Chapter 113

Chapter 113

"Same?" Yun Lan looked at her seriously but sometimes had... well, only to hear her ask, "Still having marital life?"

Jiang Yiyan: "…"

Of course not!

And she and Wen Mochuan never had any in the first place.

But it wasn't Yun Lan's fault; she didn't know the real situation.

So Jiang Yiyan just felt slightly awkward for a moment before quietly replying, "Not that one. Except for that."

Yun Lan, perhaps sensing the awkwardness, cleared her throat: "Then how can this be considered the same as before the divorce?" She added, "President Wen must have been chasing you all along, right?"

Chasing her? Actually, Jiang Yiyan didn't feel like she was being pursued explicitly.

She just thought that now they were simply a family of three living in a different place.

"He isn't a romantic person, so I don't think he's chasing me," Jiang Yiyan said. She wasn't inexperienced with being pursued; back in school, seniors had chased her fiercely.

Student romance is always romantic yet ephemeral. No matter how intense it was then, it eventually fades into the mundane and realistic.

After graduation, everyone went their separate ways, and relationships naturally grew distant.

Even if they didn't end up together, the beauty and romance of youth would be remembered forever.

Yun Lan spoke objectively: "Everyone has a different personality. Perhaps President Wen is just a low-key and reserved person?"

"Maybe," Jiang Yiyan thought it didn't matter.

They weren't kids anymore and wouldn't pursue superficial romance. Adult love is about enduring streams of life.

Yun Lan accurately grasped Jiang Yiyan's current mood and quietly asked, "From what you're saying... do you actually think President Wen deserves another chance?"

Jiang Yiyan remained silent.

Yun Lan laughed and said, "Well, you two have been getting along much better lately. Mingfeng told me your relationship has improved significantly. He said that before, President Wen treated you and your family out of responsibility, but now, he genuinely cares for you. You've gone through tough years together, and things are improving. Why not give him a chance?"

Jiang Yiyan still didn't speak.

Yun Lan knew she was thinking and didn't push further.

"I need to go; I have work tonight. If I leave now, I can still get some sleep."

So Jiang Yiyan drove Yun Lan home.

Two days later, after Wen Mochuan personally picked up Meimei, he asked Jiang Yiyan, "National Day is coming soon. Want to go out and play together?"

Jiang Yiyan thought, huh? Go out and play?

Before she could respond, Meimei jumped up excitedly.

"Go out and play! Go out and play! I want Mommy and Daddy to come with me."

Jiang Yiyan didn't indulge her daughter and directly said, "Your dad was asking me, not you."

So Meimei hurriedly grabbed her mother's hand and shook it. "Mommy, can we go out and play together? Please! We haven't played together in so long. Other kids' parents take them out during holidays."

The little girl sounded pitiful.

But even so, Jiang Yiyan didn't immediately agree. "Let me think about it."

Meimei was a bit disappointed, but Wen Mochuan said, "Mommy said she'll think about it, so you should be happy."

Meimei blinked and quickly understood, clapping her hands in joy. "Mommy, please think about it carefully."

Jiang Yiyan ignored them and left.

That night, after Meimei finished bathing, she quietly climbed next to her mother.

Jiang Yiyan was busy editing a video on her phone when her soft daughter snuggled up to her. She paused her work and hugged her daughter.

"What's wrong?" Although her daughter usually clung to her, she was growing up and had her own space. She usually watched cartoons and went to bed around nine.

She had become quite independent and no longer relied entirely on her parents.

Meimei remembered what her father said about the family trip. Seeing her mother hadn't agreed, she came to cling to her mother.

"Daddy said we should go out and play together today. Why doesn't Mommy look happy? Didn't Mommy always say Daddy was too busy with work and never had time to play with you? Now he has time."

Meimei was in kindergarten and understood everything, even though her speech wasn't always clear.

Her childish tone made her questioning sound innocent.

