"Mom--"
Li Man shouted and ran over, tightly embracing her mother's frail body.
Zhang Yan also hugged her, trembling with excitement.
She sobbed and patted Li Man's back, unable to speak: "You're finally back... Mom has been waiting for you for eleven years... How could you be so heartless... You didn't even make a phone call all these years. Your father couldn't eat because he missed you so much... He became thin and weak after you left..."
"Mom... I'm sorry... I was wrong... You can hit me... I was wrong..."
Li Man felt overwhelming guilt, tears streaming down her face. She released her mother's hand, slowly kneeling in front of her.
In her younger years, she was naive, and her focus was solely on love, neglecting family and disregarding her parents' feelings. She insisted on being with Huang De Han. Now she truly realizes her mistake.
Zhang Yan tightly held Li Man's arm, crying and saying, "Get up, child... Your father is waiting for you. Go see him quickly. He has been mentioning you these past few days. I couldn't bear it anymore, so I called you..."
Zhang Yan loved and hated her daughter. She hated her for being so heartless, not making a single phone call all these years.
Li Man stood up, picked up her luggage, and entered the hospital with her mother.
As she touched her daughter's rough hand, Zhang Yan couldn't stop her tears. In the past, she didn't even let Li Man wash the dishes at home, keeping her hands soft and delicate. But now...
She regretted pampering her daughter so much, shielding her from the harsh realities of life, and focusing only on fairy tale-like love.
Everyone says that daughters should be raised in wealth so they won't be deceived by a man's material possessions. Zhang Yan firmly believed in this and acted accordingly.
However, she didn't expect that it was precisely because her daughter grew up in a privileged environment that she didn't consider the family background of her boyfriend or his material conditions. She only focused on her feelings.
She was easily deceived by the sweet words of a man.
This was something she never anticipated.
Arriving at the ward, Li Man saw her father lying on the hospital bed, covered in various medical devices, his body frail and bony. She instantly broke down, kneeling in front of her father's bed and crying, "Dad... I'm back... I'm back... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."
Li Liangsheng slowly opened his eyes. When he saw Li Man, his eyes instantly welled up with tears. He struggled to open his mouth and whispered, "Man Man... Man Man..."
His trembling hands continued to shake on top of the quilt.
Li Man quickly crawled forward, tightly grasping her father's bony hands.
"Dad... Dad..."
Li Man cried and couldn't speak.
"Man Man... It's good that you're back... It's good that you're back..."
Tears streamed down Li Liangsheng's eyes as he trembled and caressed Li Man's hair. "You've lost weight... Man Man... You've suffered... You've become thin..."
"Dad... I'm sorry... I was wrong... You can hit me... I truly realize my mistake..."
Trembling, Li Liangsheng wiped away his daughter's tears. "You... You're too willful... Your mother spoiled you..."
"I'm... sorry, Dad... You can hit me... I won't dare anymore... I'll stay by your side from now on... I won't go anywhere..."
Li Liangsheng's eyes darted around, as if searching for something, and he hoarsely asked, "Where is Huang De Han? Where's our child?"
