Chapter 134: Chapter 134: Weak Spleen and Stomach, and Youran’s Autism

Gu Qinghuan awkwardly scratched her foot. Why did it seem like everyone was so satisfied with Xu Huai’an? Heaven knows, she just wanted to team up with him to get through life, nothing more.

“Haha, it’s nothing special. Sister Luo Ning, let me get you some water!”

Gu Qinghuan had already prepared a cup of spiritual spring water.

Zhong Luoning noticed her embarrassment and stopped teasing her. She half-sat up and drank the water with Gu Qinghuan’s help, savoring the sweet aftertaste. It was quite delicious, a bit like her current state of mind—after all she’d been through, she felt that everything now was the best arrangement, and she was grateful her daughter was still by her side.

“Sister Luo Ning, you should rest for a bit.” Gu Qinghuan tried to help her lie down.

Zhong Luoning shook her head. “Qinghuan, you don’t have to avoid the topic or try to change the subject. After all I’ve been through, there’s nothing I’m afraid to talk about.

You still haven’t told me—how did Xu Jianguo finally agree to let us go?”

Seeing that she was relatively calm, Gu Qinghuan recounted everything in detail, including how He Qiang had dislocated his arm to save Youran. She couldn’t let their efforts go unrecognized.

Zhong Luoning’s face was a mix of lingering fear, gratitude, and a hint of relief.

“Maybe it really was fate that Youran met good people.

Qinghuan, I have to thank you. If you hadn’t insisted, I might have…”

“Sister Luo Ning, there’s no need for thanks between us. But there’s something I want to ask you—about Xu Jianguo, what do you plan to do?” Gu Qinghuan saw that her emotions were stable and seized the opportunity to ask.

She really couldn’t guess what Zhong Luoning was thinking.

At the mention of Xu Jianguo, Zhong Luoning’s eyes filled with hatred, as if she wanted to eat his flesh and drink his blood. The pain from her wrist snapped her back to reality.

“I want to divorce him. I want his whole family to be ruined and thrown out with nothing! I want them to get the punishment they deserve.

Xu Jianguo is a heartless beast—he’s ruined my whole life…” By the end, Zhong Luoning was choking up, pulling the covers over her head and crying silently.

All the pain from these days poured out in the form of tears.

Those few words were enough for Gu Qinghuan to understand her stance. She’d been worried that Zhong Luoning would be blinded by love, still counting money for those who hurt her—she’d seen too many people like that.

Thankfully, Zhong Luoning wasn’t one of them.

“Sis, don’t worry. I won’t let the Xu family off.”

Gu Qinghuan made a silent vow in her heart—this time, she’d use every means at her disposal to ruin Xu Jianguo and make him pay.

After Zhong Luoning finished crying, Xu Huai’an came back with some plain porridge.

Since there were deliveries scheduled at the villa today, Gu Qinghuan had him take the two kids home first.

Because Zhong Luoning’s wrist was injured, Gu Qinghuan fed her the porridge. But after a few bites, Zhong Luoning started to feel intensely nauseous and bloated.

Gu Qinghuan didn’t dare feed her any more and rushed to find a doctor.

An old Chinese medicine doctor checked her pulse and diagnosed her with a weak and unbalanced spleen and stomach.

This kind of condition is usually caused by poor diet, overwork, or excessive worry.

Patients often have poor appetite, bloating, fatigue, a pale tongue coating, and sometimes even anorexia.

Zhong Luoning was already showing mild anorexia—nothing tasted good, and after a few bites, she felt bloated and nauseous.

She knew it was because she’d eaten so little for so long—starving herself had damaged her stomach.

Gu Qinghuan could guess the reason just by looking at how thin Zhong Luoning was. The Xu family must have abused her terribly.

She gritted her teeth in hatred for the Xu family.

The old doctor said that in this state, the stomach is extremely fragile and can only recover slowly—there’s no quick fix.

Gu Qinghuan had the doctor prescribe some gentle, nourishing Chinese medicine to help her recover, and also asked him to write a medical report to keep as evidence of the Xu family’s abuse.

