Chapter 437: The Reason for Leaving Without Saying Goodbye

Regarding the woman who should have been her mother-in-law, Tang Xiuxia felt both respect and hatred.

When Qin Hongwen and his sister were still very young, their parents divorced. Their mother didn't remarry, insisting on raising the two children alone, hoping only that her son and daughter would become successful.

The two children were sensible and didn't let their mother's hard work go to waste. Qin Hongwen was admitted to Tsinghua University with amazing grades, and two years later, his sister was admitted to a key university in the Imperial Capital.

Their mother chose to leave her hometown and go to the Imperial Capital to work several jobs while taking care of the two children in college, her only hope being that her children could establish a foothold in the Imperial Capital as soon as possible.

The year Tang Xiuxia went to the Imperial Capital to drift, she was only in her early twenties.

By chance, she met Qin Hongwen, who was a graduate student at the time, at a restaurant where she was working.

At the time, she was being harassed by a customer, and Qin Hongwen stood up for her, which is how they met.

That shop was also a place where Qin Hongwen occasionally went to dine with friends. Later, every time he went there, the two would chat for a while.

In that era, mobile phones were not yet popular.

Once, after Qin Hongwen finished eating with friends, he had quite a bit to drink. Encouraged by several friends, he walked over with a flushed face and handed Tang Xiuxia a note with his dormitory phone number on it.

However, for a period of time afterward, Tang Xiuxia never dialed the number on that note.

There was no other reason; it was just her own sense of inferiority.

She was just an ordinary person who hadn't even gone to college, lived in a cheap rented room, and worked in a restaurant, while Qin Hongwen was a graduate student at Tsinghua University with a limitless future.

The two were destined to be from different worlds; she didn't dare to hope.

Even though she also had feelings for Qin Hongwen.

That month, Qin Hongwen and his friends didn't go to the shop again.

And Tang Xiuxia's mood quickly went from the initial relief to feeling lost.

She had thought Qin Hongwen wouldn't appear again.

It wasn't until Qixi Festival that Qin Hongwen walked into the shop with a bouquet of flowers and confessed to her in public.

Tang Xiuxia, experiencing that kind of scene for the first time, was stunned. After the surprise, everyone in the shop helped stir up the atmosphere.

Qin Hongwen's sincere confession gradually put the bewildered Tang Xiuxia at ease, and she let go of her misgivings and agreed to be with him.

Just like that, the two began a sweet romance.

Until their affair was discovered by Qin Hongwen's mother.

The latter went directly to the shop where Tang Xiuxia worked, demanded that Tang Xiuxia leave her son, and bluntly stated that she wasn't good enough for her son.

Tang Xiuxia naturally wasn't willing, and Qin Hongwen argued with his mother for the first time.

For a period of time after that, Qin Hongwen's mother didn't appear again, and the two continued to date.

Young lovers in their early twenties, and in the heat of passion, it was inevitable that they would get carried away after being together for a long time.

The two had been very careful and had taken protective measures, but unexpectedly, Tang Xiuxia still became pregnant by accident.

For the two of them at the time, this was undoubtedly a bolt from the blue.

Qin Hongwen was still very responsible, stating that he would take responsibility and marry her to raise the child together.

That very day, he went back to confess this to his mother and stated his firm attitude.

However, his mother didn't say anything on the surface, but inside, she was completely panicked.

She had thought her son's relationship with that woman was just a phase, that they were from different worlds, and that the novelty would soon wear off and they would break up.

She never expected that they would get someone pregnant.

She absolutely would not let her son, who had a bright future, marry that woman.

A few days later, she brought a young, beautiful girl and found Tang Xiuxia again.

That girl was a junior at Qin Hongwen's school who had always admired and liked him, and was also a local from the Imperial Capital with a wealthy family background.

"I have already met her parents and arranged an engagement for the two children. Here is one million; take it and leave the Imperial Capital. Whether you give birth to the child or abort it is none of our business."

Tang Xiuxia still remembered this sentence clearly to this day. Being very young at the time, she felt a great humiliation.

She naturally didn't take the money, didn't even look at it, and left in anger.

She gave Qin Hongwen three days, but for some reason, Qin Hongwen never appeared. Heartbroken, she packed her things and boarded the train back to her hometown.

"Why did you leave without saying goodbye? Did you distrust me that much? Did you really think I would listen to my mother and marry that woman?"

Qin Hongwen looked at the only woman he had ever loved in his life with red eyes and asked through gritted teeth.

Tang Xiuxia held the teacup with both hands, lowered her head, and said: "I waited for you for three days, but you never came to explain. I called the dormitory phone several times, and your classmates said you were never in the dormitory."

Qin Hongwen was stunned for a long time, then said in a deep voice: "That day, I knew my mother had gone behind my back to meet the other parents and arrange an engagement, so I had a big argument with her. My mother fainted in anger and was rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. It was also at that time that the doctor told us my mother had liver problems."

"I spent those days in the hospital accompanying my mother. After her condition stabilized, I immediately went to find you, but learned that you had already left the Imperial Capital."

"I only knew your hometown was in Yucheng. I've been to Yucheng many times over the years, but I never found you."

Tang Xiuxia placed the cup in her hand on the coffee table, covered her face with both hands, and wept silently.

Qin Tian drove through the traffic and went straight to the residential area where Xia Nuannuan lived.

Since when he didn't know, he had already regarded this place as his other home; in a sense, it was even a more complete home.

Even with his determined mind, after that so-called "father" suddenly appeared, his state of mind had collapsed a bit.

At this moment, he was like a heartbroken and helpless child, urgently wanting to find someone he could rely on to pour out all the grievances he had held for so many years.

After parking the car, he walked quickly to Xia Nuannuan's door and rang the doorbell.

"Who is it?"

Su Xia's voice came.

"Auntie, it's me!"

Qin Tian responded loudly.

"Xiaotian?"

"Brother?"

In the living room, the family of three who had just finished dinner were all a bit stunned.

Although Qin Tian had been to their house many times, he had never been this sudden.

Moreover, a woman's intuition, combined with their understanding of Qin Tian, made Su Xia and Xia Nuannuan sense from his voice and tone that his emotions seemed a bit off.

"I'll go open the door."

Xia Nuannuan hurriedly stood up, walked over, and opened the door.

As soon as the door opened, before she could react, she was tightly hugged by Qin Tian.

Xia Nuannuan was stunned for a moment, then came to her senses and reached out to gently stroke his back.

"It's okay, it's okay. What's wrong? If something happened, tell me slowly."

Behind them, the couple Su Xia and Xia Zhengping also looked at each other.