Finally, she grasped Shang Wu's hand, which began to fall limply to her side.

On the monitor, the heart rate appeared as a straight line.

Medical staff rushed in.

Shang Lingfei and Shang Yunshen rushed over in grief.

Shang Wu was pushed aside and unknowingly found himself outside the crowd.

She stood at the door, motionless for a long time, letting tears silently stream down her face.

Outside the window, the sky gradually brightened.

A new day dawned, but it couldn't illuminate the despair in her heart.

Between her and Lu Rang lies an insurmountable abyss.

The mother who created this abyss has passed away.

Shang Wu was distraught. She turned around and stumbled out.

The sky was overcast, tinged with a somber mood.

She calmly went outside and started calling the funeral home to contact someone to purchase a burial plot.

At this moment, Shang Wu was as rational as a machine that only follows orders.

The next day, Ruan Yuzhi was buried, and she silently discussed all the funeral arrangements with Yun Shen.

Throughout the entire process, Shang Wu remained unusually calm, without bursting into tears; her eyes, however, were even more subdued than when she arrived.

Shang Yun Shen looked at her, hesitated, and finally just patted her on the shoulder.

"Xiao Wu, from now on, your father and I will always be your family."

Shang Wu asked, "Is her heart problem that serious? With the experts Lu Rang sent, why is she still experiencing heart failure?"

Shang Yun sighed: "It's probably because she's in a bad mood. After leaving Lincheng, she doesn't know why, but she's been depressed all the time. Mental illness is hard to cure, and her depression has been building up for too long."

Shang Wu nodded without saying anything more.

All she wanted to do was escape.

Even recalling the past is unbearable for her.

Especially the various unpleasant things that happened between her and her mother.

Shang Wu didn't linger; she immediately returned to Ye City.

Outside the airplane window, the outline of the cemetery grew smaller and smaller until it was finally covered by clouds.

Shang Wu closed her eyes, feeling not relief, but an indescribable weariness.

evening.

She had just returned to her studio and hadn't even had time to brush off the dust of her journey when Aying approached her nervously, her tone uncertain.

"Mr. Shang, you're back. Did something happen?"

Shang Wu shook her head: "No, it's just that my mother passed away. What happened?"

Aying choked for a moment, not expecting that she could talk about this so casually.

Shang Wu quickly brushed it off: "How's the studio been these past few days?"

"It's all good, but there's something..." Ah Ying hesitated before continuing.

"What is it?" Shang Wu hung up her coat, her voice tinged with weariness.

"Just a couple of days ago, when you weren't here, I was on that street near our art exhibition..."

Ah Ying stammered, "It seems...it seems I saw Lu Lu."

Shang Wu abruptly stopped hanging up the clothes, her fingertips turning slightly white.

She shook her head slightly as if she had heard something absurd, and continued what she was doing, her tone calm and indifferent.

“You’re mistaken. How could he possibly be here?”

Yecheng is separated from Lincheng by the entire Wanhu Lake, and its world is completely different from Lu Rang's.

He hated her to the core and forced her to leave, so why would he condescend to appear near her small refuge?

Ah Ying must be seeing things.

"Maybe... so."

Seeing that Shang Wu didn't believe her, A Ying didn't dare to say anything more, but she couldn't completely dispel her doubts.

That fleeting glimpse of his figure that day was so strikingly similar to that man with such a powerful aura.

In order to start her life afresh and get back to work, Shang Wu mustered her spirits and went to check out the exhibition area of ​​her studio held on the street corner.

She was looking down at the design labels for the jewelry when a slightly surprised voice rang out beside her.

"Shang Wu? Is it really you?"

She looked up and met Chen Chunzhi's face, which held a slightly cynical smile.

He wasn't dressed too flashy today, in a simple casual suit, and he was holding a cup of coffee.

"Mr. Chen?"

Shang Wu was somewhat surprised, "What are you doing in Ye City?"

"I came here specifically to see you."

Chen Chunzhi smiled brightly, "I didn't expect to run into you here. You're quite something, running a studio and holding exhibitions for the past two months?"

He looked around at the design works, his tone full of admiration.

Shang Wu forced a smile: "Yeah, it's just something I did casually."

"Hey, don't be modest. By the way, there's a nice coffee shop across the street. Would you do me the honor of joining us?"

Chen Chunzhi extended a warm invitation.

Shang Wu could tell at a glance that he had come prepared, and that it was not a chance encounter.

Chen Chunzhi added, "I just got off the plane and came straight here, please give me face."

Shang Wu ultimately did not refuse.

The two walked side by side across the street into the cafe across the street.

Neither of them noticed that a discreet black Lexus had been parked for a long time not far from the street corner.

With the car window rolled down halfway, Lu Rang's gaze swept across the street, locking onto the window seat in the coffee shop.

He looked at Shang Wu and Chen Chunzhi sitting opposite each other.

Seeing that Chen Chunzhi said something that made Shang Wu turn her head slightly and reveal a very faint smile.

Lu Rang's knuckles turned white from gripping the steering wheel so tightly.

Why did he come here? Even he himself can't explain it.

Since she left, the inexplicable emptiness and anxiety have not subsided, but have instead intensified.

He used his methods to find out where she was.

Then, as if possessed, he abandoned his busy work at the docks and flew to this unfamiliar little town.

He told himself that he just wanted to see for himself how this heartless woman was doing.

But what he saw was her life, which seemed to have gradually calmed down.

There was even a man in a pink shirt with him.

How long has it been? They've already hooked up again!

Are they currently dating, or have they already become a couple?

A sudden, oppressive heat surged up, making it difficult for Lu Rang to breathe.

He narrowed his eyes, staring at the smiling woman behind the glass window. A few seconds later, he stepped on the gas and drove towards Shang Wu's studio.