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n“I know.” Xia Ruoxin smiled. Tears slowly crept up the corners of her eyes. However, it wasn’t as serious as before. Perhaps now, she had more blessings for them than before. Actually, she knew about the wedding a long time ago. It was just that she heard about it again from Gao Xin.

nSeemingly, she felt hurt again; and with every beat, her heart ached.

nShe actually liked that man. She knew that she did.

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nPerhaps she had yet to love him, but she was just one step away from it, really just one small step away from loving him.

nGao Xin wiped his face. “My mom got back together with Bai Zhenfeng again, and my Big Brother is getting married as well. But I realized that, that house… I can’t stay there any longer.”

nAs he spoke, his eyes reddened, just like a beast who eagerly wanted to get out of its cage.

nXia Ruoxin placed another bowl of noodles in front of him. Immediately, the beast picked up the bowl and devoured the food, not caring about how he looked.

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n“Gao Xin, what thoughts do you have?”

nXia Ruoxin sat down as she asked Gao Xin.

nGao Xin lifted his head as if he was hating something. “Actually, we didn’t have a good life in that house. Bai Luoyin never treated Mom as an elder; she had never respected her. Sister Ruoxin, do you understand what it means to be living under someone else’s roof?”

n“Yes, I understand.” Xia Ruoxin smiled, a slight bitterness flashing across her smile. She grew up under another person’s roof. She had already tasted what that felt like for twenty years. How could she not know?

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nIt was just that certain things couldn’t be understood that way.

n“I know that you have always wanted to leave the house with your mother, but have you ever asked her if she really wanted to leave? She knows that the Bai family isn’t good as well; she also knows how Bai Luoyin treats her. She isn’t a piece of wood: she has feelings and perceptions. She knows how to think for herself. Gao Yi already long possessed the ability to let all of you leave the Bai household, but why didn’t he leave? Why are all of you still staying in the Bai household?”

nGao Xin’s body froze. He lowered his head and ate the noodles mouth by mouth.

n“Your opinion doesn’t represent other people’s opinions.” Xia Ruoxin continued. “There’s an old saying, ‘one who is not a fish cannot know the joy of a fish.’ In your perspective, your mother may seem to be mistreated and suffering in the Bai family, but in her perspective? Perhaps, being able to stay by another person’s side, that’s the happiness she’s looking for. This fact, your brother Gao Yi sees it clearer than you and understands it as well.”

nGao Xin’s shoulders mildly trembled. He didn’t know what to think anymore. He picked up another strand of noodle and stuffed it into his mouth. Yet, all that he tasted was a salty flavor.

n“Sister Ruoxin, did you put more salt?” Why was the noodle so salty? His voice sounded extremely nasal.

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n“Eat it even if it’s salty.”

nXia Ruoxin picked up her easel, took out a new piece of canvas paper, and continued painting

nActually, her noodles weren’t salty. The salty one was his heart and his tears.

n‘A man sheds no tears.’ No, it’s just that they haven’t gone through sad times.

nNot long after, Gao Xin finished another bowl of noodles. He even finished drinking all the soup. Perhaps because he had overeaten or perhaps because he was full, his mind felt calmer than before. He also recovered his sense of reason. It was only then that he realized how childish he was.

nAll those regrets and apologies seemingly cut his throat, leaving behind a burning sense of pain.

n“Sister Ruoxin, thank you.” He wholeheartedly thanked her. All these years, it turned out that he was the one who was the most blinded. In the future, he wasn’t going to be like that again. He was going to take good care of his mother, and he wasn’t going to stab at his mother’s already weak heart anymore.

n“It’s fine.” Xia Ruoxin lowered her head, and her brush touched against the canvas, creating a ‘Sha, Sha’ sound.

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nShe was a mother; she understood a mother. She was also a woman, and she understood women as well. Wei Lan was a mother, but at the same time, she was also an ordinary woman.

nIf she could be a little more selfish like Shen Yijun, perhaps her days would have been better. However, she wasn’t; and she didn’t walk down that road.

nHer brush continued to gently touch against the canvas paper, but for some unknown reason, the paper in front of her suddenly became wet. Drops of water dripped down from above. Was it raining? How could that be possible? She was indoors.

n“Sister Ruoxin…”

nGao Xin called out her name.

n“Oh, sand got into my eyes,” Xia Ruoxin wiped the corner of her eyes. Her smile showed on her lips, and her sorrow showed on the corners of her eyes.

nGao Xin choked up, speechless.

nEighteenth of March… nobody knew what day it was, but Gao Yi’s wedding was set on this date.

nXia Ruoxin left her daughter at Mrs. Mei Fu’s house. That was also the house of the little swarthy girl that Rainy was friends with. She went there once herself.

nAt that moment, the sun was warm; and the season was perfect. Everything was heading in a wonderful direction. It was just that her heart was overcast. All around her were white-skinned and blue-eyed foreigners. Her black hair and black eyes were abnormally distinct here.

nShe thought that she should bring a gift to Gao Yi’s wedding. However, as she paced about, she still couldn’t think about what gift to give him. In the end, she picked out a small crystal piano.

nBai Luoyin liked pianos. Giving this should be a good choice, right?

nIn this world, nobody was like her. It was her boyfriend’s wedding, and she still wanted to personally pick out a present for it-even writing well-wishes on it. Of course, she knew as well, that perhaps, nobody wanted her to attend the wedding.She held her present and stood at the entrance of the Bai family’s yard. She didn’t knock on the door; she simply waited there. Until somebody came over, and she hid herself into a corner instead. A car stopped, and the doors to the yard opened. A man and a woman walked out of the car one after the other.

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nThe woman wore a white one-piece dress, and the diamond necklace on her neck was exceptionally eye-catching. The woman intimately leaned her head against the man’s shoulder, and the man’s eyes darkened. As he tilted his head, he said something to the woman; whereas the woman covered her lips and smiled. Evidently, the man’s words amused her.

nIt was only after they entered that Xia Ruoxin walked out from the corner.

nShe touched her own chest. It hurt slightly; however, it seemed like it didn’t really hurt that much anymore.

nPerhaps, it was still that sentence… because she hadn’t fallen completely in love. Yes, because she had yet to fall in love with him.

nThe doors closed once again, separating the inside and outside into two worlds. Xia Ruoxin lowered her head. Her two hands held the crystal piano that she bought, and yet she didn’t know how to have it sent in.

n“Ruoxin?” The sudden voice made Xia Ruoxin abruptly turn around, only to see Wei Lan hastily walking over. Her face was filled with shock and surprise.

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