Volume One, Chapter 146: Mom, Please Rest Assured!

“Mom, I got married, and then divorced. But don’t worry, I’ll take good care of myself. You never taught me how to cook, but after watching so many times, I’ve learned. My cooking skills aren’t bad now... Yet, I never made a proper meal for you to taste my cooking.”

“Xiao Mu was a good child. He hurt me before... but later he realized his mistakes and changed. Sometimes when I see a family of three on the street, I wonder if I was a bit selfish to ask for a divorce back then, not thinking about him at all. But Mom... if I could do it all over again, I would still make the same choice.”

“...If I could turn back time, maybe that year we could have caught the earlier train, leaving the capital city behind, escaping all the hardships.”

Her calm and clear voice seemed to pour out all the regrets of the past.

Sang Wan sat before the transparent crystal coffin, gazing at Sun Yueqing’s peaceful face, as serene as if she were about to fall asleep. She smiled faintly. “Mom, these past few days I’ve been thinking about how to avoid all these hardships and trials.”

But later she realized—

There was no way to avoid them.

After all, Sun Yueqing, no longer a teacher, had tried every job that could earn money.

If Sun Yueqing hadn’t worked as a nanny, she might have dropped out of school long ago. How could she have continued her education?

She worked so well that she became the top nanny in the housekeeping company and was then picked by Su Baohui to go to the Lu family.

If she hadn’t done such a good job, would she have avoided that incident back then? Would she have avoided spending ten years in prison for murder?

But being diligent and conscientious was always her mother’s nature.

She was either not doing something at all or doing it perfectly.

There was simply no escaping it.

Or perhaps, when Sang Dawei first raised his hand to hit her mother, and her mother decided to leave, if she hadn’t clung to her mother’s legs crying, or shouted “Mom, don’t go” so immaturely, letting her walk away decisively—

Would things have been better?

It seemed not.

The time they found them on the train, Sang Dawei never intended to pay attention to her mother.

He dragged her straight to the casino.

If her mother had only turned her head away, she could have left the capital city and that scoundrel Sang Dawei once and for all.

But she didn’t.

She followed him all the way to the casino, even carrying a butcher knife she must have found somewhere.

Her mother, who never even dared to kill a chicken and fainted at the sight of blood, that day was fierce and strong like Sun Erniang from a comic book, unprecedentedly fierce and robust.

She wouldn’t abandon the child she risked her life to give birth to.

After much thought, Sang Wan felt there was only one way left.

“Mom...”

If being her mother meant she had to pay such a heavy price—

Then...

“In the next life, don’t be my mother!”

Her eyes swollen like walnuts, tears streaming down her face.

Sang Wan smiled, reaching out to touch Sun Yueqing’s face.

But she only felt the cold crystal coffin.

“In the next life, let me be the mother, let me protect you, okay?”

No response.

Sang Wan laughed softly. “...Then I’ll take that as your answer!”

---

Her mind was filled with memories of a turbulent childhood, those happy times spent with her mother.

She also recalled what Lou Ye had said: Sang Dawei would never show up in her life again, never disturb her future.

Sang Wan looked at Sun Yueqing and whispered, “Mom, when you reach the bridge of forgetfulness, be sure to ask Meng Po for an extra bowl of soup.”

After saying countless words to her mother, Sang Wan only noticed it was snowing lightly outside as she left.

That autumn seemed exceptionally brief.

In the blink of an eye, winter had arrived.

“Lou Ye, I want to take another day off tomorrow.”

“Alright, I’ll tell Cheng Jingran.”

“I want to go to the cemetery...”

“I’ve already—”

“Lou Ye, I have money! This might be the last thing I can do for my mom. I can handle it myself!”

“Okay, then I’ll go with you!”

She spent the night tossing and turning.

When she closed her eyes, she saw scenes of her old house: sitting at the desk doing homework while her mother knitted, watching her hesitate to start writing, then leaning over patiently to explain the problems.

Then, she saw her mother holding her hand, the two of them running through endless alleys, no end in sight ahead, someone urgently chasing behind.

“Mom, Mom...”

Sang Wan seemed trapped in a nightmare she couldn’t wake from.

In the middle of the night, she suddenly ran a high fever.

Lou Ye noticed immediately.

He took her temperature, gave her medicine, and called a private doctor.

Only near dawn did Sang Wan finally fall into a deep sleep.

---

On the day Sun Yueqing was buried, the capital city had its second snowfall.

They chose a grave in the southeastern corner of Xishan Cemetery, nestled by the mountain and water, beside a lush pine tree.

“Mom, my work is going well now, my life is going smoothly. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine!”

“I’ll come to see you again in a few days!”

“...”

After the burial, Sang Wan sat before the tombstone, speaking many words.

As she stood up, a gentle breeze blew, swirling the snowflakes in front of the tombstone, carrying them away.

She looked back and saw a tall figure standing at the foot of the steps.

“Lou Ye, let’s go!”

Sang Wan walked forward.

Lou Ye glanced at her no longer swollen eyes, warmed her cold ears with his hand, and held her hand as they walked toward the roadside.

He opened the passenger door, and warmth rushed out.

---

Lou Ye patted Sang Wan’s head. “You warm up first. I’m going to say a few words to your mom. I’ll be back soon!”

Mom.

Sang Wan looked up.

Lou Ye seemed to feel nothing unusual about the way she said it.

Closing the car door, he walked down the steps to Sun Yueqing’s tombstone.

“Mom, I’m Lou Ye. I don’t know if Sang Wan has ever mentioned me to you!”

“I haven’t told Sang Wan about your situation. Every debt has its debtor. Once I find out the truth, I’ll give you an explanation. I won’t let those who plotted against you go unpunished! Sang Wan... I won’t tell her. Whether it’s a daughter or a son-in-law, as long as the accounts are settled. Who settles them isn’t important. What do you think?”

“Mom, I will love Sang Wan well and never let her suffer again. Please rest assured!”

“...”

Looking up, all he saw was Lou Ye’s straight back and the corner of the tombstone.

No one knows what he said to her.

But Sang Wan could guess.

He must have told her that he would take good care of Sang Wan, protecting her along with her mother’s share, so she could rest easy.

“Lou Ye, thank you!”

Lou Ye returned to the car.

Sang Wan whispered her thanks.

Lou Ye raised an eyebrow, wanting to say, “You’ve thanked me more in these few days than I’ve heard in all my years.”

He also wanted to say, “No need to be so formal with me.”

He held out his cold hands, watching her reach out to grasp them.

Lou Ye pulled her into his embrace. “Really want to thank me?”

Sang Wan nodded. “Yes.”

“Then... promise yourself to me!”

Lou Ye patted her back, seeking an answer. “Deal?”

The scent of fir trees on him was comforting.

Through the car window, they could see distant gravestones and snowflakes swirling in the breeze.

Sang Wan softly replied, “Okay...”

The Maybach turned around and sped away.

A few minutes later, a black Mercedes approached and stopped.

Lu Jinnian got out of the driver’s seat, holding a bouquet of small white daisies as he walked into the cemetery.