Seven years ago…

 The night was dark and misty. The colorful night light shone brightly. It was dazzling.

 “College student?”

 “Yes.”

 “Are you still a virgin?”

 “Yes.”

 “Bring her in and give her a trial. She can stay if she receives a good response.”

 “Manager, I want fifty thousand dollars.”

 “If you treat the customer right, you’ll get fifty thousand dollars soon.”

 “I can only serve for one night.”

 “Fifty thousand dollars for a night?”

 “Yes.”

 The hotel manager thought she was joking. “Fifty thousand dollars for a night? Who do you think you are? Even gold isn’t that expensive!”

 Lu Man bit hard on her lower lip, she could almost taste blood. “What if you lend me fifty thousand dollars first? I’ll definitely return it to you!”

 The manager’s laughter grew more hysterical. “Little girl, what do you think this place is? Do you think we’re doing some kind of charity here? If you want to borrow money, just go and look for loan sharks.”

 She wrapped her clothes around herself even tighter.

 “If you don’t want to do it, just leave. Don’t stand here. I still have a lot of things to deal with!” The manager pushed the girl away just like he was driving a beggar away.

 Lu Man kept quiet for a while. Then, she turned and left.

 “Manager, there must be somebody who would pay for that amount given how captivating she is. Why don’t you just let her stay?” The foreman asked him as he could not understand the manager’s decision.

 “Just look at her. How beautiful and graceful she is! She must be facing some difficulties and is forced to come here. She’s able to earn fifty thousand dollars a night. But, if we allow her to do that, what’s in it for us?”

 “We still can earn some profits!” It was better than driving her away.

 “I told you that you’re stupid. You just refuse to admit that! What does it mean if she’s lost and has no other alternatives? It means that she’s in our hands now. We’re the ones in control here. Not her! She could definitely become our main star here. She’s able to be our top earner!”

 The foreman seemed to understand now.

 The young girl had no other alternatives. She would definitely return to them in no time. They could then do whatever they wanted with her.

 Lu Man walked out of the hotel. But, she had nowhere else to go. She could go to the loan sharks other than the hotel. But, she knew that the loan sharks were much more frightening and cruel.

 What could she do? What to do?

 She could not sit around and do nothing. She could not simply watch him go to jail. His future would be ruined and she could not bear that thought! She could not! She must not!

 But, she understood what the manager had said, clearly.

 She looked up and saw the neon signboard of the hotel. It was so dazzling that she wanted to burst into tears.

 She closed her eyes and stood there for a long while. Then, she started to move her feet. She did not leave but turned back to the hotel.

 He could not be imprisoned! Never!

 She turned and crashed into someone. Soon, she smelt a strong odor of alcohol.

 She looked up, instinctively.

 The man stared at her with unfocused eyes for quite a while. Suddenly, he hugged her. “Don’t leave me! Please don’t leave me behind…”

 The man let go of her all of a sudden when she tried to push him away. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

 Then, he staggered away.

 Lu Man had seen someone like that before. They were crossed in love and brokenhearted. They used alcohol to numb their feelings.

 Although that man was drunk, he did not seem like a common drunkard. The strong smell of alcohol still did not hide his nobility and gracefulness. She was working at the mall. She could tell that his suit and leather shoes were tailor-made by famous designers.

 In short, he was a wealthy man!

 A rich man! A rich man who was drunk and brokenhearted!

 She was, soon, standing in front of him when she had made up her mind. Her actions were swift too. “Mister, I want to be with you for one night. Would you pay for that?”

 The man was slightly stunned. “Pay for a one-night-stand?”

 “Don’t worry. It’s my first time.” Lu Man thought that he was worried about the obvious reasons so she quickly explained.

 The man was silent.

 “Mister, please be with me for one night. I…” Lu Man tried her best to persuade him in desperation.

 “Fine.”

 Lu Man was stunned. But, her happiness was soon followed by deep anxiety.

 “I want fifty thousand dollars for a night!”

 “Fine.”

 Lu Man was uneasy with his swift reply. It seemed that fifty thousand dollars were not a big deal for him. But, it could totally change her life.

