Chapter 116: In Vain

Although she didn't understand the reason behind it, Qin Miaoyu knew her second brother would never act without purpose, so she followed his instructions.

Staying in the room was rather dull, so she started browsing her social media feed, only to stumble upon a post that left her utterly surprised.

The post, from someone with the nickname "Adorable Bead," read: "Is everything just an illusion?"

The owner of this nickname was none other than Qin Lianzhu.

Previously, Qin Lianzhu's posts had always been about daily life—little anecdotes, travel stories, and the like—never anything in this style. This was a first.

Qin Miaoyu was curious but didn't ask. Their relationship had always been lukewarm at best; in the past year, none of the few messages she’d sent had received a single reply from Qin Lianzhu, nor had Lianzhu ever reached out on her own initiative.

Even close friends can grow distant if they don’t keep in touch over time, let alone two people who were never particularly close to begin with.

Exhausted from yesterday's travels, Qin Miaoyu soon drifted off to sleep while scrolling through her feed.

By the time she woke, it was already three in the afternoon.

When she entered the living room, Liang Sixuan had already left.

She asked the housekeeper, "When did Liang Sixuan leave?"

The housekeeper replied, her expression a little odd, "She left just after two."

"So early?" Qin Miaoyu thought back to how determined Liang Sixuan had seemed before; she hadn’t expected her to leave so quickly.

"It wasn’t Miss Sixuan who chose to leave. Sir called and asked us to see her out."

Qin Miaoyu, cup halfway to her lips, paused and asked, "Why did Second Brother want her to leave?"

"We found Miss Sixuan in Sir’s study. He sounded very angry," the housekeeper said.

The study?

The study was always a significant place. Even if she didn’t know how important Second Brother’s study was, from her own perspective, unless he specifically invited her in to discuss something, she would never set foot in it.

Could it be that Second Brother had allowed Liang Sixuan to be left alone just to see what she would do? And then, when Liang Sixuan went to the study, he became furious?

"Did he say anything else?" Qin Miaoyu asked.

"Sir asked us to tell Miss Sixuan not to come to the East Mountain Villa again unless it was truly important."

"And she left just like that?"

The housekeeper lowered her head. "I'm not sure, but after she called Sir, she left."

That evening, when Liang Siyuan returned, his expression was still sour.

He hadn’t expected Liang Sixuan to come up with such an idea—to sneak into his study. If he hadn’t been cautious and discovered her in time, he wouldn’t have known what she was really after.

Fortunately, even though she had spent time there, there was little of real value for her to find. While he used to keep important documents in the study, he’d moved them elsewhere due to certain events. Now the study only held things of little consequence.

Zheng Suning returned a bit later and, seeing his gloomy face, asked Qin Miaoyu what had happened. When she learned what Liang Sixuan had done, her own expression darkened.

"That Liang Sixuan—your brother has never stopped caring for her, all for the sake of their years as siblings. Before, when she didn’t want to marry Su Yikun, your brother pulled every string and nearly resolved the matter, even agreeing to some steep terms with the Liang family. But then she changed her mind and agreed to marry Su Yikun after all.

"Later, she said the Su family wanted to develop their business. Although your brother wasn’t keen on involving Su Yikun, he relented because Liang Sixuan pleaded with him personally and agreed to introduce some people to Su Yikun. Yet she still claimed your brother didn’t care about her at all.

"If he didn't care, would he have done so much? Their relationship wasn’t even good to begin with. Your brother has already gone above and beyond, putting aside past grievances. Yet she keeps saying things that chill the heart and doing things that disappoint!"

Liang Siyuan came over and steadied the agitated Zheng Suning.

"Enough, Suning. Calm down. Don’t talk about this anymore. You’re carrying the baby—if you get upset, the baby will feel it too."

The mention of the baby soothed her, and her emotions gradually settled.

Qin Miaoyu gently supported her other arm, and the three of them made their way to the dining room for dinner.

After the meal, Liang Siyuan chatted with Zheng Suning for a while, then took Qin Miaoyu to the study.

She assumed he wanted to ask about Liang Sixuan, but to her surprise, he started with the studio.

"Miaoyu, tell me honestly: have you run into any difficulties with the studio?"

He had intended to ask her the previous day, but seeing how tired she was, he’d put it off until tonight.

Caught off guard by the question, Qin Miaoyu hesitated for a moment.

That brief pause told Liang Siyuan everything he needed to know.

"Come on, tell me yourself, or should I have someone investigate what's going on at your studio?"

Qin Miaoyu forced a smile.

"Really, it's nothing major. Just one project got sabotaged by a rival, and another had a minor hiccup, but both have mostly been resolved."

Liang Siyuan frowned slightly. "If you need help, you come to me. Anything I can handle, I'll take care of for you. And don’t forget your sister-in-law—if it’s about business management, you can ask her, too. Suning often worries that you might run into trouble and not tell us. Looks like she was right!"

Qin Miaoyu lowered her head to hide the tears in her eyes, her voice muffled. "Alright, Second Brother, I understand. If there’s ever a problem I can’t handle, I’ll definitely come to you or Second Sister-in-law."

Very few people had ever told Qin Miaoyu, "Anything I can solve for you, I will."

It wasn’t just Liang Sixuan who should feel grateful for their kindness. Even Qin Miaoyu herself could feel, deep down, that her second brother and sister-in-law truly treated her as their own.

Liang Siyuan noticed the difference in her voice, but said nothing, instead changing the subject to the gathering with friends tomorrow.

"Your sister-in-law will be there too. Help me look after her, and keep an eye out—if you see someone you like, let me know. I can put in a good word for you and set something up."

Qin Miaoyu burst out laughing through her tears. "Second Brother, are you planning to be my wingman?"

Liang Siyuan grinned. "Of course! For my little sister’s happiness, I’ll be your wingman for free!"

Qin Miaoyu feigned indignation. "Free? I still have to take care of Second Sister-in-law for you tomorrow!"

"Alright, alright, so not free. Consider it your payment!"

Zheng Suning saw the two of them emerge from the study and quickly waved them over.

"Come and take a look—what do you think would be best for the baby’s room?"