Jiang Yiyan replied, "Oh, every time I wanted to go out and play, he refused, saying he was busy and couldn't leave. Now that he can leave, does he expect me to go just because he says so? Am I not busy? Is my time not important?"

"But... but..." Meimei felt her mother might be right and didn't know how to respond.

But she really wanted to go, so she tried to persuade her mother.

"Your time is important too." Meimei affirmed her mother and then said, "But I see that Mommy hasn't been very busy recently."

"How do you know I'm not busy? My work is done on my phone," Jiang Yiyan shook her phone. "Taking photos and editing videos are part of my job."

Meimei suddenly pouted, looking like she was about to cry.

Jiang Yiyan was just teasing her daughter but saw she was taking it seriously, so she quickly said, "Alright! I'll give your dad another chance."

Meimei was about to cry, but when her mother relented, she immediately smiled and said, "I'll go tell Dad." With that, she ran out.

Jiang Yiyan couldn't stop her even if she wanted to.

Fortunately, Wen Mochuan lived right across the hall. Meimei opened the door and rushed straight to knock on the opposite door.

Wen Mochuan had just finished his shower and heard the knocking. He quickly walked to the door. Peering through the peephole, he saw the mother and daughter standing outside and immediately opened the door.

"Dad!" As soon as the door opened, Meimei rushed in.

At the doorway, Wen Mochuan stepped aside, gesturing for Jiang Yiyan to enter as well.

Jiang Yiyan thought, since there was no need to insist on keeping their distance, there was no reason to keep him at arm's length either.

After a moment of hesitation, she went in.

"Mom just agreed to go out during the National Day holiday," Meimei said as soon as she entered. "Let's figure out where we should go."

She acted like a little adult, which made everyone smile inwardly.

Wen Mochuan and Jiang Yiyan exchanged a glance before naturally looking away.

Wen Mochuan asked his daughter, "Where do you want to go?"

"I want to go to the beach!" Meimei had never been to the seaside before.

To be precise, she hadn't gone out to play very often.

"What do you think?" Wen Mochuan didn't immediately agree but first sought Jiang Yiyan's opinion.

Jiang Yiyan didn't have any particular destination in mind. Since they were going out, it was natural to prioritize their daughter's wishes.

"Let's follow Meimei's choice," Jiang Yiyan joked. "In our family, Meimei will be the boss from now on."

Only after saying this did she realize her mistake, realizing she had spoken out of turn. She pursed her lips, almost biting her tongue.

What did she mean by "our family"? She had already divorced Wen Mochuan; they were no longer a family.

Saying it so naturally meant she still subconsciously considered them a family. She felt embarrassed.

Wen Mochuan, however, didn't pretend not to hear and seized the opportunity to affirm her words. "This family is yours and Meimei's. Wherever you want to go, whatever you want to do, I'll accompany you unconditionally. I was too busy before and neglected you both, but that won't happen again."

Jiang Yiyan, who used to be a workaholic herself, could understand Wen Mochuan's past behavior of prioritizing work over family.

However, this wasn't the time to discuss such matters.

Jiang Yiyan remained silent, neither confirming nor denying his words.

Thus, the three of them decided on their holiday destination and itinerary.

Since Meimei wanted to go to the beach, they chose a coastal city. However, with many cities having beaches, they needed to decide which one to visit.

They eventually settled on Green City.

"I haven't visited my mother's grave in a long time. I wonder how tall the grass has grown," Wen Mochuan said. His mother was from Green City, and after her passing, he was sent back to the Wen family.

The novel didn't elaborate on this point, but Jiang Yiyan had heard him mention it.

Jiang Yiyan wasn't heartless. Thinking about his mother's early death, she felt sorry for him.

"You've been busy before and didn't have time to visit. She wouldn't blame you. This time, while we're out playing, let's pay our respects at her grave."

She then called their daughter over and gently said, "While we're on vacation, we'll also visit Grandma's grave."

