"Your mother called me to ask when she should book her tickets for," Yun Sui Bo said as he cut into his steak. It had been a while since she came back to her ancestral hall, so the sanitorium-like atmosphere made her feel suffocated. She didn't know how she had survived for eighteen years of her life in this place.

  "What for?" Yun Qian Meng asked just as nonchalantly.

  "Your wedding. You should call over Bai Ye Qing and his family to set a date." There was no question about what her opinion on the matter was.

  "If your ex-wife wants to know, she can call and ask me," she replied bluntly.

  Her mother, Sun Li, had gone through medical school and was completing her residency in neurosurgery at the best hospital in the city when Yun Qian Meng was three years old. It was and still is an amazing feat, especially considering that she had been pregnant while pursuing her dream of becoming a surgeon. Working long shifts and babies? Qian Meng's mother had made a lot of sacrifices to get where she was today and she still wasn't where she wanted to be.

  One of the many sacrifices Sun Li made was the amount of time she spent with Qian Meng. On the rare occasion that Qian Meng spoke to her mother, she avoided the topic. Only her mother would want to be perfect despite her follies.

  Qian Meng's first word was 'Meow.' That was the name of the cat that belonged to her nanny who lived in the rear wing of their mansion. Her mother would pawn her off to the nanny whenever she needed to work or study——which was all the time. Needless to say, Qian Meng and Meow were best friends and it took her five years of her life to find out that the cat wasn't even hers.

  "Don't talk back. I also want to know," Yun Sui Bo said in a disgruntled voice.

  "I knew. I know you can't stand talking to her. Let's be honest, neither do I." She snorted.

  When she was six years old, Sun Li got a job at a fancy hospital across the world. Her struggles began then. Her mother took Qian Meng with her to the States and enlisted her parents to live with them as she worked ungodly shifts at the hospital. Her grandparents were very old, considering that they were in the middle to late forties when they had her mother. So, she was pretty much learning to live on her own and taking care of herself.

  This was the part of the story where everyone started to wonder where her father Yun Sui Bo was. If you asked Qian Meng at the time, she would let you know that she was wondering the same. Truth be told, she still wondered the same damn thing. He had been putting all his time in Yun Corporation as well, leaving her a child with no support from elders, fending for herself, and growing up.

  "I haven't gotten to know him yet. Allow me some more time to investigate his personality," she replied politely but firmly. The steak was too rare for her. She leaned back into her chair, feeling tired from the conversation already. Why were all their conversations like this? It didn't even matter if it was her father or her mother. Neither of them cared unless he benefited them in some way.

  If she was crude, she would just say that her mother and father had donated an egg and sperm respectively to create her and that was that. Their duty was fulfilled and they washed their hands off her. During the short period of time she had lived in the States with her mother, she had found that her mother had a boyfriend. And yes, her father had a girlfriend as well. So when she was ferried back to Beijing, she wasn't surprised. Her mother gave up custody of Qian Meng, her father waited for a couple of months post the divorce before he brought a new wife, Jiang Xin.

  Enter stepmother who pretended to be an angel. Qian Meng was small but knew her father had lived in sin. Her little stepbrother was born four months after the new wife entered.

  For the first time, Qian Meng realized why her father never really spoke to her. She had made a fatal mistake. She was born a female.

  "You can get to know him slowly after marriage. Fix a date," he said sternly. Qian Meng brushed it off, not even sparing her father a glance. "Qing Yuan, how was work?" Yun Sui Bo asked after a moment of silence.

  Yun Sui Bo treated her younger brother like he was the Messiah and she didn't mind much. He was a cute baby. He smiled at Yun Qian Meng often.

  "I have been learning a lot from the seniors in the department," Yun Qing Yuan said in a low voice. Qian Meng looked up and glanced at him in the passing. "Older sister," the boy said suddenly, surprising her. "After I finish the one-month internship, will you allow me to shadow you at work?" There was innocence in his voice. Qian Meng sighed.

  "You're eighteen now, shouldn't you be thinking about college? Why are you interning like a headless chicken?" she commented. Her words were harsh, but she wanted the best for this little brat. He was the only good thing about visiting this house, anyways.

  "Meng'er, can't you do a favor for him? He wants to see how you work," came the headache-inducing sugary voice. Ah, so this is where Qing Yuan had gotten the idea from. Jiang Xin, the evil step-mother had been feeding it to him. "He idolizes you. Give him a chance."

  Qian Meng sighed. No matter how hungry she was, when she dined with this family, she seemed to lose her appetite.