Yi Luowa pouted, "Ugh... I wish I weren't their child. If I weren't, then I wouldn't be so conflicted or angry."
The Second Uncle stroked Yi Luowa's hair remorsefully, "It's my fault. I shouldn't have told you all those things from back then. If you didn't know anything, maybe you'd live a happier life than now."
"Are you kidding me? Don't take all the blame onto yourself. I'm already this old, seventeen years without seeing my own parents—can I possibly be happy?" Yi Luowa flopped onto the carpet and said in a soft voice, "According to what you said, it was Yi Weibang who insisted on sending me away, but Xi Meichen was against it. Yet from what I've observed, in this household, Xi Meichen is the one whose word carries the most authority..."
"Yi Luowa!" Second Uncle called out his niece's full name in displeasure.
When Yi Luowa heard this, she immediately knew Second Uncle was angry. She blinked innocently, "Second Uncle, Luowa's here~"
"Do you even know what you were just saying?" Second Uncle poked her forehead with a heavy finger.
Yi Luowa rubbed her forehead where it was poked, her lips pursed, "I was just analyzing the situation. Do you have to be so rough with me for that?"
"No matter what their faults are, they're still your parents. You're not allowed to call them by their names directly, and you're definitely not allowed to call your dad 'Uncle,' got it?"
"Then I'll just call him Big Uncle!" Yi Luowa raised her hand to protect her forehead as she said this.
Yi Weiyang, both amused and exasperated, pulled her ponytail lightly, "I've spoiled you rotten! Even though they haven't seen you in seventeen years, they still care about you deeply and often ask me about you."
"Hehe, I'm not mad at you anymore. Let me help you onto the bed to rest, then I'm heading out to explore the grand capital city." Yi Luowa pushed Second Uncle to the edge of the bed.
"If you want to go out, that's fine. Let Ao Lie go with you first to buy a cellphone; this way, I won't lose contact with you." Second Uncle grabbed the bed strap and easily pulled himself onto the bed.
"They can't reissue my SIM card anyway, so buying a phone is useless." Yi Luowa helped Second Uncle remove his shirt and placed it to the side.
"The SIM card is already sorted for you." Yi Weiyang pointed to his shirt pocket, "It's in my wallet. Go ahead and take it yourself."
"Having Second Uncle is all I'll ever need in this life!" Yi Luowa gleefully pulled out the wallet and dug out a SIM card.
"Also grab a bank card while you're at it."
Yi Luowa pouted, "Don't underestimate me! Your niece has money now; I won four million US dollars in this championship. Haha… Once I graduate, I'll join the World Rally Championship and race for eleven months to win a ten-million-dollar prize and make you proud."
Second Uncle chuckled as he looked at her, "Miss Moneybags, do you even know that ten million US dollars isn't enough for just one racing car?"
"I don't care. You said that as long as I can fulfill your dream, no matter how expensive the car is, you'll create it for me." Yi Luowa beamed at Second Uncle, "Want me to help you take off your pants too?"
"No need, you can go now. The sooner you leave, the sooner you'll be back. Before you head out, say hi to your parents so they don't worry. And don't mention anything about racing cars to them; when the time comes, if they don't scold you, they'll surely scold me."
Yi Luowa's face instantly fell. "I'll have Ao Xiang wait outside the door. If you need anything, just call him in."
Second Uncle noticed that Yi Luowa was upset and waved her off, "Don't worry about me. Go on now."
Yi Luowa pouted as she left the room. She saw Xi Meichen had already changed her clothes and was sitting in the living room talking with the three men. Quickly, Yi Luowa turned her face toward Ao Xiang, "Ao Lie and I are going out for a bit. You stay here and look after Second Uncle."
Ao Xiang nodded immediately in response.
"Luowa, are you heading out?" Xi Meichen walked over with a smile.
"Yeah." Yi Luowa looked down at her toes.
"Mom's afraid you'll get tired, so I scheduled everything for the next two days. If you want to go out now, I'll go with you now."
"I'll just take Ao Lie out with me." Yi Luowa tugged at Ao Lie's jacket as he stepped out the door first. Then, Yi Luowa looked up at Xi Meichen, "Alright, I'm leaving now, okay."
"Sis, where are you going? I'll play tour guide for you." Yi Shaoqing ran over.
"Ao Lie is a walking map; I don't need a tour guide."
"Luowa, if you don't want Mom to follow you, at least let your little brother go with you." Xi Meichen smiled, glanced at her son, and said, "Let Uncle Wu drive you both."
"Meichen..." Yi Weibang stood up hurriedly.
Xi Meichen shot him a sharp glare, forcing Yi Weibang to sink back onto the couch.
Yi Luowa observed the whole scene and curled her lips faintly, "I'll just take a taxi."
"There are so many cars at home; why take a taxi!" Xi Meichen's voice suddenly rose a few decibels. "From now on, anyone who dares to bring up the past or say anything bad about my daughter can just get out of this house!"
Yi Weibang could only shake his head helplessly.
Yi Lingfei sat stubbornly on the couch, her little face contorted with anger.
"Sis, let's go." Yi Shaoqing grabbed Yi Luowa's hand and started walking out.
Yi Luowa quickly pulled her hand back. "If you really want to come out with me, then don't share a car with me."
"No, I'm sharing a car with my big sister."
Xi Meichen furrowed her brow slightly, "Luowa, Lingfei, Shaoqing, since all three of you are here, I might as well lay things bare today. Because Mom doesn't want your sister to keep carrying this burden. Back then, something happened in the family—it was just an accident and had nothing to do with Luowa. We were all deceived by that so-called master. Your dad heard this himself too. If you don't believe me, you can ask him. If you don't believe him either, then tomorrow I'll take you all up the mountain to find Master Zhi Ming."
In Yi Luowa's heart, it felt like two windows had just been flung wide open, letting in brilliant light—so she wasn't a sweeping star after all. Glancing secretly at Yi Weibang seated on the couch, she noticed he was looking at her too. Embarrassed, she quickly avoided his gaze, hastening out of the living room.
Yi Shaoqing quickly chased after her. In the end, unable to resist Yi Shaoqing's persistent pleading, Yi Luowa got into Uncle Wu's car and left the villa.
"Meichen, how could you lie? Master Zhi Ming never said that." Yi Weibang furrowed his brows at Xi Meichen after Yi Luowa had left.
"If I didn't lie, the knot in her heart would never come undone. You've seen how distant she is with us. She's your and my biological daughter—can you bear to watch her have a home she can't return to? Besides, didn't Master Zhi Ming already do the ritual to resolve it for Luowa? She came back today in the same car as Weiyang. Look at Weiyang—he's perfectly fine. That means after the resolution, there's nothing to worry about anymore."
"But you're taking such a huge risk. No matter what, you shouldn't let Shaoqing ride in the same car as Luowa."
Xi Meichen snapped angrily, "Shaoqing is my child and has nothing to do with you! From now on, any decisions I make—you stay out of them! If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been separated from my daughter for seventeen years."
Yi Weibang instantly lost all his momentum and sat quietly back on the couch.