Chapter 94 I'm sorry for the fire...
Li Ruifa's case has uncovered a major case of trafficking women and children, which is still under investigation, but evidence has been collected in Li Ruifa's case.
With conclusive evidence and a complete chain of evidence, although no verdict has been announced yet, Chi Yu and Officer Wang's application to the juvenile justice department to remove Li Ruifa's guardianship of Xiao Liwo and Li Ke proceeded smoothly.
In mid-February, Wangshui Island was still very cold.
Chi Yu went to the police station and Ancheng Juvenile Prosecution Department again today and couldn't come back. Chen Xiulian went to participate in the activities of the Senior Citizens Association, so Xin Mian ate dinner at Qin Family Restaurant.
Around 8 p.m., she took a taxi back to Dongpu Lane, and as soon as she got out of the car, she bumped into a child from the next lane.
"Teacher Xiaomian!"
The little girl shouted excitedly and tugged at her mother's hand to show her.
The parents greeted Xinmian, and Xinmian smiled in return.
She has been teaching children's art classes at Wangshui Island Kindergarten for more than a semester. Many parents and children know her, and now when she walks on the street, people greet her from time to time.
Xinmian really liked this feeling, as if she had been born a resident of Wangshui Island, had grown up here, and was very familiar with everything here.
The night wind was a bit strong, making the little girl's ponytail flutter. Her mother pulled her coat tighter, exchanged a few pleasantries with Xinmian, and then took her home.
Xin Mian watched the mother and daughter's figures, one tall and one short, under the streetlight, smiled, and walked back as well.
However, after taking only a few steps, the phone in my pocket rang.
I picked it up and saw that it was a number from Yuncheng.
She froze; it wasn't Zhang Jiandong's number.
But she still didn't answer and hung up immediately.
The person making the call persisted.
In the quiet alley, cell phones kept ringing.
Xinmian stared at the number for a long time before finally pressing the answer button.
Before I could even speak, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice came from the other end.
"Xinmian, your father was in a car accident and is currently undergoing emergency treatment."
Xin Mian suddenly froze.
This is Ge Qiuling's voice.
The alley was very quiet, with only her there. Her slender figure was stretched out by the streetlights and reflected in the alley.
The stone path was crooked and uneven, and in the cold wind, the shadows seemed to sway.
She was stunned for several seconds before she finally found her voice.
"...Is it...very serious?"
Ge Qiuling may have just been crying, as her voice was very nasal, and she didn't treat Xin Mian well.
"have no idea."
"Come and see for yourself."
As soon as she finished speaking, Xinmian grabbed her phone and ran outside as fast as she could.
She wanted to hail a taxi, but her fingers were shaking so badly she couldn't press the screen.
In the biting cold wind, the light from the streetlights made her coat sway and flutter.
Fortunately, the ride-hailing driver who had brought her in hadn't gone far; he had just turned around at the alley entrance.
Xin Mian spotted a familiar license plate and immediately stopped the car.
"Driver, I can pay extra to go to Ancheng Airport."
It was late at night, and she was just a young girl. Her flustered expression clearly indicated that something urgent had happened.
The driver was very kind and immediately took her towards Ancheng without saying a word.
Halfway through the journey, she bought a ticket for the next available flight from Ancheng to Yuncheng.
But when she arrived at the airport, she discovered that she had not brought her ID card.
Fortunately, the airport offers temporary ID cards. She was completely bewildered and had to follow the staff back and forth several times before she finally got hers.
In the waiting area, there were less than 10 minutes until boarding.
She stood at the front of the line, her palms gripping her phone tightly, her fingertips turning white from the effort.
The airport announcements kept ringing, and she stood there blankly, surrounded by busy passengers rushing to catch their flights. All she could think of was the last time Zhang Jiandong called, pleading with her to come home for the New Year.
finally...
The phone screen flickered and a system notification popped up.
Battery low.
Xin Mian finally realized what was happening and was about to call Chi Yu when the boarding gate opened and the people behind her started urging her to board.
