Chapter 18: It Was That Simple?
Editor: Atlas Studios
Liang Mulan was well aware that Lin Ran liked Gu Shaoting. In fact, she had told Liang Mulan herself!
She had wholeheartedly believed that if the Lins were to marry into the Gu Family, a daughter from the Lin family would be appropriate. After she began to develop feelings towards Gu Shaoting, Lin Ran naturally saw herself as his fiancée. And… Liang Mulan had given what rightfully belonged to her—the engagement—to Lin Nuan?!
On what basis?
Lin Ran's fingers coiled from the intensity of her seething fury.
She turned around to quickly leave. Yet as soon as she reached the staircase, she suddenly stopped and stood still.
Why should she be the one leaving? She's the one who belongs to the Lin Family! She wasn't intimidated by Lin Nuan. So in what universe did she have to retreat inside her own territory?
Lin Nuan finally managed to calm down Liang Mulan. She told her that the man she was marrying was waiting right outside and that her only agenda today was to bring him back home to meet her. Liang Mulan finally stopped crying…
Liang Mulan wiped the tears away from the corners of her eyes with her already damp handkerchief. With furrowed eyebrows, she said in frustration, "Why didn't you say so earlier? Look at my ruined makeup—how on earth am I presentable now?"
Lin Nuan laughed gently. "No matter what, you still look beautiful."
The mother and daughter seemed to have returned to their former intimacy. It was the first time Lin Nuan said something flattering and playful to Liang Mulan after she had left home.
The guest had already reached the door. It was better not to keep Fu Huai'an waiting outside.
Liang Mulan didn't ask any more about her fiancé. She urged Lin Nuan to invite him inside.
Lin Nuan came out of the room and saw Lin Ran standing nearby with arms folded, as if she were waiting for her.
"Lin Nuan, oh wait… that's not right. I should be calling you, Lu Nuan?" Lin Ran said mockingly, her tone cold and sarcastic.
Lin Nuan actually understood how she felt. In Lin Ran's eyes, Lin Nuan was merely a thief, stealing the life that had always belonged to her.
Lin Ran had always felt that if the Lin Family had raised her, she would definitely outshine Lin Nuan—instead of being mocked behind her back as a hillbilly who came from an unknown place.
As they stared at each other, Lin Nuan's gaze was much gentler and calmer in nature.
Lin Nuan felt very apologetic towards Lin Ran. She said, "My identity card is still here in the Lin Family's home. I returned today just to retrieve it so I can collect my marriage certificate. If you don't want to see me again, I won't ever come back."
Lin Ran clenched her fists. In that instant, her nerves were on edge, and her body shook slightly as she asked, "Your marriage certificate…? With who? Gu Shaoting?"
Lin Nuan shook her head and apologized, "I've always wanted to apologize to you. I'm the one who stole twenty years of the life that belonged to you."
Lin Nuan's voice was clear, sincere, and soft. These few words stunned Lin Ran on the spot.
She probably didn't expect Lin Nuan to apologize, since it wasn't even her fault in the first place.
The fault… lied with Lin Nuan's birth parents.
Lin Ran cleared her throat as she steadily approached Lin Nuan, lowering her voice to say, "Since you feel sorry and you know… that you stole a life that didn't belong to you for so many years, then please stay away from my home… and my family. Especially my mother."
Lin Ran was trying to assert her power here, but her eyes ended up watering. She was basically a child, afraid that her own family was being robbed away.
She never was a cunning nor manipulative person by nature. To say something stern like that only revealed how unsettled she was inside.
Lin Nuan felt a piercing pain from the bottom of her heart. To avoid complicating things between Liang Mulan and her real daughter, she nodded.
"Very well…" Lin Nuan agreed to Lin Ran solemnly. "After I collect that certificate, I'll cut all ties with the Lin Family for good."
It was that simple?
Lin Ran was silently shaking inside.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone