Chapter 50

“Has something happened to Yan An?”

Yan Ning still carried the shadow of the last time she visited Yan An. When Tang Minrou spoke, her face looked somewhat unpleasant, which made Yan Ning feel a bit worried.

Tang Minrou’s gaze briefly faltered, and she subconsciously avoided Yan Ning’s eyes for a second. But soon, she raised her head to look at her, forcing a smile. “No, what could have happened? It’s just that Yan An said she misses you a little.”

“Okay, after school tomorrow, have Uncle Zheng take me to the hospital,” Yan Ning replied after changing her shoes and standing up.

“Do you want to go after school?” Tang Minrou asked, her tone carrying a hint of dissatisfaction.

Yan Ning looked at her. “Then when do you think would be a better time to go?”

“How about in the morning? I’ll have Uncle Zheng help you take the day off. Yan An hasn’t been to school for several years because of her illness. If you could spend some time talking to her, she’d be really happy.” Tang Minrou arranged everything as if asking for her opinion, but she had already made up her mind.

Yan Ning nodded. “Okay.”

Thinking the topic was over, she prepared to go upstairs.

“Ningning,” Tang Minrou called her again. “Is there some misunderstanding between you and Wanwan?”

Yan Ning turned around and asked instead of answering, “Has Mom heard something?”

Faced with her daughter’s cold expression and tone, Tang Minrou suddenly felt a bit weak, blinking her eyes before saying, “I just heard from Xiao Yu that Wanwan didn’t go to school today.”

“Why would Mom think that if Yan Wan didn’t go to school, it has anything to do with me?” Yan Ning spoke with little emotion, simply asking a question.

She suddenly found herself confused. If Tang Minrou didn’t like her, why did she go all the way to Xinghua Village to pick her up back then?

She gave her hope, then crushed it with her own hands.

Tang Minrou’s face stiffened. “Ningning, you misunderstood.”

“Mom, did you see the message I sent you last night? I first called, but no one answered, so I sent you a message.”

“Huh? When I woke up this morning, I… I saw it. Sorry, I was busy and forgot. What did you want to tell me back then?”

“It’s nothing, just a small thing.” Yan Ning had no intention of continuing the conversation, her gaze lightly landing on Tang Minrou’s stiff face. “Mom, I’ll go with you to see Yan An tomorrow morning. If there’s nothing else, I’ll go upstairs now.”

—

Morning.

Her internal clock had already formed, so even though she knew she didn’t need to go to school today, Yan Ning still woke up at the usual time.

After washing up, she went downstairs to check on Aunt Wu, who was cooking.

Around seven in the morning, Tang Minrou came downstairs in her pajamas. She was surprised to see Yan Ning awake. “Ningning, why are you up so early?”

“I’m used to the school schedule,” Yan Ning replied calmly. After a moment, she added, “Mom, I passed the school exam last week and transferred to the high school department.”

“Huh? What’s going on? Why didn’t you tell me?” Tang Minrou’s heart skipped a beat, a strange feeling rising in her chest.

Although she didn’t usually care much about Yan Ning, it felt strange to her that this child hadn’t even mentioned such a big change, making her feel inexplicably uncomfortable.

“I didn’t want to bother you since I know you’re busy,” Yan Ning explained. “I got the opportunity to take the exam because I won first place in the competition sponsored by Shengyi Games.”

Tang Minrou’s face suddenly changed. She put down her cup and looked at Yan Ning with a disgusted expression. “So you’re saying the people from Shengyi helped you explain things to the school so you could transfer classes? What’s wrong with you? Why didn’t you tell your father and me about this kind of thing? Instead, you bothered outsiders. Is your backbone so worthless?”

Yan Ning didn’t understand why Tang Minrou suddenly became angry but still tried to explain, “Mom, it’s not like that. Although Shengyi did help, I only had the opportunity because I won first place. And it wasn’t a direct transfer, I had to pass the exam first to transfer.”

“Has this family mistreated you in some way? Why do you go to outsiders for these things? Whose child are you, acting so shamelessly? Do you know how much embarrassment you’ve caused me by trying to curry favor with the Tang family?”

“Mom, I didn’t.” Yan Ning didn’t know which of her words had triggered Tang Minrou’s sensitivity, leaving her at a loss.

Bang! Tang Minrou threw the cup of water in her hand at Yan Ning. The cup contained hot water and grazed past Yan Ning’s cheek.

In fact, Tang Minrou had aimed directly at Yan Ning’s forehead, but instinctively, Yan Ning tilted her head slightly to the side.

This movement only made Tang Minrou angrier. She screamed hysterically, “You dare to dodge? You really are just a stray girl! I wish I had never given birth to you!”

Yan Ning stood stiffly in place.

If she had only faintly felt it before, she was now completely certain—Tang Minrou didn’t like her.

Not only that, but she deeply resented her.

Reaching this conclusion, Yan Ning felt a strange calm in her heart. This wasn’t the first time she had faced such a situation.

She could even analyze rationally that since Tang Minrou felt no familial bond toward her, the effort she had taken to travel so far to bring her back must have been for a purpose.

And as long as she endured a little longer, she would eventually figure out what Tang Minrou wanted from her.

The housekeeper, who was cooking, overheard their argument but didn’t dare step forward.

Only after Tang Minrou went upstairs did she come out to clean up the broken glass on the floor.

During breakfast, Tang Minrou didn’t come downstairs.

