After the successful albeit disastrous meeting with Lu Liang, Hu Lei rode her motorcycle back to the Westend apartment, took a shower and dressed up nicely. She was a bit nervous about meeting Fai again and explaining things to him. The least she could do was look presentable and mature. If she knew Zhong Feng as well as she did, she knew that he would not be forthcoming with the boy.

She mulled about the situation.

Could she tell Fai the true story about her and their father? What was even the true story? Could she justify the reason he had grown up in such conditions while he had two able parents walking the surface of the earth? And could she promise him that she could be the guardian he deserved?

A little voice in her, like a cold serpent, answered: no.

She looked at the mirror and the woman looking back seemed to smile sardonically at her. That familiar yet alien smirk on her face seemed to know her struggles and concerns. And she mocked her for her obvious weakness. Hu Lei could almost hear her telling her to shed her feebleness and embrace the power in her darkness.

That woman, shrouded in a fog of shadows, who she had buried deep inside, seemed to reach out to her through the looking glass. Even as she mocked, she did not want to abandon the helpless Hu Lei who seemed to be at the edge of shattering. Instead, she wanted to remind her of the strength that she had given her in the cold prison in Antarctica. How she had helped her hold on for so long until help had come..

And she wanted to lend her strength once again.. Their strength..

Hu Lei raised her hand and lifted it towards the mirror, craving the release of the pain and confusion weighing her down. But when her hand would have touched that hand reaching out to her, her phone rang, and the illusion shattered.

All that remained in the mirror was her cute image in a pretty dress.

She tried to shrug off the melancholic shroud of the surreal vision and picked the phone.

"Are you already at the house?" She asked.

Zhong Feng sensed her poor state immediately after hearing her voice. "No. I might be a little late. Negotiating with the Murong elder turned out to be a little challenging. Are you alright?"

Hu Lei smiled a little. "Yeah, I am just worried about Fai and how I will explain everything to him."

"He is a resilient kid. He will be ok." He did not mention that the boy would probably be so relieved to get out of the terrible homestead that he would not think too much about the explanation.

"Then, I will just go ahead to the house and wait for you there."

"The driver is on standby. Don't take the motorcycle. It's quite cold."

Hu Lei smiled. "Spying on your wife is a bad habit."

"It is not spying if you know." Zhong Feng paused. "Please be careful. Right now, there are no overt movements against you, but.."

"What is it? Tell me." She could hear that he had left something important out.

"We will talk about it later. Just be careful."

Hu Lei did not want to leave things like that, but she did not insist. "I am always careful. Don't worry."

After hanging up, she looked at herself in the mirror again. She twirled in front of the mirror and touched up her makeup before feeling like she was perfectly presentable. She really wanted to make a great impression as an elder for Fai.

Even if she was inadequate, she needed to keep up appearances.

Less than thirty minutes later, the driver dropped her off at the Area 99 house. She thanked him before walking to the entrance. She noticed an unusual vehicle parked outside, but she could not be sure that it did not belong to Ah-Feng. Still, she felt that it was strange that it was not in the garage.

When she entered the house, her entire body became stiff as she realised that she had been wrong.

"Hello Auntie, hello uncle." She recovered as quickly as she could.

If she had known that she would meet with this kind of situation, she would have taken the scenic route.

Chu Ling and Zhong Tian looked at the young woman with surprise. They had not been expecting that she would show up alone. Actually, they had been waiting for the couple to come home because they had received word that they would be staying in Area 99 for the night.

Chu Ling stood up and moved towards Hu Lei and greeted her warmly. "We are sorry for intruding. How have you been?"

Hu Lei felt like she had turned into stone as Zhong Feng's mother reached for her hands. Had she crossed to a parallel universe? Had her tether to reality finally broken and she was having a hallucination? Aaaaah!!!! Where was Ah-Feng when she needed him?

"You are scaring the girl. Let her at least sit down." Zhong Tian spoke up in his usual energetic manner.

Chu Ling laughed in a slightly embarrassed manner before returning to her seat. Hu Lei also found her way to one of the chairs. There was a long moment of silence before Hu Lei felt like she could not bear the situation anymore.

"Ah-Feng will not be back until a little later." She said. "Should I call him and let him know that you are here?"

Chu Ling and Zhong Tian looked at each other before the woman spoke. "We were actually hoping to talk you. Of course, we want to see Ah-Feng too, but our primary goal was to speak with you."

Hu Lei's body became stiff again. Since she had come back to Supreme City, she had not had good experiences with people who wanted to 'speak with her'. Still, she was not easily fazed.

"What can I do for you?" She asked the in-laws with a disarming smile. historical