Love Heals (the Original Work)

She didn't know what to say anymore, only felt utterly powerless, as if her six years of evasion were completely fruitless, and everything had returned to the starting point. She had tried every possible way to distance herself from him, to sever all ties, yet, her family had become even more closely connected to him...

This feeling was unbearable, as if a huge mountain was pressing on her chest, too heavy to bear, suffocating.

The hardest debts to repay in the world are those of personal favor, and now, what could she use to pay it back? She certainly couldn't gamble herself away again, could she?

Without speaking, Pei Sufen also felt very oppressed. She knew her daughter did not wish to have further entanglements with Zhiqian, but things weren't going as she had expected.

"Zheng'er," Ruan Jianzhong, who lay in the bed, spoke up, "We still have to pay back the money to Zhiqian. As for the work, your brother sought Zhiqian out on his own. If you don't like it, just don't let him go. With the way things are now, we really can't trouble Zhiqian any further."

"Dad, of course, I'll repay the money. As for Ruan Lang's situation, I'll talk to him when he returns. Don't worry about these things anymore, I'm back now, and I'll take care of everything." She sat down beside Ruan Jianzhong and spoke softly to console him.

She would never blame her family, especially her parents. This failed marriage was her own mistake. Because of her, her parents had been deeply hurt. The six years she spent away, neglecting her parents, added to her guilt. Therefore, since it was her responsibility, she should be the one to bear it.

Suddenly, she noticed the bag she had placed at the bedside when she arrived—a style that clearly suited younger people. Had he seen it when he came earlier? Such a detail-oriented person like him, could he have missed it? If he had seen it, would he guess that she was back?

He said he would come later.

How long was this "later"? After work? Dinner time? Or later at night?

Ruan Liuzheng felt restless, constantly thinking and hypothesizing how to face him again and what to say with the first words.

She knew she wasn't handling this well, and it went against her previous resolution to extinguish all residual sparks and embers, but somehow the emotions inside seemed difficult to control. She could sit nonchalantly by her father's window, watching the IV drip, yet she couldn't prevent the collision of countless thoughts inside her heart.

Around three or four o'clock, Pei Sufen's phone rang, right next to Ruan Liuzheng.

Glancing sideways, she saw the caller ID: Zhiqian.

"Mom, answer the phone." She felt her heart inexplicably skip a beat.

"Aren't you going to answer it?" Pei Sufen, who was folding clothes, put down the laundry and came over; after glancing at the phone, she realized and answered, "Hello, Zhiqian?"

Pei Sufen's phone volume was loud and the hospital was quiet, so she could clearly hear his voice over there, just not the content of the conversation.

She deliberately walked away.

"Oh, alright, you don't need to worry about us, we can manage on our own, right now..." Pei Sufen suddenly stopped talking, glancing at Ruan Liuzheng, "Zhiqian, just focus on your work, I can make dinner myself, really."

"Zhiqian says he's been called in for an emergency surgery and won't have time to bring food," Pei Sufen explained after hanging up the phone.

Ruan Liuzheng let out a sigh of relief.

She guessed that Pei Sufen was about to say "right now" and wanted to add something like "Liuzheng has come back"...

Really, Mom was being too careful. Whether she said it or not made no difference; she and he were bound to run into each other again.

Besides, being in the hospital, just a few floors away from him, the chances of running into him as she came and went were simply too high.