After a brief discussion with Chi Yingyu about how to approach her daughter, Jiang Lai, supported by her sister-in-law, slowly left the hotel room.
Despite resting overnight, the effects of her drunken night left her steps unsteady.
As they headed toward the elevator, the door of the neighboring room opened slowly.
A tall, striking woman leaned against the frame, quietly watching Jiang Lai’s departing figure.
If Jiang Lai had looked back, she would have recognized Xu Ruobing, the woman from last night’s fleeting kiss.
Xu Ruobing gazed at Jiang Lai’s slender silhouette, her pale fingertips brushing her lips, reminiscing about yesterday.
She had held back at the last moment, but in the middle of the night, she tossed and turned, slightly regretting it.
She blamed her inexperience—she was too reserved.
She’d gone to the bar for a fling, so why cling to morals?
A married woman wasn’t entirely off-limits.
Jiang Lai was so alluring, her soft whimpers beneath her like a kitten’s, seductive yet not vulgar, tempting one to devour her.
But there’s no regret medicine in this world.
No matter how much Xu Ruobing wanted her, she could only hope for a next encounter.
“We’ll meet again, little kitten,” she murmured.
***
On the way home, Jiang Lai gazed out the car window at the changing scenery, thinking of her daughter.
Time had passed so quickly.
She wondered if her wife, up in heaven, could see their daughter grown into an adult.
Thinking of their strained relationship, Jiang Lai frowned in regret.
If she had given her daughter more attention when she was young, their bond wouldn’t be so distant now.
Jiang Lai knew she had missed much of her daughter’s life—parent-teacher meetings, birthdays spent together were rare.
As a father, it was as if she barely existed, missing everything.
Knowing her daughter had already lost her mother’s love, Jiang Lai gave so little fatherly love.
When did their relationship become so rigid?
It seemed to start in junior high, when her daughter hired a fake mother for a parent-teacher meeting.
That was the first time Jiang Lai lost her temper with her.
Looking back, it was a trivial matter, but it drastically changed their relationship.
She was foolish then, thinking her daughter was forgetting her wife when she hired a stand-in mother.
It was likely her daughter’s response to school gossip, trying to silence others.
Jiang Lai knew less about her daughter’s growing pains than her sister-in-law did.
Even trying to make up for it these past two years was too late to return to how things were.
The drive home was quick.
Jiang Lai’s home wasn’t near the city center, a bit of a walk from the nearest subway station.
With her financial means, she could have chosen a better area.
The main reason she picked this place was a promise to her wife: waking up to a river view would be so romantic.
From the south balcony’s floor-to-ceiling window, the river’s beauty was clear, especially at sunset when purple clouds painted the sky.
But the future she and her wife dreamed of could never come true.
As discussed in the hotel, Jiang Lai’s new identity was Chi Yingyu’s college friend, while she was supposedly away on a business trip.
This cover could buy a day or two, giving her daughter time to adjust if the truth came out.
“Don’t worry, I’ve got your back.
No matter what happens, stay calm,” Chi Yingyu reassured her.
Her words eased Jiang Lai’s nerves, though she wondered why she needed to stay calm.
Jiang Lai pressed her familiar doorbell, expecting her daughter’s cold face.
Instead, her daughter flung herself onto Chi Yingyu.
“Auntie, I missed you so much!”
Jiang Leyi was lively and adorable, her arms wrapped tightly around Chi Yingyu’s neck like a koala clinging to a tree.
Chi Yingyu, used to this, gently patted Jiang Leyi’s head, her smile sweet enough to melt hearts.
This was a stark contrast to the daughter Jiang乃Lai knew.
Was this really her icy daughter?
Jiang Leyi looked much like Jiang Lai—a cool face, delicate skin, with long, narrow eyes that sometimes seemed indifferent, paired with a tiny mole beneath her eye.
She didn’t seem the type to act cute or clingy.
Aside from childhood, Jiang Lai had never seen her daughter so affectionate.
This long-lost feeling of her daughter’s warmth made Jiang Lai wish she could take Chi Yingyu’s place.
It had been so long since she hugged her daughter.
But her intense gaze caught Jiang Leyi’s attention, who began studying this unfamiliar woman.
Her figure was stunning—full chest, shapely hips, long, straight legs, and snowy skin, exuding both innocence and allure.
Jiang Leyi’s gaze lingered, fixating on her chest, silently estimating it might take more than one hand to hold.
Jiang Lai noticed her daughter staring without speaking, following her gaze downward.
Her warm, friendly smile faltered—why was her daughter fixating on her figure?
After a thorough look, Jiang Leyi praised innocently, “Big sister, you have an amazing figure!”
Hearing her daughter call her “big sister” warmed Jiang Lai’s heart, thrilled to see her smile.
But why was she praising her figure?
This wasn’t the daughter she knew.
Jiang Lai’s mind heated up, her mouth opening, struggling to find her voice before stiffly thanking her, adding, “You’re pretty too!”
Yet her daughter’s invasive stare continued.
Jiang Leyi blinked, her long, dense lashes like tiny fans, her eyes full of questions.
Though unsure of this “sister’s” identity, she noticed the clothes were her father’s.
Why was a stranger wearing her dad’s clothes?
“Could it be… are you my stepmother?”
Oh no…