"Our... home."
Song Xinya murmured these words softly, and the void that had always existed in her heart suddenly felt whole.
To her, a home had always been like an ethereal dream—beautiful and warm, yet desperately out of reach.
Our home.
Her and his home.
In the future, when she had his children, the ranks of their little family would continue to grow.
A father, a mother, children—a warm, loving home.
Just thinking about this picture made Song Xinya feel as though her heart was bathed in sunlight, glowing with warmth.
She stood at the living room entrance, watching him leave. Even after the taillights of his car completely disappeared from sight, she couldn't pull her gaze away for a long time.
The shadows of the trees swayed as a gust of wind blew against her face. Her soft hair scattered like inky smoke, the fine strands catching the sunlight and radiating a magnificent luster.
The wind pulled Song Xinya back from her reverie.
She walked back into the house, picked up her purse, told the servants she had errands to run, and drove her Porsche sports car out of the villa.
As the Frozen Berry metallic Porsche disappeared from the villa gates, the mischievous duo who had gone to the back mountain to dig for wild vegetables—Song Tingye and Qin Yuyan—returned.
The two were covered in dirt and mud from head to toe, carrying a broken basket full of wild greens.
Song Tingye said, "I feel like the chief of the Beggars' Sect right now."
Qin Yuyan asked, "What about me?"
Song Tingye replied, "The chief's wife."
Qin Yuyan blinked her large, round eyes. Her entire body was filthy; only her eyeballs were clean.
"Doesn't that make me your wife?"
Song Tingye turned his head and looked at her. "Would marrying me be such a grievance?"
Qin Yuyan looked at his dirt-smeared face and his hair clumped together by wet mud, and replied, "Yes, a huge grievance."
Hearing this, Song Tingye was displeased. "Do you have any idea how sought-after I am? I'm handsome, I excel in my studies. When I don't go off-topic on my essays, I rank first in the whole school; when I do go off-topic, I rank second. In our school, the girls who like me are as numerous as the stars in the sky. It's no exaggeration to say my desk drawer is stuffed with love letters every day. And you feel aggrieved? You feel aggrieved my foot!"
Qin Yuyan said, "But, Brother Ye, even though you're handsome and smart, you're poor."
Song Tingye: "..."
"So you despise the poor and love the rich, huh?"
Qin Yuyan replied, "I don't despise the poor, but I do love the rich, because I don't like suffering. I only like enjoying life."
Song Tingye said, "Although I don't have a house or a car right now, as the saying goes: do not bully the young for being poor, do not bully the middle-aged for being poor, and do not bully the old for being poor."
Qin Yuyan quipped, "And respect the dead."
Song Tingye: "...Let me tell you, I definitely won't be poor my whole life. I even get perfect scores on Math Olympiad exams. With my IQ, how could I possibly be poor forever?"
Qin Yuyan actually believed this point, because her teacher had once told her a saying: "Within books, one can find houses of gold."
With Song Tingye's high IQ and excellent academic performance, given time, he would definitely strike it rich and succeed.
The two chatted as they walked into the living room.
Seeing the living room empty, Song Tingye asked a servant, "Where's my sister?"
Servant: "The Madam had some errands to run. She said she was going to the Song family home."
The Song family?
Song Tingye muttered in his heart. That scumbag father of his never had a single good intention all day long. What was his sister doing going to see him?
"Where's my brother-in-law?"
Servant: "Mr. Qin went on a business trip to Shanghai."
Song Tingye's eyes widened. "My brother-in-law left?!"
Qin Yuyan also realized this was bad. "How could my brother just leave without saying a word?!"
Then who was going to issue them their steamed cornbread?
Song Tingye pulled out his phone. "I'll call my brother-in-law right now and talk about the cornbread. This is a matter of utmost importance!"
"Hello, brother-in-law? I heard you went on a business trip to Shanghai?"
Qin Yuhe, who was currently on his way to the airport, answered, "Yes."
Song Tingye said, "Did you instruct the servants to give us our cornbread? Three meals a day, not a single meal can be missed."
Qin Yuhe replied, "Talk to my wife about this. She will arrange everything."
Song Tingye let out a laugh. "What do you mean 'my wife'? Just say 'your sister' and be done with it."
"I prefer saying," Qin Yuhe paused, "my wife."
Song Tingye: "Alright, alright, your wife, your wife, your wife."
Just as Qin Yuhe was about to hang up, Song Tingye added, "My sister went to the Song family home."
Qin Yuhe's grip on his phone suddenly tightened.
...
Song Xinya stood at the entrance of the Song family home.
The Song family's butler was standing by the front gate. In the past, whenever he saw her, it was as if he were looking at thin air. Now, upon seeing her, he walked over enthusiastically. "Mrs. Qin, you've arrived. Please, come inside with me. I'll lead the way."
Song Xinya replied, "No need. I've walked these paths since I was a child; it's not like I don't recognize them."
The butler's face flushed with embarrassment, suddenly realizing he had been overly eager.
In his single-minded desire to cozy up to the rich and powerful, he had lost his sense of propriety.
With her back straight, Song Xinya walked through the gates of the Song family home.
Today, she was wearing the latest haute couture red dress from Hermes. She intended to be radiant, she intended to be dazzling, and she intended to be flamboyant.
Clad in the red dress, she was bright and passionate. Her beautiful exterior radiated a vibrant, uplifting vitality, making her breathtakingly gorgeous.
The moment Song Xinya stepped into the doorway of the main hall, Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying, who were inside, all had looks of absolute awe in their eyes.
This was the first time they had taken a good, close look at Song Xinya since she successfully lost weight.
Her transformation was truly enormous.
In the past, Zhang Yingying used to mock her: "Song Xinya, look at yourself. You're round like a landmine. If you were a little shorter, people might praise you as a cute landmine, but unfortunately, you're so tall, fat, and bulky. You don't even come close to being cute; you just look like a big oaf."
Now that Song Xinya had slimmed down, the advantage of her height was fully on display. With her tall stature and long legs, she exuded a powerful aura.
When Zhang Yingying stood up, she only reached Xinya's shoulders. Whether in terms of looks or height, she was completely crushed.
Looking at the clothes she was wearing, Zhang Yingying said, "That Hermes dress you're wearing—I just saw it at Fashion Week. It hasn't even been released domestically yet. How are you wearing it?"
Song Xinya replied, "Because I have a wonderful husband who made a special trip to Europe just to buy me clothes. You don't need to envy me. I have ten closets full of luxury haute couture dresses like this that cost hundreds of thousands. This is just my everyday wear."
These were things Zhang Yingying wouldn't even dare to dream of. She retorted, "What kind of nonsense are you bragging about?"
Song Xinya said, "I have no obligation to enlighten a pig. I respect every frog and its well, but after respecting it for a while, I will pour boiling water down that well."
Song Xinya's expression remained calm as she walked into the hall, making herself completely at home and taking a seat at the head of the table.
In her red dress, she was stunningly radiant beyond compare. Her every movement was filled with poise and elegance, making Song Xuanli, Li Cuirou, and Zhang Yingying look like the outsiders.
To say Song Xinya was the master of the house wouldn't be wrong, because this property was bought with her mother's money. It was just that now, the mother-daughter duo of Li Cuirou and Zhang Yingying were like cuckoos occupying a dove's nest.
Song Xinya held a blue-and-white porcelain teacup in her slender, delicate hands, sipping her tea at a leisurely pace.
Song Xuanli shot her a glance. Looking as though he was ready to lecture her, he scolded, "So you still know how to come back!"
Song Xinya: "Weren't you the one who asked me to come back?"
Song Xuanli: "..."
