The Familiar Warmth

Liu Rouran stepped out of the car with her chin slightly raised, trying to look confident even though her heart was pounding in her chest.

Her eyes focused on the people waiting at the top of the stairs.

The members of the Liu family looked so elegant that Liu Rouran couldn't imagine them ever acting like barbarians.

They were dressed in expensive clothes that fit their tall, upright figures perfectly, making them look like untouchable elites.

Compared to them, the Jiang family felt like cheap imitations.

These people didn't need to raise their voices to feel powerful. Their presence alone was enough to make someone feel small.

Rouran took a deep breath. She couldn't show weakness here.

If she came across as too shy or soft, they might walk all over her.

That's what happened with Zhao Lihua. She had been too gentle in the beginning, and by the time she realized her mistake, it was too late to change how they saw her.

She wasn't going to make the same mistake again. This time, no one would see her soft heart.

If she had to act like a gangster to survive in this house, so be it.

Besides, didn't it kind of match their vibe?

She meant … just look at this place.

A luxury manor. Huge gates. Hidden helipad. Secret forest path.

They had to be selling organs, right?

"Why are you just standing there?" Liu Zeyan asked, glancing at her with a small frown.

Liu Rouran hardened her expression. She raised her chin and scoffed. "Hmph. I don't feel like walking over there."

She closed her eyes for a moment.

It was easier not to look at him because if she did, she might not have the heart to keep acting this cold.

"If they really let me get kidnapped when I was born, shouldn't they be the ones coming down here to apologize?"

She paused, then added, "I lived in a filthy orphanage for five years because of their carelessness."

She braced herself, expecting him to get angry.

She was being unfair and harsh to someone who had treated her kindly since the moment they met.

She even crossed her arms in front of her chest, a gesture she never used around adults.

But instead of getting angry, Liu Zeyan lowered his gaze, his expression softening. "You're right," he said quietly. "We owe you an apology."

Liu Rouran blinked.

What?

Why did he admit it so easily?

Wasn't he supposed to say something like, 'That wasn't our fault,' or 'You should be grateful we took you back'?

That was what Jiang Weiguo and Zhao Lihua always said.

That she should be thankful they "rescued" her from that dirty orphanage, and that she owed them her loyalty forever.

"Go call them here," Liu Zeyan said to a man standing nearby. "Rouran says we owe her an apology."

Wait—why would he say it like that?

No, hold on, that's what she wanted, wasn't it?

But still … if the others heard what she said, wouldn't they think she was arrogant and difficult?

What if they decided she was too much trouble and threw her out again?

No, no, no.

If she truly belonged to this family, then she had the right to a few of their assets.

The hard part would be fighting for it, especially if she needed a lawyer later.

Maybe she should start looking for part-time work to afford one.

As she was busy worrying about her future allowance and legal backup, another vision struck her out of nowhere.

[The Liu family yells at Liu Rouran.]

Liu Rouran blinked a few times as her vision faded and the present returned.

That was it?

She usually saw a few fragmented flashes when her future sight kicked in, but this time, it was just one.

On top of that, all she saw was them shouting her name.

Still, it kind of made sense.

Of course they'd be upset.

She had boldly demanded they walk all the way down to her, under the blazing sun, like she was royalty and they were commoners.

"LIU ROURAN!"

Even though she'd already seen it in her vision, the shout still made her flinch.

Her eyes widened as she saw the members of the Liu family rushing toward her, like they were sprinting in a marathon.

Why?! Why are they running?!

Rouran instinctively took a few steps back, glancing around to find something she could use to protect herself just in case they tried to slap her all at once.

Her fingers wrapped around a fallen tree branch, ready to swing if necessary.

But they suddenly said something that Liu Rouran had never expected.

"WE'RE SORRY!"

All of them suddenly bowed—a deep ninety-degree bow—right in front of her.

Even the old man, the one she assumed was the head of the family, looked like he was seconds away from falling to his knees.

"Oh, my poor daughter, I'm so sorry," Madam Liu sobbed, lifting her tear-streaked face. "I'm so sorry. We failed to protect you."

She was beautiful, even in tears.

Despite her age, Madam Liu's face was youthful, almost untouched by time. Liu Rouran didn't even see a single wrinkle on her face.

"If only I had found you sooner …" she whispered, dabbing at her tears with a handkerchief, but the tears kept falling. "What kind of mother lets her own child suffer for so long?"

"Rouran," Old Master Liu finally spoke, raising his head.

He wasn't crying like his wife, but Liu Rouran noticed his fists clenched so tightly that the veins bulge on the backs of his hands.

Then, he thumped his chest hard. "This is all my fault!" he shouted. "If only I had placed more bodyguards near your room—no! I should've slept in your room that night!"

Liu Rouran just stood there, frozen.

She had no idea what to say, no idea how to move.

Some of them were openly crying. Others were clearly holding back tears, but if one more emotional word was said, they'd probably burst like a shaken soda bottle.

Should she cry too?

No.

She couldn't cry.

Not anymore, even if she wanted to.

Back when she lived with the Jiang family, Zhao Lihua used to hit her hands with a rattan cane every time she cried.

The more she cried, the harder Zhao Lihua would hit her.

Eventually, Rouran learned to hold it in. Even when her hands turned red, even when they bled, she bit down her pain and swallowed her tears.

Eventually … the tears just stopped coming.

"Let me see your face up close," Madam Liu said gently as she walked toward her.

Liu Rouran immediately dropped the branch she had picked up, her body tensing slightly as Madam Liu stopped right in front of her.

She reached out gently, cupping Liu Rouran's face in her hands softly, carefully, as if she were holding something delicate and priceless.

"Your eyes …" Madam Liu whispered, her voice shaking. "They're just as beautiful as I remember."

Among all the Liu siblings, Liu Rouran was the only one who had inherited Madam Liu's light brown eyes.

The rest of them had taken after Old Master Liu, whose eyes were a deep, dark brown.

"I've imagined your face so many times over the years," she continued. "But seeing you now … you're even more beautiful than I ever dreamed."

Tears slid down her cheeks. "I only got to hold you once. Just once, before they took you from me."

Liu Rouran couldn't remember that moment at all.

But somehow, the warmth of Madam Liu's hands felt … familiar.

Like a touch she had long forgotten, yet somewhere deep in her bones, it was there.

"Oh, my sweet girl." Madam Liu tilted her head slightly, gazing at her with misty eyes. "If only I could have held you a little longer back then …"

A strange ache tugged at Liu Rouran's chest.

She could hear the pain in Madam Liu's voice, and even though she didn't cry, her heart ached with her.

It was sad, but oddly comforting.

"Ranran … can I hold you now?" Madam Liu asked softly.

Liu Rouran opened her mouth, but no words came out.

In the end, she simply nodded.

Madam Liu didn't wait. She pulled Rouran into her arms right away.

Her arms wrapped around Rouran like a shield, like she was trying to protect her from the whole world, like letting go might mean losing her all over again.

Liu Rouran stood stiffly, unsure what to do..

Her arms hovered awkwardly at her sides, unsure where to go.

She had never been hugged before, not by the orphanage staff, not by anyone in the Jiang family.

Sometimes, she used to feel jealous of Jiang Rouyan.

Not because she wanted Zhao Lihua's affection, but because she just wanted to know what it felt like to be held by her mother.

Now, after all those years of longing, she finally felt something she'd only ever dreamed about.

The hug was warmer than she'd imagined.

It wrapped around her like a blanket, like a safe little world where nothing bad could reach her.

'So this is what it feels like to have a mother,' she thought.

It didn't feel bad at all.

In fact, it felt like the very thing her heart had been missing all along.