Chapter Nine: The Depths of the Human Heart

Han Duoduo stayed by Yin Nian’s side from three in the afternoon until seven in the evening.

Today, Han Duoduo spoke little, maintaining a calm and restrained demeanor throughout. She didn’t even crack a joke to lighten the mood, knowing that in such moments, words often became superfluous. What Yin Nian needed was for her to hold her hand tightly and look at her with sincere, honest eyes whenever encouragement was needed.

The phrase Han Duoduo repeated most was: “I believe in you.”

Yin Nian desperately needed someone’s belief. At first, she hadn’t felt it so keenly, but as more and more people began to doubt her, even a slight shift in tone or a questioning glance made her sense their suspicion. She became sensitive and distrustful—emotions she’d never experienced before.

Yin Nian was not prone to sentimentality. On the contrary, she excelled at letting reason override emotion, a trait that had allowed her to rise to her position within the company. But the events of the past two days had severely tested her prized emotional control.

The relentless provocations and slander from Yang Po’s family, her husband secretly deleting the footage, her son’s lies, her mother’s doubts—all these things battered her emotional boundaries. At first, she managed to maintain composure, but as the incidents accumulated and each one caught her off guard, she found herself unable to contain her anger, anxiety, and frustration. Now, what remained was a deep sadness and disappointment.

Yangyang’s words were the final straw that broke her taut resolve. Her defensive emotions crumbled, leaving her weak and empty, as if her energy had been drained. When the anger and agitation faded, all that was left was sorrow.

Yangyang was her son… She simply couldn’t comprehend why he would lie. His words and actions felt so unfamiliar to her…

Yet even in the midst of grief, Yin Nian remained firm in her conviction that she had not hit anyone. She trusted her own judgment; if she’d done it, she would admit it, and if she hadn’t, she would not confess to something untrue. That was a line she would not cross.

She tried to convince herself: Perhaps Yangyang saw it wrong, or maybe he misunderstood. Yangyang was an imaginative child, always daydreaming and drawing strange, fantastical pictures—a trait he inherited from his father.

Once Yin Nian had persuaded herself, the sadness began to recede. She gradually regained her calm and reason, and immediately called Brother Li, asking him to recommend another capable lawyer.

Only after Yin Nian had returned to her normal self did Han Duoduo leave. She gripped Yin Nian’s hand tightly and said, “If anything happens, be sure to call me. I’m always here, and I will always believe in you—always, always.”

Han Duoduo’s eyes were clear and pure, her gaze honest and sincere. Their decade-long friendship was evident in that moment of silent exchange. Yin Nian smiled softly and hugged Han Duoduo; the embrace spoke more than words ever could.

After Han Duoduo left, Yin Nian stayed in the living room, researching, sorting through clues.

At ten o’clock, after Liang Zhicheng had coaxed Yangyang to sleep, he asked Yin Nian, “Do you need any help?”

“No, you go to bed,” Yin Nian replied, without even lifting her head.

Liang Zhicheng went to his study to write for a while; when he emerged, it was already eleven. Yin Nian was still in the living room. He asked, “Aren’t you going to sleep yet?”

“Don’t worry, you go ahead.” Yin Nian’s voice was slow, tinged with fatigue.

“I’m in no hurry, either.” Liang Zhicheng sat on the sofa, reading, keeping her company.

At midnight, Yin Nian yawned several times, stretching her sore shoulders. Liang Zhicheng moved over and silently began to massage her shoulders. Yin Nian closed her eyes, staring thoughtfully into the void ahead.

By one in the morning, Yin Nian couldn’t hold out any longer and fell asleep on the sofa. Liang Zhicheng carried her into the bedroom.

The deep night descended, and all was silent.

Who knows how much time had passed. Liang Zhicheng was startled awake by a cry. He found Yin Nian sitting up in bed, hair disheveled, panting heavily. He hurriedly switched on the bedside lamp. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

Yin Nian, flustered, replied, “I had a nightmare…”

“What did you dream of?” Liang Zhicheng asked.

“I dreamed… Yang Po was covered in blood, crawling onto the bed… grabbing my foot… Her hands were icy cold, chilling to the bone…”

Liang Zhicheng saw Yin Nian’s feet pressed tightly together, curled up with force. He touched her feet; they were cold as ice. He quickly covered them with a blanket and gently rubbed them until warmth returned.

“Don’t worry, everything will be alright.” Liang Zhicheng hugged her. “I’m always here.”

“I just can’t understand why Yangyang would lie…” Yin Nian whispered.

“Maybe he saw it wrong, or perhaps misremembered.” Liang Zhicheng comforted her.

Yin Nian sighed softly and closed her eyes.

Before turning off the light, Liang Zhicheng glanced at the time: half past two.

Much later, in a haze of sleep, Liang Zhicheng was awakened by the smell of smoke. He opened his eyes to find the bed empty; Yin Nian was gone. He got up and saw her standing on the balcony, smoking. He walked over, noticing several cigarette butts at her feet. “What’s wrong? You haven’t smoked in years.”

Yin Nian’s voice was hoarse. “I feel suffocated inside.”

“I understand how you feel,” Liang Zhicheng said. “If it were me, I would’ve collapsed long ago. You’re already very strong.”

“I’m not as strong as I thought. I believed I could handle this, but the more I try to stay calm and restrained, the less I can deal with it. They use shameless tactics against me, yet all I can do is hope the law will protect me. But without evidence, the law can’t protect me. What should I do?” Yin Nian squinted, gazing at the night sky. “I used to think fighting evil with evil was unreasonable, but now I realize that sometimes there’s no other way.”

“Yin Nian, don’t do anything foolish. That’s their trap—they want you to act impulsively. If you do, you’ll fall right into their hands.”

“Of course I won’t do anything foolish. But I can’t just keep hoping for help from the police. If they keep harassing me, my life will be deeply affected, and my work will suffer. They can do nothing all day except make trouble, but I can’t. Do you understand what I mean?”

“I understand, but—”

“Zhicheng, my kindness has been exploited—” Yin Nian let out a long sigh, her voice aggrieved, tears glimmering in her eyes. “My sympathy has been taken advantage of, too. They bully me precisely because I won’t retaliate in the same way, because I treat them politely and won’t act excessively. In this situation, they are pure villains, and I am someone with moral standards. But does being a good person mean I deserve to be bullied?”

“It’s not like that. Most of the time, good people still outnumber the bad around us. Kindness is so natural that we rarely notice it, but malice is felt acutely and remembered for a long time.”

“But I just can’t do it,” Yin Nian suddenly grabbed her hair in anguish. “I just can’t turn my back on it all, can’t ignore someone in need, can’t respond to these things with cold indifference.”

Liang Zhicheng wanted to offer comfort, but he knew any words would be meaningless now. This was Yin Nian’s own struggle; it showed just how deeply this incident had shaken her worldview.

Though he’d often heard stories about people being extorted after helping others, it was different when it happened to oneself—when one truly saved someone, only to be falsely accused, disrupting life and work, causing friends and family to doubt, and facing enormous financial compensation. It could utterly change a person.

“It will get better. We’ll face it together.” Liang Zhicheng embraced Yin Nian. Her body trembled.

The night was bleak, the cold wind blowing, Yin Nian’s hair scattered, veiling her face completely.

Liang Zhicheng gazed into the distance. In the western sky, a solitary star flickered with a dim light, like a bewildered, struggling eye hiding behind the clouds—seeing everything, yet powerless due to the separation between heaven and earth.

Liang Zhicheng gently patted Yin Nian’s back, murmuring softly, “No matter what, you must believe in yourself.”