Qingyu was practicing a light breathing technique when someone knocked on her door.
“Miss, it’s Xiao Lan.”
“Come in,” Qingyu replied.
The door opened, Xiao Lan stood outside, holding the edge of her clothes.
Her face looked tense, as though she was afraid of making a mistake.
“Sorry to disturb you, Miss Qingyu,” she said quickly.
“Master asked you to come to his study.”
Qingyu opened her eyes fully and stopped the flow of qi inside her body.
“Alright.
I’ll go now.”
She stood up and had only taken a few steps toward the door when Xiao Lan spoke again, this time with some hesitation.
“One more thing, Miss… Auntie Yue asked me to clean your room afterward.”
Qingyu paused.
Only now did she look more carefully at the girl’s face.
Xiao Lan did not seem to have properly rested since arriving this morning.
Her eyes were a little bit swollen, and her movements were still stiff, like afraid of doing something wrong.
“Tomorrow is fine,” Qingyu said.
Xiao Lan immediately lifted her head.
“Huh?”
“You’re still new here.
Rest first, or help Auntie Yue learn something else.”
“B-but Miss’s room—”
“It won’t run away.”
Qingyu’s tone remained calm.
She even gave a faint smile before opening the bedroom door.
Xiao Lan even more confused.
Since arriving at this house, she had already heard too many stories about Miss Qingyu.
Miss Qingyu was quiet, timid, sickly, difficult to talk to, and often scolded.
But the person standing before her now did not feel like that at all.
Qingyu did speak softly, but there was no hesitation in her voice.
Her gaze was serene, and there was something about the way she stood that made Xiao Lan obey without thinking.
“Yes, Miss,” she answered with a small bow.
Qingyu nodded and walked out of the room.
Xiao Lan remained where she was for several seconds after the door closed.
Strange.
It was only her first day working here, yet she felt most comfortable when speaking with Miss Qingyu.
She hurriedly shook her head and went to find Auntie Yue.
Meanwhile, Qingyu headed toward her father’s study.
Lin Feng’s study was located on the other side of the second floor, separated from the master bedroom and the upstairs living area.
The corridor leading there was quieter than the rest of the house.
Several landscape paintings and old photos of Lin company projects hung along the walls.
Qingyu stopped in front of the dark wooden door.
The handle felt cold beneath her fingers.
She knocked once.
“Come in.”
Lin Feng’s voice came from inside.
Qingyu opened the door and stepped in.
The room was spacious, but not excessive.
Bookshelves filled one side of the wall, most of them holding folders, documents, and business books.
His desk was large and neat.
Several project folders were arranged on the right, while a closed laptop sat on the left.
The large window behind the desk had been opened slightly, allowing afternoon light and a faint breeze into the room.
Lin Feng sat in his chair and took off his reading glasses.
“Sit.”
Qingyu sat down in the chair in front of the desk.
Lin Feng observed her for a while.
“You really do look much better,” he finally said.
Qingyu replied, “My body feels lighter than before.”
Lin Feng leaned back in his chair.
“Auntie Yue said you’ve started eating regularly.”
“Mm.”
“And you rarely feel dizzy now.”
“The herbal drinks have helped.”
Lin Feng nodded.
It was an ordinary conversation, yet both of them seemed slightly unused to it.
It had been a long time since they sat alone like this without anyone else in the room.
Lin Feng opened a desk drawer and took out a small wooden box.
The box looked old, but it had been well cared for.
Its surface was smooth and glossy, as though it had been touched often.
He opened it, and inside lay a dark wooden bracelet with dense grain and a faint scent that felt clean and soothing.
“This belonged to your mother,” Lin Feng said.
Something in his tone softened.
“She used to wear it often.”
Qingyu accepted the bracelet with both hands.
The wood felt warm.
At first, there seemed to be nothing strange about it.
But a few seconds later, the Dragon Point in her chest pulsed faintly, so small it could almost be missed.
But Qingyu felt it clearly.
This was not ordinary wood.
A thin trace of energy remained inside.
It was very weak, almost gone, but still present.
“Thank you, Father.”
Lin Feng nodded.
“Wear it if you want.
Or keep it safe.”
He paused before continuing,
“Your mother liked things like this.”
Qingyu gently brushed her fingers over the bracelet’s surface.
A faint memory from the old Qingyu surfaced.
A woman sitting in the greenhouse while watering a small plant.
The wooden bracelet was on her wrist.
