Chapter 260: Taking the Child to the Small Courtyard Where Alisha Used to Live

At this speed, it won't even take a year; passing the Level 2 computer exam is a sure thing.

But Shi Youxuan didn't care about having a genius daughter; she only wanted Shi Ran to grow up healthy and happy, nothing more.

"Alright, go out and play; don't always be in front of the computer, it's tiring for your eyes." Shi Youxuan roughly unplugged the internet cable.

She regretted it as soon as she pulled it out, regretting that her old habit of being impatient had flared up again.

If it were before, the little girl would definitely have been relentless and made a huge scene, but this time she didn't.

She silently turned off the monitor, curled her small body up on the bed, and said to Shi Youxuan, "Mommy, you go back to your room; I'm sleepy and want to sleep."

It wasn't even dark yet, what was she sleeping for?

It was clearly that she didn't want to talk to her.

Her daughter had grown distant from her, and Shi Youxuan felt very sad, and the reason her daughter had grown distant from her was all because of Alisha... no, the trouble caused by Sheng Hanyu!

It was all his fault.

If he hadn't approached her daughter back then, her daughter would still be very close to her now.

That didn't seem right either; if he hadn't appeared in time at the kindergarten, it was hard to say if Shi Ran would have been hurt back then.

Shi Youxuan remembered the scene later when he blocked a knife for her at the summer camp, and her heart felt a mix of emotions; she couldn't describe what it felt like.

She made up her mind, looked at her daughter's back, and said, "Xiaozhu, how about Mommy takes you to the small courtyard where Auntie used to live tomorrow?"

"Really?"

The little girl scrambled up in one motion, nimbly threw herself into Shi Youxuan's arms, her big eyes shining: "Mommy, you have to keep your word; whoever doesn't keep their word is a puppy."

She smiled, smiling very brightly.

Her whole body was overflowing with vitality, much better than that "steady and well-behaved" Shi Ran.

This was the real daughter of Shi Youxuan, the version she was familiar with.

"Pinky swear!" Shi Youxuan extended her little finger.

So Shi Ran also extended her little finger, and the mother and daughter hooked fingers, chanting as they did: "Pinky swear, a hundred years no changing, whoever changes is a puppy!"

After the pinky swear, this matter couldn't be changed, but early the next morning, they still almost didn't make it.

First thing in the morning, the little girl was already dressed and went to Shi Youxuan's room to urge her: "Mommy, when are we leaving?"

"Xiaozhu is so early today; we'll leave after we finish breakfast." Shi Youxuan lightly flicked her daughter's high-bridged nose; if she had known this method worked so well, she should have used it sooner.

Shi Ran was incredibly anxious, pulling Shi Youxuan's hand and urging her: "Let's go, Mommy, let's go downstairs to eat breakfast now."

When the mother and daughter arrived at the dining room, unexpectedly, Zhu Yiwen was there too.

Actually, it wasn't unexpected; Zhu Yiwen ate breakfast early, they just didn't usually run into each other.

"Good morning, Daddy."

Shi Ran greeted Zhu Yiwen with a smile, then sat in her own seat.

"Heh, Xiaozhu is in a good mood today."

Shi Youxuan wanted to steer the topic away, but it was already too late; Shi Ran was quick-mouthed: "Mommy is taking me to see the courtyard where Auntie used to live in a little while; I want to get some of Auntie's things back as a memento."

The little girl didn't even wait to see the scene before she was moved to emotion, tears falling in pairs.

"Oh, I'll send a car to take you."

Zhu Yiwen finished the last sip of his milk, then stood up and walked out slowly.

It seemed like nothing was wrong, but Shi Youxuan always felt that things couldn't be that simple.

Zhu Yiwen kept his word and really did send people to take them, but it didn't have the usual grandeur of going out; he just sent one bulletproof car, with several bodyguards in the same car as them.

Sitting in the front passenger seat was the one with the best skills, who was also Zhu Yiwen's trusted aide, named A Qing.

