Atlas Studios

  Atlas Studios

  The Xu family was extremely rich. That was the first impression that Ning Ning had. The vast space that was nearly ten thousand square meters all belonged to the Xu family. The architecture had a very clear British style, where castles were the main buildings. There were many independent mansions around it, as well as a private golf course. The garden was even more beautiful, majestic and magnificent, but also romantic. At the front of the garden, he could see a row of pretty sycamore trees, and the yellow leaves made them look even more beautiful.

  An old English housekeeper had come to fetch him and he politely invited Ning Ning to the hall. He was here to visit Xu Xing, not the husband and wife of the Xu family. As long as he could settle Xu Xing, the husband and wife of the Xu family would grant her any wish as they loved her a lot.

  There was a disadvantage to having a big house, which was that it seemed a little too quiet. The servants in the garden were dressed in uniforms and worked quietly. There were many servants passing by, but they seldom made any noise.

  The old housekeeper was very considerate. After he had arrived at the hall, the maids respectfully served tea and snacks. They were also dressed in a uniform, which made them look full of vigor and stylish. He nodded politely and soon saw Xu Xing running toward him like a butterfly.

  “Ning Ning, you have finally come to see me.” Xu Xing smiled and looked as pretty as a flower. She was wearing a fluffy snow-white princess dress and had a princess hairstyle. She looked like an angel, holy and beautiful.

  Ning Ning smiled faintly. Since he was visiting Xu Xing at the Xu family, and her mother was a princess, he dressed himself in formal clothes. It was rare to see Ning Ning dressed so formally. Paired with his beautiful and elegant face, Xu Xing found him more charming.

  “Miss, how did you get out?” The old housekeeper ran over in a panic. “The duke will lose his temper. Hurry back.”


  Ning Ning frowned. ‘Was it a bad timing to come?’


  Xu Xing stuck out her tongue. “Ah, Ning Ning, I can’t stay for too long. Can you wait for me here for a while? My mother and father are expecting guests today. I have to accompany them. I’ll be fine in a moment.”


  Ning Ning thought about it for a while. ‘It is still early.’ He nodded. Xu Xing smiled happily and ran away in a hurry again. She turned around as she ran. “You must wait for me to come back.”


  “Okay!” Ning Ning replied and Xu Xing soon disappeared into the corridor.

  Ning Ning sat and waited for twenty minutes. He asked the old housekeeper how long Xu Xing would take to be back and he estimated that it would probably take an hour more.

  Ning Ning got up and asked, “May I take a walk in the backyard?”


  The old housekeeper nodded and wanted to lead the way. Ning Ning smiled and stopped him as he wanted to walk alone. The old housekeeper could see that the unruly and arrogant Xu Xing was very good to him. Naturally, he would not disobey him. Ning Ning thanked him, went out of the hall, and walked to the garden alone.

  The Xu family was very big and it took more than ten minutes to walk from the hall to the backyard. It had to be said that the design was really great. The design of the fountain pool, the statue, and the garden—all were great.

  Ning Ning liked the row of tall French sycamore trees, which gave the garden some natural beauty. The golden leaves fell out of the branches when the breeze blew and the floating leaves poured down onto the ground as if there were countless pieces of gold. The sun shone through the gaps of the leaves and reflected sunlight onto the ground. It was the most beautiful scenery ever.

  The beautiful scenery was dazzling.

  “Beautiful!” Ning Ning exclaimed. He had rarely seen such beautiful scenery, especially where there were chairs under the sycamore trees on both sides. He had imagined reading and drinking tea on the chair, which he deemed a great enjoyment in life.

  He had heard from his mother that she and his father had also seen a row of beautiful sycamore trees when they were having their honeymoon in France. This season was when the sycamore trees were the most beautiful in France. His mother, who was not a romantic person, even told him that walking in the golden rain hand in hand was something very romantic to do.

  The young kid smiled and reached out to catch some leaves. Suddenly, his eyes brightened and something red slipped across his eyes in the golden rain. Ning Ning was curious and took a few steps forward.

  There was a little girl sitting on the chair under the sycamore tree. She was facing him sideways, wearing a red skirt. Her long hair was tied up with a red ribbon, and she supported the back of the chair with one hand, looking as if she was sleeping on her side. From Ning Ning’s point of view, he could only see half of her face…


  He frowned. ‘Why would anyone be in the forest?’


  The closer he got, the more surprised he was. She seemed to be young, most probably about the age of Xu Xing. Her back view was so familiar to him, especially the ribbon around her waist. If it was replaced by a silver whip, then…


  The image of Xu Nuo came to mind. Ning Ning’s calm heart was suddenly stirred upside down. Nuo Nuo…


  ‘Nuo Nuo…’


  Ning Ning suddenly closed his eyes and hallucinated. ‘Hallucination. It is just a hallucination. She is long gone. Nuo Nuo is long gone.’ It took him a long time to convince himself to accept this fact.

  He still longed for her to come back, but he knew that this desire was far from being realized.

  Nuo Nuo was not considered merciless. Even if she had left, she would occasionally meet him in his dream, listen to him quietly, and hear him talk about his troubles and worries. He was very satisfied with that.

  He didn’t want to go so crazy to the point that even hallucinations had appeared.

  He closed his eyes for a while and then opened them again. The red figure still stood in front of him, motionless.

  He was frightened and approached it slowly. He stepped on the dead branch carelessly and made a soft sound. The girl woke up suddenly and turned her head in a hurry. Ning Ning saw a pair of cold but amazingly beautiful eyes.

  When the girl saw that someone was coming, she quickly stood up and looked at him vigilantly. She was very pretty with her beautiful eyes and cherry red nose. Because she had held her cheeks with her hands for a long time, her face blushed, which was quite charming. Girls like her would usually have a pair of childlike eyes, but she didn’t. Her beautiful but cold eyes had something that did not belong to her age…


  She looked as if she had experienced lots of sufferings and difficulties.

  “Who are you?” she asked in a clear, cold voice.

  She was not Xu Nuo.

  She only had the red dress that Xu Nuo liked, the cold eyes that Xu Nuo had, and Xu Nuo’s…


  He smiled wryly. Why did he have to compare her with Xu Nuo? Maybe it was in his subconscious, but what’s the point? She was not Xu Nuo.

  “I’m a guest of the Xu. Sorry to disturb you.”


  The girl’s eyes didn’t linger on him for a long time. She was about to leave when she heard someone call behind her. “Xu Nuo, where are you? Xu Nuo…”


  Ning Ning was shocked.