But he had no idea how hard it was for her back then. She had to deal with everything alone, especially with Li Zirui's death. Was she really one to blame? She didn't want any of those to happen but she had to face the nightmare every single day when she woke up. No one had seen her in her helpless state except her Uncle Yuren. 

As she sat there in Ying's work s.p.a.ce, staring in a daze at her paintings, Li Chuntao wondered what she would do next. The stage for Lin Meirong was already prepared and she was just waiting for the day of the award ceremony. 

Meanwhile, Mu Jianyu was already on the edge of how to deal with Ying and Lin Meirong. Ying was looking more and more reserved recently and barely talked to him. His fear about her knowing about Lin Meirong had kept him awake at night. 

"Ying, what are you doing here?" He asked her when he found her sitting in a daze, not moving an inch from where she was seated. He sat next to her and looked at the same painting she'd been staring at. 

"I don't know what to do. I feel like a part of me is missing. Am I forgetting something? I feel like… I don't know." Li Chuntao buried her face on her arms, curling herself away from Mu Jianyu. 

"Ying…" 

It's breaking his heart to see her like this, but Mu Jianyu couldn't do anything to a.s.sure her, to comfort her. He felt like she was becoming more of a stranger with each pa.s.sing day she was with him. 

Gone was the woman who greeted him with a warm smile every time he came home, the woman who never forgot to remind him to take his meals on time. The wife he'd lost in the accident. Now, he could only see an empty sh.e.l.l that looks like her, but nothing like her. 

"Why don't you go out with me today? I intend to visit mother but I'm not sure if you wanted to meet her," Mu Jianyu suggested. 

Li Chuntao raised her head and glanced at his troubled face. 

"Your mother?" She paused. "How was my relations.h.i.+p with her before?"

Yes, as far as she knew, Mu Jianyu's mother was gravely sick and was staying in a foster home. What kind of son was he to leave his own mother to such a place alone? Ying had once told her that her mother-in-law doesn't seem to approve of her as Mu Jianyu's wife. 

"Alright," she agreed easily. It was better to see what kind of woman gave birth to this b.a.s.t.a.r.d and to think that this old hog looked down on her twin sister, Ying, Li Chuntao was curious. This was better than moping around, waiting for something to happen. 

Li Chuntao didn't allow Mu Jianyu to help her get on her feet before leaving him in Ying's work s.p.a.ce. She didn't want to be touched by him as she was disgusted by his lies and pretentiousness. 

---

The drive towards the foster home where Mu Jianyu's mother was staying was short. Behind them, Yu Lou and Su Ling followed using her car. Mu Jianyu tried to ignore their presence and led Ying inside with a bouquet of flowers in his arm. 

The place didn't have much difference to the foster homes Li Chuntao had seen before except that this was considerably larger in s.p.a.ce and the scent reminded her of the hospital. For someone like Mu Jianyu, he was able to afford to pay well for his mother's wellbeing. 

"Ying, my mother hasn't seen you in years. It's not that she doesn't like you, but she was wary of how you'll treat her," Mu Jianyu said as they took the elevator and pressed the b.u.t.ton to the fourth floor, where his mother was. 

"Treat her? Did I do something to offend your mother?" Li Chuntao was beyond confused as to why her sister was being treated by her mother-in-law this way. This was ridiculous. Aside from Lin Meirong, who else wouldn't like Ying? 

They stopped just outside room 401. Mu Jianyu gave her a worried look and knocked on the door lightly before turning the k.n.o.b to open it. 

"Mother? Ying and I are here to visit you. Have you eaten your lunch?" He asked and placed a bag filled with fruits and the bouquet of flowers on the nearby table. 

Li Chuntao didn't step inside immediately but took a good look at the room from where she stood, before her eyes landed on an old woman sitting on the bed. She looked really old and sickly. She was too thin, almost skin and bones and there were some apparatus connected to her body. 

The old woman eyed her as if scrutinizing her. Li Chuntao wanted to glare back but she reminded herself that she was now Ying, not Chuntao. she can always deal with this old hag later. 

"Ying, come here. Don't be shy and greet mother," Mu Jianyu called after her. 

Li Chuntao plastered an awkward smile in her face and entered. 

"Good afternoon, Mother. I hope you are feeling well today," she greeted. 

The old woman scanned her from head to toe before turning to face her son. Li Chuntao had seen the unconcealed disgust the woman had when she looked at her. Was this the kind of mother-in-law her twin sister had? 

'Oh, my poor Ying. Why did you allow such a person to look down on you?'

"I heard what happened to your wife. You should pay more attention to her health. She'd lost a lot of weight since the last time I've seen her." Song Xiang Rong told him. 

Mu Jianyu was taken aback from his mother's words. He had no idea his wife had visited his mother while he was busy with Lin Meirong. 

"Mother, did Ying visit you before her accident?" He asked and took his mother's hand in his. 

The old woman hummed and ignored Li Chuntao's presence and looked outside the window where she could see cars come and go. She'd seen her son and Li Chuntao arrive earlier, so she wasn't surprised when they showed up on her door. 

"She visited me two days before her accident. She told me to get well and take care of you." Her eyes went back to her son and then s.h.i.+fted to Li Chuntao who stood next to him, gripping the straps of her handbag tightly in her hands. 

"Where was she planning to go anyway?" She questioned them. 

Mu Jianyu stiffened in his seat and looked at his wife who was bashfully avoiding their gazes. 

"She was about to go visit her sister when it happened, but don't worry mother. Ying and I are trying our best to work out our marriage. Right, Ying?" He looked expectantly to his wife, hoping she would play along with him to convince his mother. 

"Yes, Mother. Please don't worry about us and focus on your recovery." 

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