Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

  Shao Dong was even more afraid of forcing Mu Jingzhe to return to reality by pinching her. He didn’t have the heart to do so.

  At that moment, Shao Dong even hoped that Mu Jingzhe could live in this world for a month. This way, she wouldn’t have to face the pain that would follow.

  He didn’t know why the heavens were treating Mommy like this. Mommy and Uncle Ji were clearly such good people.

  Shao Dong hesitated and didn’t make a move. Seeing Shao Dong’s expression, Mu Jingzhe felt increasingly uneasy. She couldn’t help but retreat. “Little Dong, why do you look so helpless? You… I’ll do it myself. I’ll do it myself.”

  She was so uneasy that she even forgot that she could bite her tongue to test it. Instead, she slammed her head into the wall so hard that it seemed as if she was attempting to commit suicide.

  Li Zhaodi screamed and pounced on her. “No!” Everyone tried to stop her, but Mu Jingzhe had already bumped her head against the wall and was falling to the ground.

  Amidst the dizziness she felt, Mu Jingzhe heard everyone’s panicked voices. Her head buzzed, and the unprecedented pain she felt told her that this wasn’t a dream.

  If she wasn’t dreaming right now, what was everything that was going on in her mind?

  Mu Jingzhe thought back carefully and realized that those memories were very clear yet blurry at the same time. They were like flowers in the mirror and the moon in the water. They could shatter with a single touch.

  It was like an extremely realistic dream, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t recall it.

  Mu Jingzhe looked at her hands with difficulty. Her hands were bandaged, and there was no ring on her finger.

  There was no wedding ring.

  No ring. Nothing.

  Mu Jingzhe took a deep breath with difficulty. Now that her mind was a mess, it finally froze a moment before she lost consciousness and descended into darkness.

  They were still in Nanlin County, right under the ruins.

  This wasn’t a month later, but a month ago. That so-called wedding and post-wedding period had been nothing but a dream.

  A long dream.

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  In the dream, Ji Buwang had married her and stayed by her side. What about now? Where was Ji Buwang?

  “Where is Ji Buwang? Were we saved? When did I come back?”

  She could tell that she was no longer in Nanlin County. She had returned. Then what about Ji Buwang?

  She also realized that the injuries on her hands were the aftereffect of holding up the closet. Despite her incredible strength, her hands had a limited capacity to withstand weight. That was why Li Zhaodi had said that her bones had fractured and almost shattered.

  Mu Jingzhe bit her tongue to confirm that she was awake. She looked at Shao Dong and waited for an answer, but he didn’t say anything. She then looked at Li Zhaodi, who didn’t say anything either.

  Mu Jingzhe took a deep breath. “I was acting a little abnormally just now, but I’m fine now. I’m awake. I’m normal. I’m not crazy or sick. So Shao Dong, tell me, where is Ji Buwang?”

  Seeing that Mu Jingzhe had actually said that she was normal, Shao Dong couldn’t help but feel sad. He quickly went forward to comfort her. “I know, Mommy. I know you’re normal. Don’t get all worked up.”

  “Then tell me, how is Ji Buwang? Is he alright?” Mu Jingzhe recalled their red eyes earlier and was almost swallowed by despair. “Little Dong, please tell me, what’s wrong with Ji Buwang?”

  Ji Buwang looked into Mu Jingzhe’s eyes and clenched his fists tightly. “Mommy, you’re very agitated now. You have to calm down. We will only tell you after you calm down and recuperate.”

  “Tell me now. If you don’t tell me, how can I recuperate? If you don’t tell me, I’ll go look for him myself.”

  Mu Jingzhe rolled over and was just about to get off the bed when Li Zhaodi carefully hugged her. “Jingzhe, focus on recuperating. Don’t scare me again.”

  “No, I want to see Ji Buwang. I want to see him now.”

  “Mommy, you should recuperate first. When you recover, we’ll take you to see him.”

  “Then where is he?”

  “He… He’s next door.” Shao Dong hesitated for a moment. Because of Mu Jingzhe’s abnormal behavior just now, he ultimately didn’t dare say it.

  “Take me there first, or I won’t be able to recuperate.”

  “You can’t move yet…”

  “What do you want? Shao Dong, are you hiding something from me? How’s Ji Buwang? Is he seriously injured? I know that something fell on his legs. Will he become lame or crippled in the future? I can accept it. I’m not afraid. Just tell me.”

  As long as he was still alive, she wouldn’t be afraid of anything. She wouldn’t ask for anything else. She only wanted him to be alive.

  Shao Dong was forced into a corner. “No.”

  “Then what is it? Is he… Is he in a coma again?”

  Shao Dong still didn’t answer. His attitude made Mu Jingzhe despair. A thought that she didn’t want to admit popped up in her mind. She didn’t dare think about it. She only wanted to see Ji Buwang.

  “Even Shao Dong refuses to tell me? Alright, I’ll go take a look myself. I’ll go by myself…” Mu Jingzhe had just moved when she was stopped by them.

  “Mommy, you have to recuperate.”

  “Jingzhe, don’t do this. You’re fine…”

  Mu Jingzhe felt like she was being pressed down into water, which made her suffocate and feel unable to breathe. She struggled with all her might but couldn’t escape. Just as she felt desperate, a voice suddenly came from the door and Shao Qihai appeared in front of her.

  Shao Dong was stunned to see Shao Qihai. “Dad? You’re back?”

  After Mu Jingzhe and the others had been saved, following the preliminary examination, because the local hospital was tight on resources, Shao Dong had decided to bring them back.

  However, Shao Qihai and his ex-comrades hadn’t followed them back. They had stayed there to continue helping, so he’d only returned now.

  Initially, they had said that they could help, but they were afraid that they would be too tired, so they’d insisted that they come back first.

  Shao Qihai had just returned and arrived at the hospital. When he saw that Mu Jingzhe had woken up, the corners of his mouth twitched into a smile.

  Shao Qihai looked very disheveled. He had a scraggly beard and a tanned face, and his clothes were filthy and smelly.

  Upon seeing them holding Mu Jingzhe down, he frowned. “Can’t you see that she can’t breathe? Why are you still holding her down?”

  Li Zhaodi was stunned. When she saw Mu Jingzhe’s abnormal expression, she suddenly let go. “Jingzhe, are you alright…”

  After being released, Mu Jingzhe finally started breathing. She looked at Shao Qihai and asked, “Why are you here?”

  “I just came to take a look at you,” Shao Qihai told Mu Jingzhe as he stood at the door, not entering the room.

  Mu Jingzhe looked at Shao Qihai and didn’t say anything. Shao Dong said, “Mommy, it was Daddy and Uncle Jiang Feng who saved you.”

  Mu Jingzhe’s face turned pale. “Thank you. Thank you… for saving me. Saving me…”

  Shao Dong looked at Mu Jingzhe, wondering what was wrong with her. “Mom, what’s wrong…”

  Mu Jingzhe raised her head, her eyes red as she glared at him. She actually grabbed his hand little by little and turned a deaf ear to Shao Dong, who was shouting, “Don’t use force!”

  She only looked at him and asked, “What about Ji Buwang? Didn’t you guys save him? You couldn’t have possibly saved only one person when the two of us were trapped together.”

  Shao Dong’s face turned pale. He hadn’t expected Mu Jingzhe to reach this conclusion just by hearing this sentence.

  “Mom…”

  “I should have known. Your attitude was so strange, but I refused to believe it. Ji Buwang can’t be dead. He hasn’t married me yet…… He promised me.”