Pampered By My Fake Boyfriend's Brother
Chapter 246: Unforgettable Old Love

Chapter 246: Chapter 246: Unforgettable Old Love

When they took the elevator downstairs, it was almost eight in the evening.

The seventh floor of the mall was mainly for dining, and after walking around, An Ying looked at her daughter, "What do you want to eat?"

There were restaurants of various cuisines, and the environment was nice.

An Yin had already scouted around and, considering that An Ying had just had surgery not long ago, suggested, "Let’s have Cantonese food."

"Alright." The daughter liked spicy food, so An Ying didn’t expect her to mention Cantonese cuisine.

The two of them went to a Cantonese restaurant.

The waiter led them to a window seat.

Even though it was past dinner time, the Cantonese restaurant was still quite busy.

An Yin looked at the pictures on the menu and her eyes lit up.

"If you like it, order more dishes," An Ying reminded from the side.

An Yin ordered white-cut chicken and taro pork, then handed the menu to An Ying, who flipped to the end and ordered a soup.

Once they finished ordering, the waiter took the menu and left.

Sitting across from each other at the rectangular dining table, there was a steaming teapot on the table, with teacups neatly placed beside it.

An Yin poured a cup for An Ying, as she herself didn’t like tea.

"Yinyin, there’s something I want to tell you." An Ying sat elegantly, looking at her daughter with a hint of hesitation in her eyes.

An Ying rarely appeared so solemn, so when An Yin heard this, her heart tightened, and she stammered, "What is it?"

The surrounding was filled with incessant murmurs and noises.

Amongst the crowd were two stunning beauties, attracting quite a few men’s gazes.

The mother and daughter didn’t realize the stir they caused.

An Ying didn’t want to hide it from her daughter any longer, especially since she would find out sooner or later. An Yin, deep in thought, finally spoke, "The bookstore caught fire. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but almost everything inside was burned."

Upon hearing about the fire at the bookstore, An Yin’s heart raced thankfully, no one was injured.

"What are we going to do next?" An Yin asked anxiously.

Although the bookstore hadn’t earned much in recent years, it had barely managed to cover the household expenses.

"The bookstore has already closed."

The landlord no longer wanted to rent the space to her, and she also had to pay substantial compensation. An Ying didn’t want to burden her daughter with these details.

An Yin lowered her head, still having more than a year until her university graduation. During this period, if she lived frugally and took part-time jobs during holidays, she wouldn’t need An Ying’s financial support, easing her burden.

"Mom, I’ll graduate in a year. Once I find a job, I can take care of you," An Yin tilted her head, expressing her innocent aspirations with a hopeful smile.

"It’s enough if you can take care of yourself." An Ying sighed, "Mom still has a bit of savings, so you don’t have to worry about providing for me." An Ying mentioned her savings to prevent her daughter from being too frugal when away from home, reluctant to spend money.

"Okay."

To some extent, An Yin could guess the family situation. Over the years, An Ying had kept track of the bookstore’s income and expenses in a ledger, which An Yin once accidentally saw while helping at the store. A quick glance revealed the store’s rough financial situation.

Even if An Ying had some savings, it wouldn’t be much!

In the quiet atmosphere between them, a waiter pushed a cart towards them.

After the dishes were served, An Ying noticed her daughter’s heavy-hearted expression, and a trace of guilt crossed her mind, knowing she probably shouldn’t have shared the news.

An Yin had always been sensitive and would become withdrawn whenever she had something on her mind.

Like coaxing a child, An Ying gently said, "Don’t worry about Mom. Running the bookstore for so long was indeed monotonous, and it’s good to think of doing something different."

"Mom, just stay home and recuperate. Don’t go to work," An Yin said urgently when she heard An Ying talking about working.

"Staying idle at home might make me sick." An Ying’s tone was firm.

Seeing An Ying’s determined stance, An Yin suddenly felt that the aromatic dishes on the table weren’t as tempting.

"Alright, let’s eat first." An Ying picked up a piece of chicken and placed it in her daughter’s bowl, reassuring her.

Reluctantly, An Yin picked up her chopsticks and slowly began to eat the food in her bowl.

Both of them ate slowly and finished eating around nine at night.

An Ying suggested buying some fruit, but An Yin, thinking about their situation, quickly shook her head, seeing this, An Ying’s expression darkened.

Back at the hotel, after they washed up, they lay on the bed.

After coming out of the bathroom, An Yin wore only a light pink fitting nightgown, her smooth neck exposed to the air. An Ying leaned against the headboard, averting her gaze from her daughter’s neck, casually asking, "Didn’t you have a jade to protect you? Why don’t you wear it?"

An Yin paused on her way to crawl into bed, grateful she was looking down so An Ying couldn’t see her expression. Steeling herself, she lifted the quilt and slipped under it, "In winter, wearing it against the skin feels cold, so I left it in the dormitory."

She didn’t expect An Ying to remember that piece of jade. An Yin guiltily thought.

Ever since Jiang Keke borrowed the jade, An Yin had almost forgotten about it until An Ying brought it up.

"My oversight." An Ying was aware of her daughter’s aversion to cold, "Keep it safe, don’t lose it, alright?"

After saying this, An Ying reached out to tuck her daughter in.

"Got it."

An Yin replied perfunctorily, thinking she would mention it to Jiang Keke when she returned to school. To her, it was just an ordinary piece of jade. Despite An Ying often saying it could protect her, An Yin didn’t care much.

Seeing her daughter didn’t want to continue the topic, An Ying didn’t press on.

As if something occurred to her, An Yin rested her head on An Ying’s shoulder, "Mom, how have you been lately?" As she spoke, her eyes fixed on An Ying, curiosity evident in their sparkle.

"Just ask what you want to know," An Ying chuckled.

"You seem to get along well with Doctor Huang. Have you... gone for walks recently?" An Yin changed the subject. Previously, An Ying and Doctor Huang had gone for walks together. By asking this way, she hoped not to arouse suspicion in An Ying.

Hearing her daughter’s evasive words, An Ying couldn’t help but laugh, "We’re just neighbors." Perhaps after today, their relationship wouldn’t return to what it was.

With a single sentence, An Ying shut down all of An Yin’s fantasies.

Previously, when An Yin returned home during the break, she had seen Doctor Huang and An Ying chatting and laughing. It hadn’t been long, yet from An Ying’s tone, it was clear that there was no progress in their relationship. Instead, it seemed they returned to the start.

Doctor Huang was quite attentive to An Ying, so the problem likely lay on An Ying’s side.

An Yin lowered her eyes, believing internally that An Ying was unable to let go of past feelings, hence her reluctance to accept someone new.