Volume 1, Chapter 8: Hold on to her, don't let go!
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Seeing Lin Wanyin still lying in bed without getting up, Xie Yunjin’s eyes were full of affection and tenderness. “This child hasn’t gotten up yet.”
She then took the tray from the nanny’s hand. On the tray were a bowl of delicate nutritious congee, a cup of milk, and two small dishes.
“Give it to me; you can go downstairs.”
Nanny Wang replied, “Yes, madam.”
“Darling, mommy is coming in~”
“Oh my precious daughter, lying in bed all day—get up and eat something. If you’re hungry, mommy will be so worried.”
As she spoke, Xie Yunjin gently placed the tray on the bedside table and sat down beside the bed.
Seeing Lin Wanyin hiding her head under the blanket, Xie Yunjin worried she might suffocate, so she reached out to pull the blanket away.
“Sweetheart, don’t cover your head with the blanket. Look, mommy personally made your favorite breakfast. Come on, try it.”
On Xie Yunjin’s timeless face was a gentle, doting smile. Her soft voice flowed like water, melting the heart.
“Mom… sob…”
From under the blanket came Lin Wanyin’s muffled sobs.
At that moment, Xie Yunjin’s son, Xie Zhixing, walked in.
“Mom, what’s wrong with Yinyin? Why is she crying under the blanket?”
Xie Zhixing stood by the bed, one hand in his pocket.
“Mom doesn’t know either. What’s gotten into this child these past two days? She went out once, then came back and locked herself in her room crying. When asked, she won’t say a word. It’s really worrying,” said Xie Yunjin, full of concern.
Hearing his sister’s crying, Xie Zhixing felt heartbroken too. “Yinyin, tell your brother, did Xie Wan’ning provoke you again? If so, I’ll go and make her apologize to you right now.”
At the mention of “Xie Wan’ning,” Lin Wanyin trembled all over, then slowly uncovered herself from under the blanket.
Her eyes were red and swollen, bloodshot with fear and caution in her gaze, softening anyone’s heart and making them want to protect her.
“Oh, my little darling, look at your face all tear-streaked, like a little kitten. How can you show yourself like this?”
Xie Yunjin teased her daughter with a smile, hoping to cheer her up, but unexpectedly, Lin Wanyin suddenly burst into tears and looked at her cautiously, as if afraid to lose something.
“Mom… Brother…”
Lin Wanyin trembled uncontrollably, her eyes full of terror.
“…Lu Yanci, he’s awake.”
“What did you say? Lu Yanci is awake?” Gu Yeting’s face was full of shock. “Isn’t it rumored outside that he has some strange illness and looks like a dead man?”
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“Brother, I’m scared…”
Lin Wanyin’s long lashes fluttered, huge tears like broken pearls streaming down her face.
“What if he finds out we forced Xie Wan’ning to marry Fu Lingzhou? What will happen then? If he throws me onto that dark ship again, that’s one thing, but what if he harms you and Mom and Dad again? What should I do?”
“Lu Yanci wouldn’t dare!”
Xie Zhixing clenched his teeth, eyes filled with hatred. “Xie Wan’ning marrying Fu Lingzhou was her own choice out of self-deprecation and low self-worth. When have we ever forced her?”
“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, my precious daughter. It was all mommy’s fault before for not protecting you well enough.”
Xie Yunjin held Lin Wanyin close, eyes full of pain. “Don’t worry, this time, even if it comes to the brink of destruction, I absolutely won’t let Lu Yanci harm you in the slightest!”
Xie Zhixing immediately agreed, “Exactly. With brother and mom here, would Lu Yanci dare to bring a knife into our Xie family for Xie Wan’ning? The Lu family is no longer what it used to be. If he dares to act like five years ago, at worst, as mom said, we’ll fight to the death with the Lu family!”
Hearing Xie Yunjin and Gu Yeting’s words, Lin Wanyin felt a bit reassured.
Perhaps, just as Fu Lingzhou said, she had misjudged the situation?
