“No! You’re not allowed to go back!”
Within the dream, a woman stood there with a twisted, anguished expression, bringing down a wooden stick without hesitation.
“Only if your leg is crippled will you finally settle down. Only then will you stop thinking about things you shouldn’t!”
“Ning’an, Mother is doing this for your own good. It’s all for your own good!”
“Mother… it hurts…”
“Ning’an hurts so much…”
The scene suddenly changed.
The woman now hung lifeless beneath a roof beam.
“Ning’an, you must live well.”
“Never seek revenge.”
“Promise me you’ll protect yourself.”
“All I want is for you to live a peaceful life…”
A small child clung desperately to the body, crying so hard he could barely breathe.
“Mother!”
“Please don’t leave me!”
“Don’t leave me!”
“Mother, don’t go!”
Mu Zheng suddenly sat upright.
Panic filled his eyes as he looked around frantically.
His dark gaze was soaked in grief as it settled blankly on the roof beam.
At that moment, he looked less like the composed man he usually was and more like a helpless child.
Only when a figure blocked his view and a familiar voice sounded beside him did he finally return to reality.
“You’re awake?”
“Your leg has been reset. After about a month of recovery, you’ll be able to walk normally.”
The girl sat beside the bed, smiling as she leaned closer.
“So you have a childhood name.”
“Ning’an, right?”
“My leg is healed?”
Mu Zheng glanced at her before lowering his gaze to his left leg.
The sadness in his eyes faded slightly.
“That was my name when I was younger.”
“You could call it a nickname.”
“Mu Ning’an.”
Lin Xiazhi nodded thoughtfully.
“That actually sounds pretty good.”
Then she hesitated.
“By the way, your leg… was it…”
She hadn’t intended to pry into someone else’s wounds.
But after hearing part of the dream, she couldn’t help being curious.
Just what kind of mother would become so desperate that she would break her own child’s leg and then take her own life afterward?
“You heard all of that?”
Lin Xiazhi rolled her eyes.
“You were shouting loud enough to wake the dead.”
“How could I not hear it?”
“It’s not like I’m deaf.”
Mu Zheng had no intention of hiding it from her.
“When I was eight years old, my mother broke my leg.”
“She wanted me to let go of all my obsessions and spend the rest of my life peacefully in Maple Leaf Village.”
Stay?
That meant Mu Zheng and his mother weren’t originally from Maple Leaf Village.
The memories clearly still troubled him.
As for what those obsessions were, he didn’t seem willing to discuss them.
Instead, he changed the subject.
“There’s another problem with my body.”
“Can you treat it?”
“Hm?”
Lin Xiazhi looked surprised.
Straightening her back, she stared at him carefully.
“What problem?”
She had already scanned his entire body earlier.
She hadn’t discovered anything else.
Had she missed something?
“It’s…”
Mu Zheng’s face turned red under her gaze.
His words became hesitant.
The issue involved personal privacy, making it difficult to say aloud.
Lin Xiazhi frowned impatiently.
“You’re not some shy young lady.”
“Why are you stammering?”
“Just say it already. Once I’m done, I need to go home.”
“My body was poisoned when I was young.”
“The poison caused infertility.”
“I’ve seen many doctors, but none of them could cure it.”
Infertility?!
Lin Xiazhi stared at him.
Such a handsome man couldn’t have children?
What a waste.
Then something suddenly occurred to her.
She jumped to her feet.
For a moment, she paced back and forth in both annoyance and relief.
After that night, she had completely forgotten to take contraceptive medicine.
By now, it was already far beyond the effective time frame.
Fortunately…
The man was infertile.
She no longer had to worry about any accidents.
Otherwise, having a child suddenly appear during a refugee journey would be courting disaster.
Mu Zheng: “…”
Watching her dramatic reaction, he couldn’t help thinking about that night as well.
His gaze unconsciously drifted toward her abdomen.
The tips of his ears gradually turned red.
What a shame…
In the past, his crippled leg and infertility had left him deeply insecure.
He hadn’t even dared approach Lin Xiazhi.
But after everything that had happened, he finally understood.
Nothing mattered more than having the person he loved by his side.
This time…
He would not miss his chance.
Completely oblivious to the determination growing in Mu Zheng’s eyes, Lin Xiazhi focused entirely on the poison.
“Detoxification isn’t my specialty.”
“But I can take a blood sample and analyze it.”
“Maybe I’ll find a solution.”
Inside her space, she had once exchanged for a fully equipped medical laboratory.
Back then, it had been used primarily to develop vaccines against zombie viruses.
