章 26: 1.26

"Brother-in-law," I winked as I hugged Dr. Wu, I had decided in the bathtub earlier regardless of whether the test I'd sneaked to Meilin was positive or not I was going to ensure these two had the happy ending they deserved.

They were just pitiful humans caught up in these immortal's schemes and plots.

His eyebrows rose in surprise a moment, but he returned the hug. I felt multiple eyes burning a hole in my back so quickly stepped away.

"Rui," Jianyu nodded then walked ahead to the private dining room.

We were inside a restaurant under the loyal members of the Li clan and now under Lex's control. Each member of staff here was an assassin. After all, even an assassin needed a day job. It was the safest place to initially introduce myself as Mo Zhiyue to the elders.

"Right, come on, the elders will be here shortly," Meilin looped arms with mine and dragged me in, ignoring a confused-looking Dr. Wu.

"Yup," my head nodded up and down like a chicken pecking rice, fearful to agitate this moody madame even the tiniest of bits. She'd handed my ass to me many times in the gym for me to do otherwise.

Reluctantly, I took a seat at the circular table between Jianyu and Meilin.

Grandfather Fu was the first to arrive. He eagerly walked toward Jianyu and me. We stood to greet him.

"Xiao Yue, glad to see this brat is no longer hiding you anymore," he let out a wide grin.

I tried my best to give a sincere smile, failing miserably.

"Yes, though you could say I've been in the spotlight already for quite some time now," I made a lame attempt at a joke, my heart skipping a beat waiting for a response.

"True, true, I know your parents would be so proud to see all you've accomplished," Grandfather Fu nodded. It felt wrong to receive high praise for something I'd never done. I blushed, nodding and avoiding eye contact.

"Grandpa," Dr. Wu exclaimed, greeting Grandfather Fu and guiding him to the chair between him and Jianyu.

"See brat, look and learn how a grandson ought to behave," Grandfather Fu complained, nudging Jianyu with his elbow on his way to sit.

Jianyu's roll of his eyes in response gave him a childish charm that felt foreign to the man I thought I knew.

Next Dr. Wu's grandparents entered and we rose to greet them as well. Grandfather Wu was a stern and well-built man for his age, though his wife, Grandmother Wu, looked comly and plump.

"You've grown up so pretty, just like your mother," Grandmother Wu cooed, her eyes scanning me from top to bottom whilst the younger generation greeted the elders.

A sudden image of an unfamiliar woman with wide eyes looking at me in shock and horror as blood pooled in the centre of her head came to the front of my mind.

What the fuck?

I blinked, shaking the image of Zhiyue's mother from Grandmother Wu's face, with unintentional tears in my eyes.

Was this an original memory of Zhiyue's? Of all the times to finally get one...

"Can't you prevent hallucinations like that?" I cursed at System.

"Would if I could, I'm your System, not your shrink," it replied coldly.

If only it had a physical form I could hit…

"Positive thoughts Host," System spoke in a sing-song voice, "we have an audience."

Jianyu's fingers pinched at my waist, also reminding me of that fact.

Since when had he wrapped an arm around my waist? I bit my lip, resisting the urge to push him off.

"The elders needed to think of us as a happy couple. It was all part of the plan. Think of the power." I thought to myself, gathering the strength to endure the uncomfortable stares.

The door abruptly opened again and the staff let a frail old man in. He hobbled with an elaborately designed walking stick, smiling warmly. Somehow, that smile only made me feel cold. I unconsciously and surprisingly leaned against Jianyu, seeking warmth.

"You can always count on old Fu to be early, and you can always count on this lazy layabout to be late," Grandfather Wu jested, greeting my new grandfather.

"It gets harder and harder to keep time without my alarm clock," though he smiled, the elders all showed pained expressions on their faces. I presumed the alarm clock was my deceased grandmother.

"Come girl, come greet your grandpa," he gingerly sat on the chair beside Meilin.

The hand that somehow found itself firmly gripping Jianyu trembled at his word. System's warm fuzz filled me, soothing my anxiety. If only I knew why I was so anxious.

"Hello grandpa," I left Jianyu's side to walk up to him.

His wrinkled hands reached up to pull my face towards him, awkwardly close, forcing me to bend.

"So good to see your face again my good girl," he coaxed me as if I was still the ten-year-old girl he'd lost, tears in the corner of his eyes.

Instead of the warm, fuzzy feelings, I imagined this body should have at meeting this long-lost relative, I had a permanent chill up my spine at his touch.

"Are there any anomalies with his body or soul System?" I asked internally, worried that maybe he was an immortal too. I'd felt like this around the soul inside Lixin.

"None that I can tell," it replied, though I still didn't feel eased by its words.

The meal went well, with friendly chatter and many conversations about memories that I couldn't follow.

Towards the end, I found myself stuck in a conversation with grandpa Mo whilst Meilin was away in the bathroom. He'd even beckoned me to sit in Meilin's seat, right beside him.

"I've arranged for you and Jianyu to stay in one of the best suites," he patted my leg, making me fight hard not to flinch.

The meeting was going to be held inside one of the Mo's luxury hotels in the city.

Even though Jianyu and I weren't on good terms right now, to him we were already a married couple, damnit.

"Thank you, grandpa, sorry to trouble you," I faked a polite smile, wishing to just shrink into nothingness.

"What are you saying my girl, you're family," I felt even more uncomfortable at his words.

Thankfully, Jianyu interrupted the increasingly awkward conversation to pass me my vibrating handbag. I pulled my phone out to see multiple texts and missed calls from Meilin.

I quickly excused myself to find her.

Inside the bathroom, Meilin was pacing in front of the stalls, "what's wrong?" I asked butterflies fluttering in my stomach.

Before I could even register her movement, a pregnancy test was shoved in my face.

"Eww, you've peed on that," I jumped backward, then swallowed my words realising just why she'd been so panicked.

Two lines.

I snatched the test out of her hand in disbelief, tilting it to look at different angles. The two strong lines were still there, according to the box I'd read earlier, which meant she was pregnant.

Shoving the stick into my handbag I dragged her to wash her hands with me, "I'm here now, it's all going to be okay."