Chapter 58: She’s Still Playing Dumb, and She Still Doesn’t Believe Her Part 2

Normally, their bickering was just how they were, but they were family after all. She still liked Zhang Mingfang very much.

Even if she occasionally wanted to rip the woman’s mouth off.

Su Ye resignedly adjusted the drunkard on her back. The jolt cleared Zhang Mingfang’s mind slightly, and she let out a few unintelligible whimpers. Su Ye asked, “Where to? Back to your office? Home? Or do you want to stay with Sister Wanjia?”

“Wanjia… hate her…”

Su Ye was confused and gave her a sharp smack on the back. “What nonsense are you talking!”

But the other woman only whispered, “I hate her. I don’t want to go.”

So the problem was here? How was that possible? These two were far more mature than she and Yue Huan. A fight between them was unheard of. Moreover, given Sister Wanjia’s current health, she couldn’t handle an argument. They shouldn’t even be having a conflict!

“Stop talking nonsense. I’ll take you back to the office. I can’t carry you all the way home; my leg will snap.”

Zhang Mingfang seemed to have a shred of logic left. After hearing that her leg would snap, she quieted down and put in some effort to stand, easing the pressure on Su Ye.

Even so, after Su Ye finally managed to drag her upstairs, she collapsed into a chair, gasping for air and rubbing her leg, which was beginning to cramp.

The woman lay on the chaise longue, silently rolling over, the scent of alcohol radiating off her.

After a long silence, Su Ye sighed. “Don’t fight. Don’t be angry.”

“How many decades does a person get in life? What’s there to fight about!”

She was speaking to Zhang Mingfang, but even more so to herself.

Other people might have decades, but what about her and Yue Huan? They only had a few years left—perhaps even just a few months. Yet here they were, stalling and wasting each other’s time.

Su Ye sighed.

But how could they talk it out? The problem between them was too difficult to solve. After all, the issue was love, not hate. It was affection, not dislike. They knew they loved each other, but the more they realized it, the more painful it became.

A torment that cracked their very bones and blood.

She sat there holding her leg, staring into space while looking after Zhang Mingfang, who looked like she might throw up at any moment. This woman had quite a high tolerance; for her to get herself into this state, something truly major must have happened.

Why had everything been going so poorly for them lately?

Suddenly, the sharp ringing of the PHS phone shattered the silence of the office. The drunken woman squirmed uncomfortably, raising a hand as if to block either her eyes or her ears.

Su Ye pulled out the small phone. When she saw the number on the screen, her breath hitched for a moment.

With trembling hands, she pressed the answer button.

“Hello—”

A clear voice, like the sound of wind through pines, came through. Even though the signal distortion made it sound somewhat artificial, it couldn’t hide the brightness of the tone. It was low and steady. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know…”

Su Ye felt like crying.

This was the phone she had bought for Yue Huan. This was the SIM card she had registered for her. How could she not remember?

Yue Chengqi’s voice was slightly raspy, filled with tenderness as she spoke slowly. “Sister Wanjia said this was your gift to me. Ah Ye… this really is the best gift I’ve ever received.”

Su Ye gripped the armrest and slowly curled into her chair. “Are you with Sister Wanjia right now?”

“I was worried about you, so after arranging for Qi Sheng to watch the shop, I came over. Don’t worry, it won’t affect our earnings.”

In truth, some things didn’t need to be said explicitly for them to continue their relationship. It was as if they both already understood perfectly, yet were simply afraid to take that final step.

Just afraid.

The girl lowered her head, fiddling with her collar, and grumbled, “I’m not that obsessed with money! You make it sound like I’m the type of person who counts coins in my sleep.”

Yue Chengqi and Lin Wanjia exchanged a look and laughed almost simultaneously.

Wasn’t she?

Wasn’t this little miser exactly the type to count money in her dreams?

Su Ye huffed. “Fine. I’ll come find you guys in a bit. I’m over here with Sister Mingfang.”

Those words seemed to flip a switch in someone. The drunkard struggled to sit up and lunged forward, nearly knocking Su Ye and the chair over.

She grabbed Su Ye’s hand and shouted, “Lin Wanjia! I know you can hear me! Listen to me! I won’t allow it! I won’t let what happened in ’93 happen again! Don’t you dare think of stopping me—wherever you go in this life, I’m going with you!”

The phone went silent for a while before a different voice took over. “But practicing medicine was your mother’s hope for you. It was your dream.”

“That doesn’t mean a damn thing!” Zhang Mingfang couldn’t hold herself up and fell back against the armrest of the chaise longue. “I’m thirty-five years old. I’m long past the age of chasing dreams. Lin Wanjia, remember this: where you go, I go. Do you understand?”

“…”

Both sides went silent.

Su Ye cautiously took the phone back. “What’s going on? Why are you two suddenly fighting?”

Zhang Mingfang looked up at her and gave a cold laugh. “Do you know why Lin Wanjia ‘found’ you that year? How could it be such a coincidence? Why would she be running toward the downstream of the river in such heavy rain?”

On the phone, the woman’s breath hitched. “Mingfang!”

But since Zhang Mingfang wanted to speak, she had no intention of stopping. She let out a long breath and said softly, “Because she was planning to die that day.”

