Chapter 3517

"Australia?"

An Chengxi heard of this country and asked him doubtfully: "Why would you choose Australia?"

Tang Sihai analyzed: "First, it's far enough—even if the young master takes the Ye family's Concorde jet, it would still take at least four or five hours to arrive, and the Concorde is rather conspicuous; if not necessary, the young master probably wouldn't use it, so it would take at least eleven hours of flight time;

"Second, it's vast—Australia is large and sparsely populated, so finding a person is still difficult; after I reveal myself and expose clues, hiding becomes relatively easier, and he won't find me in the short term;

"Third, this country has recently faced many problems, making it easy to attract public attention, and also easier for the young master to spot my trail."

An Chengxi asked him: "Do you already have a concrete plan?"

"Yes." Tang Sihai nodded heavily: "I already have a complete plan in mind, and I hope Lady will give me a chance to put it into practice."

An Chengxi slightly nodded and instructed him: "Remember, as much as possible, avoid Chen'er—don't let him find you."

Tang Sihai respectfully said: "Lady, rest assured—once the young master arrives in Australia, it won't take long before he realizes that Miss Xiao and her parents have gone missing; then he will certainly abandon searching for me and rush back to Huaxia immediately. As long as I can survive three days without being discovered by him, there will be absolutely no problem."

An Chengxi smiled: "First luring the tiger away from the mountain, then besieging Wei to save Zhao—you've improved greatly these past few years. Strive to implement your plan perfectly."

Tang Sihai immediately clasped his hands: "Subordinate obeys!"

An Chengxi nodded, reached out to lift the gauze curtain, and gazed at the dazzling night scenery along both banks of the Qinhuai River, unable to help sighing: "Such beautiful scenery—I always feel something is missing."

Tang Sihai and Sun Jie looked at her, seeing An Chengxi staring out the window in a daze, then exchanging glances with each other, neither knowing exactly what she meant by "missing something"—was it the lack of family reunion? Probably so.

But both knew An Chengxi currently cannot meet Ye Chen, so even if she misses her son deeply in her heart, she can only seal this longing within.

Therefore, they also dare not offer comfort, fearing An Chengxi might be moved by the scene.

An Chengxi gazed at the scenery outside the window, her eyes visibly becoming brighter and more crystalline—clearly, her eye sockets were holding back hot tears.

At this moment, An Chengxi suddenly turned her head, smiling like a child as she said to Sun Jie: "Sun Jie, quickly have Xiao Wei get some fireworks and set them off on the opposite bank from Chen'er!"

Sun Jie hurriedly said: "Lady, fireworks are banned in Jin Ling's urban area—letting Xiao Wei set off fireworks, isn't that a bit dangerous?"

"No problem." An Chengxi waved her hand indifferently, smiling lightly: "Tell Xiao Wei to set them off like a child and run immediately; if caught, admit fault and pay fines—worst case, detention for a few days, nothing will be exposed."

Saying this, An Chengxi whispered softly: "Chen'er will surely like it."

Sun Jie suddenly understood.

Originally, Lady wanted Xiao Wei to set off fireworks not for herself to see, but to set them off for Ye Chen to see.

An Chengxi smiled softly: "Although Chen'er cannot see Mother, he will surely see Mother's fireworks set off for him on this prosperous, lively night."

"At that moment, he will certainly pause, look up, and gaze at the night sky where the fireworks bloom—he will be delighted, smile, and be happy, and that will be enough, for this is Mother's gift to him."

……

The small boat An Chengxi was on had already left the busiest stretch of the Qinhuai River, while Ye Chen, from beginning to end, never noticed that the person closest to him in this world had just fluttered away from beside his feet.

He and Xiao Churan continued walking along the Qinhuai River bank; after a while, the lantern riddle event hosted by the Calligraphy and Painting Association lay ahead not far, where already many children had gathered around, competing to guess the riddles given by staff, and the stalls also displayed many dolls, small toys, and souvenirs—anyone who guessed a riddle correctly could receive a small gift.

Xiao Changkun rarely devoted himself so fully to work, entertaining a group of children with beaming faces and laughter.

Ma Lan disliked the feeling of being surrounded by a group of children chattering noisily, so she simply sat alone on a nearby chair, cracking melon seeds.

Ye Chen asked Xiao Churan: "Shall we go see Dad over there?"

Xiao Churan shook her head, smiling: "Let's not—after all, it's just the kids guessing; if we go and guess right, we'll lose face, and if we guess wrong, we'll lose even more face."

"That's true." Ye Chen nodded with a smile, asking her: "Then shall we walk around a bit more?"

"Sure!" Xiao Churan gladly agreed, saying: "There's still a long way ahead—it's said that flower boats will come later if we wait a bit longer, so let's just walk along the river; it's rare to have such an opportunity."

Ye Chen casually said: "If you're willing to come out for a walk, we can come here every evening to stroll."

Xiao Churan smiled faintly, didn't respond, and Ye Chen, from her brow and eyes, sensed a hint of melancholy.

