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

His words sliced through her numbness like a blunt knife. Slowly, Yueyao lifted her hollow gaze to meet his. The raw pain in her bloodshot eyes made him stiffen slightly. He has never seen her look at him like that no matter what kind of fight or argument they had.

But before she could speak, another memory ripped through her foggy mind, slicing her heart apart. Auntie Mei seemed to have gotten badly hurt...

"Aunt… Mei…" she whispered hoarsely, her voice barely audible. Tears filled her eyes as panic twisted her chest, "Where… where is Aunt Mei…? Is she… is she alive…?"

She remembered the way Aunt Mei had shielded her from the kidnappers, taking a brutal blow to the head that left her limp and bleeding on the road.

"Tell me… please… is she alive…?" Yueyao sobbed, her entire body trembling uncontrollably. Aunt Mei was the only person left she could say was her family.

Shen Xiao's jaw tightened as he exchanged a quick glance with Bai Zhi. The woman's lips curled into a delicate frown as she sighed dramatically.

"She's in a critical condition, Yueyao. You shouldn't have played this game to gain Shen Xiao's sympathy," Bai Zhi said softly, shaking her head. "The doctors aren't sure if she will wake up. Poor thing…"

"Why do you have to play like that? Do you know how dangerous those games are?

Yueyao's vision blurred with tears as a broken sob tore from her chest. How could they say it was a game? And seeing Shen Xiao saying nothing, then it meant he also believed she orchestrated the entire thing for sympathy.

What kind of a man was he? She already knew, nothing about Bai Zhi could be wrong, and now, she didn't need to explain anything.

Her hand clutched the thin blanket so tightly her knuckles turned bone-white.

Pain stabbed through every inch of her body, but it was nothing compared to the agony in her heart.

It was all her fault. Everyone who loved her suffered a painful fate. Aunt Mei was fighting for her life because of her, and here she was, filthy, tainted, broken beyond repair.

Shen Xuan's small sobs grew louder beside her, but Yueyao didn't turn to him again.

She couldn't. Every cry from him was irking her...

In that moment, she realised she could no longer touch anything pure in this world without destroying it…

She couldn't withstand his cries and this shocked everyone. Shen Xiao hadn't expected her to react like that; she had never shouted at her son like that!

Bai Zhi was smiling triumphantly, knowing she was gaining the upper hand, and Shen Xiao was disappointed.

Shen Xuan immediately shut up seeing his mother was no longer gentle with him.

Silence hung heavy in the wardroom, broken only by the rhythmic beeping of her heart monitor. Shen Xiao stood with his arms folded tightly across his chest, staring at her with a gaze that was cold and unreadable.

Finally, his voice cut through the suffocating silence.

"Are you done with this pathetic display?" he asked sharply, his dark eyes narrowing at her tear-streaked face. "Always crying, always blaming others for your misfortune. If you hadn't been so stupid, Aunt Mei wouldn't have gotten hurt in the first place. This was your fault.."

Yueyao's shoulders shook as she tried to muffle her sobs with trembling fingers.

Bai Zhi stepped closer, her perfume suffocating Yueyao's nose as she leaned down with a sweet, poisonous smile, "Shen Xiao is right. At least now you know how many people you drag down with your selfishness. Aunt Mei might die… and it's all because of you."

Chapter 31; Always crying