Not Interested

Madam Lou bid farewell to the young couple with extreme humility. Lily Evans watched Madam Lou leave with an expressionless face, then glanced at the table full of pastries. Suddenly, she felt even more disgusted, her appetite gone. She turned and headed straight to the study—out of sight, out of mind.

Alexander Hayes stood where he was, hands behind his back, staring at the plates of pastries for a long time. Memories of the past twenty years at home floated through his mind. He let out a long breath, picked up a piece of pastry, slowly brought it to his mouth, and gently took a bite.

The familiar, longed-for taste from his memories surged forth, leaving Alexander Hayes momentarily dazed.

As a child, he loved his mother's pastries the most. Unfortunately, she rarely cooked for him, let alone made a whole table of pastries like today.

For young Alexander Hayes, tasting food and pastries made by his mother was a secret wish buried in his heart. If it could come true—if his mother could personally make him a single pastry—he would have been overjoyed.

As time passed, that wish faded, leaving only a faint impression in his heart.

He grew up to be a general renowned throughout the land, yet his mother still never personally made anything for him to eat.

He never expected that the next time he'd taste his mother's pastries would be in such circumstances.

Alexander Hayes looked at the pastry he'd bitten into. The familiar fragrance between his lips and teeth now felt strangely foreign.

It had been so long since he’d tasted it, he couldn’t even remember the flavor of the pastries—everything had become blurry.

This childhood longing had finally arrived—so late, and so unexpected...

Alexander Hayes put down the pastry he'd bitten into with self-mockery, spat out the crumbs, rinsed his mouth with tea, and his eyes regained their usual calm and cool composure.

His childhood yearning had long been worn away by the passage of years. He was no longer that little boy desperate for his mother's love.

Now, whenever he wanted something delicious, his wife would make it for him. He no longer needed to beg that cold, indifferent mother for the tiniest scrap of pity or maternal love.

The so-called fatherly and motherly love he once desperately craved as a child—after years of neglect and indifference—he simply didn’t care for it anymore.

A gentle smile appeared at the corner of Alexander Hayes’s mouth. He wiped his hands clean with a handkerchief and walked out of the room.

At the doorway, a servant stood respectfully. Glancing at the pastries on the table, he hesitantly asked, "Your Highness, what should be done with these...?"

Alexander Hayes turned to look at the table of pastries and quietly replied, "Throw them out."

"...Yes, Your Highness." The servant bowed respectfully.

With brisk and lively steps, Alexander Hayes strode out of the residence, led a horse from the stables, and rode to the best pastry shop in the East Market. He bought two of every finest pastry, then returned home with both packages in his arms, heading straight for the neighboring Lin residence.

"Mother!" Alexander Hayes entered Mrs. Wang's room, carrying the pastries in his arms.

Mrs. Wang was stitching a shoe sole, while Lin Xiaowu was reading beside her. Both looked up as Alexander Hayes entered.

"Brother-in-law!" Lin Xiaowu called out happily.

"Oh my, our son-in-law is here! Come in, quickly! It's so cold outside, don't catch a chill!" Mrs. Wang put down her embroidery, beamed, pulled Alexander Hayes inside, and poured him a cup of hot tea. "Drink some tea to warm up! Where's Lily? Did you come alone?"

Looking at Mrs. Wang's gentle, loving smile, Alexander Hayes finally understood what it meant to have a mother—and what motherly love truly was—only after becoming her son-in-law.

As for Madam Lou—heh, he no longer cared.