I returned home at midnight to find the villa ablaze with lights and filled with the sound of laughter.

"Looks like your brother is back," Ernuo said, handing me my coat at the door.

"Probably." I took the coat and gave him a parting kiss.

He sensed my mood. "I take it you don't want me to come in and say hello?"

"You don't want to anyway. You hate these fake social gatherings," I countered. "I'm doing this for your sake."

"Are you sure you don't need me?" There was a rare trace of genuine concern beneath his teasing tone.

"Just go home and get my room ready. I might move in tomorrow." I gave him a gentle push, my smile showing no sign of the turmoil within.

"Yes, ma'am."

The silver BMW sped away, and I turned toward the house. Even in the dark, the fountain in the front yard continued its enchanting flow. Tonight, the usual silence was gone.

I let myself in as quietly as possible, but Wu Ma—the only person in this house who was kind to me—appeared immediately.

"Late again!" she scolded affectionately. I just smiled and changed my shoes. As I headed upstairs, she stopped me. "The Master wants you in the living room."

"I'm tired, Wu Ma. Not tonight."

"That excuse won't work on me," she smiled. "The young Master is back. Isn't that reason enough?"

"That's a reason for me not to go."

"Oh, I know you two don't get along, but he's your brother! Just show your face, or your father will be furious."

"Fine," I sighed, rubbing my temples.

In the living room, my father was laughing—a stark contrast to his usual stern self. When he saw me, his smile vanished. "So, you remember you have a home? If Wu Ma hadn't stopped you, would you have crawled into your room without a word again? I suppose I'm only your father when you need money."

I stood there in silence, immune to his words.

"Master, don't scold the young lady tonight," Wu Ma pleaded.

I looked up. My father’s eyes softened when they landed on Shen Ningyi, but they remained cold when they turned to me. "You're twenty-one. You should know how to behave."

You should know how to stay in my good graces so you don't get kicked out, I translated mentally.

Shen Ningyi interrupted, showing my father some gifts from abroad. He wasn't doing it to help me; he was doing it to marginalize me. But that was exactly what I wanted—to be ignored.

I turned to leave. As I walked away, I felt his gaze on me—complex, familiar, yet disturbingly foreign.