Lin Zhaojiang gently hugged her.
He didn't know how to comfort her, so he could only do his best to stop her from trembling so much.
A chill ran down Song Wan's spine, and she was heartbroken. "My mother really wanted to hurt me? Why would she do this..."
“Perhaps deep down she never considered you her own daughter,” Lin Zhaojiang said in a low voice. “You should never have had any illusions about her.”
"My siblings and I are all her children, why did she..."
“What if it isn’t?” Lin Zhaojiang blurted out.
Song Wan froze, her mind going completely blank.
What do you mean by that?
Lin Zhaojiang took a deep breath and said softly after a long while, "I don't mean anything by it, I just hope you won't get too entangled in this kind of rotten person and mess. From the moment she sent you to my bed for money many years ago, you should have known that she didn't deserve to be your mother!"
Song Wan lowered her eyes, her heart as cold as the moonlight.
“I think she’ll come looking for you again.” Lin Zhaojiang looked at her. “Putting aside whether she did it on purpose or not, her sudden change in attitude is very suspicious.”
"Wanwan, how about... you move in with me?"
Song Wan was slightly taken aback and looked up at him.
Lin Zhaojiang chuckled, his eyes full of doting affection. "I admit I have selfish motives; I want to be with you all the time... but this suggestion is also for your safety. Before she achieves her goal, Chen Li will continue to harass you, and having you live with me, with me protecting you, is the best solution."
*
Song Wan and Lin Zhaojiang arrived at the Lin family manor.
Everyone in the Lin family knew that she was the apple of Lin Zhaojiang's eye, so everyone treated her with utmost respect. Although this was Song Wan's second visit, compared to the rush of her first visit, this time she was able to leisurely and properly explore his residence.
Lin Zhaojiang arranged her room in the best location in the entire manor, not far from his own room.
Everything in the room was arranged according to her preferences. Next door was a spacious and bright study, where he brought all the books she needed, many of which were rare, out-of-print books that were hard to find on the market.
He put thought into everything he gave her, even a pen holder or a pair of slippers, making sure she received the best.
Song Wan chuckled and looked at him gratefully. He was more excited than anyone else about her arrival. Even the housekeeper and servants were gossiping that Lin Zhaojiang, who was usually cold and aloof, had become a completely different person these past few days, talking and laughing and having a very good temper.
When he had nothing to do, he would hold Song Wan's hand and stroll around the garden, showing her every room and corner. When she couldn't walk anymore, he would carry her back on his back.
"You stay with me every day, don't you have to go to the company?" Song Wan sat on the swing in the yard, Pang Hu played ball next to her, and Lin Zhaojiang was doing woodworking.
Yesterday, Song Wan just casually mentioned that it would be nice to have a wooden bookend on the table.
So today, Lin Zhaojiang was busy all morning, drawing blueprints and selecting timber. In the end, he personally put all his talents into these few small pieces of wood.
He smiled at Song Wan. There was never enough time to finish work at the company; spending time with his wife was more important.
“By the way,” Song Wan asked, “I saw a small building next door the other day. It looked very exquisite, with a particularly beautiful architectural style, but it seemed like no one lived there. What’s that for?”
Lin Zhaojiang paused for a moment, then laughed, "You mean Jingyuan, right?"
"Jingyuan?"
"Come on." He put down what he was holding. "I'll show you!"
Song Wan followed him to the front of the small building.
It was a small white villa, and although no one lived there, it was clean and tidy inside and out. Servants came and went to clean every day, and they would smile and nod to Lin Zhaojiang and Song Wan when they saw them.
“This is where my aunt used to live,” Lin Zhaojiang explained softly.
He opened the door, revealing a long, bright hallway connecting to the spacious living room. Photos hung on either side of the hallway; the woman in one of the photos, elegantly dressed and with an air of refinement, must be Lin Zhaojiang's aunt.
However, Song Wan found it somewhat familiar.
“She is…” She frowned, thought carefully, and then suddenly a thought flashed through her mind. “Professor Zhu?!”
Lin Zhaojiang smiled gently and placed his large hand on her shoulder.
"Yes, Zhu Jingwei is my aunt."
Song Wan was very surprised, "Why didn't you tell me sooner that you had such a powerful aunt!"
"Impressive?" Lin Zhaojiang raised an eyebrow and smiled. His mother's family was full of impressive people, active in both political and business circles.
Zhu Jingwei isn't particularly outstanding; she's only at a mid-level.
“My father was a son-in-law who married into the family.” Lin Zhaojiang rarely mentioned his background. “You know that Lin Yuqing and I are half-siblings. My father abandoned them and my mother back then, and that’s how the Lin family came to be today. Apart from this surname, which is my father’s, everything else I have is from my mother’s family.”
He took out a photo album from a vintage five-drawer chest. The album was thick and spotless, recording the glories of several generations of the Zhu family.
As Song Wan flipped through the documents one by one, she discovered that among the elders of the Zhu family, there were even people who had shaken hands with international political figures.
“That’s all in the past,” Lin Zhaojiang smiled. “The Zhu family today is not what it used to be, but it can still be considered a prominent family in Yun City.”
"Turn to the back, my mom and aunt's photos are at the back."
Following his advice, Song Wan flipped through the pages and was amazed by the beauty of Lin's mother in her youth.
My aunt is also very beautiful; compared to Lin Zhaojiang's mother, she has a more scholarly air about her.
"How did you know about my aunt?" Lin Zhaojiang asked her with a smile. "She has been retired for so many years."
"Even if she has retired, she was once a renowned professor at the Yun City Drama Academy, a famous drama scholar! She has been mentioned in many books on drama, and I also know that many A-list stars were her students."
Do you like the script she wrote?
“Yes!” Song Wan nodded. “I only read the works of two playwrights: Professor Zhu and Duan Jinrong…”
At this point, Song Wan gave a self-deprecating smile.
It turns out that a writer's writing style and character are sometimes not consistent at all.
“Zhao Jiang,” Song Wan’s eyes lit up, “And this is…”
She flipped to a photo of Zhu Jingwei by a lake, next to a woman with delicate features, wearing a plaid top, a white long skirt, and a khaki shawl, looking serene, gentle, and charming.
Below the photo is a line of text: Meeting with Xu Yanqing at Yunhu.
“Xu Yanqing?” Song Wan looked at him. “Who is this? Is he also your family member?”
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
