Chapter 1: The Final Farewell

Ye Wanwan was half leaning against the headboard of the bed, a servant standing nearby holding a tray was preparing to leave. Suddenly, Ye Wanwan spoke up, "Where's Zhouzhou? Hasn't he come back yet?"

The servant turned around and replied very respectfully, "Madam, a downpour is about to start outside. The old madam called to say it's not safe on the roads, so the young master will stay at the old house tonight and will not be returning."

Upon hearing this, Ye Wanwan's expression dimmed slightly. She didn't say anything else, only nodding faintly.

Then the servant left the bedroom, leaving her sitting quietly at the headboard alone.

She just sat there, dazed, for quite a while before reaching over to the bedside table for her phone. She glanced at the time—it was already ten o'clock.

But at this time, her son, Shen Wenzhou, should not have gone to bed yet. Ye Wanwan hesitated for a few seconds before dialing his number.

The sound of "beep~beep~beep" came from the phone. Although it was just a short interval, Ye Wanwan found it extremely lengthy.

Finally, the call was answered just as it was about to disconnect automatically.

"Mom."

The voice of fifteen-year-old Shen Wenzhou still carried a hint of childishness, yet the distance in his tone towards Ye Wanwan was clearly discernible.

Ye Wanwan felt a twinge of pain in her heart and struggled to say, "Zhouzhou."

Shen Wenzhou could hear the sorrow in her tone, but he didn't speak, just quietly waited for his mother to continue.

However, he waited for quite a while without hearing the person on the other end speak. If not for the fact that he could still hear the slightly heavy breathing, he would have thought the call had been disconnected.

In the end, it was Shen Wenzhou who gave in first, sounding a bit resigned as he spoke in a gentler voice, "The weather outside is bad, and it could burst into a heavy downpour at any moment. Grandma is worried about me going back, so I will stay here tonight. You're not well, so you should rest early."

Ye Wanwan actually had so, so much she wanted to say to her son, but those words were like a tangled ball of yarn, making it impossible for her to find the end and simply unable to start.

Eventually, it all condensed into one sentence, "Alright, then Zhouzhou, take good care of yourself."

Shen Wenzhou furrowed his brow. He felt that his mother's call today was a bit strange, but he couldn't quite understand what was off. He was about to say something else, but the sound of the call disconnecting came through the phone.

Looking at the phone that indicated the call had ended, Shen Wenzhou was silent for a few seconds before not thinking much about it anymore. He put down the phone to rest, as he still had to go to school the next day.

After hanging up, Ye Wanwan made another call to a different man.

That man was Shen Yi, her husband, the man she loved but could not have, the source of her miserable life.

The call was answered before long, and she instinctively called out, "Shen Yi."

The man at the end of the phone replied deeply and then asked, "Why haven't you rested yet? Can't sleep? Did you take your medicine tonight?"

"I've taken the medicine, I just wanted to give you a call," Ye Wanwan explained.

They say that people can sense their impending death, and it seemed she could too. That's why she called her son and also wanted to call him, perhaps as a final farewell.

But upon connecting, she realized she didn't know what to say at all. It seemed that between them, years had passed in wasted time, leaving nothing to talk about.

After another moment of silence, Shen Yi finally spoke, "Rest early, I'm almost finished with my work here. When I get back..."