Atlas Studios

  Atlas Studios

  Her daughter hadn’t breathed a single word to her.

  The image of the terrorists tugging Lin Nuan’s hair was especially heart-wrenching for Liang Mulan; she felt as though her heart had been sliced to pieces, and she couldn’t breathe through the pain! She wished she could somehow drive a thousand daggers in the man through the photo!

  Lin Nuan lowered her gaze, and the tears rolled onto her top. She wiped away the tears with the back of her hand. She wanted to reassure Liang Mulan and tell her not to worry, but the words were stuck at the back of her swollen and painful throat.

  “Do you really like Wen Moshen that much? Huh? To the extent that you could abandon your father and me and go to Iraq—a place others shun? Huh? How did you become so bold, Lin Nuan?” Liang Mulan cried out in a reprimanding tone. “Did you even think about your father and me while you were there? Were you intending to drive us to our graves?”


  Lin Nuan kept quiet, and her eyes lowered as she listened to Liang Mulan’s chiding.

  “Dad’s not important, and Mom’s not important, only Wen Moshen matters! Lin Nuan, do you know how we felt when we saw someone holding a gun and tugging at your hair? We were so heart-broken! If something were to happen to you in Iraq, how do you expect your father and me to continue with our lives?”


  Lin Nuan broke down, and she bit her lip hard to stop herself from weeping loudly.

  “Lin Nuan… you’re my everything! How could you do this to yourself?” Liang Mulan continued sobbing.

  Lin Nuan didn’t dare tell Liang Mulan… that a thought had once crossed her mind that, had she died when she was in Iraq then, she wouldn’t have had to suffer when she found out the truth about her birth.

  But now that she heard Liang Mulan’s words, Lin Nuan was glad that she was still alive…


  Even though Liang Mulan wasn’t her biological mother and they weren’t related by blood, the bond they shared definitely surpassed that of blood relations.

  “Mom… I was wrong!” Lin Nuan sobbed as she apologized to Liang Mulan over the phone.

  At the other end of the line, Liang Mulan was seated in front of the computer. She couldn’t bear to continue looking at the photographs on the screen. Every single photograph was tearing through her heart.

  Lin Jingquan stood teary-eyed behind Liang Mulan. He grasped Liang Mulan on the shoulder with one hand, and the other was holding onto the computer mouse. He switched off the computer screen so Liang Mulan would no longer be able to continue staring at the photographs.

  Liang Mulan was bawling her eyes out over the phone.

  Even though this had taken place years ago, Liang Mulan was still so shaken that she was trembling from head to toe.

  …


  On the way home, Lin Nuan sat in the passenger seat as she gazed at a serious-looking Fu Huai’an who was looking ahead and driving. She bit her lip and turned to look in front as well.

  Her phone vibrated, and messages started pouring in. The display showed Wen Moshen’s name.

  Lin Nuan opened her message inbox.

  ‘Lin Nuan, I am at your house, come down and let’s talk!’


  ‘Nuan Nuan, I want to see you, please come down to meet me okay?’


  ‘Please answer my call even if you don’t want to see me. Nuan Nuan, please!’


  ‘I am at your door, open the door!’


  ‘Please don’t avoid me, Lin Nuan!’


  ‘I know you don’t wish to see me, but Nuan Nuan, please let me see you just once…’


  ‘Nuan Nuan, I Love You!’


  When she saw this message, Lin Nuan paused, and her eyes welled up with tears again. She cried not because of love but for all the grievances she had suffered.

  In the past, Lin Nuan had hoped for and anticipated these three words to come from him. She waited until her heart was in pieces and yet, all she received was news of Wen Moshen getting into a relationship with Gu Hanyan!

  Even though her heart was bleeding, she somehow managed to send them her best wishes with a smile on her face. Even though she curled up in bed, hugged her knees, and cried silently late at night when no one could see, she never once showed how weak and pained she felt in front of others.