When Bei Yao was discharged from the hospital, it was already midsummer.

Pei Chuan’s fingers had recovered well too. From the police, they learned that Huo Xu was dead, and Shao Yue had actually pleaded guilty to intentional homicide, which surprised many people.

Pei Chuan said, “She had no choice but to plead guilty. After all, if it went to court, she could still argue her case, but if she fell into Jiang Huaqiong’s hands, there would be no way out alive.”

This was also a terrifying situation for Shao Yue—either spend the rest of her life in prison, or fall into Jiang Huaqiong’s hands. Either choice would end badly for her.

The day Pei Chuan and Bei Yao returned home, they ran into Dr. Ding downstairs.

Dr. Ding was the current lover of Pei Chuan’s mother, Jiang Wenjuan.

This middle-aged man wore glasses and looked rather refined and scholarly.

Dr. Ding smiled and asked Pei Chuan, “Could we talk privately?”

Pei Chuan didn’t refuse. “Yes.” He patted Bei Yao’s head. “You go home first. I’ll be back soon.”

Bei Yao nodded and walked away.

The midsummer sun blazed intensely. In the August sky, brilliant sunshine was everywhere.

Dr. Ding and Pei Chuan sat in the stone pavilion. He pulled out a very thick stack of papers from his folder. “This is your mother’s medical records from all these years.”

Pei Chuan lowered his eyes. The sun hung high with no wind, only the sound of cicadas chirping in the distance.

Those medical records showed that Jiang Wenjuan had very serious psychological illness.

Dr. Ding said, “The year I started treating her, her condition was already quite bad. After what happened to you back then, she couldn’t accept it psychologically. On one hand, she had to care for a young child, and Pei Haobin never gave her any comfort. Later, she had an emotional breakdown. After we got together, she still needed regular treatment. We don’t have children—Wenjuan had sterilization surgery. You’re her only child in this lifetime. She couldn’t move past those memories. I’m sorry, she didn’t have the courage to accompany you as you grew up.”

Pei Chuan pushed the medical records back. “Go back. I don’t blame anyone anymore.”

Pei Chuan’s expression was very calm. All the resentment and pain from before had slowly dissipated. He had once desperately longed to be loved, but at that time he had nothing. All the missed opportunities in this world cannot be made up for. However, he now understood that a silly little girl had clumsily accompanied him for many years.

All this time, his growth had not been lonely.

Dr. Ding had walked quite far when Pei Chuan called out, “Take good care of her.” Having married a wife, his heart had softened, and he had come to understand how difficult things were for a woman.

Dr. Ding turned back in surprise. Pei Chuan’s eyes were calm. Dr. Ding nodded vigorously, suddenly understanding that Pei Chuan had truly let go of the past.

This August, the moonflowers below the apartment building bloomed.

Zhao Zhilan brought news of Pei Haobin’s resignation. She spoke of this matter with great emotion. “Not only did he resign, he also donated most of his money. That woman Cao Li usually seemed so virtuous, but unexpectedly this time she had a fight with Pei Haobin. These past few days she’s been clamoring for divorce. You should have seen how obedient and submissive she used to be to Chief Pei—she really made you think that in middle age he’d found true love. But now they’ve even come to blows.”

Bei Yao was extremely surprised.

That evening, she quietly mentioned this to Pei Chuan to see his reaction.

The girl’s eyes were round and bright. Pei Chuan looked at her with amusement. “Other people’s business—no need to worry about it.”

She said in a small voice, “But that’s your dad.”

Pei Chuan patted her head. “He’s Pei Jiadong’s dad.”

Although at that time, even for the sake of the plan, Pei Haobin had to choose Pei Jiadong, Pei Chuan also knew clearly that if he really encountered such a situation, Pei Haobin would still choose Pei Jiadong. Because Pei Chuan’s personality was cold and rebellious, Pei Haobin couldn’t afford to become estranged from yet another son.

Human hearts are complicated when you think about it, but also simple.

Bei Yao asked, “You don’t mind anymore?”

Pei Chuan smiled slightly. “Mm.”

His fingers smoothed her hair. “I have no parents. From now on, love me a little more, hmm?”

Bei Yao felt a sense of mission arise spontaneously and nodded vigorously.

Unexpectedly, there was a follow-up to this matter. Because Bei Yao was recovering from her injury, Zhao Zhilan had recently become fond of gossiping and making soup.

