Yun Muxi had now developed a phobia for phones. She picked it up warily and stared at the screen. Her eyes played tricks on her and she thought she saw the same anonymous sender again. When she opened the message, she realized that it was not a video. Instead, it was a simple greeting: Xiao Xi, have you been well? I've been busy recently and didn't have time to contact you! I miss you. Yun Muxi looked at the sender's name again. Instead of the anonymous sender, it was Lu Yang.
Yun Muxi's heart which had been beating profusely finally calmed down. She patted her chest as she took in deep breaths. A car pulled up in front of her and a pair of customized male leather shoes appeared before her. Looking up, she realized it was Murong Ye.
He frowned at her and asked out of concern, "Why do you look so bad? Is it your injury again?"
Yun Muxi's face was like a blank canvas decorated with two dark eye circles. Her pinkish lips were now colorless. She looked terrible and extremely fatigued.
She shook her head gently and spoke airily, "Nothing much, I didn't sleep well."
"You didn't sleep well? Are you troubled? Are you nervous about meeting dad today?"
Yun Muxi shook her head and stood up. The sudden movement caused her to feel dizzy. She would have fallen over if it was not for Murong Ye's quick reflexes that pulled her into his arms. He asked with a worried look, "What's wrong? Are you not feeling well?"
"No, I just sat for too long. My legs are numb and I felt a little giddy when I suddenly stood up. That's all."
"I think it's better for me to send you to the hospital to give it a check. I'm worried."
"I'm fine, let's go! Let's not make him wait."
Yun Muxi did not call him "dad". She was still not used to calling other men her father. Besides, after Yun Zhiqiang passed, she had not used this title for three years. It sounded so foreign and she had forgotten what it felt like to say it.
Murong Ye was a little hesitant but still led her to his car.
They drove for a long time and got very far away from the city. Eventually, they embarked on the twists and turns of a mountain road and did not see a single car from then on. It looked deserted. Murong Ye could not help but explain, "This mountain is ours, our old estate is on the top of the mountain. Don't think that it looks deserted because there's no one, the scenery is great, let alone the Feng Shui! Currently, the people who live there are Dad, our uncles, their wives, as well as first aunt. Second aunt has married off but we still keep her room. She comes back occasionally to stay for a few days. Our cousins have all moved out."
Yun Muxi turned to look at the surrounding mountains. She nodded and did not say anything. She was still unprepared about going back to the Murong family. She intended to continue holding her stance against Murong Qingtian.
Yun Muxi thought out a plan on how to negotiate with him. While doing so, the car pulled over in front of a big gate. The gate was tall and mighty, deterring people from going near it. In less than 10 seconds, the gate's door opened sideways and the car headed in.
Murong Ye reminded, "Dad has a bad temper and he is used to people obeying his orders. He will definitely not allow others to go against him. Do be mindful when you talk to him later, try not to go against his will. Also, don't talk about mom, that's his taboo word. If he's unhappy, you will find yourself very miserable."
Yun Muxi frowned as she listened to his kind reminder. While Murong Ye himself was as arrogant as a king, she could tell that he was very respectful and fearful of his father.
The car drove along a big road for quite some time before stopping in front of a palace-like villa. Yun Muxi had never seen such a big villa before. She made a quick comparison between this and the palace-like hotel that she had seen before.
There was a gigantic fountain in front of the big door and there was flora everywhere. The architecture style was magnificent. Yun Muxi found herself dumb-founded. Seems like the Murong family is really something else, the old estate alone is already so breathtaking. She could not imagine how wealthy the family was.
Back when she was still schooling, Mou Yichen had a birthday party and invited her. Their house was humongous too; there were a garden and a pool. Both the big hall and garden were big enough to host a 100-people party. Back then, she was mesmerized at how big their house was. It was so grand, a true testimony to their name. But now that she made a comparison between this and that, she found that Mou Yichen's house was like nothing; it was not even worth mentioning!
While still in awe, Yun Muxi followed Murong Ye into the house. They walked through a corridor that was a few meters long before entering the big hall. The hall was extremely resplendent and magnificent. The chandeliers hung up high made her dizzy and the sparkling clean marble floor could almost act as a mirror. The corridor was decorated with vases, framed quotes, and paintings. Without guessing, Yun Muxi could tell that they were priceless.
The center of the hall faced a flight of stairs. Yun Muxi followed behind Murong Ye and walked towards it. He turned and said to her, "Dad should be in his study at the time."
