“Move?”
Si Zhizuo was stunned for a moment.
Was it Mama who ordered people to move Zhizhi’s little bed?
Even though she had only slept in it for one or two days, she had already decided in her heart that this was her own little nest, and no one was allowed to touch it. To move it directly was simply outrageous.
Seeing the little princess’s expression soften, Chunlan gave a look to the people nearby. The other servants immediately picked up the items on the ground again.
Si Zhizuo instinctively jumped down from the large crate. She reached out toward her little bed, then abruptly pulled her hand back. She looked around until she finally spotted her mother walking toward her, chatting with a maid.
She trotted over with a look of immense grievance, grabbing Si Xinyan’s sleeve and complaining loudly, “Mama, look! They’re moving my bed.”
“Who did?” I instinctively wanted to protect my cub.
The next second, I remembered that I was the one who ordered the move. I picked her up and sat her on my hip. “Mama told them to do it. We won’t be living here anymore.”
“Su Liumeng is the Great Elder now, so she has her own palace.”
“You can also choose a relatively quiet place — for example, the courtyard where the previous Great Elder lived. Almost no one passes by there.”
“Oh, so that’s how it is.” The little girl had always been obediently skeptical of what others said to avoid being lured away by some bad person with a lollipop. After getting a definite answer from her mother, she wasn’t as angry as before.
Now, she was thinking seriously about where she should go.
Being given the right to decide such an important matter made Si Zhizuo secretly happy. Didn’t this prove, from a certain perspective, that she was more important than Su Liumeng?
Wherever she was, Mama would be. And wherever Mama was, Su Liumeng would follow. Therefore, in this logical loop, she was the most important one.
Si Zhizuo’s logic was very clear, even if her train of thought was a bit peculiar.
“I want to live in the palace,” Si Zhizuo answered decisively.
She didn’t want to live in a small courtyard at all. If it was the largest palace, she could dig a pond so she could go down and catch fish every day. A courtyard was too small; at most, she could only put up a swing.
Speaking of the swing in the courtyard, she suddenly looked in a certain direction. “Hey, wait a minute! Remember to bring the swing along too.”
“What place doesn’t have a swing?” I chuckled.
“I don’t care. I want this one.” Si Zhizuo had already developed feelings for that swing and wouldn’t like any others.
Furthermore, it was something Mama had others build for her amusement while she was pregnant. it had great sentimental value. Of course, it had to be kept.
“Fine, pack it up then.” I gave Chunlan a look.
After more than a year of training, Chunlan had been promoted to head personal maid. She could now direct others with ease in various major situations. She had finally become the kind of person she used to admire — someone who could hold her own.
Having just become the Great Elder, Su Liumeng had many things to attend to. The handover of affairs and the transition of power were never as simple as just handing over a seal. I figured she might not even be able to come back tonight.
“Aunt Su Liumeng might not be able to come back today. Once the move is finished, no one will be home anyway, so I can take you out to play for a while.”
‘Wait, Su Liumeng isn’t coming home? And Mama is taking me out to play?’
The little girl almost jumped for joy. How could two good things hit her in the head in one day? She even forgot to correct the way she was addressed as “Aunt Su Liumeng.”
“Then… then…” Suddenly being told she was going out to play made Si Zhizuo’s little head spin. She couldn’t immediately think of what she wanted to do most.
She tilted her head and thought for a few more seconds. “Since we’re going to catch fish tomorrow, then tonight… hmm, let’s go catch fireflies! That’ll definitely be fun.”
It was impossible to run into fireflies in the city. Since she had come to this unpolluted primitive society, she had already made many plans. Naturally, she had to experience everything at once. After all, she would eventually go back with her mother, who disliked the primitive society the most.
Catching fish was just one of the things Si Zhizuo wanted to do. There were also activities like climbing trees. Unfortunately, she was still very small and couldn’t climb a tree directly. Using her cultivation to cheat would take all the fun out of it.
