Lu Yan had almost never seen Jiang Shuyin smile in front of him.
When she smiled, she was bright and cheerful, like a newly bloomed peach blossom in spring, so beautiful that one couldn't look away.
Seeing Lu Yan's eyes darken, Jiang Shuyin quickly looked away.
To be honest, she was quite touched that Lu Yan was willing to put down his pride to keep the children company.
Through her observations over the past two days, she found that he genuinely liked the children.
In front of the children, he wasn't domineering at all; instead, he was endlessly doting and gentle.
It was a world of difference from his usual tough-guy image.
After Little Sweet Orange finished horseback riding, she ran off to play with her Barbie dolls.
Lu Yan walked up to Little Yiyi. He squatted his tall body down and rubbed the boy's head. Kiddo, Daddy is leaving tonight. Next time we meet, how about Daddy takes you shooting?
Little Yiyi's eyes flickered.
He inexplicably felt a hint of temptation.
But he wouldn't just casually acknowledge him like Little Sweet Orange did.
Until Mommy forgave him, he wouldn't forgive him either.
We'll see! he said, acting quite cool and aloof.
That night, Lu Yan left Yuzhou Island.
Jiang Shuyin stayed and played with the children for nearly a week. After sending them back to Country M, she returned to Harbor City.
During this time, Lu Yan didn't contact her.
Once he completed his mission for Third Master Qin, he would probably go to Country M to visit the two children.
He had promised not to fight her for custody, and Jiang Shuyin wouldn't interfere too much with his visits with the children.
After returning, Jiang Shuyin eavesdropped on Ji Shaoqin's latest messages.
Listening in, she discovered a massive secret.
Ji Shaoqin and Qin Xiaoxiao were actually lovers!
At this moment, the two were talking in a car.
Qin Xiaoxiao sounded furious:
You snitched to my dad that Lu Yan is an undercover cop? Are you crazy? My dad is already paranoid by nature. To test Lu Yan, he set a trap that ended up getting Lu Yan shot twice and falling off a cliff into the ocean. His fate is unknown now, are you happy?
Hearing this, Jiang Shuyin's breath hitched.
Lu Yan was shot twice, fell off a cliff, and his fate was unknown?
Ji Shaoqin sneered coldly:
Lu Yan has only been with Third Master Qin for three years, yet Third Master Qin handed important business over for him to handle. Three years ago, Lu Yan saved Third Master Qin and gained his trust. Don't you think that's too much of a coincidence? I reminded Third Master Qin to be careful, and it was for your and Third Master Qin's own good.
Qin Xiaoxiao became even more agitated:
What do you mean for me and my dad's own good? I think it's for your Ji family. Recently, my dad has reduced cooperation with the Ji family, and you're getting anxious, aren't you? Anyway, if Lu Yan dies, I will never forgive you!
Without waiting for Ji Shaoqin to say anything else, Qin Xiaoxiao slammed the car door and left.
Jiang Shuyin took off her headphones. Her emotions were in turmoil, unable to calm down for a long time.
She picked up her phone and dialed Lu Yan's private number.
The prompt said it was turned off.
A sudden panic gripped her heart.
Could it be that something really happened to him?
This feeling of panic had briefly appeared once before, when he almost died in the Black Desert.
She didn't want to delve into the reasons behind it.
But ultimately, no matter how much she hated him, she didn't want his life to be in danger.
Since he was undercover, if she rashly went looking for him now, it would only arouse suspicion.
She could only wait and see, waiting for news.
But for several days in a row, there was no news of Lu Yan.
It was as if he had vanished from the face of the earth.
Just as Jiang Shuyin was about to ask Ji Chi for information, a man wearing a suit, leather shoes, and glasses came to find her.
Miss Jiang, I am Mr. Lu Yan's psychiatrist. Is it convenient to talk?
Jiang Shuyin opened the apartment door and let Lu Yan's psychiatrist in.
The psychiatrist took out a file folder and handed it to Jiang Shuyin. This is what Mr. Lu Yan's lawyer asked me to give you. After Mr. Lu returned from Yuzhou Island, he made a will. All the property under his name has been transferred to you and the two children. Mr. Lu's only request is that if something unexpected happens to him one day, he hopes you can take the children back to meet his parents.
The psychiatrist took out the contact information for Lu Yan's parents.
