Regent, please maintain your aloof image.

The next day, Mu Jinchen arrived at the Su residence early. Unexpectedly, he saw servants carrying things out. He was puzzled. He then went inside and saw Juxia and the others packing their things. He felt uneasy and quickly walked towards Su Qianrou, asking, "Why are you packing your things? Are you going to leave secretly again?"

Su Qianrou had just woken up and was still a little dazed. She was drinking tea in a daze when she heard his words. She slowly looked up at him and asked, "Why are you here?"

Mu Jinchen strode over and sat down opposite her, saying, "If I hadn't come, were you planning to sneak away behind my back again?"

Su Qianrou put down her teacup and said calmly, "If I wanted to leave behind your back, I wouldn't have waited until now to let you see me; I would have left in the middle of the night."

"Then what are you doing...?"

"My mother's birthday is in another month, and I plan to go back and give her a surprise."

"You want to go back to the capital?" Mu Jinchen asked in surprise.

"Is it not allowed?"

"Of course, I'll go with you."

"what ever".

Mu Jinchen was overjoyed.

Just then, Su Xiaoxiao ran in. Seeing that he was there, she happily ran towards him and called out, "Daddy."

Mu Jinchen was stunned and couldn't believe it. He even doubted that he had heard it. It wasn't until Su Xiaoxiao ran up to him and called out "Daddy" again that he was sure she was calling him. He was so excited that he exclaimed, "Rou'er, you heard it! Xiaoxiao called me Daddy! She called me Daddy!"

Su Qianrou looked at his silly expression and didn't want to say anything to him.

Mu Jinchen stepped forward and picked up Su Xiaoxiao, saying, "Xiaoxiao, call out again."

"Father."

Mu Jinchen couldn't stop smiling.

"Daddy, can you take me to play in the street?"

"Of course, let's go now." After taking a couple of steps, he suddenly remembered something, stopped, turned around to look at Su Qianrou, and asked, "Rou'er, would you like to come along?"

"I have other things to do, you guys go ahead."

"Is there anything you'd like to eat? I'll bring it to you."

"No need, I didn't..."

“My mother likes to eat liangpi (cold skin noodles) and jiangshui noodles,” Su Xiaoxiao said first.

"You're so talkative," Su Qianrou glared at her.

Mu Jinchen tactfully replied, "I'll bring it for you."

Su Qianrou said nonchalantly, "Whatever."

Seeing that she did not refuse, Mu Jinchen was very happy. "You wait at home, we will be back soon." After saying that, he picked up Su Xiaoxiao and strode out.

Su Qianrou looked at the father and daughter and smiled gently.

A short while later, Liu Chengjun walked in and asked, puzzled, "Why have you put everything away?"

Su Qianrou was checking the accounts when she heard his question. She looked at him and asked, "What brings you here today?"

Liu Chengjun couldn't very well say that he was worried because Mu Jinchen was here, so he came to check on him. "I just happened to be passing by and brought you some fried dough sticks and rice cakes."

"Thank you... sit down," Su Qianrou said awkwardly, only then noticing that the room was a bit messy. "I'm sorry, it's a bit messy, please don't mind."

"No," Liu Chengyun said, sitting down to the side. "Why did you pack everything up?"

"I'm leaving in a few days, so I'm packing my things away."

"Leave. Where are you going?"

"Return to the capital."

"You want to go back to the capital?" Liu Chengjun asked in shock.

"Ok".

"Why do you suddenly want to go back? Is it because of the Regent?"

"No, even if he didn't come, I was already planning to. I've been away from home for five years, and it's time to go back and visit. Also, there's Xiaoxiao, who has never met her maternal grandparents. It just so happens that my mother's birthday is coming up soon, so I plan to take her back to celebrate with my mother and give my parents a surprise as well."

"How long will you be gone?"

"I don't know, but they probably won't be back anytime soon."

"Aren't you going to take care of Liangzhou?"

“Now that Liangzhou is on the right track and the people’s lives are improving day by day, I don’t need to worry about anything anymore. Besides, I still have you.”

Liu Chengyun knew that once she returned, he would have no chance with her again. Therefore, she wanted to fight for herself, but there were many people in the room, and she was too embarrassed to speak. "I..."

Seeing that he had something to say, Su Qianrou said, "You may all leave now."

The servants immediately put down what they were holding and withdrew one after another, including Chunzhu, who curtsied and left.

Soon, only the two of them remained in the room.

"Do you have something to say?"

Will you and him... get back together?

"No one knows what will happen in the future."

In other words, it's possible that Liu Chengjun was feeling very upset. After five years, he still hadn't been able to leave a place in her heart. After hesitating for a moment, he couldn't help but want to fight for himself, so he said, "Qianrou, I...I..."

Seeing his hesitation, Su Qianrou said, "If you have something to say, just say it."

Liu Chengjun made up his mind and said, "I love you. Will you stay for me? Don't worry, I will treat her like my own daughter." After saying that, he looked at her nervously.

Su Qianrou was greatly shocked and looked at him in disbelief, "You...".

“I fell in love with you when we first met at the chess club, but I couldn’t express my feelings because of my leg ailment. Later, you were forced into a marriage alliance, and I proposed a fake marriage. Actually, I had my own selfish motives. Unfortunately, you ended up marrying the regent. Later, you got divorced, and we came to Liangzhou. We spent every day together and went through hardships hand in hand. Those were the most unforgettable days for me.”

Su Qianrou was so shocked that she couldn't speak. Chunzhu had told her before that Liu Chengjun had feelings for her, but she hadn't believed it, saying that she must have seen wrong. She never expected it to be true.

Seeing that she didn't speak, Liu Chengjun became extremely flustered.

After a while, Su Qianrou stood up and said, "Whether it's your character or your conduct, you are excellent, but, I'm sorry, I..."

Although Liu Chengyun had expected it, she still felt heartbroken when she actually said it, "I overstepped my bounds."

"You are a very good friend to me, and a very important friend."

"I know... Um, I have something to do, so I'll go first. You go ahead with your work," Liu Chengyun said and left.

Su Qianrou watched his departing figure, feeling somewhat conflicted. Now that she thought about it, she realized that he had actually made his intentions quite obvious many times, but she had simply overlooked them. No wonder they say that bystanders see things more clearly; even Chunzhu could see his feelings for her, but she hadn't.

Thinking about it later, love isn't something that can be severed so easily. Even if you discover it earlier, it won't help; it will only put the relationship in an awkward situation.

Now, she will be leaving soon. After she leaves, I hope he can discover the goodness of other women and find his own happiness.

Chunzhu came in and saw her sighing. She asked with concern, "Why is Madam sighing?"

Su Qianrou walked to the couch and sat down, sighing, "Of all the words in the world, only the word 'love' hurts the most."

Chunzhu looked bewildered, but didn't ask any further questions.