Chapter 3: Possessed?

Ji Yang was stunned by Su Ai’s repeated apologies, unable to comprehend the situation. 

He wondered when Su Ai had ever apologized before. Her current state seemed unusual, as if something significant had happened.

Ji Yang furrowed his brows slightly.

“Mommy, don’t cry. What’s wrong?”

“Are you unhappy?  Lele will sing for you, okay?”

Ji Lele’s soft, sweet voice rang out, his chubby little hand wiping away Su Ai’s tears.

Su Ai looked back at her small child, but the image that flooded her mind was of Lele being hacked to death at home, his head and body severed into pieces a scene of heartbreaking despair.

It was all her fault.

Night after night, she was haunted by the sound of her child’s heart-wrenching cries, the child repeatedly reaching out to her, calling, “Mommy, it hurts, Mommy, it hurts.”

Su Ai gritted her teeth, suppressing the pain in her chest and the overwhelming joy of seeing them again, a joy that threatened to explode.  These intense emotions were almost tearing her apart, all turning into tears that flowed endlessly.

She gently touched her son’s face, again and again, as if feeling the wholeness of him.  Her voice was hoarse: “Lele, does it still hurt?”

The question was out of the blue; Ji Yang didn’t know what to say, but Ji Lele tilted his little head and answered seriously:

“Mommy, when you hit me last time, it hurt a little, but it’s been a long time, and it doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“Mommy knows she’s wrong? Mommy, don’t cry. Lele forgives Mommy.”

“Crying for too long will make your eyes hurt.”

Faced with her son’s comfort, Su Ai’s crying turned to laughter.  Unable to contain herself, she slapped herself hard twice.

Her heart ached, it really hurt, so much that she wanted to kill herself. Such a good child, such a good child, yet in her past life, he didn’t even have a chance to grow up.

She wanted to kill herself now, but she couldn’t die; she had to take care of them, she had to atone.

Both Ji Yang and the child were stunned by the violent action. The child immediately huddled into Ji Yang’s arms.

Ji Yang’s face darkened.

“Su Ai, are you finished making a fuss?!”

Ji Yang’s rebuke calmed Su Ai.  Looking at the two figures on the bed, she tried to calm herself.

This life was different from her last life; this time she had a chance, she had a chance. She had a chance to make amends.

Meeting Lele’s frightened gaze, Su Ai lowered her hands. Her cheeks were instantly swollen, but she seemed to feel no pain as she wiped away her tears and forced a smile.

“I’m sorry, Lele. Mommy was too excited just now, I scared you. I’m sorry.”

Finally, Su Ai’s gaze fell on Ji Yang’s leg, wrapped in bandages.

“I’m sorry.”

This couldn’t be resolved with a simple apology, but Su Ai didn’t know what else to say.

She took a deep breath and spoke calmly and sincerely:

“I apologize for all the terrible things I’ve done. Whether you believe it or not, from now on, I will absolutely never gamble again, I will never drink again, I will never go out and fool around again, and I will never fight with people again.”

“I will take good care of the home, and take good care of you both.”

“I will definitely find a way to cure your leg.”

“I’m sorry.”

Su Ai apologized again, bowed to Ji Yang, and left the room.

But Ji Yang in the room felt like he had seen a ghost.

Was Su Ai possessed?

What did she just say?

She said she was wrong and would never go out and fool around again?

Su Ai had never spoken those words to him before.  Her expression wasn’t fake; it was serious, almost convincing him.

But Ji Yang quickly shook his head.

No! A dog can’t change its spots!

If Su Ai could change, she would have done so long ago. He’d tried before.

Everything that happened today felt like a dream.  Ji Yang’s mind was a mess.

“Dad?”

While he was lost in thought, he had been holding his child, who, unable to move, became impatient and called out.

“Hmm?”

“Dad, can I get down?”

Ji Lele was only a little over two years old.  Despite his age, he was well-behaved. Ji Yang quickly put him down, adding a worried instruction:

“Go play, but be careful not to step on the broken bowls.”

“Okay, Dad.”

“Dad, do you still need to take your medicine?”

“But the jar seems empty.”

The clean, well-behaved child was incredibly sensible. No matter how bad things were at home, Ji Yang felt his heart melt whenever he looked at his child.  He was a father now, and he had to protect his child.

Gently rubbing the child’s head, he softly said, “Dad won’t drink it anymore. It’s okay, go play.”

“Okay, Dad.”

The child skipped out the door.  He saw the kitchen was making noise, and his mother seemed to be busy with something.

Ji Lele paused, wanting to go to the kitchen, but hesitated and didn’t go.  His father wasn’t around, and he was still afraid of his mother, afraid of being beaten.  He decided to go play outside.

Ji Yang lay in bed, looking at his leg with a serious expression.  As a doctor himself, he knew his condition well.

His bones weren’t simply dislocated; they couldn’t be healed by just setting them.  He needed surgery at the hospital, which would cost a significant amount of money.

Normally, he would find a way to go to the hospital, but now he had a child to support, and he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to afford the treatment.

Thinking about how he might walk with a limp in the future, Ji Yang felt a sense of desolation. No one could calmly accept their disability.

When Su Ai came in with a broom, she saw this scene.  Her heart ached.

“I promise I will definitely get your leg healed,” Su Ai’s voice was hoarse but firm.

Ji Yang turned to look at her, seeing the red and swollen handprints on her face, very clear.  It was evident she had slapped herself hard.

Her eyes were still swollen, but her expression was calmer than before.

This calm and composed demeanor, this aura Ji Yang had never seen it in Su Ai before.  It was the same face, but she seemed completely different.

The old Su Ai, when standing before him, was always flippant, acting as if the whole world owed her something.

Always boasting, aiming high but achieving little, completely impractical.

But the current Su Ai was different. Her eyes were calmer, more composed.  Standing there, she seemed to possess the composure of someone who had weathered many storms, an unyielding calmness, like an unsheathed sword.