Xiaoyu woke before dawn.
For several moments, she remained motionless beneath the white sheets, listening to the silence surrounding the Lu residence.
Then her hand instinctively reached toward the bedside table.
The silver hairpin was there.
Exactly where she had placed it before sleeping.
She picked it up carefully.
Morning light reflected against the tiny blue stone.
It looked ordinary.
Yet the moment she held it, fragments of yesterday returned.
"Shen-gege..."
The name escaped her lips before she realized it.
Her heart skipped.
Was it truly a memory?
Or simply a dream she desperately wanted to understand?
---
Outside her room, Madam Chen was arranging fresh flowers.
She noticed Xiaoyu standing in the hallway.
"You woke early."
"I couldn't sleep."
Madam Chen's eyes fell upon the hairpin.
For the first time since Xiaoyu had met her, the older woman's calm expression faltered.
"You found it."
"You know this?"
Madam Chen remained silent.
"I've seen it before."
"Where?"
She hesitated.
"A long time ago."
"With whom?"
Again, silence.
Xiaoyu smiled bitterly.
"Everyone in this house knows the truth except me."
Madam Chen lowered her gaze.
"Sometimes protecting someone means waiting until they're ready."
"I'm tired of waiting."
Before Madam Chen could answer, footsteps echoed from the staircase.
Lu Shen appeared.
Perfectly dressed as always.
His expression remained unreadable.
His eyes briefly stopped on the hairpin before returning to Xiaoyu.
"Breakfast."
Only one word.
Yet somehow it sounded like an escape.
---
Neither of them spoke during the meal.
The sound of cutlery against porcelain filled the enormous dining room.
Finally Xiaoyu placed her cup down.
"Were we neighbors?"
"No."
"Classmates?"
"No."
"Family friends?"
"No."
She folded her arms.
"Then tell me how we met."
Lu Shen looked at her quietly.
"When you remember completely..."
"...I'll answer everything."
"I don't want everything."
"I want one answer."
"You'll receive it at the right time."
She laughed softly.
"Do you always control conversations like this?"
"When necessary."
"And who decides when it's necessary?"
"I do."
For the first time since entering the mansion,
Xiaoyu stood up before finishing breakfast.
"I hate that answer."
She walked away without looking back.
Lu Shen didn't stop her.
But he never touched the coffee growing cold in front of him.
---
That afternoon, rain clouds gathered once again.
Xiaoyu escaped into the library.
Rows of books surrounded her like silent witnesses.
She climbed the small ladder and reached for a novel placed on the highest shelf.
Just as her fingers touched it—
the ladder shifted.
She lost her balance.
The book slipped.
For one terrifying second she expected to fall.
Instead,
strong hands caught her waist.
The ladder steadied.
The falling book landed harmlessly on the carpet.
Neither of them moved.
Xiaoyu slowly looked down.
Lu Shen was standing directly behind her.
One arm supporting her.
The other holding the ladder.
His heartbeat was surprisingly steady.
Unlike hers.
"You should ask for help."
She realized how close they were.
"So should you."
He frowned slightly.
"I wasn't climbing."
"No."
Her voice became quieter.
"But you're carrying everything alone."
For a brief moment,
his eyes met hers.
Something unreadable passed between them.
Then he stepped back.
The distance returned.
Yet somehow it felt smaller than before.
---
Later that evening,
Madam Chen served dinner in the garden pavilion.
Lanterns glowed softly beneath the trees.
The rain had stopped.
Everything felt peaceful.
Until Lu Shen's assistant hurried toward them.
He rarely appeared at the mansion after sunset.
"Mr. Lu."
"What happened?"
The assistant handed over a tablet.
"The board meeting has been leaked."
Lu Shen read the screen without changing expression.
Several financial articles filled the page.
But one headline stood out.
WHO IS THE REAL MRS. LU?
Below it were photographs.
The gala.
The garden.
The park.
Someone had been following Xiaoyu for days.
The final picture made her freeze.
It showed her speaking with the old violinist.
Taken from across the street.
She had never noticed anyone watching.
"Who took these?"
The assistant answered quietly.
"We're investigating."
Lu Shen locked the screen.
"Increase security."
"I already have."
"No."
His voice became colder.
"Double it."
The assistant nodded immediately.
---
That night,
sleep refused to come.
Xiaoyu stood on the balcony outside her room.
Wind carried the scent of rain through the gardens.
Far beyond the gates,
she noticed headlights.
A black sedan.
Parked in complete darkness.
The engine wasn't running.
It simply waited.
She narrowed her eyes.
The driver's door opened.
A man stepped out.
Even from a distance,
she could tell he wasn't looking at the mansion.
He was looking at her.
A strange uneasiness settled in her chest.
Before she could move,
another figure appeared beside her.
Lu Shen.
Without speaking,
he gently guided her one step backward into the shadows.
The man near the gate remained motionless.
Watching.
Waiting.
Finally,
he returned to his car and disappeared into the night.
Only after the taillights vanished did Lu Shen speak.
"They've started moving."
Xiaoyu turned toward him.
"Who?"
His jaw tightened.
"The people I hoped would never find you again."
The wind carried away the last of his words.
But it couldn't carry away the fear that had appeared in his eyes.
For the first time,
Xiaoyu realized that whatever truth Lu Shen was hiding...
he was also protecting her from it.
And somewhere beyond the walls of the Lu residence,
someone had already begun counting down the days until they could take her back.