Originally, there had been hints that the departure of that woman had been a long time coming, yet at the time, he was simply too indulgent in his tastes to notice.
Mu Jinyu held the spoon, his gaze distant, his thoughts drifting back to those days...
Over the years, although he had seldom had chicken soup due to that woman's influence, it wasn't that he had never had it at all.
Back then, he wouldn't have thought much of drinking chicken soup, but today, perhaps stirred by Uncle Fu's words, the moment he sipped the chicken soup Gu Xiyan had simmered for an afternoon, memories of the past surged forth.
From the woman preparing him an extremely lavish dinner, to her crying on one side while admonishing him to always eat well, listen to his father, and not to make him angry...
Suddenly, Mu Jinyu felt an uncomfortable sensation in his eyes, as if sand had gotten into them.
He quickly put down the soup bowl, bowed his head and, while incessantly scooping up chicken soup with his spoon and bringing it to his mouth, he mumbled unclearly, "It's really delicious, your cooking skills have improved too quickly, making me drool."
"Drip drop!"
"Drip drop…"
Mu Jinyu bowed his head, engrossed in drinking the soup, as drops of clear liquid gathered at the edge of his mouth, slid a few times and still fell, some splashing onto the table, some into the soup.
Gu Xiyan watched him, her heart extremely heavy, unsure of what exactly was wrong with him.
Mu Jinyu gulped down the entire bowl of chicken soup, then lowered his head to pull out a few tissues to wipe the corners of his mouth, cleansing the drool that had escaped!
"Ding dong!"
At that moment, the doorbell rang just in time.
Gu Xiyan, not knowing whether it was Wen Rou returning, but fearing that sitting still would make Mu Jinyu even more embarrassed, quickly stood up and said, "I'll get the door."
After speaking, she donned her slippers and ran toward the door.
Mu Jinyu waited for her to leave before he raised his head, his eyes slightly red, took out a few more tissues to carefully wipe his eyes, and then discarded the tissues.
"She left already, why come back and disturb my peaceful life..."
Mu Jinyu murmured softly as he looked at the pot of small chicken stewed with mushrooms.
With worry for Mu Jinyu in her heart, Gu Xiyan approached the door with a frown, opened it, and saw a pretty lady standing there.
The lady appeared to be about thirty-something in terms of age but carried a mature, elegant demeanor, suggesting she was likely older than she looked.
"Who are you?"
Gu Xiyan observed the woman, her eyes conveying confusion and uncertainty as she spoke.
Upon seeing that the one who answered the door was not Mu Jinyu, a hint of disappointment flashed in the woman's eyes. Then, looking at Gu Xiyan, she smiled warmly and said straightforwardly, "My name is Su Zijin, you must be Xiyan, right? So lovely."
Gu Xiyan was utterly puzzled, feeling bewildered. But as Su Zijin spoke again, her few light words exploded like a bomb in her mind, buzzing so much that she stared at Su Zijin in disbelief.
Only to hear Su Zijin say with a smile, "I am Jinyu's mother."
Gu Xiyan was stunned for a long while, finally understanding why Mu Jinyu had been acting so strangely all day.
So, he knew that the mother who had abandoned him was coming back to find him.
Gu Xiyan's expression fluctuated, unsure of how to approach Su Zijin.
Should she share his enmity, swear at her, and then slam the door on her, letting Su Zijin kneel outside, full of regret and weeping bitterly?
But in doing so...
How could she know what Mu Jinyu really thought? If he was prepared to forgive her, wouldn't such actions on her part be fatal, completely offending her future mother-in-law?
Then...
Should she greet her as her mother-in-law? Or as 'Mother'? And then welcome Su Zijin inside respectfully?!
But if Mu Jinyu was not prepared to forgive and accept her, such actions would surely provoke him deeply, leading to utter disaster?
Gu Xiyan found it excruciatingly difficult!
