The date 4

He knew what his family was up to and always stood by his wife, letting them know that he would never let her go no matter what they said or did.

Lana had grown to finally be the Matron of the Liu family and since then she'd seen all sorts of devious schemes that family could devise against each other for the sake of money, lust and deep envy.

This was why she never involved herself in whatever issue related to family drama. According to her, she loved her peace of mind and she also didn't want it to look like she was picking sides. Even her sons petty argument never got to her because she would just have them get punished by their father who was eager to do his wife's every bid like the doting husband he was.

That was the case until her granddaughter, Xinyi came into the picture.

Liu Xinyi was Lana Liu's favorite granddaughter and she always loved it when Xinyi was brought to her as a child. Xinyi also was the daughter of her last son and unlike the other siblings, Xinyi was the only child of her father so Lana pampered her for that reason as well.

To Lana, Xinyi acted like a very tough child but she was actually the most softhearted person Lana had ever met. She protected to the Tee and also understood the deep meaning of family loyalty.

Back to the present, Liu Xinyi was still waiting for her grandmother's response, already understanding how her grandma loved coming up with several excuses just to get her to do things.

Most of the time, those things she reminded her of were definitely for Xinyi's good but Matron Liu could be a handful sometimes.

"Aiya, this child. You never call me except I call first. Do you know how long I've been trying to reach you? Why haven't you been picking my calls?" Grandma Liu asked. The two people she still worried about in her life were her husband and Xinyi.

"Oh granny, I'm so sorry about that. You know how busy I get at work." Xinyi made sure her tone sounded whiny so her grandmother wouldn't be too hard on her.

"You're telling me your father left all the work to you? Has he forgotten you're his only child and you only deserve to be pampered and loved? Aren't you just the acting-" she could sense her grandmother had begun to raise her voice, which wasn't good for the elderly lady's health.

"Grandma, please calm down. Did you receive the soothing herbs I sent to you yesterday?"

"Hmph! I did. Don't cover our discussion up. You know you're my favorite grandchild out of all the others. You should be trying your best to please this old woman." Her grandmother harrumphed.

Xinyi sighed, picking her customized pen and biting the bottom.

There were only a few of that kind of pen in the world and she'd bought them all from their various locations because they were the last collections belonging to an old friend and she couldn't allow it fall into the hands of someone who wouldn't treasure it like it was worth. 

The pen was unique.

The ink was made from a special coloring substance and the details in its production had been properly outlined to show how heartfelt the pieces were. The maker of the pen had gone missing a while back, and no one knew if it was because he wanted to conceal his identity as the 'Unique Pen Maker' who wouldn't sell his work to just anyone or he really wanted to erase all forms of his existence from the world.

As Xinyi shook off her thoughts from the 'Unique Pen Maker', she focused on her grandmother who was laying out a list of her offences and threatening Xinyi with her health if she didn't do her bidding.

"Grandma, please what do you want? Don't threaten me with your health anymore, grandma. It's not healthy."

"What else do you want me to do? I've tried everything but it doesn't seem to be working. You're in that cold and intimidating office, working your youth away while you should be enjoying your life. Your beauty is wasting away in that office."

Xinyi shook her head. She had listened to these words several times already that she was now tired of them.

Her grandmother always talked about how she needed to eat better, live some more, go out, hang out with friends and what not.

"For starters, I usually dine at the best restaurants in City A. About me taking care of myself, I have my skincare routine which I follow to the tee. About my going out, I go to karaoke with FeiFei or buy out a club and hangout with Jin." FeiFei was her cousin while Jin was her bodyguard.

Grandma Liu sighed on the other line, making Xinyi wince because she knew a series of  complaints would follow.

"I never knew the day would come when my granddaughter would become a shell of her own self all in the name of family duties. Aiya. You even have to buy out a club just for you to have fun in it. That's not the healthy lifestyle I always wished for my lovely granddaughter who was so bubbly as a child. What do I do? Where exactly did I fail?" She heard her grandma sniffing and Xinyi instantly panicked. She could stand anything but not the sound of her grandmother's crying.

Whether her grandmother was faking it or not, the act still always managed to pull at her heartstrings. Her grandmother was only being a protective grandmother who wanted the best for her.

"What do you want grandma?" She finally conceded.

"Forget it. You won't be able to do it anyway." Grandma sniffed loudly. "Among all my grandchildren, you are the one I worry about the most. You drown yourself in work and barely have time for yourself. How long do you want to keep being like this? You're already in your twenties yet you live like someone in their fifties and wear old clothes instead of something sexy! I wonder if you'll find someone or all my efforts will be put to waste. I've failed, I've failed." Grandma Liu sobbed.

Xinyi's brows drew in askance as she worried her lower lip. "Grandma..."

"Shush. I know, I love you too much and now you think I'm only nagging. It's fine. I won't bother myself with you anymore. But if this makes me fall sick, know you're the cause of it all." Grandma continued in a sad tone, her sniffs getting louder by the second.

The sound tore at Liu Xinyi's heartstrings and she pressed her lips together in resignation.

'Anyway, whatever grandma wants for me can never be that bad", Xinyi thought to herself.

"Tell me what you want me to do, grandma."

"But what if you can't do it?" She asked with another sniff and Xinyi didn't even want to imagine the pained look that would be on her grandmother's face at the moment.

"I will, I'll try."

"Promise?"

"I promise, grandma. Now please stop crying and tell me what you want me to do." She said quickly, knowing she probably wouldn't like what her grandmother would say but she would still listen anyway.

"Okay, my sweetheart. I want you to go on a date with my friend's grandson."