Shu Rong, tiny as she was, sat on the white toilet seat cover, cradling Mommy’s phone. She heard some strange noises—thud, thud, thud—but they didn’t bother her as she watched videos of little animals.
“You… you’ve hit me enough, right?”
Lin Xu had long since collapsed, panting heavily as she knelt on one knee against the wall, wiping the blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.
Just over ten minutes, and Lin Xu’s pampered young lady body was truly pathetic.
Shu Wan Ning raised an eyebrow, shaking out her reddened knuckles. “Spoiled rotten. I only hit your face, and I know how to control my strength.”
Pah! Lin Xu had already cursed her out in her mind, dragging in eighteen generations of ancestors, but it still didn’t vent her anger. She hadn’t forgotten the original purpose of getting beaten like this.
“Heh, as long as you’re happy.” Lin Xu tried to stand using the wall for support, but with one twitch, her legs ached and cramped. Her brows furrowed.
Better to stay slumped. It wasn’t embarrassing.
As Lin Xu eased the pain, she couldn’t wait another second and blurted out, “You promised to tell me where your sister went.”
Shu Wan Ning recalled her earlier words and shook her head. “I didn’t promise that. I just leaked a bit of info about her—not like I handed over the address outright.”
“You’re lying to me?!”
Lin Xu’s chest tightened. She clenched her fist against her heart, furious and anxious, itching to leap up and retaliate.
“Don’t rush. I always keep my word.”
With that, Shu Wan Ning pulled out her phone, lowered her head, and dialed a number. Her sister should have landed by now.
“Hey, Sis, have you arrived in Japan?… Is someone picking you up?… Oh, okay… I saw Rongrong; she’s doing fine… Mm…”
Lin Xu felt like she was invisible as Shu Wan Ning chatted away with Shu Qingyou. She quickly piped up to remind her, “Don’t forget about me.”
Shu Wan Ning shot Lin Xu a sidelong glance. Considering she’d willingly taken the beating, she switched to speakerphone and said slowly, “Sis, Lin Xu tracked me down to the dorm. I had no choice, so we fought…”
“That’s not it! Your sister beat me senseless. I’m covered in bruises—it hurts everywhere, from head to toe.”
Shu Qingyou paused, stunned. She knew her sister was fierce; it was normal for Lin Xu to lose a fight.
“Ningning, you’re not hurt, are you?”
Blood was thicker than water—her sister was still concerned about her. Shu Wan Ning gloated inwardly.
“Sis, Lin Xu actually volunteered to let me beat her, in exchange for a chance to talk to you.” Shu Wan Ning glared at Lin Xu. “Speak properly; don’t play the pity card! It’s not that bad.”
Hearing Shu Qingyou’s voice made Lin Xu feel like she’d found home. Her nose twitched twice, and she whimpered, “Baby, I miss you so much. It hurts outside… and inside too.”
So cheesy—calling her “baby.” Shu Wan Ning got goosebumps all over.
Better to go play with her little niece instead.
She tossed the phone to Lin Xu nimbly. It was a burner number anyway; Lin Xu couldn’t trace it.
Lin Xu clutched the phone like a treasure, her eyes threaded with dense red veins. Trembling, she asked, “Why did you do this?”
Shu Qingyou had just checked into her hotel and wasn’t in the mood for a serious discussion. Casually, she said, “Are your injuries bad? Ningning knows her limits.”
“Whether she does or not, can you just tell me where you are?”
Shu Qingyou replied, “Hold on; no signal in the elevator.”
Static crackled through Lin Xu’s ear. She stared intently, waiting.
After a while, Shu Qingyou’s voice came through, flat and emotionless, seizing Lin Xu’s heart. “Okay, on that point—no comment.”
Lin Xu’s heart raced, blood surging to her head. Indignantly, she said, “You left without a word, and now ‘no comment’? Fine, if you don’t care about me, what about Rongrong? You’re abandoning her?!”
So noisy. Shu Qingyou held the phone away from her ear. She didn’t want to deal with this temper anymore.
