Yingqu Liuzi was pampered by her wealthy daddy.

They stayed in France for four days.

When she left, Shen Yu'an packed the old picture book and the light blue bowl into her bag.

Xize left the key to the stone house on the hook in the foyer, locked the door, and the two got into the car.

The plane landed at a small airport near Milan.

Someone came to pick them up, and the drive took almost two hours. The road was narrower than the one on the French side, and lined with rows of cypress trees on both sides.

Shen Yu'an leaned back in her seat, turned her head to look out the window, and after a while asked, "Where are we going?"

Lake Como.

Shen Yu'an had searched for photos of Lake Como on her phone.

He flipped through a few pages, then turned off the screen and leaned back in his seat, looking out the window. Xize reached out and placed his hand on his leg. Shen Yu'an looked down, then covered his hand with his own and clasped it.

The car left the main road and drove along the lake for a while.

The lake is very large, and you can't see the opposite shore.

Shen Yu'an rolled down the car window, and a breeze carrying the scent of water blew in. He took a deep breath and turned to Xize, saying, "It's so quiet here."

"Yes. Because it's afternoon, there aren't many people."

The villa was built on a hillside by the lake.

White walls, dark shutters, a small, neatly trimmed lawn in front of the door, and at the end of the lawn, a stone staircase leading directly to the water.

Shen Yu'an stood on the lawn and looked down. There was a small dock by the lake, with a small white boat moored at the end.

He stood at the edge of the lawn for a while, and then Caesar walked over and stood next to him.

"Did you buy this house while passing through?"

"No. This belongs to my mother."

Shen Yu'an turned to look at him: "Mother's?"

"She bought it when she was young. She doesn't come here much now, so she lets us stay here."

Shen Yu'an looked at the lake again. In the distance, a sailboat was slowly moving its white sails.

He asked Xize if he could go boating in the afternoon, and Xize said the boat was moored at the dock.

Shen Yu'an walked down the stone steps and squatted down beside the dock. The white boat was leaning against the edge of the wooden planks, its hull gently swaying with the waves.

He reached out and touched the water; his fingertips touched the lake water, and it was very cold. Xize walked down and squatted next to him, also reaching out to touch the water.

"It's cold, isn't it?"

"It's cold."

"Then why did you make me row the boat?"

"You don't need to get into the water to row a boat."

Shen Yu'an chuckled, stood up, and dusted off his knees: "Then untie the rope, and we'll get on the boat."

Xize untied the mooring rope, boarded the boat first, and then reached out his hand to Shen Yu'an.

Shen Yu'an took his hand and stepped into the boat. The boat rocked slightly, and he quickly sat down.

Xize picked up the oar, pushed hard, and the boat left the shore.

The lake was calm. The boat left a V-shaped ripple as it passed, which slowly spread outwards.

Shen Yu'an sat at the bow of the boat, his hand resting on the edge, looking at the oars.

After watching for a while, he stuck his foot out and touched Caesar's knee: "Daddy, have you ever rowed a boat before?"

"I crossed it when I was a child."

"Do you still remember how to draw the lines?"

"Remember."

Shen Yu'an dipped his hand into the water and made a splash, his fingertips breaking the surface of the water as the lake water flowed through his fingers.

Xize placed the oar across his knees, and the boat slowly came to a stop.

"The water's cold, don't touch it."

"It's not cold, it's lukewarm."

"You just said it was cold."

"It was cold a moment ago, but it's lukewarm now."

Xize smiled indulgently.

Shen Yu'an wiped away a small patch of water that had accumulated on the edge of the boat with his palm and looked at Xize: "You're in the middle of the lake now. What if the oar falls into the water?"

Xize glanced down at the oar in his hand: "There's a spare one."

What if the spare also falls?

"Then let it float. Wait for someone to rescue it."

Who will come to our rescue?

Xize looked at him: "You."

Shen Yu'an paused for a moment, then lowered his head and smiled.

The boat slowly turned in one direction on the lake and came to a stop. There were no other sounds around, only the gentle lapping of the water against the hull.

