As soon as the dinner ended, Li Mai ran off without even saying goodbye to her boss, Ji Wangyu.
Only after getting into a taxi did she dare let the emotions she had been holding back show on her face.
She had just arrived in Beijing and hadn’t found a place to rent yet, so she was temporarily staying at her senior’s place, You Huan.
You Huan had recently quit her job, which worked out perfectly—she could help look after the child for a few days.
Li Mai still hadn’t completed the enrollment procedures for her son.
By the time she got back to You Huan’s apartment, it was already ten at night.
As soon as she walked in, You Huan told her, “Chengcheng is asleep. He was very well-behaved—he bathed and went to bed by himself. I didn’t really have to do anything.”
Thinking of her son, Li Mai smiled softly.
“Senior, thank you so much.”
She had just joined the headquarters and had been extremely busy, with no time to take care of her son. These past few days, You Huan had been helping her.
You Huan waved it off. “Why be so polite? Chengcheng is my godson—basically half my son. Of course I should take care of him.”
Li Mai knew there was no such thing as “should” or “shouldn’t.”
It was simply because her senior was kind.
She had helped Li Mai a lot.
You Huan noticed that Li Mai didn’t seem to be in a good mood.
She pulled her over to sit on the sofa.
“Come on, tell me what’s wrong. Did someone at work bully you?”
Li Mai shook her head. “No.”
“Then what is it?”
The dinner that night had drained all of Li Mai’s energy. She was exhausted, so she leaned against You Huan’s shoulder to rest.
“Senior… I saw Zhou Songyan.”
“What?!”
You Huan was shocked and suddenly turned around.
Caught off guard, Li Mai slid into her arms.
You Huan grabbed her and made her sit upright.
“Did I hear you right? You saw Zhou Songyan?”
Li Mai nodded.
You Huan asked, “Are you sure you saw a living person?”
Li Mai had searched for this ex-boyfriend for so long.
Five years, with no news at all.
You Huan had thought he was dead.
Li Mai looked completely drained, as if she had lost her soul.
“Not a ghost. A real person.”
You Huan was silent for a moment, then asked, “Did you explain things to him? Did you tell him about Chengcheng?”
Li Mai shook her head.
You Huan frowned. Something felt off.
Li Mai had been looking for Zhou Songyan for five years.
Two things had kept her going during those five years.
One was raising Chengcheng.
The other was finding Zhou Songyan.
Logically, now that she had finally found him, she should have been happy.
But instead, she looked utterly lost, with no trace of joy.
You Huan’s expression changed. “Has Zhou Songyan gotten married?”
Li Mai shook her head.
She had heard that the elite heir was not married.
You Huan asked again, “Does he have a girlfriend?”
Li Mai truly didn’t know.
“I didn’t ask.”
And besides, in what capacity could she even ask?
“Senior, I only found out today that Zhou Songyan comes from a very wealthy family.”
“How wealthy?”
“A powerful rich family. Extremely rich.”
“Didn’t you say his family ran a small business?”
“Yes. That’s what Zhou Songyan told me back then, and I believed it.”
“Why would he lie to you?”
“He hid his identity back then and went to a subsidiary company to train. The company I joined after graduation was actually his family’s.”
“But you were his girlfriend. You were together for so long—he hid it even from you?”
Li Mai gave a bitter smile. “He probably wanted to test me.”
“Damn it, who tests people like that? If he had told you earlier, you wouldn’t have broken up.”
Li Mai felt a sharp pain in her chest.
You Huan felt deeply sorry for her.
She knew better than anyone how Li Mai had lived these past few years.
That year, Li Mai had come to Beijing pregnant, looking for her.
She asked for help finding Zhou Songyan’s whereabouts.
Because Zhou Songyan had said he was from Beijing.
So Li Mai wandered the streets.
She said that maybe one day she and Zhou Songyan would bump into each other by chance.
You Huan couldn’t stop her and could only ask friends around her to help inquire.
Now it seemed clear—Li Mai was in a completely different social circle from Zhou Songyan. None of her friends knew him.
