Chapter 520
Whenever Queenie had some free time, she would head out of the city with
Pandora and spend a few days in the countryside. For her, going back always felt special, like returning to somewhere meaningful from her past.
Pandora never said no. “Sure, now that Claire’s exams are finally over, we don’t have much going on. You can come with me anytime p>
“What about your old family house in Apex p>
Back when Queenie’s family first moved overseas, Pandora used to keep up with their news. Later, as everything changed and the city grew and thrived, she figured Queenie’s family probably wouldn’t come back, so she stopped thinking about it.
“It’s still there, but honestly, it’s not in great shape p>
Back then, when Queenie’s family fled abroad, their name got dragged through the mud and the house was seized. It was used for all kinds of things and ended up pretty damaged.
Years later, Queenie returned to China as an overseas Chinese and donated a lot to help rebuild the city. The old house got returned to her, but by that point, it was barely standing.
She hired people to fix it up, but it was nothing like it used to be. That old house held too many memories her parents gone, her husband and child missing for years— and the thought of living in it alone just made her feel empty. Every time she went back, memories flooded in and she just couldn’t bring herself to stay. So she bought other properties around Apex instead.
“At least it’s still standing,” Pandora said, trying to comfort her. “So many old houses have been torn down. Having it survive at all is impressive p>
It was easy to see Queenie didn’t want to keep talking about it, so Pandora changed the subject.
Claire, meanwhile, slept straight through until the next afternoon. Worried she’d be hungry, Pandora reheated the meal Edison had sent over, just in case.
Still, Claire didn’t get up. It was nearly four o’clock by the time she finally wandered out of her room.
Pandora was in the living room, watching TV.
“Grandma p>
When Pandora saw Claire awake, she let out a sigh of relief. “If you hadn’t woken up soon, I was about to start knocking p>
She knew Claire was exhausted after months of intense studying, but sleeping this long still made her nervous. Parents always worry, even when there’s probably no real reason to.
For Claire, though, it was just a deep
rest-much needed, but not
1.n
overwhelming. She’d finally let herself relax so naturally, she slept like a fog the moment she woke up, she was starving. S to’
“You didn’t eat anything all day. Let me go heat up some porridge for you p>
“There was millet and pumpkin porridge this morning,” Pandora added, already moving to the kitchen. She was always afraid
heavy meal would che
too
Claire’s stomach after such along sleep.
Luckily, Claire loved that porridge. She nodded. “I’ll wash up first p>
By the time Claire came back, the porridge was steaming on the table and the smell alone made her even hungrier. Pandora had also warmed up a couple of small side dishes to go with it.
Claire finished everything, leaving not a single grain in the bowl.
“That’s enough for now. We’re having dinner soon and I don’t want you to overeat p>
“Okay,” Claire agreed, settling into
the couch with Pandora to watch TV
and unwind. While they wer
watching, Sophia called, trying to
talk Claire into going out that night.
Claire politely declined.
A few minutes later, Shirley’s name popped up on the screen. This was actually her
third call—the first two had gone unanswered.
“Hello?” Claire answered.
Shirley didn’t waste a second before bursting into dramatic, noisy tears. “Claire, why did you take so long to answer? Do you not love me anymore p>