30_Reality wasn't Anything Like That

Li Yao's face was aghast.

She didn't know how to react in this situation.

After reading the whole entry in her mother's diary, she realized that her mother had been battling her own self without Li Yao's knowledge.

Her mother was initially devastated after her father's death, just like any other woman who had lost her husband. But she thought that her mother was strong.

Li Yao was wrong.

The woman wasn't strong at all. With the death of her husband, she was already in the brink of sadness. But her husband's family coming after her to demand everything they have was another struggle she had to face alone. And she faced it without telling anyone. Not even Li Yao, her own daughter.

After she was cornered to give them all the properties and lands in the rural areas. Her husband's sisters wanted to covet more and more. She didn't want to give in but she didn't have a choice after they sorted to threatening and blackmailing her.

After three years of constant meddling and threat letters, her mother didn't have any power to continue holding on to what they have. She even lost her reputable job but she told Li Yao that she had planned to quit in the first place, in order to take better care of Li Yao.

That was a lie.

Li Yao's heart broke after she read the last line her mother had written one day before the accident.

"I can't stand it anymore. I've had enough."

Li Yao could feel her knees weakening. She didn't have any strength to stand up. So her limp body fell to the floor as she let out a wail.

The notebook was in her chest, crumpled in her hands. Her body scrunched down until her forehead touched the floor.

"Mom..!"

"How could you.. how- you left me!"

"You left me alone!"

Li Yao screamed her throat out. It felt dry and hot but she didn't care. It was hurting but her heart hurt even more.

Her mother deliberately jumped on the road to die.

It was her mother's intention to commit suicide. And in the heavy rain when she saw a car coming from afar, she didn't hesitate to be hit by it. She crossed the road just to be killed.

This diary told it all.

Her mother's frustration, her breakdown. There was even a hospital letter stating that Li Yao's mother was suffering from severe depression.

How could this be..?

Li Yao thought everything was alright.

She thought that even though they had nothing left, her mother and she would still be happy and content as long as they were together.

But.. reality wasn't anything like that.

She was utterly wrong.

Her mother, Fan Shi was suffering inside for a very long time. She didn't have anyone to confide in. She was alone.

Fan Shi had lived with her grandmother when she was young. Her parents died in a bombing incident caused by a group of terrorists during the riot 40 years prior. She was always a bright and sunny girl. She was smart and ambitious too. She had a good career before meeting Li Yao's father. Li Yao's father loved her very much because they both have a goal to fulfill and they did everything to catch after their dream.

After that, they were able to live comfortably with the assets and wealth they painstakingly worked hard for.

But after her husband's death, Fan Shi wasn't the same anymore. His siblings' constant pressure put a strain on her emotionally. But she didn't have the heart to give the things that she and her husband worked for.

So their constant demands turned to threats. Then turned to blackmails. Until it broke Fan Shi's reputation in her career due to the false rumor created by Li Jin- her husband's cousin who also had his eyes on their wealth.

*

Mu Lihai was already becoming anxious. His girlfriend didn't even reply to his texts much less answer his phone calls.

It had been so since yesterday!

Today was his second day in country X. Yesterday, he was busy after arriving here and got straight to working alongside the managers from their subsidiary company until evening. And he didn't get to give Li Yao a call.

When he did call her, it went straight to voicemail and he forgot to call her again after Zhu Kang arrived in his hotel suite to give him the investigation report.

Mu Lihai thought that something happened to her so he was acting fidgety all day long. He didn't get to focus on his job at all and Zhu Kang had to scold him to pay attention.

Mu Lihai thought back to the night he had sent her home. There was nothing unusual happening during that time so it was unlikely that she was mad at him, right?

So the only possibility was her getting into trouble.

Mu Lihai couldn't stop thinking of the worse and he began to sweat.

He called Li Yao again and she still wouldn't answer.

"What's wrong.. please answer me." his voice was almost pleading.

That was when an email from work came. Mu Lihai cursed out loud for the unfavorable time of the email. He needed to check it now if it was urgent.

Mu Lihai had no choice but to force himself to forget his anxiety for a little while.

'I'll try calling again later..'