Jing City.

Mo Jingshen had just stepped out of a meeting when he received a call from Shen Mu.

“CEO Mo, Miss Ji did not rush to the Civil Affairs Bureau to check her files after returning to Hai City. I’m not sure why, but she suddenly went to Ji City.”

Mo Jingshen paused in his footsteps and scanned the partners who were greeting him from the side. He asked lightly: “Ji City?”

“That’s right. I haven’t heard of MN Group having any partnerships there. Furthermore, she went there alone. We don’t know anyone there, and the traffic isn’t convenient either. I’m not sure of the situation. The only thing I know is that Miss Ji bought a lot of presents before she boarded the plane. It seems like she has some friends or relatives over there.”

Mo Jingshen paused for several seconds before he continued stepping ahead. After a moment of silence, he said: “Her mother’s family register’s location was listed in Ji City when she was alive.”

“Could it be that Miss Ji is trying to investigate her own family background? But she went alone, is that suitable? Furthermore, it seems like the Ji family hasn’t been maintaining any contact with her mother’s family..”

“These so-called relatives who haven’t maintained any contact in years; the moment their heart grow treacherous, their ways are no different from the killings in the business world that leave no blood behind. A remote and desolate place breeds the wicked. With her current temper, its indeed unsuitable for her to head there alone.”

“Should we send someone over?”

Mo Jingshen glanced toward the windows at the end of the hallway; his gaze was fixed toward the south, where Ji City was located. He softly answered: “Wait for my return.”

..

The wooden bed frame was really quite hard. Ji Nuan originally planned to rest for a while in the room. However, the long journey she had taken was too exhausting. At the thought that this was the place her mother had grown up in, she also subconsciously let go of some of her defenses. Without realizing, she fell asleep.

Finally, when she heard the noise of tables being pushed back and forth and breathed in the scent of smoke and cooking oil, she recalled, in her dreams, where she actually was.

It was likely time for dinner.

Ji Nuan turned over and thought to close her eyes for a while longer when she abruptly felt a small force pulling something out of her hands. Ji Nuan subconsciously tightened her grip, but the other party seemed stubbornly intent on taking the item away from her.

Ji Nuan opened her eyes in annoyance but was startled to see Song Sisi standing by her bedside. She was currently tugging on Ji Nuan’s phone; it was this year’s latest model.

Song Sisi did not expect Ji Nuan to suddenly wake up and felt slightly embarrassed. She quickly moved her hands back and rubbed her skirt as though nothing had happened.

Ji Nuan lowered her head and saw many ugly fingerprints left on her phone screen.

She had been scrolling through her phone when she fell asleep and had forgotten to keep her phone away. Thankfully, she had been holding it. If she had placed it aside, these sisters would likely have taken it away, wouldn’t they?

1The price was of no concern. Even the clothes they had taken away earlier weren’t cheap; the sleepwear alone was above four figures in price.

However, her phone and laptop contained a lot of confidential information and contacts she typically used for work. That was her bottom line.

“Cousin, you’re awake?” Song Sisi asked intentionally. Her gaze secretly flitted toward Ji Nuan’s phone for several more glances. This phone was the latest model released this year, and it only became available on the market recently. The price was said to be near ten thousand yuan.

“En.” Ji Nuan sat up, unmoved; her expression was indifferent.

“Mom and grandmother asked me to call you over for dinner.”

“All right.” Ji Nuan glanced at the room door. If she was staying here for the next two days, she had to come up with ways to lock the door. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to even sleep in peace.

“Cousin, do you usually take afternoon naps? Are you a wealthy young lady in a rich man’s house? Do you not do any chores at all? Do you live by just eating, sleeping, and shopping?”

“I heard that Hai City’s Ji family is one of the four largest families in Hai City. They have so much money, it’s impossible to finish spending it. As a young lady from such a wealthy family, your monthly allowance should be up to several tens of thousands. Perhaps even more..”

“Cousin, your phone looks really good. It’s the newest model, isn’t it? You can’t have bought only one, right? Did you buy several more to bring here?”

“..”

Ji Nuan adjusted her clothes as she listened to Song Sisi rapid fire of questions. Ji Nuan had just woken up and did not have much patience to listen to this adult woman, who was clearly in her twenties, pretend to be a naive ‘young lady.’ However, as they were the last living relatives her mother had, she forced herself to be patient and expressionlessly gave her a few careless answers. Her responses were short.

Her aunt was calling them for dinner outside. Ji Nuan stood up and did not pay her any more attention.

“Cousin, you really didn’t buy more? Your one phone alone is worth up to three to four months of someone else’s salary. I’ve only seen it on advertisements..” Song Keke dilly-dallied, refusing to leave. It was as though she wouldn’t give up unless Ji Nuan gave in and announced that she would gift her phone to her. After all, once they step out of the room, Song Keke would definitely compete with her for it. She wanted to make things clear before they left the room.

When she saw that Ji Nuan was paying her no mind, Song Sisi rushed forward to ask: “Cousin, did you buy all of your things on your own? Do you have a boyfriend? Could it be that your phone was gifted by your boyfriend?”

Ji Nuan appeared not to have heard anything. She had already pushed the door open and stepped out.

Song Sisi immediately pursed her lips with an unhappy expression. She rushed to follow.

Ji Nuan was lazy to respond. If they continued with this topic, this Song Sisi would definitely come up with ways to trick her into giving up her phone.

After so many years, her mother’s so-called family was entirely fixated on Ji Nuan’s position as Ji family’s wealthy young lady. They were attracted to the Ji family’s lifestyle, and all of their words were sour tasting. They kept bringing up topics related to the wealthy and did not understand anything related to Ji Nuan and the Ji family.

At the dining table, her grandmother’s hands trembled slightly as she ate. However, she was stubborn and refused to allow anyone to feed her. Thus, her clothes had become stained with soup. The family had likely grown used to her ways, and no one brought it up.

When her aunt brought the last dish over, Song Keke was already sitting by the dining table, waiting for the meal to begin. She had changed into one of Ji Nuan’s dresses; it was a piece from a luxury French brand. She had a joyful expression.

Song Sisi followed her over, and the family sat down with various thoughts in their mind. Ji Nuan’s grandmother couldn’t help staring at her every once in a while, as she greatly resembled her mother when she was young.

“Ji Nuan, ah. You’re not young anymore. You’re in your twenties, aren’t you?” After sitting down, her aunt noticed that she didn’t put on any accessories, nor did she wear any rings. She knitted her brows to say: “Oh yes, twenty-four. Over here, anyone past twenty-five who isn’t married is considered old. Why aren’t you married? Don’t you have a man?”

Her words were too straightforward. Ji Nuan subconsciously paused her chopsticks, glancing at the middle-aged lady with a distant gaze.