Accusations of not wanting to marry: The prosecutor pressed him relentlessly.

Mu Wangbei worked overtime today and arrived home at eight o'clock. He had just finished showering when the doorbell rang. He thought it was Fang Youxi and was overjoyed.

When he opened the door, his mother, Chen Lai, was standing there.

"Mom, what brings you here?"

Chen Lai saw the smile freeze on her son's face and said calmly, "Who do you think it is?"

She was holding an electric lunchbox in her hand. After looking around as she entered the room, she handed it to her son, saying, "Auntie made some soup today, so I came to check on you."

Mu Wangbei started living away from home since college. His parents had never been here before. If there was anything, they would just call him and ask him to come home. If he wasn't busy with work, he would also take some time each week to go back and visit. He never expected that his mother would suddenly come over today without saying hello.

Without a doubt, the surprise inspection was most likely to check if there were any girls in his house.

Chen Lai did think so. That day, her colleague Sun Lifen somehow brought up the topic of couples living together before marriage, calling it a trial marriage. She implied that Chen Lai should take some time to visit her son's home and not bring just any girl home, because it would be embarrassing if she got pregnant.

She believed that Mu Wangbei wasn't such a reckless child, but she couldn't help being a little worried. As children grow up, they will inevitably have those needs. If something were to happen and she wasn't careful, it would be a disgrace to the Mu family, and she would probably have a hard time explaining it to the old man. As a mother, she still had to give him some pointers. After thinking it over, she went over to visit him anyway.

"Have you been busy with work lately? Your dad is going back to Beicheng next week, remember to come home for dinner."

As the year draws to a close, Minister Mu has been busy with work and hasn't been home for the past two weeks. Mu Wangbei hasn't been home for dinner for a while either.

Mu Wangbei put the soup in the kitchen refrigerator, made his mother a cup of hot black tea, and promised, "Okay, send me a message when Dad comes back."

The mother and son were silent for a moment. Chen Lai quietly drank her tea, while Mu Wangbei sat next to her, turned on the TV, and casually changed a few channels, turning the volume down very low.

In the Mu family, this is the usual way of getting along. Even if the three of them sit in the living room, they don't say more than a few words. Most of the time, they do their own thing. Mu Huai reads the news or documents, Chen Lai reads books and drinks tea, and he checks his phone or picks up a book and keeps her company.

If Mu Huai had something to ask him, he would definitely call him to the study, close the door, and have a serious discussion, just like listening to a subordinate's work report in a meeting.

After sitting for more than ten minutes, Chen Lai got up and went to the bathroom. On her son's sink, she saw a girl's hair tie.

She picked it up and examined it; it was twill silk, decorated with a "floral map" pattern print designed by Christine Henry, and polished palladium-plated saddle studs.

I saw this one at that famous boutique last time. It has the same pattern as the scarf she bought. This little hair tie costs about three or four thousand yuan. It's obvious that the girl left it here. It seems my colleague was right. There really is a girl who has spent the night here.

Chen Lai looked unwell and put the hair tie back in its original place.

She thought for a moment, then found a way to start a conversation: "Wang Bei, you said last time you had a girlfriend and asked to talk to Mom about it. What's the situation? Are you serious?"

At first, they wanted their son to bring the girl home for dinner, but now they're worried that the girl might not be to their liking, and that it would be even more troublesome if she met their parents.

Chen Lai knew that the Jiang family's son was keeping a girl outside, but Madam Jiang still refused to see her, acting as if the girl didn't exist. She had said more than once that boys don't settle down before the age of thirty and that it was all just a joke. To put it bluntly, she was determined not to acknowledge the relationship and looked down on the girl.

Mu Wangbei put down the remote control and said calmly, "Mom, her name is Fang Youxi. She's a lawyer who studied in Australia. We get along quite well so far, but she's quite busy with work. I'll ask her next time and we can have a meal together when it's convenient."

Chen Lai searched her mind but couldn't find any particularly famous Fang family members in Beicheng. They probably weren't in the industry. Their professions sounded decent, but she wondered about their family backgrounds.

What do her parents do?

Mu Wangbei shook his head: "I didn't ask."

Chen Lai: ...

Mu Wangbei hadn't asked about Fang Youxi's family situation, but the nature of his work meant he wasn't a careless person. He had asked around at Haotian Law Firm and learned that Fang Youxi had Australian permanent residency, graduated from the University of Melbourne, and his family lived in Australia.

They've been together for so long, and she's never inquired about his family situation or even his job. It's a very simple boyfriend-girlfriend relationship.

Thinking of this, Mu Wangbei added, "I don't think that's particularly important. When two people get along, the key is their personalities. She has a great personality; she's very outgoing, warm, and cheerful. I like her a lot."

Before she could say anything, her son was already protecting her. Chen Lai felt a lump in her throat, caught in a dilemma, unsure whether to see him or not.

"Wangbei, you're not young anymore. There are some things you need to be careful about. Your grandfather and father are both prominent people who have high expectations for you. You also need to work hard in the future. Don't let people talk about you when it comes to matters of the heart. If you really like someone, you should ask about the girl's family background. It's not that we want her to be rich and powerful, but marriage should be between equals. We don't want her to hold you back in the future."

Mu Wangbei felt a surge of irritation, but said nothing.

Chen Lai got up to go back, and before leaving, she added, "Don't tell your grandfather before it's settled, so he won't worry. Also, be careful in matters of love and sex. That's all I can say."

Chen Lai couldn't bring herself to say anything more extreme, so she could only hint at it.

After seeing his mother downstairs, Mu Wangbei walked around the neighborhood alone. He remembered Chi Mo talking about changing careers. Chi Mo said he suddenly wanted to change his way of life. He hadn't really understood it before, but now he suddenly felt a bit more empathetic.

He had lived like this for the previous twenty-seven years without ever feeling that anything was wrong.

He loves his career. From the moment he chose law as his major, he also set his life goals and ambitions. The expectations of his elders and his grandfather's earnest teachings since childhood have always kept that string in his heart.

He has lived cautiously and rationally until now, and it can be said that he has never relaxed. Occasionally he feels tired and bored, but he has never thought about changing anything. His parents and grandfather always want what's best for him, and he knows the responsibilities on his shoulders.

Even Chi Mo said that he lived like an ascetic, no different from when he was in the army, let alone Jiang Chengyun.

Meeting Fang Youxi was a complete accident. Because of a joke she made, Mu Wangbei didn't even have time to think about it before subconsciously following his heart and agreeing. He was instantly captivated by her beauty and couldn't refuse her.

The fact that the two were dating was completely unexpected for him. He rarely gets this emotional, and this was the first time he had ever been so impulsive. But after spending so much time together, he often felt happy.

Listening to her talk makes me happy; she always has many unexpected and ingenious ideas.

Watching her eat makes me happy; she doesn't have the reserve that girls have. Her eyes crinkle with laughter, and it makes me want to eat too.

The night they first got together, Fang Youxi fell asleep, and he watched her for a long time, his heart overflowing with tenderness at that moment.

Fang Youxi has a magical power to make people happy. She is charming, interesting, beautiful and independent, like a vibrant poppy in full bloom, making people unable to resist her.

Thinking of her, Mu Wangbei's lips curled up slightly, and he smiled silently.