ITC Chapter 35

Originally, Wen Ruqing had taken today off just to hang out with them. The night before, he had specifically adjusted his work schedule. In his mind, this was their first proper outing—his and Bai Xizhou’s. Even though Xie Yuzhu was tagging along, it didn’t really matter. He just didn’t want anyone interrupting. But, of course, things never go as planned.

The call came from Chen Jia. A client had asked by name for Bai Xizhou to handle their case. That alone wasn’t unusual—clients sometimes requested a specific lawyer. The issue was the bad timing.

He was ready to refuse, but then Chen Jia sent him a photo of the two people waiting in the meeting room. The message was loud and clear: if Bai Xizhou didn’t show up, they weren’t leaving.

In the picture, there was a man and a woman. The woman’s side profile was partially visible—her face didn’t look all that different from what he remembered. There was a chill in her lowered gaze. The man opposite her was unfamiliar to Bai Xizhou but looked about the same age as him.

He had a strong guess who they were.

If his memory wasn’t failing him, that woman was his mother—Yan Mo, who he hadn’t seen in years. She had made a single call months ago, then disappeared again. He had half-suspected it was just to mess with him.

But now, it looked like that call had been a warning: she was coming back.
And now, she was sitting in the Xinze conference room.

Bai Xizhou had to go. He knew if he didn’t, Yan Mo would stubbornly sit there all day. That was just her way. And he definitely didn’t want anyone else at the firm to start guessing at their relationship.

So he said goodbye to Wen Ruqing and Xie Yuzhu and took a cab back to Xinze.

At the entrance, Chen Jia looked at him like he was her savior. She explained that Zhu Yuyan and Li Xin had been trying to manage the situation, but the two guests refused to talk or accept help—they just kept saying they’d only speak to Bai Xizhou.

Chen Jia hadn’t wanted to interrupt his day off, but with those two being so difficult, she didn’t know what else to do. Zhu Yuyan had finally told her: “Just call him.” Even she hadn’t dealt with clients this stubborn before.

Bai Xizhou nodded and followed Chen Jia to the meeting room. Outside, Zhu Yuyan and Li Xin both looked exhausted.

“Who is she? Do you know her?” Zhu Yuyan pulled Bai Xizhou aside and whispered, “She’s not here to cause trouble, is she?”

“The woman is my mom,” Bai Xizhou said calmly.

Zhu Yuyan’s face morphed from concern to complete shock. Even Chen Jia and Li Xin were stunned.

“I’m fine. You all can get back to work.” Bai Xizhou turned to go into the room, then paused. “You two—” he looked at Li Xin and Chen Jia, “you’ve been with me for a while now. Want to handle this one yourselves?”

If he guessed right, Yan Mo had come for that case. And he wasn’t going to take it. But it was a good opportunity for Li Xin and Chen Jia—they’d been shadowing him long enough. It was time they handled a real case.

Li Xin looked at Chen Jia. She looked back.

“I want to try,” Li Xin said first. “Lawyer Bai, I want to give it a shot.”

“…Me too,” Chen Jia said, just a moment later.

“Good. I understand. Get back to your desks for now. I’ll find you later.” Bai Xizhou patted both on the shoulder. “Don’t stress—it’s not that complicated.”

Then he pushed open the door and went inside.

—

Yan Mo looked up as the door opened. Their eyes met—but just for a moment. Bai Xizhou quickly looked away and went to sit down.

He wore a plain t-shirt and sneakers, totally informal, clearly rushed over without prep.

“Hello, Lawyer Bai. I’m Zhuo Binshi, and this is—”

“Xizhou, you still came to see me.” Yan Mo interrupted the man and looked gently at Bai Xizhou.

Time had aged her. No amount of makeup could hide the wrinkles at her eyes. But her expression was softer than before.

“You could’ve just asked to see me—there was no need to make things difficult for my coworkers.” If Zhu Yuyan hadn’t been stumped, Bai Xizhou wouldn’t have come. “Ms. Yan, what do you need help with today?”

There was no interest in catching up. This was work. He would keep it that way.

“I’m divorcing Bai Hesong,” Yan Mo said directly. “You know I’ve been miserable all these years. But now that you’ve made your career, it’s time I finally cut ties with him.”

His hand paused mid-spin with the pen. He nearly snapped it—but his face remained expressionless.

Faster than he expected.

This day had to come eventually. Yan Mo needed to end her loveless marriage. But if she’d done it sooner, things might’ve been simpler. Now, her and Bai Hesong’s finances were deeply intertwined. The asset division would be a mess.

“Lawyer Bai, for someone of your age to already be a senior partner—there’s no doubt about your ability. A divorce case like this must be easy for you,” said Zhuo Binshi, cutting in again.

He either didn’t know—or was pretending not to know—about Bai Xizhou and Yan Mo’s relationship.

Having her own son handle her divorce? That man really had no shame.

“I don’t usually take on family law cases. But I have two excellent associates I can recommend,” Bai Xizhou replied, sending a message to Zhu Yuyan to bring in Li Xin and Chen Jia. “They’re both very capable.”

Soon, Li Xin and Chen Jia entered.

“Greet Ms. Yan,” Bai Xizhou said, moving aside. “You’ll take over from here—I’ll step out.”