Yun Muxi nodded. She was mesmerized by what she saw today and did not know what to say. She looked unusually cramped and felt like a beggar who did not belong there.
Upon reaching the second floor, Murong Ye took a left turn and stopped in front of a door. He knocked gently on the carved wooden door and a stern voice came from inside, "Come in."
Murong Ye pushed the door gently and led Yun Muxi in by holding onto her hand. She received another by how big the study was. It was more like a mini library and was bigger than her house. There were two high shelves on both sides of the room and were decorated with a dazzling array of books.
Warm sunshine shone through the French window. A man was standing tall and upright in front of the window, back facing the door. He turned slowly towards them. Although he was nearing his sixties, he still looked energetic and could pass as a man below his fifties. He had black hair, was full of energy and stood really tall. Yun Muxi was taken aback by his domineering aura. The man looked really tall too. Although he was shorter than Murong Ye, he was about 180cm tall. His visuals were still sharp and attractive, he was definitely a very handsome man when he was younger.
Murong Qingtian's imposing manner caused Yun Muxi to become timid and looked down. He was not pleased with her looking down and remaining silent. "Why aren't you greeting your father? Is this how your adoptive parents brought you up?"
Yun Muxi was taken aback by his assumption and became mad. She would definitely not allow anyone to belittle his adoptive parents. She looked up and said firmly, "My adoptive parents taught me very well. It's just that I don't plan to recognize this family."
"Oh? Is it humiliating to have me as your father?" Yun Muxi could feel and hear his anger.
She forced herself to calm down and argued, "That's not the case. I don't care about power or wealth, I only care about feelings. I have developed deep feelings for my adoptive parents as they've brought me up. I will eternally be grateful to them. I have never thought about finding my biological parents because they are my parents."
Murong Qingtian scoffed lightly in disdain. He walked to the chair beside his desk and sat down. "Hmph! What fallacy! We're the ones that gave birth to you, we're the one that gave you life! How dare you say we're not as good as your adoptive parents!"
Yun Muxi could clearly feel his hostility but she was not going to give up. "I did not say that. You guys gave me life but did not raise me up. If it was not for them, I wouldn't even be here today. This is a fact that cannot be changed. That's why I never wanted to look for my biological parents. I want them to be my parents forever."
Murong Qingtian raised his brow and asked, "So you're blaming us for abandoning you back then? But we had a reason, we didn't want to do that. We've been searching for you ever since."
Yun Muxi calmed down. "I don't blame you guys. Since you had to abandon me, that means we're not fated, so why bother making up now? I'm doing well and don't intend to disrupt the peace in my life. So I hope that you can respect my decision to not return to my biological parents."
Murong Qingtian chuckled. He found himself liking this kid more and more. He was impressed with how she was not afraid of him. She was indeed just like his Ruoyan. He started to study Yun Muxi from head to toe. Although he had seen her pictures and knew that she looked like Liu Ruoyan, he was still surprised when he saw her in real life. He started to miss Liu Ruoyan even more.
Murong Ye was shocked to hear her speak like that, but he dared not interrupt their conversation as he was afraid of angering his father even more. Seeing Murong Qingtian remain silent, he thought the Yun Muxi had triggered him. To Murong Ye, it looked like the calm before the storm. Hence, he mustered up the courage and covered for Yun Muxi, "Dad, perhaps Xiao Xi is still not mentally ready to face such a sudden change. Please don't be mad at her, give her some time. I believe she'll be willing to come back after some adjustments."
Murong Qingtian knew that Murong Ye misunderstood him but did not explain himself. "Xiao Xi, I'll give you some time to digest it. I'll wait for you to come back on your own, but I hope you won't take too long. After all, we've missed 23 years together. I don't wish to waste any more time."
Murong Ye was surprised that he had agreed just like that. Instead of punishing Yun Muxi, he was letting go so easily. Murong Ye had prepared himself in case Murong Qingtian would suscept to outrageous methods to retain her. However, none of that happened. Murong Qingtian agreed to Yun Muxi without making a fuss.
Yun Muxi was also having a hard time believing it. She had yet to say those words she had planned in her head but her challenge was already solved.
Yun Muxi looked at him and asked with some uncertainty, "So you're saying that you will respect my personal opinion and not force me to return to Murong family?"
Murong Qingtian lifted the teacup on the table and took a sip. He spoke gently, "Yes, you're right!"
Yun Muxi began to feel some excitement but after a short while, he spoke again. "But I have a request!"