Shen Mingyou acted fast, not giving Jiang Chen time to react or process things. She had a lawyer prepare the divorce and custody agreement. By the time Jiang Chen rushed back to China, she handed Nian Nian over to him and disappeared.

When Jiang Chen returned to China, everything had changed. Nian Nian no longer spoke, and no matter what he said to her, she acted as if she couldn’t hear him. She wouldn’t make eye contact or communicate with anyone, as though she had locked herself in her own world. The doctor’s diagnosis confirmed that Nian Nian indeed had autism.

While caring for Nian Nian, Jiang Chen searched everywhere for Shen Mingyou.

Eventually, he found her in a sanatorium abroad. By then, Shen Mingyou’s depression had worsened, but she was still trying hard to get treatment. Jiang Chen wanted to see her, but Shen Mingyou refused to meet him. If Jiang Chen tried to force his way in, Shen Mingyou would become very agitated. At the doctor’s suggestion, Jiang Chen could only sneak a glance at her when she wasn’t present.

Shen Mingyou had lost a lot of weight. She looked pale and frail, her eyes empty and lifeless. She was nothing like the Shen Mingyou he once knew.

Jiang Chen was filled with guilt and regret. He hated himself for not realizing sooner and for not being with his wife and daughter when they needed him the most. In such a short time, he almost lost the people he loved most.

After that, Jiang Chen handed the company over to professionals. He went to the sanatorium every day to visit Shen Mingyou. Even though Shen Mingyou never saw him, he took Nian Nian for treatment regularly.

However, the treatment wasn’t easy, and Shen Mingyou’s depression showed little improvement.

Nian Nian’s treatment also wasn’t going well. She still couldn’t speak and paid no attention to anything around her. Although Jiang Chen was anxious, all he could do was stay with her and follow the doctor’s advice.

One night, Nian Nian had a nightmare. Jiang Chen woke up and was surprised to hear Nian Nian talking in her sleep. He listened closely and realized she was calling for her mom. In her dream, Nian Nian cried, “Mom, don’t make Nian Nian leave.”

Jiang Chen hugged Nian Nian with a broken heart, comforting her, “Mom didn’t mean she doesn’t want you. She loves you the most in the world.”

The next day, Nian Nian woke up, but she was still the same—unable to speak and withdrawn into her own world.

After that, whenever Jiang Chen visited Shen Mingyou, he secretly took Nian Nian with him. He would hide with her and point to Shen Mingyou, telling Nian Nian that her mom loved her very much but was sick and needed treatment. He promised that when she recovered, she would come home and be with Nian Nian again.

At first, this didn’t seem to work. But gradually, Jiang Chen noticed that Nian Nian would react during these visits. She would secretly glance at Shen Mingyou from the corner. At home, when Jiang Chen went to hug her, Nian Nian, who usually didn’t resist, would push his hand away as if wanting to stay longer.

Nian Nian’s small actions made Jiang Chen very happy. He started taking her to see Shen Mingyou more often, though still secretly. This continued for almost a year. Then, one afternoon, while Shen Mingyou was napping in the garden, Jiang Chen let Nian Nian approach her mother.

Nian Nian sat quietly by Shen Mingyou’s feet for a long time. Just when Jiang Chen thought Nian Nian wouldn’t do anything, she reached out her hand.

Nian Nian carefully extended a finger and gently touched her mother’s finger. Shen Mingyou woke up and looked down to see Nian Nian sitting at her feet.

Nian Nian looked up at her mother. After a moment, Nian Nian hesitantly took her mother’s hand. When her mother didn’t pull away, Nian Nian softly pressed her cheek into her mother’s palm and whispered, “Mom.”

Jiang Chen nervously watched from afar as Shen Mingyou rested Nian Nian’s head on her lap and gently stroked her hair.

Nian Nian snuggled in her mother’s arms, softly calling, “Mom.”

Shen Mingyou touched Nian Nian’s little head and replied, “Yes, Mom is here.”

…

Jiang Chen returned to City A and sat in the back seat of the car as the driver headed to the Zhao family’s old house.

Nian Nian was waiting for her father at her grandfather’s house.

Jiang Chen closed his eyes, puzzled by the vividness of his dream. It felt so real.

If Shen Mingyou’s depression had worsened after participating in “Super Mom,” would everything in his dream have come true?

In the dream, his wife was nearly unrecognizable, ravaged by illness, and their daughter, Nian Nian, went through things a child shouldn’t have to. Even though things got better later, the pain and trauma could never be erased.

Jiang Chen’s heart ached. As a husband and father, he felt he had failed in many ways.

Feeling overwhelmed, he rubbed his forehead and suddenly remembered something. He pulled out his phone and made a call.

No one answered, so Jiang Chen sent a text message instead.

[Jiang Chen: Was the person Youyou once liked me?]

He stared at the message, conflicted.

When he first learned Shen Mingyou had liked someone else, he felt jealous but not worried. After all, that person was no longer in her life. Now, she was his wife, and they were happily married. He believed that soon, she would forget that other person and love him completely.

But now, Jiang Chen wasn’t sure if he wanted the answer to be yes or no.

The car arrived at the Zhao family’s house. Jiang Chen sat there for a while, calming his emotions, before getting out and going inside.

As soon as the door opened, he saw Nian Nian sitting by the door, waiting for him.

Nian Nian had been waiting for her father for a long time at her grandfather’s house. Not only had her father left her behind to visit her mother secretly, but he also lied to her, saying he had something important to do. Now he was late picking her up, and Nian Nian was upset.

When she saw her father, she stood up, crossed her arms, and pouted angrily, her expression saying, “Nian Nian is really mad!”

Jiang Chen wanted nothing more than to hug her. He squatted down, looked at his daughter, and said, “Nian Nian, Daddy’s back.”

“Hmph,” Nian Nian huffed, still upset.

At that moment, Jiang Chen’s phone dinged with a new message.

Jiang Chen paused, checked his phone, and saw a message from Lin Jing:

[Lin Jing: Yes.]

Jiang Chen stared at the single word “yes” for a long time.

It turned out the person Shen Mingyou had liked all along was really him.

That’s why she agreed to marry him, wanted to blend into his life early in their marriage, knew his likes and dislikes, and gave him another chance by agreeing to date him again…

Jiang Chen should have realized this sooner. Ever since that game show where Shen Mingyou knew all his preferences, Jiang Chen began to doubt. He wondered if Shen Mingyou liked him. But he dismissed the thought, believing that because they hadn’t crossed paths before, Shen Mingyou couldn’t be interested in him.

It wasn’t until today, on set, when Shen Mingyou kissed him, that these doubts resurfaced strongly.

After learning from Lin Jing that Shen Mingyou did indeed like him, Jiang Chen should have been overjoyed. However, discovering Shen Mingyou’s struggle with depression and having a vivid dream made him realize how much pain he had caused Shen Mingyou.

Jiang Chen’s eyes quickly filled with tears.

“Dad?” Seeing her father staring at his phone with a pained expression, Nian Nian became worried and called out to him.

When Jiang Chen looked up, Nian Nian noticed his sadness.

Nian Nian reached out and touched the red corners of her father’s eyes, saying, “Dad, don’t cry. Nian Nian isn’t mad at you anymore.”

Jiang Chen held Nian Nian’s small hand and hugged her tightly.