“He’ll die.” Mother Song almost jumped up in alarm, saying urgently, “No, that won’t do! He can’t die, absolutely not! If he dies…”
She swallowed nervously before continuing, “If he dies, the two of us will be arrested as murderers.”
Song Yueying, however, wasn’t worried about being treated as a murderer.
After all, police handled cases based on evidence. She and Mother Song hadn’t killed anyone, nor did they have any motive to kill. There was no way it could be pinned on them.
Still, she nodded in agreement. “Yes. If he has to die, he can’t die right at our doorstep. That would be hard to explain.”
She didn’t know Qi Yanjue’s exact identity, but she could tell how serious his injuries were, old and new gunshot wounds, knife wounds, and the fact that so many people were hunting him…
His identity was clearly not simple.
Without the detox medicine she gave him, Qi Yanjue wouldn’t have survived long enough to reach a hospital.
He had just barely escaped death, so why would he risk coming back to the village in a storm? And why, after returning, did he not go home but instead end up lying at their doorstep?
One question after another surfaced in Song Yueying’s mind, but she couldn’t make sense of it.
“I’m not dead yet.” Qi Yanjue’s low voice carried a trace of helplessness. He had actually been conscious; it was only when Song Yueying suddenly fell onto him that the pain briefly knocked him out.
As soon as he regained consciousness, he heard the mother and daughter’s conversation and felt it necessary to clarify things.
Song Yueying and her so-called “mad mother” who the whole village recognized as such, were truly unreliable.
One was worried he might die and they would be arrested as murderers. The other was worried he might die at their doorstep and cause trouble that would be hard to explain.
Neither of them even thought about getting him inside the house first.
“You’re not dead?” Hearing Qi Yanjue say he wasn’t dead, Mother Song immediately let out a breath of relief. “Not dead is good, not dead is good. You really scared us to death.”
As she spoke, she even patted her chest, clearly indicating she had been truly frightened.
Qi Yanjue knew Mother Song had mental instability and couldn’t be stimulated, so he tried to reassure her. “Yes, I’m not dead. You don’t need to worry.”
As soon as he said that, Mother Song indeed stopped worrying. The tension on her face eased, and she even let go of Song Yueying’s hand, walking up to Qi Yanjue.
She bent down to examine him for a while, then simply squatted down to get a closer look.
“You…” Qi Yanjue felt a bit uncomfortable under her stare and wanted to ask something, but after saying only one word, he stopped.
“You’re Xiao Qi,” Mother Song suddenly said, her face breaking into a happy smile. “Xiao Qi, you’re back.”
Both Qi Yanjue and Song Yueying froze.
But Mother Song continued without pause, like spilling beans, “Xiao Qi, did you come back to see me? Why did you only come back now? Xiao Ying has been back for a long time already.”
“I asked her why you didn’t come back with her. She said you had something to do and wouldn’t be coming back anymore.”
“Xiao Qi, how did you end up looking like a beggar?”
“Such a nice face is all covered in dirt, and there are injuries…”
“Your good-looking face doesn’t even look good anymore. I’ll help you wipe it clean.”
As she spoke, Mother Song reached out to wipe Qi Yanjue’s face.
“No need.” Qi Yanjue dodged her hand. Although he was injured, his movements were still very quick.
Faced with Mother Song’s words, Qi Yanjue truly didn’t know how to respond, but he also couldn’t remain silent. After carefully choosing his words, he slowly spoke, “Auntie…”
“What auntie? Call me Mom.” Mother Song interrupted him, withdrawing her hand and no longer trying to wipe the dirt off his face.
Qi Yanjue froze again. He lifted his head and looked toward Song Yueying with an indescribable expression. Song Yueying didn’t remember him, yet the mentally unstable Mother Song did.
Mom! Mother Song wanted Qi Yanjue to call her Mom? Song Yueying’s eyes widened in shock.
She quickly searched through the original owner’s memories, but the result was clear, there was no son in Mother Song’s memory.
So where did Qi Yanjue come from? Why did Mother Song want him to call her Mom? Song Yueying couldn’t understand it. She stepped forward, grabbed Mother Song’s arm, and pulled her up.
In front of Qi Yanjue, she lowered her voice and asked, “When did you have a son who’s even older than me?”
“What son?” Mother Song instinctively asked back, looking completely confused.
Qi Yanjue’s mouth twitched slightly. Once again, he was certain that Song Yueying truly didn’t remember him.
Seeing Mother Song’s blank expression, Song Yueying knew she hadn’t understood what she meant. So she explained again, “He called you Mom. Isn’t he your son?”
“No.” This time Mother Song understood and immediately denied it. “Impossible. I don’t have a son. I only have you as my daughter. I don’t have a son.”
“I don’t have a son.”
Song Yueying frowned. In the original owner’s memories, Mother Song often had episodes of memory confusion. Qi Yanjue might actually be her son, she simply didn’t remember.
Just like when the original owner returned to the village and told Mother Song that her husband had died in service to the country. Mother Song never remembered it, only recalling that she had been married, but never remembering that her husband had already sacrificed his life for the nation.
If Qi Yanjue is Mother Song’s son, then wouldn’t that make him her older brother?
He is the older brother.
Seeing that Song Yueying didn’t speak, Mother Song assumed she didn’t believe her. She hurriedly explained, “Xiao Ying, my daughter, you have to believe me. I really don’t have a son.”
“I really, really only have you as my daughter.”
Listening to the exchange between the mother and daughter, Qi Yanjue’s cracked lips moved slightly. His whole body ached so badly he was close to fainting again, and he couldn’t even manage to explain the misunderstanding.
Noticing that Qi Yanjue looked like he might pass out again, Song Yueying’s brow twitched. After a moment of thought, she decided not to dwell on whether Qi Yanjue was actually Mother Song’s son.
Looking at the dirt all over Qi Yanjue’s body, Song Yueying felt a bit disgusted, but still said to Mother Song, “Let’s not worry about whether he’s your son for now. We should get him inside the house first.”
Whether a man died at their doorstep or collapsed at their doorstep, if someone saw it, it would lead to all kinds of rumors.
Fortunately, it had just rained heavily, so most villagers were staying at home. Since no one had seen anything yet, it was best to quickly get Qi Yanjue inside.
“Alright, alright, you’re right. Let’s get him inside first,” Mother Song agreed immediately. She had always listened to her daughter and would do whatever she said.
The mother and daughter used quite a bit of effort before finally getting Qi Yanjue into the main room.
When they set him down on the floor, a dull thud sounded as his head knocked against the ground, and he fainted again.
Song Yueying’s expression stiffened slightly; she even felt the pain on his behalf. Yet Mother Song still asked in confusion, “Is he unconscious again, or is he just asleep?”
Of course he was unconscious, knocked out from hitting his head. Song Yueying didn’t want to explain further, so she changed the subject. “Let’s go back to our rooms and change out of these dirty clothes first.”
“Mm-mm-mm, you’re right,” Mother Song agreed repeatedly, then turned and walked back to her room.