"Tell , what is going on?"
At this mont, on the top floor of the Golden Lion Mansion.
Spencer, wearing pajamas printed with cute pigs, pouted. She sneaked a glance at the few doujinshi resting on the coffee table before imdiately averting her eyes.
This was solely because her mother, Elvira, was sitting on the chaise lounge right in front of her.
She wore a hazy black gauze dress, her long, slightly wavy golden hair resembling a lion's mane.
She shared the sa blue eyes as Spencer, but while the daughter's were as pure as the sky, the mother's were as profound as the deep sea.
Holding a glass of red wine, Elvira swept her gaze over the doujinshi on the table and asked,
"These adult works that Heather confiscated from your school bag, they belong to you, right?"
Those doujinshi were all An Le's previous works.
When the Doujinshi Society was clearing out their clubroom, she had plucked these two copies from a pile of doujinshi slated for disposal, intending to observe and learn from them in secret.
However, after bringing them ho, she forgot to take them out and hide them, leading to Heather discovering them.
"That Heather..."
Spencer had barely revealed a resentful expression when her mother's sweeping gaze made her shoulders tremble slightly.
Looking at her daughter's pouting face, Elvira rubbed the space between her eyebrows and spoke softly,
"It is still far too early for you to be exposed to these things. You still have a lot to learn, so focus your attention on your studies for now."
"..."
Hearing this, Spencer's pout deepened. She grumbled in displeasure,
"I am already grown up, it is not too early at all! My friends all know about this stuff, I am the only one who does not..."
That statent was actually true.
An Le's previous skill transfer had left her completely bewildered. Yan Huan definitely knew what was going on, and when she asked Jiang Yun, she had instantly understood too. Only Spencer herself had been kept in the dark!
This feeling of being the only one who knew nothing about sothing made Spencer increasingly curious, fueling her desire to figure it out and learn more.
"You have not grown up yet, at least not right now."
Elvira shot her a look, only offering earnest and well-aning advice,
"It is normal during adolescence to seek pleasure from the opposite gender, but having the rationality to distinguish good from bad is also necessary. Right now, you do not possess the ability to protect yourself.
"Your appearance, your body, and your family background will all provoke the covetous desires of the opposite gender. Neither you nor they understand what it ans to do such things, nor do you naturally understand the responsibilities hidden behind them.
"The way you are now, you will only be deceived by others, whether emotionally or physically."
Spencer wagged her head and swayed her body as she listened, but after hearing the final sentence, she pouted and declared with absolute certainty,
"Yan Huan would never deceive !"
"..."
Elvira's swirling of her wine glass paused for a fraction of a second. She looked at her daughter, who seed to be showing off an attitude of 'he treats
so well, he would never lie to ', and was rendered speechless for a mont.
From start to finish, she had never even ntioned Yan Huan's na.
"Besides, even if he did lie to , I would be able to tell!"
"..."
Elvira did not entertain that remark, simply stating,
"Since you brought up Yan Huan, this is a perfect opportunity. I ant to remind you to maintain a polite distance from him and not get too close.
"When you grow a little older, I will slowly teach you about these things..."
In truth, Elvira's words contained profound aning, but the mont they entered Spencer's solo storyline brain, it was as if they had been processed by an amateur translation app, completely changing their flavor.
Especially when Spencer thought about how An Le could do this and that with Yan Huan, while she herself was expected to stay away from him.
A bizarre image unavoidably surfaced in her mind:
Yan Huan holding another cute pink piggy, laughing cheerfully and playing together.
anwhile, that Golden Bomb Pig could only shed tears while looking on enviously as they flirted and ran further and further away.
"Ahaha, An Le, hurry up and catch ~"
"Haha, Xiao Huan..."
The worse the teary-eyed Golden Bomb Pig standing there felt, the brighter the golden light radiating from her body beca.
Until the very next second, as if she completely could not hold back anymore, she exploded!
