Light tea, warm sunshine, and a girl like a lilac blossom.
She lounged lazily on a bamboo chair. Artificial bamboo leaves above rustled in the breeze, playing an inexplicable melody.
Sister Yu. And her Xiao Chou Residence.
Today was the first day of school. This pedestrian street, far from any campuses, saw sparse business.
Families with students of all ages were busy sending them off. Almost everyone had emptied out. Few idle souls had time to stroll.
Besides, it was a scorching sunny day. Hardly any pedestrians wandered the street.
This second-tier city moved at a slow pace. At this hour, most were napping in bed.
The haircut rush had ended days ago during student prep week.
So Sister Yu easily stole a moment of leisure. Under a sun umbrella, she sipped tea and watched life’s myriad faces before Xiao Chou Residence.
They say life is but a dream. Not entirely true.
Sister Yu slightly adjusted her position on the bamboo chair. Making herself more comfortable.
Her cheongsam outlined mature, alluring curves. The hem wasn’t long. It revealed plump, rounded legs—white and smooth. Making one inexplicably thirsty.
One hand propped her cheek. The other held a round fan. Slightly odd. Yet unexpectedly harmonious.
It was two in the afternoon. The day’s hottest hour. Sunlight scorched the ground fiercely. Even in September, heat distorted the distant air.
Sister Yu crossed her legs. Fingers painted light red tapped rhythmically on the chair’s armrest. Producing crisp “thud-thud” sounds.
Amid those sounds, a car emerged from the warped air at the street’s end.
Its lines were smooth and simple. Seemingly ordinary. Yet radiating quiet nobility.
Small-town folks knew little of luxury cars. They couldn’t recognize the unfamiliar emblem on its hood.
Most on the street glanced up briefly. Then lowered heads to their own affairs. Others ignored it entirely. Things destined to mean nothing to them.
An invisible line seemed to split the car from the pedestrian street. Dividing two worlds.
Opposing worlds. Yet fused together.
The Maybach emblem sat on that dividing line. Shining with light that could scorch eyes.
Sister Yu watched the vaguely familiar car. Her tapping fingers froze.
Her expression turned helpless. She sighed. Picked up the purple clay teapot beside her. Poured a cup of tea.
*So that child came after all,* she thought.
The familiar Maybach sped swiftly. Few people on the road. It stopped quickly before Xiao Chou Residence.
In 2008, this “pedestrian” street still allowed some vehicles.
Sister Yu stared at the license plate she knew by heart. *Bad luck,* she muttered inwardly. Deeply troubled.
*Didn’t that child hate me, her aunt? Why visit now?*
The Maybach’s door opened.
A cute foot in white sandals emerged slowly. Toenails painted white like pearls. Round. Exquisite.
Sister Yu’s movements stiffened. She set down the cup at her lips. Spoke helplessly:
“You little girl. Didn’t you swear never to visit? What changed today?”
The visitor’s hand on the car door paused. Then moved naturally. She leaped down lightly. Like a fawn bounding through a mountain stream.
She stepped into the umbrella’s shade. Her smile bloomed like a flower:
“Auntie, I never said I wouldn’t visit. Those words were all my mother’s.”
“Then Auntie thanks her dear niece,” Sister Yu lifted the teacup again. “But why are you here? My dearest niece?”
“Nothing major. Just catching up on old times.”
“Catching up?” Sister Yu snorted.
“What old times could I—a discarded piece—have with you? No one visits the temple without reason. Spit it out.”
She paused. Her face flushed with anger:
“I’ve no time to scheme like you despicable schemers!”
The visitor remained unmoved. She sighed softly:
“Believe it or not... I’m only here to ask about two people. Nothing else.”
She tapped the Maybach’s window. Signaled the driver to lower it. Spread her arms:
“If I meant harm, I’d need two squads of scouts to approach you. Inspect the car. I guarantee nothing threatening inside.”
She shook her head. Laughed inexplicably:
“Auntie, you know my status over there. With your skills... taking me hostage to retaliate shouldn’t be hard, right?”
She narrowed her eyes slightly.
“So—do you still feel something for those cold-blooded relatives?”
Sister Yu’s expression stiffened. Coldness shattered. Revealing hidden anger and helplessness. Merging into a bitter smile.
She drained the teacup. Flung it to the ground.
*Crash—*
A crisp sound.
The bamboo-wrapped porcelain cup shattered. Even tough bamboo strands couldn’t withstand the force.
“Yu Qingyu!” Sister Yu’s phoenix eyes widened. “You really are cut from the same cloth as that disgusting mother of yours!”
Indeed. Yu Qingyu.
The one who inexplicably confessed to Bai Su. And forcibly kissed him.
Little Yu kept a faint smile. Unmoved. Only sighed—for the precious cup.
Sister Yu glared long. Finally exhaled deeply. Deep weariness colored her face.
“Ask what you want. This is the last thing I’ll do for them.”
Little Yu’s expression turned genuine. She nodded.
A breeze brushed past. She looked up at the rustling artificial leaves. Lowered her head. Asked softly:
“Auntie... in your eyes, what kind of people are Bai Su and Bai Susu?”
The breeze spilled cool green shade. Carrying time’s unerasable sorrow. Tousling Little Yu’s short hair.
That day. From here. A new story began.
[Volume 1 - Rebirth - End]
