The parents and the eldest and second eldest brothers were all at the restaurant.
Mo Yushen had already eaten and gone to the company.
After greeting him, she sat down next to her father.
"Dad, I've made up my mind. I'm going on a blind date with Mo Yushen."
The family was speechless.
Is this because he remembers Mo Yushen, or...?
Ji Qingshi cautiously probed, "What are you thinking?"
Xi Jia: "I haven't thought about it much. After my dad told me about Mo Yushen last night, I looked up his information. There are a few photos of him online, and he looks alright. I've decided to have a meal with him, just in case we hit it off."
They then realized what was going on.
Her current memories are from two years ago. Back then, Ji Zhenghe thought Mo Yushen was quite good and mentioned him to Old Master Mo. Old Master Mo was very pleased and arranged for the two of them to meet.
Ji Qingshi quickly sent a message to Mo Yushen: 【Jiajia's memory today is the day she went on a blind date with you two years ago. Don't schedule any other social engagements tonight.】
Mo Yushen was taken aback. He quickly replied: [Okay. Where are you?]
Ji Qingshi asked Xi Jia, "Where would you like to meet? I'll arrange it for you."
Xi Jia thought for a moment, "Your restaurant." She paused, "But it'll be 10 o'clock." It would be late when she got back to the city after training, so she needed to go home and get ready.
Ji Qingshi sent the time and location to Mo Yushen.
Mo Yushen looked at the message, which was exactly the same as the one they had received when they went on their blind date.
Chapter Seventy-Six
Mo Yushen regarded tonight's blind date as the most important thing. Although it was already ten o'clock, he still instructed Secretary Ding not to arrange any social engagements that evening.
Secretary Ding reminded him that Chairman Li would be returning to the company from his business trip at 7 PM and asked him to attend a meeting.
Mo Yushen paused slightly, his fingers tapping the teacup without any rhythm.
Chairman Li contacted him, which must be about the Mo's Real Estate project. Judging from the model at the time, the project plan was unreasonable, and it was later suspended due to the cash flow problem.
It continued in the middle of this year.
In his previous dealings with Mo Lian, Mo Lian made many concessions, and so did he.
Mo Lian is now in full charge of Mo's Real Estate, and he no longer needs to sign off on any matters, big or small.
Mo Yushen told Secretary Ding, "I will hold the meeting as usual. There's no need for the restaurant to prepare my lunch. I'm going home for a bit."
Perhaps overjoyed and with no one to share it with, Mo Yushen told Secretary Ding, "I'm going on a blind date with Xi Jia tonight. Her memory is stuck two years ago."
Secretary Ding sensed that Mo Yushen was different today; he seemed to be in high spirits because of a happy occasion.
Xi Jia has memories from two years ago, which means she remembers Mo Yushen from back then. Starting over isn't bad. At least she's remembered.
Mo Yushen was busy until midnight before leaving the company. He wasn't going back to his own villa, but to his parents-in-law's.
The elevator came to a stop on the basement level, and as soon as the door opened a crack, an impatient voice came in.
"Can you please stop bothering me? Can't you just give me some peace and quiet?"
Mo Yushen stepped out of the elevator. In front of the elevator next door were Mo Lian and Mo Lian's mother. The group looked at each other, all slightly taken aback.
Mo Lian's mother calmly withdrew her gaze. With outsiders present, she refrained from responding to Mo Lian's words.
Soon, Mo Yushen's car drove away from the underground parking lot.
Mo Lian's elevator was right in front of them, and his mother was about to go to his office with him, but he stood there without moving.
For the past six months, he's been flying both domestically and internationally, rarely in Beijing. His mother rarely sees him. Now, as the year draws to a close, he's come to the Mo's headquarters to report on his work and attend the annual meeting. His mother has timed it perfectly and is waiting for him at the company.
Ever since his mother and father had a falling out, his mother placed all her hopes and bets on him, making it hard for him to breathe.
When he was a child, he thought that all mothers were the same and loved their children.
I only understood it later. There is a type of person who always loves herself the most, and when she loves others, it is only to satisfy her own selfish desires.
Seeing her son fall silent, Mo Lian's mother sighed, "I know you find me nagging, but I'm only bothering you for your own good. You're already thirty-one, and your grandparents are getting old; they're hoping you'll get married and have children. I'll introduce you to someone..."
Mo Lian turned and left.
"Mo Lian".
Mo Lian didn't turn his head. He walked to the car, gestured for the driver to get out, and then drove away by himself.
Mo Lian's mother touched her chest, feeling a sharp pain in her chest.
In the past six months, whenever she called, he would hang up, and he rarely answered. Occasionally, he would answer and say only one sentence: "I'm in a meeting."
He never came back.
She sent messages, but they always went unanswered.
She worried herself sick, but he didn't appreciate it at all.
Mo Lian drove aimlessly along the road. Tomorrow was Christmas Eve, and the streets and alleys were filled with the joyful atmosphere of Christmas.
