Cecilia Gu received a call from Mrs. Mo and instantly felt a wave of panic.
If Mrs. Mo already knows about my fight with Max Mo, how could I even show my face at dinner?
And if she doesn’t know, how am I supposed to face Max Mo?
What kind of invitation did Mrs. Mo send me, anyway?
Is she inviting me as their future daughter-in-law, as the Director of Eastshire Department of Culture, or just as a regular family guest?
Cecilia hesitated for a moment and said, “Let me ask Dad first.”
Cecilia nervously went looking for Mr. Yun, only to find him still busy pitching his research institute to Jiro Hirayama.
Seeing her dad so caught up, Cecilia figured he wasn’t going, so she quickly answered Mrs. Mo’s call: “Mrs. Mo, my dad is busy with research again.”
Mrs. Mo clearly expected this and chuckled, “I knew it. No worries—just come by yourself. I haven’t seen you in years! You’ve been in France for two, three years now, and I’ve barely caught a glimpse of you. I had someone prepare lots of Eastshire snacks at home for you. You’re from Eastshire—of course you should eat your hometown food!”
Cecilia couldn’t refuse, so she just smiled and replied, “Alright then, Mrs. Mo, hope you don’t mind if I eat a ton!”
Once the visit was set, Cecilia took a deep breath, had Wendy prepare a gift, and grabbed a cab to the Mo Family Residence in Capital City.
Real estate in Capital City is seriously worth its weight in gold. That’s no exaggeration.
The Mo Family may be rooted in politics, and Mr. Mo is a Standing Committee member, but their Capital City home isn’t exactly fancy.
It’s just a top-floor apartment in a high-end complex in Chaoyang District.
But the place is still huge—two floors connected, probably around five hundred square meters.
Even so, plenty of regular folks in Capital City can afford places like this.
Shows just how low-key Mr. Mo and Mrs. Mo are in Capital City.
Max Mo may own a lot of property in Capital City, but all the ownership details are crystal clear.
Mr. Mo and Max Mo have always kept their finances separate.
Cecilia stood outside the door with her gift, rang the bell, and someone quickly came to let her in.
"Are you Miss Cecilia Grant? Madam has been waiting for you." The housekeeper greeted Cecilia with a big smile as she opened the door.
Anyone who works as a housekeeper for the Mo Family is definitely not ordinary.
Mrs. Mo waved from a distance, "Cici, you’re here? Come in, have some water first."
Cecilia replied, "Thank you, Mrs. Mo."
Cecilia put her gift on the table and asked the housekeeper to take care of it.
Mrs. Mo walked over gracefully, smiling at Cecilia. "You silly child, you didn’t have to bring anything. Next time, just come as you are."
Cecilia, a bit embarrassed, replied, "Mrs. Mo’s always been so good to me—I couldn’t just come empty-handed."
Mrs. Mo laughed, "If you really want to make me happy, hurry up and marry into our family! I’ve been hoping you’d give the Mo Family some grandkids soon!" She sat next to Cecilia, gently fixing her hair. "You and Max Mo aren’t getting any younger. It’s time to settle down."
Cecilia felt bitter inside, but didn’t know what to say.
Mrs. Mo holds such a high position—what could she not know?
But when she pretends not to know, I just can't play along.
If she’d just confronted me right away, maybe I could've said something back.
But when she acts clueless on purpose, I’m the one who can’t keep up the act!
Luckily, Mrs. Mo didn’t expect me to reply. She just went on, "We don’t really stay here much, and your uncle hardly ever comes by. This place was actually meant for you."
Too bad Cecilia never agreed!
"The location’s great. If you two ever want to live in Capital City, you can always stay here for a while," Mrs. Mo added.
Cecilia opened her mouth to reply, but just then, she heard the door opening outside.
She looked toward the sound and saw Mr. Mo walk in from outside.
Cecilia quickly stood up, "Mr. Mo!"
Mr. Mo came in with his secretary and assistant. When he saw Cecilia, his face softened instantly. "Cici, you’re here! Sit down, make yourself at home!"
He gave a few instructions to his secretary and assistant, who then bowed politely to Mrs. Mo and Cecilia before leaving.
After changing his shoes, Mr. Mo walked over, smiling at Cecilia. "It’s been years, but you haven’t changed a bit!"
Mrs. Mo joined in, laughing, "Exactly! There are so many girls in the world, but I only want Cici as my daughter-in-law."
Mr. Mo nodded, "That’s right. Grandpa Mo only ever liked this one granddaughter-in-law."
