The birthday party was a great success.
The surprise Youyou prepared was dressing up in a strawberry - shaped plush suit. He came to present a birthday gift to Xu Caomei—a set of books about strawberries.
Xu Caomei loved it so much that she immediately said, "Brother is the best!"
Zou Rui also gave a gift, a strawberry - shaped necklace bought with his lucky money.
Xu Caomei liked it very much too and declared that she would never quarrel with Brother Zou Rui again.
Of course, she had said the same thing last month.
Seeing the children laughing and playing together, Xu Tingyu smiled cheerfully, her eyes fixed on them.
Qi Ruixi brought over a plate of fruits. While munching on them, she sighed, "Sister - in - law, you smile so much now. I didn't even dare to see you in the past two years."
When they recalled the past, the smiles on their faces froze a bit.
Three years ago, after Qi Ruixi learned what the Qi family had done to the Xu family, she didn't dare to visit Xu Tingyu for a long time.
The overwhelming guilt made her too timid to even say sorry.
Especially after she knew that Xu Tingyu had signed a new divorce agreement with Qi Shifeng because of that, she became even more afraid to meet her.
Everything changed until the news of Qi Ye's death spread.
At that time, he was under investigation and had cut off contact with everyone.
So they had no idea how he went to Switzerland to apply for euthanasia.
They only got the news when his ashes were sent back to Kyoto and his will was made public.
He had stopped considering a kidney transplant. Not only were his kidneys failing, but his heart was also in trouble.
The physical pain tormented him, and so did the guilt of his past deeds.
After learning that Xu Tingyu still loved Qi Shifeng even after losing her memory, he had already made up his mind to die.
In fact, when he made an agreement with Qi Shifeng and let Xu Tingyu make a new choice, he had prepared for his own death.
He was well - aware of his physical condition and had given up long before that.
Letting Xu Tingyu start over was the last thing he did for her.
Even though it was his own self - opinionated decision, his original intention was to let Xu Tingyu forget all the past unpleasantness and live a stress - free life.
In his will, he divided his property into three parts.
One part was donated, one was left to Qi Ruixi, and the remaining third was given to Youyou and the baby in Xu Tingyu's belly.
His memorial service was kept simple.
Xu Tingyu attended it. Not for Qi Ye, but for the two kidneys in his body.
She went to bid farewell to Xu Jia, not Qi Ye.
She would never forgive Qi Ye, but she wouldn't hate him anymore either. Because he wasn't worth it.
Qi Ye left her a last letter, but she didn't even bother to read it.
It was unnecessary. At this stage, whether he was repenting or expressing his love, it was none of her business.
Liu Ning made a fuss after learning about the will, but before she could reach Xu Tingyu, Qi Shifeng sent her abroad for recuperation.
A month after Qi Ye's funeral, Xu Caomei was born.
When Xu Caomei was six months old, Qi Ruixi finally dared to send her the first message, carefully asking if she wanted to take Xu Caomei out to play.
By then, Xu Tingyu had recovered a lot with the company of the two children.
She didn't hate all the Qi family members.
Strictly speaking, the two children were also from the Qi family.
In the past year or so, she was just giving herself time to heal and accept the reality.
So when Qi Ruixi invited her, she agreed to meet.
With the children as a common topic, they quickly returned to their old closeness as if they had never been estranged.
Like Xu Tingyu, Qi Ruixi also returned to the workplace when her child turned one.
Whenever they had time, they would hang out together.
However, no one would ever mention Qi Ye or the old man.
Some wounds would always be there, so there was no need to tear them open again and again.
It was enough to plant flowers on the wounds.
With Qi Ye's death, those who were involved with him were punished accordingly. Some went to jail.
Zhang Wan was sentenced to fifteen years in prison. After the verdict was announced, she wanted to meet Xu Tingyu, but was rejected.
As for Chen Chunyao, she finally couldn't escape being completely blacklisted in the industry.
Thankfully, she seemed to have turned over a new leaf. She took her parents to a seaside town and became a teacher in a training institution, specializing in teaching acting.
At first, the media reported on her a few times, questioning if she was just putting on a show.
But three years had passed, and she was still teaching there.
The outside world no longer questioned her, nor did they continue to follow and report on her.
She was no longer in the spotlight and had returned to a more peaceful life.
Similarly, she sent an apology text to Xu Tingyu, but Xu Tingyu only replied with one message.
"Let's never meet or have any contact with each other in this lifetime."
After that, she never bothered Xu Tingyu again.
Xu Tingyu was kind - hearted, but also clear - cut in love and hate.
When she was good friends with Chen Chunyao, she could pour out her heart to her.
But now that the other party had betrayed her, she could no longer be friends with her or meet her calmly.
It was better to just become strangers.
However, after cutting off ties with Chen Chunyao, she quietly did one thing.
That was to expose Fan Yi.
This despicable man had hyped up his relationship with Chen Chunyao back then and reaped all the benefits after her affair was exposed.
Yet he was clearly an insider.
When Chen Chunyao was taken into the room by the director, he knew about it but didn't do anything.
Moreover, he even leaked a lot of information to the media afterwards.
Such a person was a black sheep in the entertainment industry.
So all his suppressed scandals were exposed on an ordinary Monday.
Only then did the public learn that this seemingly self - disciplined movie star had actually slept his way to the top.
And all his backers were men.
That is to say, his relationship with Chen Chunyao was just a hype, and in the end, he kicked her when she was down.
Not only that, he bullied other actors, threw tantrums, had tax problems, and was rude to his staff...
His scandal caused a huge stir. Finally, he was forced to issue a statement about quitting the entertainment industry.
After Xu Tingyu did all these things, she didn't tell anyone, but Qi Shifeng still found out. He asked her, "Aren't you already estranged from Chen Chunyao? Why are you still standing up for her?"
She snorted and said, "I'm not standing up for her. I'm standing up for justice and for those who are involuntarily involved."
She always knew how to separate things clearly. She was always so clear - headed and strong.
Just like now, looking at the playing children and the smiling Qi siblings, her heart was filled with nothing but peace and warmth.
Just like her attitude towards Zhang Qiu—fulfilling only the obligation of support and not meeting unless necessary, because the other party didn't want to see her either.
With her lover by her side and children around her knees, this was a scene she once dared not even dream of.
So what else could she ask for now?
The moment Xu Caomei puffed out her cheeks and blew out the candles, gorgeous fireworks exploded outside.
Qi Shifeng hugged her tightly and whispered in her ear, "You've worked hard, wife."
She leaned in his arms, looking at her children, and curved her lips.
Outside the window, the fireworks were in full bloom, and the stars shone brightly.
Tomorrow would be another fine day.