Mingxi chose his words carefully. “Yes, but this was another sister.”

“What’s her name?” Yuanyuan’s attention was now completely focused on the baby in the photo.

“Back then… we hadn’t decided on a name yet.” As he spoke, Yu Mingxi’s eyes turned red, and his hand, holding the photo, began to tremble slightly.

At that time, their mom and dad had argued over the name—Dad liked name A, and Mom liked name B. They hadn’t come to a final decision.

Looking back, those were the days when their parents would bicker playfully, joke around, and the house was always filled with warmth and laughter.

But now the house felt so cold and suffocating that even Yu Mingxi struggled to breathe in it.

“Can Yuanyuan play with her?” She gently stroked the image of the baby, her dark eyes lighting up as she gazed at the tiny figure.

“No,” Yu Mingxi said firmly, not even thinking before answering.

“Why not?” Yuanyuan’s face fell, devastated. “I’ll be really gentle, I won’t hurt her!”

“Yuanyuan, the sister in the picture… she’s not here anymore.”