After a thorough examination, the doctor said Zhong Luoning’s body was extremely weak and needed lots of rest and possibly long-term medication.

In other words, Zhong Luoning would be dependent on medicine for the rest of her life.

Gu Qinghuan felt awful about it and specially invited Xu Huai’an’s psychologist, Xiao Zhuo, to assess Zhong Luoning’s mental state.

She was most worried about Zhong Luoning’s mental health—afraid she might develop depression or something similar.

Unexpectedly, Xiao Zhuo and Zhong Luoning turned out to be old friends.

When they met, Xiao Zhuo was shocked. “What happened to you? It’s only been a month, and you’ve ended up like this?”

Zhong Luoning didn’t answer—there was nothing she could say.

What was even more surprising was that Youran, who usually avoided strangers, ran over and took Xiao Zhuo’s hand as if they were close.

Zhong Luoning gave a bitter smile, understanding that her cousin had called him out of concern for her mental health, so she cooperated fully with the psychological assessment.

Xiao Zhuo didn’t hide anything and spoke directly in front of her: “You’re extremely tense right now. You need to relax more—if you keep bottling things up, it could lead to problems.

Your mental state isn’t great either. Your family should spend more time with you and keep an eye out for any issues. If anything comes up, seek help right away.”

The subtext was that Zhong Luoning was already showing signs of psychological problems—nothing too serious yet, but she needed to be monitored.

Depression did exist in this era, but medical understanding was limited. It was often lumped together with other mental illnesses.

Gu Qinghuan understood—she’d have to stock up on antidepressants for Zhong Luoning when they got home.

She was also curious about how Xiao Zhuo and Zhong Luoning knew each other. They seemed close, and even Youran wasn’t shy around him. She sensed there was more to the story.

When Gu Qinghuan went to Xiao Zhuo for the medical report, she asked him about it.

She got a shocking answer.

Youran was Xiao Zhuo’s patient, and she’d been coming for treatment several times a month for two years.

From Xiao Zhuo, Gu Qinghuan learned that when Youran was over three years old, she still couldn’t speak, refused eye contact or verbal communication, and ignored attempts to interact with her.

She even displayed aggressive behavior.

So Zhong Luoning brought her for treatment, and it had been over two years.

Thanks to Zhong Luoning’s persistence, Youran’s condition improved day by day.

Honestly, in most families, a child like this would be called “simple-minded” and abandoned, especially since she was a girl.

Xiao Zhuo had seen many such cases—most parents gave up, since investing so much time, energy, and money for a slim chance of recovery was too much of a gamble for most families.

So for Zhong Luoning to persist for two years, never missing a week, and to carefully follow the doctor’s advice and report on her child’s progress, was truly remarkable.

Youran’s illness was probably influenced by her long-term environment, and her recovery was very slow. Any scare could set her back to square one.

But now she could understand speech and respond a little. Even though she still couldn’t talk, it was already a huge improvement, and Zhong Luoning deserved all the credit.

That’s why Xiao Zhuo was so familiar with the mother and daughter.

Gu Qinghuan hadn’t expected any of this. Zhong Luoning had kept it secret all these years—even the original Gu Qinghuan, back in the capital, had never known.

Maybe she just didn’t want her family to worry.

Poor parents everywhere—Gu Qinghuan herself had been protected by her uncle and aunt, raised with a silver spoon in her mouth.

She never imagined that after becoming a mother, Zhong Luoning would become so strong. It proved once again that mothers are strong for their children.

Youran’s illness must have brought her a lot of gossip and pressure, and the Xu family surely made things worse. Who knew how she’d survived all these years?

Thinking of this, Gu Qinghuan felt even more heartache for Zhong Luoning.

Based on Xiao Zhuo’s assessment, she suspected that Youran might have what would later be called autism.

But at this time, psychology in China was still in its infancy, with very little research on mental illnesses, so there was no targeted treatment.

Xiao Zhuo’s methods were based on foreign theories, and he was clearly on the right track—Youran was doing better than most autistic children.