Meimei had seen her grandmother, but only on a tombstone. She had never met her grandmother in person.

No one around her ever mentioned her grandmother.

"Okay, let's visit Grandma's grave," Meimei understood what visiting a grave meant.

To avoid traffic during the holiday, they traveled off-peak. They spent the first two days at the Wen family's old residence and the Jiang family's home. On the third day, they left Shenzhen early in the morning.

Green City wasn't far from Shenzhen. Driving during the holiday, it took about seven or eight hours to get there.

Leaving at six in the morning, they arrived in Green City around one in the afternoon, just in time for lunch.

Since Wen Mochuan owned a house in Green City—the old house he once shared with his mother—it was still there. However, due to its age and disuse, it wasn't suitable for them to stay there.

So, they booked a hotel.

After lunch, Jiang Yiyan took Meimei to rest, while Wen Mochuan went out to make a phone call.

Though his mother was gone, his relatives were still there.

Since he was back, it was only right to visit his elders or arrange a meal together.

With both grandparents gone, Wen Mochuan found his uncle's number and called him.

It had been years since they last contacted each other. After the call, he learned that the family had fallen out over compensation for relocation, leading to strained relationships.

As the eldest, his uncle felt guilty and said, "It's all my fault for not handling the situation well."

Wen Mochuan, not knowing the specifics, simply commented, "With more people involved, opinions vary, making it hard to please everyone."

His uncle seemed deeply troubled, finding someone to confide in. "Siblings fighting over a few thousand dollars is embarrassing."

Wen Mochuan fell silent, not responding.

Realizing he shouldn't burden his nephew with these issues, his uncle changed the subject.

So he immediately said, "Your mom was the youngest and everyone used to dote on her. It's a pity our family has this hereditary illness; your mom and her sisters passed away one after another at young ages." The atmosphere turned somber again, but soon, Uncle said, "I'll ask in the family group. If they know you're back, they'll definitely want to gather."

Wen Mochuan nodded. "Thank you, Uncle."

As soon as the call ended, his phone suddenly pinged. Mochuan looked down and saw someone had applied to add him as a friend.

The person introduced themselves, "Do you remember me, Cousin? I'm Jialiang. We used to go to school together with our backpacks when we were kids."

Mochuan remembered him; he was Uncle's grandson.

So he immediately accepted the friend request and added a note.

Mochuan wasn't used to chatting on WeChat, so having accepted the request was enough of an acknowledgment, and he didn't reply further.

But just after adding Jialiang, Jialiang immediately pulled him into the family group.

And introduced him, "Does everyone remember Mochuan, my aunt's son? He's back in Green City."

Suddenly, the dead group came back to life.

"Is Chuan back?"

"Haven't seen him in years; he must have grown into a fine young man by now."

"I heard Chuan runs his own company now and is doing well?"

"He's a second-generation rich kid; running a company is just for fun. @Wen Mochuan When do you have time to meet up?"

...

There were many more messages, but Mochuan didn't read them in detail. The general idea was that everyone welcomed him back to Green City and wanted to meet up.

Mochuan thought for a moment and replied, "Let's find a time when everyone is free. I'll book a restaurant, and we can have dinner together then."

The group fell silent for a moment.

Then, Jialiang spoke up, "We're all free during the National Day holiday. I'll book the place; the main thing is to get together."

Jialiang was the oldest among their generation, had gone to college, and had some experience. Now working as a civil servant in Green City, he was doing quite well, and the younger members of the family listened to him.

After he took the lead, everyone expressed agreement.

With the younger ones being so enthusiastic, the elders couldn't be too stingy and also said they were free, depending on Wen Mochuan's schedule.

So, Jialiang took charge again and immediately asked Wen Mochuan, "Cousin, are you free tonight? If so, I'll book a place, and we can meet up tonight."

No one said no, so it was tacitly agreed that everyone was free, pending Wen Mochuan's arrangement.

Of course, Wen Mochuan replied with a simple "Yes."