The First Chapter: The Sick Girl of the Han Family

  If everything had never started... Alas, unfortunately there aren't so many ifs in this world, only now.

  Cold Moon

  A huge blue curtain depicted a picture of shell wind chimes swaying gently under the blue sky and white clouds, with strings of purple and white wind chimes seemingly about to ring out as they were slowly pulled by a pale hand. The owner of the hand seemed startled by the sound and suddenly withdrew their hand, only to slowly open the curtain after a while.

  Sunlight pours through the glass and spills onto the floor, a girl standing in front of the window subconsciously shields her eyes, only to slowly open them again after adapting to the light and gaze out at the scenery.

  The girl was dressed in a sky-blue silk nightgown, with a head of slightly curly brown hair. Her pale and wan face was silent and beautiful, her lips tightly pursed, her almond-shaped eyes half-hidden under her bangs, her gaze scattered and desolate with sorrow.

  The girl stretched out her hand to touch the curtains, and the tears in her eyes seemed to appear and disappear.

  The curtains were designed by Hans Yang. Hans Yang is the brother of Han Yue.

  A month ago, Hans died, and the funeral was surprisingly simple. The Han family moved to this strange city three years ago, and after Hans' cremation, he was buried directly in his hometown. Not many people knew about the whole process, as there were not many neighbors where they lived, and from an outsider's perspective, nothing seemed to have happened at the Han residence.

  Han Yue followed her parents back from their hometown and hasn't gone downstairs since then. She has been hiding in a room without sunlight for a whole month.

  The door creaked open. Han Yue didn't turn around, knowing it was her mother bringing in food, and said helplessly, "Mom, don't bother sending me meals."

  Qiu Jin hastily put down the food in his hand and walked over to touch Han Yue's forehead: "When can you let me worry about you, kid? Why are you barefoot again, don't catch a cold."

  Han Yue suddenly discovered that her mother's well-maintained hair had turned white overnight. Looking at her haggard mother, Han Yue suddenly felt that she had indeed been too immersed in sorrow and neglected her parents. Just as she was thinking this, the voice that had not sounded in her mind for many days suddenly echoed again.

  "Hey, Han Yue, can't you hold on any longer?"

  It's not that I couldn't take it anymore, but rather my parents can't bear to look at me like this.

  Can't you give me some time?

  There must be a limit!

  Han Yue smiled slightly: "Mom, I'll change into another set of clothes before going down to eat."

  "Are you not going to eat at all... how can we go on eating?" Qiu Jin was surprised and then looked extremely delighted, "Alright... we'll wait for you downstairs, you change your clothes and come down to eat."

  At the dinner table, Qiu Jin kept picking dishes for her to eat more. Han Yue smiled and said okay, and also mentioned what she was going to do next. As soon as Han Yue finished speaking, the smile on her parents' faces paused, and then they continued eating without saying a word.

  After dinner, Han Mu lit a cigarette and didn't speak until after a while: "Xiao Yue, do you really think so? But... sigh, think about it again." Qiu Jin also looked at her with expectant eyes.

  "Dad and mom, I'm too tired from work at the company. Now that I have some time to rest, I just want to go out and adjust my mood a bit. You guys really don't need to worry." Han Yue sat in front of her parents with a smile, then stood up and said, "No need to persuade me, all the procedures are already taken care of. This afternoon I'll go out for a walk, and tomorrow I'll go to school to register."

  Han Yue walked out the door, but Han Mu and Qiu Jin fell into complete silence due to their worry. They thought Han Yue had left the room and gone downstairs, thinking she was fine, but they didn't expect that she had made up her mind to go to Sheng Kai, saying she was going to adjust her mood, but everyone knew things weren't that simple. Knowing it was pointless to persuade Han Yue, after a moment of thought, both of them went to make a phone call.

  Han Mu put down the phone and sighed: "Xiao Yue's going to attend the grand opening, Xiao Xing knows about it, he said everything that can be arranged has been taken care of, let's not worry, how about your side?"

  Qiu Jin, who was holding the phone and staring blankly, came back to her senses: "Ah, Sheng Hai said he would pay attention."

  Han Yue wandered aimlessly on the main street, watching people come and go without a purpose. Although her family had moved here three years ago, she was still very unfamiliar with this place due to being away for many years. If it weren't for her home being here, this strange city would have no connection to her at all.

  Her eyes were drawn to a unique barber shop. Han Yue stood at the entrance, stroking her hair for a moment before walking in without hesitation.

  The one who welcomed Han Yue was a young hairstylist with long hair tied low behind his head, single eyelid, high nose bridge, and an overall mature and sexy appearance. Fashion trends were perfectly showcased on him, and what's rare was that he had a unique style without any vulgarity.

  "Welcome, what service can I help you with?"

  Han Yue looked at herself in the mirror, smiled slightly: "Pull your hair straight and dye it a very natural black color." The words fell but there was no response. Han Yue turned her head and saw the young man's surprised gaze: "What's wrong?"

  The young man hesitated and said, "This hairstyle suits you."

  Han Yue detected the tone of regret, sat down leaning against the chair and closed his eyes, saying lightly, "Just do as I said." Han Yue's mood became somewhat irritable, although his words were gentle, they still carried a hint of command. He couldn't help but smile wryly in his heart, for these three years he had been insisting that he hadn't changed, now it seemed that was just self-consolation, and such an environment really didn't allow him to be himself.

  The barber didn't say another word, the gentle yet unmistakable command left him speechless and unable to utter a word. This tone, this indifference doesn't seem to belong to a 'girl' of that 'flower' age. Her face was overly pale, with a hint of hidden sorrow in her eyes, and when she closed them, there was still some reluctance? The young man's face still wore a relaxed smile, but his eyes had fallen silent.

  Han Yue opened her eyes through the mirror and saw the change in the young man's expression behind her, and she couldn't help but curve up the corners of her mouth and smile silently. Things have changed, but what should be learned has not been fully grasped yet. It seems that I am still very weak, why can't I learn to control my emotions?

  Han Yue took a latest copy of "World Daily" from the young man's hand and flipped through it. Her eyes stopped on one page for quite a while. It was news about the Jian Group, a British Chinese company, acquiring several companies in mainland China. The whole page was filled with exclusive photos of the 'handover' ceremony. Xing was indeed a genius, recognized after just three years from learning to taking over.

  A faint smile, unintentionally raised her head, the hair in the mirror gradually changed, and the smile stiffened at the corner of her mouth. What she wanted to change was her favorite hairstyle, but what had already happened couldn't be changed!

  The number of people in the store gradually decreased, and when Han Yue walked out of the store, it was already five hours later.

  The sky near the horizon was painted with a deep red sunset, while the distant sky was dark and foreboding. Han Yue stumbled out of the hair salon, dazed by the breathtaking view. A black sedan stopped at the entrance, and a young man in casual attire stepped out.

  The cold moon brushed past the man's shoulder.

  The evening breeze blew her hair lightly, and after walking a distance under the cold moon, she turned back with a puzzled expression, wondering why the figure that had just passed by seemed so familiar.

  "Hey, Han Yue, I think that figure in the distance looks like your brother."

  This is not the first time this has happened.

  It really looks like it!

  Han Yue turned her head and saw that the man had already entered the barber shop. She shook her head, what a coincidence.