This was all thanks to Zhong Luoning’s years of perseverance.

Gu Qinghuan decided to buy some books and study autism, and to discuss with Xiao Zhuo to see if there were any targeted treatments for Youran.

After Zhong Luoning finished her IV, and with her consent, Gu Qinghuan hired a tricycle to take them home.

Her illness was more psychological than physical. Now that her fever was gone, only her wrist was still injured, and the doctor said she could recover at home.

On the way, the two cousins talked about many things—about the villa, about Xu Huai’an. Gu Qinghuan was completely honest.

Zhong Luoning also told her cousin about her own situation, so she could plan ahead.

Gu Qinghuan didn’t take them back to the rented house, since there were only two bedrooms and it was already full.

So she brought the mother and daughter straight to the villa.

The appliances would be installed that afternoon, and with a few more daily necessities, it would be ready to move in.

Any missing furniture wasn’t essential, so it didn’t matter.

Given Zhong Luoning’s condition, Gu Qinghuan needed to stay close to her, so she decided—no time like the present—the whole family would move into the villa.

Beibei and Dabao’s little beds weren’t ready yet, so for now, they’d sleep with Xu Huai’an or Gu Qinghuan as before.

Gu Qinghuan specially arranged a large, sunny room on the second floor for Zhong Luoning and Youran.

She had already bought all the bedding, sheets, and quilts—just needed to take them out and make the bed.

Of course, she’d bought them from the vending machine—cheap and with nice patterns.

Gu Qinghuan picked out a fresh, light green set for her, and even smuggled a glass vase from her own space villa, filling it with fresh flowers from the vending machine, making the whole room come alive.

Beautiful things can lift the mood.

Zhong Luoning sat in her room on the second floor, looking at the carefully decorated space and the sunny scene outside. For the first time in a long while, she felt a deep sense of peace."

"Chapter 135: Moving House, Farm Harvest

The household appliances had already been delivered and installed. Gu Qinghuan had long since ordered all the kitchen essentials from the vending machine, prepared and stored them in her space. She could just take them out and arrange everything without anyone noticing. Now, only a few small pieces of furniture were missing, but that wasn’t a big deal.

Zhong Luoning’s fever had subsided. After Gu Qinghuan gave her some spiritual spring water, she was in fairly good spirits. She refused to lie down and rest, insisting on getting up to help out.

But honestly, there wasn’t much at home that needed her help.

Gu Qinghuan found a chair and moved it to the little courtyard at the front door, letting Zhong Luoning lie down and watch the three children play. She even thoughtfully brought her a blanket.

This little courtyard came with the small villa. No one knew how it had been arranged before.

Now, apart from the paved areas, the rest of the land had been planted with all kinds of cold-resistant vegetables by Aunt Wu and the others. It was almost harvest season, and Gu Qinghuan was the lucky beneficiary.

The courtyard of the small villa across the street, which had been rented out, was also full of vegetables. When the previous tenants moved out, they took all the ripe produce, but there were still plenty of unripe vegetables left.

These days, while flowers and plants are nice to look at, vegetables and fruits are much more practical.

Gu Qinghuan didn’t mind at all. She even planned to carry on the tradition and plant all sorts of vegetables and fruits here.

Dabao and Beibei were running around the courtyard, playing wildly. Beibei even dragged Youran along.

Although Youran didn’t speak or respond to them, deep down she probably wanted to interact with other kids too. This time, she didn’t shy away but quietly followed behind the other two.

Watching this, Zhong Luoning felt a mix of emotions.

Xiao Zhuo had told her before that Youran’s condition was more about emotional withdrawal than true intellectual disability. There was real hope for recovery, but it would require a lot of companionship, love, and patient guidance from family.

Ideally, siblings could play with her more, or perhaps raising some small animals for company might have unexpected positive effects.

But the Xu family’s environment was what it was. The whole family looked at Youran like she was an idiot, always speaking harshly, calling her names like “little fool” or “dummy.” The child was so scared she’d hide whenever she saw them—how could she receive any love or care in such a place?