"Boom!!"
And in reality, at the thought of not even being able to share a kiss with Yan Huan anymore, Spencer clenched her fists and threw a tantrum,
"I do not want that!"
"..."
However, even as she lost her temper with her mother for the first ti, she did so rather clumsily. After spitting out what she thought were harsh words, she pouted, got up from the sofa, and broke into a jog upstairs.
"Pat-pat-pat"
Elvira simply watched her run upstairs in a huff, unable to stop a helpless expression from appearing on her face.
"I never said you two could never be together again..."
She took a sip of red wine and murmured to herself.
Yet in the very next second, that angry little head suddenly poked out from the staircase on the second floor and declared,
"Yan Huan will teach
all of this! Hmph!"
Having said her piece, she pulled her head back and finally fled into her bedroom.
"..."
'Has she hit her rebellious phase?'
Elvira mused.
In truth, Elvira was not a conservative woman. After all, she hailed from the upper echelons of Ying Country, and the things she had witnessed far exceeded an ordinary person's imagination.
The children of her friends, who were the sa age as Aruiya, played wilder and more recklessly than the last.
But Aruiya was different. She was like a blank slate; she had no ability to protect herself and could easily get hurt.
It was precisely because of this that Elvira ultimately decided to send her to Linn, keeping her away from that dyeing vat where the clear will be clear, and the turbid will be turbid.
Looking at it now, perhaps things had gone to the other extre, making Elvira look like a mother with an excessive desire to protect.
Thinking this, Elvira could not help but shake her head.
"Ring-ring-ring~"
At that exact mont, the bell on the wall suddenly rang.
Elvira waved her hand casually, and a holographic projection manifested.
"Speak."
"President, Ms. Ye and Ms. Sakuramiya have both arrived."
"Good. I understand."
Hearing this, she finally set down her wine glass, slowly stood up, and walked toward the door.
"A Mama's Roundtable?"
Ye Lan looked at the small flag Sakuramiya Lily pulled out and could not help but show a helpless expression.
'Are we really here to discuss private matters?'
'Or perhaps, matters related to our children?'
"Yes indeed. It is quite different from last ti; this is not about work... However, I feel that as a mother, it is highly necessary to build a good relationship with you and chat more often, Ms. Ye..."
"..."
Ye Lan blinked. Just as she was about to say sothing, Sakuramiya Lily noticed the elevator doors opening behind Ye Lan.
"Ah, she is here."
Ye Lan turned her head and saw Elvira stepping out from the elevator.
Out of politeness, both she and Sakuramiya Lily stood up simultaneously.
With this comparison, it was plainly obvious that Elvira was truly tall.
Ye Lan was 1.65 ters, Sakuramiya Lily was just over 1.5 ters, while Elvira stood at around 1.76 ters. Both won had to look up at her.
And when it ca to their figures...
Ye Lan felt a pang of inadequacy, and Sakuramiya Lily directly averted her eyes altogether.
"I am very pleased that Ms. Ye accepted the invitation, and Ms. Sakuramiya as well..."
"Not at all. When I heard Ms. Ye was coming, I certainly did not dare to be negligent~"
'?'
Sensing that the words of the other two mothers were subtly directing the focus toward her, Ye Lan grew increasingly puzzled.
'Could it be that Shiyu did sothing montous at school that everyone knows about? Do not tell
my own daughter is already famous at school, and I am the only one who knows nothing about it?'
"..."
The mont she thought of her own daughter who had actually dared to drug Xiao Huan, Ye Lan's expression involuntarily revealed a guilty conscience.
When it ca to parenting wisdom, she truly suffered in silence.
"There is no need to be reserved. This place was originally a club for the Golden Lion Group to receive VIPs. It has every anity you could wish for. Let us walk around and chat," Elvira suggested.
"Ah, alright."
