Mrs. Hong was very patient and watched all the videos from the beginning to the end. She couldn’t stop sighing as she watched them and looked at Lin Wan with pity in her eyes.

It was already early the next morning when she finished watching the last disc. Lin Wan had no tears left to cry and was cowering tightly in the corner of the sofa, looking so pitiful and helpless.

“Lin Wan, tell me the truth. Do you like this man, Lu Fangliang?”

Lin Wan shook her head vigorously and said in a firm tone, “I only like my husband!”

“Then why did you…?”

“I didn't give it any second thoughts. I just didn't want to break that child's heart. She had a similar experience to mine, and I couldn't bear to hurt her. I just wanted to leave her some good memories.”

“So you decided to leave her father some good memories too?”

“No, no. It's all that girl's fault. It's all her. It's all her!”

Mrs. Hong sat down beside her and took her in her arms.

“You've finally figured it out. And yes, it's all that girl's fault. She was trying to set you up with her father, and you fell into the trap step by step.”

Lin Wan clenched her fists tightly. Her anger turned her expression to be very terrifying.

Mrs. Hong said softly, “Lin Wan, think about it. She is just a child after all. Even if she has that heart, how many bad ideas would she have? How can she possibly fool you this bad?”

Lin Wan froze for a moment and replied through gritted teeth, “Someone is setting a trap for me, including her father. They all deserve to die. I swear I won't let them go that easily!”

Caressing her hair, Mrs. Hong whispered softly in her ear, “It's all in the past. It's all in the past now. After this ordeal, I believe you will become more matured.”

“I did not betray him. I just took pity on that child and didn't know how to refuse her requests. I was afraid that she would be sad and that she would think I didn't love her.”

“I know that you are kind by nature, and that is both your strength and your weakness. Not only you, but many women have this weakness too. And some people are very good at exploiting it.”

“I’m really stupid. I thought I was doing something worthwhile, but I didn't realize that they had been setting me up all this time. I’m really stupid!”

Mrs. Hong sighed, Lin Wan had completely messed up this time. She had been controlled by a little girl. To put it nicely, it was a blunder; but to put it badly it was outright stupidity!

But now was not the time to lecture Lin Wan. So she could only continue to comfort her, “You were certainly at fault. But those people were really despicable. I can’t believe they used a child to lure you into a trap! Do you know how I felt when I saw that child?”

Lin Wan looked at her confusedly and Mrs. Hong laughed bitterly, “I was very surprised! I thought I saw you! Her mannerisms, gaze and expressions were almost the same as yours when you were little!”

“I think, inadvertently, you have thought of her as yourself. And you wanted to complete your childhood wish so much that you became her mother, fearing her grief and fulfilling all her demands. But in fact, you are not doing it for her, but instead to fulfill your own dreams.”

Lin Wan's gaze cleared up and she nodded vigorously. What Mrs. Hong said finally brought her to her senses. She finally knew the root for her bewildered actions.

Yes, Lu Jiaxue always had a special spot in her heart. It wasn’t just any teacher-student bond. But it was because their childhood was too similar, and she wanted to fulfil her own desire in Lu Jiaxue.

And what was her desire? I guess we all know by now.

Lin Wan hurriedly got up to look for her phone, and Mrs. Hong dragged her back.

“What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to call my husband and to explain to him that I did not betray him, and that everything happened for a reason. He'll forgive me when he heard what I said.”

“Foolish! Have you thought about the consequences? Your identity will be completely exposed and how will you explain to him all those lies you told before?” Mrs. Hong reminded her loudly.

Lin Wan froze and stood there, lost. She did not know what to do next.

“He’s so furious right now. You’d better avoid adding fuel to the fire!” Mrs. Hong advised her, “It’s just going to make things worse!”

“What should I do then?”

“Calm down. You can't afford to stir up any more trouble now. Otherwise the ending will be irreversible. Even if you are aggrieved by this matter, you have to put up with it for now.”

Depressed, Lin Wan clutched her head in pain.

Mrs. Hong tried to comfort her, “You don't have to blame yourself too much. They didn't go overboard. They just took advantage of your kindness and pushed your limits again and again. The good thing is that you didn't make any big mistakes, hence things aren’t completely irreversible.”

Lin Wan's tears welled up again and she said sadly, “Mrs. Hong, I'm really sad. I love that child so much and truly gave my heart to her. I didn't expect for her to set me up.”

To this point, she hugged Mrs. Hong and buried her head in her arms, whimpering bitterly again.

Mrs. Hong sighed, patted her back and whispered in her ear, “It's not entirely her fault. The little girl is at fault for sure, but she was also a puppet. The ones who deserve to die the most are those behind the scenes.”

Lin Wan continued to cry.

Mrs. Hong continued, “Don't worry. I won't let them get away with this. Those who set you up, no matter young or old, I’ll make sure they pay a painful price. I want them to know that the Miss Lin is not someone they can bully just as they pleased!”

