The moment the man appeared, the old woman's expression became even more amiable. She clapped her hands and then made a hugging gesture towards him: "Oh dear, I haven't seen our little one all day. Come here and let Mommy give you a hug."

The man's eyes were vacant, his pupils moved slightly, and he obediently leaned into the old woman's arms, nestling against her.

The old woman regained some color in her pale, aged face. She raised her hand, which was covered with deep lines and protruding veins, and gently stroked the back of the man's head with a happy expression: "Good boy, good boy."

The old woman sighed softly, "My child, why can't you be as well-behaved as you were when you were little? You were so well-behaved, so adorable, and so obedient to your mother!"

"Not only do you listen to your mother, but you also help her with a lot of chores. You're afraid that your mother will get tired from working. I still remember when you were helping me carry the bowl out, you accidentally dropped and broke it. You looked so pitiful when you were scared."

"Why..." The old man's hand trembled slightly as it landed on the man's hair. Suddenly, he grabbed it hard and pulled it away forcefully.

The man groaned, his brows furrowed, and his figure faded even further, as if he might disappear at any moment.

The old man seemed not to see him; the kind and benevolent expression on his face vanished, and his eyes stared at him with a sinister gaze: "Why... do you become disobedient after growing up?"

"Mom just wants you to help your maternal grandmother's side more, and to make your marriage to your distant cousin a little show, so why won't you agree? Why..."

Why are you helping your dad bully your mom?

"Why are you calling that woman 'Auntie'? You also think Mom is old and faded, and not good enough for your father, right?! Huh! Say something!!"

The man was pulled back by her, his eyes blank and empty, and he did not answer her.

"It's okay, it's okay. It's okay if you're angry with your mother and don't say anything." The old woman's eyes were red, and she was breathing rapidly due to her emotions. Her hands trembled as she gently stroked his hair and apologized to him softly.

"Mommy couldn't control her emotions. Did Mommy hurt you again? I'm sorry, it was Mommy's fault. You'll forgive Mommy, right?"

"Son, now that you're with Mommy and Daddy, and that woman isn't causing trouble, we're a family again..."

The old man's thoughts were in disarray, and he mumbled incoherently as he turned the beads around his neck, drawing the man's soul back into them.

Just as the man's soul was about to enter the bead, a golden speck of light drifted in from outside and silently disappeared into the man's extremely faint soul.

The moment the golden light merged with the soul, the man, who had been expressionless, slowly blinked, and his empty eyes gradually brightened.

It was as if the statue had been infused with a soul and come back to life.

The beads around the old man's neck made a soft cracking sound, and a small crack appeared...

-

Meanwhile, inside Wanhe Hospital in S City.

Feng Langqing, who had called the sanatorium to inquire about the woman, had an extremely gloomy expression. He looked up at Feng Yuli:

"The sanatorium said that the woman was taken away three years ago in the name of the Feng family. They thought that Dad had calmed down, and since she was Dad's biological mother, they didn't dare to keep her and let her go..."

"As expected, have you found out who answered the call?" Feng Yuli asked calmly.

“I asked my second brother to investigate. He’s better at this than we are, and it’s also more convenient for him.”

As Feng Langqing spoke, he took a deep breath, looked at the increasingly thin man lying on the hospital bed, and said indignantly, "Brother, do you think that woman is crazy?"

"Our father is her son too, isn't he? He's a piece of her flesh, isn't he? How could she be so heartless towards him?"

"It's clear... Uncle's death has nothing to do with Dad. We even showed her the investigation results. Why is she so stubborn in believing that Dad did it?"

Feng Yuli raised his hand to rub his temples, his voice indifferent: "...Who knows? Perhaps my father's familial ties were shallow."

Feng Langqing chuckled. It was indeed quite shallow. He had heard that when his father was young, he was not loved by his father or mother in the Feng family, and was often used by his grandfather as a shield for his mistress.

As a result, he was always scolded and punished by his mother, and it was common for him to have injuries on his body.

The physical beatings weren't the most torturous part; the most torturous part was their unreliable grandparents and their older brother who doted on their father.

Both of them are their children, but they are treated very differently.

Fortunately, his father and elder brother were reasonable and treated him relatively gently; otherwise, the Feng family would have been a den of iniquity for his father.

Unfortunately, good people don't live long. His father, elder brother, and wife were shot and killed while attending an international conference, leaving behind three young children.

Grandpa was so shocked by this that he passed away. Grandma blamed his death on Dad and became even more hostile towards him, and her desire to control him intensified.

Fortunately, her father had already taken control of the Feng family and had enough power to send her to a sanatorium to recuperate.

Unfortunately, this peaceful period lasted less than two days before he inexplicably fell into a coma...

Feng Langqing clicked his tongue. It seemed that his father's life was even more difficult than that of the three brothers his mother had adopted.

The ward was quiet for a few minutes before Feng Langqing's phone started vibrating.

He took out his phone and saw a video call invitation pop up on the screen with the contact name "Feng Lao Er".

He clicked to answer, and a slender man with a handsome and refined appearance appeared on the phone screen. He was wearing black silk pajamas, had messy black hair, pale skin, and a black earring on his left ear.

"Third brother." He yawned, rubbed his eyes, and said, "I found out what you asked me to investigate. The last place that woman was seen was in a small village. I think the village's name is something like Daba Village."

“There are 360 ​​bus villages across the country. I narrowed down her search and finally narrowed it down to two bus villages near S City. If you want to find her, you can go to these two bus villages to look for her.”

"But..." he asked curiously, "Didn't you used to hate her the most? Why do you suddenly want to find her?"

Ever since her father didn't marry the girl her grandmother had chosen, she's looked down on them. She even scolded the third son for being useless, a sycophantic actor who disgraced the Feng family.

The third brother disliked her intensely because of this, but he tolerated it out of respect for her as an elder. He even secretly set off a firecracker when his father sent her to the sanatorium. Why is he suddenly looking for her now?

"I need to speak with her." Feng Yuli's voice came from the side. He stared at the man on the screen, his brows furrowed slightly: "Feng Xingchi, you've been up all night again?"

Feng Xingchi blinked, his previously lazy posture instantly becoming serious: "Big brother, the team just happened to have a friendly match, so..."

“We’re going to have a little sister soon, so try not to stay up too late and set a bad example for her.” Feng Yuli said a few words to him, then added, “Come to S City when you have time after the competition. We’ll be waiting for you there; we have something important to discuss.”

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Bring Zining, Yanxiu, and Jingcheng along as well."

After saying that, Feng Yuli hung up the call immediately, not giving Feng Xingchi a chance to ask questions.

Feng Xingchi on the other end of the phone: "???"

Feng Xingchi's eyes widened slowly. Had he misheard? What were they about to do?