"Thank you to our distinguished guests for coming. Today is my son's birthday, and we're also glad to announce that it is also the day of his engagement with his childhood sweetheart, Aiko Chen."
At the end Chairman Mo's announcement, applause filled the banquet hall.
Luna Jiang was stunned after hearing the announcement. She couldn't believe that Aiko Chen would force Jasper to marry her like this.
Madam Mo then took over the mike and began sharing the touching romantic story between her stepson and Aiko and how they met. Listening to it, those who didn't know Jasper Mo and Aiko Chen would think that it was love at first sight, and they were destined to be married in the end.
Aiko bowed her head with her cheeks already red from being in the spotlight. However, when she saw the shocked expression on Luna's face, a satisfied smile was revealed.
Although Luna had known for a long time that Jasper was a young master of a wealthy family that would certainly have to marry another woman that wasn't her. It still hurt her.
So many times, she tried to prepare herself for this; but the pain that hit her was still unbearable. She wasn't mentally prepared for this. She'd love Jasper for years, and now, she had to watch him promise to another woman that wasn't her.
It was at that moment that she found Jasper looking at her at the other side of the banquet hall. The expression on his eyes told her everything.
He couldn't stop any of it; neither did he have the guts to oppose his father's wishes. It had always been like this, and Luna wouldn't be surprised if Jasper turned his back on her right now.
Jasper was called out by his father to join them up the stage, but his attention was solely focused on Luna Jiang.
"Jasper! Didn't you say you want to celebrate your birthday with Aiko?" Chairman Mo was so loud it was almost he was daring his son to disobey him.
Luna seemed to lose all her strength, her knees trembled. However, Hero held her waist, surprising her.
"You cannot fall at this time. You're better than this, Luna Jiang." Hero's voice came behind her. He was leaning down, his lips touching her crown as he pressed his chest on her back and held her tight.
Jasper gave Luna a last glance, clenched his fists before walking towards the stage.
"Should we leave now, or do you want to see Jasper Mo holding another woman's hand for marriage?" Hero asked his wife.
Luna shut her eyes, forbidding her tears to roll down.
"Take me home, please," she begged with a broken voice.
All of these had nothing to do with her. She wasn't interested to see what else Aiko prepared for her.
Turning around, President Li pulled Luna Jiang away from the banquet hall and walked out. As they walked out the door, cheering and a round of applause could be heard from the inside.
Hero Li did not say a word and only led Luna into the elevator. There were no other words spoken between them as Luna continued to tremble beside her husband.
When they reached the first floor, Daryl was already there waiting for them. He opened the door of the backseat of the limousine. Luna entered first before Hero followed her shortly.
Outside, the pounding rain had started to fall. Softly splashing water droplets hit the car windows as the car drive onwards. The skies were overhung with a blanket of gray, so much so that Luna could barely tell the difference between the sky and clouds.
The rain bore down mercilessly upon the heart of the city, pounding on the rooftops and turning the cobbled streets of the business district into a warren of slick stones and muddy waters.
Despite car rides feeling tedious, the rain somehow calmed her; Luna watched the raindrops race down to the windows. The rain had always been her calming sound.
"Are you going to cry?" Hero asked her after a long silence between them.
"Even if I cry now, would it be able to change anything?" Luna chuckled, refusing to move her gaze away from the window. Her eyes reddened, but she refused to let her tears flow.
"Luna Jiang!" Hero growled, irritated that this woman was still affected by her ex-boyfriend's affairs. Couldn't she see that Jasper couldn't man up to stand up against his father to protect her?
What's the use of being a young master if he couldn't protect the woman he claimed to love?
"What?" Luna snapped at him. "What do you want me to do? Isn't enough that I've lost everything? That in the end, Aiko was able to take him away from me?" she cried out. Tears streaming down her face.
She initially thought that she was a strong woman, that she would be able to face the difficulties with a smile on her face.
"Lose everything? Luna Jiang, are you forgetting that you still have a family? Julian is alive; your mother has recovered. You have real friends that care for you. You also have Amber, the baby… and you still have me! How dare you say that you've lost everything?!"
Luna opened her mouth to argue, but no words came out.
Yes, what he said was true. She hadn't lost everything. She only lost Jasper and Aiko, but she still had those who loved her dearly. How could she forget?
Luna was shocked when Hero's arms wrapped around her as she cried.
"Why are you so good to me?"
By this time, she only wanted to cry her heart out and hope the pain would lessen soon. Hero didn't utter a word as she continued to cry in his arms. Her tears had wet his clothing, but he didn't care.
"Just this once, I will allow you to cry. In the future, you can only have happy tears. You hear me?"