Chapter 108

Guan Nan paused.

After a moment of silence, the two stared directly at each other, as if trying to see something in each other's eyes.

"What's wrong?" Jiang Li asked her. "Aren't you saying anything again?"

These words are like Sprite that has been stored in the refrigerator for a long time. When you take it out and it is splashed by a torrential rain, one sip is cool and refreshing, penetrating your lungs and heart.

Guan Nan shook her head. "No."

"What is that?" Jiang Li asked casually, his tone now sounding somewhat flippant, as if he had no idea what was going on. "It can't be a nuptial cup."

This time, Guan Nan didn't hesitate. "Why can't it be?"

Jiang Li looked at her without saying anything.

They reached a stalemate, neither of them speaking.

Observing her expression, Jiang Li knew the source of her emotions and tried to pull his hand away: "You're not in a good mood today, let's do it next time."

"Jiang Li, do you regret it?" Guan Nan felt a sense of panic.

Jiang Li didn't answer, which seemed to be his tacit agreement.

"You," Guan Nan said, flustered and overwhelmed by fear, her already insecure feelings now completely consumed by anxiety, "don't you want me anymore either?"

"Am I that insecure to you?" Jiang Li didn't even frown, and calmly said, "Fine, then I'll drink it."

As he spoke, Sprite came close to his lips, with one hand pressing down on it.

Jiang Li tilted his head, and the hand landed awkwardly on his cheek. Without blinking, he downed the Sprite in a few gulps, making it sound like he was drinking baijiu: "You said it."

Guan Nan followed his movements, her expression somewhat dazed: "I—"

One bottle of Sprite, cleaned up and finished, not a drop left.

After finishing his drink, Jiang Li held the Sprite bottle, his deep eyes fixed on her, his hands moving continuously as he slowly rotated the bottle until the rim was facing downwards, leaving not a single drop.

Jiang Li said, "Is that enough? If not, don't substitute Sprite for alcohol, just bring coffee. If you don't want to leave, I'll have someone bring it over. I can't guarantee anything else, but we have as much alcohol as you want, as much as you want."

These words sounded like angry words, but Guan Nan couldn't find any signs of anger or frustration on his face. Instead, she inexplicably felt a chill in his calm and composed expression.

Guan Nan remained in the same position, quietly looking at him, then silently drank the cup in her hand, "That's enough."

"Guan Nan," Jiang Li said calmly, his eyes filled with a dark look, "I gave you a chance. This is your choice, and there's no going back now. You can't blame me."

At that moment, Guan Nan's mind went blank, and she subconsciously hummed in agreement.

With a loosening of his grip, the aluminum cans landed one after the other, rolling twice.

The night rain pattered against the yellow banyan trees.

The indoor temperature continued to rise.

Jiang Li raised his hand, pulled her into his arms, cupped her face in his right hand, and lowered his head to kiss her.

Even if you haven't eaten pork, you've at least seen pigs run. Based on his experience as a director, Guan Nan tilted his head back, put his hands on his shoulder blades, and tried his best to climb upwards as if climbing a mountain.

She tried to accommodate them little by little, but having never tasted such food before, her movements were clumsy and awkward.

However, Jiang Li did not launch a rapid attack because of this. Instead, he moved gently, sometimes slowly and sometimes quickly, guiding her step by step, just like guiding a toddler learning to walk.

The surroundings were empty, with only the sound of heartbeats and the fine mingling of saliva remaining.

Everything was so ordinary and simple.

Even at this moment, Jiang Li maintained his inherent sense of propriety. They continued kissing quietly, simply kissing, without any other inappropriate behavior.

Suddenly, Guan Nan heard Jiang Siyao say those words about him.

Old-fashioned

On the surface, he may seem carefree and unpredictable, but in reality, he never oversteps the bounds in anything, big or small.

He is a person with extremely strong principles and bottom lines.

Guan Nan had no recollection of when the kiss ended.

When she woke up the next day, she found herself lying alone on the bed in the bedroom. As usual, she opened the window to let in some fresh air and then went to open the door, only to find him once again lying curled up on the rather narrow sofa.

He was awakened by a knock on the door and went to open it, his clothes all wrinkled.

"What is it?" Jiang Li's hair was disheveled, and she had a sleepy face. She glanced at the person at the door and spoke in a somewhat cold tone.

