Qin Si Ye slowly walked to the window, his gaze as cold as ice as he looked at the crimson sunset over the Western Mountains.
It seemed leaving two bodyguards to monitor him had been the right decision.
Earlier, in his grandmother's hospital room, the way Shen Xi looked at him was very unusual.
His eyes were filled with suspicion and inquiry, even a hint of pleasant surprise.
Could he have known Yin Xi before? Had he become suspicious of her identity?
"Keep a closer eye on him recently. See what he's been up to."
After hanging up the phone, Qin Si Ye's mind suddenly flashed back to five years ago, to the scene he witnessed at the entrance when he first brought Shen Xi back to the Qin family.
Before he arrived, Yin Xi had said something to Su Cheng Yu, and she had acted unusually that day, proactively linking her arm with his, as if doing it deliberately for Su Cheng Yu to see.
He had suspected the two knew each other back then, but Yin Xi had denied it.
Later, they hadn't interacted much, so he hadn't delved deeper.
Had they really known each other long ago and deliberately concealed it in front of him?
But judging by Shen Xi's expression of disgust towards him, it didn't seem like it.
Qin Si Ye sat back in his chair and sighed. Perhaps he was overthinking things.
But regardless of whether they knew each other before, the priority now was to protect Shen Xi and prevent him from getting close to her.
In the evening, Shen Xi brought the three children to Villa No. 1 to visit Xu Zhi Lan. Xu Zhi Lan had just finished dinner and was sitting on the sofa watching television.
"Great-Grandma." As soon as the door opened, the three children ran towards her quickly.
"Oh!" Upon seeing them, Xu Zhi Lan's face immediately lit up with a joyful smile, and she turned off the television.
Chen Chen asked, "Great-Grandma, Mommy said you fainted and were hospitalized for a few days. Are you feeling much better now?"
"Mommy? Who is your Mommy?" Xu Zhi Lan looked at him with surprise.
At this moment, Yan Yan, holding Shen Xi's hand, walked up to her and said, "Great-Grandma, she is our Mommy, Shen Xi. Have you forgotten?"
Shen Xi? Xu Zhi Lan was startled. She looked up and carefully observed Shen Xi from head to toe. Her memory instantly returned, and she said with great apology, "Xi Xi, I'm sorry. I mistook you for someone else again these past few days."
Just then, Qin Si Ye came down the stairs. Hearing her words, his steps faltered slightly.
Why had his grandmother suddenly regained her memory?
Shen Xi glanced up at him and nodded slightly. She then said to Xu Zhi Lan, "Grandma, it's alright. Experiencing temporary memory loss is normal."
As soon as the three children saw Qin Si Ye, they immediately swarmed him and pulled him to sit on the sofa.
Gently taking Shen Xi's small hand, Xu Zhi Lan sighed deeply. "Xi Xi, do you think my illness is getting worse? Why do I always mistake you for Yin Xi?
And the scenes are so vivid. I remember that day in my bedroom, I saw Si Ye hugging you and even kissing your cheek, saying you two had gotten your marriage certificate and were together.
Are those all hallucinations? Did I imagine them out of thin air?"
Hearing this, Shen Xi's heart trembled. In the past, after losing her memory, her grandmother would forget what had happened. Why did she remember this time so clearly?
It must have been that Qin Si Ye had been too proactive and convincing at the time, leaving a deep impression on her grandmother, making it difficult for her to forget.
She couldn't help but glare at Qin Si Ye, only to meet his surprised gaze.
Shen Xi winked at him, signaling him to explain.
To her surprise, the man lowered his head, feigning an air of indifference and detachment, and began to scroll through his phone.
This man was too detestable! He had created this mess, and now she had to clean it up for him.
The three children exchanged glances, a hint of secret delight in their hearts. Could what their Great-Grandma said be true? Had the relationship between Uncle Qin and Mommy made significant progress?
However, Shen Xi's next words dashed their hopes.
"Grandma, you were asleep when I arrived. That shouldn't be a hallucination of yours; it must have been a dream.
As the saying goes, you dream of what you think about during the day. You've always liked Yin Xi, haven't you? You wished she could end up with Mr. Qin, so you had that dream."
Shen Xi didn't know how else to explain the situation, so she resorted to this.
On one hand, it could dispel Grandma's worry about her worsening condition. On the other hand, it wouldn't cause further suspicion about her relationship with Qin Si Ye.
As expected, after Shen Xi's explanation, Xu Zhi Lan's mood improved significantly, and she played games with the children for a while.
Shen Xi then used the excuse that the children had school the next morning and took her leave to head home.
On the way to send them back, the three children sensibly walked ahead, intentionally maintaining a certain distance from them.
Qin Si Ye glanced at Shen Xi beside him and asked, "You brought them over tonight on purpose, didn't you?"