CHAPTER 1: CHAPTER 1: AS YOU WISH, I’M ABOUT TO DIE...

Tiana Linden is a twenty-nine-year-old single mother with stage IV lung cancer.

In the last three months, what can she possibly leave for her daughter? Try to leave some money for her daughter? Take many photos with her daughter? Write many letters in advance? Record many videos?

Or take her daughter to find her biological father — Aiden Grant?

But Aiden Grant is about to marry another woman...

Her four-year-old daughter, without someone to take her in, it’s not just about being bullied or treated coldly, it might even be difficult for her to survive.

In the end, Tiana Linden still returned to Veridia.

Amongst the over twenty million people in Veridia, finding someone who has moved away and completely blocked her is truly not easy.

Tiana Linden pleaded with Aiden Grant’s good friend, Christopher Grant, for several days.

A few days later, she finally met Aiden Grant in an exquisitely rustic villa.

At this moment, the man who once held a ginger tea for her, cooling it slowly, was now chatting and laughing while combing Vivian Linden’s freshly washed long dark hair.

When the conversation reached an emotional point, the man twirled a strand of Vivian Linden’s hair between his fingers, stopping his movements.

In his eyes, filled with tender affection, there was only Vivian Linden.

It wasn’t until Vivian Linden saw Christopher Grant standing with Tiana Linden and her daughter that she exclaimed in surprise, "Sister," making Aiden look over in the direction of her gaze.

Christopher Grant, standing next to them, explained the situation, "Aiden, Tiana has been looking for you these days, it seems she has something urgent to discuss, should you two have a talk?"

Aiden Grant remained silent, fixedly staring at Tiana Linden and her daughter.

His gaze finally settled on Tiana Linden’s daughter, that tiny little figure.

Aiden’s breath caught, memories flashing back.

Was it the adorable little girl he had bumped into by chance a few days ago?

Is she Tiana Linden’s daughter?

Seeing Aiden, Daisy greeted politely yet cautiously, "Hello, Uncle!"

Tiana Linden had not intended to bring Daisy to disturb Aiden Grant.

A few days ago, they arrived at Veridia Airport.

While she was retrieving luggage, she heard Daisy’s crying from afar.

Looking towards the sound, she saw a man cautiously lift Daisy, who had fallen.

Kneeling on one knee, he wiped Daisy’s tears, and Tiana’s world seemed to have hit pause—that was Aiden Grant, whom she never wanted to see again in her life.

When Aiden Grant placed a band-aid for Daisy, his entire handsome face was full of gentle expression.

It wasn’t until he accompanied Daisy to the ground service counter, with announcements playing a search notice, that he gently waved goodbye to Daisy and left.

Watching all this from a distance, Tiana Linden was deeply moved.

Aiden Grant didn’t know Daisy’s background.

Yet he showed such attentive care to a stranger like Daisy, if Aiden knew Daisy was his daughter, he should like her even more, right?

Thus, coming to seek Aiden’s help, Tiana Linden felt a glimmer of confidence.

In anxious unease, she gathered her courage and led her daughter forward.

"Mr. Grant, could I take a few minutes of your time?"

Mr. Grant?

A pleading voice, as if it wanted to tear open the cold night.

Along with it, Aiden’s heart tore.

In the past, while in bed, she always liked to clasp his waist, cling to his neck, calling him over and over: Aiden, Aiden!

A wave of emotions surged but Aiden suppressed it.

He no longer looked at Tiana Linden, nor her daughter.

He lifted Vivian Linden’s hair again, "Vivian, let me continue drying your hair."

About a minute or two later, Vivian Linden, suppressing her unease, grasped Aiden’s hand with a gentle reminder, "Aiden, stop blowing, my sister is still waiting."

Vivian Linden was dressed elegantly, looking radiant.

But Tiana Linden, with her dark cotton jacket faded from too much washing, looked disheveled, haggard, and forlorn.

Her face bore only the somber, heavy look of impending death.

Like withering twigs and withered leaves about to fall.

Aiden didn’t spare her a glance, only gazed tenderly at Vivian, "You’re still on your cycle; if your hair isn’t dried, you might catch a chill. If you get a chill, your period pain will worsen."

How familiar these words were.

Aiden had said the same to Tiana Linden.

But the sweetness of those past moments had already ended.

Today, she was just here to find a place for her daughter.

Forcibly suppressing her inner pain, just wait!

She thought once Aiden finished drying Vivian’s hair, he might give her the time.

But he didn’t.