Yan Yu and Yan Wan likely hadn’t expected Yan Ning to still be at home at this hour. Normally, she would have left early and never shared breakfast with them.

The three of them sat in the dining room, eating breakfast together. Aside from the occasional clinking of spoons against plates, there wasn’t a single sound. Their table manners were flawless, but the atmosphere was incredibly awkward.

After breakfast, Yan Yu took Mr. Chen’s car to school, while Yan Wan went back upstairs, showing no intention of attending school today either.

Yan Ning stayed downstairs waiting for Tang Minrou. About ten minutes later, Tang Minrou came down, fully dressed. Her expression was still sour, and she didn’t spare Yan Ning a glance before heading straight outside.

Yan Ning got up and followed her. Uncle Zheng was already waiting for them outside.

Upstairs, Yan Wan watched from the window as Yan Ning and Tang Minrou got into Uncle Zheng’s car. A faint smile appeared in her eyes.

At the hospital, Yan Ning followed behind Tang Minrou, taking the elevator upstairs.

When they entered the hospital room and saw Yan An, Yan Ning couldn’t help but feel that Yan An looked even weaker than she had a few days ago. Already frail and skin-and-bones, she now appeared even more fragile, her eyes heavy and spiritless.

When she saw Yan Ning behind Tang Minrou, Yan An’s eyes lit up slightly. “Sister, you’re here.”

Yan Ning placed a bouquet of fresh flowers she had bought at the flower shop near the hospital on the bedside table and sat down. “Mm, I came to see you.”

“Aren’t you going to school, Sister? It’s Tuesday, isn’t it?” Yan An lay on the bed, her face curious but timid.

Yan Ning glanced up at Tang Minrou. In front of Yan An, Tang Minrou’s demeanor was gentle, her smile warm and kind.

Receiving Yan Ning’s signal, Tang Minrou gave an almost imperceptible nod.

“Mm, school’s on break today, so I had time to come see you.”

“School’s on break on a Tuesday?”

“Yes, something came up unexpectedly.”

Yan An’s gaze shifted to the snowy white ceiling, and a faint smile tugged at her lips. “Sister is so kind to me.”

“You’re my little sister. If I don’t treat you well, who should I treat well?” Yan Ning couldn’t help but reach out and gently stroke Yan An’s sparse, dry hair.

Yan Ning chatted with Yan An for a while. Noticing that Yan An’s eyelids were fluttering as if she were getting sleepy, she suggested she rest.

Yan Ning raised her hand and pointed to the drawer in the bedside table.

She stood up, took a book from inside, and opened it to a specific page. Following Yan An’s instructions, she began reading softly.

She continued until Yan An slowly closed her eyes and her breathing became steady. Only then did Yan Ning stop and close the book.

Standing at the doorway, Tang Minrou gently waved her over.

Yan Ning got up carefully and walked out of the hospital room.

Tang Minrou looked at her with a warm and affectionate expression, the same one she had when looking at Yan An. “Ningning, you haven’t had a medical check-up since coming home. Since we’re here today, why not get one done?”

“I’m always healthy. There’s no need, is there?” she instinctively refused.

Tang Minrou suddenly bent down, taking her hand. “Mom already made an appointment with the doctor. With An’an in her condition, I already have enough to worry about. If you get checked and everything’s fine, it will put my mind at ease.”

Tang Minrou pulled Yan Ning along to undergo a full-body examination, which included a blood test.

On the way back home, Yan Ning sat in the back seat, leaning against the car window. Suddenly feeling something, she turned to glance behind them.

Uncle Zheng was just navigating a curve when she looked back for a moment and said, “It seems like a car is following us.”

Hearing this, Uncle Zheng glanced at the rearview mirror and indeed saw a car trailing behind.

“Madam, Miss Ning, please sit tight.”

They were about to enter a tunnel, where the lighting was poor.

Yan Ning’s sharp hearing picked up the faint sound of a machine running at high speed from the car behind. Leaning over the back of her seat, she looked behind them and saw the car tailing them accelerating toward their vehicle.

Uncle Zheng had been watching through the rearview mirror and successfully dodged several attempts by the car to hit them.

However, the trailing car suddenly sped up dramatically, moving faster than before. The tires screeched against the ground, making an ear-piercing sound, and it was now about to crash into their car’s rear.

Bang! Suddenly, another car appeared behind them, forcing the vehicle tailing theirs against the rock wall.

Uncle Zheng seized the opportunity to accelerate out of the tunnel. Yan Ning turned to look at the two cars now wedged together side by side, her expression unreadable.

Tang Minrou also glanced back, her face showing traces of panic. “What on earth is happening?”

“Madam, I will take you and Miss Ning back to the Yan residence first and then investigate the matter,” Uncle Zheng said, his expression heavy.

Earlier, he had suspected the car was merely following them and wouldn’t take any action. But based on what had just happened, it was clearly more than that. The pursuing vehicle’s aggressive behavior suggested malicious intent, possibly tied to some business-related conflicts.

Yan Ning had a vague feeling that this might have something to do with her. Moments ago, through the window, she had caught a glimpse of the driver.

Although the person wore sunglasses and had intentionally changed their clothes, she couldn’t mistake their identity.

She just didn’t expect them to go to such extreme lengths.

As for the car that had suddenly appeared to block the pursuer, it didn’t seem like a coincidence either. But she couldn’t figure out who would be helping her.