Cecilia’s mouth felt even more bitter.
What am I supposed to do now?
She’d promised her mom never to be the one to break off the engagement before the Mo Family did.
But she just couldn’t keep up this fake act forever!
Right now, Cecilia felt like she was sitting on pins and needles!
She was silently praying to every god she could think of for a miracle.
And then—her savior appeared!
Max Mo was back!
Cecilia was crying inside from relief!
She’d never been so eager for Max Mo to show up!
As soon as Max Mo walked in, his eyes landed on Cecilia.
His blue eyes instantly softened.
"Mom, Dad, Cici’s here?" Max Mo said, as if their argument a few days ago never happened.
Cecilia looked at Max Mo with puppy eyes, making him want to laugh.
Mr. Mo and Mrs. Mo both nodded and smiled.
Mrs. Mo chuckled, "See? These two really do look good together! Old Mo, didn’t you say you had a gift for Cici when she came?"
Mr. Mo seemed to remember something and asked the housekeeper to bring a box from the study. He didn’t open it, just pushed it toward Cecilia. "Cici, your parents are back in the country, and your birthday’s coming up. We’re all family here. Take these gifts ahead of time."
Cecilia’s mouth felt bitter again. She turned to Max Mo, eyes full of hope.
Max Mo saw the pleading look in Cecilia’s eyes and suddenly felt sorry for her.
Mr. Mo’s meaning was clear enough.
Cecilia’s birthday was basically going to be their engagement day.
Right now, the last thing Cecilia wanted to hear was the word "birthday."
She couldn’t mention breaking off the engagement, and she couldn’t offend the Mo Family either.
She was miserable!
Max Mo saw Cecilia was about to cry, so he reached out and grabbed her hand, telling Mr. and Mrs. Mo, "Mom, Dad, you’re rushing her—Cici’s getting shy…"
Cecilia:
Max Mo continued, "Let’s wait until the engagement to talk about all this. Who gives the betrothal gifts early, anyway? And besides, we should wait until Uncle and Auntie come by so everyone can sit together before making it official."
Cecilia nodded like crazy, totally agreeing.
"Mom, Dad… uh, since it’s Cici’s first time here, I’ll show her my room!" Max Mo said, then pulled Cecilia up to leave.
Mr. Mo gave his son a meaningful look and sighed, "Alright, go ahead. Just don’t forget to come out for dinner."
"Uncle, Auntie, I’ll go with him now." Cecilia nearly stumbled as she followed Max Mo out of the living room.
Max Mo took Cecilia’s hand and led her into his room.
Only when the door finally closed did Cecilia let out a sigh of relief.
Max Mo gave her a half-smile, watching Cecilia’s tense little face and feeling a pang of sympathy.
"Thanks for earlier," Cecilia looked up at Max Mo. "And... about that day, I’m sorry!"
Max Mo squeezed her fingers tightly. "You never have to say those words to me."
Cecilia tried to pull her hand away, but Max Mo suddenly gripped it tighter.
"You’ve got less than two months. If you can’t get my parents and Grandpa Mo to change their minds, Cici, you won’t be able to escape." Max Mo said softly, "I thought about what you said for a long time. You’re not Yun Zixiao, and I’m not Prince Shuo. They were enemies, but we’re not! Our families have been close forever, and we’re engaged. Even if you don’t like me now, I’m patient—I’ll wait a lifetime if I have to."
Cecilia said helplessly, "But I have a son!"
The Mo Family has everything—why are they so set on me as their daughter-in-law?
"I don’t care," Max Mo answered seriously. "Do you really think my family cares about things like that? If they did, my parents wouldn’t have said all those things today. You think you can hide anything from them? The Mo Family controls the most secret information channels in the country—do you really think you can keep anything from us?"
Cecilia’s heart sank. That’s exactly why she felt so frustrated!
Everyone knows the truth but pretends not to—that’s what makes her want to scream!
"So, here’s my answer to your question from that day. Cecilia, I’m not giving up on you! If you don’t say yes today, I’ll wait until tomorrow. If you don’t say yes in a year, I’ll wait a year. If it takes ten years, I’ll wait ten years. I’ll keep waiting until the day you grow old!"
"Why?" Cecilia couldn’t help asking. "There are so many people who like you—why are you so hung up on someone who doesn’t even like you?"
"Because..." Max Mo’s eyes reddened instantly.
Because it’s fate, across lifetimes.
Because this time, he didn’t want to regret it again.