Her face remained blurred, but its warmth was still there.
“Is there anything you want to talk about?” Lin Feng asked.
The question sounded ordinary, but it clearly opened a door.
Qingyu lifted her gaze.
“Yes.”
Lin Feng gave her a small gesture to continue.
“The greenhouse behind the house,” Qingyu said.
“I want to use it again.”
Lin Feng’s brows lifted.
“The greenhouse?”
Qingyu nodded.
“I want to take care of the plants there.”
“For your health?”
“That is part of it.”
Lin Feng picked up the pen on his desk and slowly turned it between his fingers.
“You’re interested in herbs now?”
“I’ve been reading Mother’s notes.”
She was not lying.
Over the past few days, she had spent a great deal of time reading the old books and notes left behind by Qingyu’s mother.
Lin Feng seemed to think for a while.
“Your mother used that greenhouse almost every day,” he said quietly.
“After she left… no one truly took care of it.”
His voice did not carry deep grief, but there was an old exhaustion there.
Qingyu listened without speaking.
“Your stepmother once said the maintenance cost was too high,” Lin Feng continued with a faint smile.
“So in the end, it was left alone.”
“I can take care of it carefully.”
“Your condition still isn’t completely stable.”
“I know.”
Qingyu answered directly.
“I won’t push myself.”
Lin Feng watched her for a little longer.
“I think you really have changed a lot after this illness.”
Qingyu did not answer immediately.
A few seconds passed before she said in gentle voice,
“Maybe it’s because I spent too long only lying down.”
Lin Feng stopped turning the pen.
He looked at Qingyu a little bit too long.
Her sentence was simple, but enough to make him realize that perhaps he had truly never seen his own daughter’s condition all this time.
“Alright,” he finally said.
“You may use the greenhouse again.”
Qingyu nodded.
“But don’t work there alone,” Lin Feng continued.
“Xiao Lan can help you.
And if your body starts to fail, you stop.”
He paused for a moment and added some words.
“I’ll ask someone to fix the broken part too.”
“Alright, Father.
Thank you”
For the first time since she entered the room, a small smile appeared on Lin Feng’s face.
“You’re more stubborn than I thought.”
Qingyu did not deny it.
Lin Feng placed the pen back on the desk.
“Anything else?”
Qingyu thought for a moment before speaking again.
“I want to know about your business.”
This time, Lin Feng truly looked surprised.
“The business?”
“Herbs and logistics,” Qingyu said.
“I’ve heard the morning news these past few days.
The distribution routes for medicine and raw materials are changing.”
Lin Feng gave a small laugh.
“So you’ve started watching the news too.”
“Sometimes.”
“And what do you think?”
Qingyu looked at the folders on her father’s desk before answering.
“Your company sits in the middle.”
Lin Feng raised an eyebrow.
“Not the largest,” Qingyu continued, “but not small either.”
Lin Feng did not speak right away.
He only watched Qingyu and waited.
“Large companies are starting to control the distribution routes,” Qingyu said.
“If mid-sized companies compete only on price or volume, they will have a hard time winning.”
Lin Feng’s gaze began to turn more serious.
“Then what do you think?”
“What people seek in herbs and medical materials is not only cheapness,” Qingyu replied.
“It is stable quality.”
The room fell silent again.
Qingyu continued in the same calm tone.
“The greenhouse may be small.
But Father can use it to test the quality of plants, seedlings, or raw materials.”
“If quality is maintained,” she went on, “people will still seek out Father’s distribution route even if other companies are larger.”
Lin Feng stared at her for a long time.
“You really have changed a lot.”
Qingyu answered only with silence.
Lin Feng let out a short breath.
There was a sincere smile on his face.
“Interesting.”
He tapped the desk lightly.
“I’ll think about it.”
Then he stood from his chair.
“We’ll talk again later.”
Qingyu also stood.
“Thank you, Father.”
When she opened the door, she saw Lady Su standing not far down the hallway, as though she had only just passed by.
Their eyes met and Lady Su smiled.
“Finished?”
“Yes.”
Qingyu walked past her without stopping.
Lady Su remained where she was until Qingyu’s footsteps disappeared at the end of the corridor.
The smile on Lady Su’s face slowly faded.
Inside the study, Father Lin stood for a while, looking at his tidy desk and then toward the window, where daylight fell in without a sound.
For the first time in years, Lin Feng realized how little he truly knew about his own daughter.