Chapter 410 - Going Public

Everyone was focused on Halia and Natalie's children when a Rolls Royce pulled up at the front of the Wu Family Mansion. 

Halia and Jackson knew about Avaleigh's condition so they did not expect her to attend the one-month celebration, but Avaleigh treasured family and did not think it was right to be absent from an important day like this, so she decided to turn up.

Originally, Avaleigh kept her condition quite private; no one in the Wu Family, apart from Halia and Jackson, knew about it. She did not specifically hide it, but she did not announce it to the world either. After all, it wasn't something to be proud of. But during one of her chemotherapy sessions, another patient said something that really stuck with her. "I can't believe a celebrity is doing chemotherapy in the same room as me and you're so young as well. Celebrity lives are always portrayed as being so perfect. Who knew you'd get cancer too."

"I'm only human," Avaleigh replied weakly as the chemotherapy drugs were pumped into her body via an IV drip. She had been there for 20 minutes before this woman arrived and sat next to her.

The woman furrowed her brows in confusion, "But why is everyone saying that you left 'Let's Go!' because you broke up with Emerson Wu and no longer had his support after he discovered you were a gold digger?" The woman then glanced at Emerson who was sitting next to Avaleigh, holding her hand lovingly. Emerson didn't show his face in public often, but this woman had clearly seen him in a finance magazine before so she knew who he was. They were clearly still together and very much in love.

Avaleigh smiled calmly, "They can think whatever they want. I know it's not the truth."

The woman furrowed her brows again. "I still don't understand. Why don't you just announce that you left because you're sick and undergoing chemotherapy? I'm sure everyone will understand. Plus, don't you think it's a good opportunity to raise awareness?"

Avaleigh looked at the woman with interest, "Raise awareness?"

"A lot of people think that cancer is so rare that it will never happen to them, especially when they're still young. Because of that, they forget to have regular check-ups. If I was you, I would encourage people to get themselves checked and I would highlight the importance of early detection. I had put off checking my b.r.e.a.s.ts for 5 years before a workmate was diagnosed with b.r.e.a.s.t cancer and mentioned it at work. That was when I went to the doctor and we discovered a small lump. Both of us are lucky that our cancers were in their early stages, but not everyone is that lucky..."

Avaleigh listened to the woman and realized that she made a lot of sense. She had never looked at things from that angle; she simply thought it was her own burden to handle. But now, she realized how many people she could possibly help.

So, Avaleigh turned up at the Wu Family Mansion that day and walked confidently through the front door. When everyone first saw her, they were shocked. She had lost a bit of weight but she still looked healthy. She had light makeup on and her white dress made her look pure and innocent. But the thing that drew the most attention...

...was her bald head.

Was this some kind of fashion statement? 

"Avaleigh, dear, it's been a while since we last saw you. We heard that you left your show. Have you been well?" Aunt Lily asked. She and Father Wu had agreed not to interfere with Emerson's love life, so they ignored the gossip and trusted their son without asking any questions, but she was still a little worried about Avaleigh. Especially now that she saw her in this questionable state. Had something happened? A certain celebrity once shaved her head during a public breakdown, was this something similar? Avaleigh had been through a lot recently: murder, disbanding, and endless slandering. Had she reached her limit?

But, just as Aunt Lily was thinking of the possibilities, Avaleigh held her hand and looked in her eyes. Her gaze was comforting; it reassured her that it wasn't what she thought. "Auntie, there is news I would like to share with you. But before I get started, I want to reassure you that I am perfectly fine." 

Aunt Lily pulled Father Wu to join her. She could tell that Avaleigh had something serious to say and felt that Father Qu should be there to hear it too.

Avaleigh took a deep breath and smiled, "I recently had surgery...for cancer..."

Aunt Lily almost broke into tears on the spot when she heard the word 'cancer'. She looked at the young woman's skinny body, her pale skin, and her bald head; everything suddenly made sense. She lifted her trembling hand and placed it up to Avaleigh's cheek, "Oh dear, you must have been through so much on your own. You should have told us earlier so we could be there for you."

Avaleigh shook her head. "It wasn't actually as tough as I thought it would be at the beginning." She then looked at Emerson lovingly, "Emerson was there with me through the entire journey and he's been attending all my chemotherapy and radiation sessions with me. I actually feel quite lucky that I discovered my diagnosis early. I have seen many people in worse situations, and I have also seen some very lonely people at the hospital."

Aunt Lily and Father Wu looked at Emerson proudly. They knew the reports were wrong about him breaking up with Avaleigh because she was a gold digger.

At that moment, Aunt Lily noticed the diamond ring on Avaleigh's finger. Emerson saw her look at it and smiled, "On a lighter note, I also have news to announce..."

Aunt Lily glanced at Father Wu excitedly as she pointed at the ring.

"Avaleigh and I are engaged," Emerson said proudly as he held onto his fiancee's hand.

Just as he said that, Natalie suddenly received an alert on her phone. Since Avaleigh was the spokesperson for Fengtai, she had set up alerts on her phone for all news related to her.

Natalie picked up her phone and clicked on a new article that was released 5 minutes ago. It was an article written by Steven Zhe, AE Entertainment's exclusive reporter. The headline read, [Avaleigh Song's Brave Battle With Cancer].