Having gotten what she wanted, Tang Ning never visited Han Jun in the hospital again. It wasn't until she received an invitation to Han Jun's mother's funeral that she learned that since she stopped visiting the hospital, Han Jun, who had just undergone surgery, had only stayed in the hospital ward for three days before ignoring the doctor's advice and quickly completing the discharge procedures. He had now returned to his hometown and was holding his mother's funeral with his several sisters who were already married.
Remembering the gentle woman in her memory who had always been kind to the original owner, and who would always fill the table with the original owner's favorite dishes whenever the original owner went back to her hometown with Han Jun, Tang Ning decided that no matter how busy she was at the company or how much time she couldn't spare, she had to go.
As for Pei Yuan, he naturally had to be brought along.
The main issue is that this person is "blind." Given the deep affection between the two of them, Tang Ning is worried about leaving him alone at home for too long.
The car drove for about ten hours before finally arriving at Han Jun's hometown, a small mountain village called Nanshan'ao in Dong Province, just as dusk was falling.
Speaking of Nanshan'ao, when Yuan Tangning first went back to Han Jun's hometown, the bus only went as far as the nearby town. Then the two of them walked for nearly three hours through the night to finally enter the village.
In the pitch-black night forest, the path was barely visible. Occasionally, the howls of some unknown animal would ring out, frightening the young original owner who had never experienced anything like this before. Tears streamed down her face as she clung tightly to Han Jun's arm, her legs giving way. Han Jun practically carried her across the mountain path for the rest of the journey.
In her memory, Han Jun, who was carrying Tang Ning on his back along the mountain path, was constantly comforting her with various feelings of guilt and unease. He even sang folk songs from their area for her. Under the soothing influence of the songs, the original owner's fear subsided a little, but she hugged the man's neck even tighter, as if that was her only source of courage.
Those were such good times...
Perhaps it was this very goodness that led the original owner to make such a self-deceiving choice after learning of Han Jun's betrayal, even knowing that the other party's heart was no longer with her, yet still letting go gracefully.
All I can say is that memories can be really cruel sometimes.
As for the road they had just driven up, it was built by Ning Zhen and Han Jun together after Ning Zhen's business developed.
Looking up at the old mountain road that had been abandoned for many years, Tang Ning's expression was slightly lost in thought.
Just then, she felt her fingers being squeezed tightly. She immediately turned her head and saw Pei Yuan smiling gently as he asked, "Have we arrived yet? Why aren't you saying anything?"
"Hmm? Hmm, we've arrived."
Because she heard funeral music playing...
Meanwhile, as soon as the five Han sisters heard that Tang Ning had arrived, they immediately came out of the kitchen together. As soon as they arrived at the gate of the courtyard, they saw Tang Ning holding the hand of a strange man.
Seeing this, the group paused slightly, but still hurried over to greet them.
"Ningning!"
They shouted this in unison.
After the call, the most eloquent of the five sisters, Second Sister Han, came out with a smile, "Ningning, if Mom knew you could come, she would be so happy..."
"This is what I should do. Auntie has always been very kind to me."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Second Sister Han shifted her gaze to Pei Yuan, glancing subtly at his grey eyes before saying with a forced yet sincere smile, "This... is Ningning's boyfriend, right? Not bad, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, a perfect match!"
Yes, they all knew. Han Jun had told them on the very first day he came home that he had broken up with Tang Ning. He even explained the reason for the breakup clearly: he had been fickle and started acting up after things got better. He had started seeing his ex-girlfriend from university behind Tang Ning's back, and Tang Ning caught him, so they broke up. Not only that, but Tang Ning has now found a new boyfriend...
Almost as soon as they heard the news, the five Han sisters rushed over and started hitting Han Jun with a look of disappointment and frustration.
In their eyes, Tang Ning was such a good and sensible girl. What was the little brother thinking? Why did he have to do such a beastly thing instead of living a good life?
And then there's his ex-girlfriend. They remembered some things Han Jun had told them during college. It was one thing for her to be delicate and pampered, but she never allowed her younger brother to talk about their relationship in front of outsiders. And to make matters worse, she dumped him for a spot to study abroad, and she said such hurtful things.
Ask them how they know these things; it's better to say they heard it from their drunken underlings.
That kind of woman...that kind of woman...
They really couldn't understand why their younger brother had to act so recklessly!