All she could do was send him a message, put her phone on power-saving mode, and hurry up and board the plane.
......
The flight from Ancheng to Yuncheng takes less than 2 hours.
After landing, Xin Mian left the airport as quickly as possible and took a taxi to the hospital that Ge Qiuling had mentioned.
She hurriedly paid the fare when she got off the bus, then put her phone in her pocket. The red battery bar jumped a few times before it silently shut down.
It was already late at night, but the hospital's emergency room was packed with people.
Some family members were crying while slumped over chairs. The smell of disinfectant mixed with the stench of blood was very pungent.
Xin Mian stumbled to the nurses' station and asked what was wrong. She learned that Zhang Jiandong's surgery was over and he had been transferred to a ward.
The corridor lights were cold and glaring. On the bench, Ge Qiuling was wearing pajamas, with a coat draped askew over her shoulders, her face buried in her hands.
Zhang Chenyi stayed by her side.
Opposite the two, the door to the ward was half-open.
Perhaps hearing footsteps, Ge Qiuling looked up and turned around.
The moment their eyes met, Xinmian noticed the bloodshot veins in her eyes.
She opened her mouth, wanting to ask something, but no sound came out.
Her legs were stiff, and she practically shuffled across the short distance from the elevator to the ward.
"You can go in now."
When Ge Qiuling spoke, her voice was so hoarse that it was almost inaudible.
"He only wants to see you right now."
Zhang Chenyi glared at her but didn't say anything.
Her heart was pounding rapidly in her chest, and her already fair skin looked even paler. Xinmian's hand gripped the doorknob, trembling slightly.
In the ordinary double ward, only Zhang Jiandong was inside at this moment.
He lay on the bed, surrounded by no instruments, and without the "beep beep beep" sound he had imagined.
It was very quiet, as quiet as if they were asleep.
But he still noticed the commotion at the door and turned his head with difficulty.
When he saw Xin Mian, his cloudy eyes lit up noticeably, and he forced a stiff, unsightly smile.
He called out to her, "Mianmian, you're finally here..."
He didn't have much strength left, and his voice was so soft that Xin Mian could barely hear it. She could only take a few more steps forward and come to the bedside.
Zhang Jiandong's eyes slowly moved, his gaze never leaving her, his chest heaving as he sighed.
"You look a bit fuller than before, and your complexion has improved..."
It felt like both regret and solace.
He understood that his daughter was better off without him.
Xin Mian didn't respond to his question, but instead asked, "Was the surgery... successful?"
This is a regular ward, isn't it? Why does he look like he could die at any moment?
Zhang Jiandong was still smiling, but it was a strained smile. "...Success."
How can it not be considered a success if it has given him these few hours of lucidity?
Xin Mian's hands, hanging by her sides, clenched into fists. She understood the meaning behind his words, and her calves stiffened to the point of almost cramping.
"Mianmian, I'm sorry..."
He twitched his fingertips, wanting to take her hand.
But she didn't move, so he couldn't reach her.
"Over the years, the person I've wronged the most is you."
"It's my fault for not protecting you, it's my fault for letting you down."
He knew perfectly well why his daughter would rather pack her things and fly away than come back for the Spring Festival.
He simply refused to think deeply about it or delve into how precarious this broken family was.
He was such a failure; he was married twice, had two wives, and two children, none of whom were without resentment towards him...
He always used the excuse of being busy driving long-distance trucks to avoid facing the trivial matters at home, and even when forced to confront them, he would only gloss over the problems.
Over the years, his daughter has been disappointed in him, his wife has complained about him, and his son has ignored him.
He couldn't treat everyone equally; Xinmian had always been the child he used as a "sacrifice."
But he knew in his heart that Ge Qiuling had her own grievances, and Zhang Chenyi had his own anger.
They all just want to make their lives better.
Everyone looks out for themselves; they did nothing wrong...
From beginning to end, he was the only one who was wrong.
He lay on the hospital bed, unable to move, as if he had aged in that instant, his energy and spirit drained away, listless, with unfocused and dazed eyes.
