Chapter 574 Grudges and Enmities Time returns to the present.
Luo Liang sat on the sofa, her fingers gently stroking the cool porcelain cup, trying to make her tone sound calm and even, as if she were telling someone else's story: "...This is the story of your mother, my sister Luo Ya. She was stubborn and refused to give up, saying she wanted to keep the child in her womb."
Luo Shuhe sat on the single sofa opposite her, her hands tightly gripping the hem of her skirt, her fingertips turning white.
She listened blankly to these memories that had been buried for more than a decade, her pupils slightly contracting. The vague sounds of arguments from her childhood and Luo Liang's sighs in the dead of night now had clear outlines.
“By blood, you should call me Auntie.” Luo Liang took a sip of chrysanthemum tea, the bitter taste spreading on her tongue, her voice revealing an undisguised weariness: “When Mom and Xiaoya passed away one after another, I collapsed instantly. I always felt that these children had taken Xiaoya’s life, and I unknowingly transferred that resentment onto you three sisters. Later, I met Gu Feng. He clearly had no blood relation to Gu Luo and Xiaoman, yet he treated the children like his own. Only then did I slowly realize how absurd I had been.”
A brief silence fell over the living room, broken only by the ticking of the wall clock.
Luo Shuhe opened her mouth, but her throat felt blocked by something. After a long while, she slowly spoke, her voice slightly hoarse: "So, the reason you were so strict with us in the past, and even deliberately distanced yourself from us, was because of this?"
The grievances that were ignored and the sadness that was misunderstood have all turned into complex emotions that are stuck in my chest.
"Yes." Luo Liang nodded gently, her eyes reddening. "During that time, Tian Lei and I argued with Xiao Ya countless times to persuade her to give up the child and accept treatment, and each time it ended badly. She has a strong personality, and in the end she even held a fruit knife to her wrist and said that if we pressured her any further, she would take the child with her and leave."
Luo Shuhe fell completely silent, her lips pressed tightly together into a straight line.
She finally understood what kind of pain and struggle was hidden behind Luo Liang's seemingly indifferent demeanor.
She didn't know how to process this information. Should she resent Luo Liang's coldness back then, or should she feel sorry for the hardship she endured carrying everything alone?
Is there a right or wrong in this matter?
"I originally planned to tell you about this after you came of age, but I didn't expect you to ask first." Luo Liang smiled bitterly, feeling both saddened by the revelation of the past and relieved of the burden that had been lifted.
She stood up, walked to Luo Shuhe, and said tentatively, her voice tinged with a hint of caution, "I know I made many mistakes back then, I didn't give you a warm childhood, and I even left you with trauma. I don't deserve to be a mother... From now on, just call me Xiao..."
She just hadn't called her "Auntie" yet.
“Mom,” Luo Shuhe suddenly spoke, interrupting her.
Luo Liang froze, her feet planted on the spot, staring blankly at Luo Shuhe.
She had imagined countless times what would happen after she confessed—the children's accusations, alienation, and even resentment—but she never expected it to be such a light and casual "Mom."
The guilt and self-reproach of those years surged into my heart instantly, my lips trembled, but I couldn't utter a single word.
Luo Shuhe raised her head, her gaze firm: "No matter what happened in the past, you are still the mother who raised us."
She paused, then lowered her voice: "Mom, can I see the suicide note left by Aunt Ya?"
Having learned the whole story, she was filled with curiosity about her biological mother, whom she had never met, and wanted to see the traces she had left behind.
Luo Liang nodded slightly, turned around and walked quickly toward the bedroom, her steps a little unsteady.
She took a delicate wooden box from the bedside table drawer, inside which was a carefully preserved envelope, clean and without a single crease.
She came out holding the envelope and gently placed it in front of Luo Shuhe.
Luo Shuhe opened the envelope with trembling hands. On the letter were lines of delicate yet slightly messy handwriting, some parts blurred by tears—[I'm sorry, Leilei, sister. This is my last request. Don't let the child be without parents. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry...]
The words "I'm sorry" were repeated over and over at the end of the letter, densely packed, like needles piercing Luo Shuhe's heart.
She lowered her head, looking at the letter again and again, tears falling silently onto the paper, overlapping with the tear stains from years ago.
After a long while, she raised her head and looked at Luo Liang: "Mom, you've wasted your whole life for us. You deserve to have a family of your own."
She knew that Luo Liang had silently endured too much in order to keep this request and to give them a "complete family," even going so far as to enter into a fake marriage with Luo Tianlei.
Although she failed to fulfill her responsibilities, she did right by her sister.
Upon hearing this, Luo Liang turned to look at the night outside the window, a gentle smile appearing on her face.
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