But things had already come to this, and there was no use in scolding or hitting them anymore. They could only sit there in anger, wiping away their tears. Even when their eldest sister talked to them about it last night, she still felt sad. After all, when their mother was alive, she loved Tang Ning the most. Even after falling from the mountain and barely clinging to life, she still remembered to make cured meat for Tang Ning. She even remembered to give Tang Ning the silver bracelet that she had hidden in the lining of her jewelry box, which she intended to pass on to her daughter-in-law.
Silver bracelet...
Just as she thought of this, Second Sister Han immediately composed herself, made an excuse to call Tang Ning into Han's mother's room, and then took out the silver bracelet that was wrapped in several layers of handkerchief from the hidden compartment of the jewelry box.
"Ningning, this is for you."
"This is... no, second sister, I can't take this."
This is clearly a family heirloom. Tang Ning has no connection with Han Jun anymore, so how could she accept it?
"It's what Mom said she wanted to give you before she died, so please accept it."
"But Second Sister..."
"Consider it fulfilling one of Mom's wishes; this bracelet isn't worth much."
As she spoke, tears began to fall from Han Erjie's eyes.
Seeing her cry, Tang Ning's eyes also reddened.
Since they've already put it that way, how could Tang Ning refuse? She'll just keep it as a memento.
Tang Ning, her eyes red, had just followed Han Erjie out of Han's mother's room when the other sisters of the Han family anxiously surrounded her.
"Second sister/second sister, you should go and persuade him. We were too busy to notice before, and we only just found out. Our little brother has been kneeling in front of Mom's grave all day, and he's still kneeling there. If he keeps kneeling like this, who can bear it?"
The more they talked, the more anxious they became.
Upon hearing this, Tang Ning disregarded Pei Yuan, who was being led to the table for dinner by the driver, and hurriedly followed the five Han sisters up the mountain.
Sure enough, she had only reached halfway up the mountain when she saw Han Jun kneeling there with his body bent over. Standing around him were his brothers-in-law, who were trying to comfort him. Unfortunately, no matter what they said, Han Jun remained deaf to their words. Even when the Han sisters rushed over and talked themselves hoarse, they still did not get any response from Han Jun.
At their own mother's grave, they couldn't very well go up and pull at her, so the situation remained deadlocked.
Seeing this, Tang Ning took a deep breath and stepped forward, saying, "Sister, brother-in-law, you should go back first. I'll take care of things here."
"But……"
Just as the straightforward third brother-in-law was about to speak, his third sister reached out and tugged at his sleeve.
"Ningning, I'm entrusting Juanjuan to you..."
After saying that, the sisters and brothers-in-law went down the mountain, looking back every three steps.
Tang Ning stood ten meters behind Han Jun, who had been kneeling on the ground for a long time without moving. She closed her eyes, walked forward, knelt down in front of Han's mother's grave, and kowtowed three times.
Looking at the photo of Han's mother on the tombstone, Tang Ning's icy voice, as if it could shatter ice, finally rang out, "What are you doing? Trying to atone for your sins by torturing yourself? Or is it that our CEO Han has been crushed by setbacks and is preparing to spend the rest of his life in this small mountain village in his hometown..."
No matter what Tang Ning said, Han Jun, who was kneeling on the ground, did not respond.
This ignited a nameless fire within Tang Ning. Without hesitation, she grabbed Han Jun by the collar and shoved him to the ground. "I'm talking to you, did you hear me, Han Jun!"
It was at this moment that Tang Ning clearly saw Han Jun's appearance: a purplish forehead, red eyes, and a haggard face. As she looked at him, she clenched her fists tightly.
"Everyone is saddened by Aunt's passing. Can you please stop acting like you're half-dead? How will your mother feel if she sees this from heaven? How will your sisters feel? It's just a bad decision, right? The company hasn't gone bankrupt. We've overcome so many difficulties before. We can always start over. After all, we started with nothing, didn't we?"
"All I want to say is that the Han Jun I know is not like you now. He would never be so desperate over such a trivial matter. If you want your mother and your sisters to continue to worry, then keep going like this!"
After saying that, Tang Ning was about to let go of Han Jun's collar when she saw a tear roll down his cheek. He raised his hand and pressed it to his eyes, and tears kept spilling out from between his fingers. He also let out a series of mournful cries, like those of a small animal.
"It was my fault……"
Han Jun's hoarse voice rang out.
"The company's poor decision-making is my fault, my mother's fall from the mountain is my negligence, you clearly told me before you went abroad, but I didn't take it to heart, and even your decision to leave me is all my own fault. Everything that's happened is my fault, it's all because I was wrong..."
Han Jun repeated himself over and over as if possessed.
When family, love, and work all go wrong, even someone as strong as Han Jun finds it hard to cope.