 “Mister, could you please make the payment upfront?” Lu Man was worried that the man would refuse to pay the money when he sobered up.

 “Is it okay if I sign a cheque?”

 “Yes.” Nobody would bring along that much money with them anyway.

 After a night, Lu Man took the cheque with her and left. Her eyes were red and swollen. She would never be herself anymore. She was no longer his girl anymore…

 That one night was a nightmare to her. She thought that it would stay in her past forever. But, it did not.

 One month later, her period was late. It had always been punctual. She thought that it was because of stress. But still, it did not come after some time.

 One night, somebody ate some fried squids in the hostel. She was disgusted with that smell. Soon, she rushed to the toilet and vomited.

 Something occurred to her as she rested on the toilet bowl.

 On the next day, she went and bought a pregnancy test. Then, she went to a secluded toilet in the school.

 Her hands trembled uncontrollably when she looked at the result.

 She was pregnant. She was indeed pregnant.

 One week later…

 Lu Man went to a private hospital. She wanted to get rid of the baby although she was having quite a number of nightmares because of the baby.

 It was rather a long wait for her turn to do the operation. It suffocated her.

 “Lu Man, Lu Man…” Finally, it was her turn.

 But, she was frightened out of her wits when she heard the nurse’s voice. That nurse seemed to look like a monster and she seemed as if she was approaching Lu Man with gaping jaws…

 Lu Man ran away desperately just like she was running for her life.

 She was still running really quickly when she had left the hospital. Soon, she saw the shimmering water of the lake nearby. At that moment, she had a thought. She wanted to throw herself into the lake and end everything there and then.

 But, she could not bring herself to do so.

 She had promised her mother to stay alive no matter how difficult life became.

 She had no choice but to turn around. She saw the diverging paths in front of her. She did not know whether to return to the hospital or bring her child to the world and leave him forever.

 At that moment, a black limousine stopped in front of her.

 “Miss Lu, please come with us.” Two men in black got down from the car and held her.

 “Who are you? I don’t know you!” She struggled to get loose.

 “Miss Lu, just be quiet and come with us if you don’t want anything to happen to both the mother and son of the Mu family.”

 That one sentence was enough to make Lu Man stop struggling.

 Lu Man was brought forward to face a dignified old woman.

 “You’re going to stay here from now on until the baby is born.”

 Lu Man was shocked. She was the only one who knew of her own pregnancy. How did the old woman know about that? Why did that old woman want her to give birth to the baby?

 “You better stay here and give birth to the baby. I have promised that nothing will happen to both the mother and son of the Mu family. Otherwise…” The old woman did not finish her sentence but it was quite enough.

 After eight months, Lu Man finally heard the cries of the baby after a day of labor. She was relieved.

 She had mixed feelings at that moment. It was her child. It was truly her child.

 Her child.

 She had used up all her energy when giving birth to the baby. She did not even have the energy to speak and ask for the baby. She closed her eyes weakly. After a while, she heard the door being opened.

 “Old Madam, it’s a boy.”

 “Good.”

 Although the old woman was wearing a mask, Lu Man could still see her smile.

 Then, she saw the old woman leaving with her child.

 “Let me… Just let me take a look at the baby…” She tried her best to stretch her hands out. She wanted to take a look at the child.

 “You have nothing to do with the child from now on!”

 “But…” Lu Man did not get to finish her sentence. She was the only one left in the delivery room.

 She struggled and she wanted to go and pursue the old woman. She wanted to see the baby! She knew that it was impossible for her to have the baby on her own. However, she just wanted to take a look at the baby. She just wanted to look at him…

 1But, she was engulfed by darkness soon after.

 When she regained consciousness, she was lying in the ward. Madam Mu was sitting beside her.

 “Aunt, what’s wrong with me?” She did not even remember what happened to her. What was wrong with her? Why was she in the hospital?

 “You have met with a car accident.”

 “A car accident?” She tried her best to recall the details but she could not remember any of it.

 The doctor was summoned and he explained that her head was hurt in the car accident. That was why she had lost some of her memory. She did not remember how she got hurt or why she was hurt. She touched her head subconsciously, it was bandaged. She did not try to recall the details anymore because she had really forgotten all about it.