“How could this happen…” Liu Lingyu covered her face and wept.
Ye Yuzhe was also at a loss, he was angry at Ye Qinya and resented her for not being more capable, but he never wished for her to be in trouble.
Ye Yongxian’s face was pale, and he instantly looked decades older.
“Xiao Zhi, you truly made a mistake this time,” Ye Yongxian said dejectedly. “You should have told me earlier.”
Ye Zhi remained silent.
Ye Yuzhe regained his senses and asked in disbelief, “Dad, even if big sister told you earlier, could you have saved second sister?”
Ye Yongxian said heartbrokenly, “Whether she could be saved or not, she is my daughter. At least I, as a father, would have had a chance to risk my life to save her…”
“And then what?!” Ye Yuzhe interrupted him furiously. “If something happened to you while saving her, do you think big sister and I wouldn’t resent her? You are her father, you can risk your life to save her, but aren’t you also the father of big sister and me?!
Dad, it was second sister herself who insisted on staying by that man Ou Minghan’s side! The dangers she encountered were all provoked by herself! Even if you truly saved her, she wouldn’t be grateful. Because what she wants is for our entire family to sacrifice everything in the Ye family for her love, to beg Ou Minghan to be devoted to her!”
Ye Yongxian opened his mouth, then sighed bitterly and said no more.
Ye Zhi sighed. Seeing Ye Yongxian’s demeanor, he was just losing the argument with Ye Yuzhe, not truly convinced. Pity the hearts of parents; Ye Qinya had been with them for over twenty years. They couldn’t just watch her fall into an abyss and do nothing.
“Alright, Yuzhe,” Ye Zhi said to persuade him. “Dad and Mom just can’t accept it for now. Give them some time.”
Ye Yuzhe was still huffing and stopped speaking.
Ye Zhi continued, “Dad, Mom, don’t worry too much. I think the people who took her away are more likely to want to save her. Let’s not give up. Spend some money, hire some people, and maybe we can find her in Country K before long.”
Liu Lingyu slowly stopped crying, and Ye Yongxian nodded in agreement.
Ye Zhi comforted them a few more words. Seeing that their family couldn’t go to the lantern festival tonight, she got up and took her leave.
Ye Yongxian thought about getting up to see her off, but Ye Zhi asked him to take care of Liu Lingyu and called Ye Yuzhe outside.
Stepping outside, Ye Zhi whispered her instructions, “Dad and Mom are definitely still very upset. You should comfort them more. At this time, don’t say things that will anger them.”
“Big sister, aren’t you even a little bit angry?” Ye Yuzhe said resentfully.
“What’s there to be angry about?” Ye Zhi said calmly. “If we were the ones who disappeared today, Dad and Mom would be just as heartbroken and willing to risk their lives to save us.”
“That’s different!” Ye Yuzhe frowned. “They clearly favor second sister more! Even if you don’t care, I’ll still feel uncomfortable and unhappy!”
Ye Zhi paused for a moment. Ye Yuzhe was at an age where his thoughts were becoming more sensitive; she needed to persuade him properly. She had finally guided Ye Yuzhe onto the right path, and she couldn’t let this child go astray because of Ye Qinya.
“Actually, I felt a bit uncomfortable before too, but I figured it out later,” Ye Zhi said, thinking. “Let me put it this way, it’s like if Dad and Mom were distributing candy, and they gave Ye Qinya eight pieces and me seven, I would definitely mind.
But, if in addition to the seven pieces of candy, I also had chocolates, all sorts of desserts, and various cakes, then I wouldn’t mind losing that one piece of candy.
Similarly, I don’t want to focus all my attention on that one missing piece of candy, as it would make me miss out on all the other delicious snacks.”
Ye Yuzhe pondered this thoughtfully.
Ye Zhi continued, “When we have more, we become stronger and more resilient, and we won’t be bothered by such small differences. Besides family affection, our lives also have friendship, love, career, ideals, and so on. These are all very important to us.”
“Sister, was it what happened on New Year’s Eve?” Ye Yuzhe asked somewhat cautiously. “Did it give you these insights?”
A flicker of surprise flashed in Ye Zhi’s eyes, and she smiled and nodded, “Yes.”
She had watched fireworks with Qi Xuan in the middle of the night and gone to find the butler. When she returned, she had figured it out.
Her parents might favor Ye Qinya a bit more, but they loved her just the same. Moreover, besides family affection, she also had an obedient younger brother like Ye Yuzhe, a good best friend like Zhan Ruoqing, a good elder like the butler, and the best friend in the world, Qi Xuan.
Not to mention she had a booming career, diligent employees, and the dream of building a commercial empire. Her life had so many other wonderful things that she didn’t need to fixate on that one piece of candy.
“Then I’ll think about it properly…” Ye Yuzhe agreed.
When Ye Zhi returned to the Half-Mountain Villa, it was already completely dark.
Butler Song and Qi Xuan had already placed the fireworks outside the villa and were preparing to set them off.
Seeing her, Butler Song’s face was filled with loving and surprised smiles. He said happily, “Miss Ye, you’re back? Quickly, quickly, we’re about to set off fireworks, you should join us too!”
Ye Zhi felt a warmth in her heart. She took the incense stick handed to her by Butler Song and smiled faintly, “Thank you, Uncle Butler.”
“I personally picked all these fireworks,” Butler Song said with a chuckle. “Miss Ye, you and Young Master light them. We’re going to take a break today and find a good spot to watch the fireworks!”
With that, the butler led the servants back into the villa and went straight to the rooftop. A group of people looked down eagerly.
Ye Zhi had already reached Qi Xuan’s side. Seeing the troubled expression on her face, Qi Xuan said nothing. He helped her light the incense stick and said calmly, “Let’s set off the fireworks first.”
Ye Zhi nodded.
One by one, fireworks lit up the night sky, and Ye Zhi’s mood improved with them.
Originally, there were only scattered fireworks from the surrounding neighbors, but soon they all joined in. The second annual fireworks competition at Half-Mountain Villa ended, as usual, with Qi Xuan’s ample supply.
Ye Zhi’s worries also dissipated with the fireworks.
Holding a few bright sparklers, she said somewhat proudly, “We won again!”
Qi Xuan smiled and nodded, “Congratulations, you’ve won the championship.”
The sparklers slowly extinguished, and Ye Zhi lowered her gaze. “I’ve told my parents about what happened.”
“Did they blame you?” Qi Xuan raised his eyebrows slightly.
“No, they didn’t,” Ye Zhi said with a wry smile. “It’s just that, I guess, my dad will probably go to Country K to find Ye Qinya himself. I don’t know how to persuade him to give up this idea.”
“Then let him go,” Qi Xuan mused. “You can also have him take your mother with him.”
Ye Zhi was stunned for a moment, then asked in surprise, “But Country K is probably very dangerous right now!”