Tang Li slept all the way until four in the afternoon. When she woke up, Wen Xiao wasn’t in the room, but she could hear some faint noises from the living room.

"Mr. Tan, what’s going on? Where did Wen Xiao go?" Tang Li didn’t rush to get out of bed, asking Tan You first.

Tan You replied, "He went out for a bit after you fell asleep to get some gifts for our visit. Right now, he’s in the living room, giggling foolishly over your photo album."

Tang Li rolled over in bed. "It’s just some old photos."

"So many photos of you in frilly dresses. You really don’t remember?" Tan You’s smile was a little mischievous. She hadn’t known Tang Li had so many pictures in poufy princess dresses, especially not in that ghastly Barbie pink. It was a real eye-opener when she first saw them.

Tang Li immediately shot up and ran into the living room. "My dad’s sense of style... he was all about loud reds and purples. He’d buy any color, no matter how bold."

But she was too young back then to have her own taste. All it took was a word from her dad or grandparents, and Tang Li would put it on, thinking she looked absolutely beautiful.

In the living room, an album lay open on Wen Xiao’s lap. It was a photo of Tang Li in a red, poufy dress, a small red dot painted between her eyebrows. Her long, dark hair was styled into two buns, adorned with two large red flowers.

Tang Li covered her face. "How did you dig this one up? I thought I hid it well enough."

Wen Xiao looked at her, then back at the photo of Tang Li. "The dress is very pretty. I’ve never seen you wear a red dress. I’ll buy you one next time."

Tang Li said, "Red is too flashy. But what do you mean by that? Are you trying to be my dad?"

"I wouldn’t dare," Wen Xiao said, his survival instincts on high alert. "I was just looking around the study and stumbled upon this album by chance. It’s really cute. I’m taking it back with me to treasure."

Tang Li gave up. "Fine, do whatever you want. It’s a little embarrassing, but I could never bring myself to throw these photos away. When my dad used to travel for work, he’d always bring back clothes and little trinkets for me. If he saw other little girls wearing a certain style, he’d buy it for me too. Looking back now, the styles weren’t bad, but the color combinations... were certainly bold."

Wen Xiao let out a low chuckle and closed the album. "Still sleepy? I’ve bought the gifts. Should we head out now?"

"Not anymore. The sooner we go, the sooner we can come back." Tang Li stretched. She really didn’t want to see Li Lanzhen. But you can’t sever blood ties. No matter what, she had to keep up appearances.

It was because of the Li family that she had suffered a calamity in the past, and later died in an accident—though Li Lanzhen didn’t know about it. But if it hadn’t been for Li Lanzhen’s indulgence of the Li family, she never would have met with such a disaster.

Tan You said, "In this life, many things were nipped in the bud, so the course of events is already very different. To you, it’s something you genuinely experienced, but in Li Lanzhen’s eyes, it was just a trivial matter."

"She can never truly empathize with you, and she’ll never understand what you’re thinking. If you become distant with her, outsiders will just criticize you."

Tang Li replied, "We were never that close to begin with, so ’becoming distant’ doesn’t even apply. Like you said, I just need to keep up appearances."

At the Sun family’s home, Sun Zhicai was holding his plump son, his face beaming. His smile grew even wider when he saw the gifts Tang Li and Wen Xiao had brought. Most people look out for their own interests, and he knew Tang Li was a capable person. He wasn’t going to cling to her, but he hoped she might look after his son a little in the future.

Tang Li was also very serious. "If Little Yuan doesn’t turn out to be as clueless as Li Lanzhen, I’d naturally be willing to look after him."

Sun Zhicai immediately promised, "I’ll be sure to raise him right. If he doesn’t live up to expectations on his own, I wouldn’t dare push him in your direction."

Tang Li smiled. "Uncle Sun, you’re a smart man."

Wen Xiao studied the baby for a moment, then looked at Tang Li. "You both have very fair skin."

Tang Li shrugged. "It’s alright, I guess. I was busy on set when my little brother was born and really couldn’t get away. This is a belated red envelope. Please don’t mind the delay, Uncle Sun."

"Not at all, not at all," Sun Zhicai said with a chuckle. "It’s a good thing for young people to prioritize their careers."

Seeing Tang Li come over only to play with the plump baby or talk to Sun Zhicai, Li Lanzhen felt particularly disgruntled. But when she looked down and saw the thick red envelope Tang Li had handed her, that feeling of resentment suddenly vanished.

Tang Li said, "This is Wen Xiao. We’re planning to settle down, so I brought him here specifically to meet you."

Li Lanzhen wanted to put on airs as a mother-in-law, but after seeing the look in Sun Zhicai’s eyes, she sullenly shut her mouth. After holding it in for a long while, she finally managed to say, "Live a good life. Don’t make your grandparents worry."

Tang Li was amused. "Of course my grandparents don’t worry about me. When have I ever given them anything to worry about?" 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Li Lanzhen grew sullen. ’Is she indirectly calling me out for worrying my parents-in-law in the past?’

Wen Xiao said, "Grandma and Grandpa are doing well and don’t have many worries in their daily lives. You can rest assured, Ma’am. Li Zi and I will take care of and be considerate of each other. I won’t let her regret her choice."

Tang Li smiled. "Alright, I just wanted to let you know. You have a healthy glow. Uncle Sun seems to take good care of people."

Li Lanzhen immediately opened the floodgates. Although her remarried husband’s family had no elders to help out, he had a bit of money. From her pregnancy and delivery through her postpartum confinement, she’d had a helper to take care of her.

Tang Li just listened quietly as Li Lanzhen went on. She never thought there would come a day when she and her mother could interact so peacefully. In the past, Li Lanzhen would have started asking her for money before they’d even exchanged three sentences.

Sun Zhicai listened to Li Lanzhen talk while holding their son. Seeing that some time had passed, he placed the baby in a nearby crib and got up to go to the kitchen.

Seeing this, Wen Xiao followed him in. Sun Zhicai didn’t object, and the two of them started making small talk.

Li Lanzhen looked at Wen Xiao, then at Tang Li, who was sitting as still as a mountain. "You don’t usually cook?"

"Wen Xiao’s a better cook," Tang Li said, gently squeezing the baby’s hand. "Have the Li family come looking for you recently?"

"They came once, for the one-month celebration, but your Uncle Sun drove them away." Li Lanzhen’s shoulders slumped. "He doesn’t want to see my younger brother and the others, so I don’t dare bring them up. But they’re still my family, you know..."

Tang Li said, "I can see that Uncle Sun really cares about the baby. If you don’t focus on living a good life here and keep thinking about associating with the Li family, Uncle Sun is perfectly capable of raising the child by himself."

Li Lanzhen understood Tang Li’s meaning. "You..."

"I think I’ve made myself perfectly clear," Tang Li said with a laugh. "Back when my dad was alive, I couldn’t wait for you two to get a divorce. But he was too soft-hearted, thinking he couldn’t let me come from a broken home at such a young age."

"But I always felt that a family forced to stay together like that was just an absurd illusion, ready to shatter with a single poke. Uncle Sun isn’t like my dad. You’d better weigh your priorities carefully."