Five minutes later, the assistant finally wrapped up his stream of praise.
“Mr. Zhou is currently in Switzerland taking care of his wife and won’t be able to return for a while. We actually wanted to visit earlier, but we were afraid of disturbing your son’s recovery.”
Lu Xi smiled politely. “That’s very considerate of you.”
The assistant returned the courtesy. “Once our boss is back, he’ll definitely visit in person.”
Now that he mentioned a home visit, it was clear that the Zhou family had already done their research on them. It was even possible that Mr. Zhou and Xie Yizhao already knew each other.
The visit finally came to an end. The Zhou family’s people picked up the two children, preparing to take them home.
The twins looked reluctant to leave.
Before parting, they presented their artwork to Xie Heng. “Brother, we drew you super handsome! You have to keep this safe, okay?”
Xie Heng stared at the two drawings in front of him—strange, blue-haired little figures with an eerie style.
He really wanted to crumple them up and toss them into the trash.
But thanks to Ms. Lu, who had just established his image as someone who respects the elderly and cherishes the young, he couldn’t afford to break character.
Besides…
He didn’t want to upset the two kids either.
After all, when he was their age, he had been just like them…
Back then, he hadn’t had someone like Ms. Lu.
Suppressing the complicated emotions rising within him, the boy carefully took the two pieces of paper in his hands, cleared his throat, and said, “Don’t worry. If we meet again in the future, I’ll bring you gifts.”
The two children cheered in unison.
“Police Brother is the best!”
“No! He’s Superman Brother!”
Xie Heng rubbed his temples and chose to ignore the more outrageous title from the little boy. Patiently, he explained to Ningning, “I’m not a cop. I’m still a student.”
The little girl tilted her head, studying Xie Heng seriously.
After a long pause, she pursed her lips and asked, “You’re really not a cop? But you really look like one.”
Look like a cop? Was that even a thing? What part of him looked like one? Xie Heng shook his head. “I’m really not.”
Ningning sighed. “That’s such a shame. Will you become a cop in the future? You’re so amazing! You’d be perfect for it!”
Xie Heng froze.
His heart stirred slightly. He suddenly didn’t know what to say.
He had never thought about what he wanted to do in the future… Becoming a cop had never crossed his mind. But now that he thought about it, he didn’t seem to dislike the idea.
Ever since Lu Xi had told him Sherlock Holmes’ famous quote, he had developed a strong interest in detective dramas and novels. He had watched many classics and admired the detectives and police officers in them—especially that moment when they uncovered the truth and captured the culprit in front of everyone.
Every time, he watched with excitement, wishing he could be in their shoes.
But he had never seriously considered becoming a police officer.
Maybe it was because all his past experiences at the police station hadn’t been pleasant. He had instinctively rejected the idea.
But now, thinking about the possibility of handling complex cases, catching criminals, and uncovering the truth, he suddenly felt a rush of excitement.
His palms grew slightly warm.
But… could he really do it?
“Becoming a cop?” Song Siyang looked puzzled. “Why would you suddenly think of that?”
At night, the basketball court was brightly lit by several large floodlights. A few boys were scattered across the court, playing. Song Siyang dribbled his basketball as he walked over to Xie Heng, panting heavily before grabbing a water bottle and taking a big gulp.
Xie Heng had just been discharged from the hospital and hadn’t fully recovered, so he couldn’t play. Xu Jiaming had planned to go on the court, but Xie Heng pulled him aside, saying he had something important to discuss.
Song Siyang saw them whispering together, looking secretive.
“…” Were they trying to exclude him? Not a chance!
He immediately squeezed in, just in time to hear Xie Heng asking Xu Jiaming what he thought about him becoming a police officer in the future.
Xie Heng ignored Song Siyang.
He was a man with ambition now—he no longer wanted to talk to people with no ambition.
Xu Jiaming thought for a moment before replying, “It’s possible, but… the entrance scores for police academies are really high.”
Huh?
Xie Heng’s pupils shrank slightly.
That was something he hadn’t considered at all.
The boy rubbed the bridge of his nose, suddenly looking hesitant. “How high?”
Xu Jiaming actually knew a lot about this. He thought for a moment and used the country’s top police university as an example. “Based on last year’s cutoff, you’d need to improve your score by at least 200 points to be safe.”
“Two hundred?!”
Both Xie Heng and Song Siyang, two certified underachievers, exclaimed in shock.
Song Siyang blinked in confusion. “What does improving by 200 points even mean?”
Sorry, as an academic disaster, he was completely lost and urgently needed an explanation.
Xu Jiaming, as calm as ever, said, “It means that on top of moving up 50 rank in his last exam, he’’d need to move up at least another 200 ranks.”
“…”
Xie Heng’s face instantly fell.
Even the basketball in his hands trembled slightly.
“Move up another 200 ranks?? Are you serious? Is that even humanly possible?” Song Siyang thought, because not everyone was Xu Jiaming!
He patted Xie Heng’s shoulder sympathetically, his tone solemn. “Give up, buddy. Let’s be realistic. Just inherit your Dad’s massive fortune in peace.”
Xie Heng’s mood soured even more. “Screw you.”
Forget moving up 200 ranks—
His retake results from yesterday weren’t even out yet. Xu Jiaming had looked at his other subject scores and estimated that he needed to pass both political science and history, or there was no way he’d even move up 50 ranks.
That was bad news.
Yesterday’s two exams had left him uneasy. He couldn’t recall many key concepts.
Xie Heng felt irritated and didn’t want to continue this topic. He suddenly thought of something and told his two friends, “Oh right, I might be moving soon.”
Xu Jiaming’s calm gaze paused for a moment. “Moving? You mean… your whole family?”
