"So," Lu Lingchen looked at her and asked, "how did you know?"
He really wanted to know the truth.
After saying so much, Shen Nian's throat was a bit dry. She took another sip of milk before answering.
"Yesterday, Li Nan was out running projects all day and didn't even attend the afternoon meeting. How would she know what Jiang Lingling and I were wearing?"
Moreover, Shen Nian arrived late at the company yesterday and didn't run into Li Nan at all.
And as a newly graduated employee, Jiang Lingling's biggest trait was her punctuality habit. She clocked in every day at 8:58 or 8:59 for the 9 o'clock start. But Li Nan always arrived at the office half an hour early. Even if she clocked in and then went out for a project, she still wouldn't have run into Jiang Lingling.
Did Li Nan purposely wait half an hour after clocking in just to see what Jiang Lingling was wearing that day?
This was the biggest loophole, and the key that made Shen Nian realize something was amiss.
Li Nan didn't see them at all yesterday, so how did she know what they were wearing?
Unless someone explicitly told her that the two at the hot pot restaurant were Shen Nian and Jiang Lingling.
"I guess Lingling had no ulterior motive and just believed Li Nan's words. Anyone else would have been suspicious," Shen Nian concluded.
Lu Lingchen nodded, so that's how it was.
He wasn't at the company yesterday either, so of course he didn't know that Li Nan was out running business all day and didn't even see Shen Nian.
Since Shen Nian had already guessed everything clearly, Lu Lingchen didn't try to hide anything and told her all he knew.
"Yesterday I got a call from my brother. He asked me to have someone call Jiang Lingling to find out your whereabouts. At the time, I was perplexed but still helped my brother ask. But he didn't say a word and just hung up, so I knew you two had a conflict again."
Lu Lingchen shrugged, showing a hint of helplessness.
After Ling Rui passed away, his brother's temperament changed greatly, capricious and unpredictable. These past five years, he and Shen Nian had been in a love-hate relationship, mutually torturing and tormenting each other.
Only Shen Nian had the ability to provoke Lu Lingchuan's anger and make him lose his senses.
So after guessing what happened, Lu Lingchen immediately investigated carefully and learned about the hot pot restaurant incident.
"Didn't expect that Xiao Mubai still has feelings for you."
Lu Lingchen knew of Xiao Mubai's existence. After watching yesterday's video, even he couldn't help but be impressed.
Knowing the danger ahead, yet still unhesitatingly rushing forward to shield Shen Nian from harm, Xiao Mubai's feelings for Shen Nian were admirable even to this romantic rival's brother.
"Nian-jie," Lu Lingchen rested his chin on his hand and looked at Shen Nian very seriously.
"You know, ever since Ling Rui's incident five years ago, my mom's mental state has been very unstable. Ling Rui was so close to you back then, you two were almost inseparable, like each other's shadows. Just seeing one would unconsciously make you think of the other. On top of that, you had that unbreakable, messy relationship with what happened back then... so my mom won't let you into the house."
Just seeing Shen Nian was like seeing Ling Rui's shadow, and seeing Ling Rui's shadow would make Li Mingshi think of the scene of Ling Rui lying in the morgue, childless. It would make her suffer, resent herself for not locking Ling Rui up at home that day so she wouldn't have gone out; resent those two vicious beasts for targeting her innocent daughter; resent this bad girl Shen Nian... why didn't you run away with her daughter...
Lu Lingchen spoke very directly, and Shen Nian's face stiffened as she stroked her cup and said in a low voice, "I know."
Ever since Ling Rui's incident, she hadn't hoped to have a good outcome with Lu Lingchuan.
"Xiao Mubai is not a worse choice than my brother. You can try considering him."
As an outside observer, Lu Lingchen had seen everything clearly over the years.
Shen Nian and his brother were just tormenting each other, neither willing to let go, neither brave enough to take a step forward, only able to hurt and torment each other.
If they could just let go of their attachment to Ling Rui, they would live much more relaxed lives than now. But both were deeply emotional people. Ling Rui was the only ray of light in Shen Nian's dark period after her parents died in a car accident. She couldn't, and didn't want to, let go of her attachment to Ling Rui.
As for his brother... in Ling Rui's short eighteen years, the person she depended on most wasn't her parents, but her brother. She was doted on by Lu Lingchuan from a young age, and she depended on him more than her parents. Lu Lingchuan similarly doted on this little sister.
One stubbornly held onto friendship, the other couldn't let go of family ties. Neither was willing to give up their feelings for Ling Rui, so they could only hurt each other.
If Shen Nian could take the first step forward, Xiao Mubai was a trustworthy choice. Perhaps if Shen Nian left, Lu Lingchuan could also let go and move on...
"..." Hearing Lu Lingchen's words, Shen Nian smiled bitterly, "How can you let a second person in when your heart already belongs to someone else?"
"You're still young, you don't understand feelings."
"I've never been in a relationship, but I understand," Lu Lingchen looked at her seriously. "My brother is love, Xiao Mubai is bread. Love and bread often can only choose one, rarely can one have both."
The former is a dream, the latter is reality. Reality and dreams are often hard to reconcile.
Just like in this world, there are many people moved by youthful infatuation at first sight, but in the end still marry someone suitable but they don't love.
"..." Shen Nian lowered her eyes, her lashes trembling. After a long time, she said, "Temporary salvation can't save someone originally in darkness."
"..." Lu Lingchen moved his lips but ultimately didn't say anything.
After a long while, Lu Lingchen finally said, "The next court hearing is in five days. Will you go?"
"Yes." For Ling Rui's sake, how could she not go?
"Okay." Lu Lingchen nodded, knowing he couldn't dissuade Shen Nian anymore. As he stood up to leave, he couldn't help but add, "Nian-jie, Sister-in-law, Ling Rui once told my parents and my brother that you were an exceptionally good person and she wanted to be lifelong friends with you. She knew your parents had passed away in an accident, so she told my parents to treat you like their own daughter. She even warned my brother that he could only marry you in this lifetime, and that you were the only sister-in-law she would recognize."
"..." Shen Nian froze.
"Be good to yourself. If Ling Rui were alive, she certainly wouldn't want you to suffer so much."
"..."
"Also, you know my brother's temper and taboos. Don't hurt him, and don't hurt yourself either."
Both of you are pitiful, ruined souls.
Leaving those words behind, Lu Lingchen departed.
"..." Shen Nian sat alone in the booth, staring blankly at the spot where Lu Lingchen had just been sitting. When she came to, tears were already streaming down her face.
She reached up to touch the sunflower necklace around her neck, leaned over the table, her shoulders gently shaking.
Weeping silently.
