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At twelve years old, Ye Li’s father dumped her at the home of a woman she barely knew. She never expected this “Auntie” to take over her entire life—overseeing her studies, her daily routine, and even her social circle.
In Ye Li’s eyes, aside from being beautiful, always dressing with impeccable elegance, and carrying a constant, pleasant fragrance, the woman had almost no redeeming qualities. Ye Li spent her days counting down the moments until she could finally escape her grasp.
Finally, high school graduation arrived. But just as Ye Li was ready to embrace her hard-won freedom, the woman who had spent six years by her side vanished overnight without a word.
Panic set in. After frantic searching, Ye Li managed to find an international phone number. As she waited for the call to connect, her heart was in her throat. When that familiar, gentle voice finally answered, Ye Li suppressed her racing heart and complained peevishly: “Are you just going to stop looking after me now?”
In the eyes of outsiders, Lu Zhiyun is the epitome of a sophisticated elite—an overseas returnee with a graceful demeanor and fluent, melodic English. No one could understand why she spent the best years of her life raising a young girl who wasn’t even her own kin.
Lu Zhiyun treated the girl as her own, nurturing her with total devotion. She never imagined that one day, she would be pinned against the sofa by that same girl, her lipstick smeared from a frantic kiss.
That night in New York, the snow fell heavily, and the Christmas lights outside flickered brightly. With the corners of her eyes flushed red, the girl whispered to her: “I just happen to like people who are older than me.”
