Ning Chengyou braced his hands on the floor, struggling to stand up.
But before he could even get to his feet, his brother-in-law Chen Zhigang had already helped his mother through the door.
He quickly stood up and hurried over to her.
“Mother, why are you here?”
But the old woman didn’t even glance at him. Her gaze was fixed on the hospital bed, surrounded by the flurry of busy doctors and nurses.
Her lips trembled for a long while before she finally choked out, “Is that… Xiao Xin?”
Ning Chengyou’s mind was buzzing. He gritted his teeth, not knowing how to explain to his mother.
But the old woman didn’t wait for his answer. She shook off Chen Zhigang’s supporting arm and strode toward the bed.
She pushed her way to the front and saw Ning Xin with her head wrapped in bandages, an oxygen mask over her face, her complexion pale as paper, and not a trace of vitality about her.
It suddenly reminded her of her second son, who had just passed away.
The old woman let out a cry: “Xiao Xin!”
Then her vision went dark. Her body swayed, and she collapsed toward the bed!
“Mother!” Fortunately, Ning Chengyou, who had followed close behind, caught her just in time with his quick reflexes.
The doctors were also terrified.
None of them had expected that before one patient was even treated, another would collapse right beside her!
They quickly helped the old woman sit down on the next bed, and several nurses patted her back soothingly to help her catch her breath.
It was a long while before the old woman finally recovered.
“How did Xiao Xin end up like this?”
As soon as she had caught her breath, she immediately demanded of her son in a harsh voice.
Ning Chengyou felt like he could die right then and there!
He had no idea how to explain this to his mother!
He couldn’t say that his second brother’s two children had gotten Zhu Chunhong thrown into the detention center, nor could he say that Ning Ling had choked Xiao Xin unconscious.
His mouth opened and closed for a long time, beads of sweat the size of soybeans rolling down his forehead.
After a long while, all he could do was instinctively glance at Ning Ling, who had been cowering in the corner playing dead ever since her grandmother arrived. Not a single word came out.
But he didn’t need to say anything. Seeing him like this, the old woman had already guessed most of it.
The elderly sleep lightly. Early that morning, when the eldest and his wife had called Ning Ling aside to whisper among themselves, she had heard everything.
She hadn’t thought much of it at the time.
But then the eldest had left with Ning Ling, and Ning Ling had been carrying a large bundle. That had made the old woman suspicious.
She called her eldest daughter-in-law over and questioned her. It didn’t take many words to get the whole story out of her.
As soon as she heard that the third brother’s wife had beaten Ning Xin so badly that she was hospitalized, and that she was being sent to labor reform because of it, the old woman knew this was no small matter!
How could she just sit still?
Just then, her daughter and son-in-law had come to visit her. The old woman grabbed her son-in-law and insisted he ride his bicycle and bring her to the city immediately.
After arriving in the city, she didn’t go to see Zhu Chunhong at all. She came straight to the hospital.
But how could she have imagined that this was what she would see?
The old woman took a deep breath, then closed her eyes.
When she opened them again, she suddenly lashed out and smacked her eldest son hard on the head.
With a sharp smack, the ward fell into a momentary silence.
Ning Chengyou was the eldest in the family, already in his fifties.
He was also the brigade captain of the village, a man whose word was law.
Now, in front of so many people, including his juniors, his own mother had just slapped him like that.
His face instantly turned the color of an eggplant.
“What, you don’t accept it?” Old Madam Ning looked at him and asked coldly.
Ning Chengyou lowered his head and mumbled in a muffled voice, “No, I wouldn’t dare.”
The old woman let out a cold snort, offered no explanation, and ignored him completely. She turned to look at the doctor, who stood there frozen in shock, and asked, “Doctor, how is my eldest granddaughter now?”
Although the doctor had worked for many years and had seen all kinds of people in the hospital, this was the first time he had encountered such a formidable old woman.
He no longer dared to speak as sharply as he had with Ning Chengyou. Instead, he softened his tone and said, “Your granddaughter had her throat choked, which caused hypoxic asphyxiation. Fortunately, it was discovered early. If it had been any later, her life could have been in danger. Even if she had been revived, there might have been lasting aftereffects.”
Seeing the old woman’s body trembling as if she might faint again, he quickly reassured her, “Don’t be afraid. It was caught in time. Based on the current situation, your granddaughter should be out of danger. Of course, we’ll have to wait until she wakes up to know for sure. Let’s all wait a little longer. She should be waking up soon.”
The old woman stared at the ring of purple bruises around her eldest granddaughter’s neck. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of her second granddaughter, who had been hiding by the door, not daring to move a muscle since she’d entered. Her hands clenched into fists with hatred.
To do something this vicious to your own sister, this girl, just like her mother, was beyond saving!
Old Madam Ning trembled with rage, but she couldn’t even be bothered to look at Ning Ling, let alone scold her.
Although she was old, she wasn’t senile, nor did she throw her weight around because of her age.
If a mistake was made, she would strike her own sons, but she would never discipline the third generation.
That was the job of their own parents.
And as for her sons, they deserved to be hit!
From the moment she had entered and understood the situation, Old Madam Ning had immediately grasped the crux of the matter.
When her eldest son came to visit his little niece, he had clearly been harboring some resentment himself.
Otherwise, after knowing what a wretched thing Zhu Chunhong had done, how could he have let Ning Ling, who was no different from her mother, go in first to see Ning Xin?
He had clearly intended for Ning Ling to strike first and teach Ning Xin a lesson.
