"Tell me more about her childhood. I want to know her better."
When Tang Xiaomin was mentioned, Zhou Xiaolan's floodgates of words opened.
"Xiaomin was a very well-behaved child, even when she was still swaddled."
"But as she grew older, she became a little different from other children. She didn't like playing with children her age and would often do her own thing quietly."
"Our neighbor at the time even worried she had autism and suggested we take her to a doctor."
"We wanted to, but we had no money. We could only spend more time with her."
Zhou Xiaolan talked a lot, a great deal.
Finally, Zhang Meiyu said she wanted to see photos of Tang Xiaomin as a child. Sudananovel.com
Zhou Xiaolan said she would bring the album for her to see another day.
After they left.
In the hospital room, only Tang Xiaomin and Zhang Meiyu remained.
Tang Xiaomin was still sitting on the sofa playing with her phone. Although she didn't actively communicate with Zhang Meiyu, her presence was real.
Today, Zhang Meiyu's face was as pale as paper.
Influenced by her upbringing, she had always been a refined person and never allowed herself to be disheveled like this.
"Xiaomin, can you do something for me?"
Tang Xiaomin paused.
"What is it?"
"Help me put on some makeup."
Tang Xiaomin was speechless.
Zhang Meiyu was in this state, yet she still wanted to put on makeup.
They say a woman adorns herself for the one who delights her. Who was she dressing up for in the hospital?
Tang Xiaomin quickly typed a few words and sent them to Yan Jue.
Zhang Meiyu usually had Butler Wang carry her makeup bag with her at all times. Tang Xiaomin looked around and found it.
Her ideal profession was to be an embalmer, and she had specifically learned makeup at Xianfu Group.
After arranging the cosmetics, Tang Xiaomin meticulously applied makeup to Zhang Meiyu.
It had to be said that Zhang Meiyu's face, which had cost a fortune in upkeep, was truly beautiful.
Even in her sixties, there wasn't a single wrinkle on her face.
Tang Xiaomin applied a light makeup to Zhang Meiyu, and her complexion instantly improved.
However, she still exuded a sickly weakness.
Zhang Meiyu looked at Tang Xiaomin, and as she looked, her eyes welled up with tears.
It was as if she had something to say.
But she swallowed the words back before they reached her lips.
Such a peaceful and beautiful moment should have belonged to her.
Now, she had to beg to get it.
Fortunately, Tang Xiaomin did not refuse her unreasonable request.
It allowed her to feel a touch of warmth from Tang Xiaomin during the darkest moment of her life.
Zhang Meiyu started talking about her nightmare with Tang Xiaomin.
"I had a terrible nightmare. In my dream, I saw many horrifying things about you."
Tang Xiaomin continued to tidy her makeup.
"What kind of dream?"
Recalling the dream, Zhang Meiyu felt a sudden pain in her chest.
"I dreamt you were lying in a hospital bed, with a gruesome wound on your waist, bleeding incessantly. The blood soaked the bed you were lying on..."
By the end, Zhang Meiyu couldn't continue. She didn't even want to recall Tang Xiaomin's unseeing eyes in the dream.
Upon hearing this, Tang Xiaomin's movements of tidying up froze for a moment.
The dream Zhang Meiyu described was not a dream at all.
It was the scene of her death in her previous life.
On a dark and cold hospital bed, she bled silently.
She opened her eyes, longing for someone to notice her, to save her.
However, nothing happened until she died.
Tang Xiaomin's cold eyes cast a faint glance at Zhang Meiyu.
"Are you afraid? Are you afraid of the nightmare, or of the person who died in the nightmare?"
Zhang Meiyu shook her head, trying to banish the nightmare from her mind.
But the nightmare was as vivid as if she had witnessed it firsthand, etched deeply in her heart.
"I don't know why that dream felt so real."
"I'm even afraid that one day you will become like that. I'm afraid every day, as if it's bound to happen."
As Zhang Meiyu spoke, her emotions began to stir.
It wasn't something that would happen, but something that had already happened.
Tang Xiaomin deliberately feigned an indifferent expression.
"The doctor said you shouldn't get too emotional. You should rest for a while."
In this life, no matter how many people wanted to harm her, she would never let herself end up like that.
She would just slowly wait for the day Tang Yiyi's kidneys fail.
...
In the psychiatric hospital.
When Tang Zhongcheng and Xue Yi found Tang Yiyi, she was curled up on the messy bed in the dormitory, trembling.
Earlier, she had only told the woman in her dormitory that what she was holding was not a child but a lifeless pillow.
The woman had suddenly turned pale with shock and started crying and making a fuss.
It was as if she had suddenly woken up and wanted to leave.
Later that night, the woman hanged herself.
When Tang Yiyi woke up, she saw the woman hanging from the rope, dead, her tongue protruding grotesquely.
Seeing Tang Yiyi's tragic state, Li Xue immediately burst into tears and hugged Tang Yiyi, sobbing.
"Yiyi, my Yiyi, how are you?"
Tang Yiyi hugged her knees, her eyes vacant and dull, her body trembling uncontrollably. She stammered,
"That... that... woman... she's dead, she hanged herself."
"I'm so scared,呜呜... so scared."
...
Tang Yiyi wailed.
"Yiyi, Mom will take you out of here right now."
"Don't be afraid, Mom is here to save you."
...
Xue Yi didn't dare to delay any longer and took Tang Yiyi away from the psychiatric hospital.
Back at the villa in Qingshuiwan, Tang Yiyi's condition was still not optimistic.
Even the slightest sound would startle her.
She was suspicious and extremely anxious.
Xue Yi tearfully complained to Tang Zhongcheng.
"Sir, whatever anger Zhang Meiyu has, she can vent it on me alone."
"She actually harmed Yiyi. Yiyi is your daughter, and now she's mentally unstable because of her. We can't just let this go."
Tang Zhongcheng sighed. He was truly powerless to continue entangled in these matters.
"Perhaps, this is karma."
"I've already booked our flights. We'll leave tomorrow."
Upon hearing this, Xue Yi was stunned for a moment.
She hadn't achieved her goal yet. How could she leave?
Such deep hatred, and she was just leaving.
How could she swallow this?
"Sir, Yiyi is in such a confused state now. We should find a doctor for her first."
"Leaving in such a hurry might delay Yiyi's condition. What will happen to her for the rest of her life?"
As she spoke, Xue Yi knelt before Tang Zhongcheng.
"Sir, the medical standards in Modu are top-notch. Even if we have to leave, let's cure Yiyi first. I beg you."
However, Tang Zhongcheng had made up his mind.
"It won't take many days abroad. I will find the best doctor for Yiyi. This is settled."
"Pack your things now. We leave first thing tomorrow morning."
Xue Yi wanted to say more, but Tang Zhongcheng got up and left, giving her no opportunity.
Must they really leave Modu like a pair of stray dogs?