I Want a Lifetime with You
Chapter 351

Pei Jingxiu?

Ning Xi's eyes softened for a moment, and she immediately backed away once Pei Jingxiu let go of her. "Sir!" she called out as the two calmly stared at each other.

Pei Jingxiu nodded. "Now that your identity's been confirmed, you can just call me Mr. Pei."

Ning Xi couldn't help but still her body for a moment, as though a thought had suddenly crossed her mind. Then, she nodded. "When will I be discharged?"

Pei Jingxiu raised an eyebrow but eventually let out a smirk. "What's wrong? You can't wait to return to the Ning family?"

Ning Xi pursed her lips, looking rather sullen. "You know I've never wanted to go back to them." It didn't matter if she was part of the Ning family; she was never brought up there, so they were nothing but strangers to her. She felt the same about Pei Jingxiu as well. It just so happened that Pei Jingxiu had helped her out of that abyss back then - she had nowhere else to go but to follow him.

Pei Jingxiu cast Ning Xi a glance. Sensing a murderous intent in her eyes, he immediately grabbed her by the hand. "You're no match for me. You know that."

Ning Xi pursed her lips. "Why did it have to be me?"

The woman wearing a pair of hospital sandals gazed up at him. She wasn't exactly short, but Pei Jingxiu still gave off an intimidating vibe, considering he was 187cm tall. Her eyes were filled with reluctance.

Pei Jingxiu's lips curled slightly as he gazed back at her, seemingly different from his usual cold self. "There are many things in this world that can't be explained. If you insist on an answer, you shouldn't have bumped into me back then. Maybe that way, your fate could've turned out different... But that doesn't necessarily mean you'd be doing better than you are now, right?"

Pei Jingxiu lifted Ning Xi's chin. "Do you want to see those friends of yours from before?" Ning Xi's face paled at the sight of the man's devious smirk. "No. I'm not close to them."

With that, Pei Jingxiu let go of her chin before grabbing a tissue to wipe the sweat on her forehead. "Now that you've recovered, you should head back to Sheen City. That's where your home is, after all." At this moment, the door was pushed open to reveal Li Heng and Pei Huan standing at the entrance.

Pei Huan rushed in when she saw Ning Xi standing on the ground with a pair of sandals on. "Why aren't you in bed, Ning Xi? You have just undergone surgery! Your body must be having a hard time right now." Pei Huan had gone through the same surgery three years ago, so she knew how toilsome it was. Yet, Ning Xi didn't give her any response. "Ning Xi?"

Ning Xi steeled her gaze and smiled at Pei Huan calmly. "I'm fine now," she said before turning to Pei Jingxiu. "I just told Mr. Pei that I can be discharged." "Discharged? Now? But it hasn't even been five hours since your surgery! Are you sure your body can take it, Ning Xi?" Pei Huan was still worried. Ning Xi shook her head. "I'm really okay. By the way, has Aunt Ning Xin... woken up?"

"Not yet, but the doctor said my mother's no longer in danger. It's all thanks to you, Ning Xi!" Feeling extremely thankful, Pei Huan went to gently lay Ning Xi on the bed. "You should stay a few days longer and leave only when you're better. Don't you agree, Mr. Pei?"

Pei Jingxiu's gaze softened as he turned to Ning Xi. "That works too," he responded with a nod. "It's not like Sheen City will receive the news so quickly anyway."

Ning Xi turned silent upon hearing Pei Jingxiu's words. "What's wrong? asked Pei Huan upon sensing that Ning Xi was slightly upset. "It's been confirmed that you're part of the Ning family, but why don't you seem happy at all?"

"That's not it!" Ning Xi shook her head and smiled faintly. "It's not that I'm not happy; I'm just not quite used to it."

"What's there not to get used to? I used to be unaware that I was part of the Fu family, but I'm doing pretty well now," Pei Huan replied with a chuckle. "I don't think there's anything you'll have to worry about. Besides, you'll have Mr. Pei!"

Ning Xi merely smiled as she looked up at Pei Jingxiu. "You're right." I still have Pei Jingxiu.

After Pei Huan and Li Heng left, Ning Xi and Pei Jingxiu fell into silence. In the end, it was Pei Jingxiu who spoke up. "If you really don't want to stay here, you can leave."

Pei Huan seemed to have something weighing on her mind after leaving Ning Xi's ward. Even Li Heng could sense it.

She's probably thinking about the virus. Li Heng patted her on the back.

"Aunt Zhang told me she cooked your favorite braised eggplant. I didn't think you and Bao shared the same taste."

Pei Huan's mood brightened at the mention of Bao. "Yeah. Bao's my son, so naturally, we have similar tastes in food."

Li Heng smiled and caressed Pei Huan's cheek. "Don't worry. When I'm done taking care of things here, I'll take you out of the country."

"Out of the country?" Pei Huan was confused. "For what?"

