Chapter 2 A Coincidental Encounter

• I finally reacted to what he was saying. My ears felt like they were burning as I hurriedly freed myself from his embrace, "I-I'm sorry..."
• I endured the pain in my knees with all my might and stood up. The wounds made a rather ghastly sight, though fortunately, they were not bleeding anymore.
• He took a glance at me from the corner of his eyes. His expression looked apathetic. Soon afterward, he turned around to get into hyis car and drove away.
• I was stunned. A sliver of guilt bubbled up inside me.
• I had almost confessed my feeling to him some time ago. And turns out, his girlfriend would abandon him to marry my father.
• This was just ridiculous.
• When I got back to the hospital, the sky was already dark.
• I hobbled around looking for a doctor to help me clean my wounds. Just after it was bandaged, a nurse probed her head into the door and said to me, "Ning Jing, you're back? Your mom's in the emergency room..."
• I sprang up from my seat and asked hastily, "What's wrong? In which emergency room?"
• The nurse explained, "I'm not too sure either. I think she suddenly had difficulty breathing. She's in the emergency room on the 5th floor."
• In a rather dumbstruck state, I hastily rushed to the emergency room. I felt like I could lose something very important if I was even a step late.
• As it happened, the moment I arrived in front of the emergency room, the door opened. A doctor walked out and said in a solemn expression, "Your mother's situation is really unpromising. We need to carry out the operation as soon as possible. Otherwise, if we run into another situation like today, she'd be in even greater danger."
• My chest felt stuff, like there was a huge boulder. I quickly nodded and answered, "Alright. When can the surgery be done?"
• He took a folder from an assistant, took a brief look and said, "It can be scheduled on next Thursday. It'd cost about 200,000."
• "Okay, then please schedule it for us. Regarding the money... I'll pay as soon as possible."
• Upon agreeing, I went to the counter to check the balance remaining in my mother's medical card. There’s only three grand left.
• After the last time I topped up the medical card, I didn’t have much money left on me
• I walked back to the hospital ward dazed. What the doctor said echoed in my mind.
• A strong urge to cry crept up in me, but when I saw my mother lying unconscious, I raised my head to force my tears back.
• I took out my cell phone and combed through my contacts. My finger eventually stopped on Ning Hairong's name.
• I hesitated for a long time but in the end I still walked out of the ward to make the call.
• Very quickly, a woman's cold voice came through, "Ning Jing?"
• It was Song Meiqian.
• After a moment of silence, I asked coldly, "Where's my dad?"
• With a cheery voice, she said, "He had a few drinks today because he’s in a good mood—he's resting now. Is there anything you need?"
• My fingers went pale from how hard I clenched my cell phone. "Let me speak to him," I said.
• She chuckled softly. Her tone calm and confident, "You can tell me if you need something—it doesn’t matter because he won't speak to you."
• I stood on the corridor and glanced into the ward through the opened door. Tears welled up in my eyes.
• My mother was still bedridden in the hospital, and they weren’t even officially divorced yet, but my father had already joyfully gotten remarried—he wasn't even willing to answer our calls.
• I took a deep breath and said, "My mom needs an operation, and it'd cost about 200,000. Tell that to my dad when he’s awake."
• She said mockingly, "You’ve created a ruckus during our wedding this afternoon and now, you are already asking for money? Don't you think you're being rather outrageous?"
• What she said sounded especially ridiculous. I mocked, "Song Meiqian, tell me, how can a mistress be as shameless as you? My parents haven't even gotten legally divorced, how could you even call that a wedding?!"
• She laughed scornfully, "Legally divorced? Your dad had already settled that the day before yesterday. You're welcome to come and take a look any moment. If that’s too much work for you, I can also send you a picture."
• I was dumbfounded. The day before yesterday, my mother was unconscious all day long, and I had kept her company all day long—it was impossible for her to have dealt with the legal process.
• Nevertheless, just as I was about to refute, I suddenly understood what had happened. With Ning Hairong’s connections, obtaining a certificate of divorce could not be easier.
