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Lin Tingfeng didn't make things difficult for her. During their few days in Hangzhou, he acted as if nothing had happened, spending every day with her. If she was reading in the study, he would read the newspaper beside her, quietly, without speaking, which was quite beautiful. Sometimes, Ye Wenyu would steal glances at him through the book. He knew she was watching him, but he still pretended nothing was wrong, only a slight smile appearing at the corner of his mouth or a hint of amusement in his eyes, hidden by the newspaper. However, Ye Wenyu couldn't see it. He used the newspaper to completely cover his face like an umbrella, observing her from the top of the newspaper, seeing her small face growing increasingly red, like a newly opened rose.

If she was watching the gardener pruning the flowers and plants in the garden, he would stand aside and chat with the gardener for a few words. Sometimes, when she was in the mood to plant flowers herself, he would stand aside, his tall figure bending down to hand her a flower shovel. Because he was so tall, he acted like a child playing in the mud, exuding a strange tenderness.

If she was watching TV on the sofa in the living room, he would sit beside her and make a few phone calls to the company. She would be engrossed in watching Korean, Japanese, and American dramas, while he would remotely direct company affairs using a mobile phone, displaying his workaholic nature. Sometimes, when the dramas were too boring, Ye Wenyu couldn't help but turn her gaze to him again. The way a man was so focused on his work was simply too captivating. Sometimes, when he turned around and unintentionally caught a glimpse of her, she would immediately and hurriedly turn her face away, but her face would inexplicably flush red.

Sometimes she would do nothing but sit in the garden pavilion, looking at the flowers and plants, lost in thought. He would come over and try to talk to her, but if she seemed unwilling to talk much, he would tactfully remain silent and leave gracefully, looking at his phone, or reading a book or making a phone call.

He seemed a little nervous and hesitant about something, and his mind was in turmoil. He believed that the more he said, the more mistakes he would make, and the better to say nothing, so he didn't want to talk to Ye Wenyu much.

Living in a large villa in Hangzhou, with servants attending to her every need, Ye Wenyu felt like she was living the life of a wealthy young lady. She had never experienced such a luxurious life before, and everything seemed like a dream.

During this time, her mother called to ask if she was feeling better. Ye Wenyu was in her study reading Marguerite Duras's *The Lover* when she received the call. The book described how "my mother struggled daily with despair and hopelessness. In a photograph of me at age four, she already showed the weariness of life. She was stern, harsh, and wore a dress with large sacks. Despite the utter despair, the yearning for happiness remained so strong." Ye Wenyu thought to herself, how much this resembled her own mother.

She thought of her mother, who had been ill for over a month. She hadn't contacted her in a long time and wondered how she was doing. Ye Wenyu considered calling her mother when Zhang Susu called. Ye Wenyu picked up her phone, glanced at Lin Tingfeng sitting silently reading the newspaper, and walked to the French windows in the study. She answered the call. Her mother asked if she was feeling better, and she told her the good news and that she was back at school. In reality, she had missed over a month of schoolwork and would continue to miss it.

Lin Tingfeng glanced at her, said nothing, and continued reading. Next, her mother began to recount her arduous yet happy life after marrying Ye Wenyu's stepfather. The main point was that although she didn't have much money and faced financial pressure, her stepfather and his two children treated her very well, and she wasn't unhappy. Her only worry was her daughter, but she felt powerless to do anything about it and could only call to check on her.

Hearing the rest, Ye Wenyu felt a pang of sadness and didn't want to continue the conversation. Her mother's calls reminded her time and again that she had nowhere to turn. Life remained the same as before. It wasn't that living in this luxurious villa with Lin Tingfeng would change her life. One can never truly escape their family of origin; she had no other choice.

Her mother's phone call pulled her back from a beautiful dream to reality. If she went back to school, she would still be that poor student, struggling to make a living. She would fall ill again from working multiple jobs. This time she was lucky that Lin Tingfeng rescued her from the storm. But what about next time? Would she be so lucky?

She thought of her poor mother, who had worked hard for most of her life, the two of them relying on each other to raise her with great difficulty. In order to support her education, she lived frugally and never had a day of happiness or comfort. Finally, when she was admitted to university, she was finally free, sold the house, remarried, and went to pursue her own happy life.

But after being remarried for more than half a year, is she happy?

Through several phone conversations between mother and son, Ye Wenyu learned that her mother's happiness was hard-won, and that she was exhausted every day for the sake of her new home and her two children with whom she had no blood relation.

The two children are currently in middle school and high school, both boys. They'll go to university, find jobs, buy a house, start a family, and have more children. The mother's life will be an endless toil. It's almost impossible for her to be able to properly care for her new family and have the energy to take care of herself. It's better to rely on herself than on her mother, who is struggling to make ends meet.

She was a relatively lucky poor girl. She had a wonderful encounter and met Lin Tingfeng, who took a liking to her. Although she was afraid of him, it was an undeniable fact that she liked him.

Ye Wenyu's thoughts were in turmoil. Hearing her mother still rambling on the other end of the phone about how she was scrimping and saving to pay off her monthly mortgage, Ye Wenyu interrupted her and said, "Mom, I'm fine. I have to go to class now. Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself."

Her mother breathed a sigh of relief and immediately hung up the phone.

Ye Wenyu picked up the phone and hesitated for a while before slowly turning around and sitting back down on the sofa in the study. She picked up a book, but the words on the book seemed to come alive, dancing in front of her eyes, and she couldn't concentrate on reading.

How can she make her life better? If she doesn't make changes, she'll just be repeating the same cycle as her mother.

However, not wanting Lin Tingfeng to discover her secret, she kept holding the book.

How much did Lin Tingfeng know about her? She loved this person, yet, because so much had happened, she was also somewhat afraid.

The reason she was afraid was that she couldn't see through him. Ye Wenyu secretly watched Lin Tingfeng through the cover of her book. She thought to herself, if he really did build a villa for her as he said a few days ago, and if he liked and loved her, then why had he been so unpredictable over the past six months? If someone could control their emotions so well and hide them so deeply, then she was definitely no match for him. So she was afraid of him.