After Losing My Memory, I Went After My Archenemy - Chapter 37

From then on, Xia Rou’s family almost completely cut ties with their original relatives. In order to break away from the past and start a new life, Xia Rou’s parents decided to move out of the old residence, relocating from the north side of the city to the southernmost side.

Fortunately, the most plentiful asset in the family’s real estate portfolio was houses. They let Xia Rou choose one, and since the house was already furnished, they could move in immediately. However, the “bags” to move… were quite numerous.

The walk-in closets of Xia Rou and her mother alone filled two large moving trucks, with various handbags taking up the most space.

Because they moved in close to the New Year, everything felt rushed.

Right after finishing the unpacking, they had to immediately start decorating and preparing for the New Year celebrations.

Since it was the winter break, Xia Rou was free. To pass the time, she and her mother personally went to the mall to select many large and small items for the new house.

“Rou Rou, your mother has something she wants to discuss with you. I wonder what your opinion is?”

Wu Daiyun called out to her as the mother and daughter were in the yard watching the servants transplant the newly purchased potted plants.

“Hmm, what is it?”

“You know, in the past, we always had New Year’s Eve dinner with your elder uncle’s and third uncle’s families. Now that we’ve broken up with them, this year it’s just the three of us. It will inevitably feel a bit lonely. I was thinking…”

Before Wu Daiyun could finish, Xia Rou interrupted with an excited look, having guessed her intention: “Mom, are you thinking of inviting Lin Xi and her family to come and have this year’s New Year’s Eve dinner with us?”

Wu Daiyun looked slightly surprised, then smiled and nodded: “That’s the idea. I wonder if you think it’s appropriate?”

“Actually, I had the same thought and was waiting for a chance to discuss it with you and Dad. Lin Xi isn’t going abroad for the New Year this year, and it’s just her and her uncle, which is also quite lonely. If we can ask them to come over, we can all have a livelier time,” Xia Rou said.

On the afternoon of Lunar New Year’s Eve.

In the small second-floor loft of the antique shop at Lane 136, Xihai Road.

The old wooden floorboards creaked with a dull sound as someone walked back and forth. Lin Xi, sitting on the sofa in a slightly relaxed posture, watched her uncle go in and out several times, changing his clothes.

Finally, having likely settled on an outfit he was satisfied with, Zhou Mingde stood in front of the full-length mirror, holding the corners of his coat and striking a pose. He asked confidently, “How is it, niece? Will I embarrass you tonight wearing this?”

“Uncle, we are just going for dinner.”

Lin Xi smiled helplessly. Her implied meaning was that there was no need to be so nervous or deliberately formal.

The man, however, seemed not to hear her and continued to talk to himself: “Thinking back, the first time I wore this suit, I was a young man in my early twenties. Now, I’m an old uncle nearly fifty. Time flies.”

Lin Xi watched her uncle, who was lamenting the passage of time by himself, feeling amused. She then inadvertently noticed something.

“Uncle.”

“What is it?” Zhou Mingde was still immersed in his reflection, imagining his dashing appearance from back then.

“Your suit, the back seems to be ripped,” Lin Xi stepped forward to point it out, asking somewhat awkwardly, “Has it been stored for too long?”

“Ah, my precious suit! It was very expensive when I bought it, and I didn’t even wear it many times. I clearly took it out for maintenance every year, how could this happen?!”

The wailing of a middle-aged man echoed in the loft.

Soon, Lin Xi noticed the real issue and pointed it out: “It must be because you’ve gained weight.”

Before her uncle could continue his lament, Lin Xi received a call from an unfamiliar number, and she hurriedly went downstairs.

A moment later, she returned to the loft, holding an international parcel. The sender was her mother’s foreign name.

“My mother sent this for you.”

Zhou Mingde reached out, hesitating, “How are you sure it’s for me and not for you?”

“If it were for me, the recipient wouldn’t be your name, Uncle. Open it and see,” Lin Xi said, as if she had guessed what it was.

The parcel was opened to reveal a high-quality suit and a handwritten letter.

[Brother, I don’t have any New Year’s gift to send you. This is a limited edition Spring Collection piece from your favorite brand that’s about to be launched. I got it through a friend in the industry. I wanted to thank you for taking care of Xi Xi all these years. Please forgive me for only seeing you briefly last time I came back. You’ve gotten older, and you’ve gained weight…]

As he read, Zhou Mingde’s eyes quietly welled up, and he quickly reached up to wipe them.

