A Nighttime Talk (Part 2)

"Another idea..."

Although she was still hesitant, Lin Xiaolu subconsciously followed Larkspur and took a step.

She began to analyze herself, considering whether there were other triggers for her recent low mood. As she walked a distance, an answer naturally arose in her mind:

"Actually, when I first learned about these things, I felt a little sorry for my father."

The Larkspur beside it suddenly tripped and nearly fell to the ground.

Lin Xiaolu quickly reached out to support her. "What's wrong?"

"There seems to be a hole in the ground." The Larkspur, now standing still, put on a straight face, pretending to be calm and indicating that she was alright. Taking advantage of the poor visibility at night, she made up a reason on the spot.

"Really?" Lin Xiaolu looked back with some doubt, only to see that the road under the silvery moonlight was smooth and there was no sign of the "pit" that the Larkspur had mentioned.

But she didn't think much of it and didn't try to investigate further, assuming that she couldn't see clearly, and turned around to continue following the Larkspur.

"What happened between you and your father...?" Walking along the quiet sidewalk, Larkspur asked in an attempt to change the subject.

She had wanted to ask about this for a long time; in fact, she really wanted to know what the cold war between her and her father was like from her daughter's perspective.

Lin Yun had always felt that the conflict between her and her daughter stemmed mainly from a lack of care and communication, so she had been trying to make up for it after Lin Xiaolu ran away from home. However, when she began to contact her daughter as Larkspur and gradually understood some of her daughter's true thoughts, she discovered that the truth seemed to be different.

"Rather than saying something happened, it's more like a one-sided misunderstanding."

Lin Xiaolu followed closely behind Larkspur. "Back then, when my mother passed away, he concealed the whereabouts of her body while also being with other young women. This made me think that he no longer loved my mother and wanted to use this opportunity to abandon her and me to find other women."

"Later, we argued, and I ran away from home. Many things became very tense, but I always felt it was his fault, so I never thought about forgiving or understanding him."

"Ha, now that I think about it, there might have been some of my own arbitrary judgment involved."

"Because he was very strict with me when I was a child, to the point of being annoying, when I felt he was wrong, even if I ostensibly asked him for his reasons, I didn't actually want to hear the answer; I had already judged in my mind that he was wrong."

The two walked slowly, passing the Sunset Bridge spanning the Xiting River. It was almost midsummer, and in the sweltering night, only a slight breeze rippled across the water.

There was hardly any traffic on the bridge at midnight. Larkspur and Lin Xiaolu walked along the sidewalk one after the other, their crisp footsteps Echo on the bridge.

"... And now?" Larkspur didn't directly offer her opinion on Lin Xiaolu's "self-reflection," but instead continued to ask.

If she were merely a "Larkspur," she could judge Lin Xiaolu's right and wrong from an outsider's perspective; but as a party involved in this parent-child cold war, she actually knew that under such complicated circumstances, it was impossible to say who was right and who was wrong between her and Lin Xiaolu.

Both she and her daughter initially wanted to maintain the family's existence, but their differing information—the daughter unaware that her mother was a magical girl; and their differing perspectives and feelings—she, as the father, failed to understand her daughter's doubts and helplessness at the time. Ultimately, this led to such a huge disagreement.

When it comes to communicating with children, I should always be more proactive as a parent, but I didn't realize that back then.

On the other side, Lin Xiaolu continued, "Because he showed me photos of you and Mom before, I now realize that he didn't want me to know the truth about Mom's death back then."

"After all, according to him, Mom was actually a very powerful magical girl, but she died under mysterious circumstances. Faced with an enemy who could kill Mom, even if he knew the truth, and even if he developed hatred because of it, he probably wouldn't know what he could do."

"But the result was that, because I didn't know why my mother died, I always thought it was a simple accident, and I directed all my hatred and hostility at him."

"He probably meant well, but that's how I responded to him..."

"If you could properly explain your thoughts to your father, he would probably be very happy, wouldn't he?"

Larkspur suddenly spoke up, "It would actually be more effective to tell him directly, rather than telling him here."

"Isn't it a bit too late to say this now?" Lin Xiaolu asked, her face showing worry.

"It won't be too late."

Larkspur shook her head, turned her face to the side, and stared expressionlessly at the river below the bridge, leaving no one knowing what she was thinking, "When it comes to family relationships, no one can guarantee they won't make a mistake."

"This is your first time being a daughter, and your father is also a first-time father. You are both novices in your respective roles, and it's inevitable that you'll make all sorts of mistakes. If this mistake is still within the realm of forgiveness, why not give each other another chance?"

"Besides, your father might have already stopped blaming you for this matter."

There was an indescribable emotion in her words about this matter, as if she had some personal experience with it. Although it was vague, even the slow-witted Lin Xiaolu could sense it.

So she stared blankly at Larkspur, and subconsciously asked, "Larkspur, do you... have a child?"

The Larkspur stopped and glanced at her sideways.

"You guess."

After uttering those two words, he continued walking forward.

Lin Xiaolu quickly jogged after him.

For some reason, Larkspur didn't ask any more questions, and Lin Xiaolu just followed her. The two walked to the middle of the bridge and arrived at the center of the Xiting River.

Lin Xiaolu lowered her eyes, glancing to the side, her expression somewhat complicated.

Because she felt that since she had decided to speak out about her doubts, there were still some questions she shouldn't avoid.

However, this matter is different from what was mentioned before. As a magical girl, what she is about to say might truly disappoint Larkspur.

It has nothing to do with his mother's identity or his conflict with his father, but rather with his disappointment in Lin Xiaolu herself.

Although she kept asking Larkspur if she was disappointed in her, she actually didn't want Larkspur to hate her at all.

If possible, she also hoped that she could be like Xia Liang, always able to act well-behaved and likable in front of others; always able to liven up the atmosphere and make others happy; and always be so excellent that Larkspur would be satisfied with her.

But now, not to mention those things, she seems to have even lost the most basic qualities of a magical girl.

Because these days, she gradually felt that she seemed to have lost the courage to fight.

Should I really bring this up? If I just keep quiet about it, if I just pretend nothing happened, at least things can stay this way...

At this thought, Lin Xiaolu's thoughts came to a standstill.

Because she suddenly saw that the Larkspur had turned around and was looking at her with those clear, azure eyes.

Under the moonlight, those eyes were like the purest Sapphire, tinged with silver light, and seemed to speak, looking at me with encouraging emotion.

Lin Xiaolu pursed her lips, then mustered her courage and opened her mouth.