Chapter 69 Encountering Trouble on the Mountain Road Lin Yuwei almost instinctively rallied...
Since that unpleasant dinner, Zhou Xubai clearly felt that an invisible barrier had quietly been built between him and Lin Yuwei, and it was becoming stronger day by day.
During the day in the studio, she remained professional and composed, even able to chat and laugh spontaneously while discussing plans. However, the intimacy and warmth unique to lovers had vanished. She no longer turned her head slightly and smiled when he approached, no longer met his gaze, and even deliberately avoided his eyes. This conscious and deliberate distancing terrified Zhou Xubai more than any heated argument.
He asked her out for dinner after work several times, or to see a new art exhibition on the weekend, but she always declined with various excuses. Finally, as she packed her things to leave, he couldn't help but grab her wrist: "Weiwei, are you still angry with me? I promise I'll never be jealous again, I'll trust you completely..."
Lin Yuwei stopped what she was doing, looked up at him, her gaze as calm as a deep pool: "Xu Bai, I need some time to calm down and think carefully about our relationship. If you feel this is unfair..." She paused, her voice soft but firm: "We can dissolve the engagement first. I can accept any compensation you need."
Zhou Xubai's face suddenly turned pale. He shook his head, his voice trembling almost imperceptibly: "You can have as much peace and quiet as you want, but don't mention breaking off the engagement again. I can wait, I really can wait."
That afternoon, it was time for Lin Yuwei to visit Lin Yulan again. Lin Yulan's health had greatly improved, and she had been transferred from Anderson's private hospital to a rehabilitation center on the outskirts of Mingchuan City. The place was picturesque and the environment was pleasant, making it more suitable for rehabilitation and recuperation. However, because it was far from the city center, and because Lin Yulan's condition was stable, Lin Yuwei's visits changed from every other day to once every two weeks.
Upon arriving at the rehabilitation center, Lin Yuwei saw her mother sitting under the garden veranda eating fruit. She washed her hands, went over, took the apple from the caregiver, and carefully cut it into small pieces.
"Weiwei, how's work going lately?" Lin Yulan asked with a relieved smile.
"Everything's fine, Mom, don't worry." Lin Yuwei handed over the cut fruit, a faint smile playing on her lips. Since Lin Yulan came to Mingchuan for treatment, the relationship between mother and daughter had improved considerably. This brief moment of warmth was a tranquility she had rarely experienced in many years.
Lin Yulan took the fruit platter but didn't eat it. She asked naturally, "Where's Xu Bai? Why didn't he come with you today? I haven't seen him in a long time."
Lin Yuwei paused almost imperceptibly in her hand movements: "He's been working on a big project lately, so he'll probably be quite busy for a while. He'll come to see you once he's done."
However, that subtle pause did not escape Lin Yulan's sharp eyes. Her tone unconsciously became urgent: "Did you two have a fight? Was it because of Gu Qingyan? He helped me when I fainted before, which upset Xu Bai, right? Weiwei, I've told you before, you're engaged, you need to keep your distance from Gu Qingyan..."
"Mom...nothing like that, don't overthink it." Lin Yuwei tried to argue, but Lin Yulan wouldn't listen.
She became increasingly agitated as she spoke, her voice filled with anxious disappointment: "Even if Gu Qingyan succeeds now, his ingrained nature won't change. He climbed up from the bottom, his mind is too deep, you simply can't control him. Why not take the proper asphalt road instead of the mountain path?"
Hearing her mother begin to speak ill of Gu Qingyan again, Lin Yuwei felt a surge of irritation. She gently put down the fruit knife; the tenderness between mother and daughter just moments before now seemed so fragile and vulnerable.
Lin Yulan, however, was completely oblivious, or rather, she had long been accustomed to ignoring her daughter's emotions. Her tone grew increasingly firm, carrying an unyielding command: "The Zhou family is the proper family, Xu Bai is gentle in nature, and has a clean family background. This is the path you should choose! I've been through this before, and I won't harm you."
After saying that, she reached out to hold Lin Yuwei's hand: "My health is deteriorating day by day. My biggest wish is to see you find a good home before I go. If you and Xu Bai can get married, and even give your mother a grandson, then I will be truly at ease. Weiwei, can't you listen to your mother just this once?"
Last time, Lin Yuwei's engagement was largely due to her mother's vulnerability and pleas, which led her astray. She had been troubled by her impulsive engagement lately, but had no one to confide in. Her mother's words were like a bucket of cold water, completely extinguishing the last vestige of freedom in her heart. Lin Yuwei gently withdrew her hand, stood up, the gentleness on her face gone, replaced by a calm detachment.
“Mom,” her voice was soft, but with an unwavering firmness, “you should rest well. I’m all grown up now, I know how to handle things. It’s going to get windy this evening, I’ll have the caregiver take you back to your room.”
Lin Yulan was seriously ill. She didn't want to argue with her, but she couldn't stay any longer. She needed to get some fresh air. After saying this, she got up and quickly left. Lin Yulan tried to call her back, but Lin Yuwei ignored her.
Walking briskly out of the garden, Lin Yuwei leaned against the wall, breathing heavily, trying to calm her turbulent emotions. After calming down a bit, she turned around and met Aunt Wu, who was responsible for taking care of her mother. There were caregivers at the rehabilitation center, but Lin Yuwei was worried that they wouldn't be attentive enough or know Lin Yulan's preferences, so she brought Aunt Wu, who had been taking care of her mother at home, over to the center as well, giving her a raise so that she could work at the rehabilitation center to care for Lin Yulan alongside the caregivers.