Finally getting to be a human, Si Zhizuo was more excited than anyone. she had visualized countless things in her mind long ago and couldn’t wait to experience them all. Of course, she didn’t just want to experience them herself. She wanted her mother to experience them with her.
A joy that only she could experience — how could that be considered true happiness?
Hearing about catching fireflies, my face stiffened imperceptibly. ‘What kind of idea is that?’
To be honest, I had no interest in catching fireflies at all. Fleshy bugs with such big glowing tails — what was the fun in catching those? As an adult, I couldn’t find a shred of joy in it.
However, facing Si Zhizuo’s pitiful little eyes, my tone became even more helpless and melancholic. “Fine, we’ll go. Who told you to be my little ancestor?”
“Hehe, Mama is the best!”
Si Zhizuo secretly clenched her small fist. She refused to believe it. With a sweet daughter like her around, she wouldn’t let Mama stay unhappy.
She had noticed long ago. Mama was often lost in her own sadness, having essentially no desire to do anything. She was in a constant state of listlessness. She didn’t even have a future life that she looked forward to…
Therefore, as her daughter, she had to lead Mama toward happiness.
Even though Mama had nothing she wanted to do, Zhizhi did. She could take Mama along to do things, to experience meaningful moments in life together. She believed Mama would eventually feel the joy and meaning of life again.
Otherwise… otherwise…
Si Zhizuo didn’t dare think further.
Si Xinyan always carried a lifeless feeling, completely different from the vitality of other young people. She had sacrificed the realm she worked so hard to cultivate to someone else just like that. It was as if no one would even doubt it if she said she didn’t want to live the next second.
And what else? The meaning of Si Xinyan’s life and existence seemed rarely to be about herself. Her life had ended because of cancer, and it continued because of her daughter and Su Liumeng.
To her, it seemed the only remaining meaning of her life was for others. It was as if she lived only for Su Liumeng and her daughter, barely considering herself or planning a proper future for herself. It was as if as long as her daughter and Su Liumeng were happy, she didn’t care what happened to her.
This was a serious problem.
Little Zhizhi had discovered this a long time ago; she just hadn’t said it directly. She had her own plan. She would rely on her own efforts to help Mama find the meaning of life again. At the very least, she shouldn’t be so lifeless anymore, to the point where she didn’t even have the energy to go for a walk.
It was just like their life back in the city. At most — at the very most — she would walk downstairs for a few minutes and come right back.
Was this strange phenomenon normal for a young person? If it were for one or two days, it might be fine. But for Si Xinyan, it had been like this for at least one or two years.
How old was she? She was only 19 years old, yet she seemed to have entered the twilight of her mind.
Zhizhi continued to reminisce about the past. In the early stages of her pregnancy, Mama indeed had many wishes she wanted to fulfill after the pregnancy ended.
And the result? Her schooling was declared over prematurely, and she never even got to try the dance machine she wanted to play. Even her cultivation had to be started over from scratch.
The reason behind all of this was either because she had been born and there were many things to attend to, or because of Su Liumeng.
Every time Little Zhizhi thought of this, her heart twinged with an inexplicable ache.
Once upon a time, her mother was also just a young girl. A girl who looked forward to eating hotpot, going to the mall to play, and watching movies with her friends.
Now, her repetitive daily life consisted of either nursing her daughter, coaxing her daughter to be happy, or teaching her daughter grand life lessons. Along with that, she had to manage her partner’s emotions, arrange the maids’ duties, and so on.
It was a life where one could see the end from the beginning. If this was the price of marriage and childbirth, Si Zhizuo really didn’t want her mother to experience it.
Since it had already happened, she had to think of a way to change it. She couldn’t just sit and wait for death. It wasn’t too late to try and change things now. She didn’t want her mother to be a woman whose whole life could be seen at a single glance.
Therefore, she, the precious daughter, had to take action.
She had to bring back the little girl whose eyes used to sparkle and whose beautiful face still held an innocent and brilliant smile.