It felt as though the time between closing and opening her eyes was no more than a blink, and she was back home.
The same small pavilion stood before her. A torrential downpour poured down, yet her clothes remained perfectly dry.
Flowers. Endless, boundless flowers.
Deep blue forget-me-nots swayed in the thick gray-white mist.
The fog consumed her field of vision. The pouring rain seemed to turn the entire world into a solitary island, leaving only this place.
Uneasily, Ye Xingmian looked back at her “mother.” That face… seemed also shrouded in mist, no longer clear, all details lost.
Yet it had always been like this, hadn’t it? She had simply never noticed.
This was an illusory world. The mother before her was nothing but an illusion.
It was as if she had only just realized this, but also as if she had understood this truth for a long time.
Still, her hands trembled.
“Mom… Mother… Are you leaving?”
Even if it’s fake, even if it’s just a dream, no matter what—stay with me a little longer, please.
If only all the warmth I’ve ever received had never appeared in the first place.
But since it did, then please don’t leave again.
Whether it’s real or not, even if it’s just a dream my brain conjured up to deceive me, don’t go.
Don’t leave me…
Her “mother” did not respond. Ye Xingmian’s hands clutched anxiously at the hem of her clothes, until the touch grew more and more unreal, more and more ethereal.
Her “mother” slowly crouched down.
From that face, now so hard to see clearly, Ye Xingmian sensed a trace of tenderness.
“Mianmian, you are my most beloved daughter. So you must live on strongly. No matter what setbacks you encounter, remember that your mother is waiting for you, okay?”
That warmth barely managed to calm her.
The world began to slowly dissolve. The distant sky turned into a void of nothingness; countless details vanished at breakneck speed.
“No… Mother… Don’t go!”
“Forget-me-not, my child.”
“No! Don’t go!”
Her mother’s body could no longer be touched. It was as if she had turned into transparent water, ethereal smoke, vanishing from the world.
“Mom! Mother!!”
In the pitch-black attic, soft murmurs escaped from the small bed.
“Mother…”
No screaming.
In the instant the dream ended, Ye Xingmian had already realized.
It was all fake.
This was reality.
This was the truth.
The villa in the rain, the sea of forget-me-nots, the sea of rapeseed flowers, the three years spent with her mother.
All of it was fake.
Yet it felt so real, as if she had truly lived through that long stretch of time, so real that even her actual memories had grown hazy.
Even her memories from before falling asleep felt as distant and blurry as if a century had passed.
So that mother—was she also a fantasy I conjured up?
She was so perfect, so gentle.
Was it all fake?
…Well, yeah. In reality, what mother would care about me like that or spend time with me?
I haven’t even seen her face since I was little.
The corners of her eyes felt a little damp. Ye Xingmian quietly wiped them, refusing to let the tears fall.
Could she dream that dream again?
Could she see “Mother” again?
Even if it was fake, for someone like me, that kind of love was already precious.
If possible, I’d love to immerse myself in a dream like that and never wake up.
But there was no need for that.
After all, even in reality, I still have something to look forward to.
Setting aside the distant goal of reuniting with Mom after the exams, there was today’s meeting with Liu Yinuo to anticipate, wasn’t there?
She finally pulled herself back from the gap between dream and reality. Lying in bed, Ye Xingmian quietly turned over.
Reality wasn’t as beautiful as the dream, but it wasn’t completely awful either.
There was still a little bit of hope.
But that dream—she couldn’t forget it.
The reunion with her mother would most likely not go smoothly.
Then there would still be money worries, the pressure of life—definitely not as carefree as in the dream.
So…
“Forget-me-not…”
Even though it was just a dream, just an illusion her brain made up to fool her, Ye Xingmian couldn’t help but pay attention to those words.
Forget—how could I ever forget?
Only if I encounter happiness and joy greater than this in the future could I possibly let those things fade away and put them aside.
Otherwise, it’s just wishful thinking, isn’t it?
She gave a dazed little laugh. When she snapped back to reality, the light in Ye Xingmian’s eyes dimmed.
As expected, reuniting with her mother was what she wanted most. Everything else came second.
Having dreamed that dream, naturally, she missed her mom.
They say the flow of time in dreams is different from reality. Even though the dream felt like a century, in reality, it seemed like not even one whole night had passed.
Was it because of that dream?
She had woken up so quickly.
Outside, the sky was still pitch black. She remembered going to bed not that early, so at this rate, it might be several hours until dawn, right?
Should she try to sleep a little more?
Ye Xingmian tried closing her eyes.
She felt no drowsiness. Her mind was awake. Her eyes were shut, but she wasn’t asleep at all.
This went on for a long time. When she opened her eyes again, the darkness before her was still total.
She couldn’t sleep at all—she seemed to be suffering from insomnia.
But her body still felt tired, and her mental state was a bit off.
She tried to fall asleep again. This time, it finally worked.
Only this time, she didn’t dream.
But she also didn’t wake up normally.
A sharp morning wind slammed against the glass window, making a sound like a wailing ghost.
That was what woke her up.
The first sensation upon opening her eyes was fatigue.
Dim morning light had already seeped into the small attic. She guessed it was around seven o’clock.
Since it was Saturday, she didn’t have to worry about school.
It was supposed to be a time for sleeping in, but she couldn’t fall back asleep.
After hesitating for a moment, she began to put on her clothes, then got out of bed.
The flimsy bedboard let out a series of creaks and groans, making her worry it might suddenly collapse.
Now that she was up, what should she do?
In the past, there was always a mountain of housework waiting for her the moment she woke up. But recently, her foster parents seemed mindful of Lin Ziyan’s feelings and no longer forced her to do those things.
But now that she had free time, suddenly faced with a vast stretch of empty hours, she couldn’t help feeling a bit lost.
Her phone was still dead. She couldn’t contact Liu Yinuo, nor could she check if Qin Haiyue had sent her any new messages.
Ye Xingmian tried turning it on several times. When that failed, she could only sigh and put the phone back in her schoolbag.
In the end, she had no choice but to go downstairs.
Her foster parents had already left for work early. The open door of their bedroom made that obvious.
Lin Ziyan was clearly still asleep.
On days off, she usually slept until around eight o’clock.
That was if she hadn’t stayed up late.
If she had stayed up, she might sleep straight until noon.
Ye Xingmian silently abandoned the idea of waking her up.
In the past, the first thing she did after getting up was to wake Lin Ziyan, then cook breakfast for herself and her.
But today she had gotten up quite early. If Lin Ziyan heard her calling, she’d probably be grumpy from being woken up, right?
Better not call Lin Ziyan. That way, she could enjoy her own peace and quiet.