*

The call was instantly disconnected. When Yue Chengqi took her phone back, her hands were still shaking, her teeth leaving deep marks on her lower lip.

Silence spread rapidly through the small hospital room.

Lin Qining bit her lip. “Elder Sister…”

“Qining, Youle hasn’t had her bath today, right? Take her to get one.”

Lin Qining spoke up bravely, “She already had one, Sister. The doctor said we shouldn’t bathe her too frequently. Sister… what did that mean? What happened to you?”

Lin Wanjia looked at her earnestly. “Then… would you mind stepping out for a bit? Youle can stay.”

“…Alright.”

Not long after Lin Qining left, Su Ye arrived. Her eyes were bloodshot, but there were no tears on her face. She was out of breath as she grabbed the woman’s hand. “Sister… what did she mean?”

“She’s lying to me, right? You just wanted to go out and walk in the rain, right?”

That night had been so dark.

She had been running recklessly, rain soaking her from head to toe, each step heavier than the last. But she couldn’t stop. A bolt of lightning had just warned her; she couldn’t stop, she had to keep running.

But she didn’t know where to go. Everything was a misty void, without a single light.

The fifteen-year-old Su Ye truly couldn’t run anymore. She found a nearby tree and slumped down against it. Her mind was still filled with the terrifying scene from moments before—a tree so massive, scorched black by a single bolt of lightning. Had it fallen backward instead of forward, Su Ye would never have escaped.

Her young life had nearly been snuffed out by a heartless strike from the heavens.

Su Ye panted, trying to soothe herself. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning bright enough to turn half the sky white ripped across the heavens. Its tail seemed to strike right above her—it was in the sky, impossible to hit her, but the visual was so overwhelming and she was so fragile that she couldn’t help but scream, hugging herself tightly.

Her eyes were momentarily blinded by the flash. Then, the sound of wet footsteps and rain hitting an umbrella slowly approached. A woman’s voice asked with confusion, “Why are you here alone?”

She had completely forgotten that she was alone there too.

Su Ye had forgotten as well. She scrambled over, crawling toward the woman and hugging her legs. “Sister, I’m very good at working. I can read, I have a middle-school education, I’m very smart. Please, take me in.”

“At least take me away from here. I beg you.”

The woman stood there for a moment before leaning down to pull her up. “Were you kidnapped? Or did you do something wrong? Come with me to the police station.”

Terror-stricken, Su Ye didn’t think twice. she just wanted to leave. Hearing this, she nodded vigorously. “Okay, Sister. I’ll go with you. Anywhere is fine. Please just take me away from here.”

Later, the woman took her to the police station. After checks and registration, they determined she was a child from an orphanage. No matter how reluctant Su Ye was, she had to be sent back. But she remembered that sister’s name and her face. Not long after her return, Li Mingyue told her that someone had used connections to buy her guardianship and was going to take her away.

Li Mingyue warned her that she was now at an age where she could be married off. If she followed this person, she might be sold for a dowry. It wasn’t the first time a girl had been treated that way.

But Su Ye saw the familiar name and nodded. “I’m willing to go with her.”

Everything had followed a logical progression until today.

During that time, Su Ye had wondered countless times why Lin Wanjia had been there. She’d had dark thoughts, but she’d dismissed them every time.

But today, she was told that back then, Lin Wanjia was…

She couldn’t accept it.

The girl knelt by the bed, gripping the woman’s hand with all her might, pleading, “Tell me! Tell me the truth!”

“It’s not like that.” Lin Wanjia gave a warm smile and rubbed her head. “How could I have thought such a thing? I really…”

“But Zhang Mingfang is dead drunk! She doesn’t have the mental capacity to coordinate such a precise lie!”

Lin Wanjia was at a loss for words. Everything is already confirmed, isn’t it? They are all smart people; once a conclusion is reached, what’s the point of asking over and over?

She squeezed Su Ye’s hand firmly. “Stand up.”

Su Ye had no choice but to stand up obediently, her eyes downcast.

“That’s all in the past. Don’t cry. Come on, wipe your eyes.”

Su Ye asked, “Then what about your health?”

“You know about it, don’t you? Didn’t you pick up the reports yourself?” Lin Wanjia gestured with her arms. “You’ve seen all the issues. There’s nothing life-threatening. Don’t worry.”

“The old me had nothing, so I had extreme thoughts. But the current me has everything; why would I think like that now? Don’t forget, I’m still holding thirty percent of your shares. I’m waiting to collect my money.”

Only after she said this did Su Ye’s expression finally soften. She made Wanjia promise again and again before finally letting the matter rest.

“I’ll be watching you!” the girl said fiercely.

Lin Wanjia lay back. “I need to rest. Would you mind stepping out for a moment?”

“…”

“Go on. Let me be alone for a bit, okay?”

Su Ye had no choice but to follow Yue Chengqi out, glancing back reluctantly with every step toward the door.

However, once Su Ye was out, before she could react, Yue Chengqi immediately closed the door and locked it from the inside.

“Wait for me a moment. I have something to ask Sister Wanjia. You can’t listen.”

No matter how Su Ye banged on the door or shouted, Yue Chengqi ignored her. She walked over to Little Youle’s small bed and teased the little one. Her gaze softened, and her voice became gentle—

“Sister, would you… would you like to hear me talk about what Youle will be like when she grows up?”