tice left in this world A son doesn't care for his elderly mother, and allows a wicked daughter-in-law to bully her. I haven't seen such injustice anywhere else… Mr. Shu lawyer… you absolutely must h...This was actually beyond Zhu Yu'an's expectations, and he couldn't help but sarcastically remark on it.

“Do you still have a shred of decency”

"Frankly, I don't want to either. But the girl is sincere, and I feel like it would be wrong to treat her feelings casually. Let me think about it more clearly first."

Gu Ruanruan hadn't contacted him since she returned to school last night. She must have been hurt, both in her feelings and her pride. Usually, no matter if he replied or not, she would send him over a dozen messages every day to report on everything big and small that happened throughout the day.

Today, he kept checking his phone messages every few minutes, but it went on until the evening, for 20 hours, she didn't even send him a single message.

Gu Ruanruan had no time to spare for anything else at the moment. News of her teaching position at the school had somehow reached her mother and younger brother, who arrived at her dormitory on Saturday morning early and caused a commotion.

At that time, she was asleep. The door to the room was slammed so hard it almost rattled apart.

"Ru-ru, I know you're in there, open the door."

"Sister, are you there"

Gu Ruanruan lay on her single bed, coldly watching the fragile door that seemed about to collapse at any moment, unwilling to move. On a Saturday, the entire teaching staff dormitory was unusually quiet, so the shouts outside and the knocking on the door sounded particularly jarring.

Gu Ruanruan, accompanied by the cacophony of noise, was letting her mind wander, thinking about many things in a whimsical way.

She had no memory of her father, of course, as he had passed away before she was born. However, she had seen pictures of him from her grandfather, and he seemed to be fair-skinned, tall and thin, with a pair of glasses perched on his nose. He appeared refined and scholarly, and it was said that he was also a university professor.

So she was once a bit puzzled about how her father and mother had gotten together back then They just didn't seem like they came from the same world.

Hours later, she overheard snippets. Her mother had been a bartender back in the day, sharp and quick-witted with a pretty face. Maybe her dad fell for her looks Or maybe he saw something more If her mother even possessed such a thing.

Anyway, he married her despite his family's opposition, and they lived happily for two years until she was born.

After her father passed away, her mother observed widowhood for a year and then met her current husband, who was her middle school classmate. He is a truck driver who makes a living by hard work but barely manages to get by.

When Gu Ruanruan grew up and became more sensible, she didn't quite understand her mother's choice. Given the Gu family's circumstances, she could have stayed with them for life and lived comfortably without worry. Why would she marry a truck driver

Her mother said, “You’re not an adult yet, you don’t understand. A woman, at the peak of her youth, alone in a deserted house, without someone who understands her warmth and coldness, that kind of loneliness and pain is immense. I'm still so young, I can’t just wither away like this, taking care of the family bit by bit.”

Her mother had also been innocent and carefree in her youth, though now her image as a middle-aged woman was far removed from the naiveté of her younger days. But she truly had been innocent, naively believing that driving a big truck was cool and that she and her husband could travel all over China. Sadly, reality was cruel; trucking wasn't a stable income and if they were delivering goods, they could be gone for ten or even half a month. And if they encountered snow and ice, being stuck on the highway was even more unpredictable.

She went through pregnancy, childbirth, and raising her child almost single-handedly. So life has transformed her from a graceful woman full of romantic fantasies into the somewhat worldly and coarse figure she is today.

The door was still banging loudly, and Gu Ruannuan felt a surge of pity for the person outside, wishing she could help them.

In the end, I still opened the door. As soon as it swung open, the woman leaning against it almost fell inside.

"Please sit wherever you like."

After that, she lay back down on the bed again, perfectly still. She didn't look at all like someone who had been reunited with her mother after a long separation.

This left her mother speechless for a moment.

Why didn't you tell me when you were coming back to look for a job

"Didn't you already know"

"What are you doing lying around on a Saturday Are you feeling unwell" Her mother looked at her daughter, finding her a bit cold, just like the Gu family members. She seemed to have coldness in her bones.

"I'm not feeling well, so you can leave after watching me, okay"

"Ruirui, how could you do this You haven't seen your mother and brother in so many years I heard from your brother that you work at Sen Da University. I'm so happy to know that. You're just like your father, smart and studious."

Gu Ruanruan then found it strange: "How did you know I was at Sen Da's"

Her brother handed her his phone: “Earlier, there were photos of Lu YaoYao at Senzhou University online. I saw you standing next to her.” It must have been taken the day she moved last time.

"You know where I work and where I live, anyway, none of that can be escaped. Can you leave I want to take a nap."

"Ruan Ruan, about the money I talked to you about last time, how have you prepared If you don't buy a house soon, your younger brother's girlfriend will break up with him."

Gu Ruanruan was still lying down, her face very pale.

“Look at where I live. Could someone who could afford to buy you a house live here”

She reached out and took the wallet from the nightstand beside her, throwing it to them.

“Here's everything I have, take it. My bank card password is my birthday. I’ve been studying abroad for the past few years to graduate early. I've been working hard and saving every penny just to afford food, so I don't really have any savings. If you guys aren't picky, please take everything.” She wasn't entirely playing the victim card; she genuinely didn't have much money.

"Besides, I'm at Shenzhen University, just started working and haven't even received my first paycheck. And you can ask around, how much do new teachers earn every month at Shenzhen University It's not enough for me to rent a place outside."

Her mother, still lingering, said cautiously, "Back then at the Gu family, your grandfather promised you that courtyard house in Beijing and a shop. The Gu family is so wealthy, they shouldn't go back on their word."

"I'm not coming back! If you really want it, go ask Gu Ruandong. He's willing to give it to you, I have no problem with that." Gu Ruannu was just a bit annoyed and wanted them to leave quickly.

“Ruan Ruan, you said that your mother’s life is so hard. She didn't have many good days with your father before he died. Now your uncle is old and can't drive anymore. We don't have any income, so we rely on your younger brother to earn money by delivering food. That's all hard-earned money, going out in the wind and rain. Mom feels heartache just watching him. Just for mom’s sake, please beg Gu Ruandong to help us, okay”

Her mom was like that, when she came to see her or called before, rarely would she make a big fuss, just like now, silently complaining, slowly wearing you down, grinding your heart until it hurts and shatters, there’s no escape.Because Ting Lan and Zhuo Yu An never got together in the past, they will definitely not get back together in the future. As Lee Zong Sheng sang in one of his songs, "I have only seen reunions after...