"To meet someone." To meet someone who can cure you!

Then, Li Heng held her by the waist. "It'll just be the three of us. Together, we'll make up for all the time we've lost as a family."

Pei Huan was moved. "Heng," she called out, pursing her lips.

"Hmm?" The man turned to her. "What is it?"

"I love you." This was her first time saying such a thing.

Li Heng grinned. "I love you too."

As the Li clan's drama came to an end, word about Li Cenbei's death quickly reached Li Xinzhi and Li Min. Thanks to the news, Li Xinzhi became paralyzed; he could no longer get out of bed. Meanwhile, Li Min went hysterical upon learning that Li Cenbei had caused Li Cendong's death. Li Xufan sent her out of the Li Residence and had her relocated to one of his villas elsewhere.

With that, the mighty Li clan fell, leaving only Li Cennan's family of three, as well as the Li clan's butler and servants.

The change in Li Group's head led to its banishment by Prosperous Group. Li Heng then set up one of Prosperous Group's branches in Jiang City, which was where Li Group had initially been. Meanwhile, some of Li Heng's subordinates who used to work for Li Group slowly moved to Prosperous Group.

After taking care of everything, Li Heng left the Group in Li Xufan's and Li Cennan's hands, with Liang Lin aiding them from the shadows. Li Heng then took Pei Huan and Bao out of the country, calling their trip a honeymoon.

With the Li clan's affairs settled, Pei Jingxiu left Jiang City with Ning Xi. They went headed straight for the Ning family in Sheen City. Jiang City quieted down in the blink of an eye.

Shi Nuan trotted up the stairs at night. Hearing Fu Chengyan on the phone in the study room, she paused for a moment before opening the door.

Fu Chengyan smiled when he saw Shi Nuan enter. "Come on over," he said, waving at her.

After giving out a few more instructions on the phone, he turned to Shi Nuan. "What's up?"

Shi Nuan smiled. "There's been so much to do that I've forgotten it'll be my dad's birthday in two days. Even if I already know he's not my real father, I'm still part of the Shi family. Besides, Grandpa treats me really well. It wouldn't be reasonable if I don't show up."

Fu Chengyan nodded. "So?"

With a grin, Shi Nuan rushed over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "So... Will you be available that day?"

"Are you intending to let me meet your parents, Darling?" Fu Chengyan raised an eyebrow with a hint of amusement in his eyes. With Shi Nuan's arms wrapped around his neck, he gave her head a light tap and chuckled. "Hmm?"

"Yes, yes! Didn't you use to complain about me keeping our relationship a secret? Are you still unhappy even though I'm finally agreeing to let you meet my family?"

Shi Nuan pretended to look displeased. "I'll be mad if you don't meet them!"

"You silly girl." Seeing Shi Nuan wanting to walk away, Fu Chengyan pulled her by the arm, causing her to lose her balance and sit on his lap.

"Ahh!" Shi Nuan quickly looped her arms around Fu Chengyan's neck in fright. "What are you doing? You scared me!"

With a smirk, Fu Chengyan leaned over and pressed his forehead against hers. "Are you that much of a scaredy-cat? How easily frightened can you be?"

Shi Nuan pursed her lips and glared at him. "I'll be the one to frighten you next. I'm being serious here! Will you come with me or not?"

"Of course I'll go. I'd never dare defy Mrs. Fu's orders!" This was all Fu Chengyan could ever ask for.

"Good, then. I'll shop for a gift after work tomorrow, and we'll meet my family together the day after. You deserve to be known as my husband, considering how well you've been performing recently!" Hearing that, Fu Chengyan couldn't stop himself from pinching Shi Nuan's nose.

The latter hurriedly slapped his hand away. "Don't pinch my nose!" she demanded while proceeding to pinch and rub his nose and cheeks like a child playing with mud. "Why do you have such perfect skin, Yan?" the woman lamented.

Hearing that, Fu Chengyan shook his head in hopelessness. However, instead of stopping Shi Nuan from acting like a child, he gazed at her with such gentle eyes and let her do as she pleased.

Shi Jingzheng's birthday wasn't that big of a deal since there was still a more senior member in the family. Since Shi Yunsheng was still around, Shi Jingzheng's party would naturally be less extravagant. The Shi family couldn't compare to the Fu clan or Li clan from before, but they were still considered a fairly prominent family. On top of that, Shi Jingzheng and Jiang Yu had some plans of their own in mind. Hence, they took the opportunity to hold a party, hoping to establish some connections with others.

Jiang Yu didn't particularly like Shi Nuan, but since the woman was currently dating 'Su Bancheng', she naturally had to show up at the party with him. Shi Jingzheng and his wife were certainly playing their cards well.

However, they didn't expect that Shi Nuan was planning to drop by with her real husband, nor would they have expected that the legendary 'Su Bancheng' would come too.