Lin Wan choked up and said, “Mrs. Hong, you must help me. I can't lose my husband. No matter what way you come up with, you can't let him leave me!”

Mrs. Hong didn't say anything else. “You've been up all night. Go get some sleep!”

“I'm not sleepy. I want to find my husband. I'm going to apologize to him and beg for him to come home!”

Mrs. Hong gave up on persuading her. Flipping her wrist, she gently massaged Lin Wan's body. A few moments later, Lin Wan who was in her arms fell into a deep sleep.

After placing her gently on the sofa, Mrs. Hong went to the bedroom and fished out a towel quilt. She covered Lin Wan's body with it and smoothed out the messy hair on her forehead. Only then did she let out a soft sigh and opened the file pocket.

There were two items in the redemption kit. One was a handwritten letter from Li Mu, and the other a divorce settlement.

After reading the letter, she glanced at her Lin Wan and muttered in a low voice, “Is there any point in repairing the relationship? It's better to just break up, why bother?”

She picked up the divorce settlement again and read it from beginning to end. She couldn't help but laugh and scolded, “This brat still has a sense of love and righteousness. Not bad, he’s faring quite well for a man. No wonder Lin Wan fell for you. Alas, what a pity!”

It was mid-afternoon when Lin Wan woke up with a jump. And she got up from the sofa in a significantly better state of mind.

There was no one inside the room. And the sound of spatulas clattering, and the smell of rice came wafting over from the kitchen.

With a scuffle, Lin Wan jumped up from the sofa and rushed straight to the kitchen, appearing suddenly in front of Mrs. Hong.

Mrs. Hong was taken aback by her. Upon seeing the disappointment on her face, she couldn't help but scold, “Are you disappointed that I’m not Li Mu instead? You ungrateful brat!”

“Mrs. Hong!”

“Alright, alright! Go wash up and eat. You must eat and drink before you can think of a countermeasure. Are you planning to get him back by making yourself sick? Don't do such silly things. The Lin family are well known for our take-it-or-leave-it personalities. Don't you ruin it for us!”

Lin Wan grinned, bowed her head and went to the bathroom. She briefly freshened herself up before returning to the dining room.

The two of them ate lunch together, but Lin Wan who had so much going on in her head couldn't eat at all. She barely managed a few bites before she put her chopsticks down.

Mrs. Hong didn't persuade her and ate the food by herself deliciously. After finishing the meal, Lin Wan helped her clean up the dishes, then took her hand and asked anxiously, “Mrs. Hong, have you thought of a solution?”

“Aw, my dear!” Mrs. Hong slapped her forehead and said, “You haven’t given up yet? Why don’t you tell me first, what's your limit?”

“My limits?” Lin Wan said without hesitation, “He can never leave me for the rest of his life! Even death will not do us part. Even if I have betrayed him, he will not be allowed to leave me. That is my limit!”

After hearing this, Mrs. Hong surprisingly looked happy and praised Lin Wan repeatedly, “Good, this is the way you should behave as the daughter of Lin Family. Don’t even mention whether you’re loyal to him or not. Even if you betrayed him, he must put up with it. But don't betray him though, I think he has a pretty stubborn personality.”

“Oh, Mrs. Hong, I just said that for fun. Since when did I betray him? We both have love…” Lin Wan suddenly shut her mouth.

Mrs. Hong was so smart that she immediately guessed what Lin Wan was trying to say. She stared at Lin Wan in horror, her mouth opened wide as if she had heard something horrible.

“Mrs. Hong!” Lin Wan called out softly.

“Are you out of your mind? You placed a love spell on the both of you?” Mrs. Hong jerked up and questioned loudly.

Lin Wan looked down and did not answer, but her attitude said it all.

Mrs. Hong pulled her up and said anxiously, “Let’s go find Li Mu now. You must dismiss the spell now. We'll put other things aside first!”

“No!” Lin Wan said stubbornly, “If he doesn’t want me anymore, we'll die together!”

Mrs. Hong wanted to give her a slap in the face, but felt it was inappropriate as she had a lower position than Lin Wan. So she slapped Lin Wan hard on her bottoms instead.

“Are you trying to die? Don't you know how toxic a love spell can be? Are you tired of living?”

“I know! But as long as we don't betray each other in our marriage, there won't be any problems!”

“But he doesn't know! And even if he did, he might not even believe it. My gosh, your life is in his hands all this while. If he can't hold on to your marriage, you'll go down with him.”

“If it's over for me then let it be! He's mine anyways. No one can own him if I can't!"

Shivering with anger, Mrs. Hong forced herself to calm down and pressed on, “Tell me the truth. When did you apply the spell?”

Lin Wan answered truthfully, “Probably when I came back from the resort the last time?”

“Was it to guard him against He Xiaoyu?”

Lin Wan nodded and smiled grimly, “She will never have a chance forever. Doesn't she always want to be with Li Mu? After this spell, no one will be able to take him away from me.”