The other four stood on the footboards outside the car doors.

Before the car had even driven off, Shi Youxuan felt that something was wrong, but she couldn't figure out what was wrong at the time.

When the car broke down in the middle of nowhere, and the driver was putting on a show of fixing the car, Shi Youxuan knew why only one car had been sent!

Zhu Yiwen didn't want them to go at all, so he came up with this method.

Shi Youxuan asked her daughter: "How about we walk there? We can look at the scenery on the way."

The little girl immediately agreed: "Okay, let's walk there."

She always felt that Auntie wasn't dead; perhaps it was just the servants who were jealous of Auntie and deliberately lied to Daddy and Mommy, and Shi Ran felt that she could see Auntie if she got there.

As it turned out, the car broke down halfway, and now that Mommy said this, she naturally agreed wholeheartedly.

Then Shi Youxuan said to the driver: "You take your time fixing it; we'll walk there, you can catch up once you've fixed it."

The two of them got out of the car, and A Qing blocked their path: "Madam, the road ahead is not easy to walk and it's not safe; you and the young miss should wait a while."

Shi Youxuan wasn't annoyed: "It's fine, if the car can drive, how hard can the road be? As for safety, you don't need to worry; you all are following us two, if you can't protect us, you might as well go back and hand in your resignation to the Head of the Family."

All of A Qing's excuses were blocked; he was incredibly anxious, and sweat was already dripping down his forehead.

He didn't want to agree, had no reason to refuse, but also wouldn't move aside.

Shi Youxuan's face darkened: "What do you mean by this? Are you trying to rebel?"

"No."

He really had no other choice but to ask Shi Youxuan to wait a moment while he made a phone call.

Shi Youxuan agreed; although A Qing didn't say who he was calling, she could guess even without using her brain.

Soon A Qing returned, and as he passed the driver, he gave him a wink, which Shi Youxuan saw but pretended not to see.

"We'll listen to Madam, we'll walk there." A Qing's expression returned to normal.

The group hadn't walked twenty meters when the driver drove up to catch them: "Please get in the car, Madam and Young Miss, it's fixed."

After Shi Youxuan got in the car, she asked seemingly unintentionally: "It won't break down again in a little while, will it?"

"No, no, just now... it was an accident!"

The car stopped in front of the small courtyard, and A Qing got out to knock on the door.

Shi Ran looked at the courtyard gate, then looked at the surrounding environment, and furrowed her little brows: "Auntie actually lives in a place like this?"

The surroundings were all places where commoners lived; Sheng Hanyu had chosen this place back then precisely to avoid attracting attention.

Facts proved he was right; if he hadn't been meticulous in his thinking and considered every step, his identity would have been exposed long ago.

Of course, the places where commoners lived could not compare to the Zhu Family Mansion; even the best house here did not have as good an environment as where the Zhu Family servants lived.

The way Shi Ran furrowed her brows was the same as the way Sheng Hanyu furrowed his; Shi Youxuan reached out to smooth them: "Don't furrow your brows, it's unbecoming for a little child to be so old-fashioned."

The little girl retorted: "If it were 'becoming' (like a painting), it would be hung on the wall."

"I'll hit you!" Shi Youxuan made a gesture to hit her, her palm raised high and falling lightly, not hurting at all.

That young woman came to open the door; she had suffered no small amount of torture when she was locked in the Dungeon last time, but this time, seeing that it was people from the Zhu Family again, her expression did not show even a hint of panic.

She even had a smile on her face: "Madam is here? I guessed you would come, please."

Shi Youxuan and Shi Ran were invited in, but A Qing and the others were blocked outside: "You cannot enter."

A Qing naturally did not agree, but the woman's attitude was very firm, insisting that this was her own home, and regardless of who they were, if she didn't let them in, they weren't getting in.

The woman's attitude this time had undergone a 180-degree turn from last time; last time she was timid and looked like someone who had never seen the world.

This time, however, she didn't even put the several burly men in her eyes at all!