Upon seeing Jiang Li, the girl was visibly taken aback. "Is she... here?"

“Don’t worry about whether she’s there or not,” Jiang Li said. “Just tell me if anything happens.”

"You two, after all these years, are you still together?" The girl asked him, seemingly trying to make conversation, instead of following his lead.

When Guan Nan returned from her stroll, she was standing in the corridor with several breakfasts in her hand. She saw the person outside the door looking sullen. As she got closer, she saw Jiang Li frowning, looking like he didn't really want to talk to her.

Not knowing what she was thinking, Guan Nan's brow twitched involuntarily, fearing that the person hadn't kept their mouth shut.

Unexpectedly, the girl turned around and murmured, "Sister."

This was the first time Guan Nan had heard her call her "sister".

This "sister" was many years overdue.

Thinking back to the last night they sat together at the police station before she left Fuling, Lin Zhaozhao also clenched her hands tightly, hesitant to speak, and finally gave her several hundred yuan before she left.

--"sorry."

Lin Zhaozhao lowered her proud head, like a peacock with its neck held high.

Guan Nan still remembers that moment clearly. She didn't say it was okay. She didn't forgive anyone, nor did she have the right to forgive anyone on behalf of Ran Mingju.

And so, all alone, she left Fuling without looking back.

Over the years, the little girl who always contradicted her and made her unhappy has grown up in the corner she couldn't see, and has become a graceful young woman.

Even if Guan Nan resented her, she couldn't possibly blame her, especially since the two weren't related by blood at all. She forced a smile and asked, "Have you eaten?"

Lin Zhaozhao shook her head, then nodded.

Seeing the once arrogant and unruly child become so flustered and flustered, Guan Nan felt bad, but she said nothing and didn't act like an older sister. Just like any ordinary neighbor or friend, she maintained her composure: "Let's eat together, we just bought too much."

Upon hearing this, Lin Zhaozhao turned her head and tentatively and ingratiatingly addressed Jiang Li: "Brother-in-law."

"······"

"······"

After she spoke, Jiang Li kept his gaze fixed outside, listening to the two sisters' conversation while minimizing his own presence.

Hearing Lin Zhaozhao's greeting, he looked somewhat taken aback.

Jiang Li glanced quickly at Guan Nan's ticket again, and seeing that she didn't seem to have any objection to it, he slid his arm down and casually stuffed it into his pocket.

In an instant, he put on airs and picked up Joe: "Alright, come in."

This room is full of traces of time.

The walls are yellowish, and beneath the large, square-faced television is a chipped and peeling TV cabinet. There's an old-fashioned brown-yellow floor, and painted wooden windows frame stained glass panes that let the sun shine in, filling the room with vibrant colors.

Upon entering, several early childhood education pinyin and character recognition pictures were hanging on the wall. The blank wall was filled with immature works without any strokes or cursive writing, created by filling in whatever one felt like.

To the left is a kitchen separated by a curtain, and next to the curtain is an old refrigerator.

Several photos were displayed on the refrigerator in Shanghai. It was clear that all the people smiling brightly, holding trophies and medals, were Guan Nan.

In the very center is a photo with "Fuling Middle School" as the background, and the people in the center are Guan Nan and Ran Mingju.

The house wasn't particularly luxurious, but upon entering, one was greeted by an effortless warmth. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, Lin Zhaozhao wouldn't have dared to imagine that all of Guan Nan's previous laughter and joy had come from here.

Years later, she finally understood where Guan Nan's expression of relief and confidence, free from any fear or humiliation, came from when she left Tangzi Lane that night.

If it were her, in the same situation, she might also prefer to live here.

This was the second and last time she saw the woman in the photograph.

Thinking of this, Lin Zhaozhao subconsciously turned her head and glanced at it.

Actually, no one knew that she had met Ran Mingju once by chance.

She hysterically shouted the name Zhang Guilian when she stood in front of Guan Weimin's sickbed, grabbing his neck and viciously cursing, "Why don't you just die?"

No one knew that she actually knew everything.

Everyone wanted to keep it from her, going to great lengths to smear a woman she had "never met" in front of her, racking their brains and using every extreme language imaginable.

However, the more I know, the more guilty I feel, and the more ashamed I am to face people.