Although this place was indeed extrely high-end, and the entertainnt facilities were comprehensive,
truth be told, these three won were already at an age where they were not housewives with leisurely pursuits. They were extrely busy and constantly in a terrible fix with their daily work, so they had long since lost any fascination with such things.
Therefore, after walking a full circle, the three of them unanimously chose the quietest and most relaxing activity:
Taking a bath.
"Phew..."
Although Ye Lan had not expected this developnt when she arrived, when her skin touched the perfectly heated water in the pool, she could not help but sigh in relief, feeling her fatigue recede slightly.
Beside her, Sakuramiya Lily, whose figure was slightly more immature, generously entered the pool as well.
"Wow, it is so warm..."
anwhile, after waving off the female assistants waiting on the sidelines, Elvira stepped into the water too.
Sakuramiya Lily splashed so hot water on herself before her gaze inevitably drifted to a faint scar on Ye Lan's lower abdon.
"Oh my, Ms. Ye, did you have a C-section back then?"
"...Ah, yes... It was simply too painful at the ti, so I chose a C-section."
"You did not do any scar fading treatnts post-surgery? Perfect timing, I happen to know an internationally renowned doctor. Should I have her co to Linn to take a look at it for you?"
"Alright, I can go see her when the ti cos."
Ye Lan agreed casually, but inwardly she felt secretly suspicious.
She had only t this Sakuramiya Lily once, yet in private, the woman was subtly expressing a strong will to befriend her.
Although Ye Lan did not reject the idea to make many friends, she wanted to figure out the profound aning behind the other party's actions first.
"Speaking of which, Miss Lily, you seem to have four children, correct?"
With this in mind, Ye Lan smoothly guided the conversation.
"Hehe, indeed. All four are incredibly cute~"
Saying that, Ye Lan looked toward Elvira at the side,
"Ms. Elvira is like , raising an only daughter, right?"
"Yes..."
Elvira recalled the image of her own daughter furiously poking her head out from upstairs to hurl harsh words at her just monts ago, and she was unable to help but laugh dumbly.
"However, unlike your normal daughter, Aruiya is very worriso."
'Normal...'
The guilt on Ye Lan's face beca a fraction more apparent, prompting her to quickly wave her hands.
"Not at all, the one in my house gives
quite the headache as well."
"There is no need to be modest... Inviting you here today, you probably assud we were going to discuss official business, did you not?"
Hearing this, Ye Lan narrowed her eyes slightly, but the warm smile on her face remained.
"Even putting official business aside, I deeply admire President Elvira privately. Naturally, I wanted to make a friend."
"There is no need for pleasantries... Tonight involves both official business and private matters."
Elvira shook her head and spoke softly.
Ye Lan's complexion shifted slightly, while Sakuramiya Lily continued to smile cheerfully.
"Linn was never originally our primary target region. You could say that choosing to invest here was mostly
acting on my own initiative.
"Clashing with you all was simply to send a signal to the Linn authorities. You do not need to overthink it..."
Elvira stared into the pool's water with her sky-blue eyes, stating calmly,
"This place is what I am leaving for my daughter, Aruiya."
Ye Lan was montarily stunned, her brilliant mind instantly grasping a multitude of things.
However, she remained silent, simply waiting for Elvira to continue.
"Our dostic enterprise is indeed massive, but frankly speaking, Aruiya is too weak. She cannot shoulder such heavy responsibilities...
"Even handling Linn alone might be beyond her capabilities."
Ye Lan smiled helplessly, left with no choice but to offer consolation,
"The children are still so young. Of course they cannot manage right now, but things will certainly improve in the future."
'Including Shiyu...'
'Probably.'
Elvira did not engage with that sentint. Instead, those blue eyes suddenly turned to gaze squarely at Ye Lan as she asked bluntly,
"What are your plans for Yan Huan's future?"
!!
The mont Elvira asked this question, Ye Lan instantly realized sothing.
