Kim_Li_0078

#DARK ROMANCE 
Lin Yueyao spent five years of her youth married to Shen Xiao, a man whose heart was as cold as steel. She believed that her gentleness would eventually melt his indifference, but the only thing that melted was her own dignity.

Every night, she endured his cruel touch, his words like blades, and his silent disgust. But no matter how much it hurt, Yueyao clung on – for the sake of their son, Xuanxuan, and for the sliver of hope that someday he might see her.

That hope shattered completely when his first love, Bai Zhi, returned from abroad. The very night Bai Zhi came back, Shen Xiao left Yueyao alone to dine with her. His gaze, once cold and dismissive, turned tender only for Bai Zhi.

Then, just as Yueyao discovered she was pregnant again, Shen Xiao handed her divorce papers. Abandoned while carrying his child, betrayed by her husband, and discarded like a stain on his life, Yueyao’s world collapsed.

Even their son, Xuanxuan – the little boy she’d nearly died giving birth to, the one she raised with unwavering devotion – rejected her, clinging instead to Bai Zhi with innocent adoration.

But fate was crueler still.

Kidnapped straight from her hospital bed by men demanding ransom, Yueyao realised no one was coming to save her. Her husband hadn’t even noticed she was missing. As she lay in that abandoned factory, trembling in pain, all illusions crumbled.

She was done waiting for love from a man who treated her like dirt.

This time, she would save herself. And when she returned, it wouldn’t be as the pitiful Mrs. Shen, but as a woman reborn from ashes – with a heart no longer beating for Shen Xiao.

But will he realise her worth only when it’s too late?

Love After Divorce: Her Second Chance

Yueyao blinked slowly, her gaze dull and unfocused, "Aunt Mei…"

"Young Madam… how are you feeling?" Aunt Mei asked softly, her voice shaking, "Does it still hurt? I brought you some millet porridge. You have lost too much blood, and your stomach is empty from surgery. Please… eat a little to regain your strength."

Yueyao stared blankly at the ceiling, her lips parting soundlessly before she shook her head ever so slightly, "I'm… not hungry."

Aunt Mei's chest tightened at the deadness in her voice. She lowered herself to sit on the edge of the hospital bed, her old joints aching with the movement.

Carefully, she lifted Yueyao's limp hand into her own, rubbing it gently between her palms to warm her cold fingers.

"Young Madam… you need to eat. Your body is so weak already. The doctor said your stomach is inflamed… and now, after surgery… if you don't take care of yourself, how will you recover?"

But Yueyao didn't respond. Her eyes remained fixed on the empty air above her, unblinking and glazed with silent despair.

Aunt Mei felt tears prick her eyes as she squeezed Yueyao's hand tightly, "Why… why must life be so bitter for you, child? You have done nothing wrong. You have given everything for this family… for Young Master… for Xuan'er…"

She has been with her for the last ten years, and has seen everything going around her; she has been like her second mother in this world.

At the mention of Shen Xuan, Yueyao's throat convulsed with a silent sob. Her lips trembled as fresh tears spilled down her cheeks, soaking the pillow anew.

Seeing her break down like that, Aunt Mei's heart shattered into pieces.

She reached forward and carefully pulled Yueyao into her arms, cradling her frail shoulders against her chest.

"It's alright… cry it out, child… cry it out…" Aunt Mei whispered, her own tears sliding into Yueyao's hair, "I'm here. Aunt Mei is here with you. You are not alone…"

For a long while, only the quiet sounds of Yueyao's muffled sobs filled the sterile ward.

Outside the window, dawn was breaking, washing the sky in pale grey light, but to Yueyao, the world remained nothing but a colourless void, it was cold, empty, and unending.

Finally, when her tears dried once again, Yueyao whispered in a hoarse, broken voice, "Aunt Mei… do you think… do you think there is a place in this world for someone like me?"

Aunt Mei's shoulders shook as she held her tighter, pressing her wrinkled cheek to Yueyao's damp hair, "Yes, child… yes, there is. Even if no one else sees it… Aunt Mei sees it. I see your worth… your kindness… your pain… I see you…"

But Yueyao only closed her eyes, letting darkness swallow her heart again.

Because in her world… no matter how loudly she screamed or how quietly she wept… no one ever truly heard her.

Not even the man she had destroyed herself loving.

That night, Yueyao drifted into a restless, fevered sleep.

In her dreams, she was back in the cold, sterile operating theatre.

The bright surgical lights glared down at her, blinding white, and shadowy figures in scrubs moved around her.

She tried to speak, to ask what was happening, but her voice wouldn't come out. Her chest felt heavy, her throat clogged with silent screams.

Suddenly, she felt a sharp, burning pain in her lower belly. She looked down and saw crimson blood blooming across the thin white hospital gown.

A small voice echoed from the shadows beyond the surgical table. Weak, broken, impossibly soft.

Chapter 14; She froze.....