Jiang Ran's eyes welled up with tears upon seeing this scene; she had never imagined that her second sister had lived such a miserable life.
Being tied to the bed every day like a walking corpse, unable to move, is a living hell.
Shen Qingwan wiped away her tears, looked at the nurses behind her, her eyes blazing with anger: "Why did you tie her up?! I've given your sanatorium so much money, hoping she could have a better life! How could you treat my daughter like this?!"
The nurse quickly explained, "Madam, you've misunderstood! We had no choice but to tie her up. Whenever we loosened the rope, she would always do something self-harming, either banging her head against the wall or climbing onto the windowsill. She would grab any sharp object she saw and cut her wrists. We had no other choice but to tie her up for her life."
"What...?" Shen Qingwan's expression grew even more distressed. "How could this happen? Why does she seem to be getting worse and worse?"
"It's because the things she cares about are too much of a trigger for her, which is why she keeps saying those things every day."
Upon hearing this, Shen Qingwan's tears flowed even more uncontrollably.
She lovingly reached out and stroked her thin skin: "Qinghe...it's Mom...Mom knows you're definitely not a bad child, otherwise you wouldn't still be so guilty about what happened back then that you're mentally unstable...Child...look at Mom, Mom has brought your brother and sister to see you."
However, Jiang Qinghe's eyes remained numb and empty, and she continued to murmur, "I am guilty."
Jiang Ran knew, however, that she was actually fully conscious the whole time.
She only resorted to self-harm because she felt too guilty about what happened back then. She kept hurting herself to cover up the pain in her heart caused by guilt through physical pain.
A sober person can only temporarily forget their psychological pain by harming their own body all day long.
She has no idea how she got through the past two years.
"Mom, I have something I want to say to my second sister. Can you and my brother go out for a bit?" Jiang Ran helped Shen Qingwan, who was crying uncontrollably, to her feet.
Shen Qingwan looked at her, then at Jiang Qinghe on the hospital bed: "But... your second sister isn't even mentally sound, how can she listen to what you're saying?"
“She can listen to what I say,” Jiang Ran said earnestly.
Although they didn't know what Jiang Ran was thinking, Shen Qingwan and Jiang Huaijing always completely trusted her words.
The two exchanged a glance, nodded, and left the ward.
Jiang Ran walked to the bedside and looked at Jiang Qinghe's miserable state on the bed. Her hatred for Jiang Xinrou and Jiang Minghui deepened.
She took a deep breath and slowly spoke to the person on the hospital bed: "Second sister... I am your younger sister. You have not met me yet. I am the biological daughter of my mother, who was deliberately switched with an illegitimate daughter by Jiang Minghui during childbirth."
After saying this, Jiang Ran stared intently into Jiang Qinghe's eyes on the hospital bed.
A fleeting emotion flashed across her eyes, before returning to an empty, wooden expression.
She was indeed lucid, but because of what happened back then, she forcibly shut herself off, which made her appear mentally unstable to outsiders.
“I asked my mother and brother to go out so that I could tell you that the tragedy from back then was not caused by you.”
As she spoke, Jiang Ran took out a photo from her bag. The photo showed Jiang Qinghe and another girl, both of them smiling brightly.
"This is your best friend, Su Yun. You must think she died because of you, right?"
Upon seeing this photo, Jiang Qinghe's pupils visibly dilated, and her emotions instantly became somewhat agitated. She began to struggle violently, and with her movements, the rope on her wrists dug deep into her flesh, leaving a bloody mark.
Jiang Ran took out another voice recorder from her bag.
The speaker was a gruff male voice: "I did work there for a while back then. Someone asked me to put that packet of powder in Jiang Qinghe's food, but she was fine after eating it. So, I don't think I was aiding and abetting a crime, do I?"
Upon hearing the male voice in the recording, Jiang Qinghe gripped the bedsheets beneath her tightly, her eyes bloodshot.
Seeing her like this, Jiang Ran continued, "You should have recognized his voice by now. This is the chef who was in charge of your meals when you participated in the talent show. He was instructed to add hallucinogenic drugs to your food, which caused your memory to be distorted. That's why you think that you were the one who caused what happened back then. You have been feeling guilty all these years and have even resorted to self-harm. In fact, the real culprit is someone else."
Jiang Qinghe was so full of vigor back then, confidently declaring in front of all the mentors that she wanted to become the pinnacle of idols.
But now she is trapped on this small hospital bed, living like a walking corpse.
Two years ago, Jiang Qinghe participated in the most popular idol talent show at the time. Her childhood dream was to become an idol and shine on stage.
Jiang Qinghe's face is her greatest weapon; everyone who sees her for the first time is amazed by her appearance.
With her unique face and carefree personality, she has gained countless fans and stood out among the trainees, with her popularity far ahead of others.
She was the most popular contestant since the show's inception, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, she would debut successfully as the number one winner.
But then, an unexpected incident occurred.
Towards the end of the talent show, one of the contestants suddenly committed suicide by jumping off a building.
That contestant was Jiang Qinghe's good friend. The two participated in the talent show together, and whenever they were on camera, they appeared together. All the viewers envied their sisterly bond.
Just as everyone was lamenting the loss of this friendship, a suicide note left by Su Yun before his death delivered a harsh blow to everyone's faces.
The contents of the suicide note were completely opposite to what the audience saw on camera. The note described Jiang Qinghe as a hypocritical and vicious bully who acted friendly with Su Yun in front of the camera but led the bullying of her behind the scenes. In the end, she couldn't take it anymore and left a suicide note before jumping off the dormitory building where the students lived.
Because of this suicide note, Jiang Qinghe's reputation plummeted, and she was subjected to online abuse for a full six months. She was also forced to withdraw from the competition and had to give up her dream.
But whenever someone bumps into her on the street, they throw eggs or trash at her, or even beat her.
In the end, Shen Qingwan had no choice but to send her abroad.
What's even more infuriating is that, because she was given hallucinogenic drugs, Jiang Qinghe has believed for many years that she was the one who killed Su Yun, and has been living in guilt and pain ever since.
She wished she could kill herself. She couldn't understand why she had treated Su Yun that way. Su Yun was her best friend!
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