That was something Zhong Luoning couldn’t make up for, no matter how hard she tried.

She’d wanted to give Youran a little brother or sister for company, but she knew very well that her body had been damaged during Youran’s birth. The doctor said it would be nearly impossible for her to have another child. Besides, she had no desire to have any more children with Xu Jianguo—just the thought disgusted her.

She’d tried raising small animals. Once, when she took Youran to the market, Youran was delighted by some chicks a farmer was selling.

So Zhong Luoning bought two chicks for her and, to avoid disturbing others, kept them in the attic.

Every day, she’d take Youran to feed the chicks vegetable scraps and rice bran, clean up after them, and take care of their droppings. The chicks grew up quickly.

Youran spent most of her time with the chickens, and for once, there was even a hint of a smile on her face. Zhong Luoning thought this was a good method.

But one day, when she came home, she found Youran crying her heart out, acting out violently, kicking and hitting things around the house. The chickens were gone.

Later, she found out that Youran’s grandfather had killed the two chickens right in front of her and taken them away as a gift for someone.

After that, Zhong Luoning had a huge fight with the Xu family, and from then on, Xu Jianguo started abusing her.

Back to the present, Zhong Luoning watched the three children playing together. Dabao and Beibei were looking after Youran, and Youran hadn’t been this happy in a long time.

It was like a weight had been lifted from her heart. Life would slowly get better, wouldn’t it?

With Zhong Luoning watching the kids, Gu Qinghuan and Xu Huaian went back to the rental house to bring over their luggage and tidy up before returning the place.

Zhong Luoning assured them she could watch the three children, so they could go without worry.

Back at the rental, they stuffed all their belongings into the space.

With so many people at home lately, Xu Huaian hadn’t been in the space for days. He took the chance to go in and tidy up the livestock area and feed the animals.

Gu Qinghuan never bothered with these things.

Xu Huaian had bought an automatic feeder from the vending machine, so the animals could be fed on schedule. It was very convenient, though it did require refilling the food now and then.

“Huanhuan, Huanhuan, come in here!” Gu Qinghuan was tidying up outside when Xu Huaian called her from inside the space.

When she went in, she saw Xu Huaian holding two gray-and-white baby rabbits.

“Look what I found!”

“Where did these rabbits come from?” Gu Qinghuan asked in surprise. She was sure there hadn’t been such small rabbits in the space before.

“They’re from the breeding rabbits we brought in earlier. The mother must have been pregnant before we brought her in, and now the babies have been born. We’ve been busy lately and didn’t notice, but today I saw they’ve grown quite a bit.

Look, there are several more litters in the rabbit hutch. Rabbits breed fast—one or two months per litter. We need to separate the babies, or they’ll starve.” Xu Huaian explained in detail.

Gu Qinghuan didn’t really understand these things, so she just let him handle it.

But the rabbits were really cute—tiny, fluffy, absolutely adorable.

She thought of Youran’s condition. She’d seen on a video site that a child with autism had been helped by raising a puppy.

Raising a small animal should help with autism. Since they couldn’t get a dog right now, a rabbit would do.

“Let’s keep two baby rabbits out—no, three! Buy a few small cages for them, and give them some spiritual spring water. We’ll take them back for the kids to keep as pets. They’ll love it.”

She’d originally thought two would be enough, but then remembered there were three kids at home. If she only brought two, they might fight over them, so three was fair—one for each.

Xu Huaian always agreed to her suggestions without hesitation. He quickly placed an order for three small rabbit cages from the vending machine, each with a little nest and a water dispenser.

Even though he’d been amazed many times, Xu Huaian was still deeply curious about the wonderful world Gu Qinghuan came from. There were so many dazzling products available—even a tiny rabbit cage could be so exquisitely made. It was truly astonishing.

After drinking the spiritual spring water, the three baby rabbits seemed even livelier. They weren’t afraid in the cages, their little eyes darting around.

Then, Xu Huaian collected over a hundred wild pheasant eggs from the nest and found five newborn wild boar piglets in the wild boar pen.

