When she returned home, the sun had not yet fully set, but night had already climbed into the sky. The pitch black, as delicate as black swan feathers, swayed and trembled in the gale sweeping through the night.
The flags hanging by the roadside were blown high, and the biting cold froze the water droplets, solidifying from top to bottom into the shape of gravity.
As she opened the door, warm air and the clanging of spatulas came through clearly.
No matter what, a heated home was still much more comfortable than being outside in the strong wind.
Her foster parents had obviously already arrived home and were cooking in the kitchen.
Ye Xingmian walked in, glanced around, and didn’t see them.
Lin Ziyan entered behind her without a word. She had been like this since halfway there.
Xingmian didn’t know if she was angry or sulking, but she just wasn’t talking. Ye Xingmian didn’t want to bother with her either; let her think whatever she wanted.
Ye Xingmian picked up her schoolbag and was about to go upstairs.
“Ah… Xingmian, Ziyan… you two… are back?”
The person who came out of the kitchen called her name. She had to stop and look at the person walking out of the kitchen, who was still holding a spatula.
Lin Ziyan didn’t want to respond. Clearly she was still brooding over her parents deceiving her. She sat down on the sofa and stared at the dark TV screen.
As for Ye Xingmian, who was halfway up the stairs, she also didn’t want to pick up the conversation. Her silence made the atmosphere very awkward.
To ease the awkwardness, Xu Ming let out a dry laugh, coughed, then turned around and called out toward the kitchen.
Lin Cheng then came out carrying dishes and set them on the dining table.
“Come eat, the food is ready. We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Come on, eat first. There are two more dishes coming, so you two sit down first.”
After gesturing for the two to sit, he went back to the hustle and bustle in the kitchen.
As for Xu Ming, she seemed helpless about the tense atmosphere still lingering in the living room, so she retreated to the kitchen to help.
In short, in just two days, the atmosphere in this home seemed to have completely changed. Thanks to Lin Ziyan, Ye Xingmian now seemed to be someone the foster parents needed to appease and care for?
Of course, all of this was like a dream bubble—burst at the slightest touch.
Ye Xingmian was sure that as long as Lin Ziyan let go of what they had done in the past—or simply forgave them—their attitude toward her would take a sharp turn for the worse.
But still, even so, why not take this opportunity to enjoy some hard-won leisure time?
In her memory, every time she came home, she was called to do this and that—either serving others, cleaning, or helping with cooking.
Coming home and just sitting down at the dining table to wait like this—was this the first time in her memory?
She didn’t stand on ceremony. She put down her schoolbag against the wall and sat down at the dining table.
On the table was fragrant braised meat, and though a few dishes were still missing, it was clearly going to be an extremely lavish dinner.
Ye Xingmian served herself some soup, hesitated for a moment, then decided not to start eating on her own.
Until Lin Ziyan sat down opposite her with a sour face.
“Aren’t you going to eat?”
She picked up a pair of chopsticks, rested them on her bowl, and asked Ye Xingmian with a puzzled expression.
She apparently had no intention of waiting for everyone to be seated before eating.
Ye Xingmian silently shook her head.
Lin Ziyan didn’t care. She helped herself to a piece of meat, then picked up another piece for Ye Xingmian.
Ye Xingmian frowned and refused.
“Here, it’s for you. Eat up!”
“Hmph, take it or leave it. I don’t want it. I can get my own.”
But since Lin Ziyan had started, Ye Xingmian also began to serve herself.
She had already eaten lunch at Liu Yinuo’s house, so she wasn’t very hungry. Besides, with Lin Ziyan’s cold face across from her ruining her appetite, she really couldn’t eat much.
The foster parents brought out two more rounds of dishes until everything was served—three dishes and a soup. They sat down at the table with smiles.
“How is it? Tasty?”
This was said by Xu Ming, but unfortunately, no one responded.
Ye Xingmian was eager to finish eating and make a run for it, while Lin Ziyan still held a grudge against the two of them.
In short, this was a carefully prepared meal, and it was rare for all four family members to sit together, yet the atmosphere was exceptionally heavy.
Silence enveloped the entire space. No one said anything else.
Only the crisp sound of chopsticks occasionally tapping against the rims of bowls reminded everyone that this was a family dinner.
“By the way, Ziyan, Mother wants to share some good news with you.”
In the end, it was Xu Ming, who often acted as the mediator, who spoke first. She smiled at Lin Ziyan, though Lin Ziyan ignored her.
“Your parents are about to get promoted. It’s been confirmed—a promotion means a raise. Is there anything you want? Tell us, and we’ll buy it for you.”
It was clearly another attempt to mend their relationship. Lin Cheng chimed in at the right moment.
“Yeah, is there anything you want? You’ve been studying really hard lately and working hard. We want to reward you.”
Perhaps in their eyes, as long as Lin Ziyan responded, no matter how much money they spent, it would at least be an important step toward repairing their relationship. It would be worth it no matter what.
After all, they loved their daughter so much—they loved Lin Ziyan so much.
But unfortunately, Lin Ziyan didn’t give them the chance.
She put on a cold face and set down her chopsticks.
“Snap!”
“I’m done eating. I’m going upstairs first.”
With that, she turned and left.
Her back didn’t seem hurried, but it gave off a feeling of coldness and distance.
Both foster parents wore bitter expressions. Only Ye Xingmian didn’t care. She watched this drama with great interest.
But as soon as Lin Ziyan left, the foster parents’ attention shifted to her. She quickly realized that this place was not the best to stay, so she immediately stood up.
“I’m done too. I’ll do the dishes!”
After saying that, she picked up the chopsticks and bowls Lin Ziyan had abandoned and headed for the kitchen.
“Wait!”
Someone behind her called out.
Her body stiffened. She turned around and saw Xu Ming smiling wryly at her.
“I’ll wash the dishes. Xingmian, can you go talk to Ziyan? At least get her to stop acting like this. Otherwise, how can we go on living like this?”
Another one of those tough tasks. She really didn’t want to go.
But not wanting to go didn’t help—after all, this was her foster parents’ request.
She knew the only reason her foster parents were being so polite to her now was to accommodate Lin Ziyan’s feelings—they were afraid that if Lin Ziyan found out they had beaten her directly, she would become even angrier.
Even though Lin Ziyan had done that kind of thing herself, what she herself did was completely different in her eyes from what her parents—who had deceived her—did.
It was precisely because she realized this that Ye Xingmian felt emboldened.
But she didn’t know where the boundaries of this politeness lay. Was it possible that she might suddenly cross some red line and get beaten? That was hard to say.
So she didn’t refuse Xu Ming’s request.
If it was just going through the motions…
“Okay, I’ll go talk to her.”