Shen Yu'an glanced towards the lakeshore; it was already quite far away. He turned his gaze back to Xize: "How long did your mother live here?"

"She would come to stay for a while every summer. Later, she came less often."

"So she left this house to you?"

"It's still registered in her name. She said she'd give it to us later."

Shen Yu'an was silent for a moment, then spoke: "My mother is so good to me."

"We are all one family."

"Did she say anything when she found out you liked boys?"

"No."

"Didn't say anything?"

She asked me if I was serious. I said yes. She didn't ask any more questions.

Shen Yu'an lowered his head and ran his finger along the wooden surface of the boat's edge.

After a while, he looked up at Xize: "Grandma is like that too. It seems like no one in the family really cares about you."

"They took charge. After they finished, they realized they couldn't control it anymore."

Shen Yu'an chuckled: "So, has no one been able to control you from childhood to adulthood?"

Xize looked at him: "Didn't you keep it under control?"

Shen Yu'an paused for a moment, then lowered his head, a slight smile playing on his lips, but remained silent. The boat drifted on the lake for a while longer before he looked up at Xize: "Going back now?"

Xize picked up the oar and turned the boat around. The boat began to move back, the sound of the oars cutting through the water clearly audible on the calm lake.

Shen Yu'an watched Xize rowing for a while and said, "You look better rowing than driving a Rolls-Royce."

Xize paused, looked up at him, and asked, "What's the difference?"

"When you drive a Rolls-Royce, you hold the steering wheel with a serious expression. When you row a boat, you hold the oars with a serious expression, but your sleeves are rolled up. It's different."

Xize didn't reply and continued rowing. Shen Yu'an noticed a faint redness at the tip of his ear.

By the time we got back to the dock, the sky was beginning to set in the west.

Shen Yu'an stood up from the boat and stepped onto the wooden plank, while Xize tied the rope and also went ashore.

The two walked up the stone steps. Shen Yu'an stopped halfway and looked back at the lake. The boat was moored next to the dock.

"Daddy, are we going to go skiing tomorrow?"

"The boat can set sail tomorrow."

Shen Yu'an turned to look at him: "Start the boat?"

"I have a friend over here who has a motorboat; it's moored over there. You can borrow it if you want."

"You have friends here too?"

"There was one. We played together by the lake when we were kids. Later, he moved back to Italy."

Shen Yu'an looked at him for a few seconds, then turned and continued walking uphill. After taking a couple of steps, she turned back to look at Xize again: "What did you look like when you were little?"

"Same as now."

"I don't believe it."

"If you don't believe me, that's fine too."

Shen Yu'an turned back and continued walking. At the end of the lawn was the villa's porch, and the two of them entered one after the other.

They ate dinner in the yard that evening. Caesar made pasta, tossed with olive oil and basil.

Shen Yu'an helped him carry plates in the kitchen. The two sat around a small round table. The lake was already dark, and the hills on the opposite shore had become dark outlines.

Shen Yu'an forked a piece of spaghetti, put it in his mouth, and chewed a few times: "You made it better than the one at that restaurant yesterday."

"We just randomly picked that restaurant yesterday."

"So you just did it casually."

Xize didn't reply and continued eating the noodles on his plate. Shen Yu'an watched him eat with his head down and called out, "Daddy." Xize looked up at him.

"what?"

"You fry eggs when you're in France, and cook pasta when you're in Italy. Are you baking pizza tomorrow?"

"It depends on your performance."

Shen Yu'an chuckled and lowered his head to continue eating his noodles. A breeze blew by the lake, causing the light from the courtyard lamp to flicker slightly.

He took a few bites and then looked up: "If we're baking pizza tomorrow, I'd like to add pineapple on top."

Xize stopped eating, looked at Shen Yu'an, and remained silent for two seconds: "Adding pineapple makes it no longer a pizza."

"What's that called?"

"I'd like some toast with fruit."

"You discriminate against pineapples."

Xize glanced at him for a few seconds, then lowered his head and continued eating his noodles: "I'll bake one for you tomorrow."