Chapter 150: That Woman

In the narrow elevator lobby, the middle-aged woman was dressed in a khaki-colored, stylish knitted base shirt, with a soft and elegant tone, while her lower body was cleverly paired with a pair of flawless white slim-fit trousers, perfectly outlining her full and graceful figure curves.

Time seemed to have favored her exceptionally, not carving the traces of years onto her beautiful face, but instead bestowing upon her a unique mature charm and allure, making one unable to help but be captivated by it.

Of course, this charm largely stemmed from that exquisite and peerless makeup.

The delicate, silk-like foundation perfectly covered skin imperfections while revealing a natural, healthy glow; the upward arc of the eyeliner was just right, outlining deep and bright eyes; the lip color was vibrant and rich in layers, like a ripe cherry...

Such makeup was undoubtedly the icing on the cake, elevating her already outstanding appearance to a higher realm.

The middle-aged man beside her wore a business shirt paired with suit trousers, with a Longines watch on his wrist, possessing quite a bit of the temperament of a social elite.

Xu Weizhou could not help but feel a bit distracted upon seeing one beautiful woman after another, as lovely as flowers.

Good heavens! Usually, one might not even see a beauty on an entire street, yet now so many top-tier ones were appearing in a cluster.

Could it be that he had traveled to the Women's Country?

Xu Weizhou asked, "Shen Yan, are these all your classmates?"

Shen Yan raised an eyebrow and chuckled, saying, "Yes, Brother Xu, are you dazzled by the sight?"

"Hey! You brat!" Xu Weizhou scolded with a laugh.

Shen Yan?

It really was him!

The middle-aged woman looked at that incomparably familiar face, her lips unable to stop trembling, and that long-sealed past began to emerge in her mind one by one.

For over a dozen years, this was the first time she had been in such close contact with Shen Yan.

The last time they met was a year ago; without realizing it, he had already grown so tall and handsome, simply carved from the same mold as that person.

Moreover, his entire temperament had changed; between his brows was confidence and composure, and a faint smile hung at the corners of his mouth, making one feel as if bathed in a spring breeze, unable to help but feel a sense of affection.

Noticing his wife's abnormality, Xu Weiguang asked with concern, "Manshu, do you feel unwell somewhere?"

Hearing this, the two teenage children behind them immediately stepped forward to show their concern, asking, "Mom, what's wrong?" and "Mom, are you okay?"

Zhong Manshu wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes, suppressing her agitated heart, and tried her best to maintain a calm appearance.

"It's nothing, just suddenly remembered some things."

Manshu?

Hearing this name that had been lingering in his memory, Shen Yan subconsciously looked up and saw a charming woman staring fixedly at him, her lips unable to stop trembling, and mist filling her eyes, as if she were looking at a long-lost relative.

Shen Yan was suddenly shocked, and a sentence blurted out: "Are you Zhong Manshu?"

Xu Weiguang looked the young man up and down, and combined with his wife's abnormality, asked directly, "Do you know my wife?"

Zhong Manshu was struck as if by lightning; now she could no longer control her emotions, and in an instant, tears flowed down her cheeks like a breached flood.

She never expected that this child would know her name and still keep it in his heart.

It was all her fault as a mother for being so derelict; this child must have missed his mother very much.

The others were confused, completely unable to understand the current situation.

At this moment, Yu Youwei recalled the stories she had heard from her parents, a look of disbelief appearing in her eyes, and she walked quickly to Shen Yan's side, her gaze fixed on the middle-aged woman in front of them.

So this is what Shen Yan's mother looks like; so young! So beautiful!

Although Wu Yueer had never heard this name, after a little association with the situation at the scene, she had a rough guess.

She reckoned this must be the woman who abandoned Shen Yan and flew away!

After the initial distraction, reason returned to his brain.

Facing Xu Weiguang's question, Shen Yan shook his head and said calmly, "I don't know her, I've just heard this name before."

After speaking, he didn't even look at Zhong Manshu, nor did he care about the reactions of others, and pulled Hao Anqi directly into the elevator. Yu Youwei and the others followed closely behind, though their gazes were all looking at Zhong Manshu with immense curiosity.

Until the moment the elevator door closed, Zhong Manshu seemed to have lost all her strength, her body suddenly going limp, but fortunately, Xu Weiguang supported her in time.

Xu Weiguang's brow furrowed into a 'chuan' shape, and he asked, "Manshu, what is the situation now? That young man doesn't seem to know you, but he has heard your name?"

Zhong Manshu shook her head powerlessly, her eyes hollow and vacant.

Looking at his distracted wife, Xu Weiguang did not continue to press; after all, at his age, he would not be as impulsive as a young person.

At this very moment, the atmosphere inside the elevator was indescribably strange and silent; the women frequently stole glances at Shen Yan, while Shen Yan turned a blind eye, his fingers sliding aimlessly across his phone screen.

He himself did not know what he specifically wanted to do.

For over thirty years, this was the first time he had seen that woman; unlike the cold-blooded and ruthless person he had imagined, she appeared dignified and elegant, spoke in a gentle and soft voice, was delicate and soft-bodied, and was dressed so stylishly and beautifully that one could not tell she was nearly forty.

Clearly, Zhong Manshu had been doing quite well all these years; after remarrying, she was cherished by her husband and surrounded by children—perhaps this was the life she had dreamed of.

And for this, she did not hesitate to abandon him!

It was not that Shen Yan had never thought about meeting that woman, but this possibility was like finding a needle in a haystack, extremely slim; after all, the world was vast, and he didn't even know where this woman was, let alone think about trying to find her.

He had fantasized about his various reactions to meeting this woman: being agitated and rushing into her arms; or questioning her loudly about why she abandoned him and didn't care; the most likely scenario should have been being calm and treating her as a stranger.

However, when truly facing this scene, he realized that he could not be calm at all; the emotions surging in his heart were like a raging tide, complex and subtle, difficult to put into words.

He tried to make himself calm down, but his heart was churning like waves stirred up by a gale; resentment mixed with a trace of joy, putting him in a contradictory state.

So this is what Mom looks like!

When he was a child playing with other kids, they could never escape the topic of "My Mom"; this child would say my mom bought me a new pair of shoes today, and that child would say my mom took me to the amusement park.

When it was Shen Yan's turn, he would stammer and couldn't say anything, and upon learning that Shen Yan didn't have a mom, a group of children would mock him as a wild child that nobody wanted.

Afterwards, Shen Yan would cry and run home to ask Shen Nainai: "Why do other children have moms, but I don't?"

Shen Nainai would only kindly say: "Your mom went to a place very, very far away; you will be able to see her when you grow up."

If he wanted to ask more, Shen Nainai would refuse to talk about it, even if Shen Yan cried and shouted, it was no use.

After starting school, the Chinese class always had the composition topic "My Mom," and Shen Yan gathered his courage to ask his teacher: "Teacher, what kind of person is Mom exactly?"

The teacher smiled and replied: "Shen Yan, Mom is the greatest person in this world; they contribute silently..."

Through the teacher's description, Shen Yan had a rough impression of his mom for the first time.

By chance, Shen Yan heard a conversation between his second uncle, Shen Liangcheng, and his wife, and only then did he learn the name Zhong Manshu and learn that his mom had abandoned him and left.

Ever since then, Shen Yan never had another shred of longing for this woman he had never met, and when other children called him a wild child, he simply let them be.

That was the truth, after all!