Chapter 868: Yinyin, You’re Avoiding It
With both hands braced on the sink in the bathroom, the water gushing from the faucet still couldn’t wash away the restlessness in her heart.
Her heart felt hollow, empty, lost and helpless.
It wasn’t until a warm male body pressed against her back that Song Yinyin finally came back to herself.
By the time she snapped out of it and lifted her lashes, she realized her eyes had unknowingly turned red, her vision misted over.
Not wanting the man behind her to notice, Song Yinyin hurriedly reached up to wipe them away. The strength she’d just been pretending, that façade of being fine, had already crumbled.
Lu Jihan saw this and frowned slightly.
Not wanting him to see anything was wrong, Song Yinyin quickly ducked her head, took a deep breath, and when she looked up, she forced a strained smile at the corners of her mouth.
"We’re idle anyway. Why don’t we go wander around the super shopping mall later?"
She clearly didn’t have the heart to go out, yet she put on an act as if nothing was wrong. It was heartbreaking.
Looking down at the woman in his arms whose eyes were red, his brows knotted tight as he asked in a low voice, "Yinyin, you’re running away from it, do you realize that?"
Of course she knew.
But if she didn’t avoid it, she really couldn’t figure out how she was supposed to face President Shi Mai’er. Was she supposed to hate him? But she didn’t seem capable of that.
Yet if she didn’t hate him, then who should her mother’s years of suffering be blamed on?
Song Yinyin lowered her eyes, not wanting to speak. The more she thought, the more bitter she felt. She shook her head, forcing herself to hold it in: "I know, but I just can’t do it. Do you know, the moment I think of his face, I think of all the hardship my mom went through back then, and you want me to act like nothing ever happened, to happily acknowledge him as my father? I really can’t do it..."
As she grew more agitated, she finally couldn’t hold back; her eyes turned red again.
Seeing that she was about to break down and sob out loud, Lu Jihan suddenly pulled her into his arms, wrapping her tightly in his embrace.
"Okay, we won’t talk about him anymore. And don’t bottle it up—if you want to cry, then cry!"
Song Yinyin wasn’t the kind of woman who burst into tears at the drop of a hat, but in this moment she couldn’t stop them. Her tears fell one by one, scalding hot, sliding down into the collar of his shirt.
She buried her head against his chest and said, "Jinhan, once the typhoon passes, let’s go back, okay?"
"Alright. As soon as the typhoon’s over, we’ll leave right away." Lu Jihan followed her lead and murmured the promise against her ear.
...
Overwhelmed by sadness, Song Yinyin cried for a very, very long time. In the end, when she’d cried herself out, she curled up in Lu Jihan’s arms and fell asleep.
Lu Jihan held her carefully, gently laid her down on the sofa, and pulled a thin blanket over her.
Only then did he pick up his phone and walk out onto the terrace.
He dialed a series of numbers—President Shi Mai’er’s number.
Just now, President Shi Mai’er had sent him a text, asking how Song Yinyin was, telling him to report back once he found her.
It seemed he really was very worried about Song Yinyin.
The call connected quickly, and President Shi Mai’er’s anxious voice came through the receiver: "How is Yinyin?"
"Her emotions are relatively stable. She just fell asleep."
"That’s good, that’s good."
President Shi Mai’er muttered under his breath, finally relaxing a little, but he still couldn’t help voicing his regret: "I really didn’t expect things to turn out like this... I never planned to tell her..."
Just as he’d expected, after Yinyin learned the truth, she didn’t even want to see his face.
President Shi Mai’er pressed a hand to his chest, consumed with remorse.
"With me here, you don’t have to worry about her." Lu Jihan stood by the railing, lit a cigarette and held it between his fingers.
President Shi Mai’er asked again, "Then when... when can I see her?"