If only she had known, she wouldn't have come to open the door; she should have let Mu Jinyu handle it himself!
"What? Won't you let me in?"
Seeing Gu Xiyan's conflicted expression, Su Zijin immediately understood that Mu Jinyu must have surely spoken of her; her heart sank, yet her face bore a gentle smile as she said assertively.
Gu Xiyan struggled internally for quite some time, but eventually, she extended her hand in invitation and said, "Please... please come in..."
She thought to herself, driving away Su Zijin, her future mother-in-law, seemed to bring her no benefit; better to invite her inside. If Mu Jinyu got angry, she could just play dumb about Su Zijin's identity and soothe him; there wouldn't be any trouble then.
So she gritted her teeth and made that decision.
"Who's here?"
Mu Jinyu had just finished his dinner too and walked out of the dining room with a calm expression, asking casually.
As he turned his head, he immediately saw Su Zijin, who had just entered the door and looked extremely excited to see him.
Looking at Su Zijin's face, Mu Jinyu found it somewhat familiar, then his expression changed, and he instantly knew who she was.
"Who let you in? Get out!"
Mu Jinyu's face darkened as he scolded.
"Jinyu, I..."
Su Zijin, seeing Mu Jinyu's rejecting attitude and his cold, disdainful eyes, immediately lost her excited expression, her face turned ghostly pale as she spoke in a trembling voice.
"Get out!"
Mu Jinyu remained indifferent, his voice even seemed to carry a layer of frost as he scolded coldly.
Unable to say anything further, Su Zijin glanced at Gu Xiyan with a pleading look, hoping she would speak on her behalf.
But Gu Xiyan, hearing Mu Jinyu's tone, dared not speak for Su Zijin. She gestured with her eyes a few times and then, while pushing her out, whispered, "Auntie, please go out first. His mood isn't right now; don't provoke him..."
Upon hearing this, Su Zijin felt helpless and pained, but she was also aware that she had indeed arrived quite abruptly. Mu Jinyu clearly wasn't prepared, and naturally wouldn't show her any kindness.
But she really missed Mu Jinyu. Once she knew she could come to see him, she discarded all else, eager to meet Mu Jinyu sooner and make up for the grievances he had endured over the years.
Yet she completely forgot that he might not be willing to forgive her for leaving years ago.
"Bang!"
After giving Su Zijin a few looks, Gu Xiyan closed the door.
Then she turned around somewhat nervously, looking at Mu Jinyu, bracing herself for his reproach.
But unexpectedly, Mu Jinyu did not scold her. Instead, he sat calmly on the sofa, seemingly lost in thought.
Gu Xiyan tentatively said, "Jinyu, are you okay?"
"Huh..." Mu Jinyu let out a breath, slightly shook his head, and said, "Get some drinks, I want to drink."
"Oh, okay." Gu Xiyan obediently and compliantly fetched several bottles of drinks from the refrigerator, red, yellow, white... all were there.
Mu Jinyu drank silently, quickly and urgently. His tolerance for alcohol was never good, and this time he didn't deliberately suppress it with his inner strength, quickly becoming drunk.
"Hahaha..."
Mu Jinyu, drunkenly lying on the sofa, laughed out loud, laughing unrestrainedly, laughing heartily.
As the laughter continued, tears also started streaming down.
Then, under Gu Xiyan's worried gaze, he sang mournfully:
"Who is calling Ruan's name, each word more painful than the last
It feels like asking if Ruan can handle the cold
No need for others to say, my heart also knows
It's your voice, it's your voice
Who lives in Ruan's dream, residing for a lifetime
Still afraid the sun might tear us apart
Though parted so far, Ruan still knows
It's your shadow, it's your shadow
Calling Ruan's name, Ruan uses a lifetime to carefully listen
When I was young, not yet at your side, you were my life
Calling Ruan's name, Ruan needs you to accompany
On the path of life, Ruan loves you leading the way..."