YU JIAO was startled when she heard that. She let go of her mother and quickly said, "Is this because of what happened to me? Mom, you don"t need to go that far."
"It"s precisely because of what happened that I needed to go that far," Ji Xiuying said, her voice full of undisguised determination.
"B-but, how about Uncle Mo? I know that Mom loves him. You don"t need to sacrifice your own happiness just because of this small mishap. I"m fine, Mom, really. So, please, instead of worrying about me, just think of what will make you happy." Yu Jiao smiled at her mother. "You already sacrifice a lot for me, Mom. More than anything, all I wanted is to see you happy."
This time, Ji Xiuying no longer stopped her tears from falling. By her daughter"s words, she suddenly understood a lot of things. Why Yu Jiao never objected to her sudden remarriage. Why, despite of the treatment she got from Mo Jian, she kept silent and didn"t tell her anything. Because Yu Jiao was doing it for her happiness.
How could she be so stupid and selfish that she didn"t even notice that? All she cared about was how she could maintain this façade of a family. But she forgot why it was called a "façade". Because nothing was real from the start. And just because of these fake familial bonds, she neglected the most important person in her life.
"I"m a failure as a m-mother!" she sobbed. "I"m s-sorry, Jiao Jiao."
Yu Jiao felt panicked, seeing such a huge reaction from her mother. "Mom, d-don"t cry. You didn"t do anything wrong."
Ji Xiuying shook her head. "No, I did. I let you suffer alone. I didn"t protect you as I should. I failed you, Jiao Jiao," she choked on her tears. "The fact that it needed this incident to happen before I could open my eyes and see how much I wronged you proved just how much of a failure I am." She tremblingly reached for her daughter"s hand and held it tightly. "I-I"m sorry… I"m so so-sorry… please, forgive me."
Yu Jiao"s vision blurred because of the tears that were starting to cloud her eyes. A drop of tear fell and it was like a signal. Tears started to stream down her cheeks. A silent sob escaped her mouth. She shook her head.
"There"s n-nothing to forgive, Mom. Because I never b-blamed you. I- I understood your position. You finally found someone that you wanted to spend the rest of your life with. Of course, you will try to protect that. Besides, it was me who chose not to tell you about what"s happening between me and Mo Jian. So, Mom, don"t blame yourself. Because I never did."
Ji Xiuying shook her head. "But I do! I am at fault. I am."
She had seen the sign that there was something wrong as early as when Yu Jiao asked if she could live at the school"s dorm. But what did Ji Xiuying do? Nothing. She turned a blind eye and forced herself to believe that she was simply overthinking. And look where her daughter ended up because of that.
Yu Jiao was hospitalized because of a head injury that was most likely caused by Mo Jian. She probably even suffered some psychological trauma because of the other"s bullying. And where was Ji Xiuying when all of this was happening? Somewhere far where she couldn"t even protect her.
She couldn"t forgive herself. If her daughter was someone who easily hate on people, their relations.h.i.+p would already probably at a point of no return. So, she should really be glad and thankful that her daughter grew up kind and thoughtful. Who didn"t have any malice in her heart.
Really, being blessed by such a daughter, Ji Xiuying shouldn"t have asked for more. But she was also just human. Being faced with temptation, she learned how to be greedy. Greed for the things that she couldn"t have. But this incident opened her eyes to the truth. That to be happy, she could only have one of the two. And she didn"t hesitate to choose her daughter.
They might return to the life they had before, but that"s okay. At least they were happy then.
Yu Jiao stared at her mother, whose tears still hadn"t stopped, and she reached out and hugged her. "If it will make Mom feel better, then, I forgive you. So, don"t cry anymore. Hmm?"
Ji Xiuying cried and laughed at the same time. Sometimes, she really wondered who was older between them. She hugged her daughter back and cried out all the tears that she could cry. Yu Jiao also did the same.
A few minutes had pa.s.sed before the two of them managed to calm down.
"Mom, are you really divorcing Uncle Mo?" Yu Jiao asked after a while.
Ji Xiuying nodded. She couldn"t live at the same house as that daughter of his. And most importantly, she couldn"t let that girl continue to torment her Yu Jiao. "It would only be us again from now on. Just like how it had always been."
"If that was what Mom really wanted, then, I"ll support you," Yu Jiao said. "But is it really what you want?"
"Yes," Ji Xiuying answered without hesitation.
Yu Jiao observed her mother"s expression and she could see that the other had already made up her mind. Even if she tried to convince her otherwise, she knew that it wouldn"t work. So, the only thing left for her to do was to support her.
"You don"t have to worry about school. You can stay at Guizu Academy. It would not be conducive to transfer especially since you"re already a third year. It might affect your College Entrance Examination if you do. You don"t have to worry about the tuition fee since it had already been paid in full. If Mo Guang Lin wants his money back, then, I"ll pay it back. I"ll also start looking for an apartment and a job. And—"
"Mom," Yu Jiao interrupted her mother"s long tirade. "I actually have money. Ahm, I think as long as we don"t spend so much, it will be enough."
Her mother showed a confused look. "Are you working part-time?"
"Well, something like that?"
Ji Xiuying became teary-eyed again. Her daughter probably worked part time so she didn"t have to ask for spending money. But where did she get the time to do a part-time job? She"s in her busiest year in high school and yet she had to work just so she wouldn"t bother her.
Seeing her mother"s expression, Yu Jiao kind of had an idea of what she was thinking about. So, she quickly said, before more misunderstandings popped up;
"Mom, it"s not what you think. I"m not tiring myself out for this "part-time job". In fact, I"m having fun. And, ahm, I also earn a lot of money from it."
And she proceeded telling her mother about being a well-known Blacksmith at Arcadia.
While Yu Jiao was explaining her "part-time job", a black BMW stopped in front of the hospital. A pair of long legs appeared and then a handsome man came down from the car.
Luo Ren rushed towards the hospital. The expression on his face was pure coldness.