Chapter 261: Used to Hate, Now No Longer

“Why aren’t you eating?” Luo Ziling, after wiping his eyes a few times, forced a smile as he looked at Ling Ruonan, whose eyes were swollen from crying.

That one word “Mom” seemed to be stuck in his throat, unable to be called out no matter how hard he tried.

“This is the first time I’m watching you eat face to face, and I just want to watch you,” Ling Ruonan also forced a smile, “I’m not hungry either.”

“You should eat too,” Luo Ziling picked up a scallop and a piece of lobster meat for Ling Ruonan, “It will get cold if we don’t eat now.”

“Yes, I’ll eat,” Ling Ruonan immediately picked up her chopsticks and began eating the food that Luo Ziling had served her.

But she also couldn’t taste anything, as her taste buds had been “corroded” by too many tears.

As the food entered his stomach, Luo Ziling’s mood gradually stabilized, and his tears finally stayed put, no longer falling.

In truth, Luo Ziling was very hungry.

During lunchtime, he had a date with Yang Qingyin at the café, where he didn’t eat much and even got a bit of a scare.

When he headed back, he didn’t think to buy something to eat and went to his dormitory a bit dispirited.

After waking up from a nap, he followed Wuyue to Ling Ruonan’s place.

Once his emotions began to settle, the feeling of hunger quickly intensified.

For a twenty-year-old, his body was not yet fully grown, and his appetite was enormous.

In front of this array of dishes, Luo Ziling didn’t care about their flavors; he felt that the only way to make Ling Ruonan happy was to finish them all.

With a hungry stomach and such a mindset, he ate heartily once he calmed down.

And Ling Ruonan, who had hardly any appetite, ate very little. Most of the time, she was busy serving Luo Ziling.

Seeing Luo Ziling eating happily made her very glad.

In the end, most of the food ended up in Luo Ziling’s stomach, all of it having been served to him by Ling Ruonan, who insisted he eat it all.

“Mom, I’m full,” Luo Ziling belched and said quite naturally.

He himself was taken aback by this utterance. This term of address that he hesitated for so long to say came out so unexpectedly and without any hesitation that, of course, he was shocked.

Ling Ruonan, too, was startled by Luo Ziling’s sudden “Mom.”

Of course, from the moment she saw Luo Ziling, she had been eager to hear him call her “Mom,” but Luo Ziling had not said it, only shed tears. As the tears flowed, all emotions amalgamated within them. Whether or not he said the word “Mom,” it wasn’t of great importance to Ling Ruonan. Seeing Luo Ziling alive and in front of her, and witnessing his tears, Ling Ruonan’s long-suppressed maternal instincts were completely unleashed.

The little boy sitting in front of her, eating the food she cooked, was her own son, the child she hadn’t seen for nineteen years. Now, the grown little man was really in front of her, and Ling Ruonan felt an indescribable pride in her heart. This feeling really couldn’t be put into words.

But upon hearing Luo Ziling call out “Mom,” Ling Ruonan, who already felt very content, was deeply moved once again. The tears she had managed to stop rolled down her face once more. She couldn’t control her emotions and burst into tears again in front of Luo Ziling.

Luo Ziling’s tears were also drawn out by Ling Ruonan, but he quickly stopped crying and got several tissues for Ling Ruonan. However, she didn’t take the tissues. Instead, she hugged Luo Ziling tightly, burying his whole head in her chest, and began to cry loudly.

“Ling’er, Mom has finally seen you. It’s been twenty years, Mom has waited for this day for twenty years,” Ling Ruonan cried and said, “When Grandpa took you away, you were just this little. You were still nursing, you couldn’t even speak. After you were taken away, Mom dreamed of you every day. Whenever I dreamed of you, I always cried. Mom vowed in public that if anyone wanted to harm you, she would fight them desperately. Mom would definitely bring you back. We would definitely see each other again. This day has finally dawned, and Mom is so happy she can’t explain it.”

Luo Ziling didn’t struggle and let Ling Ruonan hold his head and cry. It was the first time he was held by a woman in such a way, and he felt extremely safe. He just wanted to stay like this, quietly leaning on her, not to part again.

So many times in his dreams, he saw himself being held by his parents. They held him and took him out to play, and he was very happy.

Today, he finally got the chance to be held by his mother. Even though she could no longer lift him up to go out and about, Luo Ziling was still very satisfied. He loved this warm feeling, the sense of security of being held in his mother’s arms. He let his tears wet Ling Ruonan’s clothes and did not want to leave.

Luo Ziling also felt Ling Ruonan’s tears wetting his neck and clothes. The wet, warm flow slowly seeped into his clothes, but he didn’t feel any discomfort. After both mother and son had cried their hearts out, Ling Ruonan finally controlled her emotions, but she still did not let go of Luo Ziling; she continued to hold him as they sat, ignoring the soreness in her waist.

“Ling’er, do you… hate Mom?” Ling Ruonan asked softly after stopping her tears.

“I used to hate, hated for many years, but not anymore after knowing the situation,” Luo Ziling said, lifting his head to face Ling Ruonan. “I always hoped that one day you would suddenly come to see me, to surprise me. But when I turned twenty, that day hadn’t come, so I hated you. After listening to Grandpa’s explanation of your difficulties and coming to Yanjing and learning about the situation, I stopped hating you.”

Luo Ziling’s words once again brought Ling Ruonan to the brink of tears.

After trying hard to dry her tears, she said with a choked voice, “Thank you for understanding Mom’s difficulties. Actually, even now, I can’t come to see you. Today, I sneakily asked you to come over for dinner, not daring to let anyone know. Perhaps you are unaware that if the news of our meeting were to get out, it might stir up a lot of trouble.”

Luo Ziling really wanted to tell Ling Ruonan that things were already more serious than that since the Yang Family knew about it, but he didn’t know how to say it all at once.

After thinking for a while, Ling Ruonan whispered to Luo Ziling, “Ling’er, let’s go sit on the sofa, Mom wants to tell you something important.”

Luo Ziling obediently nodded and followed Ling Ruonan toward the sofa.

Maybe because she had been sitting for too long or holding Luo Ziling for too long, Ling Ruonan felt numbness in her legs when standing up and almost fell.

Luo Ziling caught Ling Ruonan quickly and asked with concern, “Mom, what’s wrong? Are your legs sore?”

“It’s nothing, I’ll be fine after standing for a while,” Ling Ruonan said with an embarrassed smile.

From Luo Ziling’s words, she felt her son’s deep concern, and the comfort in her heart was indescribable.

The feeling of a reunion between mother and son was much more intense and warmer than she had imagined.

She regretted that she should have seen Luo Ziling a few days earlier…