Inheriting a Farm Made Me an Internet Sensation - Chapter 44

Hearing this, Lin Muhan fell into a daze.

Her attitude had been lacking, but was her father not also in the wrong?

Her father’s authoritarianism made her feel suffocated, and it was precisely because she wanted to escape that suffocation that she had attempted to resist.

“I don’t know what conflict occurred between you and your family; I only know that when a conflict becomes a dead knot, what we need most is to reconcile with ourselves,” the middle-aged woman said, shaking her head. “It’s very difficult.”

After a long while, Lin Muhan finally spoke in response: “Thank you. Thank you for telling me so much.”

The middle-aged woman shook her head and turned her gaze back out the window. “There are some things that, if you were asked to say them at the time, you might find difficult to voice. By the time you want to speak, you find that the person willing to listen is no longer there, and those words can only rot in your heart.”

Lin Muhan realized belatedly why the woman was telling her all this.

It was because she didn’t want to leave behind any more regrets.

After getting off the bus, at the middle-aged woman’s invitation, she declined taking the cable car and chose to hike up the stone stairs to the mountain peak.

After only half an hour, she couldn’t take it anymore. She was gasping for breath, her clothes completely soaked with sweat. She wanted to take off her layers but didn’t dare; at an altitude of nearly a thousand meters, a sweep of the cold wind would pierce straight through her clothes, causing her to shiver uncontrollably.

The middle-aged woman walking ahead of her turned back to look down at her. “Do those troubles still fill your mind now?”

“I still think of them from time to time,” Lin Muhan answered truthfully. At the beginning, she had been somewhat absent-minded, utterly oblivious to the beautiful scenery on both sides of the trail. As she felt the exhaustion set in, most of her attention was focused on the steps; when she stopped to catch her breath, a turn of her head toward the mountain-wide expanse of golden autumn colors would capture her gaze.

“Then let us continue.”

Lin Muhan nodded and followed behind the middle-aged woman, treading up the stone steps one by one.

Whenever she wanted to give up, a voice would spring up from the bottom of her heart: Conquer this mountain, and you can cross the hurdle in your heart.

Two hours later, she arrived at the observation deck at the summit and gazed quietly into the distance.

After the drizzling rain, the sky had gradually cleared. Thick, pure white clouds and mist drifted and twined among the peaks. As a light breeze brushed past, the mist surged forward in waves, looking exactly like the churning billows of the sea, as if merging into one with the clouds in the sky—a breathtaking sight.

Seeing the mist weaving through the mountain ranges, she took out her phone to record the spectacle of the sea of clouds, which sometimes rose and sometimes stretched out wide.

Looking down, there were steep cliffs. The cliffs were not bare; green pines and weeds vied for growth, both seemingly wanting to leave their footprints on the precipice.

Even plants could manage to grow within the crevices of a cliff; why couldn’t she?

Why shouldn’t she work hard to live for herself?

Her father wanted to force his will upon her; she couldn’t intervene, nor did she have a way to. But whether or not she complied was a decision she could make for herself.

She was here alone, grieving over that day’s quarrel, while her father likely hadn’t taken it to heart at all.

So, why should she use her father’s wishful thinking to punish herself?

Thinking this way, the stagnation in her heart completely dissipated. The fatigue in her body and the soreness in her feet vanished at that moment, and her entire being became light.

Back at the farmhouse courtyard, Tan Xiao was somewhat distracted because she was worried about Lin Muhan. Every time she heard a message notification from her phone, she would take it out immediately to check, fearing she might miss a WeChat message or a call from Lin Muhan.

This time, when her phone rang, she pulled it from her pocket a second later. Seeing it was from Lin Muhan, she opened it as quickly as possible.

Lin Muhan had sent a video. Just as she was about to click it, another block of text from Lin Muhan popped up.

Lin Muhan: Tan Xiao, I’m sorry for making you worry. I’ve thought it through. I won’t get stuck in a dead end anymore, nor will I engage in self-attrition.

Lin Muhan: I’m at the summit of Mao’er Mountain right now. I didn’t take the cable car; I climbed up with my own two feet. Am I great or what?

Mao’er Mountain?

Tan Xiao: Great

Tan Xiao: I miss you very much.