Aiden carefully put away the hairdryer, gently ruffled Vivian’s head, and softly mentioned he was going to make ginger tea for her, then he walked to the kitchen.

Leaving Vivian Linden behind, who looked apologetically at Tiana Linden.

"Sister, just wait a moment, Aiden might still be upset about what happened five years ago, I’ll talk to him."

"Thank you!"

In no time, only Vivian Linden stepped out alone.

"Sister, please wait a little longer, Aiden... anyways, don’t take things too hard. After all, he has his reasons to be angry."

"No problem, I’ll wait a bit longer."

The sound of Aiden slowly slicing ginger came from the kitchen.

Tiana could only continue to wait.

A few minutes later, Aiden came out with the ginger tea, without glancing at Tiana, and sat down next to Vivian Linden, gently blowing on the hot ginger tea for her.

Tiana and her daughter stood there until their feet went numb, while Aiden pretended they were air.

Even Christopher Grant couldn’t stand it, "Aiden, Tiana and her daughter have been waiting for you for over half an hour."

"If they don’t want to wait, they can leave. No one asked her to wait," Aiden replied coldly, disregarding his friend’s face.

He still hadn’t let go of what happened back then.

Looking at Tiana and her daughter made his once elegant expression turn somber.

"Mr. Grant..." Tiana tried to say it was okay, she could wait longer.

Aiden suddenly put the soup bowl down on the coffee table with a thud.

The soup spilled over.

The sharp sound interrupted Tiana, causing Daisy to huddle closer to her side.

Shortly after Daisy was born in prison, she caught a cold. The delay in treatment led to encephalitis.

The inflammation caused damage to her auditory nerves.

Missing the best treatment time, Daisy lost hearing in one ear.

With a hearing aid, any sound Daisy heard was much louder than normal.

The sharp sound and Aiden’s sudden cold demeanor made her tiny body tense up.

Fear filled her big eyes.

"Mom, I’m scared."

Tiana’s heart wrenched painfully within her.

She quickly picked up her daughter, gently stroking her little head, "We’ll wait outside."

As the mother and daughter left, their thin and shivering figures didn’t satisfy Aiden.

Instead, it made his expression even more somber.

Outside, the cold wind blew mercilessly.

Tiana took off her coat, wrapping it around Daisy.

Daisy tried to take it off and return it to her, but Tiana held her hands, softly stopping her, "Mom’s not cold, Mom’s okay."

For her daughter, enduring a bit of wind and cold was nothing.

Not even cancer could defeat her—could a little hardship?

Inside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the heater was on full blast.

Beneath the bright lights, Aiden tenderly reminded Vivian to drink the ginger tea.

But outside in the icy, biting night wind, Tiana could only hold her daughter tightly.

Half an hour later, Aiden finally called her alone into the study.

Before going in, she placed her daughter in the living room, kneeling down to softly and tenderly tell her to wait for her.

In the study, Aiden faced away from Tiana.

That silhouette, like the waning moon outside the window, was cold and distant, "You have at most five minutes, make it brief."

Since it had to be brief, Tiana decided not to dwell on the heart-wrenching past memories.

She got straight to the point.

"Mr. Grant, I came to find you this time to entrust you with my daughter. She’s actually your daughter too."

She didn’t have much time left.

She had to directly state her purpose.

Aiden turned around, eyes full of ice and suspicion.

"Tiana, a few days ago, did you have your daughter deliberately fall in front of me?"

"I didn’t, it was really a coincidence that day."

"Coincidence? Veridia has millions of people, how many accidents happen every day, and yet your daughter just happened to fall right under my nose?"

"You think I would believe such a million-to-one coincidence?"

"Tiana, five years ago when you were pregnant, you wanted to pin it on me. Now you want to do it again? So urgent to entrust your child, what are you up to, terminally ill, dying?"

His cold voice, mixed with the dampness and chill of the winter night, tore Tiana’s heart to shreds.

She couldn’t understand with what mindset Aiden could so casually utter such venomous words about her being terminally ill and dying.

Yet she really was dying.

Enduring pain from within, she struggled to speak:

"I have stage IV lung cancer... only less than three months left..."

She thought that hearing of her impending death, even if he didn’t care, Aiden would at least think seriously.

But he didn’t at all.

All he could offer was a faint tone of cold mockery.

"Tiana, have you forgotten what you did to me five years ago?"

"What are you planning to do this time? You’re even willing to curse yourself with lies?"

"Aren’t you afraid the heavens will see this and really give you a terminal illness, take your life?"