Guan Nan followed closely inside, closing the iron gate behind her while leaving the wooden door open for ventilation. After finishing her breakfast, she packed it up and saw her standing there dumbfounded. "Are you thirsty? There are drinks in the fridge, help yourself."

Seeing that she still didn't react, Guan Nan stopped what she was doing and handed her a drink: "What's wrong? Didn't you sleep well?"

Lin Zhaozhao snapped out of her daze and mumbled a random "hmm".

“It rained quite heavily last night,” Guan Nan smiled faintly. “Sit down, don’t stand. Here’s your favorite fried dough sticks wrapped in egg.”

"Sister." Lin Zhaozhao pursed her lips and called out to her again.

Guan Nan put the bag away and looked up, responding naturally, "Mm."

"I'm sorry." Lin Zhaozhao lowered her head, feeling deeply guilty. "I was so immature before. I was always trying to get attention from her and causing you trouble everywhere. I'm so sorry."

Guan Nan asked, "Did anyone say anything about you?"

"No," Lin Zhaozhao shook her head, as if recalling how she had once laughed at her for her poor part-time job when she was young and ignorant. She was still somewhat embarrassed and speechless. "I mainly want to apologize for my mother's matter. She made a lot of trouble for you by talking nonsense for no reason. At that time, I was working part-time at school and really didn't have time to come back. I didn't expect her to cause you such a big problem. I'm really sorry."

"Part-time job?" Jiang Li finished washing up and came out, smoothing out his wrinkled clothes and looking refreshed.

Lin Zhaozhao glanced at him, then looked at Guan Nan, and said without hesitation, "Well, Uncle Guan—after Dad got sick, the family lost its source of income, and my mom… gambled and drank everywhere. I couldn't persuade her, and it was no use. I didn't even have the chance to go to university. It was the sister from the property management office who told me to apply for a student loan, saying that I had to finish my studies no matter what."

At this point, she laughed self-deprecatingly, "I got the student loan, but living expenses have become a problem."

"And now?" Guan Nan's expression was calm, without the ridicule and mockery she had imagined. Instead, she comforted her troubled heart. "Are you feeling better?"

Lin Zhaozhao: "This is bad."

Hearing this, Jiang Li tactfully gestured to Guan Nan, indicating that he would go out first and let her check her phone later.

Guan Nan nodded subtly.

Lin Zhaozhao continued, speaking slowly, "It's very bad. My mother has been to the police station several times because of suspected gambling..."

These past few years haven't been easy for them either.

Guan Weimin graduated from university and was determined to prove that he wasn't a good-for-nothing who relied on his wife. He worked hard to climb the ladder and was on the verge of success when, for some unknown reason, he failed to make it. As a result, after all these years, he is still just a contract worker.

Working in a state-owned enterprise isn't easy either. He's been a lowly salesman all this way, and he still hasn't even managed to get a permanent position. While his peers are all scrambling to find connections and ask for favors for their children, he's still spending his days and nights socializing at banquets, suffering from high cholesterol and high blood pressure, plus a long-standing lack of exercise.

Not long after Guan Nan left Fuling, Guan Weimin suffered a stroke and would occasionally utter someone's name incoherently.

When the pillar of the family collapsed, Zhang Guilian panicked. For many years, she had not worked, and all the money Guan Weimin earned was handed over to her. Later, when she learned about Guan Nan's scholarship, she had a plan. She repeatedly stood on the grounds of "doing what's best for her" and "a little girl carrying so much money is easily corrupted," and whispered in Guan Weimin's ear to ask Guan Nan for the money.

Fortunately, she got what she wanted in the end, but it was all small money. Seeing that she couldn't get the big money, she seized an excuse to make a scene with Guan Weimin. When she made a scene, she mentioned Ran Mingju and threw a tantrum. She never expected that Guan Nan would dare to challenge Guan Weimin.

This was something she never expected. Guan Nan, who was timid and cowardly and dared not speak too loudly, and who had let them bully her for so many years, was actually different from her father. She was a tough person who could stand up straight.

Zhang Guilian wanted to see how long the tough bone could last, to see if she was as outwardly strong but inwardly weak as her "crazy" mother. But what she didn't expect was that she overheard Guan Weimin calling the old man that day, saying that Ran Mingju had come out and that the old man should call his second and third sons to go see her, since the second and third sons had benefited from her quite a bit.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Guilian became enraged, stormed into the room, and launched into a tirade of angry tears, berating him as a bastard.