When Aunt Wu saw her, she immediately smiled warmly: "Miss Lin, are you here to see your wife today? You are so filial. Mr. Zhou also came to see your wife yesterday."
"Mr. Zhou came yesterday?" Lin Yuwei's heart sank. Didn't her mother say she hadn't seen Zhou Xubai in a long time? He came yesterday?
Aunt Wu's eyes were full of admiration: "Yes, Mr. Zhou even talked with his wife for quite a while. It's rare to see such filial young people these days."
However, a surge of anger welled up in Lin Yuwei's heart. All the clues connected at this moment—her mother's sudden intervention, the belittling of Gu Qingyan, the unwavering protection of Zhou Xubai… It turned out that this was not her mother's "spur-of-the-moment" concern, but a carefully orchestrated "reconciliation" by Zhou Xubai. He knew that their mother-daughter relationship was complicated, yet he still chose to use his mother and her illness to put pressure on her.
And the mother repeatedly used her guilt towards her to force herself to compromise on the marriage...
One was her mother, and the other was her fiancé, the two people closest to her, who joined forces to put pressure on her without her knowledge... A suffocating feeling of being schemed against and hunted instantly surged into her heart, making her feel even more disgusted than her mother's direct control.
Lin Yuwei suppressed the turmoil in her heart and forced a smile at Aunt Wu: "Aunt Wu, something urgent has come up at my company, so I have to go now. Could you please take my mother back to her room and tell her what happened?" With that, she turned and left almost hastily, her steps quick and hurried, as if trying to escape this suffocating place. The setting sun cast a long, long shadow of her resolute back.
Lin Yuwei left the rehabilitation center without looking back.
She got into the driver's seat, started the car, and drove onto the winding mountain road as dusk settled in, heading towards the city. The last rays of sunset were fading, and the outlines of the distant mountains were gradually blurring in the indigo night.
The pressure from her mother and Zhou Xubai's private visit shrouded her thoughts like a thick fog drifting in the evening breeze. Lin Yuwei frowned slightly, her fingertips tapping lightly on the steering wheel. Should she confront Zhou Xubai? If she did, where should she begin? If she didn't, how long could this tacit estrangement last?
Just as Lin Yuwei was feeling uneasy, the car suddenly stopped, the engine made a weak sigh, and it completely stalled. Fortunately, the night was dark in the mountains and the visibility was low. She was driving cautiously, so when the car was in trouble, she immediately steadied the steering wheel and slid the car to the side of the road.
Lin Yuwei tried to start the car again, but all she got in response was a futile whine; the car had completely broken down.
She looked around, her heart sinking. There was no village or shop in sight, only a few dim road lights in the distance outlining the desolate landscape.
Lin Yuwei called for roadside assistance. The customer service representative politely but coldly informed her that it was rush hour and traffic was congested on the outbound routes. In addition, her location was remote, and no driver was willing to take the order at the moment. The platform was still trying to coordinate, and it was estimated that it would take at least two or three hours for a tow truck to arrive at the scene.
Two or three hours is such a long time… She sighed, slumped over the steering wheel, and closed her eyes to rest. As if things weren't going to go wrong, the phone rang urgently. Lin Yuwei picked up her phone and saw it was UI designer Chen Lu calling. She answered, and the other end sounded very anxious: “Sister Yuwei, the client is pressing us urgently. The expedited design they sent you this afternoon needs your final signature. They need it finalized tonight.”
"Okay, wait a minute." Lin Yuwei turned around, went to the back row, picked up the laptop, and pressed the power button, but the screen was completely black. Great, the laptop was out of power too.
After a moment's thought, Lin Yuwei said, "Chen Lu, I'm near Yuhuai Village. My car broke down and my computer is out of power. Could you talk to the client again and ask for a little more time?"
Chen Lu explained with difficulty, "I'm afraid that won't work. They've already given us the latest deadline. They said the end customer requires the drawings to be ready today, otherwise we might not be able to secure this project."
“Okay,” Lin Yuwei rubbed her temples, “Then I’ll trouble you to take screenshots of the drawings in sections and send them to my phone one by one. I’ll review them on my phone.”
The next hour was one of almost torturous focus. Lin Yuwei curled up in the dark, cold driver's seat, turned her phone screen brightness to the lowest setting, and kept zooming in and swiping through the blurry screenshots, trying to make out every detail, typing out her revisions with her frozen, stiff fingers.
When she finally sent her final opinion back to Chen Lu, she felt her eyes were sore and her phone's battery icon turned a glaring red, issuing a low battery warning.
Lin Yuwei used the last of her phone's battery to contact the roadside assistance platform, but received the same official reply: "The driver is on his way, please wait patiently." She dared not waste any more battery, so she switched her phone to the highest energy-saving mode and turned off the last light source in the car.
Darkness and silence instantly enveloped her completely. Outside the car was a desolate wilderness where you couldn't see your hand in front of your face. The chirping of unknown insects and the occasional rustling sounds that seemed to come from wild animals made the air feel eerie.
Lin Yuwei was cold and hungry, her fingers were icy cold. She sat there for more than an hour without seeing a single car pass by. A deep sense of isolation and helplessness, like the night, weighed heavily on her heart.
After an unknown amount of time, a warm beam of light suddenly appeared at the bend in the road ahead, tearing through the darkness before her eyes.
Lin Yuwei almost instinctively rallied, pushed open the car door, and waved vigorously at the approaching lights, intending to ask passersby for help. Fortunately, the car slowed down and eventually stopped safely in front of her car.
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Author's Note: Guess who's here? [Newbie Dog]
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