Cheng Wanwan didn’t hear a single word of what the person said after that.
Her ears were filled with the phrase “An Ning is back.”
Crash!
The wine glass beside her hand fell to the ground, shattering into pieces instantly.
The woman tightly clutched the disconnected phone in her hand, her eyes burning with barely concealed hatred.
An Ning was back!
She had already disappeared, why did she have to come back!
……
When An Ning returned to the temporary hotel drenched all over, Zhao Li was startled.
“Oh my goodness! What happened!”
Zhao Li quickly grabbed a dry towel to dry her hair, her voice full of concern, “Miss An, why did you come back in the rain? You’ll catch a cold like this!”
An Ning’s shoulder-length hair was casually tied into a low bun, which she now untied to dry the dripping ends. Her hair wasn’t particularly thick, but the quality was still good.
As Zhao Li used the towel to wipe the rainwater from her body, she casually remarked, “Miss An, I saw that your hair used to be so beautiful—waist-length locks like seaweed. Why did you cut it?”
An Ning’s hand paused while drying her hair, her back stiffening slightly.
Noticing the discomfort, Zhao Li quickly apologized, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to look at your photos on purpose. It was Xian Xian who accidentally pulled them out, and I just glanced at them while putting them away.”
In those photos, Zhao Li could immediately tell it was the An Ning from before.
Her palm-sized oval face was just as delicate and pretty as now, without a trace of makeup.
Her long hair cascaded down like seaweed, lending her a touch of aloof elegance.
The Miss An in the photos was just as beautiful as the current Miss An, but the her in the pictures seemed happier, her eyes sparkling with a gentle light.
Whereas the current Miss An carried an indescribable sorrow.
“It’s fine.” An Ning continued drying her hair, her eyes downcast as she replied softly, “It was inconvenient with Xian Xian around, so I cut it.”
“Mommy!”
A soft, childish voice suddenly rang out, followed by a small figure running from the adjacent room. The chubby, fair little hand grabbed An Ning’s hand, “Mommy’s back!”
“Mommy’s back.” Seeing the fair, soft child, a glimmer of light finally appeared in An Ning’s eyes. She crouched down and asked with a smile, “Was Xian Xian good today?”
“Very good!” Three-year-old An Xian had delicate, adorable features, with a round, fair face and large, clear black-and-white eyes. He was about to hug An Ning but was stopped by her.
“Mommy is all wet. How about a hug after I take a bath?”
The little one was very understanding. He kissed both her cheeks, nodded, and said in his soft voice, “Okay!”
……
Warm water sprayed from the showerhead, misting up the small, blurry square glass window of the bathroom.
The narrow mirror was fogged with steam, droplets gathering until they slowly trickled down, leaving winding trails that vaguely reflected the woman’s fair and well-proportioned figure.
The warm water washed over the light green ribbon on her left wrist, forming glistening beads along its edges.
Her fingertips gently tugged at the ribbon, letting it slip from her wrist, revealing several scars of varying depths—shocking and gruesome.
An Ning stared at each scar, every one a testament to her longing for Lu Xiyan over the past four years.
Hot tears slid from her eyes. As she closed them lightly, her mind filled with his cold and detached gaze.
Four years had passed, and she had never told anyone.
She truly missed him so much.
She missed his embrace, his passionate kisses.
She missed how he would murmur her name over and over against her ear, “An Ning… Ning Ning…”
Those photos she had tucked away were once his cherished possessions.
She took them with her when she left.
He had adored her long hair, always stroking it repeatedly, lowering his head to gently inhale the fragrance from her locks.
Actually, that seaweed-like long hair of hers wasn’t cut off.
It fell out.
In the fourth month after leaving him, her hair began to fall out wildly, in large clumps.
An Ning tilted her head back, letting the pouring hot water wash away the tears on her face.
At night, she held the little one in her arms, gazing at his beautiful brows and eyes, then leaned down to place a soft kiss on his forehead.
Xian Xian.
Xi Yan, Xi Yan.
…
The next day.
At sunrise, An Ning returned to Linyang District Xiyuan Village.
In the bustling Jing Hai, there existed an impoverished area untouched by sunlight—the urban village located in Linyang District Xiyuan Village.
The people here were poor, with low living standards, yet they remained content with their lot, always hoping to strike it rich through demolition and relocation, reaching the peak of life.
This was the place where An Ning had lived for twenty-two years.
To be precise, it should be seventeen years.
At the low doorway, Li Chunfang stared at her for a few seconds with aged, weary eyes, then burst into uncontrollable sobs.
“You heartless child! You finally know to come back!”
“Where have you been these four years! You left without a word, where did you go!”
Li Chunfang wailed loudly, then tightly embraced An Ning, “I raised you after all, even if I’m not your birth mother, I brought you up. How could you be so stubborn, refusing to come back even once in four years! You had to wait until I’m about to die to return, didn’t you!”
An Ning surveyed this small patch of land untouched by sunlight, finding little changed from four years ago—still dim, cramped, old, and suffocating.
Except there was now a black-and-white funeral portrait in the main room.
It was her adoptive father, An Tianhua’s.
“Your dad passed away two years ago,” Li Chunfang wiped her tears, “Caused by alcoholism. He got drunk one night and never woke up.”
An Ning glanced at the man’s portrait, then turned to Li Chunfang, “Pack your things for the hospital. I’ve already handled the admission procedures.”
Her voice was calm, her eyes unruffled. Li Chunfang asked, “Your father’s dead. Aren’t you going to offer him incense?”
An Ning pretended not to hear, continuing, “The doctor said we can schedule the surgery soon. They’ll run some tests these next few days. Cooperate with the doctors.”
“An Ning!” Li Chunfang looked at her in disbelief, slapping her shoulder, “I’m talking to you, did you hear me? You haven’t been back for four years, and you have no reaction seeing your father’s portrait? I’m not asking you to kneel, but won’t you even light some incense? Have you no conscience!”
Li Chunfang didn’t hit hard, but An Ning felt the pain acutely.
Her eyes suddenly reddened, “Should I thank him then? Thank him for burying me under hundreds of thousands in gambling debt? Thank him for forcing me to marry for a bride price? Or thank him for secretly taking the Lu family’s money and making me live in shame among them?”
An Ning’s eyes were red-rimmed, her expression stubborn as she refused to let tears fall. “No, I should be thanking you for buying me back from the traffickers. To this day, I still don’t know who my biological parents are!”
Li Chunfang fell silent, her lips parting slightly as her eyes welled up with tears.
When a tear escaped and rolled down her cheek, An Ning immediately wiped it away and turned to enter Li Chunfang’s room.
“Pack your things for the hospital.” She pulled open the simple wardrobe, her tone returning to its previous calm. “I’ll gather your clothes. You bring all your daily necessities.”
Mother and daughter fell into a brief silence.
After a moment, Li Chunfang stood at the doorway holding a cloth bag filled with daily essentials. Watching An Ning packing clothes, she lowered her gaze, her fair face still etched with stubbornness.
“An Ning…”
Li Chunfang spoke hesitantly, “I saw Xiao Lu on the news.”
At these words, An Ning’s hands stilled on the clothes. She then heard her continue, “It seems he’s getting engaged to some heiress of the Cheng Corporation… next month.”