Before he knew it, he had driven to the gate of the old house's courtyard. Since the car didn't have a gate access control, he didn't go in but pulled over to the side of the road.
He's lived here as far back as he can remember. His so-called childhood was here. He had no childhood.
At that time, Mo Yushen, Cheng Weimo, and Jiang Qin were playing together. He wanted to join in, but his mother wouldn't allow it. He argued back, and his mother beat him.
He was about six years old that year?
At that time, he did not know that he was different from other children.
Later... later I grew up.
Mo Lian snapped out of his daze, started the car, and prepared to leave.
later.
Despicable, vile, and sinister.
Jiang Qin said this about him.
Mo Lian had just gripped the steering wheel when his phone beeped with an email notification. He didn't rush off, assuming it was an important company email, but upon opening it, he saw it was from a child he had previously sponsored.
In the past few days, he has received many Christmas cards from children.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, and also a Happy Chinese New Year in advance! May the new year bring you success in your career and all the best. Thank you. — Yu An
Perhaps those children were afraid of bothering him, so they only sent him one or two emails a year. This child named Yu An, however, included holiday greetings for all three holidays in one email.
Mo Lian: [Thank you. Merry Christmas and best wishes for your health and well-being. Are you in university now, or already working?] He asked with concern.
Yu An was overjoyed and briefly reported her situation: "I got a job. It's as an assistant, and the salary is good. I received quite a few bonuses this year. Within my means, I sponsored two children's schooling. I'm very happy. Thank you."
Mo Lian: [It's fine. Everything is going smoothly.]
He tossed his phone onto the passenger seat and drove away. The courtyard grew farther and farther away.
——
Mo Yushen arrived home. His parents-in-law were home today, as were Xi Jia's rehabilitation team. They were having a meeting.
Xi Yelan asked in surprise, "Yu Shen, why are you back?"
Mo Yushen remained expressionless: "Get me a document."
Xi Yelan felt relieved, thinking something serious had happened. But when she heard he had come back to collect documents, something felt off. Then, she guessed at one possible reason for his return.
She gestured to Mo Yushen, "If you're not busy, you can listen."
Mo Yushen sat down and listened to their analysis of Xi Jia's condition during this period. She seemed to be getting better, but she forgot about it every day, and there was no improvement whatsoever.
Her memories date back two years; she lost her memory over a year ago. She only has about six months' worth of memories from that period to draw upon. If she runs out of those six months' worth of memories, her condition won't recover...
Mo Yushen asked the doctor, "What will happen then?"
The doctor's expression was grave: "I can't figure it out yet." Perhaps, Professor Xiang's new drug will be available soon to improve her memory.
If the new drug hasn't undergone clinical trials yet, then it's hard to say.
In all his years of medical practice, this was the first time he had encountered a case like Xi Jia's. Because he was interested, he agreed to Ji Qingshi's request to follow up and record the case.
Xi Jia is taking medicine now, and Xi Yelan is coaxing her, saying it's a beauty capsule made from pure plant extracts. She claims it will whiten her skin and maintain its elasticity.
Xi Yelan also takes that capsule every day, but the capsule looks the same and contains protein powder.
Seeing that her mother was using it, Xi Jia had no doubts and assumed it was for beauty and skincare.
The doctor reassured Mo Yushen: "This situation is already quite good. At least her memories of two years ago are continuous and do not affect her normal life."
Mo Yushen nodded, that was the only way he could comfort himself. He asked with concern, "Her hearing and vision, have they deteriorated further?"
Doctor: "Not for now." It seems the side effects of this medicine are indeed not obvious.
Mo Yushen raised a question: "What if, after she has used up all the memories from those six months, she randomly recalls memories from any particular day?"
The doctor paused for a moment, then laughed, "That's hard to say." Today I think of Christmas two years ago, tomorrow I think of New Year's Day two years ago.
If that's the case, it's like setting a playlist to random mode, so you basically can't guess which song will play next.
Xi Yelan marveled at Mo Yushen's wild imagination, saying, "Impossible." Then she laughed, "Are you with Jiajia? Has she influenced your imagination too?"
Mo Yushen: "..." I hope so. I hope it doesn't develop a random memory pattern. Today I love him, tomorrow I don't love him anymore, and the day after I'm head over heels in love again.
Or, things might be fine today, but tomorrow you could start giving him the cold shoulder.
Mo Yushen glanced at his watch. He had to rush back to the company, so he didn't join the discussion and went upstairs.
He came back not to get documents, but to change clothes.
He changed into the clothes he wore when he went on a blind date with Xi Jia last year. He wasn't worried about anything else now, except that her memory might not stay the same as last year, and she might not want to marry him then.
It was all for nothing.
Mo Yushen changed into a shirt and trench coat, grabbed a file folder from the bookshelf, and went downstairs. After saying goodbye, he left in a hurry.
Ji Zhenghe was also about to go to the company, but after taking a few steps, he turned back, puzzled. He wondered if he was seeing things. He asked Xi Yelan, "Did Yu Shen change his clothes?"
Xi Yelan nodded, picked up her bag, and went out with him.