I Want a Lifetime with You
Chapter 300

Fu Chengyan reached out his hand and patted Li Heng who immediately came in.

Li Heng then found a seat and sat down. He greeted, "Mother."

"Why don't you call me Aunt Ning instead!" Ning Xin felt uncomfortable when she heard him address her as "Mother". However, her upbringing prevented her from saying something rude to him. She added, "Since you managed to persuade Yan, I imagine it must be something really important. So, go ahead and tell me what is it that you wanted to discuss?"

Li Heng nodded as he received a cup of tea Shi Nuan had served him. With a slight nod, he greeted, "Aunt Ning!"

"I'm here to talk to you about Huan."

When Ning Xin heard the name, her fingers twitched. She pursed her lips.

She glared at Li Heng with displeasure. "I remember your relationship with Huan ended three years ago when you divorced."

"No, we didn't divorce!" Li Heng replied abruptly. However, due to Ning Xin's status, his tone was still relatively gentle. It did not contain his usual frostiness at all.

His words not only surprised Ning Xin, but even Fu Chengyan and Shi Nuan were shocked, too.

Li Heng pursed his lips and put down his tea cup. "The truth is that we never did divorce."

"That's impossible. When she left... she..." Ning Xin's face was pale as a sheet as she likely recalled Pei Huan's depressed look. She immediately took a deep breath and said, "Even if you didn't divorce her, she has already left for three years. The fact that both of you have been living separately is enough reason for her to file for a divorce. Besides, I'm sure you're well aware of what happened then. Li Heng, since Huan chose to leave, it means she is unwilling to go back to the past. She has gotten over it; why can't you let go, too?"

"How can I let go?" Li Heng replied softly as his tone carried with it his pain. He frowned as he looked at Ning Xin and said, "How can I let go of Huan?"

"This is your personal matter. You are a ruthless and decisive man in the business world, so why come to an old lady like me for relationship advice?" Ning Xin said, "No matter what you want to discuss with me today, I cannot help you if it relates to Huan. Huan is..." Ning Xin looked towards Fu Chengyan, who nodded immediately and gestured Shi Nuan to get up. "May needs to go through the accounts with her friend. I'll go and help them, too. Li Heng, you stay and chat with Aunt Ning."

Fu Chengyan shot Li Heng a glare as a warning before leaving with Shi Nuan in tow.

Shi Nuan was still worried and turned to look back. She said in a concerned tone, "Why did you drag me out, too? Aunt Ning is obviously not going to forgive Li Heng. Li Heng is... Besides, Aunt Ning isn't in great health."

"If we stayed there, it would be awkward for Li Heng to say what he wanted. Let's go and take a walk!"

Fu Chengyan didn't feel that their departure was a bad thing as he knew Ning Xin very well. He was well aware that she was someone who is sensible. Nothing untoward would happen. While Li Heng is ruthless, he would definitely not treat Ning Xin that way.

There was nothing Shi Nuan could do other than nod. "Let's go chat with Yian!"

After Fu Chengyan and Shi Nuan left, the two people in the room felt more relaxed. Li Heng poured a cup of tea for Ning Xin and said, "There was a misunderstanding between Huan and me. When the incident happened, I admit that I didn't make it there in time. However, it wasn't because I didn't care or no longer wanted her. I wanted to explain to her. But she was already gone by the time I arrived. Mother, it never crossed my mind to break up with Huan."

Throughout his whole life he was used to being alone. But ever since he met Pei Huan, he had never thought of separating from her. It would be impossible for him to leave Pei Huan.

Ning Xin raised her eyebrows and asked, "So the reason you're here is to have me ask Huan to come back?"

Ning Xin was extremely smart. No daughter of the Ning family would ever be incompetent.

Li Heng nodded and explained, "Three years have passed, and I have never stopped looking for her during these three years. However, she doesn't want to see me. Even with all my networks and resources, I still couldn't replace her. You are her mother, I think..."

"Hasn't it crossed your mind that the reason Huan didn't allow you to replace her was that she didn't want to see you?"

Li Heng's hand twitched as his gaze froze.

For the first time in this proud and arrogant man's life, he did not know the answer, and was at a loss as to what to do.

In the thirty years of his life, he had always gotten what he wanted through hard work. He had never thought there would be things which he could not get.

Ning Xin hesitated when she saw Li Heng's expression. "You should give up. You have survived three years without her. It just shows that you don't necessarily need Huan."

"I have never thought that she no longer wanted me," Li Heng muttered softly and frowned. "I definitely won't give up. If I must wait, I shall do so for her. Because other than Huan, I don't have anyone else. Even if she doesn't return, I would still wait!"

After Li Heng finished speaking, he noticed that Ning Xin remained silent. That was when he realized that she didn't approve of him anymore. Which parent would not want the best for their children? To those who didn't know the details then, it did look as if he was the one who hurt Pei Huan.

