“Wai, what made you come to me tonight?” asked Song Xin’ai. “You are not the kind of person who would look for her mother whenever things go wrong. So, what made you come to my door? You clearly didn’t know that I’d be home tonight. That means you were practically just taking your chances. I am unable to understand your behavior right now.”

Xiang Wai bit her lips and looked into her mother’s clear eyes. Everyone said Raelle resembled Song Xin’ai the most and currently, Xiang Wai had a different opinion. Maybe there was a similarity between Raelle and Song Xin’ai but the differences between them were too obvious as well.

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Raelle’s eyes still carried the light of the world but Song Xin’ai’s eyes had lost the glimmer. It had been worn down by the life she lived.

“Mom,” she called out in a small voice.

“Hm?”

“If… I mean, if Raelle hadn’t been kidnapped back then, do you think things would have been different for our family?”

Song Xin’ai froze when she heard this question and forgot to react too. “Is there a point in thinking about this hypothetical situation?”

“Don’t avoid the question,” Xiang Wai didn’t give up and didn’t let her avoid it too. She wanted to press for an answer right now and she did. “Just give me a straight and honest answer. Would things be different?”

Song Xin’ai really couldn’t avoid this question now so she decided to face it. She thought about it for a minute and then answered honestly, “Maybe.”

“Maybe?”

“No. I’m certain things would be different,” added Song Xin’ai. “Your dad never wanted to divorce and kept dragging things before Raelle was born. It was only after Raelle was kidnapped that he let go. So, if she hadn’t been kidnapped, your dad won’t let go. If he won’t let go, I’d eventually lose my resolve to leave.”

“So, if Raelle hadn’t been kidnapped back then, Grandma wouldn’t have to die. You wouldn’t have gotten divorced so easily. Our family wouldn’t have to be separated. We wouldn’t have to miss so many years. Things would have been different.”

Song Xin’ai took a deep breath, “But the reality is, all of that happened. We couldn’t avoid it.”

“Do you wanna know why we couldn’t avoid all of that?” asked Xiang Wai.

“Why?”

“Because your mother chose to betray you,” answered Xiang Wai. “All your sufferings come from your mother who did not want to lose her control over you. Mom, you got played by your own mother. A person like you with high intelligence got deceived in the name of familial love!”

Song Xin’ai clenched her fists tightly and stared into Xiang Wai’s eyes, “Baby, what do you mean by this?”

“What do I mean? What I mean is that it was your mother who did everything,” answered Xiang Wai and explained the details of her conversation with Song Daiyu earlier in the evening. The more she listened, the more unbelievable it seemed to Song Xin’ai but she knew her daughter well. Xiang Wai wouldn’t lie to her about such a thing. So, it could only mean that everything she was saying was the truth.

Song Xin’ai had been repeatedly disappointed in her family over the years. For as long as she could remember, she had always felt like an outsider in that family. But no matter how she was let down, she could never imagine that it was her own mother who made her lose everything. All because she resisted her arrangements for once, she wanted to destroy her completely.

How funny was that?

All this while, she was just a joke to the Song family and nothing more. The people whom she considered family had never considered her to be a part of the family. They didn’t even have basic respect for her as a human, why did she have wishful thinking all this time?

Song Xin’ai held her head in her hands and closed her eyes in pain. Xiang Wai noticed her pale complexion along with her trembling body. She put her hands on Song Xin’ai’s shoulder asking, “Mom, are you okay?”

Song Xin’ai couldn’t seem to hear her voice as her head was buzzing at the moment. Xiang Wai ran to get her some water and helped her drink it. Then she took a few tissues to wipe the sweat on Song Xin’ai’s face with a look of blame in her eyes. She didn’t think before speaking and now this happened. She shouldn’t have been so hasty in speaking.

“Mom!” Xiang Wai called out again. “Mom!”

Song Xin’ai placed her hand on Xiang Wai’s and gave her a slight squeeze. “I’m okay. Don’t worry.”

“You don’t look okay to me though,” grumbled Xiang Wai. She couldn’t hold back the worry in her heart right now. “How about I take you to the hospital?”

“There is no need,” Song Xin’ai leaned back in the chair as if she was drained of all her energy. Xiang Wai didn’t know why but she felt like her mother looked bruised and battered right now. And these bruises were not on her body but on her heart and soul.

Seeing her mother like this, Xiang Wai felt even worse. She recalled what Song Daiyu said to her earlier. She said the one who got the most hurt in all this matter was Song Xin’ai. Now that she thought about it, wasn’t that the case? Who did her mother even have now with her? She was all alone.

If nothing else, at least her father had a few good friends but what about her mother? Song Xin’ai didn’t even have a single friend. Xiang Wai again felt like her mother lived a worthless life. What exactly was the meaning of such a life? It seemed too empty and lonely. Especially to someone like her who had always been a fan of excitement and crowds in life. She couldn’t imagine such a silent and depressing life.