“Of course! Do you think they’d leave me behind?” Xie Heng shot him a strange look.
How could a top student ask such a dumb question?
Song Siyang was stunned.
He had been Xie Heng’s neighbor for over a decade. Neither family had moved before. Although their houses weren’t exactly close, they were both neighbors and classmates, seeing each other almost every day. So why move all of a sudden?
Song Siyang sighed, sounding uncharacteristically disappointed. “Why move when things are just fine here?”
Xie Heng shrugged. “How would I know? It’s my parents’ decision. I have to follow them.”
“……”
Song Siyang was at a loss for words. He ran a hand through his hair and sat down next to Xie Heng in silence.
Meanwhile, Xu Jiaming was holding his phone with a calm expression. The screen was still on the class group chat. He was about to reply to the homeroom teacher’s message, but after a long moment, his fingers remained still.
Under the dim light, the shadows of the three boys stretched long on the ground. Each was lost in thought, the air around them heavy.
Xie Heng let his hand fall, and the basketball rolled far away.
Lu Xi hadn’t expected that news of the move had already spread—even before everything was finalized and before they had even picked a house.
The next day, at her Sunday guitar lesson…
After the 45-minute session ended, Xu Jiaming began packing up his guitar while Lu Xi was still practicing the assigned piece.
Just then, he asked in his usual calm tone, “I heard you’re moving. Have you decided where yet?”
Lu Xi’s fingers paused slightly.
“You already know?” She chuckled. “Must’ve been Xie Heng who told you, right?”
She had forgotten to remind Xie Heng not to mention it before things were settled—just to avoid unnecessary trouble. But at his age, it was only natural to share things with his friends.
It didn’t really matter that Xu Jiaming knew.
He nodded, his expression gentle as he looked at her.
Lu Xi shook her head, setting the guitar aside. “Not yet. We only just started planning. It might take a while, we both have trouble making decisions.”
She laughed at her own words.
Xu Jiaming didn’t respond, only letting out a quiet ‘hmm.’
Seeing his slightly furrowed brows as if lost in thought, Lu Xi smiled and asked, “What’s wrong? Something on your mind?”
It was only then that Xu Jiaming’s lips curled into a faint smile. In a calm voice, he said, “Not really. It’s just that my Mom really enjoys having you as a neighbor. She’ll be sad when she finds out.”
Oh…
Lu Xi doubted Yang Yihan would actually be sad. After all, they were both adults, and Yang Yihan was often away filming. Though they had a good relationship, they didn’t see each other often. As long as they stayed in the same city, meeting up wouldn’t be an issue.
But Xu Jiaming—he was really thinking about his Mom. What a good kid.
Lu Xi admired this quiet and reserved boy. Seeing him lower his gaze in silence, she suddenly had a thought.
That’s right—he had only just become friends with Xie Heng, and they were neighbors too. Their move would surely upset him.
Friendships at this age were truly precious.
Lu Xi reassured him, “It’s okay. Even if we move, your Mom and I will still be friends. And so will you and Xie Heng. As long as you both care, friendship won’t change.”
Xu Jiaming was open-minded and smart. As expected, after hearing her words, he smiled—a youthful, sincere smile—and nodded obediently. “Thanks for the advice, CEO Lu. I feel much better now.”
Xie Yizhao had just returned from a business trip and was sitting in his car.
He knew that Lu Xi had picked up Xie Heng yesterday, and he also knew that right now was the time when Xiao Xu came over for her guitar lesson.
So as his car turned into the driveway, his eyes instinctively landed on the greenhouse.
And there, he saw his wife and the boy from next door exchanging a smile.
His gaze darkened slightly. His expression remained calm, giving nothing away.
But the moment his car stopped, he stepped out and walked straight toward the greenhouse.
Lu Xi had already noticed his car pulling in. Her eyes lit up in surprise, and she set down her guitar, walking toward the door. Her eyes sparkled with delight.
Just as Xie Yizhao reached the entrance, he curved his lips into a faint smile, took her hand, and pulled her close, habitually patting her head.
Lu Xi hadn’t even realized that her voice carried a hint of a pout. “Weren’t you supposed to be back tomorrow morning?”
“I said that on purpose,” Xie Yizhao replied indifferently.
Huh?
Was this supposed to be a surprise?
This old man was getting quite the trickster lately. Lu Xi blinked at him, tilting her face up to study him. Seeing the slight weariness on his face, she knew he had rushed back right after finishing work, probably hadn’t even rested on the plane.
Still, he looked as handsome as ever.
Lu Xi was about to reach out to touch his face or loosen his tie, but then she suddenly remembered—there was still a kid in the conservatory. She quickly stopped herself.
After all, with someone else around, she had to behave.
A little kid seeing this wouldn’t be good at all.
Xie Yizhao noticed her eager yet hesitant movement, and the warmth in his eyes deepened.
He turned to Xu Jiaming and gave him a slight nod. “Thank you for coming every week to teach my wife guitar.”
Xu Jiaming responded with a polite smile. “It’s no trouble. CEO Lu promised me a gift.”
With that, he gathered his things, bid farewell to Lu Xi, and quickly left.
Xie Yizhao didn’t look back at him.
He simply held Lu Xi’s hand and sat down on the sofa. His long, strong fingers plucked at the guitar strings as he said calmly, “I didn’t know you were interested in musical instruments.”
Lu Xi blinked. “And if you had known? Would you have hired a teacher for me earlier?”
The man shook his head, composed as ever. “If I had known earlier, I would have played for you sooner.”
Lu Xi froze. “You know how to play the guitar?”
Xie Yizhao chuckled. “The piano.”
He paused for a moment, then looked deeply into her eyes. “Do you want to hear it?”
Why do I feel like that Xu boy likes her