But since she hadn’t seen Xie Wan’ning’s body and wasn’t sure if she was really dead, she couldn’t help but feel uneasy.
She never expected that day would allow her to slip away—it was such a careless mistake!
“Mom, brother, you really love me the most.”
Lin Wanyin coquettishly nestled into Xie Yunjin’s arms, sobbing softly. “When I first came to the Xie family, seeing how mom, brother, and dad treated my sister so well, I really thought you were a true family. Back then, I felt so redundant. I even thought maybe I should return to the countryside. Being abused there would be better than watching my own family not love me here, sob…”
Her body shook with sobs, truly heart-wrenching to witness.
“Oh, my little darling, don’t cry, don’t cry. Your crying hurts mommy’s heart too.”
Xie Yunjin’s eyes moistened as she softly stroked Lin Wanyin’s back, blaming herself, “It’s all mommy’s fault for not realizing you had been taken away. I raised her for eighteen years—she’s ungrateful enough, but now she dares to bully you? I definitely won’t let her get away with it.”
Hearing this, Lin Wanyin felt comforted but said, “But I still feel like I shouldn’t have come back. Since I returned, sister’s relationship with you all has only gotten worse. It even caused Lu Yanci to suppress our Xie family multiple times for her sake, and even got dad and brother beaten in court by him. Sob… thinking about it, I can’t help but blame myself.”
“Yinyin, why blame yourself? All this is Xie Wan’ning’s fault—the heartless, ungrateful wretch. After treating her like a true sister for over ten years, she joined forces with outsiders to oppress her own family. If we had known, we should have sent her to that mountain valley five years ago to let her taste abuse for herself!”
Speaking of the violent incident in court five years ago when Lu Yanci attacked him and his father, Gu Yeting was furious.
Seeing Xie Yunjin and Gu Yeting’s reactions, Lin Wanyin finally felt at ease.
It seemed that over the past five years, they had been utterly disappointed in Xie Wan’ning. In that case, Xie Wan’ning had no place left in the Xie family.
“Mom, brother, when will you let Xie Wan’ning and I change our identities? Even now, outsiders still call me Lin Wanyin, but mom, my surname is Xie!”
Lin Wanyin pretended to be angry, pushing away from Xie Yunjin, pouting and not looking at them.
“It’s all mommy’s fault for dragging it out this long. Tomorrow, I’ll have your brother bring her, and then we’ll go change your identities.”
Seeing her daughter unhappy again, Xie Yunjin quickly comforted her.
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…
Lu Family Villa
“Master!”
Lu Yanci woke abruptly from another nightmare.
This time, he witnessed his master being beaten to death by those men.
He tried desperately to stop it, but was too late.
The dream was so vivid that Lu Yanci still felt his heart throb painfully.
Each time he had this dream, he only hated his own helplessness more!
This feeling gradually blurred the line between reality and dream.
Lu Yanci began to doubt whether he was really himself.
After thinking for a long time, he still couldn’t recall anything beyond the dream.
Irritated, he got up, only to find his left hand tightly held by something.
Looking closely, he realized someone was lying beside him, clutching his right hand just as tightly.
That person was Xie Wan’ning.
Looking at their intertwined fingers, Lu Yanci frowned with disgust.
Did this woman really think this would make him change his mind?
Don’t forget—she’s already someone else’s wife!
“Brother, you’re finally awake… Ouch!”
Just as Lu Yanci tried to pull his left hand away, he heard Lu Shixin’s voice at the door.
Looking up, he saw her entering but suddenly losing her balance and falling, grimacing in pain on the floor.
“Xinxin, are you okay?”
Seeing Lu Shixin sprawled awkwardly on the ground, Lu Yanci hurriedly stood to help her, but she stubbornly stretched out a hand and refused, “Brother, don’t worry about me. I can get up myself! Xie Wan’ning said you have to hold her hand tight and never let go!”
Lu Yanci: “…”
He looked at the struggling Lu Shixin with a mix of helplessness and tenderness. “You’re still as reckless as when you were little. How’s that fall? Did you hurt yourself?”