Although she had previously considered adopting Yan Huan to safely escort him into his future,
this child was highly independent. He valued affection far more than material gain. Not wanting to bear the suspicion of stifling his freedom and life, Ye Lan had stopped ntioning the adoption, never officially centing the relationship.
But to an outsider, it did not appear that way at all!
Even the students at Far Moon Academy knew that Ye Shiyu was Yan Huan's sworn older sister, let alone these two incredibly resourceful, affluent ladies standing before her.
Therefore...
In tonight's Mama's Roundtable, she was not actually representing the mother of Ye Shiyu, but rather...
Yan Huan's mother!!
Combining this with the earnest words Elvira had spoken monts prior, Ye Lan instantly comprehended even more:
'Could it be...'
'Does Elvira intend to groom Xiao Huan to be her son-in-law?!'
"Well, regarding that, Xiao Huan is actually..."
Ye Lan pondered for a brief mont, intending to open her mouth and explain her true relationship with Xiao Huan.
This arrangent would indeed be highly beneficial for Xiao Huan, but ultimately, she had no right to make decisions for this child. She should listen to his own wish instead...
Except, right as she was about to speak...
An image suddenly flashed in her mind—the face of her own daughter, who had only just started to turn over a new leaf and harbor dreams of love.
"Mama..."
"..."
The words at the tip of Ye Lan's tongue instantly stalled, forcing her to consider the consequences of blurting them out:
'Ah, actually... Yan Huan is not my real adopted son. You should ask him yourself about these matters.'
'I see.'
Then, upon discovering that Yan Huan was likely just an ordinary child from the South Ward, Elvira would absolutely unleash her 'Son-in-Law Training Plan' in full force.
It certainly would not be a painful experience for him, but under her unreserved offensive, there was a high probability that Yan Huan might truly end up committing his life to Aruiya, just as Elvira envisioned...
If that happened, what would her own daughter do?
If the parents of both sides abstained from intervening and rely allowed these young people to navigate things themselves, Ye Lan naturally would not ddle.
If, after careful consideration, Yan Huan clearly expressed that his feelings for Shiyu were not romantic, then even if Shiyu tried to pester him, Ye Lan would forcefully ship her back to the mainland...
However, it was an entirely different story if there were proxy fighters entering the fray.
Speaking bluntly in private, that Aruiya was absolutely not a normal child. Elvira would inevitably resort to extre asures for the sake of her daughter's future.
Under these circumstances, even if there had been a chance for Xiao Huan and Shiyu originally, it would be ruthlessly extinguished by her.
If that happened...
Would she not be letting down her daughter, who had finally started to turn over a new leaf?
"..."
Thinking about all of this, a thin layer of sweat began to bead on Ye Lan's forehead.
And right at this very mont, a hauntingly feminine voice, sly as a fox, suddenly spoke up from behind her.
"My, my, I am actually quite curious as well... Regarding the future of President Yan, whom my daughter assists, what are your plans, Ms. Ye?"
'There is another master playing the board?!'
??
Ye Lan's body trembled slightly. Her eyes widened as she turned her head to look behind her.
There she saw Sakuramiya Lily, resembling a poisonous snake that had been lying dormant for a long ti, finally watching her prey take the bait...
She gently raised her hand, grasped Ye Lan's shoulder, and posed that very question.
"..."
'Ah...'
'No wonder she showed intentions of wanting to befriend
in private earlier.'
'It turns out she has also viewed
as Xiao Huan's adoptive mother.'
'So...'
'The Sakuramiya family as well?'
'Huh?'
"..."
Ye Lan's brain went completely blank for a split second. But feeling the gaze from her left—a cheerful smile—and the gaze from her right—unparalleled iciness—she could not help but feel imnse pressure...
'I have never seen anything like this...'
'Having lived for decades, when have I ever witnessed a spectacle like this?'
'Why is it that an Auntie who has been divorced for years is suddenly encountering this kind of Asura's battlefield?!'
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