That was a real surprise—each extra wild boar meant hundreds more pounds of meat in the future.

Xu Huaian separated the sow and the piglets, feeding them grass and rice bran mixed with spiritual spring water.

Once he’d taken care of the animals in the space, Gu Qinghuan had almost finished packing up outside.

Really, there wasn’t much—just their clothes, bedding, and some kitchenware.

Once everything was packed, they went straight to the landlord to return the house.

The landlord lived in another small courtyard in the alley. He was a nice person. Seeing that Gu Qinghuan had left the place spotless, he immediately refunded the remaining rent without a word."

"Chapter 136: Warming the Pot, Big Meat Buns

After checking out, Gu Qinghuan was worried that Gu Lanting might come back and not find them, so she wrote a note and stuck it on the door. He’d see it as soon as he returned.

Once everything was moved back to the little villa, Gu Qinghuan took out the three small rabbit cages she’d prepared in advance.

“Come over here and see what I’ve got!”

Dabao and Beibei were the first to rush over, and the moment they saw the little rabbits in the cages, they were glued to the spot.

“Mama, these bunnies are so cute!” Beibei’s eyes sparkled instantly.

Dabao was clearly smitten too.

Encouraged by Zhong Luoning, Youran slowly walked over. The moment she saw the bunnies, her eyes lit up.

Gu Qinghuan said generously, “These are for you. Each of you can pick one.”

“But let me say this first: once you’ve chosen, you’re responsible for taking care of it—feeding it every day, cleaning up after it, and raising it well.”

“Don’t expect me to help you!”

Beibei’s eyes darted between the cages, finding all the bunnies adorable, not paying any attention to Gu Qinghuan’s words.

Dabao, on the other hand, nodded seriously. “Mom, we’ll definitely take care of the bunnies ourselves.”

Youran didn’t respond, but it was clear she was thinking about it.

Beibei quickly picked her bunny and took the cage in her hands. “Mama, I’ve chosen mine!”

Dabao just watched, not rushing to choose. He wanted Youran to pick first—there were three rabbits, so he’d get one no matter what.

Youran stepped forward and picked up the bunny she liked best.

Only then did Dabao go up and take the remaining bunny, happily playing with it.

Zhong Luoning and Gu Qinghuan didn’t interfere, letting the three kids work things out themselves.

Dabao was a good big brother, always letting his sisters go first.

“Huanhuan, you and your husband have really raised the kids well,” Zhong Luoning said sincerely.

After Gu Qinghuan and the others left earlier, Dabao and Beibei had enthusiastically played with Youran, not getting upset when she didn’t respond, and even working harder to explain things to her.

Zhong Luoning instantly took a liking to these two kids. Kind and adorable children are always irresistible.

“It’s not all me—it’s thanks to Xu Huaian, and the kids themselves are great,” Gu Qinghuan replied, feeling proud at her cousin’s praise. After all, they were her own children.

The three kids, thrilled with their new bunnies, eagerly gave them water and carrots, even coming up with names, having the time of their lives.

While Zhong Luoning watched the kids, Gu Qinghuan and Xu Huaian started unpacking.

As usual, they needed to get a few rooms ready.

There were four bedrooms upstairs: one for Zhong Luoning and her daughter, one for Gu Qinghuan, one for Xu Huaian, and one for the two kids.

Originally, the room Zhong Luoning was using was meant for Gu Lanting, but for now, Lanting would have to make do with a room on the first floor.

There were two bedrooms downstairs: a servant’s room and a large bedroom with a study, which was perfect for Gu Lanting.

The rooms had all just been cleaned, so there was no need to tidy up again.

Gu Qinghuan had to make all the beds so everyone could rest that night—luckily, she’d prepared enough sheets and quilts.

After asking the kids, Dabao wanted to sleep with Dad tonight, while Beibei still wanted to sleep with her.

As for the villa across the street, they’d wait for Ming Ruxue to move in before setting it up. Anyway, she’d already prepared pretty sheets and brand-new comforters for her too.

