Chapter 54

The taxi stopped after fifty minutes at the old gate of the prison, the blue directional signs by the roadside were all rusted, Xia Xi looked at the scenery along the way, feeling no fatigue at all, she scanned to pay the fare, opened the car door and got out.

The driver lowered the window, his head slightly protruding, and shouted at Xia Xi's back: "Hey, miss, it's hard to get a taxi around here; when will you be out? I can wait for you."

The driver was first surprised when he heard she was going to the prison, but then he figured it out: this miss likely had a family member who had committed a crime and was serving time, and she had come to visit. Nowadays, guilt by association is not practiced; she is innocent and should not be looked at askance.

Xia Xi turned her head, the corners of her mouth curling into a faint smile: "Thank you, I might have to wait a while."

She hadn't seen her older sister in a long time, and she had many things to say to her.

However, the prison has regulations: visitation time cannot exceed one hour.

"It's fine, I'll wait for you," the driver said, waving his hand.

Xia Xi thanked him again, turned and strode into the prison, presented her identification to the guard, and as required, specialized personnel would come to inspect her belongings; items not allowed inside would be stored outside.

Fortunately, Xia Xi had prepared in advance—phones cannot be brought in, so she had printed out the photos beforehand.

After completing the procedures, she was led to the visitation room and sat down to wait.

Xia Xi was not making her first visit to the prison; each time she came, her heart felt heavy, like a sponge soaked with water, slowly sinking, sinking all the way to the seabed, feeling stifled, unable to breathe.

During the wait, she adjusted her expression several times, trying to appear more relaxed and natural, not so stern, as if meeting a sister she hadn't seen in a long time—only the setting was a bit special. That would also make her older sister feel better.

Hearing footsteps, Xia Xi immediately lifted her eyelids; Xia Yue appeared before her in handcuffs, accompanied by a prison guard.

All the mental preparation she had done beforehand was useless; at the instant she saw her sister, Xia Xi's eyes felt as if lemon juice had been squeezed into them, sour and painful, she almost burst into tears, and she struggled to pull up the corners of her mouth into a smile.

Her eyes were crying while her mouth was smiling, looking both comical and strange.

On the contrary, Xia Yue, seeing her smile so happily—not a forced smile but genuine joy from the heart—said, "You're back?"

Xia Xi's throat was choked, unable to speak, she nodded vigorously.

Xia Yue also sat down; the guard gave a reminder, "Watch the time," then left, leaving the two of them alone. Xia Yue's handcuffed hands hung between her legs, and when she smiled, wrinkles appeared at the corners of her eyes.

She was only thirty-four, six years older than Xia Xi, the eldest in the family; all three sisters resembled Su Jinru, but each had her own style: Xia Yue gentle, Xia Xi radiant, Xia Xuan cute, and back then they were known throughout Qianlin as the "Three Floral Sisters".

The Xia family operated Qianlin's most famous large hotel, and hardly anyone had not heard of them.

"You, why aren't you more like Xuanxuan? The last time she came to see me, she was all smiles, saying she had found the right person and was going to get married." Xia Yue pursed her lips, teasing her, "Take a look at yourself—you're all teary-eyed."

Xia Xi covered half her face with one hand, breaking into laughter through tears.

"Don't cry anymore." Xia Yue wrinkled her nose, smiling even more happily than before, "You're the craziest person in our family."

"No way." Xia Xi protested, her voice thick with a congested nasal tone.

She took out a tissue to wipe her tears and blow her nose, while Xia Yue kept looking at her and laughing: "I don't know who it was, but the first time she brought a boyfriend home, she shouted for the whole hotel staff to call him son-in-law."

Xia Xi covered her face with both hands: "Don't say that, I need to save face." In her early twenties, that was her most flamboyant and unrestrained age; her whole person was as fervent as the sun, saying and doing whatever she felt like, never caring about anything else, truly deserving the label "crazy".

"If it weren't for what happened with our dad, Mom was planning to let you inherit the hotel. You're quick-witted and capable, outgoing, and you can handle everything. Too bad the hotel is gone."

She said those last words with infinite regret.

"Let's not talk about that person." After all, their beast of a father is the root of all misfortune; just mentioning him makes their mood turn foul, and Xia Xi, as if performing a magic trick, pulled out several photos from her pocket to show her: "This is Youyou, she looks like you. Look, she's doing very well."

Xia Yue had been chatting happily with Xia Xi just moments before, but when her gaze fell on the photo, tears spilled down unexpectedly.

She lifted the two hands she had been hiding under the table; the handcuffs on her wrists flashed cold silver light, she took the photos with both hands and flipped through them, the more she looked, the more her tears flowed.

The little one wore a pretty saffron dress, with two small braids, her face soft and fair, she grinned without a care, showing two rows of tiny baby teeth, hugging a fluffy little penguin plush, tilting her head toward the camera and making a V sign. Another photo showed her playing at a water park, wearing a snug cartoon-style swimsuit, her belly puffed out, lying in a large pink flamingo swim ring, her two little arms wrapped around the flamingo's neck, laughing so hard her eyes disappeared, her face speckled with water droplets. The next photo was taken on her first day at the new kindergarten, wearing a tiny uniform, thinking she looked cool with her arms crossed, her legs in a "stand at ease" posture.

There was also a photo of the two children together, sitting on the home carpet, each holding an ice cream; when Xia Xi took the picture, she hadn't greeted them beforehand, just called out once, and both kids lifted their heads simultaneously, their expressions dazed, utterly adorable, and Xia Xi snapped the shot.

Xia Yue stroked the photo, as if caressing her daughter's face; after a moment, she looked at Xia Xi with tear-blurred eyes: "From the little girl's appearance, I can tell you've taken good care of her… but… you've suffered, raising two children all by yourself."

At this moment, the roles were reversed: Xia Yue was weeping bitterly, while Xia Xi smiled: "They keep each other company; honestly, I've saved myself a lot of worry."

"Don't lie to me, raising kids is hard, and you're abroad with no relatives to lend a hand—one can imagine how difficult it is." Xia Yue said, lowering her head in shame, "I really regret being so impulsive back then; otherwise, I wouldn't have dragged you down."

"Sister, we're one family; talk of burden or no burden is meaningless. Everything's in the past; you told me to keep looking forward no matter how bitter or difficult." Xia Xi gripped her hands, giving her strength.

Only a few months remain until her sentence ends; wait a little longer, wait a little longer, and their family will be reunited.

Xia Yue murmured, "I don't know if, after I get out, Youyou will recognize me…"

"She will."

"Really?" Xia Yue looked at her with hopeful eyes, hoping she would give a definite answer.

Would her daughter despise her for having been imprisoned and not want anything to do with her? With Xia Xi, this beautiful and excellent "mother," as a precedent, would the daughter choose to live with her?

She actually wasn't sure.

Xia Xi's eyes curved, full of smiles: "You don't know how sensible the little girl is; she has a lively, open personality, clever and quirky, her energy is overflowing every day, she literally doesn't know what worry is, she accepts new things quickly, and with an additional loving mother, she will accept her."

Xia Yue repeatedly looked at those photos, finally pressing them to her chest, then glanced at Xia Xi again, and at last curled the corners of her mouth.

Xia Xi continued to comfort her: "So, don't think too much; we'll get through these few months, endure the hardship, and the rest of our lives will be smooth sailing."

"Mm!" Hope flared in Xia Yue's eyes; she wished time would fly past, jumping ahead several months. Suddenly, she thought of something, her expression tense as she asked Xia Xi, "That beast surnamed Zhou—has he been looking for you?"

Monday again.

See you on Tuesday, bye~(End of chapter)