Liu Hua stood at the prison gate, gently tugging the corner of her mouth: "Xu Yi, let's go back. Yan and Mo must be bored waiting for us."
Xu Yi held her hand: "Yeah, let's go."
However, they had barely taken a few steps when Xu Mo's call came through.
Liu Hua smiled helplessly, but her smile froze when she heard what her son said.
"What did you say? Mo, say that again clearly! What just happened? Where are you and your sister now?"
Xu Yi frowned, while Liu Hua shouted into the phone and pulled him towards the car.
He couldn't help but ask in a low voice: "What's wrong?"
Liu Hua hung up the phone and stood there blankly.
Xu Yi supported her: "Where are Mo and Yan? We'll go there now."
Liu Hua said falteringly: "The... the hospital... the city hospital..."
Xu Yi didn't hesitate and picked Liu Hua up, putting her in the car, then drove towards the hospital.
At that moment, Qiao Ze leaned against the wall, staring blankly at the red emergency room light ahead.
If the person lying in there wasn't Shen Nian, the operating surgeon should have been him.
But now...
He looked down at his still trembling hands and clenched them into fists.
Ye Anning came out of the consulting room and leaned against the wall, exhausted.
Qiao Ze looked at her: "How's Yan?"
Ye Anning kept her head down, her expression hidden from Qiao Ze as she said: "I don't know. The doctor said Yan was severely shocked."
Qiao Ze took a deep breath and gradually calmed down a bit: "I'll go check on her."
He entered the consulting room to find Sui Yu and the others looking confused.
Xu Mo's eyes were red, as he sat by his sister's bedside, his heart aching for her.
Qiao Ze tentatively approached: "Mo, may I examine Yan?"
Xu Mo knew of Qiao Ze's medical skills, so despite his dislike for him, he still made way.
Qiao Ze carefully examined Yan and only relaxed when he confirmed she wasn't injured.
"What are you all doing here?" Liu Hua asked in a cold voice, suppressing her tone.
The shocking incident had been too much for Xu Mo, who had been holding back until now. Finally, he couldn't anymore.
He rushed up to Liu Hua: "Mom!"
Liu Hua patted her son's head reassuringly: "How's your sister?"
Xu Mo reacted slowly: "Sister... she's fine. The doctor said she was just severely shocked."
Liu Hua breathed a sigh of relief, but quickly became serious again: "Didn't you say there was a car accident?"
At the mention of this, Xu Mo panicked again: "Mom... Shen Nian pushed sister out of the way."
Liu Hua was confused: "What do you mean?"
Xu Mo said with a pale face: "Shen Nian is in the emergency room now."
Liu Hua finally realized what had happened: "What's her condition like?"
"Not good," Qiao Ze said in a low voice.
Liu Hua opened her mouth, hesitated, then asked: "Have you all been following Yan around?"
Sui Yu leaned against the wall: "Mom, we just wanted to check on Yan. We didn't plan to show up in front of her."
Qiao Ze pursed his lips: "Auntie, I'm sorry."
Liu Hua didn't want to hear any of this now: "Once Yan wakes up, we'll take her home. For Shen Nian, I'll hire the best doctors and use the best medicine."
Qiao Ze's throat felt tight: "Auntie, could you take Yan away a little later? I'm afraid Nian won't get to see Yan one last time."
As he spoke, a doctor came in: "Who's Shen Nian's family member?"
Qiao Ze immediately stepped forward: "That's me."
The doctor said solemnly: "Her condition is very bad. We can only temporarily sustain her life. You... should prepare yourself."
Qiao Ze's body swayed almost imperceptibly, but he persisted: "...Okay."
Liu Hua's expression also darkened - this was the last thing she wanted to see.
Originally, she had planned to take her daughter far away, distancing themselves from everyone and settling everything once and for all. But now it seemed impossible; their troubles kept piling up, and it was unclear who owed whom.
Especially now that Shen Nian was going to lose her life for saving Yan.
Moreover, Liu Hua couldn't explain this to Shen Nian's parents either.
"Mom..."
The pale girl on the bed slowly opened her eyes, looking incredibly fragile.
Liu Hua couldn't care about anything else as she sat by the bed, gently touching Yan's forehead: "Yan's awake? How do you feel? Are you uncomfortable anywhere?"
Yan struggled to sit up: "Where is she?"
Qi Linhan stood at the foot of the bed, telling Yan in a low voice: "She's in the ICU now."
Yan tried to get up: "I want to go see her."
Liu Hua frowned, holding Yan down: "Yan, don't worry about this. Just leave it to Mom."
But this time, Yan insisted stubbornly: "No, Mom, I want to go see her."
Everything had exceeded Yan's psychological capacity - she couldn't calm down at all.
Liu Hua couldn't dissuade her daughter, so she supported her out: "Go slowly, Mom will go with you."
As Yan was supported out by Liu Hua and Xu Mo, she suddenly said at the door: "If she's alright this time, then we'll all be even with each other. So, you don't have to come looking for me anymore after this. If something happens to her, I'll go apologize to Auntie Lin and Uncle Shen."
She didn't really hate them; she just couldn't accept the contrasting experiences between these two lives involving the same people.
Those experiences made her feel conflicted, pained, and even a bit amused.
Perhaps it would be best for everyone to become strangers from now on.
Inside the ICU
Yan stood by the window, biting her lip as she looked at the still unconscious girl inside.
The image of Shen Nian lying in a pool of blood resurfaced in Yan's mind, and her fingers gradually clenched.
Liu Hua could see her daughter's anguish: "Yan, don't do this to yourself. It's not your fault."
Yan smiled, but tears kept streaming down: "Mom, why did she save me? Couldn't she have just let me slowly forget about them? Why does she keep upending my life again and again?"
Liu Hua gently wiped away her daughter's tears: "Yan, she'll be fine. After all this is over, your uncle and I will take you and Mo away from here, okay?"
