"Mom, I want to eat xiaolongbao (soup dumplings)."
The little girl gently tugged at the woman's sleeve.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, Mu Yunlan suddenly came to her senses and stared at the scene before her, momentarily stunned and unable to believe it.
The deserted hospital, the pungent smell of disinfectant, and the daughter lying on the hospital bed, thin as a skeleton, felt like a lifetime ago.
She actually came back... back to before the car accident.
"Mom, why are you crying?"
A small, thin hand touched her eyebrows and eyes. Mu Yunlan quickly wiped away her tears and held her daughter's hand tightly.
"Mommy is fine. Xiaozhi, watch your cartoons obediently. Mommy will go buy you some xiaolongbao."
Even after leaving the hospital clutching her wallet, Mu Yunlan still felt dizzy and disoriented, with a strong sense of unreality. For a moment, she couldn't tell if this was reality or a replay of her memories after death.
As she reached the intersection, her heart leaped into her throat, a powerful sense of fear gripping her. Only after the car that had taken her life slowly drove away did she, still shaken, join the other people crossing the street.
This time, there was no car accident.
Did she avoid it?
Even so, Mu Yunlan could only manage a bitter smile.
After buying the xiaolongbao (soup dumplings), Mu Yunlan returned to the hospital. Looking at her daughter, who was so thin she was practically skin and bones, eating xiaolongbao and watching cartoons in the ward, Mu Yunlan felt a pang of sadness. She then checked her bank account balance on her phone.
The screen lit up, and the first thing that popped up was a text message from her husband.
"How is Xiaozhi today? Has she eaten anything?"
"Remember to eat and don't overwork yourself. Don't worry too much about money; I'll try to borrow some more from our relatives. Xiaozhi's surgery will definitely be able to proceed."
"You've worked so hard these past few days. I'll take care of Xiaozhi tonight, so you can go home and get some rest."
"Ah Lan, it's all my fault for being so useless..."
...
Looking at the text message on her phone, Mu Yunlan's eyes curved into a smile, but tears gradually blurred her vision.
She wiped away her tears and, somewhat clumsily, pressed each key on the screen to piece together a reply.
"sorry."
She was sorry, she gave up the only chance to save the family, but she didn't regret it.
The screen lit up again, and the man who received the strange reply was filled with anxiety, fearing his wife might do something foolish. Mu Yunlan, however, dared not look at the screen again; she was suffering immense pain and guilt.
After finally composing herself, she wanted to reassure her husband, but what she saw was a text message from an unknown sender—
Dear user,
Due to multiple reports from the anonymous system and its host, the company's investigation confirmed that system p1 was indeed suspected of illegally trafficking human souls, and with the active assistance of the system and its host in providing evidence, p1 has been convicted.
To express our deepest apologies, we have now transferred compensation for your emotional distress to our account. All employees of Tiandao Company once again express our sincerest apologies and wish you a happy and fulfilling life!
"Bank card xxxx received a transfer of yuan from an unknown account."
Mu Yunlan's eyes widened, and she checked the information several times in the bank's app with trembling hands.
That's right, there's indeed an extra 90 million in my account!
Her pupils trembled, and the intense shock made her whole back shake. She was speechless for a moment, her mind a chaotic mess, and she didn't know how to react. She could only cover her mouth tightly and weep silently.
The anonymous, enthusiastic system and its host...
She gripped her phone tightly, smiled as she wiped away her tears, and strode towards the ward.
...
"Mom, do we really have money for treatment? Who gave it to us?"
"It's your sister."
—The End—
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