Chapter 35 Part 1

Just the time spent pinning flowers in her hair exceeded Lin Xu’s expectations, but midway through, she received several photos from Shu Qingyou at the amusement park, along with some voice messages.

Unfortunately, they were all solo shots of Shu Rong—cute as they were.

When Lin Xu asked for a selfie, there was no reply.

Lin Xu saved all of Shu Qingyou’s voice messages and replayed them repeatedly, savoring them.

She wolfed down a hasty lunch, and Gu Huaiyuan wasted no time in assembling a limited-edition haute couture outfit for her. Lin Xu stared blankly at herself in the full-length mirror.

Warm caramel-brown long hair cascaded to her chest, the suit’s shoulder line was crisp and sharp, and a black silk shirt underneath revealed a hint of her stern collarbone at the neckline.

Only then did Gu Huaiyuan’s gaze shift from disdain to mild disdain. Lin Xu waved happily. “Take a photo of me. I’ll send it to Qingyou.”

Gu Huaiyuan, who rarely had time to indulge her, got a bit gossipy for once and snapped a few shots from a good angle. “You two seem awfully intimate. Does she know you have a fiancée?”

“She knows about you. So what?” Lin Xu reflexively tied a perfect Windsor knot in her tie and scanned herself up and down. She did have the air of a successful professional.

“She doesn’t mind. That’s what they call love being unreasonable.”

The drug from the car accident hadn’t been strong enough, and Gu Huaiyuan just wanted to watch the drama unfold. She showed Lin Xu the photos. “Quit grossing me out. I know you too well, you slag.”

“How am I a slag? Who’d I slag off—you?”

Vivid memories flashed of Lin Xu flanking her with girls on both sides at nightclubs, but Gu Huaiyuan only said one thing: justice comes in time.

She played it cool, deep and profound.

Lin Xu was baffled. “If you don’t speak up, I’ll assume you’re just talking big.”

Gu Huaiyuan had Lin Xu pick the best photos, then changed the subject. “Hold on. My parents want to see you. Let’s take a selfie together.”

She moved to drape her arm over Lin Xu’s shoulder, but Lin Xu frowned, shrugged, and stepped away.

Gu Huaiyuan laughed helplessly. “I shouldn’t have to tell you—your germaphobe habit hasn’t changed.”

Lin Xu obliged for the photo and asked curiously, “I used to be a germaphobe? How bad was it?”

“You’d pull out rubbing alcohol to wipe down after the slightest touch. So prissy.” Gu Huaiyuan was in a good mood. Finding Lin Xu made dealing with the family so much easier.

“I was even worried earlier if you’d time-traveled from age sixteen or gotten possessed.”

Lin Xu followed her unhurriedly into the private elevator. She had been sending the photo to Shu Qingyou, but now with no signal inside, she grumbled, “What you need to do right now is uninstall Little Green.”

Gu Huaiyuan huffed, then paused in surprise two seconds later. “Wait, how do you know I read novels?”

That stumped Lin Xu. Where had that memory come from? And why wasn’t it about Shu Qingyou?

She mentally screamed: Abort, abort!

“It’s a sign of your memories returning, got it?” Lin Xu shot her a glance, bluffing like a paper tiger. “So don’t mess with me. It won’t end well.”

They bantered sporadically all the way. At the base of the mountain, Weirui Mountain Forest opened into a neat, wide road flanked by three layers of security checkpoints and smart recognition systems—strictly fortified, with entry requiring prior appointments.

Gu Huaiyuan glared at Lin Xu in exasperation as she fixated on her phone.

Lin Xu happily fired off WeChats: Head home soon. Rush hour traffic can be brutal.

Shu Qingyou: Heading home now. Rongrong had a blast.

Kids threw little tantrums at first. Without Lin Xu there to play with, Shu Rong poked at Lin Xu’s photo on the screen in silent protest.

But once aboard the forest train, the thrill hadn’t even worn off before the immersive mini-theater experience made Shu Rong forget Lin Xu entirely.

Lin Xu: Were you happy?

She’d heard that new mothers, especially with young kids needing constant attention, lost their freedom—and their emotions were fragile, prone to postpartum depression while childcare weighed them down.

Lin Xu’s thoughtfulness shone through her words, and Shu Qingyou replied with a happy emoji.

Lin Xu: Jealous now. Next time, take me along. We’re about to see the old lady. I’m a bit nervous.

It was past three in the afternoon.

Shu Qingyou: Don’t rush back. Spend time with the elder. Be sensible.

Lin Xu: We’ll see.

The Lin Family Mansion sat halfway up the western hills of Sea City, backed by mountains and facing a lake. Even without memories, Lin Xu could guess the immense value of carving out this entire hillside in a city where land was gold.

Her heart finally clenched as she stepped onto the polished dark marble floors.

Old Lady Lin’s room was on the third floor—no one entered without permission. The hallway had minimal lighting, almost dim.

Lin Xu instinctively toned down her demeanor. “I’m weirdly nervous.”

Servants bowed respectfully, calling her Young Miss, but Lin Xu felt like she was in a dream she hadn’t woken from.

Gu Huaiyuan rolled her eyes. It wasn’t a wolf’s den—what was there to fear?

Old Lady Lin matched Lin Xu’s imaginings, per the profile: her days were numbered.

The recent car accident had only worsened the old woman’s condition, filling Lin Xu with guilt.

She tiptoed closer, stopping about a meter away.

The old lady’s face was etched deeper with wrinkles. The past half-month in the ICU had nearly drained her life force.

Facing family, Lin Xu felt a mix of emotions, her throat and heart stuffed with cotton. She spoke softly, “Grandma, I’m back.”