“I’ve always wanted to know what exactly happened between you and my mother back then,” Lin Xi said calmly.

What kind of resentment was so deep that it kept them estranged for so many years? If her mother hadn’t returned home this time because of her, perhaps the rift between the siblings wouldn’t have been mended.

Zhou Mingde sighed deeply, “It’s all my fault! When your mother was just a young girl, only sixteen or seventeen, she had a childhood sweetheart, her first love. But because the boy’s family situation was complicated and he wasn’t a suitable match—his father had been in jail, and his mother was always out having affairs and had a bad reputation—your maternal grandparents passed away early, and I was the one in charge of the family. Of course, I couldn’t let her jump into that fire pit. So, I forcefully separated them. If it weren’t for what happened next… your mother might not have hated me for so long.”

“What happened next?” Lin Xi couldn’t help but ask.

“I didn’t expect that the boy, heartbroken, drank too much alcohol and fell off a bridge on his way home, drowning. Since then, your mother changed completely. She came home and stopped talking to me, and privately applied to schools abroad. She left and never returned. But she has every right to hate me…”

Lin Xi was very surprised to hear this, never knowing such an incident had occurred back then.

She was born abroad and since she could remember, her family was already very wealthy. Thus, she was unaware of what her seemingly glamorous mother had gone through in the past.

“She has forgiven you,” Lin Xi said, looking at the man.

Zhou Mingde paused, then smiled with silent relief, clasping his hands. He suddenly remembered something and said with a laugh, “I still remember the year you first came back, late at night, carrying a large suitcase and showing up here, asking if I was Zhou Shuo’e’s brother. You didn’t look as cool then as you do now.”

Since she had run away in anger, she was quite a mess at the time.

“Let’s not talk about the past, Uncle,” Lin Xi’s tone was somewhat pleading.

Seeing that it was getting late, the two tidied up and set off for Xia Rou’s new home.

Perhaps due to the celebratory mood, Zhou Mingde, who had vowed to quit drinking two months ago and had actually followed through, couldn’t help but have a few drinks.

For various reasons, Lin Xi also had two glasses and then dramatically “collapsed” drunk onto the table.

“Dad, I told you not to let her drink so much. She doesn’t usually drink; she doesn’t have your alcohol tolerance.”

With a hint of reproach in her tone, Xia Rou quickly helped her up and upstairs.

Xia Rou helped Lin Xi lie down on the bed in her own room. Just as she was about to get up, the person woke up, grabbed her wrist, and smiled faintly.

“You’re not drunk?!” The Omega’s eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.

“I promised to spend New Year’s Eve with you; I can’t sleep,” the Alpha said, sitting up on the bed.

“Then you were just pretending to be drunk?”

“If I didn’t, your dad wouldn’t let me off so easily tonight.” Lin Xi gently tapped her nose, her tone doting: “But how could I dare offend you, my dear young lady?”

Xia Rou, who had just looked unhappy, instantly couldn’t hide the joy on her face and shyly ran toward the small balcony connected to the room.

Lin Xi got up and followed. Once outside, she sat down on the swing chair on the balcony and beckoned Xia Rou to come and sit on her lap.

The Omega didn’t refuse at all. After sitting down, she wrapped her arms around Lin Xi’s neck and kissed her. “That was a punishment.”

Lin Xi simply leaned down and kissed her lips. After a good, long kiss, she released her and said, “That wasn’t a punishment, it was a reward.”

Xia Rou’s face became even redder, and she quickly buried her face in Lin Xi’s chest.

Unknowingly, it reached midnight. Fireworks blossomed outside the city, rising like clusters of flowers, yet sparkling brightly, adorning the curtain of the night. Their vantage point offered a perfect view.

“This is our first New Year together.”

Sitting in Lin Xi’s arms, Xia Rou turned her head to look at the sky. Her pupils were reflecting the incomparably brilliant light of the fireworks.

“There will be a second, a third, and a hundredth,” Lin Xi, holding her, responded.

“Happy New Year.”

Withdrawing her gaze, Xia Rou once again took the initiative to kiss the other person’s lips.

Accompanied by the continuous explosion of fireworks in the distant sky, Lin Xi’s “Happy New Year” gradually drowned in the kiss.

—End

Support After Losing My Memory, I Went After My Archenemy