No reconciliation, no forgiveness! Mr. Pei leaves with nothing.

Pei Zhan didn't explain much, only saying, "Everyone needs to be tempered and grow. In the Jiang family, only the capable can survive. It's survival of the fittest. Her design talent is her ability, and withstanding the pressure from the outside world is also part of the test for her. All I can do is give her a push. How she walks the road ahead is up to her."

Xu Zhoulan gave a meaningful, drawn-out "hmm," and asked, "Is it because of ulterior motives, or simply because of her design talent, which could bring her value to the Jiang family?"

“I remember nine years ago, there was a picture of a little girl in your wallet. She looked exactly like her. Could it be her?”

"In front of Miss Jiang, you're putting the girl you're hiding in your heart right under her nose. Aren't you afraid of making Miss Jiang angry?"

Pei Zhan calmly withdrew his gaze from that elegant figure. "As long as an employee is beneficial to the Jiang family, she will keep them, just like I will. She... is not as narrow-minded as you think."

"She's your employee, you can handle it yourself." With these words, neither too harsh nor too blunt, Pei Zhan turned and left.

Hearing the noise outside the door and the familiar figure disappearing around the corner, Song Qingran felt a sudden heaviness in her chest. She glanced at him briefly before quickly looking away. "Director Xu, what brings you here?"

Xu Zhoulan raised his hand and pointed to the time on his wristwatch. "Someone instructed me to escort someone back. You have five minutes to pack your things."

Song Qingran: "But I'm not better yet."

Xu Zhoulan: "We can talk about it tomorrow."

"Okay...okay."

Song Qingran, carrying her laptop bag, followed Xu Zhoulan to the underground parking lot. She sat in the passenger seat, and as the car drove out of the parking lot, another car stopped at a traffic light not far away. Song Qingran stared at that familiar car, lost in thought.

Xu Zhoulan took in her emotions, a wicked smile playing on his lips. "If you've been bullied, you can come to me anytime to tattle, and I'll make things difficult for you."

Song Qingran came to her senses and said, "No...no one bullied me. Director Xu, you're overthinking it."

"That's good. If you have any problems, feel free to come to me anytime."

"Okay." Song Qingran watched as the car in front of her drove away in the opposite direction.

Pei Zhan held an impromptu international video conference today. Due to issues with the financing project, it took a while. By the time he returned to Jinsha Shallow Bay, Jiang Hua was already asleep.

Xu Qiulan came downstairs carrying an empty bowl. "Mr. Pei."

Where is Huahua?

"Miss, I just finished reading and took a break. Mr. Pei has nothing else to do, so I'll be leaving now."

Pei Zhan dragged his tired body upstairs. In fact, he found that even after moving to a larger villa in Jinsha Shallow Bay than in Yulong Bay, he still lacked the feeling of being in the garden. Today at the discussion meeting, he had just learned another word: a sense of belonging.

This feeling requires specific conditions, environment, and relationships between people; it can only be experienced under specific circumstances.

Of the several properties under Pei Zhan's name, this one in Huayuan is the cheapest, but it has a different significance. Back then... it was only after he married Huahua that he finally owned the first house he bought with his own money for their wedding...

Back then, Mrs. Pei didn't need any material things to satisfy her. For her, being with him seemed to be more important than anything else. But Pei Zhan lost Jiang Hua, and now he can't find her no matter how hard he tries.

The more ruthless I was to her back then, the more I regret it now, having lost the Huahua I once knew.

Standing outside the room, Kagel suddenly appeared. "Madam, she has been in the capital for some time now, and she... wishes to see you."

"Soon, she will hold another banquet in Madam Bai's name, and she hopes that the eldest young master can attend."

Pei Zhan spoke softly, but his gaze remained fixed on the already sleeping Jiang Hua. "She's here? When did this happen?"

"Half a month ago, the master did not tell the madam about what you were doing in the capital. He only knew that you had some private matters to attend to, so you did not show yourself easily. You are currently staying at Madam Bai's house. The banquet is in five days. Madam wants you to prepare in advance."

"However, I suggest that you do not bring this young mistress along. In case she causes any trouble at the banquet and exposes her character, the madam will only worry more. Her health has only just recovered, so I hope that the young master will consider the madam's health first."

Pei Zhan's tone turned cold. "Then go tell that lady that my condition for joining the Huo family is that the Huo family accepts Huahua as their master. She doesn't need anything to change, nor does she need to deliberately restrain herself for anyone."

No matter what kind of Jiang Hua she is, Pei Zhan will never find fault with her.

Kagel had expected this answer.

Pei Zhan entered the room and covered Jiang Hua with the thin blanket that had fallen to the floor. Seeing that she was sleeping restlessly with her brows furrowed, he went to adjust the temperature of the thermostat system.

The cold fingers touched her face, and Jiang Hua was instantly jolted awake. Her sleepy eyes, filled with drowsiness, were filled with dissatisfaction.

Pei Zhan quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, I just wanted to cover you with the blanket."

"Five days from now, I'll take you to meet someone. Do you... have any requirements for the dress? I'll have someone prepare it." Pei Zhan asked very softly, genuinely apologetic for waking her up while she was sleeping. Seeing that she was awake, he simply asked.

Jiang Hua frowned, and angrily threw a pillow at his face. "Do you know how hard it is for me to fall asleep? Do you think I'll die if you don't bother me every day?"

"Get out of here!"

Pei Zhan, unperturbed, put the pillow back in its original place, got up, and went to the study, which had a door connecting to the master bedroom.

If Jiang Hua had a knife nearby, she would definitely have thrown it at him.

She slept for a while, but being woken up made it really hard to fall back asleep. Pei Zhan only found out then, otherwise... he wouldn't have taken the initiative to go up to her and upset her.

When Jiang Hua woke up the next day, she stood at the top of the stairs, wearing a white spaghetti strap nightgown, her arms crossed in front of her chest. She exuded a strong sense of resentment and looked down at Pei Zhan, who had just returned from a run and was wearing a white tracksuit. The servants beside her all lowered their heads and were busy with their own things, not daring to speak. They had never seen such a difficult young mistress.

The entire Jinsha Shallow Bay was filled with Jiang Hua's presence...

At this moment, those who were perceptive dared not utter a word or step forward.

Pei Zhan: "Good morning."

"Get lost~" Jiang Hua came down the stairs and deliberately bumped into Pei Zhan, who was slightly moved and took a half step back.

...

It's half past seven in the morning.

Song Qingran hadn't slept all night, squatting on the ground cleaning up the remaining puddles and water pooling in the corners. She could only use a towel to absorb the water bit by bit. There were still clear handprints on her face.

"I'm sorry, Qingran. It's all my fault. I can't even do this little thing right, and you got bullied."