Shen Yi was a man of remarkable efficiency. One phone call was all it took, and the security company dispatched its highest-level bodyguards straight to the door.

The housekeeping arrangements Shen Yi handled personally as well, reaching out to trusted contacts for referrals. He hired two housemaids and a woman to cook.

The housemaids’ primary duty, beyond light daily cleaning, was to attend to Rong Qian’s everyday needs and personal care.

When Rong Qian heard this arrangement, she stared in utter disbelief. Was she paralyzed? Was she incapable of looking after herself? Was she really such a helpless person that she needed to be waited on hand and foot?

Shen Yi’s reply was a single sentence: “If no one is watching over you, I can’t rest easy.”

Simple words, but with two layers of meaning. Rong Qian understood his intention, and said nothing further.

It suddenly occurred to Rong Qian that this time around, she had no idea under what circumstances she would eventually leave. Although she had seen that photograph, there were certain details she hadn’t paid close attention to.

There was only one thing Rong Qian remembered with absolute clarity.

That was this — in that photograph, the version of herself looking back at the camera had been facing it directly.

This discovery was enormously significant. It meant that she had left of her own accord at that particular moment in time.

Having realized this, Rong Qian immediately sought out Shen Yi to ask about Fu Bozhong’s whereabouts.

From Shen Yi, Rong Qian learned that Fu Bozhong was still in America. He was, after all, the Shen Family’s head butler, and he had his own responsibilities to attend to.

On the other hand, the reason he hadn’t followed Shen Yi when he left was in order to stay behind and keep watch on Meng Yuxin.

This had been a decision Fu Bozhong made of his own initiative, after discussions with Shen Yi.

Shen Yi hadn’t stopped him, though he had already made plans to bring Fu Bozhong over from America.

As it happened, with Meng Yuxin now traveling to Hong Kong, Fu Bozhong had followed along as well — and would likely bring some news for Shen Yi.

“They weren’t on the same flight. Butler Fu’s flight doesn’t arrive until tonight. When the time comes, I’ll have Xu Mo drive out to pick him up.”

Hearing this, Rong Qian asked out of habit: “And you?”

“There’s a celebratory banquet tonight. I probably won’t be back until one or two in the morning — I’ll just have the driver take me.” Shen Yi said this while rifling through his wardrobe for a suit appropriate to the evening’s occasion.

He held one up and asked Rong Qian: “What do you think of this one?”

“They all look great!” Rong Qian was sitting cross-legged on the carpet, one hand propping up her chin, yawning one after another.

She suddenly felt that she resembled exactly those impatient boyfriends dragged along on shopping trips with their girlfriends — the kind of perfunctory answer that made her feel rather useless.

In the end, Shen Yi chose the very first one he’d asked Rong Qian about.

Watching this unfold, Rong Qian recalled a joke she’d seen somewhere and couldn’t hold back a laugh. Shen Yi had no idea what she was laughing at, but it didn’t matter — she was happy, and that was enough to make him happy too.

When Xu Mo found out he wasn’t being brought along to the celebratory banquet that evening, he couldn’t help furrowing his brow with worry. He reminded Shen Yi again and again that he absolutely must not drink too much.

Even after Shen Yi had left, Xu Mo remained anxious and dejected, his expression clouded with unease.

Rong Qian noticed and asked him: “Can he not hold his drink?”

“He can drink, but not too much. When he has too much, his stomach gives him trouble.” Xu Mo knew perfectly well that his reminders wouldn’t do much good — when it came to the drinks he had to accept, Shen Yi would drink them regardless.

Rong Qian heard this and found her own brow creasing involuntarily.

She thought back to the last time she’d seen him — he had still been a minor then, not old enough to drink. In the blink of an eye, he had grown into an adult who had to navigate social obligations.

“I should go check whether we still have any stomach medication — if not, I’ll need to go to Dr. Qiao to get some.” Xu Mo wanted to be prepared in advance.

Rong Qian followed along to look. When the drawer was opened, they found it filled with various emergency medicines. Xu Mo examined everything carefully, confirmed that the stomach medication was still there, and only then breathed a sigh of relief.

He turned to find Rong Qian’s pretty face scrunched up into a tight frown, and let out an amused laugh. “Miss Rong, even you think our boss is pushing himself too hard, don’t you?”

“Pushing himself? This isn’t pushing himself — this is practically running himself into the ground.” Rong Qian couldn’t even begin to imagine what kind of life he was actually living.

Xu Mo said with a sigh: “I used to ask myself — why does he drive himself this hard? It’s not money, certainly; he has no shortage of that.”

“Later I came to understand — it’s because he wants to reach a day when he can protect the people around him, so they’ll never have to suffer under the cruelty of those who prey on the weak.” Even now, whenever Xu Mo thought about it, his eyes would grow watery with emotion.

Shen Yi understood the rules of this world all too well. If he wanted to avoid being eliminated and cast out, he had to build himself up into a force that could not be shaken.

Rong Qian fell silent.

She realized that everything Shen Yi was doing now — these were all things she had once taught him. And he had not only taken them to heart; he had turned them into action.

At eleven o’clock that night, Xu Mo drove out to pick up Fu Bozhong.

The moment Fu Bozhong stepped out of the car and saw Rong Qian standing at the door waving at him, he was overcome with delight. “Miss Rong!”

Rong Qian greeted him with a smile. “Butler Fu, we meet again!”

Fu Bozhong was awash with emotion. Seeing Rong Qian looking exactly as she always had, unchanged in the slightest, made him feel as though he himself were still young.

Rong Qian, for her part, felt a quiet stirring when she looked at him.

His hair had gone considerably more silver and white. His complexion had aged, and he no longer carried the vigor he once had — the weariness of an old man had settled unmistakably into his bearing.

Xu Mo arranged a guest room for Fu Bozhong. Rong Qian had things she wanted to say to him privately, so she sent Xu Mo away.

Xu Mo protested: “Is there something I’m not allowed to hear?”

“Exactly — something you’re not allowed to hear.” Rong Qian pushed him out the door, and Xu Mo shuffled off with an aggrieved expression.

The very first thing Rong Qian asked Fu Bozhong was whether he had brought the camera with him.

Fu Bozhong pointed at his own leather suitcase. “It’s right inside. Does Miss Rong want me to take a photo of you?”

“No, no, no!” Rong Qian waved her hands in quick denial. Then she drew a slow, steadying breath and said to him with gravity: “Butler Fu, there is something extremely important I need to ask of you — and that is: without my explicit permission, you must absolutely not take any photographs of me. Is that all right?”

Fu Bozhong nodded. “Of course. That is the most basic form of respect.”

“When I want you to take one, I’ll let you know — then you may help me. Can you agree to that?” Rong Qian confirmed with great care.

Fu Bozhong gave his assurance again, stating repeatedly that once he gave his word, he would honor it. Only then did Rong Qian relax and let out a quiet breath of relief.

Fu Bozhong, for his part, kept his gaze fixed steadily on her. Rong Qian noticed, and asked: “Why are you looking at me like that?”

Fu Bozhong let out a sigh. “Miss Rong — the Young Master has missed you terribly, all this time.”

The light in Rong Qian’s eyes dimmed. She made herself a promise: this time, she absolutely would not disappear on him without a word again.

That night, Rong Qian tossed and turned restlessly, and didn’t fall asleep until two in the morning. But she had barely been asleep for long when she heard a faint rustling sound.

She listened more closely. It was the sound of a door opening.

Rong Qian’s eyes snapped open in an instant. Who was intruding into her room in the middle of the night?