“Ha! Yaoyao, you don’t know. Those two really did get divorced. Cao Li is really no pushover. Her daughter Bai Yutong started working this year too, and she even wanted to take Pei Jiadong with her—probably thinking about finding her next meal ticket. I saw Chief Pei last time. Usually such a fine man, now he’s gotten so thin he’s unrecognizable. I say his head isn’t clear either. Now that he’s donated his money, he thought Cao Li would stand by him and admire him, without considering what kind of person Cao Li is—how could she tolerate that!”

Pei Haobin had been flattered by Cao Li for half his lifetime, but unexpectedly, as soon as he had no money, Cao Li changed into a different person.

The marriage he had obtained by abandoning Pei Chuan had completely fallen apart this year.

Pei Haobin was probably beginning to question the meaning of his entire life. He was old now, and had nothing left.

Bei Yao felt Pei Jiadong was somewhat pitiful. This child would have to live in a divorced family from childhood, and Cao Li would most likely remarry.

Pei Haobin had worked hard for most of his life, and in the end, not a single son remained by his side.

Zhao Zhilan thought for a moment. Seeing her son-in-law had gone out on business, she quietly asked Bei Yao, “How’s your married life? Still harmonious, right?”

Bei Yao was stunned for quite a while before she realized what “harmonious married life” meant. Her face flushed red, and she stammered an acknowledgment.

Actually, there had only been that one time between the two of them, and she’d been half-drunk then, so she didn’t really remember what it was like. However, such an embarrassing matter couldn’t very well be discussed with Zhao Zhilan.

Later, Bei Yao had been sick and injured, so naturally the two of them couldn’t think about such things again.

Zhao Zhilan had accepted Pei Chuan as her son-in-law and found him quite pleasing to look at. After all, her son-in-law knew how to handle things and make money, and he cherished her daughter. Zhao Zhilan said cheerfully, “You’re about to graduate soon. You two should use contraception, otherwise having a big belly at school wouldn’t be good.”

It was only now that Bei Yao discovered how open-minded her mother was. Afraid Zhao Zhilan would say more, she quickly agreed.

Fortunately, it was summer vacation now. In September, Bei Yao would have to return to school.

She had only one year left of university coursework and could graduate next June.

Now everyone knew she was Pei Chuan’s wife—after all, Professor Pei had been so high-profile before.

The innocent students didn’t know about the Huo family matters. To them, it was just a prominent family that had declined. When Bei Yao returned to campus, her roommates were all very happy and asked with smiles how her honeymoon had been.

How had it been? It was so embarrassing.

Pei Chuan probably still thought of her as a porcelain doll.

Researcher Pei’s career had to continue as well. When he returned to the research institute, all his predecessors breathed a sigh of relief, inexplicably moved. When Pei Chuan had been there before, many research projects progressed at lightning speed. After he left, everyone had become unaccustomed to the turtle-pace progress.

Pei Chuan developed an electronic sensor chip that was officially put into testing in the drizzly September.

The equipment wasn’t mature yet. When he had been “Satan” before, he had started researching brain implant chip technology. However, after he turned himself in at that time, this technology was taken seriously again by the state, and he had shifted to researching limb sensor chips.

The principle was to implant chips in the human body so that cerebral palsy and comatose patients could sense the outside world and produce corresponding stress responses.

That day, Pei Chuan wore a white research coat and watched the final results with his colleagues from the research institute.

A child volunteer with cerebral palsy and motor dysfunction, under everyone’s gaze, slowly curled his fingers and grasped a pen.

His parents covered their mouths and shed tears.

That volunteer child looked at Pei Chuan with admiring eyes. Although his brain development was delayed and he could only hold the pen for a short minute, he seemed to understand what hope meant.

Pei Chuan’s eyes flickered, and he pressed his lips together.

Everyone at the research institute was very excited that day. What did this mean? It meant that when this great technology matured, it would be applied to medicine. Comatose patients might be awakened! Children with congenital cerebral palsy could better experience the world.

Pei Chuan got off work rather late. On the way home, swallows flew past and the sky gradually darkened.

Pei Chuan had his hands in his pockets. For the first time, he thought back to that year when he brought Bei Yao on a plane to City B. She had depicted a very good world, and years later, he was working hard to build a better world.

For the first time, he truly felt the value and meaning of a person’s existence.