He just didn’t expect Ning Ling to be so reckless and stupid as to do something this brutal to her own sister.
The old woman looked at her granddaughter, still unconscious and slow to wake, and felt her heart ache with a mix of pain and rage, so twisted up she could barely breathe.
Furious beyond restraint, she couldn’t help but raise her hand and smack Ning Chengyou again.
“Mother!”
Chen Zhigang, who had been keeping a close eye on the situation, immediately lunged forward to place himself between his mother-in-law and his eldest brother-in-law, using his body to separate them.
He gently held the old woman back with his arm and pleaded repeatedly, “Mother, please calm down. Whatever needs to be said, we can discuss it after Xiao Xin has recovered and we’re back home. This is a place for healing, we need to keep it quiet. We can’t make a scene here.”
Hearing her son-in-law say that the ward needed to remain quiet, the old woman finally withdrew her hand.
She was about to say something more when a flurry of hurried footsteps sounded from outside, followed by a young girl’s breathless voice: “I brought the police!”
The ward fell silent once again.
The officer who arrived was still Officer Xiao Li.
As soon as he entered, he saw Ning Xin lying on the hospital bed, unconscious, surrounded by a large crowd of people.
He remembered how the young nurse had run to the police station and said that someone was causing trouble at the clinic and had beaten a patient.
Then he looked at the few people who had clearly rushed over from the countryside. His first reaction was that Ning Xin’s rural relatives had come to get revenge for Zhu Chunhong.
He was instantly furious!
Xiao Li yanked the handcuffs from his belt and barked, “Who? Who did it?”
Before anyone could even speak, Ning Ling, who had been wishing she could disappear into the floor, could no longer hold it together.
She let out a shrill scream and then burst into loud, wailing sobs: “Don’t arrest me! I won’t go! Grandma, help me! Save me!”
Her hysterical cries could be heard not just in the ward, but throughout the entire hallway.
Ning Xin simply couldn’t keep up the act any longer.
As a healer in two lifetimes, she knew exactly how a patient responded after suffocation.
It was far too easy to fool the doctors and nurses at the neighborhood clinic, who lacked real practical experience.
Ning Xin’s original plan had been to stay “unconscious” until the police arrived. Once they saw the pitiful state she was in, Ning Ling wouldn’t be able to escape responsibility.
Wasn’t she so concerned about her mother?
Fine, then she could accompany her mother to labor reform.
Wasn’t this the perfect opportunity to show what a devoted daughter she was?
But Ning Xin didn’t expect Old Madam Ning to show up.
Nor did she know whether this old woman truly cared for her as a granddaughter.
Some things could be faked, but not everything.
Especially the sincerity of one person’s feelings for another, that kind of truth couldn’t be pretended.
Ning Xin had always been the type to repay kindness tenfold.
If the old woman hadn’t come, that would have been one thing. But since she was here, if Ning Xin kept pretending to be unconscious and truly frightened the elderly woman, the cost would outweigh the benefit.
After all, the old woman was advanced in years.
In the span of a single month, she had first lost her second son, then heard that her third daughter-in-law was being sent to labor reform. She had rushed over in a panic, only to arrive and find her granddaughter unconscious and unresponsive…
Even a healthy person couldn’t withstand that, let alone an elderly woman.
So Ning Xin let out a soft moan and slowly opened her eyes.
“Grandma…” she called out softly, her voice full of grievance.
“Xin, my Xin!”
Hearing her voice, the old woman sprang up from the next bed. Before she could even reach Ning Xin’s side, tears were streaming down her face, and she was sobbing uncontrollably.
Seeing Ning Xin awake, everyone else gathered around as well.
A nurse first helped the trembling Old Madam Ning, who was shaking with emotion, to step aside. Then the doctor began re-examining Ning Xin.
After confirming that she was indeed out of danger, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
After removing her oxygen mask, the medical staff left the ward.
They left the space to the family—
And to the police.
“Alright, explain. What happened?” Xiao Li rattled the handcuffs in his hand, his face stern as he asked coldly.
The atmosphere in the ward was extremely oppressive. No one spoke. The only sound was Ning Ling’s whimpering, escaping uncontrollably from her throat, overwhelmed by fear.
Ning Xin sighed, then looked at Xiao Li with a weak smile. “Officer Li, sorry to have troubled you to make this trip.”
Xiao Li wasn’t very old. He had been a neighborhood police officer for several years but had never been called “Officer” before.
Moreover, there was no such title in use at the time, that kind of address was unheard of.
Being looked at by a young girl like Ning Xin, addressed so gently and softly, he couldn’t help the sudden flush that spread across his face.
“Don’t call me that,” he quickly waved his hand. “You can call me Xiao Li or Comrade Li.”
Ning Xin curled the corners of her mouth slightly again. “Then I’ll call you Brother Xiao Li. Brother Xiao Li, nothing much happened today. My cousin was just a little emotional after finding out her mother had been locked up. She came over and choked me unconscious. I’m out of danger now. Let’s just forget it. Don’t take her away.”
As she spoke, Ning Xin reached up and touched her neck.
Beneath her pale fingers, the purple bruising from the strangulation stung the eyes of everyone in the room.
Ning Xin had thought it through clearly. She could plead for Ning Ling, if only to show her own maturity in front of outsiders.
But the facts were right there. Ning Ling had nearly choked her to death. Could a simple plea really make that go away?
Xiao Li was still standing right there. Was the law just something hung on the wall for decoration?