“I’ll pick her up when I return. You’re her mommy; you should take responsibility.”
“What if I don’t?” Lin Xu threatened bluffingly.
Shu Qingyou felt a surge of displeasure, her tone thick with disappointment. “Do whatever. I just didn’t expect you to be that kind of person.”
Lin Xu slammed her fist into the tile floor, pain radiating through her. She knew she couldn’t push Shu Qingyou and quickly switched to a gentle tone.
“Sorry, I was joking. I love Rongrong too much to slack off.”
Whether true or not, Shu Qingyou believed a tiger wouldn’t eat its own cubs. Lin Xu was unreliable day-to-day, but she stepped up for big things.
“Mm, thanks.”
Sensing a thaw, Lin Xu asked softly, “Can you tell me where you are? I’ll come find you, I promise—I won’t bother you.”
Shu Qingyou rubbed her brow. She’d drugged Lin Xu with sleeping pills the night before, gotten up at dawn for the airport, and the hours-long journey had left her exhausted.
“Lin Xu, maybe I should make this clear: I’m not leaving you…” She paused. “I want to break up with you completely.”
Boom—
It hit Lin Xu like a thunderbolt—unbelief, confusion, and fury crashing down together.
“You’re serious?”
“After deep thought, yes. These years have shown me that love isn’t everything, and this love has cost me too much. Sometimes it even turned me into something that’s neither human nor ghost. It’s too heavy…”
She called their love unbearable, a burden. Lin Xu processed Shu Qingyou’s confession alone for a long moment.
Lin Xu’s eyes reddened, but she didn’t cry. She wouldn’t—for this woman who’d left without warning. Not worth it.
“Fine, we can break up. But say it to my face.”
Shu Qingyou fell silent, then said coldly, “I know what tricks you’re playing. It’s me breaking up with you—what’s the point of meeting?”
Of course Shu Qingyou knew her well. Lin Xu laughed sadly. “Since it’s out in the open, aren’t you afraid I’ll find you? I have my ways.”
Shu Qingyou knew her escape wasn’t foolproof. After a moment, she sighed. “Lin Xu, do you really like me? Or just the feeling I give you?”
Lin Xu froze, asking woodenly, “Of course it’s you. What do you mean, ‘the feeling’?”
“Your control freak side is too strong. My personality is soft; I’m easy to manipulate. No matter what, I can’t escape your grasp. You don’t just like it—you enjoy it immensely.”
It pierced straight to the heart. Lin Xu broke into a cold sweat, the words striking her core and filling her with dread.
Her voice trembled as she spoke. “No, I don’t control you. Come back—or I’ll come to you. We’ll talk properly. I swear, I won’t do anything you don’t like.”
“But what you’re doing now, I hate it.”
“I admit I still have feelings for you now, but time will fade them. You need to reflect properly on our relationship from start to finish. Which time wasn’t you forcing it, taking by force?”
“You’ll get over the breakup eventually. You survived the four years before without me. No one in this world can’t live without someone else.”
Shu Qingyou’s words came like rapid fire. In this foreign land, her body was weary, but her heart was slowly filling with purpose. She had dreams to pursue now.
Time ticked by. Shu Qingyou waited quietly for Lin Xu’s reply, but only uneven breaths came.
She issued an ultimatum. “If you don’t speak, I’m hanging up. You can’t trace this number.”
“One last question: Did you ever love me? The truth—not kid-glove lies.”
Even now, Lin Xu fixated on this irrelevant fact. Shu Qingyou answered honestly. “At the beginning, yes. Later…”
“Okay, I get it.” Lin Xu cut her off, lacking the courage to hear the rest. Her voice was muffled. “Then we’re done.”
The phone beeped briefly. Shu Qingyou was a bit surprised—Lin Xu had accepted it so quickly and clearly.
Honestly, she’d worried Lin Xu might do something drastic. But it was over just like that, with a few words?
Unbelievable. Compared to that, she had a pile of things to handle next. First, sleep.