Jiang Shuyin frowned deeply. Lu Yan... did something really happen to him?
The psychiatrist's face was solemn. The IBI has already sent people to secretly search and rescue, but there is no news yet. It's likely that the worst has happened, but it's hard to say for sure. Mr. Lu has been undercover for so many years; he has experience in self-rescue and escape.
Jiang Shuyin lowered her long eyelashes, her lips pressed tightly into a straight line.
Looking at the expression on Jiang Shuyin's face, the psychiatrist narrowed his eyes slightly.
As a psychiatrist, he could see through Jiang Shuyin's micro-expressions to the emotions hidden deep in her heart.
Perhaps, she hadn't even had time to catch those emotions herself.
He felt that she didn't just feel hatred and disgust towards Lu Yan, as Lu Yan had claimed.
The psychiatrist took out a black diary and handed it to Jiang Shuyin.
This is Lu Yan's diary. It was originally a top-secret file kept in my clinic. Besides me, no one has read this diary, but I feel it's necessary for you to take a look.
Perhaps after you read it, you'll understand why he tortured and abused you in the Black Desert.
The psychiatrist didn't say much more to Jiang Shuyin. After explaining what he needed to, he got up and left.
After the psychiatrist left, Jiang Shuyin looked down at the diary in her hands.
She closed her eyes, and after a long while, she opened it with complicated emotions.
Year XX, Month XX, Day X.
This morning, the First Boss, Second Boss, and Third Boss called me to the conference room for a meeting.
I didn't expect Jiang Shuyin to be brought in. They all knew she was a member of the special forces. Now that she was here, the bosses discussed how to torture her, abuse her, and finally tear her into pieces.
Hearing their proposed plans, I was terrified. In order for Jiang Shuyin to survive, I arranged for people to take her out to bake under the sun, causing her skin to become red and swollen. But I didn't expect that when the First Boss saw her skin injured, he actually wanted to give her to those subordinates who didn't even treat women as human beings, letting them take turns raping her.
I had to step forward and publicly claim Jiang Shuyin. That night, the First Boss arranged for someone to guard my door and monitor me. I had no choice but to take out my belt, act like a monster, and whip Jiang Shuyin, forcefully making her my woman.
I saw the hatred in her eyes, but there was no other way. If I didn't do that to her, she would have been ruined by countless men and would have died a miserable death.
After the First Boss's people left, I saw the tears sliding down from the corners of Jiang Shuyin's eyes. At that moment, my heart felt like it was pierced by a needle. It hurt so much.
I'm sorry. In order to keep you alive, I had to go against my will and become a demon.
Year XX, Month XX, Day X.
The sunburn on Jiang Shuyin's face healed, and her skin became much fairer. When the First Boss saw her appearance, he actually demanded her from me. He said he wanted to use Jiang Shuyin's head as a sacrifice to the dead members of the crime syndicate.
I panicked. Remembering the syndicate's rule for sacrifices—that a woman cannot have cigarette burns on her body—I returned to the room and, without explanation, burned her skin with cigarette ash.
She glared at me with bloodshot, resentful eyes. In that moment, I knew she would never forgive me for as long as she lived.
But as long as I can keep her alive, it doesn't matter if she hates me.
...
...
Month XX, Day XX, Year XX.
It has been four years. All of this should be coming to an end very soon.
Regardless of whether I can make it out of here in the end, I must send her away safely.
Month XX, Day XX, Year XX.
Every time I torment her, my heart aches unbearably.
I don't know how to explain it to her. If I treat her well, there is no way she will survive.
Her hatred for me is growing stronger by the day. It feels as though the two of us have walked into a dead end.
If I end up dying here, I suppose it could be considered a form of compensation to her!
Perhaps if I die, she won't hate me quite so much.
Month XX, Day XX, Year XX.
She is pregnant.
I am going to be a father. This feeling is like a dream.
But she said she won't keep the baby.
I want so desperately to tell her that the pain I've caused her over these years wasn't intentional. Would she forgive me? Would she keep our child?
...
He didn't write many diary entries. They were all written when he was in extreme emotional agony and desperately needed an outlet.
Jiang Shuyin finished reading the last entry and fell into a long silence.
By the time she finally moved, she realized her face was already completely drenched in tears.
