Chapter 117

Now she had done it; she finally had the confidence to say this to Yang Shunsheng!

Yang Shunsheng stammered an explanation, “Momo, that’s not what I meant… Actually, there is something I’ve been hiding from you all this time.”

Chen Momo watched Yang Shunsheng hem and haw. It seemed he had something too embarrassing to admit.

“What is it exactly?” she asked.

Yang Shunsheng faltered for a long time before finally mustering up the courage to speak. “I… I… Actually, after we divorced, I went to the hospital for a checkup, and I am infertile…”

It was as if a clap of thunder had struck Chen Momo. “What?”

Yang Shunsheng said, “I only found out later too. I went to the hospital for a physical, and the doctor told me my sperm lacked motility and I couldn’t reproduce normally.”

Chen Momo said coldly, “Yang Shunsheng, you just don’t want to admit that the son is yours, right? Don’t worry, if you refuse to acknowledge your son, then from now on I will just pretend you’re dead. If the school needs a name under the father’s section, I will have our son write ‘single parent.’ Since you don’t want to claim Xiao Bao, I’ll grant your wish.”

Yang Shunsheng pleaded, “That’s not what I mean. Listen to me! Do you still remember how we met?”

The question made Chen Momo freeze instantly. She suddenly stiffened.

That was right. She wondered how she and Yang Shunsheng had actually met. Chen Momo tried hard to recall, but all her previous memories seemed to be a blank slate.

The attempt to remember gave her a splitting headache. She clutched her head, trying desperately to recall, but everything from the past was like a memory that had been erased clean. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t summon a single recollection.

Her memories had disappeared! This was terrifying!

Seeing Chen Momo’s pained expression, a surge of heartache swelled in Yang Shunsheng’s eyes. He grabbed her hand and said, “Momo, if you can’t remember, then don’t force it. How we met, our college life together—everything, every single detail—was all told to you by me, wasn’t it?”

With Yang Shunsheng’s reminder, Chen Momo suddenly realized the truth. Her memory seemed to have been severed. From the moment she first opened her eyes, she was already with Yang Shunsheng in their shared home!

He had told her they were college classmates; he had told her absolutely everything. Her memories only began from the time she was already living in that house. She was a housewife, and she and Yang Shunsheng shared a son. But as for anything before that, she couldn’t remember a thing. Her mind was completely blank.

She had actually never thought deeply about this before!

Yang Shunsheng continued, “As for our shared experiences, Momo, absolutely everything was fed to you by me. All these things, I made them up. We were never college classmates. And Chen Xiaobao isn’t our son…”

Chen Momo felt as if a bolt from the blue had struck her. Her head was buzzing. She couldn’t accept that everything she had experienced in the past was a lie! The man in front of her, who claimed to be her husband, was actually overturning her entire past!

Yang Shunsheng went on, “When I met you, I was just a penniless loser who had absolutely nothing. I had been out of college for several years by then. I had nothing to my name, I didn’t go to a good school, and my income was pitifully low. I couldn’t put down roots in Han City, let alone get married and have kids. I didn’t dare to go back home, as I didn’t know how to face my elderly parents, and I had no idea when I’d ever be able to have a home of my own in this city.”

Yang Shunsheng gazed out the window, getting lost in distant memories. He thought back to the time when he was still a recent college graduate. Back then, he was impoverished and had absolutely nothing. Watching his peers gradually get married, have children, and establish stable careers, Yang Shunsheng still had no idea where his future lay. Plagued by depression, he went on a solo trip. During his journey, he met Chen Momo, who was riding on the same bus.

“You were so beautiful, just like a pure white flower, possessing a fresh, pristine beauty that couldn’t be tainted,” he murmured. “The very first moment I saw you, I was deeply captivated. For the entire bus ride we shared, I kept wanting to strike up a conversation, but unfortunately, you were asleep the whole time.”

Yang Shunsheng recalled the scene of his first meeting with Chen Momo. It was an afternoon, and he was sitting on a tour bus. In the seat right next to his was Chen Momo. From his very first glance, he was drawn to her. It was just that she seemed incredibly tired, slumbering deeply for the entire journey. All Yang Shunsheng could do was quietly observe her from the corner of his eye. Sitting beside her, he couldn’t stop stealing glances.

The trip was a long one; the bus drove for two days and two nights, and during that entire time, Chen Momo remained dead to the world. Finally, after two days and two nights, the bus arrived at the station.

“It was time to get off,” Yang Shunsheng said. He seemed to be recalling that beautiful afternoon again, a happy and blissful smile spreading across his lips. “Right at the moment I was about to disembark, I decided to say hello to you. Back then, I felt that if I didn’t get to know you, this entire trip would be a lingering regret. So, fueled by that mindset, I found courage from who knows where and greeted you. I said, ‘Hello, friend. We’re at the station.'”

But Chen Momo was still out cold. Yang Shunsheng repeated himself several times, yet she remained fast asleep. That was when he began to realize something was wrong. He realized that Chen Momo might not just be sleeping, but was actually unconscious!

The passengers got off the bus one by one, and the driver began urging everyone to leave. Only Chen Momo and Yang Shunsheng were left on board. At that moment, Yang Shunsheng made a bold decision—he would take Chen Momo off the bus with him!

Seeing the driver shoot him a suspicious look, Yang Shunsheng feigned composure and explained, “This is my girlfriend. She had too much to drink. I’m going to help her off the bus.”

And so, he supported Chen Momo as they got off. Later, when holding her up became too difficult, he switched to carrying her in his arms. That was the very first time Yang Shunsheng had ever held a girl. His heart pounded wildly. Whenever a passerby cast a skeptical glance his way, he would calmly explain, “This is my girlfriend. She had too much to drink.”

Lies always multiply, and the more they are told, the more fluent they become.

“At first, when I told those people you were my girlfriend, I still felt a bit guilty,” Yang Shunsheng continued. “But later on, I slowly started to believe it myself. Whenever someone asked me who you were, I would confidently say you were my girlfriend and that we went to the same university. Those people would shoot me envious looks and say, ‘Your girlfriend is so pretty.'”