Gong Xiangru smiled and said, "You can't bother Grandma with such trivial matters!"
"This is no small matter. Every year, only a handful of people worldwide pass the World Literature Association's selection competition. Second Miss, you are too modest!"
Just then, a servant hurried into the reception room, stopped in front of Gong Xiangru, and respectfully said, "Second Miss, Butler Nita has arrived!"
The people present stirred slightly. Nita, the butler, was the first lady-in-waiting to Queen Lancelot.
As rumored, Miss Gong Er is indeed deeply favored by His Majesty.
Amidst the envious gazes of the crowd, Gong Xiangru stood up and smiled slightly, "Everyone, please continue having fun. I'll go and greet Butler Nita!"
After saying that, she turned to Gong Ning and smiled gently, "Ah Yun, you've been away from home for so many years and haven't seen your grandmother since. Butler Nita is highly regarded by your grandmother. Would you like to go and meet her together?"
Gong Ning stood up. "Okay, let's go!"
Nita the Butler was a capable middle-aged woman with her hair neatly combed back and her brown eyes gleaming with shrewdness and sharpness.
As expected of a lady-in-waiting close to Her Majesty the Queen, she exudes a powerful aura and is clearly not someone to be trifled with.
At this moment, the usually stern-faced butler Nita's expression softened slightly upon seeing Gong Xiangru, and a faint smile appeared on her lips. "Second Miss, congratulations! His Majesty has been very busy lately and unable to attend, so she specially prepared a gift for you, which Nita is passing on!"
Gong Xiangru smiled sweetly and gently at the right moment, "Really, Grandma is already so busy, yet she still worries about me. I..."
"Miss, please don't say that. His Majesty is overjoyed that you passed the nut carving competition!" Nita took the gift box from the servant standing to the side and handed it to Gong Xiangru. "A craftsman must first have the right tools to do his work well. Nut carving is a delicate craft, and the tools used must also be of the finest quality. This is a set of carving tools specially made by His Majesty for you, Miss. It also symbolizes that you will be victorious in the semi-finals and win the grand prize!"
Gong Xiangru reached out and took it. "I will definitely study hard and live up to Grandma's good intentions. Butler Nita, please don't let Grandma work too hard when you go back this time. I will go to see her after I finish the semi-finals. I really like this gift!"
Nita, the butler, softened her expression and gave a few more detailed instructions before leaving. She didn't glance at Gong Ning once, as if Gong Ning didn't exist.
Her trip to M country this time was not just to deliver gifts to the second young lady.
His Majesty also entrusted her with something even more important.
I heard that recently, the late Chairman Lian Yu's posthumous work, "Yuan Yu," has appeared on the World Literature Association's dark web.
Since the passing of President Lian Yu, His Majesty's spirits have been declining day by day. After so many years, it has been a great relief that His Majesty has finally been able to cheer up again...
Nita sighed and signaled the driver to start the car. This time, no matter what, she couldn't let His Majesty's hopes be dashed.
**
After Butler Nita left, the younger members of the Gong family came running over chatteringly, looking enviously at Gong Xiangru and the intricately patterned gift box in her hand.
Then, looking at Gong Ning, who was sitting to the side staring blankly at the gift box, as if she had never seen such a good thing before, everyone immediately began to compare and compete.
The chatter around her was annoying and chaotic, and Gong Ning's delicate brows furrowed slightly as she looked away from the gift box.
If she wasn't mistaken, the patterns engraved on the gift box were the work of her master, unique in style and one of a kind.
But the master was a native of Guyouchao. How could his sculptures appear in the modern 21st century?
Seeing that Gong Xiangru was with those people, Gong Ning quietly left the crowd and went to the back garden, where her parents were.
Gong Xiaojing, with his sharp eyes, spotted her immediately and beckoned to her affectionately, "Why did you come out?"
Gong Ning smiled, sat down in one of the empty wicker chairs, and wrinkled her nose playfully, her tone slightly annoyed, "I don't want to stay with them, they talk too much, it's giving me a headache, so annoying~~"
Gong Xiaojing chuckled, patted the top of her head, then paused for a moment before saying, "Ayun, I've contacted Professor Tan. When he's free, he can give you another check-up."
During the three years that Gong Ning was away from home, the Gong family was most worried about Gong Ning's health, fearing that something unexpected might happen to her.
During the years when they couldn't find Gong Ning, they even considered the worst possible outcome.
Gong Ning shook her head, "No need!"
Lu Weixi hesitated, her gaze filled with unconcealed worry.
Gong Ning smiled, realizing they had misunderstood. "Dad, Mom, I forgot to tell you when we met before, my health has recovered!"
Under the astonished gazes of Gong Xiaojing and his wife, Gong Ning lifted her sleeve, revealing her fair and jade-like arm, with faint blue veins visible beneath. "Look, the color of my veins used to be invisible, but now they've returned to normal!"
Lu Weixi was shocked and grabbed Gong Ning's arm to examine her closely. After a long while, she raised her head and asked, "Ayun, how did you recover? How, how..." Is that possible?
After Gong Ning fell into the sea, the Gong clan mobilized almost the entire family to search for her, and finally, after nearly a year of searching and investigation, they got results.
It was a special organization formed by a foreign mafia. Their target was children as young as five or six years old. They would inject special controlling agents to alter the genetic structure of the human body and cultivate so-called human machines.
That scene from back then is something the Gong family dares not recall. When Gong Ning was found, she was so emaciated that she was almost unrecognizable. Her breathing was so weak that it seemed she could die at any moment. The once clever and mischievous little girl had been tortured into this state...
Not only were Gong Xiaojing and Lu Weixi heartbroken, but even the hidden guards of the Gong clan who witnessed this scene couldn't bear it and turned their heads away.
When A-Yun was taken to the hospital, everyone discovered that the little girl's body was covered with countless needle marks and bruises. After examination, it was found that the injuries were caused by long-term beatings, and many of her internal organs had even permanently lost their function before they were fully developed.
In the years that followed, she underwent thousands of treatments, including Western and traditional Chinese medicine, and tried every method imaginable, before she was able to barely survive.
During this period, she never woke up and spent her birthdays from age six to eight in a coma.
Later, she finally opened her eyes under the eager gaze of her family, but the first thing she did was pull out the needle from her hand. Like a fierce young beast, she raised her whole body to defend herself and attack anyone who came near her.
His eyes were vacant, he didn't speak, he didn't eat or drink, as if he had become a different person.
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