"Fu Yanci, do you think Xiao Bao will go?"
"I don’t know... If it were , I wouldn’t go."
"...Then what if he does?"
"Let him."
"But he’s just a five-year-old child. Forcing him to face the mother who once abused him— isn’t that... a bit too cruel?"
"Ah Li, who was it that said he’s a genius, mature beyond his years? And who banged their chest saying they were a man, that they’d protect you?"
"..."
"Ah Li, why aren’t you saying anything?... Ah Li, I ssed up. Alright, you tell what to do, and I’ll listen to you, okay?... Ah Li, Ah Li, don’t ignore , okay? Ah Li..."
"Ah, Fu Yanci, you’re so bad! Fu Yan... Ah..."
It started with entanglent.
It ended in chaos.
Ye Li initially planned to dig into Fu Yanci’s bottom line before bed, understand his limits and tolerance. But unexpectedly, she got completely sidetracked by him before she could even begin.
Waking up in the morning, opening her eyes, she stared at the empty space beside her. Recalling his delighted murmurs from last night, Ye Li turned over, burying her flushed face into the pillow.
"Ah Li, if you don’t get up now, we’ll be late..."
Fu Yanci’s voice ca from outside the window, prompting Ye Li to sit up abruptly. "I’m going too?"
"Of course. We’re a happy family, right?"
His words were full of amusent.
Freshening up, changing clothes.
When Ye Li stepped out, she saw one big and one small figure playing basketball in the yard.
Next to the tall and imposing Fu Yanci, Xiao Bao looked so tiny, yet his offensive moves were surprisingly impressive.
Fu Yanci defended intermittently, alternating between serious and playful moves.
When Xiao Bao reached the basket, feigned a fake-out, and leapt forward, Fu Yanci caught him easily, lifting him up and placing him near the hoop.
Xiao Bao froze for a mont, then his eyes lit up.
Bang!
The basketball smashed into the hoop and bounced off a few tis before rolling far away.
At the teahouse with the straightforward na "Tea House" at the end of the alley, Lin Kerou sat by the window upstairs, her expression calm.
But only she knew how restless she was inside.
All night, her heart felt like it was being roasted over flas.
Part of her hated Fu Yanci’s cruelty, for not even letting her step through the Fu Family’s door.
Part of her worried that Xiao Bao wouldn’t forgive her—if that happened, what could she do?
She was caught between two thoughts: Xiao Bao has a clear mory of everything she did to him, and three years have passed, he must have forgotten by now.
Lin Kerou couldn’t even recall what she had been thinking.
At the crack of dawn, she ca here to wait.
Downstairs was noisy and bustling, filled with the voices of old n from the alley chatting and drinking tea.
But Lin Kerou’s mind was consud by just one cold and profound face.
A face she had once lost.
And this ti, she was determined to take it back!
The ruthless thought had just surfaced when she turned around and saw the two big figures and the one small figure walking hand in hand down the alley.
Lin Kerou’s eyes narrowed.
In the bright morning sun, the tall and long-legged man in casual housewear exuded an additional touch of approachability, shedding his usual cold and stern deanor.
The woman by his side, Ye Li, slightly shorter by a head, spoke with eyes curved like crescent moons, radiating charm.
Between the two was Xiao Bao.
As though amused by sothing Ye Li said, the little one wore a smile identical to hers, his eyes curving like hers.
At first glance, the two even bore a faint resemblance.
Lin Kerou dug her nails into the table hard.
She had considered every possibility.
Fu Yanci, with a grim face, appearing alone: "He doesn’t want to see you. Leave!"
Or, the one big, one small, both with stone-cold faces, Xiao Bao glaring at her with unfamiliarity and hatred: "You’re not my mother. I don’t know you!"
Or even Fu Yanci not showing up at all, sending the family’s bodyguards to chase her away.
But Lin Kerou had never imagined she’d see this scene before her.
It was as though they were the true family of three.
And she, who had endured ten months of pregnancy to give birth to Xiao Bao, was just a surrogate.
Knock knock!
The private room door was knocked on, jerking Lin Kerou back to reality. She quickly changed her deanor, wearing a gentle and sorrowful smile as she stepped forward to open the door.
In an instant, the little figure held by Ye Li shrank behind her.
Lin Kerou’s eyes reddened imdiately.
"Co, co in..."
She stepped aside to let Fu Yanci in. Seeing him standing still, she hesitated for a mont, then turned back and sat on one of the wooden armchairs.
A deep red square table sat by the window, carrying an antique air full of the marks of ti.
Two wooden armchairs faced each other across the table.
Lin Kerou sat in one.
Fu Yanci and Ye Li sat in the other.
Almost as soon as they were seated, Lin Kerou’s eyes brightened with a trace of joy.
Her gaze full of anticipation locked onto Xiao Bao, imploring silently: Xiao Bao, co here, co to Mommy.
But the little one didn’t even look at her. He simply walked behind Fu Yanci and Ye Li, climbed over the wooden armchair, and squeezed himself between the two.
Lin Kerou’s heart sank heavily.
"Muzhi, Mommy already knows she was wrong, Mommy truly knows she was wrong..."
Tears poured down her cheeks relentlessly as Lin Kerou covered her face, sobbing openly.
Xiao Bao looked completely lost, gripping Ye Li’s hand tightly.
Perhaps fearing he’d anger Fu Yanci, Lin Kerou didn’t cry for long.
She pulled out two docunts from her bag and laid them face-up on the table towards Xiao Bao, explaining earnestly, "Muzhi, Mommy was wrong back then, but it was because Mommy was sick. I know you’re only five and can’t understand things like this. But please don’t hate Mommy, okay?"
"You don’t have to acknowledge ; you don’t have to talk to . It doesn’t matter..."
Lin Kerou shook her head, her tearful gaze fixed on Xiao Bao. "Mommy’s not in a rush. Mommy still has the rest of her life, plenty of ti. When you grow up and understand what ten months of pregnancy ans, what postpartum depression ans, then you’ll understand Mommy’s pain back then! If, even then, you still refuse to forgive Mommy, I... I..."
Her lips quivered, her face paled further. Lin Kerou opened into a soft smile: "It’s okay, Mommy will be fine. By then, you’ll have grown up. If you still won’t forgive , I’ll leave. As long as you’re happy, it doesn’t matter what happens to Mommy!"
The beautiful woman looked pale.
Sincerely staring into his eyes, tears brimd over.
She was smiling, but the tears in her eyes kept falling.
An overwhelming sorrow and sadness.
Xiao Bao stared at her blankly, forgetting even when he let go of Ye Li’s hand.
Ye Li was stunned as well.
As a fellow woman, if she didn’t already know what had happened back then, if she didn’t instinctively harbor a deep dislike toward Lin Kerou...
Just hearing those words, not only Xiao Bao but even Ye Li herself would certainly have burst into tears.
She would’ve wanted nothing more than to comfort Xiao Bao, to assure him that his mother had truly gone through so much suffering back then.
This must be what’s called a high-level "White Lotus, Green Tea" act, right?
What a performance!
Ye Li instinctively glanced at Fu Yanci, then curled her lips.
Reviews
All reviews (0)