After sending that, she opened Baidu and quickly searched for Mao’er Mountain. When she discovered it had an altitude of over two thousand meters, her heart was filled with shock. Her Mumu had actually hiked to the summit. Setting everything else aside, this level of perseverance alone surpassed many people.

Personally, if she were asked to climb a mountain—especially one that high—every pore of her body would be screaming in resistance.

Lin Muhan: I met a heartwarming older sister on the way. She kept encouraging me and told me some life philosophies. I’m very grateful to her.

Tan Xiao: If there’s a chance, I want to thank her in person for giving my Mumu warmth.

Lin Muhan: Since when am I yours? Shameless.

Lin Muhan: If I see her again later, I’ll invite her to the farm to taste the dishes you cook.

The two of them chatted idly for a long while before ending the conversation.

From the text Lin Muhan sent, Tan Xiao discovered that Mumu’s mood had recovered, and even her state of mind had undergone some changes.

At the same time, she felt a bit of regret. Had she known this would bring Mumu back to full strength, she definitely would have accompanied her.

She put her phone away, pondered for a moment, and then drove Zhang Da’s car to Lin Kun’s law firm.

Since they had just met yesterday, the receptionist knew her intention the moment she saw her. However, this time the receptionist didn’t lead her to Lin Kun’s office, but let her go in on her own.

She arrived outside Lin Kun’s office and raised her hand to knock on the glass door.

“I am very busy, please leave,” Lin Kun’s deep voice came from inside.

On the way there, she had prepared herself to be rejected by Lin Kun, but she hadn’t expected the rejection to be so direct and thorough.

Tan Xiao gave a bitter smile but didn’t give up. “I will only take three minutes of your time. Once five minutes are up, I’ll leave immediately.”

After a long while, the words “Come in” drifted from inside.

She took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and walked in.

Time was limited. She bowed slightly and called him “Uncle,” but just as she was about to speak on the main subject, Lin Kun’s voice cut her off.

“I do not agree to you being with my daughter. You are not good enough for her.”

“In your heart, you must love Mumu very much, which is why you hold her in the palm of your hand to cherish her,” Tan Xiao took a step forward. “Since you love Mumu, why don’t you say it? Why don’t you give Mumu five minutes—or even two minutes—to listen to her thoughts?”

Lin Kun’s brow furrowed tightly as he stared at her. “You are lecturing me.”

Tan Xiao shook her head hurriedly. “I absolutely do not mean it that way. I just feel bad for Mumu. After you left that night, she cried alone for a long time. Even in her dreams, she was helplessly asking why.” She paused for a moment and continued, “You can look down on me, but I won’t give up just because you don’t approve. I will use my actions to prove to you that I can give Mumu happiness.”

Lin Kun’s hand at his side clenched into a fist, and his dissatisfaction with Tan Xiao soared to the extreme.

A person full of flaws, a junior, was actually here lecturing him, an elder.

He let out a cold huff, his eyes flashing with a chilling light. “How I discipline my daughter is my business; it has nothing to do with outsiders.” He pointed toward the door. “I don’t have time for you to prove anything, and you won’t have the time either.”

Tan Xiao suddenly understood why Mumu’s emotions had collapsed so badly.

Her own blood pressure was now rising rapidly. Where on earth did this old stubborn fool come from?

What “kind and tolerant”? She really wanted all the people outside to see how this person, whom they viewed as kind and tolerant, could say such cold and heartless words.

She cautioned herself in her heart: Tan Xiao, you can’t get angry. Don’t forget your purpose for coming here today.

Her purpose was simple: she hoped Lin Kun could sit down and listen to Mumu’s thoughts.

As things stood now, it seemed a quiet talk would be difficult.

“Three minutes are up,” Lin Kun said coldly.

How could three minutes have passed so quickly?

Tan Xiao only dared to think this in her heart; she didn’t dare talk back. She didn’t want to fail in persuading Lin Kun and instead end up intensifying the conflict between him and Mumu.

Swallowing the words at the tip of her tongue, she turned and left the law firm.

After getting into the car, she let out a long sigh, feeling zero confidence in persuading Lin Kun.

She tried to imagine it—never mind living with the self-centered Lin Kun every day, even if she had to interact with him for just one month, she would go crazy. She didn’t know how Mumu had endured all these years.

She hoped Uncle Lin was only speaking this way because he was targeting her. Otherwise, Mumu’s childhood must have been incredibly oppressive.