A beautiful summer night

In late November, the temperature plummeted. The rooftop garden on the top floor of Xingyao Building was nearing completion, and Xia Wanzhi's studio door was covered in dust from the construction.

Xie Qiyan called a few people to help Zhu Zi clean up. It was cold and rainy, and it was the weekend. He rarely had a free day, so he didn't want Xia Wanzhi to go out and kept her in his arms all to himself.

The two snuggled on the sofa watching a movie. Xie Qiyan pulled the blanket that had slipped onto her lower abdomen up a little, his fingertips intentionally or unintentionally brushing against her chest, startling Xia Wanzhi so much that she grabbed his hand to stop him from moving.

She turned her head sharply and glared at him, then continued to lean against his chest, watching the movie intently.

Xie Qiyan's expression relaxed, and he continued to pinch her fingers and ears from time to time.

As soon as the movie ended, Xia Wanzhi slapped his thigh without hesitation: "You're like a fly, making me itchy."

Xie Qiyan was in a good mood, so he picked up a cherry and fed it to her, teasing, "Little princess has even seen flies before."

Xia Wanzhi rolled her eyes at him.

Too lazy to pay attention to him.

With the arrival of winter, Changsheng became even less inclined to move around, and at this moment he was soundly asleep nestled beside Xia Wanzhi's legs.

When people have free time, they like to chat and talk about the past. Xia Wanzhi touched Changsheng's head and looked at its long, white beard, which made her think about its age.

Cats only live for a little over ten years.

Changsheng is fourteen years old this year.

Noticing Xia Wanzhi's unusual mood, Xie Qiyan glanced at the soundly sleeping Changsheng, leaned over and hugged her from behind, resting his chin on her shoulder, his deep voice slowly flowing out: "You've met Changsheng before."

These words immediately pulled Xia Wanzhi back from her dejected mood: "When?"

Changsheng seemed to have overheard them talking about him. He woke up from his sleep, glanced at the two who were showing affection, meowed, and walked into Xia Wanzhi's arms for a hug.

Xia Wanzhi hugged it and scratched its itch, and Changsheng purred comfortably.

Xie Qiyan held Xia Wanzhi in his arms.

Xia Wanzhi held Changsheng in her arms.

They looked just like a warm and loving family.

"When it was three months old." Looking back now, he realized that he had adopted Changsheng fourteen years ago.

Xia Wanzhi calculated backwards in time: "Isn't that... when I was eleven years old?"

Even though I was a child, I could still remember things. But just because many years have passed doesn't mean I can remember everything.

With the exact time confirmed, Xia Wanzhi was stunned, wondering when she had met Changsheng that year.

Xie Qiyan chuckled softly and prompted her, "Yes, in the summer of that year."

That summer, it was also a week before Xie Qiyan went abroad.

A lost little orange tabby cat, barely the size of a palm, wandered into the Xie family's backyard and was encountered by Xia Wanzhi, who was visiting the Xie family.

She fed it water and dried fish. She wanted to keep it, but one of her parents was allergic to cat fur, and the other was afraid of cats.

That day, Xia Wanzhi, filled with guilt and reluctance, sat under the century-old tree of the Xie family and chatted with the little orange cat for more than an hour.

What she didn't know was that twelve-year-old Xie Qiyan had been lying on that tree listening to her rambling for over an hour that day.

Xia Wanzhi left, intending to find her parents to adopt the little orange cat. Before leaving, she didn't care whether the kitten understood or not, and specifically told it not to leave.

In just a moment, Xie Qiyan jumped down from the tree and snatched the little orange cat away with one hand.

So much so that when Xia Wanzhi brought Ms. Ross over that day and found the kitten was missing, she cried for a long time after searching around without finding it.

Some things aren't completely forgotten, but rather sealed away deep in the mind. And now, this memory has suddenly awakened.

"I was wondering where my cat was! It was so obedient! When I left, it meowed and promised to wait for me to come back and find it. I never expected that you, you bad thing, would steal it!" Xia Wanzhi was so angry that she pinched his hand that was wrapped around her waist.

Xie Qiyan even liked her when she was angry. He took the opportunity to pinch her chin and kiss her pouting lips before sincerely apologizing: "That's why I made it take your surname."

Xia Wanzhi was stunned.

longevity.

Xia Changsheng.

Xie Qiyan explained that he named it Xia Changsheng because they met in the summer.

That's one of the reasons. The other reason is Xia Wanzhi.

Xie Qiyan was also filled with emotion. Who would have thought that after so many years, Xia Changsheng would not only meet his benefactor, but also have to call her "Mom".

The reason he initially considered adopting Xia Changsheng was indeed because of Xia Wanzhi.

Xie Qiyan has felt guilty ever since he misunderstood Xia Wanzhi's good intentions when he was nine years old.

She can't keep a cat, so he'll keep one for her.

Upon learning this, Xia Wanzhi's earlier temper vanished instantly, and her gaze towards Xia Changsheng softened considerably.

As if it were destiny, the kitten she couldn't raise when she was eleven years old returned to her side when she was twenty-five and lived with her.

"Don't be angry, Mom." Xie Qiyan pinched her earlobe.

Xia Wanzhi bit her lip, turned her head and glared at her husband.

Xie Qiyan raised an eyebrow slightly and lowered his head to kiss her.

Xia Wanzhi didn't dodge. Zhuan Tou turned his head and tilted his face up to give him a tender kiss, while still holding Chang Sheng in his arms.

The dry wood caught fire, and Xia Changsheng ran away as fast as he could.

Niang Niang Jiang Jiang's days passed quickly. It was already deep winter in early December, and the weather had been raining for several days in a row. Xia Wan Zhi had returned to her normal work, but there weren't many orders. She worked one day and rested one day.

During work hours, I go to the studio; during my breaks, I draw Xie Qiyan's mother at home.

I've already painted the twenty-first one; there's only one left.

But another year is about to end.

The person has not been found yet, and there has been no progress on Xie Qiyan's end.

She was somewhat worried about Xie Qiyan.

Because of my concern, I spend a lot of time with them.

The weather finally cleared up that day, and Xia Wanzhi went out to bring Xie Qiyan warmth, carrying the lotus root and pork rib soup that he had specially made for her that morning.

She couldn't finish it all by herself, and besides, it wouldn't be fun to drink it alone.

Knowing that Xie's employees wouldn't know about her relationship with Xie Qiyan and would probably try to stop her from going upstairs to find him, she wanted to surprise Xie Qiyan while also ensuring a smooth passage, so she decided to go with Xie Tan.

Having a sister-in-law makes things much more convenient.

Since their relationship blossomed and Xia Wanzhi started occasionally sleeping at Xie Qiyan's place, Xie Tan hasn't been coming over to stay on weekends anymore.

Xie Tan was overjoyed that Xia Wanzhi had finally contacted him.

Although he was only ten years old, kids these days are precocious. As soon as he heard that Xia Wanzhi was going to bring warmth, Xie Tan pretended to be shy and teased, "You don't mind me being a third wheel?"

After bickering for a while, Xie Tan led Xia Wanzhi directly toward the elevator after arriving at Xie's. The receptionist was unsure whether to stop them.

Xie Tan certainly couldn't be stopped, but the other one...

Their status is naturally distinguished, but even the most distinguished outsiders cannot trespass without an appointment.

A receptionist nervously stepped forward to ask some specific questions, just as the elevator doors opened, revealing Yu Fei and Huo Yang standing inside.

They were both surprised for a second.

Huo Yang quickly regained his composure, but Yu Fei, quick to speak, blurted out, "Oh! The president's wife is here—"