On Saturday morning, the servant returned with an express delivery addressed to Chu Ci.
Since Chu Ci had left the house and wasn't home, the servant placed the package on the table.
Meng Yuxin came downstairs and noticed the delivery. The box bore the logo of the National Basketball League.
Thanks to Chu Han, Meng Yuxin was very familiar with that symbol.
Curious, she approached the table and was surprised to see that the recipient's name was indeed Chu Ci.
How had Chuc Ci received a package from the National Basketball League?
Or was the box simply reused by the sender, and its contents unrelated?
Meng Yuxin recalled a conversation she had with Chu Han in the car—Chu Ci must have overheard it and known that Xiao Han's idol was Yi Xuecheng.
Meng Yuxin stared at the package for a long moment.
Just then, the family servant Sister Zhang passed by. Meng Yuxin accidentally knocked over a glass of water beside her, and the water spilled beneath the box.
She called Sister Zhang over.
"Miss Meng, what's wrong?" Sister Zhang asked.
"The water spilled, and the box is wet. I'm not sure what's inside, but maybe you can take care of it," Meng Yuxin said.
Seeing the soaked bottom of the carton, Sister Zhang quickly moved the package.
"Miss Meng, this belongs to Miss Chu Ci. She's not here, so it might not be right to open it," she said.
"But if the contents aren't waterproof, they could be damaged if left wet," Meng Yuxin replied.
After some thought, Sister Zhang opened the package and carefully took out its contents as Meng Yuxin watched.
Inside the outer carton was a jersey sealed in a transparent plastic bag—it was Yi Xuecheng's No. 8 jersey, signed.
There was also an uninflated basketball, bearing Yi Xuecheng's signature.
Below these was an elegant box, crafted from wood on all sides and bottom, with a glass lid.
Through the glass, a complete set of National Basketball League badges lay neatly arranged.
Meng Yuxin's eyes widened as she stared at the badge collection in disbelief.
She glanced back at the empty box and double-checked the recipient's name: Chu Ci.
How had Chuci managed to acquire these?
Despite appearing aloof and indifferent towards the Chu family, Chu Ci had secretly taken note of Chu Han's interests and gone to great lengths to obtain his favorite items.
But where had she gotten the money?
Meng Yuxin, who had recently been collecting these badges herself, knew their market value well.
Some rare badges had been sold to fans for tens of thousands of dollars.
It seemed impossible for Chuci to afford such a set.
Perplexed, Meng Yuxin continued to ponder.
Meanwhile, Sister Zhang had finished drying the items inside the package.
She intended to take everything straight to Chu Ci's room.
But Meng Yuxin stopped her and said, "Sister Zhang, please deliver these directly to Master Han's room. They're for him."
Sister Zhang looked at the items in her hands. Though she didn't fully understand, she recognized them as belonging to a boy—basketball was definitely Master Han's passion.
She didn't question further and followed Meng Yuxin's instructions.