Li Hua lowered his head. Li Bingbing has rejected him so many times already. Even if he kept on showing her his genuineness and hard work, Li Bingbing won't even bat an eye towards it. Rubbing the plates of his head, he opened his mouth after what seemed like hours of silence, "I am still her father, Xijiu."

"You were once the father she admired the most, but after you left us, you crushed her. Even if I allow you to see her, even if I allow you to visit us, do you think that she would like to see you?" Mu Xijiu wasn't a vengeful woman; she was willing to forgive and let go even if she was the one who suffered the most. In fact, despite all the hards.h.i.+ps she endured because of this man, she still loved him to a degree. However, because of the things that happened in their relations.h.i.+p, Mu Xijiu knew that they can't have their happy days back... It was already too late for that.

This apology doesn't change the fact that he married someone else and even had a child with her. Even if she was his first wife, Mu Xijiu preferred to avoid unnecessary headaches and didn't want to involve herself in a rivalry.

To be friends with her ex-husband was fine. In fact, she was happy for him and proud of him because he finally decided to address the problem. She caught the change and regret that manifested in his body. But it would still take time before she can accept him as a friend.

"If it's you, she will listen to you," whispered Li Hua as he looked at her. "She doesn't have to come with me, I won't force her into an arranged marriag—"

"You forced her into what?!"

Li Hua gulped when he saw the dead look on Mu Xijiu's face. Her cold eyes sent a s.h.i.+ver down his spine. That was why he quickly added, "I only asked her and never forced her!" He lied since he had no other choice, or else he would be on the floor, beaten up by the woman in front of him.

In the past, despite Mu Xijiu looking sweet and fragile, she was a wild person, much like Li Bingbing. The words that left her mouth were the opposite of how she looked. Furthermore, when it came to debate, she would never lose an argument. Therefore, Li Hua couldn't let his mouth blabber mindlessly.

Mu Xijiu was good with her words. She could say anything and that would irritate the opposition. She was even crafty with her choice of words, so she used this as an advantage in court. Thus, she was not an easy person to go against since she can make anyone slip their tongue. To add to that, she picked up on the small details that her opponents often leave out subconsciously, meaning that she'd use every little thing against them. This was where Li Bingbing's sharp tongue and observation came from.

Although she remained skeptical about his last statement, her face relaxed when she heard what he said, "You should never force her to marry someone she doesn't want. Besides, she's already dating someone else."

"I heard. I can't believe that she likes someone fat and ugly like the heir of the Xia family." Li Hua was truly disappointed with her choice of men. He still believed that Fei Yang, the handsome heir of the Fei corporation, was better than Xia Sinian. What she saw attractive in that balloon still baffled Li Hua!

Mu Xijiu chuckled, "You'll be surprised to see how much he has changed." She said before she sipped her drink. She smiled after putting down her drink and stared into his eyes and whatever laid beyond them.

"What do you mean?" asked Li Hua in confusion.

"Just find out yourself." Mu Xijiu fixed her back and smiled. "Anyway, I don't mind having you in Li Bingbing's life. That's why I will try, but I won't promise anything. As for the friends.h.i.+p thing that you are offering me, I will think about it."

Li Hua was so delighted with what Mu Xijiu said that he can't help but grasp her hand, "Thank you, Xijiu!" His eyes showed a hint of true gratefulness, which made Mu Xijiu freeze for a few seconds.

Recovering from the sudden outburst, Mu Xijiu pulled her hand back, "Being friends is fine, but if you ask something more than that, I'm afraid that I have to reject you. We can't bring back the things we had before, Li Hua." Preparing to leave the café, she grabbed her purse from the floor.

"I... know." He curved his lips upward slightly before he looked down. This was his fault. As the saying goes, you reap what you sow. He was blinded by his desires that he even sacrificed his own family for it. He bit his lips as regrets flew in his mind.

"Anyway, Li Bingbing's graduation is coming up, if you're not that busy on that day, then you should come." Mu Xijiu said.

"I would love to see her on her graduation day." Li Hua said with a gentle look on his face. He raised his head once more to face Mu Xijiu.

"Well then, if there's nothing else, I should go." She wiped her lips with a napkin and stood up. She hanged her purse on her shoulder and plotted her chair inwards.

"I can drop you by to your workplace." Li Hua offered as he stood up. He wasn't expecting her to accept his offer, but he did it out of courtesy.

"No thanks. I like having a peaceful life, so please let me have it. I don't want your missus to appear in front of my door." She turned and left him in the place.

When Mu Xijiu arrived home, she saw Li Bingbing preparing their dinner. She took off her coat and hanged it on the coat rack. "What's for dinner?" She asked out of habit. She knew that Li Bingbing was a terrible cook.

"Instant noodles with egg and cheese," said Li Bingbing with a grin. Li Bingbing always wondered why her mother would ask about dinner. It never changed after all. Does she lose her memory when it comes to food?

Mu Xijiu walked toward her and wrapped her arms around her waist, "That's not healthy, you know?" She smiled and kissed her daughter in the back of her head.

"Don't complain, this is the only food I can properly make." Li Bingbing huffed.

Mu Xijiu let go of her and went to put on a red ap.r.o.n. She tied the strings together and opened the refrigerator. She bent down and had a cursory look at what they had for the ingredient, "What else do you want for dinner?"

Li Bingbing's eyes sparkled when she heard what her mother said. She turned to her with a wide smile. Although she loved eating them occasionally, Li Bingbing was sick of having instant noodles for dinner every day, so her stomach craved for new and good food, "Can we have some chicken fried rice, egg roll bowls, and dumpling stir fry?"

"Let's see... to have those for tonight, it looks like we need to go to the supermarket to buy the ingredients." Mu Xijiu straightened up and placed her left hand on her waist and rubbed her chin with her right hand.

Li Bingbing pouted at her remark, "I don't want to go buy it alone."

Mu Xijiu giggled, "I'll go change first before we head out, okay?"

Since the supermarket was just nearby the place they were staying, Mu Xijiu and Li Bingbing walked toward it.

Upon arriving at the twenty-four hours supermarket, Li Bingbing followed her mother as she pushed the cart while Mu Xijiu was the one who picked the ingredients.

"Hey, sweetie, I'm free tomorrow, do you want to go out with me?" Mu Xijiu asked as she placed a tomato sauce inside the cart.

Li Bingbing rolled her eyes with the way Mu Xijiu talked to her, she was talking as if Li Bingbing was a five years old girl. "Sadly, I am not. I have a date with Sisi, I'm planning to visit him in his place."

Mu Xijiu pouted as she turned to Li Bingbing. "You're choosing your boyfriend over your mother?"

"I have already scheduled it tomorrow, you should have told this to me in advance."

"I am always busy, honey. I don't know when will the next time I'll be free, can't you at least make an exemption for tomorrow?" She clung to Li Bingbing's arm.

"Stop acting so childish, mom. You're not cute." Li Bingbing huffed before she continued on pus.h.i.+ng the cart.

"You're such a rude daughter." Mu Xijiu puffed out her cheeks as she let go of her arm.

"Well, that's how genetics work." Li Bingbing chuckled.

Mu Xijiu sighed before she continued to get every ingredient they needed.

"If I changed my plans for tomorrow, where will we take me?" Li Bingbing asked curiously.

Mu Xijiu's eyes lit up, "I've always wanted to visit the planetarium again, do you want to accompany me?"

Mu Xijiu loved staring at the heavenly bodies and Li Bingbing knew this.