After a quick wash, Lauren Shaw opened her bedroom door and was greeted by a delicious aroma. Her stomach immediately grumbled in response.

The dining table was set with freshly cooked dishes—all her favorites. The housekeeper was already gone, clearly following Yancy Shaw's instructions.

She snapped a photo of the meal and sent it to him, adding, "The housekeeper's cooking is pretty good."

No reply came from Yancy Shaw. He must have already taken off.

After breakfast, Lauren Shaw headed to her studio.

Inside, Mia May was busy with a young girl—small, adorable, and, on seeing Lauren Shaw, couldn't help but stare at her a little longer.

Mia May leaned over and whispered, "Sienna Shaw, that little girl just said she's here to see you."

"Me?" Lauren Shaw raised an eyebrow in surprise. Usually, when clients want to customize a dress, Mia May and the team handle it just fine, without her needing to step in.

Even as they spoke, the girl walked over.

"Hello, are you Lauren Shaw?" The girl looked at her, slightly shy.

Lauren Shaw nodded. "That's me."

"I'm Henry Mills's little sister. My name is Susan Mills."

Henry Mills’s sister? Lauren Shaw vaguely remembered Claire Xu mentioning her before.

She offered a friendly smile. "So, what brings you here today?"

Lauren Shaw guessed Susan Mills must've come because of her brother.

Susan Mills bit her lip in hesitation, setting a bag down on the table. "These are some desserts my mom made. I brought them for you to try."

"Thank you," Lauren Shaw replied graciously.

She could sense nothing but goodwill from Susan Mills. Women's intuition could be odd like that—this sweet girl felt totally harmless, even rather charming.

With Lauren Shaw being so gentle, Susan Mills came a little closer, closing the distance between them.

"Jiejie, I just wanted to ask... is Claire Xu my brother’s girlfriend?"

Lauren Shaw arched an eyebrow. That one, she wasn’t so sure about either; Claire Xu hadn’t made anything public, so she really couldn’t say.

"Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean anything by it. It’s just that I heard from my brother that you and Claire Xu are close. She’s my idol—I really like her. It’s just... well..." Susan Mills stammered.

"Just what?" Lauren Shaw gestured for her to relax and take her time.

"Well, my brother’s been fighting with our family. He moved out a couple days ago, and Mom can’t reach him. She’s worried he’ll get tricked by some shameless woman."

Lauren Shaw: "..."

How was she supposed to answer that?

"I found lots of pictures of Claire Xu in my brother’s room. My gut tells me he really likes her. He’s even said he won’t marry anyone else. So I wanted to double-check with you—if it really is Claire Xu, I’ll let Mom know there’s nothing to worry about."

This girl was really quite the solid wingwoman.

The He family must’ve done something right, raising such a lovable little sister.

"Yeah, your brother definitely likes Claire Xu." She didn’t comment on Claire Xu’s feelings, but as for Henry Mills, she was sure.

Susan Mills’s eyes immediately lit up. "So it really is Claire Xu? Ahhh, Claire Xu’s going to be my sister-in-law!" Her voice was practically bubbling over.

She couldn’t sit still, dashing off home, eager to report back for her brother.

After she left, Lauren Shaw called Claire Xu.

She barely finished dialing before Claire Xu picked up.

"Shengsheng." Noisy sounds came from Claire Xu’s side—she had a show today and must have gotten up early.

"Qingqing, Henry Mills’s little sister came to see me today."

There was a brief silence, then Claire Xu scratched her head, exasperated. "Why would she look for you? What, did she want her brother back?"

Lauren Shaw relayed Susan Mills’s words. Claire Xu exhaled in relief.

"Don’t even mention that weirdo Henry Mills," she grumbled. Thinking of how he drooled all over her throw pillow while sleeping last night, she kind of wanted to toss him out.

"So he slept at your place last night?" Lauren Shaw teased.

"Yeah, that idiot showed up saying he’d run away from home and if I didn’t take him in, he’d just stay at my place forever." Despite her words, Claire Xu sounded secretly pleased.

This morning, Henry Mills had already gone out to buy her breakfast—before he left he even reminded her to eat and not to skip meals.

Though she’d huffed about dieting and not liking breakfast, she ended up eating anyway after he left.

"Well, aren't you worried about being alone together? Sparks might fly, you know," Lauren Shaw replied with a suggestive tone.

Even over the phone, Claire Xu’s ears flushed red.

"Stop it! I’m perfectly proper. No man can tempt me!"

Lauren Shaw couldn’t help but laugh, dropping the subject. In time, Claire Xu would come to terms with her own heart.

Suddenly remembering something, Claire Xu glanced around to make sure no one was nearby, then lowered her voice: "Shengsheng, did you use the gift I gave you? Was it fun?"

The image from last night surfaced in Lauren Shaw’s mind, and she couldn’t help but snap back, "I’ll send you a set. You can try it yourself tonight."

Claire Xu burst out laughing. Well, their married life sounded pretty harmonious—she was just playing sidekick.

Right after the call ended, her phone rang again—it was Yancy Shaw.

"Shengsheng, I just landed." His deep, magnetic voice could make anyone’s heart skip a beat, no matter how many times she heard it.

"Okay, be careful over there." Lauren Shaw reminded him.

"I will." After a short pause, he added, "Shengsheng, I miss you."

Next to him, Chris Cooper couldn’t help twitching his mouth. These two had only been apart since the morning—did he already have to say he missed her?

Lauren Shaw was moved. "I miss you too."

They chatted for a bit until Chris Cooper softly reminded Yancy Shaw that the partner rep had arrived. He ended the call.

Staring at her phone for a moment, Lauren Shaw gathered herself and got back to work.

Airport.

Waiting for them was Director Liu, project manager of W&Q Group, who welcomed Yancy Shaw enthusiastically.

Along with him was a woman introduced as Sheng Hanxia, one of W&Q Group’s jewelry designers.

Despite their warm welcome, Yancy Shaw’s expression stayed cool and aloof.

After a brief introduction by Chris Cooper, they headed to the company.

W&Q Group Headquarters.

Led by a company rep, Yancy Shaw entered the conference room.

About ten minutes later, the door swung open. The man who entered did a quick double take at Yancy Shaw, but recovered almost instantly.