Her actions shocked everyone present, including Tian Zixiong. This infuriated Tian Zixiong. With all the Tian clan representatives present, being criticized by a woman would severely damage his face and authority.
Before Mei Yu’s mother could finish speaking, Tian Zixiong stood up, slapped her, pointed to the door, and shouted, “Get out!” This was already the lightest punishment he could mete out, trying to reclaim his lost dignity in front of everyone.
Tian Ye’s mother, covering her face and crying, protested about Tian Ye’s isolation and childhood. Tian Zixiong responded by kicking her violently in the stomach.
She was thrown against the wall, her head hitting a coat rack, and blood began to flow.
The elders tried to calm Tian Zixiong, who was clearly enraged.
Later, Tian Ye’s mother committed suicide in the hospital using a fruit knife, leaving behind her five-year-old son after years of futile resistance against Tian Zixiong’s tyranny.
Tian Zixiong deeply regrets his actions but realizes it is too late. Remembering his deceased wife, he tells Mei Yu and her mother, “I’ll spare you, but you must leave.”
After this incident, Tian Zixiong’s subordinates secretly hid Mei Yu and her mother, planning to release them only if Tian Ye stopped searching for her.
He then orchestrated an elaborate plan to fake Mei Yu’s death, including finding a look-alike and staging a fatal car accident, ensuring Tian Ye would believe she had died. Even Tian Ye’s best friend Hui was forced to participate in this deception to prevent potential clan destruction.
Hui was raised by the Tian clan and struggled with the pain he saw in Tian Ye, but couldn’t speak about it. He truly wanted to share Tian Ye’s pain, but found it beyond his understanding until he found his own love.
Afterward, with Tian Ye feeling extremely depressed, he took Si Xiao Shuang and Hui to Hawaii for relaxation. Tian Zi Xiong arranged for Mei Yu and her mother to be settled in a small town in the north, strictly forbidding them from returning to Tian City or going to Hong Kong.
Gradually, Tian Ye began to fade the memories of the Mei Yu he initially encountered, drifting away from thoughts of her amidst various realistic helplessness and lingering memories.
Returning to the present, in the narrow, old attic, Tian Ye was wiping away Mei Yu’s sister’s tears. He helped Mei Yu to the bed, sitting her down, then crouched beside her, holding her hands, looking up at Mei Yu with a bright smile. “What happened afterward? How did you and your mother end up here?” Although Mei Yu and her mother’s experiences were indeed miserable, they had survived, and Mei Yu hadn’t left Tian Ye. Tian Ye felt especially happy. At this point, even if Mei Yu had suffered more hardships, it could be laughed off because they were now together. What else mattered?
Since being saved from death in the hospital by Tian Zi Xiong, Mei Yu and her mother had been secretly confined in an underground warehouse. The place was dark and damp, with barely any air circulation. Although the guards would periodically bring some food, it was far from sufficient nutrition.
During this time, Mei Yu’s mother fell ill, nearly dying, lying unconscious. No matter how Mei Yu knocked on the door, cried, or pleaded with the guards, they refused to let her mother out. One of the leaders even told Mei Yu, “It’s not that we don’t want to save her, but without orders, she must die, and we’ll all die too.”
Mei Yu’s mother understood the strict rules of the Tian clan – once a rule was set, it would be absolutely enforced. She called Mei Yu to the warehouse door, made her sit beside her, and said, “Daughter, this is how the Tian clan is. You could stand here and die, scream, exhaust yourself, but without orders, they won’t care.” Pulling the desperate Mei Yu into her arms, she smiled and said, “Come, stay with mother. It’s okay. Even if I die now, it’s fine. I’ve already lived past that day in the hospital. I’ve seen you grow up, so I’m at peace. When you get out, take good care of yourself…”
Mei Yu cried, pulling away from her mother’s embrace, covering her mother’s mouth and shaking her head. “Mom… you won’t die. We’ll definitely get out… definitely…” Looking at her extremely weak mother, a heart-wrenching pain tore through her.
After a while, the chubby guy happily hummed a little tune, holding the warehouse door key, and walked to the warehouse entrance.
Standing at the door while unlocking, he suddenly felt something was wrong – the warehouse that was previously noisy was now completely silent.
The chubby guy hurriedly inserted the key, unlocked the lock, and pulled the thick iron door. As he pulled the door and leaned inside, Meiyou had already collapsed inside.
Meiyou, weak and exhausted, had leaned against the door to rest for a moment, but she passed out. When the chubby guy pulled the door, she fell to the ground.
Seeing Meiyou unconscious, he was startled and jumped up, quickly rushing out of the door and shouting to the duty room to come and rescue her.
The chairman had said not to let them die. If they died, he would be in serious trouble. He had thought Meiyou was trying to trick them earlier, but something had really happened.
The brothers still inside sorting things heard the call, dropped what they were doing, and ran out from the duty room towards the chubby guy.
Finally, after countless times of bravely overcoming her inner hesitation about leaving her dormitory and working hard, Mei Yu received her first paycheck, along with some bonus money from her boss who saw her working diligently and enthusiastically. That day, Mei Yu felt especially sweet and happy, not just because she had earned her pay through blood and sweat, but more importantly because she could now help her mother buy medicine, thus realizing her own social value. All of these things were inspiring and encouraging Mei Yu. She felt like she had overcome a mental hurdle, and from then on, her spirit was more open and her work became increasingly dedicated.
The days of weathering wind and rain always make people stronger. After working and experiencing society, Mei Yu had matured much more than she was in school, learning things that she might never have learned in school.
On this day, Mei Yu received her wages and returned home from the small restaurant a few hours early. She happily walked into her side room in the courtyard house that she and her mother rented. Even before entering, Mei Yu called out excitedly through the window, “Mom, Mom, I’m home!” Mei Yu’s demeanor of earning her own money was proud and delightful. Anyone seeing her happiness would be happy for her – what more could you expect from a twenty-year-old girl?
Mei Yu was calling for her mother outside with a wide smile, but there was no response from inside. She had to take out her key and open the door herself. As she pushed the door open with a bright smile, ready to call out to her mother…
The scene before her eyes shocked her. Her mother was lying on the bed, already unconscious, her limbs sprawled out, her right arm hanging over the bed’s edge, blood continuously dripping from her wrist, forming a pool of blood on the floor. Her mother had slit her wrists.
“Ah!” Mei Yu screamed. Her previously cheerful face suddenly became grotesque, framed by the contrast of bright sunlight outside and the dark interior.
She dropped her bag and rushed to her mother’s side. Suppressing her grief and fear, she realized she must not panic. Her mother would be fine. She lifted her mother’s bleeding arm, quickly bandaged it, and carried her mother out of the courtyard.
