Back in the Slums, Zuo Yang only vaguely remembered that Feng Lin’s grandmother was in poor health, but hadn’t recalled everything yet.
Now it all came back to her.
In the dream.
Mo Qingyan and Feng Lin met at the hospital.
At that time, Feng Lin’s grandmother was critically ill. Unable to watch his only relative await death, Feng Lin carried his grandmother and left the Slums.
The emaciated youth carried his grandmother on his back, walking mile after endless mile.
His feet bled from the journey, yet he never stopped for a moment.
But when they finally reached the hospital, what of the doctors?
They only repeated the same refrain: payment first, treatment later.
Their eyes held undisguised contempt when looking at him and his grandmother, maintaining distance as if avoiding plague.
Indeed, with their tattered clothes and disheveled appearance, he had faced such malice countless times along the way.
But he needed to save his grandmother!
She was his only family left in this world…
The youth knelt before the doctor, knocking his head against the floor until it bled, begging the physician to save his grandmother.
Yet all he received was the doctor’s icy indifference.
The pitiful youth, holding his frail grandmother, shrank into a corner.
Some compassionate passersby offered food and drink to the grandmother and grandson, but none were willing to get involved further.
Time passed indeterminately until the youth felt his grandmother’s breathing growing increasingly faint.
It was then that the long-unconscious grandmother finally stirred.
With aged, withered hands, she laboriously touched the youth’s numb face.
Seeing the blood on his forehead, the old woman understood everything.
Her precious grandson should have been a young master clothed in silks, carefree and dearly loved, had misfortune not struck their family…
In the end, she was just an old woman who failed to protect this child, letting him taste the bitterest suffering this world could offer…
Finally, the grandmother managed a warm smile, her voice calm yet filled with reluctance:
“My dear Linlin is the best, most well-behaved child in the whole world. So don’t be sad because of people who aren’t worth it. Promise Grandma you’ll always live happily. Grandma won’t leave you – I can’t bear to part from my Linlin. I’ll become the wind, forever watching over our Linlin…”
In that moment, the numbness faded from the youth’s face, replaced only by uncontrollable tears.
The grandmother’s eyes began to lose focus, yet she stubbornly refused to close them.
She wanted to see her grandson just a little longer…
“Good child, take Grandma home… Grandma wants to go home…”
The youth thought: Where is home now?
Yet he still steadied his grandmother on his back and replied obediently: “Alright, Linlin will take Grandma home.”
Carrying his grandmother whose life was fading away, the youth walked slowly along the quiet hospital corridor.
On and on he walked, as if there were no end in sight.
As if this corridor led only to a more terrible hell.
Until, passing a certain area, the youth accidentally overheard a conversation.
His gaze fell upon the man sitting in a wheelchair – a man exuding an aura of death yet still maintaining noble dignity.
In that moment, the youth’s eyes shone with startling intensity, for he had seen hope!
If he could seize this sole hope, perhaps his grandmother could survive!
Outside the hospital room.
Zuo Yang recounted the dream’s scenes to Mo Qingyan.
“The conversation Feng Lin overheard was about your condition. Before anyone could react, he suddenly rushed to your side and checked your pulse, just like he had done in the slums earlier. When Yu Ning was about to drive him away, Feng Lin revealed the truth of your condition—it wasn’t an illness, but poisoning.”
Later, Mo Qingyan stopped Yu Ning, who was about to confront the boy, and asked Feng Lin to explain the situation in detail.
When Feng Lin uttered the four words “beyond cure,” Mo Qingyan remained calm, his face showing neither sorrow nor joy.
In contrast, Yu Ning turned away and silently wept.
“Though it’s beyond cure, with me here, I can prolong your life—at least you won’t die in such agony. So, please, save my grandmother! If you save her, from this day forward, my life is yours! I beg you!”
Clutching this last shred of hope, Feng Lin knelt and kowtowed desperately to the man.
By then, Mo Qingyan, having been poisoned too deeply and for too long, had lost his eyesight and could only hear faint sounds and speak.
Hearing the boy’s forehead thud heavily against the floor, Mo Qingyan immediately spoke up to stop him.
He agreed to the boy’s plea.
Afterward, Mo Qingyan instructed Yu Ning to investigate the boy’s circumstances.
Upon learning how heartless the local doctors were, Mo Qingyan directly ordered Yu Ning to deal with all those involved, making these cold-hearted individuals taste the bitterness of despair themselves.
As for the boy’s grandmother, she received the best possible treatment.
But it was truly discovered too late—advanced stomach cancer. Despite the top doctors exhausting all their expertise, they could only extend the poor old woman’s life by one month.
Yet, to Feng Lin, this was an immense act of grace.
From that moment on, the boy pledged his life to Mo Qingyan.
Zuo Yang leaned close to Mo Qingyan and whispered very, very softly:
“You personally accompanied Feng Lin to bury his grandmother, took him under your wing, sent him to study, and nurtured him. He respects you, regards you as someone important, and thus spared no effort to prolong your life. The deeper his bond with you grew, the more it pained him. He became prone to tears, often murmuring, ‘If only I had met you earlier, I could have saved you…’ So, Mo Qingyan, Feng Lin is a good child.”Back in the slums, when Mo Qingyan saw Feng Lin wiping his hands on his clothes out of fear that he might be disliked, he knew this child had a good heart.”
Even though he lived in such a ruthless slum, even though at first encounter the boy was as fierce as a wolf cub—so much so that he had scarred Mo Qingyan’s subordinates—the boy was inherently good.
How could a youth who fought desperately for his family be bad?
“You’re not angry with him anymore?” Mo Qingyan asked with a smile.
“Ah, you mean him calling me a shorty?” Zuo Yang’s expression shifted instantly as she clenched her small fist. “That’s a separate matter! I’ll definitely settle this score! Hmph!”
No one was allowed to call her a shorty!
“But let’s set that aside for now. The elderly lady is the priority. This time, we must ensure she lives a long, healthy life—everyone should be well!”
Mo Qingyan chuckled softly; his little one would always be this kind-hearted.
He held her small hand, his tone tender enough to melt one’s heart. “Don’t worry, I’ll have Yu Ning arrange everything properly.”
Since Feng Lin could save him, he was naturally his savior, and Mo Qingyan would surely treat this boy well.
When Yu Ning brought the young boy back, and Zuo Yang saw his appearance, the young girl couldn’t help but let out a “Wow.”
Oh, she had almost forgotten—this Feng Lin was actually quite good-looking.
The boy before her had changed into simple sportswear, his newly cut hair exceptionally fluffy, looking irresistibly touchable.
His face was clean too, with red lips and white teeth, strikingly handsome.
Although his face was so thin the bones stood out, it didn’t detract at all.
“Mo Qingyan, look! Our Xiao Fenglin is quite the handsome young man!”