There was nothing more to say.
I looked at Shasha, projecting my own sibling onto her, releasing the guilt I felt for not being able to protect that sibling through her.
How much time had passed? Ron and Ken returned. With the declaration that they had apprehended a criminal, they climbed into the carriage, which then slowly increased its speed.
Was it because Ron and Ken were there, or was it because the sound of Shasha’s sleeping breaths were pleasant? Before I knew it, I began to doze off.
And in that dream, I had to recall all the memories I wanted to forget.
A terrible nightmare. One I had never dreamt since becoming Isabella, but a nightmare that had haunted me all my life.
[Noah… Noah! Where are you?]I was an orphan. And Noah was my only family. At eight years old, my mother tightly strapped one-year-old Noah to my arms.
Even if he was just a small baby, bound to my young body, he was quite heavy. Heavy enough to make me wobble. But my mother didn’t care about that.
Instead, she opened a door somewhere.
An orphanage. Eight years old. I had just started to find it fun to read words. I read every sign I saw. Mom never praised me for it, but that was fine.
But this time, it wasn’t fine. An orphanage. I knew all too well what kind of place had that word on it.
[Mom?] [Go in.]There were no promises to return, no words of love, and no words of waiting. Just an order to go in, as if it were where I was supposed to be. No regret, no sorrow.
[Uh… Mom…] [Hurry.] [I did something wrong… don’t abandon me. I’ll be good. I’ll really be good…]Even an eight-year-old would know what kind of place it was.
[No. Being good won’t matter. You’re just a burden to me. A burden I have to abandon to live a new life.] [Uh… Mom.] [Don’t even think about looking for me. If you do, I’ll leave you in a place you can’t come back from. The conditions here are good, so just try to live well.]I shook my head in desperation.
[I did something wrong. It’s all my fault. So… please don’t abandon me… Mom.]Children born without asking to be, now abandoned.
[Be quiet!] [Please… Mom… I’ll behave. From now on… I’ll eat less and be quiet. I’ll hide in a corner of a room so I won’t bother you. I won’t go out. So… please don’t abandon me…] [Noisy! This is why I don’t like kids.]It wasn’t because we were poor.
Or because it was difficult to raise us.
Or because she couldn’t handle us alone. At least, that wasn’t the reason for my mom. A year ago, the day my younger sibling was born, my dad died in an accident while going to see Noah.
My dad was an orphan with no parents. My dad really loved me. He loved me as if trying to heal the loneliness of growing up without parents. He was looking forward to Noah’s birth more than anyone else.
But he left the world without even seeing the baby. After that, Mom left us with our grandfather. She never liked me in the first place.
My dad, who was working, had been the one to look after me, and after Dad left the world, she didn’t even glance at Noah, leaving him with Grandpa before disappearing.
And not even six months had passed since then when Grandpa also left the world.
Dad and Grandpa, everyone who loved me and Noah, disappeared like that. And after collecting the insurance money, Mom brought us here to abandon us.
Mom had no affection for us. No love, no regret.
[Mom…]It wasn’t because of poverty or any hardship. I remember there was a significant amount of insurance money and inheritance from Dad and Grandpa. There was also an aunt who could take care of me and Noah.
[Why are you abandoning us?]As a child, all I could do was ask that question to a mom who didn’t love me, who wouldn’t even look at me.
[Annoying.] [Are Noah and I annoying to you?] [Yeah. I wished you and your dad had died together. I don’t want to take care of you. I don’t have love for you. They say love comes when you have a child, but it never did for me.]Ah. Ah. I couldn’t even shed a tear.
I despise it, I hate it so much. I felt like passersby would adore us more.
[So when you grow up, don’t come looking for me. I never gave birth to you. Got it?] [……] [Answer.] [……Yes.] [You should be thankful I didn’t kill you and sent you to an orphanage. If you have any memories of me, it’s better to forget. I’m going to remarry.]As always, she was emotionless. Only animated when talking about her own life.
[Should Noah and I… not be around?] [Yes.] [You won’t come looking for us?] [Yes. If he bothers you, abandon him. How he wails.]With those words, she pulled out a wallet from her bosom and forcefully shoved a bundle of money into my bag.
[Then, live well.]I didn’t wish for her to say she’d be back soon, that she loved me. A few coins and a command to live well was all she left.
I don’t remember her face. But I clearly remember the sound of her heels clicking away.
That’s how Noah and I became orphans. I remember my mother’s name, where she lives, her phone number, everything. But I said nothing.
Because my mother died that day.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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