Qi Shaobai's mind flashed with various guesses.
Could it be that he had made some mistake at school again, and the head teacher had told on him to her?
Or did she have a fight with Dad?
Neither seemed likely.
Qi Shaobai searched his conscience and found his recent behavior satisfactory.
His English scores kept improving, and his science subjects were stable.
Even his weak reading comprehension in Chinese, he had been losing fewer points lately.
That the young stepmother quarreled with Dad?
Qi Shaobai thought it even more impossible.
He had never seen Dad get really angry and quarrel with anyone. Usually Dad just had a cold face, an intimidating aura.
Moreover, in his humble opinion,
If Dad really quarreled with the young stepmother, it was hard to say who would prevail.
Dad was more likely to be silently unhappy and sullen.
Of course Sheng Mumu didn't know Qi Shaobai had imagined so much in a few seconds.
Her gaze turned on the boy's puzzled face.
Her lips moved a few times, but she just couldn't tell Qi Shaobai the truth.
She only said, "Nothing, just a little tired from work today."
She forced a smile and lifted the corners of her lips.
Without meeting Qi Shaobai's doubtful eyes, she went straight to the kitchen.
To make the lie more believable, more casual.
She randomly grabbed some snacks and drinks, went upstairs with them, taking care to quicken her steps.
...
Qi Shaobai stood in the middle of the living room, frowning after her.
Seeing her relaxed back, he gradually dismissed the doubts in his heart.
After a few seconds of hesitation, he shrugged.
Maybe he had read too hard recently and muddled his mind, overthinking things.
When Qi Mo returned home after dinner, it was ten o'clock.
Pushing open the bedroom door, his chiseled features suddenly froze.
The room was not brightly lit, only a strip of lights around the edges glowed dimly.
Sheng Mumu sat on the sofa by the floor-to-ceiling window.
Holding some papers in her hands, head bowed looking out the window, her profile seemed very dejected.
He had never seen such a solemn expression on her bright, cheerful face.
His eyes darkened as he walked toward her.
The tall man's shadow gradually enveloped her slender figure.
As if making small talk, he spoke first:
"I'm back, why didn't you turn on the lights?"
Hearing the sound, Sheng Mumu looked up.
The air around her seemed to be shrouded in gloom.
Qi Mo's gaze shifted downwards, and his eyes suddenly narrowed.
At first he didn't notice the papers in her hand, but saw her palms flushed purple-red.
Qi Mo's brows knitted together. He half-squatted down, took her hands in his.
His calloused fingertips gently rubbed her palms.
Gently massaging them, he asked:
"How did you hurt your hands?"
Squatting as he was, his gaze was lower than hers.
From Sheng Mumu's perspective, the man's eyes were pitch-black, inscrutable.
Sheng Mumu pursed her lips. Letting him hold her hands.
After organizing her thoughts for a while, she slowly began:
"I went to Dr. Jiang's clinic today. Old Lady's test results came out."
She handed him the crumpled report.
"Old Lady has a brain tumor."
As she finished speaking, the hand gently massaging her palm stilled.
Qi Mo looked sharply at her. His shoulders visibly sank a little, and his already dark eyes grew even more unfathomable.
Sheng Mumu suddenly forgot what she wanted to say next.
It was the first time she saw a mix of panic and helplessness on Qi Mo's face.
Seeing him like this, Sheng Mumu's heart felt like it was smashed by a boulder, suffocating her.
Qi Mo's voice was low and deep: "Is the tumor malignant or benign?"
Sheng Mumu looked straight at him: "Benign, very small, it can be cured."
As she spoke, Qi Mo's expression relaxed a little, but still couldn't hide the gloom.
Sheng Mumu withdrew her hand from Qi Mo's.
The next second, she turned her palm over to cover the back of his hand.
Her tone was calm:
"Dr. Jiang's mentor, and his mentor's professor, are experts in treating brain tumors. They suggest sending Old Lady to Germany for conservative treatment for two months, she can recover. Dr. Jiang will go along to care for Old Lady."
Sheng Mumu's small hand obviously couldn't wrap around the man's.
She could only rely on gradually increasing force to convey her emotions, to reassure him.
Qi Mo stared at her unwaveringly.
The back of his hand felt her warm touch.
Her gentle, unhurried voice floated over:
"I'll go too."
Those simple four words seemed to have a soothing magic.
In an instant, Qi Mo's throat tightened, and his nose felt sour.
Hearing the news of the old lady's illness, he had almost collapsed.
But the hands firmly holding his now soothed his anxiety and panic.
He looked at her smiling, gentle face, and a softness rippled through his heart.
Suddenly he grasped her wrist and pulled her into his embrace.
Before Sheng Mumu could react, her head was buried in the man's chest.
His clean, crisp, cool scent enveloped her completely.
The back of her head was controlled by his big hand, as if he wanted to press her into his chest.
Sheng Mumu could feel his chin on her head, his presence extremely strong.
Qi Mo's low, hoarse voice carried a barely detectable tremor.
"Mumu, thank you."
If it weren't for her insistence on multiple checks for Old Lady...
The consequences were unthinkable to Qi Mo.
The pain of losing his sister when he was young was still vivid.
It was Old Lady who had pulled him out of the mire and restored his confidence.
He couldn't bear even a shred of bad news about Old Lady.
Sheng Mumu felt she could hardly breathe.
She was about to be kneaded into his bones.
The man's chest was very hard, not comfortable to lean on.
But she didn't push away, letting him hold her.
She knew this was the man's moment of fragility.
He would certainly recover, and become the indestructible giant again.
Become composed, assured, nonchalant Boss Qi again.
But right now,
He was just Old Lady's worried grandson.
An ordinary man who had longed for a hug, always afraid of losing something.
Just staying quietly with him would be enough.
The surroundings were exceptionally quiet.
In her ears was the strong, steady beat of his heart.
Outside the floor-to-ceiling window, the moonlight was clear and bright.
It cast their silhouettes in a misty silver glow.
