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

Those cool eyes looked at her with scrutiny, as if trying to see through her.

When their eyes met for a fleeting second, Xu Xiangjun felt a pang of panic and looked away. She had no intention of lingering in front of him and turned to leave.

"What are they plotting this time?"

His words were like a knife stabbing into her heart; Xu Xiangjun had no one to blame for what he said.

She slowly turned around, and this time, she dared to meet his gaze directly. In the past five years, they had only met a handful of times.

It only happened once or twice.

He hated her to the core; the fact that he didn't kick her out of the Shen family was already an act of great kindness.

It's understandable that he hates her.

Xu Xiangjun had no room for rebuttal.

"About Ayan... I was wrong. I shouldn't have gone against your decision and given birth to Ayan. Back then, I couldn't be without desires while I was by your side. I was greedy. I wanted your love. I also wanted to be like Jiang Hua, living freely without having to worry about others. I wanted to be the mayor's wife, and I wanted your love even more. I've seen the price I paid for scheming against you back then. I admit I was wrong, I was delusional. I'm paying the price for my mistakes. I'm repenting, but I don't regret it. I don't regret giving birth to this child. I'll be with Chu Heng properly from now on. I only ask you, please don't refuse me the right to see Ayan."

"It was my fault for showing up in front of you. I promise this is the last time."

Over the course of five years, she raised Ayan alone in the Shen family's old house, and she had already come to understand.

What doesn't belong to her shouldn't be a source of unrealistic fantasies.

Xu Xiangjun spent half an hour preparing the meal. After leaving the study, instead of exiting through the main entrance, she secretly left alone through the west gate.

She was resolute and showed no regrets.

He wouldn't enjoy being with her.

With Aunt Mei around, the old lady will be well taken care of.

One glance was enough.

From the roadside trash can where she left the Shen family home, Xu Xiangjun saw the pile of miscellaneous items, all of which were things she had used and touched.

The servants were burning the clothes, the red light flickering, but Xu Xiangjun left without looking back.

The gray sedan pulled up in front of her. Once the car stopped, Yue Chuheng got out and opened the passenger door.

Wait for the car to start moving slowly.

"I'm sorry for keeping you waiting for so long."

Yue Chuheng gripped the steering wheel and drove intently. "No need to apologize to me. I just finished dealing with my student's thesis."

He didn't ask anything else.

Xu Xiangjun was conflicted and hesitant, but still explained, "Grandma has Alzheimer's disease and can't take care of herself. She was bedridden before. Over the years, Grandma has been very good to me and Ayan. She just woke up and said she wanted to eat the sweet and sour pork I make, so I stayed and cooked her a meal."

Yue Chuheng said, "If you want, you can stay here and spend more time with her. I'll pick you up later."

Xu Xiangjun: "No, thank you."

"You didn't eat much for lunch, yet you still brought it to me. That's already a lot of trouble for you."

"It would be enough to see her one more time."

He wouldn't want her to stay any longer either.

Seeing that her mother hadn't come downstairs yet, Ayan got off the chair in the lobby. "Why hasn't Mom come down yet?"

Xie Huai explained from the side, "Perhaps it's Miss Xu, she's discussing something with the mayor. Young master, please wait a moment."

"Clatter!" Just then, a pair of chopsticks fell to the ground.

Ayan looked over and asked, "Great-grandmother?"

He picked up the chopsticks from the ground, intending to place them in her hand, but found that her hand was stiff and did not move.

"Great-Grandma! What's wrong?"

The servants immediately sensed something was wrong, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.

People surged forward.

"Old lady!"

"Old lady!"

"Grandma!"

There was no response whatsoever.

A half-eaten piece of sweet and sour pork lay on the table. The old lady, dressed in red, had her head bowed, her eyes closed, and a faint smile playing on her lips.

Hurried footsteps echoed down the corridor as Xie Huai strode upstairs to his study. He knocked on the door and reported in a somber tone, "Mayor, two minutes ago... the old lady... passed away."

Shen Yebai's pupils widened slightly in surprise as a car drove away through the French windows, heading towards the west gate.

After a long silence, he raised his hand and gestured.

Xie Huai nodded and lowered his head, then immediately turned and left.

The last member of the Shen family has passed away.

The once bustling Shen family mansion now appears desolate.

When Shen Bao'er arrived, she still hadn't been able to see her grandmother...

...

Jiang Hua learned of this news while she was at the hospital holding her test results, and one bad news after another followed.

Doctor, "Ms. Jiang, I'm sorry! Your current physical condition is not suitable for pregnancy."

"We suggest that you take some time to recover before considering pregnancy."

Jiang Hua left disappointed, holding the medical examination report in her hand, all of which showed the same result. This was already the fourth hospital they had visited.

Just then, she received a call from her father.

I have learned of the old lady's passing.

Jiang Hua felt an indescribable sense of loss; in five years, she had witnessed the departure of many people…

She was afraid of parting.

But it was something she had to face.

There was an indescribable sense of loss in my heart.

It made her a little sad.

As they walked out of the hospital's private entrance, Pei Zhan, carrying her bag and a coat, helped her put on the coat outside the door.

The weather, which was originally sunny, suddenly turned gloomy.

The air was damp, and it looked like it was going to rain soon.

Noticing her low spirits, Pei Zhan comforted her, stroking her long hair, "As for the child, let nature take its course."

"Don't worry."

Jiang Hua took the initiative to hug him and leaned against his chest, saying, "I don't like today at all."

"Pei Zhan, Grandma Shen has passed away."

"The doctor's examination results are still the same."

Everything is terrible.

She was in a bad mood.

Pei Zhan hugged her and replied, "Everyone has this day."

"So are we."

The ancestral home of the Fu family.

As soon as Jiang Hua got home, she saw Pei Xun, who had just come home from school, secretly playing games in front of the TV. When he saw her come home, he immediately put down the game controller, turned off the TV, and ran to Jiang Hua's side, saying, "Mom."

Pei Zhan took off his suit jacket, frowned, and said sternly, "I said you can only do other things after you finish your homework."

"If you don't listen, you'll have to do an extra test."

With his mother around, Pei Xun didn't bother with him at all. "Mom, where did you go? Why are you only coming back now?"

Jiang Hua pinched his chubby cheeks. "It's no use trying to be cute with me. From now on, you'll listen to Dad in this family."

"Go and do your homework obediently."