Chapter 115: A Mother’s Advice

St. George’s International School.

The afternoon sunlight streamed through the tall floor-to-ceiling windows, slanting onto Gao Hongyi’s desk, making her deep cherry-colored hair shine brilliantly like a layer of flowing flames.

She rested her chin on her hand, like a cat sunbathing, and yawned.

‘So sleepy.’

Campus life for her was as dull as a stagnant pool.

The only thing that could barely keep her eyes open was going home after school and having a sticky, loving cuddle session with Bai Shu.

‘Ah… held in his arms, it must be soft and warm… Bai Shu must miss me too, right?’

She couldn’t help but giggle foolishly, imagining the scene of kissing Bai Shu, and she got excited.

With her mind elsewhere, she was undoubtedly the absolute center of this school.

It was like Tokyo to the Sakura Country, London to the Foggy City, New York to the Beacon Country—wherever Gao Hongyi was, the most dazzling and glamorous people would involuntarily gather around her.

The only son of a diplomat, the legitimate grandson of a conglomerate’s helm, a collateral prince from a small Middle Eastern kingdom, the children of top domestic A-list celebrities…

These people, born at the top of the pyramid, never needing to worry about money, naturally possessing a filter, would flock before her like slaves, willingly sheathing all their sharp edges, becoming mediocre and humble.

They smoothed their rough edges, afraid of accidentally hurting her.

Not just them, even white-haired professor-level figures would immediately take whatever Gao Hongyi casually said as gospel, turning a blind eye to her.

But she never gave them a second glance.

‘Really… so boring.’

Gao Hongyi murmured, her voice as weary as a candle about to go out.

Perhaps the only use of the people surrounding her was to allow her, at some moment, to stroke Gu Yebai’s hair while casually boasting, “A lot of people at our school are chasing me, Uncle Bai. Would you be jealous?”

Then, watching his instantly stiff expression, she would slowly, slowly laugh out loud.

She looked down at her phone screen.

Gu Yebai had just sent a selfie.

“Mm, very obedient.”

Half an hour per selfie.

This time he was quite conscientious, even a minute early.

In the photo, he was wearing a new dark gray suit jacket, standing at the Hang Lung Plaza she often visited.

The background was luxury shop windows and dazzling display cases.

His expression was a little stiff, forcing a fawning smile.

“Not bad, not bad.”

Gao Hongyi’s fingertip gently traced across the screen, as if caressing his face.

“Uncle Bai…”

Her voice was so low only she could hear it, with a hint of a satisfied sigh.

“I wish you were at school too.”

That way, she wouldn’t have to force him to send selfies every half hour.

She could see him, touch him, smell his scent anytime.

She could openly lock him by her side and never worry about those messy people getting near him.

“But…”

A dangerous smile flickered in Gao Hongyi’s eyes.

“When you really come to St. George’s, I think I’ll really have to control you well. After all, there are plenty of temptations at this school.”

Those so-called “admirers,” once they discovered that Gu Yebai was her possession, might even go further to test her boundaries.

She would never allow it.

She would protect her beloved.

Gao Hongyi brought the phone close to her lips and gently kissed the screen.

Then she opened the chat window and replied with a message.

[Yi: So obedient~

[Yi: Send another one, a side profile.

[Yi: Also, I’m about to be out of school.

[Yi: When are you and Dad planning to come home?

[Baiye Duxing]: We’ll be there soon.

Gao Hongyi smiled.

‘Ah, Uncle Bai will have a lot of suits too… how nice~’

In Gao Hongyi’s eyes, the tie on a man’s suit was like a woman’s stockings.

She closed her eyes, imagining herself like a queen, grabbing Gu Yebai’s tie and pulling him toward her…

‘Hehe.’

The bell finally rang.

The end of school had a strange sense of redemption.

The admirers immediately crowded around her, but Gao Hongyi didn’t spare them a single glance.

She walked straight out of the classroom, following the fountain all the way to the school gate.

The driver was already waiting.

“By the way, Uncle Lin.”

That was Gao Hongyi’s first sentence after getting in the car.

“Did you buy the GPS tracker and surveillance cameras? I told you about it this morning.”

The driver suppressed a sigh and replied in a low voice, “Don’t worry, Miss. Everything has been purchased.”

He felt that the young lady’s management of the young master was far too strict, not giving him any freedom.

But as a driver for the Gao family, it was not his place to say much.

Before purchasing these items, he had already reported it to Gao Hongzhi and Ya Xinyao in advance.

Gao Hongyi sat in the back seat and lit up the screen.

She asked if Gu Yebai had come home yet.

“He still hasn’t come home.”

She gently bit her lower lip, and a shadow instantly clouded her eyes.

“Forget it. Once you put on your suit and come home, you’ll definitely look very handsome, right?”

“As punishment, I’ll need kisses tonight too.”

The car drove smoothly into the underground garage of Tomson Riviera.

Pushing open the door of the house, the living room was filled with the faint fragrance of jasmine tea.

A graceful, noble woman in a cheongsam was sitting on the sofa, an old photo album spread on her lap.

She looked up at her daughter and smiled warmly.

“Welcome home, Little Yi.”

“Mom?”

Gao Hongyi was stunned for a moment, then quickly ran over and threw herself into Ya Xinyao’s arms.

Ya Xinyao gently stroked her daughter’s red hair.

Her voice was as warm as a spring breeze, but carried a barely perceptible regret.

“What are you doing here, Mom?”

“I missed you guys.”

Ya Xinyao smiled and patted her back.

“Your father and I have been busy with work lately. I wanted to see how you two are doing.”

She paused, and her voice softened.

“And, Mom has some things she wants to talk to you about.”

Gao Hongyi instinctively sat up straighter, blinking warily.

“About what?”

Ya Xinyao didn’t answer immediately.

Instead, she opened the photo album and pointed to a yellowed old photograph.

In the photo were a young her and Gao Hongzhi.

One was waving at a domestic airport, the other was in an overcoat in a snowy foreign land.

One stood beneath the Great Wall, the other beneath the Statue of Liberty.

Separated by thousands of miles, they smiled without reservation, smiling with expectation for love and the future, as if they had already transcended time and space, always standing together.

“Back then, your father and I were separated by distance.”

Ya Xinyao’s voice was very soft, as if reminiscing, or telling a distant story.

“Sometimes we could only make one overseas call a month. There was no video, no location tracking, and no habit of checking in every half hour.”

Gao Hongyi’s fingers tightened slightly.

Ya Xinyao looked up at her daughter, her gaze gentle but firm.

“I never worried he would betray me, and he felt the same.”

“Because I knew his heart was here.”

She pointed to her own chest.

“Trust isn’t gained by watching, locking up, or forcing. Little Yi, loving someone doesn’t mean locking them in a cage where only you can see them.”

Gao Hongyi lowered her eyelashes, her voice small but carrying a hint of stubbornness.

“But… what if someone takes him away?”

Ya Xinyao sighed softly and took her daughter’s hand in her palm.

“If he can really be taken away, then it means… he was never yours to begin with.”

“But if he truly loves you, giving him a little space will only make him want to come back to you more.”

“So, Hongyi, loving someone shouldn’t rely on these things you’re holding.”

Ya Xinyao glanced at the GPS tracker in Gao Hongyi’s arms and the various cameras she planned to install at home.