Just as he was about to ask if she had something on her mind, on the opposite bank of the Qinhuai River, suddenly a beam of light shot up into the sky.

Immediately afterward, that light exploded in midair, blooming into a golden spherical firework.

Instantly, gasps erupted around—tens of thousands of people, whose gazes had been scattered, all lifted their heads at once to look toward the sky.

That magnificent firework illuminated the night sky; after the large shadow passed, it exploded again into countless small clusters of sparks.

Xiao Churan's eyes, which had just been somewhat melancholy and sorrowful, suddenly brightened; she jumped up and down like a child, pointing at the firework and saying: "Husband, quick look! Such beautiful fireworks!"

At this moment, more fireworks shot into the sky, blooming with five-colored lights; the fireworks reflected on the shimmering surface of the Qinhuai River, complementing the surrounding silver trees and golden flowers, lanterns and colorful banners—so beautiful it made people intoxicated.

Ye Chen also gazed somewhat dazedly; just moments ago he had regretted not seeing the fireworks, never expecting that at this moment, so many fireworks would actually shoot into the sky.

He suddenly recalled his childhood, when he and his parents set off fireworks by the banks of Bei Hai and Hou Hai in Yanjing.

He has lived until now, spending most of his time in hardship and turmoil; over these many years, having endured endless suffering and humiliation, yet never developing psychological trauma, never becoming deformed in character, never harboring hatred toward society, and still able to maintain a pure, kind, and just original heart—aside from the education and guidance his parents gave him in childhood, it also relied on the healing of a happy childhood.

People often say: an unhappy childhood requires a lifetime to heal, but a happy childhood can heal a lifetime. Ye Chen is the latter—even if he falls into utter despair, as long as he recalls the bits and pieces of his childhood, he can find a glimmer of light in the darkness and thus smile through some difficulties and dangers.

At this moment, the fireworks display grew larger and larger; everyone stood in place watching, the five-colored sparks reflecting countless joyful and happy faces; amid the crackling explosions of fireworks, urgent police sirens sounded, and several patrol cars rushed straight toward the fireworks launch site, people couldn't help but feel anxious for this unknown fireworks launcher.

Several launchers were quickly subdued by police, but the fireworks they launched were all large ones—once ignited, they would continue spraying for several minutes, so when they were taken into police cars, those fireworks were still struggling to burst from their packaging, shooting toward the sky.

Police took out fire extinguishers, originally intending to put out the fireworks, but seeing the perpetrators already caught, and the surrounding children each showing tense, reluctant expressions, they ultimately abandoned the idea of extinguishing them.

After a few minutes, the fireworks gradually burned out; as the last spark faded, night once again draped the sky in darkness.

However, people's moods did not feel disappointed, because they had just witnessed the most beautiful fireworks in the night sky—this feeling made everyone feel especially satisfied.

After the fireworks ended, Ye Chen continued gazing at the sky where the fireworks had bloomed, unable to help sighing: "If I had known a few boxes of fireworks could make so many people so satisfied, I would have also prepared some to set off."

Xiao Churan instinctively reminded him beside him: "You'd better not do anything illegal."

Ye Chen said: "Although it's a mistake, it ultimately can make many people satisfied."

"Then don't do it." Xiao Churan suddenly gripped his arm with both hands, staring at him with a serious and solemn expression, saying: "Ye Chen, you must promise me, never to take risks and do anything, no matter how small—if it involves danger, you should try your best not to attempt it."

When Xiao Churan said this, she struggled hard to hold back the tears about to burst from her eye sockets.

She knows her separation from Ye Chen is now settled; her only worry is that after she leaves, Ye Chen's path of revenge will encounter danger.

In fact, she very much wants to speak plainly, telling him not to seek revenge, to find a safe place and live out his life in peace and stability.

But when the words reached her lips, she still forced them back.

Reason tells her that many things are not for Ye Chen to decide—even if he gives up avenging his parents' killers, his enemies may not necessarily give up killing him.

Ye Chen does not know that Xiao Churan spoke these words moved by emotion; he merely comforted her like soothing a child, saying: "Wife, rest assured—I won't recklessly take risks."

While speaking, Xiao Churan suddenly thought of Wu Feiyan, whom she had never met but hated to the bone.

This woman had caused the death of her parents for so many years, and still wanted to wipe out her grandparents' entire family; in the future, she and Wu Feiyan would inevitably face a life-or-death battle where only one would survive, a struggle fraught with danger and no room for avoidance.

Xiao Churan also knew that Ye Chen had arrived at today's situation through circumstances beyond his control; at this moment, her resentment toward his concealment of so many things over so many years had greatly eased.

She no longer dwelled on this matter, but sincerely hoped Ye Chen would enjoy peace and smooth sailing in the future; as a young woman unfamiliar with the burden of deep hatred, she could only silently pray to heaven: "May the gods of heaven bless Ye Chen so that he never encounters his enemy, but if such a meeting is unavoidable, then bless him to slay his foe and avenge his parents, freeing himself completely from this torment and allowing him to live a normal life..."