Not only that, but in the past, no matter what happened to him, there was always Tang Ning by his side, holding his hand and accompanying him. But now, he has even lost Tang Ning...
Just then, a pair of hands suddenly helped him up from the ground and opened their arms to give him a hug.
This familiar and warm embrace made Han Jun feel like a drowning person suddenly grabbing onto the last straw.
"Tang Ning..."
"Um."
Han Jun's current favorability rating: 98.
The man's arms tightened and tightened, because he knew that such an embrace was nothing more than the kindness and pity of the person in front of him. Yet he still couldn't bear to let go. If he could, he would even like to completely melt Tang Ning into his bones and blood, so that they could never be separated again.
Meanwhile, beside the pine tree on the other side, Pei Yuan stared intently at the two people embracing in front of him. No one knew how long he had been standing there watching.
As darkness fell, the mountain winds blowing through the forest at night felt like knives, stinging one's face.
Tang Ning and Han Jun walked one after the other on the mountain path.
Han Jun had only gone halfway when his attention was immediately drawn to a mud house that had collapsed halfway in the distance.
Do you remember that place?
Whether it was because the journey had been too quiet and Han Jun wanted to find something to talk about, or for some other reason, he pretended to be relaxed and started talking.
Upon hearing this, Tang Ning paused slightly and looked in the direction Han Jun was pointing.
In an instant, the memory returned.
That seemed to be the poorest period for the original owner and Han Jun, because Tang Ning had no relatives left. She chose to go back to her hometown with Han Jun for the New Year. In Tang Ning's eyes, everything in this pristine village seemed to be covered with a soft glow because it was the hometown of the boy she loved. She truly felt that everything there was wonderful.
Not only did she feel good about it, but she also hugged Han Jun's arm and said that if they couldn't get through this hurdle at the company, she would simply go back to his hometown with him to grow vegetables, trees, and raise pigs.
These words made Han Jun burst out laughing. He raised his hand and flicked Tang Ning's nose, saying that if she really had to live that kind of life, she probably wouldn't last two days before leaving on her own.
"No way! You don't believe me! I don't care, I'll stick with you for the rest of my life, I won't leave. Even if I leave by accident or by mistake, let's make a promise. If I leave in the future, you just need to live in this house and wait for me to come back. As soon as I hear that you're having such a hard time, I'll soften my heart and definitely come back, I definitely will come back, I just can't bear to see you suffer!"
The girl, clenching her small fists, said this with unwavering conviction.
Thinking about this, Tang Ning looked away.
"It's getting late, we should go down now, otherwise the others will worry."
Hearing Tang Ning's words, Han Jun stared intently at Tang Ning's back as she slowly walked down the aisle without turning her head, as if she were gradually leaving his world.
Even though she was so, so close to him, he felt as if there was an insurmountable chasm between them.
Watching Tang Ning walk further and further away...
"good."
Han Jun responded softly and followed them down the mountain.
Meanwhile, in the presidential suite on the top floor of a five-star hotel in Qing City, Xia Yang, wearing a bright red dress, stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, smiling broadly at the mixed-race man sitting opposite her, and raised her glass of red wine.
At her feet were almost overflowing gifts of all kinds: diamond necklaces, designer bags, haute couture dresses, high-end skincare and cosmetic products, etc. The huge presidential suite was nearly bursting at the seams.
Not only that, she had just taken a sip of red wine when fireworks burst into bloom outside the French windows, forming a magnificent Chinese character "央" (yang).
Xia Yang's eyes immediately lit up with surprise.
This was the happiest birthday she had ever had in all these years.
No one knew how much red wine the two people in the room had drunk. After the fireworks ended, they were already drunk and started dancing together.
Are you happy?
The man's voice was deep and feminine.
"happy."
Xia Yang said sincerely.
"Making you happy is the greatest comfort to me. I love you, Xia Yang."
He said this in a dazed voice.
Upon hearing this, Xia Yang's eyes softened as if they could drip water.
Then the two of them danced and fell onto the large bed next to them.
He gently kissed the woman's red lips, his voice tender and gentle, "You said you were bullied a lot before. If possible, I'd like to help you get revenge. What do you say?"
Xia Yang's eyes were already starting to glaze over. Hearing this, she grinned and said, "Okay, you get back to me!"
"As long as you're willing to cooperate, I can help you get revenge anytime!"
After the man finished speaking, his azure eyes immediately fell on his right hand, which was covered by a black leather glove, and a trace of resentment flashed in his eyes.
So, my dearest brother, are you ready for my revenge?
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