Purple Summers was taken aback by his question.
âI went out to dine with classmates,â Purple Summers said, puzzled. âIâve told mom over the phone.â
Alexander Summers took her hand and made her sit beside him. âDid you meet anyone?â
Purple was peeling a tangerine, shaking her head. âNo.â
âReally? No one at all?â Alexanderâs gaze was intense as he looked at her face.
His serious expression seemed as though he was inquiring about something very important, which made Purple feel perplexed. She carefully reflected on the day â going to school, getting out of school, then dining out⦠Indeed, she hadnât met anyone.
âNoâ¦â Purple couldnât figure out the reason. âAt dinner, it was just the four of us.â
Alexander studied Purple carefully, and after a moment, suddenly smiled tenderly, caressing her head. âI was just asking casually.â
Purple had indeed encountered Gavin Graves, but now she couldnât remember ever meeting anyone. It wasnât that she was lying; it was because she had completely disregarded Gavin, utterly forgetting about the encounter.
Alexander had come to understand this, which is why his smile appeared.
Seeing his smile, Purple couldnât help but breathe a sigh of relief, thereafter frowning and chiding, âAnd here I thought something was wrong.â
âI was just worried about someone whisking you away,â Alexander took the tangerine from her and started peeling it for her, feeding her slice by slice. âThe outside world is dangerous, and you, a naïve and cute little lamb, are too easily targetedâ¦â
No matter how shrewd and capable Purple was, in Alexanderâs eyes, his woman was always a delicate lamb, a pure angel, a goddess untainted by the mundane world â even when Purple yelled and hit him, he found her adorable.
But just thinking about other men coveting his carefully nurtured treasure, Alexander felt an imbalance in his heart.
It was as if he had carefully raised a patch of cabbage, yet before he had tasted even a bite, it had already attracted many wolves, lurking hungrily just outside the garden fence.
He wasnât worried about Gavin stealing her away.
People from big clans seemed like they could do whatever they wished, but in truth, the higher the position, the more considerations they had.
Gavin wouldnât create a huge fuss over a woman.
Yet, even if Gavin didnât take any action, just standing outside the vegetable patch and watching was unbearable for Alexander.
He looked again at the young girl in front of him, eating the tangerine joyfully, her cheeks round and puffed up like an innocent child not yet stripped of her naiveté.
Alexander couldnât help but sigh, âLittle cabbage, why are you so endearingâ¦â
Alexander felt despondent, while Purple thought he was acting like a neurotic.
â¦
During dinner, Atra Blanc said with a smile in her eyes, âIn a few days, itâll be Purpleâs birthday. How would you like to celebrate, Purple?â
Both Purple and Alexander were taken aback at the table.
Neither of them ever paid much attention to birthdays; only Atra Blanc always kept everyoneâs birthdays close to her heart.
Alexander raised an eyebrow, nonchalantly saying, âTurning seventeen is neither coming of age nor a full yearâs birthday. Whatâs there to celebrate? Letâs just postpone it, next month is Easter anyway. We can celebrate both at once then.â
Atra Blancâs enthusiasm was doused, and she suddenly looked displeased. âHow can you say that? Every birthday is very important, very meaningfulâ¦â
Remembering her sonâs cold-heartedness, Atra Blanc quieted down and turned to Purple with a smile, âDonât listen to your brotherâs nonsense, Purple. On your birthday, would you like a cake, or longevity noodles? Do you want to invite classmates over for a gathering?â
But Purple was lost in thought.
Atra asked her again, and Purple came back to her senses, saying, âThereâs no need for it to be so grand, Mom. Just help me cook a bowl of longevity noodles.â
Purple fiddled with the grains of rice in her bowl with her chopsticks, her ears turning slightly redâ¦
She couldnât remember Purpleâs birthday, but she remembered her own, which coincidentally was next month, the day before Easter.