Lin Ruirui lowered her eyes and watched the Little Ginseng Baby fluttering before her. She remained silent for a long while before finally gritting her teeth, her voice trembling slightly.
"I choose... the second one."
As she spoke the words, her body swayed as if all her strength had been sapped away. Watching the dazed Infant Spirit before her, tears began to stream down her face uncontrollably once more.
"I'm sorry... I... it's not that I don't want you..."
But she was only eighteen years old.
She still had a long life ahead of her.
If she kept this little spirit, she would never be able to forget the trauma Qin Hao had inflicted upon her. She wanted a fresh start. She wanted a life where Qin Hao no longer existed in any form.
"Baby, I'm sorry. Mommy can't keep you. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry... sob..."
By the time she finished, Lin Ruirui was incoherent with grief.
The Infant Spirit had begun to float in mid-air at some point. It looked at its mother with a mixture of confusion and helplessness, its tiny face etched with a lost expression.
Finally, Lin Ruirui choked out the final words.
"I don't want you anymore. You... you can go now."
Upon hearing those words, the Infant Spirit's tiny body gave a violent shudder. Jiang Xuxu lowered her gaze, her eyes falling upon a thin line between the spirit and Lin Ruiruione that was invisible to everyone else.
Following Lin Ruirui's declaration, the thread suddenly snapped in the middle.
The line broke and vanished without a trace.
Jiang Xuxu raised her hand, and a strand of spiritual light flew from her palm, gently wrapping itself around the Infant Spirit.
This time, the Infant Spirit did not resist.
"I am taking it away now," Jiang Xuxu said softly. She didn't stay to comfort Lin Ruirui further and simply turned to leave.
When she reached the street, Jiang Xuxu was surprised to find Jiang Yucheng and Jiang Huai still waiting in the car.
"You're both still here?"
She was genuinely surprised. After all, Jiang Yucheng and Jiang Huai were both busy men. Taking the time to visit the police station today was already a rare occurrence; she hadn't expected them to linger.
Jiang Yucheng pursed his lips, seemingly unsure of what to say, but fortunately, Jiang Huai was much more talkative.
"Since we're already out, there's no rush to head back."
Jiang Huai, still in the front seat, made room for Jiang Xuxu to get in. Once she was settled, he asked, "Is everything handled?"
Jiang Xuxu nodded.
Jiang Huai had personally witnessed her abilities and knew the nature of the things she dealt with daily, but Jiang Yucheng remained in the dark. If he hadn't accidentally heard that she was at the police station today, he wouldn't even have known that she and Jiang Su were involved in a case regarding cyberbullying and minors.
However, seeing her relationship with Jiang Su improve made him feel a great sense of relief.
He had always known his daughter was meant to be loved by everyone.
Despite these thoughts, Jiang Yucheng's face remained a mask of composed dignity.
Jiang Huai asked again, "Do you have anything else to do next?"
Jiang Xuxu thought about it. Other than the matter of the Infant Spirit, she had nothing pressing. As for sending the spirit off, there was no immediate rush, so she shook her head.
"Then that's perfect," Jiang Huai said with a smile, his tone gentle and refined. "Father said that since you returned to the Jiang family, we haven't actually gone out together. Since we're all free today, why don't we accompany you for some shopping and a bit of fun?"
Jiang Yucheng glanced at his son.
He wondered how his son could say he was "free" with such a straight face.
Setting aside the tight deadline for the project in Huai's department, Jiang Yucheng himself had three meetings scheduled for today that he had just ordered his assistant to cancel. All because Huai said they hadn't spent enough time with Xuxu since her return.
Jiang Yucheng had found the reasoning sound, so he had even canceled a business dinner for that night.
Clearing his throat, Jiang Yucheng looked at Jiang Xuxu, his expression softening with a rare touch of warmth. "Yes, I have time today. Is there anything you want to do?"
Jiang Xuxu didn't know where this sudden surge of enthusiasm had come from, but...
Growing up, she had never experienced an outing with her father and brother. For a moment, she had no idea what kind of "fun" one was supposed to have with them.
Seeing the confusion in her eyes, Jiang Huai's heart softened. He simply instructed the driver to start the car.
"I've noticed Xuxu doesn't particularly like the dresses Second Aunt prepared. Let's head to the mall first so you can pick out some clothes for yourself."
Jiang Yucheng nodded in agreement. "That's a good suggestion."
A mall was a good choice; he could finally spend some money on his daughter. Even though he had transferred funds to her before, he felt like Xuxu hadn't really spent any of it.
Seeing how excited they both were, Jiang Xuxu didn't object.
The three of them headed straight to the largest shopping mall in Haishi. Jiang Huai led them directly to the designer women's wear section.
Jiang Yucheng had never picked out clothes for a daughter before. He stood at the entrance as stiff and imposing as a statue, but Jiang Huai was far more enthusiastic. Showing no hint of embarrassment, he pulled out anything he thought looked suitable and had the sales assistants coordinate the outfits.
Jiang Xuxu was not a practiced shopper and found herself forced to try on over twenty different outfits.
With her excellent figure and tall stature, she looked good in practically everything. Jiang Huai thought every single set was beautiful.
Jiang Yucheng started out as a silent, human ATM, but after watching Jiang Huai enthusiastically play "dress up" with Xuxu, he couldn't help but join in.
"Xuxu has fair skin; this color really suits her."
"This set is nice, take it."
"This one highlights her elegance. It's perfect."
By the end, he was picking things out himself. Without even glancing at the price tags, he simply told the sales assistants to wrap up everything he liked.
The sales clerk behind them was practically beaming with joy.
Jiang Xuxu eventually gave up on changing and looked toward the mall entrance, where she saw two girls walking by, laughing and holding cups of milk tea.
In the past, when she was studying Talisman Arts with her master, she had almost no time to herself, let alone the chance to go shopping or grab milk tea with friends.
Her eyes followed them for two seconds before she quickly looked away.
Jiang Huai was sharp and immediately took out his phone to place an order.
Soon, three cups of milk tea were delivered.
It wasn't that Jiang Xuxu had never had it before, but her eyes still curved into crescents at the sight of the tea. She held the cup and took small sips.
Jiang Yucheng, however, had truly never tasted it. He looked at the cup with a hint of disdain at first, but when he saw Xuxu happily sipping hers with a bright smile, his heart melted. He decided to drink along with her.
They left an address for their purchases to be delivered and continued to the next shop.
The sight of three exceptionally attractive and clearly high-status individuals walking down the street, each holding a cup of milk tea, was quite striking. It was an incongruous scene that naturally drew many gazes, and some people even began snapping photos secretly.
Jiang Xuxu was quite sensitive to the stares of others and quickly realized the problem.
She looked at the high-end bespoke suits Jiang Yucheng and Jiang Huai were wearing, her small face tensing slightly.
"The clothes you're wearing are clearly not meant for shopping."
And so, Jiang Yucheng and Jiang Huai were led into a men's clothing store. When they emerged, their bespoke suits were gone, replaced by two sets of casual wear.
Jiang Huai was naturally handsome, and the casual clothes did nothing to hide his refined air.
Jiang Yucheng, though older than the other two, was well-maintained. Swapping into casual clothes actually lessened his overbearing pressure. At a glance, he simply looked like a charming and handsome mature man.
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