Li Heng stood up and bowed politely. "Since you do not know where she is, I shall not bother you any longer. I'll take my leave first!"

"Oh, Li Heng!" Ning Xin suddenly sighed. "Why must it be Huan? You have a bright future and can have anyone you want. Why..."

"There's no one else, and never will there be." He stood there for a long while, then continued, "She's the only one. I can't wait for anyone else while I'm waiting for her."

Ning Xin held her hands together and watched as Li Heng left.

The room was filled with steam from the pot that had been boiling continuously. It added a sense of warmth to the cold winter air.

Ning Xin put down her teacup and lifted the pot's cover with tongs. She then stared at the boiling water inside for a while before recovering her focus.

When Fu Chengyan and Shi Nuan returned, they saw Ning Xin quietly enjoying a cup of tea but Li Heng was nowhere to be seen.

Shi Nuan shot Fu Chengyan a quizzical glance; she wanted to know what happened. Fu Chengyan pursed his lips and felt a little disappointed. He proceeded to push open the door and enter. "Aunt Ning!"

"You're back?"

Ning Xin reached out her hands and motioned for them to sit. She then served them some tea and said, "It appears that shopping was just an excuse to get me out!"

Shi Nuan felt awkward and blushed. "I'm sorry, Aunt Ning!"

Ning Xin shook her head and took a sip of tea. "I know it isn't your idea, so it must be Yan who put you up to it! He's been full of sneaky ideas since young. He knows that his uncle would be suspicious if he was the one who invited me. However, if the invitation came from you, Fu Heng wouldn't have bothered."

"Aunt Ning, your deduction capabilities are amazing!" Fu Chengyan chuckled. "How did the talk with Li Heng go?"

Ning Xin shook her head and replied, "It's not easy trying to replace Huan now, given that three years have passed. What if she has a new life now? One cannot always live in the past. I don't know what happened between them then. However, it's undeniable that Huan was hurt because of him, physically and emotionally. Yan, I know Li Heng is your friend, but Huan is your sister, too."

"I understand." Fu Chengyan nodded. "I have considered all these factors. Since when do I do things haphazardly?"

Ning Xin nodded and said, "But, what about your uncle..."

"As long as you consent to it, Uncle will not object. The key lies in whether you are willing to do so." Fu Chengyan wasn't in a hurry to look for Pei Huan now. "Li Heng... He is a good friend of mine. I'm sure you're aware of that as I don't have many friends. So, if I'm willing to help him, it means that he is alright. Aunt Ning, I do know a thing or two about what happened then. There really is something else at play. Besides, it isn't just Li Heng who has been looking for Pei Huan; even I have been searching for her."

"What?" Ning Xin was surprised. "You're looking for Huan, too?"

Fu Chengyan nodded as he turned to Shi Nuan. Shi Nuan was stunned and said, "What is it?"

"Where are the documents that I gave you earlier before we left the house?"

Shi Nuan had a sudden realization and replied, "They're here. Wait a moment!"

Shi Nuan scrambled to bring her bag over from another chair to look for the documents Fu Chengyan had given her earlier. She passed them to him and asked, "What is this?"

"Aunt Ning, have you thought about why Li Heng and I still can't replace Huan despite our combined network?" Fu Chengyan gently pursed his lips. "Li Heng has waited for three years and doesn't mind waiting for a few more. But, Huan... Aunt Ning, the situation at the Li family is a lot more complex than we thought. Li Heng's uncle is back."

Ning Xin's hand trembled as she asked, "Are you saying that Huan may be in danger?"

Ning Xin trusted what Fu Chengyan said, as he had no reason to lie to her. It was indeed impossible that the combined efforts of Fu Chengyan and Li Heng failed to locate Huan - unless someone was deliberately throwing them off.

Ning Xin recalled what happened three years ago. Pei Huan had repeatedly gotten in trouble and all the incidents occurred when Li Heng wasn't around. These events now appeared to her to be too much of a coincidence. "Why is Huan still a target? She no longer has any connection to Li Heng."

"Aunt Ning, that's only from your perspective. However, do Li Heng's enemies see it the same way?" Fu Chengyan explained calmly, "As long as Li Heng still cares about Huan, she would always be his weakness."

Ning Xin's face went pale. "What do you want me to do?"

"Huan is in danger no matter where she is. So isn't it safer for her to be by Li Heng's side? At least he is there to protect her. Besides, it's already been so long. I'm sure even you miss Huan. Both you and Uncle have waited so long to replace your biological daughter. For her to continue staying away..."

Ning Xin sighed. "You think I don't want Huan to come home? It's just that I'd rather she not return if it makes her unhappy. However, given the current situation..." It was no longer her decision to make. Ning Xin took a deep breath and said, "Let me think about it first. Actually, approaching me might not help you much because... I really don't have any way of contacting Huan!"