• My heart felt as if it had fallen into an ice cellar. I was instantly filled with hate and resentment, and more than anything, I felt really bad for my mother.
• The feeling of grudge and grief bubbled up within jme. I laughed out loud, but my voice sounded bitter, "So you're saying you won't pay for the operation, right?"
• She answered without hesitation, "Yes, I won't. Neither will your dad."
• Sorrow gushed out from the bottom of my heart. Ironically, I was quite glad my mother was unconscious at this moment.
• Faced with her husband's ruthlessness as well as Song Meiqian's ingratitude, her heart would have been bleeding if she was awake.
• Song Meiqian was the daughter of my father's chauffeur. Ever since she was a child, she often came over to play, especially during the winter and summer vacations, she was almost always there.
• My mother felt sorry for her as she was from a single-parent family, she always bought clothes and shoes for her. Whatever that I owned, she would too.
• But the outcome? Over twenty years' worth of kindness, and in the end my mother was just nourishing a viper in her bosom.
• She continued mocking, "In addition, Jinghao was just using you to anger me today. Don't think of yourself too highly."
• I leaned on the wall, lost in thoughts for a while. By the time I returned to my senses, the phone had long been hung up.
• Right... Cheng Jinghao's intimate gestures were just an act.
• I sat on the brim of the hospital bed, staring at my mother's pale face. My heart grew heavier with every passing second.
• I used to be Lady Ning, whose outfit could easily worth tens of thousands. Yet, I was at my wits' end because of a measly two hundred grand. This was true irony.
• As I sank deep into frustration, my best friend Zhou Manfan gave me a call and asked me to go to the bar “Night Scene” with her.
• I was exhausted and wasn’t really interested, but she just broke up with her boyfriend and it could be chaotic over there. I wasn't comfortable to let her go alone, so I agreed to keep her company.
• I walked to the edge of the hospital bed, wanting to charge my mother's cell phone's before I leave to look for Manfan.
• I unintentionally placed my thumb onto the fingerprint unlock button, and I took a subconscious glance at the screen. But as soon as I did so, I was stunned.
• The cell phone screen was unlocked, the WeChat dialogue showed a photo of the wedding of my father and Song Meiqian. It was extremely eye-catching.
• I took a deep breath. My fingers trembled as I scrolled through the conversation. There was also an intimate photo of them!
• The sender was a only added to her contacts in the afternoon. Aside from a few photos, there were no other messages.
• When I recalled what the nurse said about my mother having a sudden difficulty in breathing, my mind sank into a complete mess.
• Why did this person send these photos? Was it to warn my mother, or was it to infuriate her to worsen her condition?
• I shuddered, worried that this person might send more materials that would trigger my mother again. I was initially going to delete this person from her contacts, but wasn’t sure if this was someone that my mother knew.
• With no other choice, I could only entrust the phone to the nurse for safekeeping, before I rushed to the bar.
• Night Scene was quite a well-known bar in Nancheng County, because of it being outrageously expensive.
• By the time I found Manfan, there were already several empty bottles on the table. Her cheeks was flushed from all the drinking. She threw herself at me, "Jingjing, you're the best..."
• I propped her body upright then began wiping those panda eyes from her crying, "How can you drink this much? I'll take you home, okay?"
• She shook her head profusely and shoved a glass in front of me. "Drink with me."
• I let out a soft sigh. As if I needed some venting , I took the glass and drunk it all in one gulp, almost choking myself in the process that my eyes teared up.
• One glass went down after another. At some point in my drunken state, it felt like I could get momentary peace.
• My original intention was to be here to console her, but in the end I was the one who couldn’t even walk properly from all the drinking.
• The moment I came out of the washroom, I ran into a chest that felt like sturdy concrete. I hastily apologized, "I-I'm sorry..."
• He took a couple of steps back swiftly without answering to my apology.
• I instinctively looked up and took a glance at the man. That smooth and perfect jawline seemed familiar...
• Cheng Jinghao? Could drunkenness cause one to hallucinate?