If it weren't for Guan Weimin, she wouldn't have ended up like this. Perhaps she would have been living the life of a wealthy wife long ago, or at the very least, she would be living this kind of life where she has to carefully budget every time she goes out to eat or play cards.

She was different from that fool Ran Mingju, who only cared about their worthless "love," but unfortunately, that "love" was also fake, unaware that she had already stepped into a deliberately created trap.

Zhang Guilian told Ran Mingju that she was the mistress, and that if Ran Mingju hadn't interfered, the old lady would have died peacefully long ago. At that time, in order to appease Ran Mingju, Zhang Guilian, who was already pregnant and knew that the child in her womb was male, had no choice but to sacrifice her. So, under Guan Weimin's coaxing, she had an abortion without hesitation.

She told Ran Mingju that while she was crying and making a scene in the next ward, the old lady was in her ward, comforting and holding Lin Zhaozhao with a beaming smile. The old lady didn't dislike girls, she just didn't like the one she had given birth to.

Do you know why we always travel during off-peak times when visiting the old lady during holidays?

Always traveling at off-peak times, even a kind person like Ran Mingju had complained a few times because they couldn't stay overnight and had to return on the same day, making the round trip the most tiring and disadvantageous for Guan Nan. But what Ran Mingju didn't expect was that each off-peak trip was actually to make room for Zhang Guilian and her daughter.

No wonder every time we left, the third child's family would excitedly shout that their little sister was coming.

Zhang Guilian, blinded by rage, couldn't swallow her anger and unleashed all her filth on Ran Mingju. To her surprise, Ran Mingju, disoriented and mentally unstable, not only didn't confront her on the spot, but instead jumped into the river on her way back.

After learning the news, she was in a panic for many days, cooperating with the recording of her statement time and time again.

Just when she thought everything was fine and had passed as usual.

Guan Nan, that madman, this insane man who was not yet eighteen but whose eyes were filled with murderous intent, actually tried to kill her with a fruit knife. As the knife slid across her cheek, it came within two centimeters of the carotid artery in her neck.

In the midst of her screams, Guan Weimin reacted quickly, snatched the knife, slapped her, and called the police.

Upon seeing that face that bore a resemblance to Ran Mingju, Zhang Guilian couldn't help but think viciously that she should be imprisoned, that she must be imprisoned, and that she should never see her again for the rest of her life.

But when Guan Nan uttered those words, and with the police officer's sharp, inescapable gaze, Zhang Guilian almost gave herself away in her panic. Fortunately, the location was in a corner, and the silent surveillance camera couldn't record what they said.

Best of all, Guan Weimin personally sent Guan Nan away, keeping her a great distance away from Fuling.

Zhang Guilian finally felt somewhat at ease, but her peace of mind didn't last long, as Guan Weimin suffered a stroke shortly afterward.

She prayed to gods and Buddhas everywhere, and even went to the countryside to buy folk remedies from barefoot doctors. Just when she was about to give up all hope, things took a turn for the better. A miracle doctor reassured her and prescribed a lot of medicine, saying that she would get better slowly and that stroke patients could also recover, so she shouldn't give up all hope.

At first, the whole family took care of him without complaint, always hoping that he might get better someday.

Everything eventually succumbs to the test of time.

As time went on, Zhang Guilian grew increasingly impatient. She would wipe his body, feed him, and help him move around, all the while constantly grumbling and cursing. Then, after accidentally overhearing Guan Weimin calling out a name, she completely ripped off her mask of a virtuous wife and loving mother.

She went berserk, her hair disheveled, half-kneeling on the bed, grabbing Guan Weimin by the neck with her eyes wide open in fury.

As soon as Lin Zhaozhao entered the door, she heard her shouting:

"Guan Weimin, how have you treated me all these years?"

"For your sake, my daughter and I have been hiding like rats in the street. We finally had a few days of comfort, and now you miss her again? Let me tell you, it's no use missing her! It's no use missing her! She's dead, dead! This is all your doing!"

"Go to hell! Go to hell! Go die with that crazy woman! Even in death, I will never tell Zhao Zhao that the man surnamed Lin isn't her biological father. I'll make her call him 'Dad' for the rest of her life! I'll make sure you never have a peaceful death!"

"It's all your fault! You're the one who ruined us! You're the one who made our lives miserable!"