Old Lady Lin lay in bed, coughing sharply. Her cloudy eyes drifted over Lin Xu and Gu Huaiyuan.

“Good that you’re back. Let me look at you.”

Lin Xu leaned down nervously, stiffly.

Slap—

The slap echoed through the vast room. Gu Huaiyuan startled back a step, holding her breath. It had come, as expected.

She’d forgotten to warn Lin Xu that Old Lady Lin was old-school, believing in “spare the rod, spoil the child.”

Lin Xu clutched her stinging right cheek, frozen. Was this an octogenarian’s strength? Her ears rang, stars bursting in her vision for seconds.

“Wandering outside, not bothering to come home! Do you still have this old bag of bones in your heart?!”

“I don’t remember, Grandma,” Lin Xu mumbled dazedly, mustering timid defiance—her subconscious feared the old lady too. “I really can’t recall!”

“Now you’re making excuses.” The old lady raised her hand again. “Come here. One more slap.”

She was counting them? Lin Xu shot Gu Huaiyuan a bewildered look.

Gu Huaiyuan realized belatedly—she’d slipped up, casually telling the old lady that Lin Xu was vacationing carefree abroad.

Lin Xu pulled a long face. “Grandma, outsiders are here. Give me some face.”

Old Lady Lin smirked thinly. “She’s your fiancée-to-be, practically family. What’s there to hide?”

No dodging it. Lin Xu offered her left cheek. “Family doesn’t split hairs. Two slaps, one face—you really are my real grandma.”

Old Lady Lin nearly choked on fury. She never imagined her granddaughter daring to sass her like that.

After the slaps, the old lady perked up remarkably, quizzing her on business matters. Lin Xu broke into a cold sweat—this was scarier than finals.

Lin Xu’s self-funded autonomous driving company featured in-house core AI engines, road-sensing dynamic decision networks, software edge behavior prediction models, and more.

Unsure if the old lady grasped the cutting-edge jargon—Lin Xu had crammed it like a duck being force-fed.

Finally, parched, she wrapped up: the company had achieved its first profit loop ahead of schedule.

Only then did the old lady nod approvingly from on high, instructing Gu Huaiyuan to stay for a meal with the grandparent-grandchild duo.

Lin Xu grumbled inwardly: Should’ve just said I made bank.

Her biggest takeaway from visiting the elder: cheeks swollen enough for ice packs, and no returning to Shu Qingyou’s as promised.

Lin Xu: Sorry, Shu-jie. Can’t come home tonight. Old lady insists I stay. Can’t refuse.

Half an hour later, Shu Qingyou finally replied that it was fine.

Clearly it wasn’t—fine meant replying sooner. Or maybe she was cooking.

Lin Xu sat at the dinner table, food tasteless as cardboard, fixated only on dessert: pure cocoa butter dark chocolate encasing black pine cream filling, plump orbs on fancy saucers—pricey stuff.

Amazed, Lin Xu’s first thought was Shu Rong. Wild fun at the park showed in photos: eyes sparkling, smile brighter than wildflowers.

Feigning aloofness, she ordered the kitchen to pack a box of chocolate balls.

Gu Huaiyuan eyed her swollen face and teased, “You’re really love-struck, huh.”

Lin Xu shot back, “Having someone love you means zero restraint. Jealous? Love-struck brain is still brain—you don’t even have that.”

They play-fought and laughed as they headed out, but Old Lady Lin, leaning on her jade-handled dragon-head cane from the living room sofa, called out: “So late—where to?”

Lin Xu jumped in. “Grandma, Gu Huaiyuan and I are just taking a stroll. You rest early.”

Strolling at this hour? The old lady wasn’t deaf or blind yet.

After the car accident, how could she relax? Lin Xu was too carefree, young and reckless with her life. Old Lady Lin declared firmly, “Until your memories return, you’re not going anywhere!”

At once, burly bodyguards materialized, blocking the vermilion gates behind her.

Lin Xu had no say—she was outright confined. Led to her room by servants, she reeled from the sudden turn.

Used to Shu Qingyou’s place, the unfamiliar bedroom left her ill at ease. Not too big or small, at the end of the second-floor hall, with a small balcony facing out.

She called Gu Huaiyuan, who picked up instantly. “You’ve got some conscience. I brought you here—you deal with it.”

Gu Huaiyuan, relieved not to be implicated, figured in disaster, couples flew solo—let alone fake fiancée-friends.

“Use your brain. Us against five jacked bodyguards barehanded? You think you’re a DC hero?”

Dusk deepened, daylight fading. Lin Xu checked from the balcony: second floor, down to lush autumn begonias, roses, and wisteria clusters.

Eyeballing it: about seven or eight meters.

On the phone, Lin Xu warned, “Don’t you dare leave, or I’ll tell Grandma our engagement’s fake.”

Gu Huaiyuan slammed the brakes. “Threaten me again, and I’ll tell your little sweetheart I’m your properly wed fiancée. Fake or not—who can prove otherwise?”

A clear takeout box sat on the nightstand, eight chocolate balls in a row. She snapped a photo.

Lin Xu: Shu-jie, these are delicious. Packed some for you all.

Long wait—no reply. The chat hung on her last message. Lin Xu sat on the king-sized bed with crisp linens.

She hashed out a mountain-road rendezvous with Gu Huaiyuan and resolved to climb down the balcony.

First time sneaking out—rusty. She toughed it out till 1 a.m., heart burning as Shu Qingyou still ghosted her WeChat. Definitely her fault for flaking.

Gu Huaiyuan mocked her “chicken physique” over the phone, but at dead of night, Lin Xu geared up.