Pei Chuan pushed open the door to his home. Outside the September window, light rain had already begun to fall. Not far from the entrance, a blue-and-white porcelain vase held a bouquet of jasmine flowers she had arranged today.

Small white blossoms filled the room with fragrance.

Bei Yao wore a pink apron and was lying at the table reading a medical textbook.

The lingering heat of summer hadn’t passed yet. Her legs were bare, and she wore the dress he’d bought her a couple days ago.

Porridge was warming in the kitchen. Bei Yao was about to graduate and had been especially idle lately.

Hearing footsteps, Bei Yao turned around.

This year she was twenty-two years old, like a flower blooming on a branch. The warm yellow light at the dining table was cozy.

For the first time, Pei Chuan truly felt that the world was accepting him, that he had a home again.

“Why are you still cooking? Doesn’t your wound hurt anymore?”

Bei Yao said, “It’s been fine for a while. You’re the one being anxious. When you’re not home, I get bored.”

He had wanted to say she could go play with her classmates, but in the end said gently, “I’m sorry. I’ll come home earlier tomorrow.”

She smiled and nodded, looking three parts coquettish. “Okay.”

If Zhao Zhilan were here, she’d probably tap her daughter’s forehead. Could a man’s career be delayed?

However, brazenly saying what you want is what being young should look like.

He smiled and ate dinner with her.

Bei Yao was cramming professional coursework every day, afraid she wouldn’t keep up with the pace in the future. After bathing, she put on slippers and read in the bedroom.

Pei Chuan laughed helplessly, suddenly remembering Zhao Zhilan’s words. She’d said her daughter wasn’t smart and always had to spend more time than others to accomplish something.

This little fool wasn’t having it easy either.

She had marked things she didn’t understand with red pen annotations. Pei Chuan glanced at them and offered a few pointers.

Bei Yao looked at him in surprise. “How do you know this?”

Pei Chuan said, “I know a little. I’ve read many books.” Doing research, it was always good to be broadly knowledgeable.

Bei Yao found it interesting and asked him a few more questions. Pei Chuan thought about it and could actually answer them all.

Bei Yao blinked and teased, “Professor Pei, then teach me.”

“…” He paused. “Come here.”

Bei Yao came over holding her book. Pei Chuan pulled the book from her arms. “Didn’t you say you’re better now? I don’t know much of your subject matter. I’ll teach you something else.”

Later, when Pei Chuan leaned over her, Bei Yao finally understood what “something else” meant.

Light September rain pattered down. That professional textbook fell pitifully beneath the bed.

This time she was very clearheaded. In her misty eyes, the man’s handsome brows and eyes were reflected.

Pei Chuan pressed his lips together, being candid before her for the first time.

The prosthetic was removed, his residual limb exposed to the air. She heard the man’s violent heartbeat, one beat after another. His body was tensed like steel.

The residual limb really wasn’t attractive to look at.

Rain was falling. The air was muggy. The man’s sweat dripped onto her fair collarbone.

Her almond eyes were misty. She looked up at him, breathing lightly and asking him to be gentler.

Like a summer flower blooming in complete splendor, she trembled as she reached up to his shoulder.

Her small hands didn’t know where to settle.

Pei Chuan was scratched by her delicate whimpers several times. He pressed his lips together, suppressing the muffled sounds in his throat.

Bei Yao suddenly remembered something. Her voice soft and sweet, she reminded him, “Need—need contraception.”

She only remembered this now. Pei Chuan gritted his teeth and answered her carelessly, “Mm, next time.”

His body tensed even tighter, but no longer because of that pitiful insecurity.

Light rain fell outside the window. The night breeze of late summer and early autumn was unexpectedly somewhat gentle.

*

After a night of thorough indulgence, Pei Chuan woke earlier than her in the morning.

He held the small hand on his chest, half-curled into a fist. He smiled and kissed her hand.

This stubborn girl had only worried about one thing last night—they needed contraception.

What household had raised such a treasure who, even with a tearful voice, persisted?

He found it both amusing and heartwarming.

Pei Chuan had to go to work in the morning, but for the first time, he didn’t really want to leave.

When Bei Yao woke up, she wasn’t dwelling on how he’d brushed her off with “next time.” She covered her head with the quilt, still feeling that “Professor Pei’s” hands-on teaching had been mortifying.

Pei Chuan picked up the book from beneath the bed and said with a hoarse laugh, “Take your book and go to school.”