Yan Jue did not speak. He went straight to the second floor, to Zhang Meiyu's room.
He pushed open the door, and the room was pitch black.
But with Yan Jue's keen senses, he could be sure that Tang Xiaomin was inside.
Using the light from the hallway that shone into the room, he could indeed see a bulge on the bed.
He stepped forward and turned on the bedside lamp, the yellowish light illuminating the room.
He saw Tang Xiaomin lying on her side, curled up, breathing evenly, and sleeping soundly.
Urgent footsteps sounded, and Tang Yu and the other two also ran up to see.
The noise woke Tang Xiaomin, and she frowned, about to wake up.
Yan Jue dotingly stroked her head and gently soothed her.
"It's alright, just rest well if you're tired. I'll stay here with you."
Tang Xiaomin opened her blurry eyes, glanced at Yan Jue, obediently closed them, and fell asleep again.
After leaving the cemetery, she had gone to Zhang Meiyu's room to sleep. She hadn't gone anywhere, and certainly hadn't done anything drastic.
The person was found, and now they could all relax.
After Tang Yu and the others left the room, Tang Yu and Tang Ye both looked at Tang Yan with reproachful eyes.
"You said Xiaomin hadn't come back. Then how is she sleeping in Mom's room?"
Tang Yan scratched his head.
"I checked her room, and she wasn't there. How was I supposed to know she would suddenly go to sleep in Mom's room?"
Would anyone be comfortable with such an explanation?
"I asked you to search the house properly, and this is how you searched?"
"Do you know how many people were anxiously looking for her because of your negligence!" Tang Ye said with a scolding tone.
Tang Yan also felt very bad about causing such a misunderstanding.
But to be scolded for it, he instantly lost his temper.
"How was I supposed to know she'd go to Mom's room? She's a grown woman, why doesn't she tell anyone where she's going."
"She's a grown woman, she can't just disappear. I think you're all just worrying too much."
"How can we not worry? She's our sister."
...
Yes, sister.
Tang Yan fell silent, letting them scold him however they pleased.
Next time something like this happened, he would dig three feet into the ground to search, so he wouldn't miss anything and wouldn't be unable to find someone.
And he wouldn't get scolded.
Regardless, it was good that the person was found.
In Zhang Meiyu's room, after Tang Xiaomin closed her eyes, Yan Jue stayed by her side.
It was only now that he realized Tang Xiaomin was now a child without a mother.
The deeper the love, the more unforgettable the hate. That wasn't just between lovers, but also between family members.
Undeniably, she had always deeply loved her family.
But fate was cruel, and it forced her to lose them.
He arranged for Lu Xing to create a travel plan overnight. He decided to take Tang Xiaomin out to relax.
The next day, they took a private jet to a small island near the waters of Modu.
The summer heat was intense, and the sun on the island seemed even more scorching than in the city.
To combat the heat, Tang Xiaomin changed into a cool, backless beach dress.
Even though she was holding a cold drink, she felt sweat beading on every pore.
If she still cared about her appearance, she really wanted to wear nothing at all.
Yan Jue was much better off, wearing only a pair of beach shorts with his upper body bare.
They lay under a sun umbrella on the beach, facing the sea, anticipating the cool sea breeze that occasionally blew in.
Blue sky, white clouds, the boundless blue sea, with no land in sight all around.
This small island seemed like an independent little world.
Their own little world.
Yes, besides them, there was no one else on the island.
"It's too hot, I want to go back and sit in the air conditioning," Tang Xiaomin said, wiping her sweat.
Although the scenery was beautiful, she didn't have the mood to look at it.
"Experts say that staying in air conditioning for too long can cause air conditioning sickness. How can air conditioning be as comfortable as the sea breeze? Stay with me a little longer."
Yan Jue, having finally taken her out to relax, wouldn't let her stay cooped up in the room.
"Then can you move over a bit? It's too hot to be this close."
Yes, they were lying on the same not-so-large lounge chair.
The temperature was already high, and with Yan Jue's body heat, Tang Xiaomin felt like she was in a sauna on the beach.
"Is it really that hot?"
"Yes, I'm already sweating all over."
"Then let me think of a solution."
...
A few minutes later, Yan Jue moved the lounge chair and the sun umbrella into the water, but to a position where they wouldn't be submerged.
This made it much cooler.
There was no choice but to continue to squeeze on the lounge chair with Yan Jue, still looking at the blue sky, white clouds, and the sea.
"My brothers, and my adoptive parents, they will all leave me one day."
"Lu Xing and Zhong Li, perhaps they will also get tired of this endless, day-to-day existence."
"Yan Jue, how long will you stay with me?"
She asked the heaviest question with the most casual tone.
"That's a question I should be asking you."
"All along, it's been me chasing your footsteps."
"If you care about me, you should love me more."
Her voice, tinged with a hint of grievance, was filled with a hint of complaint.
Was he being coquettish with her?
Thinking back, she did indeed neglect him from time to time, without even realizing it herself.
If he hadn't been so steadfast, anyone else she neglected from time to time would have probably given up and left long ago.
She rubbed her head against his firm, strong arm, like a kitten.
"Yan Jue, I love you."
This statement felt like an empty platitude.
The man didn't even look at her, his gaze fixed on the blue sky and sea in the distance.
"You're too fake. I can't feel your love at all."
"Then..."
Tang Xiaomin suddenly flipped over and, with little pretense, pressed herself onto Yan Jue.
She was on top.
He was below.
The cool sea breeze couldn't dissipate the heat of the moment.
"How do you want me to make you feel it?"
Her bold move was rare.
Yan Jue tilted his head and took a sip of his cold drink, hiding his urge to swallow.
He said with great seriousness.
"Love isn't something to be spoken, it's something to be done."
"What do you say?"
To be done.
The hint couldn't be more obvious.