My Mother's Distant Shadow

My mother, Shen Qingwan, was the second daughter of the Shen family, one of the four great houses of Yunhai City. Raised with an elite education, she entered the business world and quickly proved herself a brilliant, powerful woman. In her youth she was a legendary beauty — courted by everyone from politicians to tycoons — yet she chose my father. After their marriage collapsed amid debt and rumors, she left for a new life abroad. Eight years later, I’m 18, abandoned in a rundown apartment with my alcoholic father. Then she returns — no longer the gentle mother I remember, but a distant, breathtaking empress. The rumors never stopped. The longing never died. And now she wants to see me.