“Xizhou, wait. Let’s talk after this,” Yan Mo caught his wrist.

He looked down at her painted nails, then at her—expression unreadable—and gave a professional smile before walking out.

—

Zhu Yuyan was still outside and handed him a coffee. Bai Xizhou thanked her, and the two of them headed to the break room.

It was quiet this time of day—most people were busy.

“That was really your mom? She looks so young,” Zhu Yuyan said as she sat down to gossip. “You’ve never mentioned your family before.”

“I don’t usually talk about them,” Bai Xizhou replied, sipping the slightly bitter coffee and adding a sugar cube. “Nothing worth mentioning.”

“Wait, I just remembered something—” Zhu Yuyan smacked her head. “That guy, Bai Xiting, who interviewed for legal aid—he has the same surname as you. What’s the deal? You two related?”

She looked at him suspiciously. “Don’t try to fool me.”

“What do you think?” Bai Xizhou asked coolly.

“I thought maybe… he’s your half-brother or something?”

She had meant it as a joke—but seeing his face, she wasn’t so sure anymore.

Yeah. Something was up with his family.

—

Later, when Li Xin and Chen Jia came out of the meeting room, Bai Xizhou went back in. Yan Mo looked at him, but he only glanced at her before turning to the interns.

“This case’s asset division is going to be complicated. You two should take it together,” he said, loud enough for Yan Mo to hear. “Make sure to dig deep in the background check.”

Then he turned to Yan Mo. There was no emotion in his eyes.

“Didn’t you want to talk? There’s a café downstairs.”

—

Wen Ruqing and Xie Yuzhu spent the whole day at the amusement park. On the way back, Wen texted Bai Xizhou asking if he wanted them to bring him dinner. The reply came: No need.

After sending the message, Bai Xizhou looked across the table at Yan Mo. “What did you want to talk about?”

There was no warmth in this reunion. No tender mother-son moment. If anything, they were more like strangers… or reluctant business partners.

“Zhuo Binshi is just my secretary,” Yan Mo began explaining, as if that mattered.

But Bai Xizhou couldn’t care less who he was. It had nothing to do with him.

“I didn’t know he had asked you to be the lawyer,” she went on.

“Whom you hire is your business,” he said. “But Li Xin and Chen Jia are both excellent. They’ll get you what you need.”

He technically couldn’t take the case. He didn’t trust himself to separate his emotions. And that made him feel unprofessional—but it was the truth.

Anything involving his family made his skin crawl.

“I just wanted to apologize,” Yan Mo finally said, tears brimming in her eyes. “I know I wasn’t a good mother. I was too extreme, I hurt you many times… But I hope you can understand, I was a victim of that marriage too. I was suffering.”

“Your suffering wasn’t caused by me,” Bai Xizhou laughed coldly, sipping his coffee. “And I don’t owe you anything for it.”

Yan Mo’s pain had come from her marriage, her compromises, and her own choices. Years ago, she had destroyed everything related to his grandfather just to spite him, without a single thought to how it would hurt him.

Now she came to apologize? It was laughable.

People are complex. His grandfather may have made her miserable, but he had also been Bai Xizhou’s only source of warmth as a child.

And maybe… maybe Bai Xizhou would never reconcile with his family.
Maybe he didn’t need to.

—

It was evening when Bai Xizhou got home. After sending off Yan Mo, he’d gone back to the firm to have a quick meeting with Li Xin and Chen Jia.

The lights in his apartment were on. Takeout containers sat on the table, and tied to a chair was a pig-head balloon. He changed his shoes and stared at the balloon, smacking it once—it dipped and bounced back up with a defiant-looking expression.

That stupid pig face really looks like it’s mocking me, he thought.

Wen Ruqing came out of the shower, saw Bai Xizhou staring down the balloon, and couldn’t help but laugh. He walked over and patted Bai Xizhou’s shoulder.

“Rainzhu bought that. Said it was a gift for you.”

He’d assumed Bai Xizhou would find it childish. But to his surprise, he seemed to like it.

Bai Xizhou caught a whiff of a familiar floral scent. He turned around—Wen Ruqing was still damp from the shower, hair dripping water.

Without a word, Bai Xizhou took the towel from his hand and began drying his hair naturally.

“You used my shampoo?”

It smelled like freesia—his shampoo. The scent lingered long.

“You left it there. Am I not allowed to use it?” Wen Ruqing muttered, a little awkwardly under Bai Xizhou’s gentle movements. He instinctively grabbed both of Bai Xizhou’s wrists and looked up—right into his warm eyes.

That gaze was hard to define.
It wasn’t exactly friendly…
It was more than that. Just a little more.

And in that hazy feeling, a blush crept up Wen Ruqing’s ears.

Thankfully, the towel covered them. Otherwise, he would’ve had no way to explain it.

“Qingqing, you smell so good.” Bai Xizhou said with a teasing smile.

Wen Ruqing froze. Before the heat could spread to his cheeks, he snatched the towel back and turned away, rubbing his hair dry in a hurry.

He decided then and there: he was never using Bai Xizhou’s shampoo again.

---

Frozen Starlight:
Good-smelling Qingqing~

This divorce case is a really important turning point for their relationship. Once they get through this, Lawyer Bai is almost at the finish line.