If they had known Zhou Songyan was so wealthy, she would have asked that person back then—maybe he would have known something.
Every day after breakfast, Li Mai would go out to wander the streets.
You Huan had to work and couldn’t accompany her.
Li Mai only stopped doing that foolish thing after she started bleeding.
She lay in the hospital for a full week.
You Huan tried to persuade her—
“Zhou Songyan is deliberately avoiding you. No matter how hard you look, it’s useless.”
“You’re pregnant now. You need to take care of your health. You can’t keep searching like this.”
“If the two of you are truly meant to be, you’ll meet again someday.”
Only then did Li Mai return to Su City.
But You Huan knew that all these years, Li Mai had never stopped asking around about Zhou Songyan’s whereabouts.
You Huan nudged the half-dead-looking person beside her. “So what does Zhou Songyan mean now?”
Li Mai lowered her head. “Senior, it’s impossible between him and me.”
Leaving aside the fact that Zhou Songyan hated her—
He was from one of Beijing’s top elite families.
She was out of his league.
…
Li Mai turned on the shower and crouched in the bathroom, crying uncontrollably.
Over the past five years, she had imagined many different scenes of reuniting with Zhou Songyan.
But she had never expected it to be like this.
Even if she explained everything to him now—told him they had a child—
What would Zhou Songyan think of her?
Would he come back to her?
No. Zhou Songyan hated her.
And he might already have a girlfriend.
You Huan leaned against the bathroom wall by the door, her eyes filled with sorrow.
For Li Mai.
And for herself.
…
The next day, Li Mai took a day off to rent an apartment—a two-bedroom with a living room.
The décor was a bit old-fashioned, but it was clean, and the rent was within her budget.
It was close to a kindergarten. Turn right after leaving the building, cross one traffic light, and it was a five-minute walk.
She returned to You Huan’s place.
Her senior was still asleep.
Since she wasn’t working lately, her schedule was completely reversed.
“Mom, you’re back.”
A little child ran up to her barefoot.
Li Mai changed her shoes and gently rubbed her son’s soft hair.
“Did you brush your teeth?”
“Yes! I even washed my face by myself.”
“Good. You’re very diligent today—well done.”
“Go wake your godmother and tell her it’s time for breakfast.”
“Okay!”
The little boy ran off.
“Godmother! Godmother, wake up! Time to eat!”
He shouted while knocking on the door.
You Huan opened the door with messy hair and a tired face, then vigorously rubbed Li Chengcheng’s cheeks.
“Little loudspeaker, you’re so noisy!”
Li Chengcheng broke free from her hands and ran back to Li Mai.
“Mom, what are we having for breakfast?”
“I bought soy milk and fried dough sticks, buns, pan-fried dumplings, and pancakes. What do you want?”
“Pan-fried dumplings.”
“Alright. Go wash your hands first.”
“Okay.”
Li Mai set out the breakfast, then took a glass of fresh milk from the fridge and placed it in front of Li Chengcheng.
You Huan washed her face and came over to sit down, stuffing a fried dough stick into her mouth.
“What time did you get up?”
Li Mai replied, “Six.”
“Why so early? By the way, aren’t you supposed to work today? Why are you back?”
“I took the day off to look at apartments.”
“After breakfast, help me move.”
“Move what? Just live here.”
Li Mai smiled. “Forget it. If we stay any longer, it’ll affect you finding a boyfriend.”
You Huan took a sip of soy milk indifferently. “I’m not looking for a boyfriend. I’m fine on my own.”
Li Mai didn’t want to disturb her. She herself was different—she had a child with her.
You Huan was used to living alone.
“The apartment is right next to the kindergarten. It’ll be convenient for me to pick up and drop off Chengcheng.”
You Huan said nothing more.
“Alright then. I’ll drive you over later.”
“Thank you, Senior.”
After moving and settling into the new place, Li Mai started work again.
As soon as she arrived at the company, Ji Wangyu called her into his office.
“What’s going on between you and Zhou Songyan?”