She’d started sleeping in now, thanks to Lin Xu’s influence…
Lin Xu stayed in her pose, dazed like a puppet, eyes vacant and lifeless. The phone lay abandoned beside her.
When Shu Wan Ning brought Shu Rong back, she saw this defeated scene.
She kicked Lin Xu’s calf. “Hey, if you’re gonna die, don’t do it in my dorm.”
Shu Rong hid behind Shu Wan Ning, her big eyes full of fear.
Why wasn’t she moving? Shu Wan Ning kicked a few more times.
Lin Xu finally reacted like a normal person. She slowly raised her downcast eyes, her dull gaze sliding past Shu Wan Ning.
It landed on Shu Rong’s face, so similar to Shu Qingyou’s. Her lips curved faintly as she beckoned numbly.
“Rongrong, come here. Come to Mommy.”
Shu Rong clutched the phone, fidgeting. As she lifted a foot, Shu Wan Ning blocked them.
“Lin Xu, that smile is creepy. What bad thing are you planning for Rongrong?”
Lin Xu’s dazed eyes refocused. Calmly, she stated, “She’s my daughter. I promised Shu Qingyou I’d take good care of her until she comes back for Rongrong.”
Shu Wan Ning wouldn’t budge. Something felt off, though she couldn’t pinpoint it.
Frowning, she demanded, “My sister didn’t upset you, did she?”
“No, we parted peacefully.” Lin Xu blinked, smiling. “You’re overthinking. I’ve been sick of your sister for ages. As if she’s one of a kind. Hilarious.”
Still such a scumbag. Shu Wan Ning leaned in, her fist the size of a bowl hovering before Lin Xu’s eyes. “If you slack off on Rongrong even a little, watch out for this blind fist of mine.”
Lin Xu turned away in disgust. “You’re a grown adult—still threatening with violence? She’s my daughter. If I don’t take care of her, who will? I swear, okay?”
Even with Lin Xu swearing on three fingers to the sky, Shu Wan Ning only half-relaxed, suspicion lingering.
Reluctantly, she stepped aside for Shu Rong. “Fine. Report Rongrong’s daily schedule to me. I’ll supervise.”
It was actually her sister’s request. No mother would truly abandon her child.
Shu Wan Ning crouched down, guilty. “Little auntie can’t buy you cake today. Sorry.”
“Next time Auntie visits, I’ll bring yummy and fun stuff.”
Shu Rong nodded. Lin Xu hugged her like a precious treasure, tilting her chin up lightly.
“Enough chatter. We’re leaving. Mommy and Rongrong are off for a fancy two-person lunch.”
Shu Wan Ning eyed her distrustfully. “You can even walk?”
“Scram. None of your business.”
With that, Lin Xu dragged her battered body out of the dorm. To Shu Wan Ning and the others, it looked comical—like a melodramatic tragedy.
A limping woman, hand in hand with a pitiful child, struggling along.
Some kindhearted university students wanted to help, but when Lin Xu climbed into a luxury car, they backed off, knowing they’d overstepped.
As soon as Lin Xu’s butt hit the seat cushion, she hissed in pain, a stabbing ache piercing her.
She looked at Rongrong in the passenger seat and stroked her soft cheek. Rongrong obediently nuzzled into her palm.
A wave of immense sorrow surged up. Lin Xu’s eyes reddened again. She opened her arms. “Rongrong, give Mommy a hug, okay?”
Shu Rong sensed Mommy’s sadness. Not knowing what happened, she submissively let herself be hugged—but it was so tight.
Tight enough she could barely breathe, but Shu Rong didn’t dare struggle, letting out a distressed whimper.
She was hungry, her tummy growling. Did Mommy hear?
Wanting to touch her belly to tell her, she wriggled. Then she felt her shoulder and face grow wet.
Puzzled, Shu Rong tilted her head up.
Silent, bean-sized teardrops rolled onto her cheek, down her chin. The wet spots felt awful.
She couldn’t stop it. Wiping with her hands didn’t help. Mommy’s tears seemed endless, falling nonstop.
Suddenly, Shu Rong felt at a loss.
Mommy, why cry?