Although she no longer needed it for that purpose, it could still function as a normal laboratory.
Analyzing strange illnesses and poisons was certainly possible.
When Mu Zheng first heard her say it wasn’t her specialty, disappointment flashed through his eyes.
But hope quickly returned after hearing the rest.
His eyes lit up with excitement.
Without hesitation, he drew a dagger and sliced his fingertip.
“Take as much blood as you need.”
“…”
Pretending to rummage through her sleeve, Lin Xiazhi produced a long transparent collection tube.
The moment it touched the blood, it rapidly filled.
Avoiding Mu Zheng’s line of sight, she secretly stored the sample in her space.
The laboratory immediately began analyzing it.
Results would probably be ready in about half an hour.
But Lin Xiazhi had no intention of waiting around.
She stood up.
“I’ll give you an answer tomorrow.”
“Wait.”
Mu Zheng reached out and grabbed her sleeve.
Lin Xiazhi looked at him questioningly.
“I may not be able to leave Maple Leaf Village in time.”
“You have a carriage.”
“Could you take me along?”
The girl frowned.
Mu Zheng quickly added,
“Don’t worry.”
“I won’t cling to you.”
“Once my leg recovers, I’ll join the army.”
“After that, I won’t trouble you anymore.”
Afraid she would refuse, he pulled out a thick stack of banknotes and handed them over.
“I won’t travel for free.”
Banknotes!
Lin Xiazhi immediately fought to suppress her love of money.
Pretending not to care, she glanced casually at the stack.
The very top note clearly displayed the words “One Hundred Taels.”
And judging from the thickness…
There were more than ten notes.
Over a thousand taels?!
She instantly snatched the banknotes and stuffed them into her clothes.
Then she coughed lightly and tried to appear dignified.
“Ahem.”
“Since you’re asking so humbly, I’ll generously allow you to come along.”
“Lie down and rest.”
“When it’s time to leave, I’ll come pick you up.”
The little movement had been so obvious that there was no way Mu Zheng could have missed it.
Holding back a smile, he managed a simple response.
“Alright.”
Originally, he had intended to protect her through the most dangerous part of the journey before leaving.
He had been worrying about how to find a reasonable excuse.
Now he could finally relax.
“Oh, right.”
“Leave the Chen family alone for now.”
“Chen Feicai is useful to me.”
Lin Xiazhi paused.
Her almond-shaped eyes narrowed.
“What use?”
Mu Zheng pressed his lips together.
Clearly, he didn’t intend to explain.
“If you don’t want to say it, fine.”
“Since you paid generously, I’ll spare them for now.”
“I’m leaving.”
Lin Xiazhi turned and headed outside.
Only after she disappeared into the distance did Mu Zheng withdraw his lingering gaze.
Then he lay back down peacefully and drifted into sleep.
“Brother, she’s coming out!”
“Hmph! A man and a woman alone in a room together, shameless!”
Hidden in the bushes beside the path Lin Xiazhi had to take were two sneaky figures.
None other than Lin Er and Lin San.
Each held a black sack in hand, clearly preparing to do something underhanded.
“She’s coming!”
“Get ready!”
The two hurriedly adjusted the sacks.
Once everything was prepared, Lin Er raised his head to locate his target.
Then he froze.
The road was empty.
“Where is she?”
“Where did she go?!”
Lin San clicked his tongue impatiently.
“Isn’t she right over there…”
His voice suddenly stopped.
“She disappeared!”
The brothers exchanged a glance.
A sense of dread washed over them.
Both immediately turned to run.
Too late.
Powerful hands had already seized the backs of their necks.
A chilling voice whispered beside their ears.
“Looking for me?”
“AHHHHH!”
Lin Er nearly fainted from fright.
He struggled wildly and screamed for help.
“Help!”
“Someone save me!”
“Make another sound and I’ll kill you.”
Lin Er instantly clamped his mouth shut.
The moment Lin San heard Lin Xiazhi’s voice, he remembered his severed hand.
Hatred surged from the depths of his heart.
“Bitch!”
“You’d better let us go!”
“Otherwise you’ll regret it!”
“Let you go?”
Lin Xiazhi laughed mockingly.
“Impossible.”
Before either man could react, she added mysteriously,
“Do you know where Lin Dagou and Zhang Cuiyu are?”
“How about I take you to see them?”
The moment he heard news of his mother, Lin San became excited.
“I knew it!”
“You really hid them!”
“Hurry and take me to my mother!”
“If even one hair on her head is missing, I’ll personally send you to prison!”