After Chi Yu left Yu Haiwan, he drove aimlessly around the city. Before he knew it, he found himself in the residential area where the Chi family used to live.
It was also the place where he first met Qing Mian.
At that time, he had just been rescued from that remote mountain village and brought back home not long ago.
He was afraid of contacting people and locked himself at home all day long, refusing to see anyone.
The family servant told him that the Wei family next door had adopted another child, a little girl. She was very cute but too thin. It was obvious that she hadn't been eating well.
Chi Yu had heard of Wei Jianguo next door.
Wei Jianguo didn't have a good reputation.
Although he was once one of the top entrepreneurs in the imperial capital in his early years, after the Wei family business was handed over to him, it had been on a downward slope and was almost on the verge of bankruptcy.
It was said that he had brought his illegitimate son home. This son was quite capable and had saved the struggling enterprise from collapse in a short period of time.
Chi Yu was never interested in such gossips, but since they were the topics among the servants during their breaks, he couldn't help but overhear some of them.
At that time, his favorite thing was to sit in a daze in the stone pavilion in the backyard.
That was when Qing Mian suddenly appeared.
The girl was short and thin. Her arms looked as if they would break with a gentle twist.
It was such a thin and small girl who climbed over into his backyard without any warning on a sunny day.
Maybe because she had just moved here, she didn't know that the backyards of each household were connected, separated only by a thin wall.
Chi Yu still remembered Qing Mian's expression at that time.
The moment she landed, there was a look of surprise on her face. But the moment she saw him, the surprise turned into panic.
She tried to climb back out, but her stomach growled inappropriately.
At that time, Chi Yu hated contacting people, but somehow he picked up the plate on the table and walked up to the girl.
Qing Mian just looked at him for a while and then grabbed the food on the plate and gobbled it up.
From time to time, she would secretly glance at him.
"Is this your home?"
Qing Mian asked him at that time.
He was stunned for a moment and then shook his head.
A look of sympathy flashed in the girl's eyes. Suddenly, she reached out her hand to him.
Her hand was greasy with food residues.
"I don't have a home either. From now on, let's be a family."
When Qing Mian said this, there was no trace of sadness on her face. Instead, she was looking at him with a big smile.
Chi Yu hated contacting people.
He also hated being touched.
Most of all, he hated dirty things.
He frowned, but the girl suddenly grabbed his hand.
She pulled his hand and forced him to make a pinky promise with her.
"Let's make a pinky promise. We'll be a family for a hundred years and never change."
"I have to go now. Otherwise, if I'm discovered later, you'll be scolded by your master."
From beginning to end, he didn't say a single word, but Qing Mian didn't mind at all. She just talked on her own. Then, under his surprised gaze, she climbed out over the corner of the wall.
"Mr. Chi?"
A cheerful male voice interrupted Chi Yu's train of thought.
Chi Yu looked in the direction of the voice. It was the patrolling security guard. He nodded at the man.
"Uncle Wang."
The man called Uncle Wang was the security captain here. He had been working here for many years. Since Chi Yu could remember, he had been here.
"Why did you suddenly come here?"
This was the first time he had come back here since the Chi family moved out.
"I passed by and just came to have a look."
There was little expression on Chi Yu's face.
The two exchanged a few more words before Chi Yu drove away from the residential area.
...
After Lu Wenxi learned about Qing Mian's situation from Ji Bai, she had been feeling inexplicably flustered.
If what Ji Bai said was true, it meant that there was no second personality in Qing Mian's body at all. It meant that she had always been herself, just missing some memories.
Qing Mian was still her good friend.
Thinking of this, Lu Wenxi took out her phone and called Qing Mian.
No one answered for a long time.
Lu Wenxi couldn't help but feel anxious.
She shook the sleeping man beside her.
Ji Bai half - opened his sleepy eyes. "What's wrong, Wenxi?"
Lu Wenxi turned on the bedside lamp and looked at Ji Bai with a worried face. "I can't get in touch with Qing Mian. She won't be in any trouble, will she?"
Ji Bai glanced at the clock on the wall. "My dear, it's six o'clock in the morning. It's normal for Qing Mian not to answer the phone. Isn't she always a late - sleeper? Don't worry. She must still be sleeping."
"Be good. Don't think too much. Go back to sleep quickly. You have a meeting at the company early tomorrow morning."
As Ji Bai spoke, he put his arm around Lu Wenxi's shoulder and pulled her back into the quilt.
Lying down, Lu Wenxi was still a little worried. She struggled out of the man's arms.
"No, I'll call Brother Chi Yu. I always feel flustered."
Lu Wenxi had no intention of sleeping.
Her fingers tapped quickly on the screen. Just as she was about to dial Chi Yu's number, Ji Bai's phone beside him suddenly rang.
"Hello. May I ask if this is Mr. Ji?"
Ji Bai answered the phone. A strange male voice came from the other end.
The surrounding sounds were a bit noisy.
Ji Bai frowned subconsciously. "I am."
"Your friend is drunk. Could you please come and pick him up?"
Hearing this, the two quickly got out of bed.
"Chen Yu'an went to the bar and got drunk again? He's been drinking too much recently, hasn't he?"
Lu Wenxi reflexively thought it was Chen Yu'an.
His recent behaviors had always been quite despised by Lu Wenxi.
Instead of thinking about how to make up for his mistakes, he drank and smoked day and night. If she were Qing Mian, she definitely wouldn't forgive him.
But hadn't he been behaving himself for a while?
Why did he suddenly start drinking again today?
Could it be that he already knew about Qing Mian's situation?
It didn't make sense. Ji Bai hadn't told him about this yet. He shouldn't have known.
"Wenxi, you should stay at home and have a good rest. I'll go by myself."
It was still early in the morning. Ji Bai didn't want Lu Wenxi to go through the trouble.
But the woman had already put on her clothes. "Let's go together. Anyway, I can't sleep. We can just drop by to see Mianbao later."
Hearing her say this, Ji Bai didn't decline anymore. The two of them went out together.
Not long after.
The two arrived at the location sent by the waiter.
"Isn't this the place where Brother Chi Yu's family used to live? Why did Chen Yu'an suddenly come here?"
Lu Wenxi looked at the surrounding environment and asked in confusion.
Soon, the confusion in Lu Wenxi's mind was answered.
The one who was dead drunk in the bar wasn't Chen Yu'an. It was Chi Yu.
Lu Wenxi looked at the man in surprise and couldn't say a word for a long time.
This was the first time she had seen Chi Yu in such a state.
Ji Bai was much calmer than Lu Wenxi. He sighed, took a step towards Chi Yu, and sighed.
"Is it in fashion to get dead drunk these days or what?"
Last time it was Chen Yu'an, this time it was Chi Yu. Next time, wouldn't it be Lu Wenxuan's turn?