This is far removed from the image of the father that Xinmian remembered.
"Could you... come a little closer...? I have something I want to tell you..."
Xin Mian stubbornly pursed her lips and didn't speak, but her toes moved a few centimeters closer to the bedside.
"The house your mother left behind, which I transferred to your name before, has its property certificate kept in the columbarium... Behind your mother, there's also the compensation money her company gave her... her bank cards are all there too..."
"I put the key to the columbarium in the lining of the woolen hat she knitted for you..."
Because he knew that even if the woolen hat got old, small, and unusable, Xinmian wouldn't throw it away because it was left by his ex-wife. She would keep it with her and take good care of it.
These are the two things that Ge Qiuling has always wanted.
Over the years, she had tried to subtly hint at it many times, openly arguing and subtly reminding him, but Zhang Jiandong never gave in, and each time she just tried to smooth things over.
The things his ex-wife left behind were for their daughter.
This was his bottom line.
"I was originally planning to tell you... after you graduated from university... but..."
He spoke extremely slowly, as if using all his strength, but he couldn't utter the rest of the words.
Because after graduating from university, Xin Mian didn't even go home; she packed her things and flew directly from the school to Ancheng.
Xin Mian stood by the bed, biting her lip tightly, her whole body trembling.
She lowered her head, and tears fell one by one.
It hit the floor with a clear sound.
"Don't cry..."
Zhang Jiandong wanted to wipe away her tears, but he was too tired and couldn't lift his hand.
"I'm sorry... I'm not a good father..."
"After I die, you and your Aunt Ge will go your separate ways and have nothing to do with each other anymore..."
"Don't worry, she won't bother you."
"Mianmian, I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."
He kept apologizing, his aged wrinkles around his eyes covered with murky tears, filled with guilt and heartache.
"I don't have much left to leave behind... Your Aunt Ge is still taking care of Xiao Yi, so please don't blame your father..."
"Life is even harder for the two of them..."
Therefore, he left everything to Ge Qiuling and Zhang Chenyi, because he knew that his ex-wife had left a lot of security for their daughter.
Xinmian has a house and compensation money, so her future will not be bad.
However, Zhang Chenyi is a minor and still needs to study, while Ge Qiuling is a housewife with no income...
He once again cruelly and selfishly "sacrificed" his daughter.
It didn't change until he died.
"sorry..."
......
Xin Mian didn't know how she got out of the ward. Ge Qiuling and Zhang Chenyi brushed past her.
Not long after they went in, heart-wrenching cries came from the ward.
In the quiet corridor, the crying seemed to have a stereo effect, looping in her ears.
She slowly closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face like a burst dam.
Finally, unable to hold on any longer, he slumped down against the wall.
She considered not returning to this home, and thought about never seeing or recognizing Zhang Jiandong again.
But I never imagined he would die...
He died so suddenly, before she could forgive him...
My chest felt like it was stuffed with cotton, like it was being pounded hard with a heavy hammer, or like I had swallowed countless bitter herbs.
She was so distressed that she kept crying.
It's too bitter.
Why?
She couldn't understand it.
Zhang Jiandong never tipped the scales in her favor, not even a little, until his death, yet he protected his mother's inheritance for nearly 10 years.
What was she supposed to do?
Should she thank him? Or should she continue to hate him?
Even though the hospital corridor had no windows, a gust of cold wind rose from her feet, dragging her into an icy abyss.
It's so cold.
Xin Mian's face was drained of color, and the tears in her eyes blurred the entire world, making everything around her seem unreal.
She didn't even have the strength to support herself on the floor. Just before she completely lost consciousness, she seemed to see a figure rushing anxiously toward her.
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Author's note: [Crying] Mianmian in this chapter is a little bitter gourd, I really want to hug her.
Human nature is complex, and Zhang Jiandong is a contradiction, which also affects Mianmian's personality.
But when a person dies, it's like a lamp going out; but for us, Mianmian, things will definitely get better and better from now on. [Please!]
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