Chapter 57: Fate Brings Us Together Across a Thousand Miles

Meng Yier hesitated for a moment. "Mr. Carson, I can't accept this."

"Miss Meng, you've already worn the dress—no one else can wear it now. Please take it. Besides, it suits you perfectly, as if it was tailored just for you."

"But..."

"If you truly regard me as a friend, Miss Meng, then please don't refuse any longer."

Meng Yier felt awkward. She pondered for a moment, realizing he was right—she had already worn it, and there was no polite way to decline. She finally accepted the dress.

"Very well, then."

Carson watched as she finally took the dress. He let out a long sigh, the corners of his lips lifting in a gentle smile, his gaze upon her growing even softer.

Having her idol, whom she had admired for years, look at her like this made Meng Yier's heart beat irregularly. She forced a smile, lowering her starry eyes.

The two stood quietly together, neither speaking. Meng Yier dared not meet his gaze, searching for words to break the awkward silence, but her mind spun in circles and still found nothing to say.

Just as she felt she could no longer endure, Carson finally spoke. "Meng—"

"Um, Mr. Carson, would you like to come upstairs for a cup of coffee?" Meng Yier was so nervous that it was only after the words left her lips that she realized what she had said.

She had actually invited Carson into her home!

Each time she met Carson, she became terribly nervous. Deep down, Meng Yier was afraid of being alone with him.

Carson was taken aback by her invitation, perhaps not expecting it. The smile he always wore paused for a moment, and his blue eyes took on a different light.

Meng Yier, seeing Carson's reaction, wished she could sink into the floor out of embarrassment.

Would he think she was being forward? Or perhaps suspect her of hidden motives?

She fretted inwardly, casting a nervous glance at him, only to meet Carson's gaze. He smiled and nodded.

—

Meng Yier was in the kitchen making coffee, stealing glances at Carson as he paced the spacious living room, examining the furnishings.

"Miss Meng, do you live alone?"

"Yes, I do."

Carson noticed a photograph in the living room—one of her with Gu Yunchen and the elder Gu couple. Curiously, he asked, "Your family? They don’t live with you?"

Meng Yier happened to be carrying the finished coffee over. Hearing his question, she lowered her bright eyes, sat on the sofa, paused, and said softly, "They—they left me when I was very young."

Carson was taken aback. He came over and sat down in front of her, apologizing, "Miss Meng, I’m sorry to have brought up something painful."

Meng Yier had already composed herself, brushing away the sorrow in her eyes. She smiled lightly. "It's all right. It was a long time ago."

Carson returned her smile, offering comfort. After a moment of hesitation, he gazed at the photograph again and spoke, "The people in that photo..."

He wanted to know more about this girl before him—

This girl who was somehow different.

He always found something familiar about her.

Meng Yier looked up and saw that Carson's eyes rested on the photo of her and the Gu family. She thought, he must have mistaken the Gu parents for her biological parents.

"They are my family too—my adoptive parents. I’ve lived with them since I was eight. They treated me wonderfully, just like their own daughter. In my heart, they have long been my true family..." Meng Yier looked at the photo, where every face shone with smiles, and the corners of her lips lifted unconsciously.

They truly were her family—

People who meant everything to her.

"Don't they live with you?"

Meng Yier shook her head. "They're in America. I've always lived with them, but I only recently returned home."

"Miss Meng, you used to live in America?"

Meng Yier nodded.

"It seems fate has brought us together. Both living in America, yet never meeting there, and now becoming friends back home. It’s just as the Chinese saying goes—"

"‘If you’re destined, even thousands of miles won’t keep you apart,’" Meng Yier interjected.