Once everything was in order, the house instantly felt lively. By then, it was six o’clock—about time for Lanting to get out of school.

Gu Qinghuan started preparing dinner. This was their first meal in the little villa, traditionally called a “warming the pot” meal, so she wanted to make it special.

But to accommodate Zhong Luoning and her daughter’s stomachs, tonight’s main dish was millet porridge.

To go with the porridge, she planned to make a big batch of meat buns.

Tonight, the whole family would make the buns together—Gu Qinghuan mainly wanted Zhong Luoning and little Youran to feel the warmth of family.

She used pork with a 70/30 lean-to-fat ratio, chopped into filling—a job for the strongman Xu Huaian.

Washing the vegetables was left to the three kids. Gu Qinghuan specially gave them a basin of warm water so their hands wouldn’t get cold.

Since Zhong Luoning’s hand wasn’t convenient, she was in charge of supervising the kids.

Gu Qinghuan first mixed the dough with yeast and set it to rise. Once Xu Huaian finished chopping the meat, he could knead the dough.

She kept busy too—blanching green beans for two minutes, then cooling and chopping them.

She simmered scallions, ginger, Sichuan peppercorns, and star anise in water for five minutes, then strained out the solids, leaving the spiced water to cool.

She gradually added the spiced water to the meat filling, stirring until it was sticky, then seasoned with light and dark soy sauce, salt, chicken essence, and thirteen-spice powder, and added oil to lock in the moisture.

Finally, she mixed in the chopped green beans and a big handful of scallions, stirring until everything was well combined—the bun filling was ready.

The three kids crowded around, watching Gu Qinghuan’s every move, their mouths watering.

Xu Huaian, a true Northeasterner, had kneading dough in his genes—this was nothing for him.

He punched down the dough, kneaded it smooth, pinched off pieces, and rolled out wrappers—all in one smooth, quick sequence.

The kids watched, mouths agape in amazement. It was the first time Dabao and Beibei had seen their dad roll out bun wrappers.

This greatly satisfied Xu Huaian’s vanity—he kept showing off, making the kids squeal with excitement. Even Youran tugged on Zhong Luoning’s sleeve, signaling her to watch.

Gu Qinghuan made buns with the three kids, getting flour all over their faces. The buns they made were all odd shapes, but no one minded.

The whole family was full of laughter and joy.

It was at this moment that Gu Lanting walked in. After class, he’d gone back to the rental apartment, seen the note on the door, and hurried over.

He was puzzled—why had his sister suddenly decided to move? The little villa’s furniture hadn’t all arrived yet, and the lease on the rental place wasn’t up!

He hadn’t seen Zhong Luoning in a long time and was happy at first—until he noticed the bandage on her wrist and Gu Qinghuan’s red, swollen eyes. Instantly, his mind raced with all sorts of scenarios.

“Luoning-jie, did someone from the Xu family bully you? I’ll go beat them up!” Gu Lanting immediately rolled up his sleeves, ready for a fight.

Zhong Luoning’s heart warmed, touched by how Gu Qinghuan and her brother were looking out for her, but she didn’t want Lanting to get into trouble for her sake.

She quickly looked to Gu Qinghuan for help.

Gu Qinghuan shot Gu Lanting a glare. This kid was great in every way, just a bit too young and hotheaded—always jumping to conclusions.

Was this something you could solve with your fists?

“Jie, why are you glaring at me? You still haven’t told me—what happened to Luoning-jie?”"

"Chapter 137: Discussion and Comfort

Gu Qinghuan didn’t want to reopen Zhong Luoning’s wounds in front of her.

She simply reached out and flicked Gu Lanting on the forehead. “Come help wrap the buns! I’ll go boil water for steaming.” Before leaving, she shot him a look, warning him not to pry further.

Gu Lanting could only swallow his questions and started making buns with the kids.

Xu Huaian had already cleaned the steamer baskets.

Gu Qinghuan placed the wrapped buns inside to proof for a second time before steaming.

Since the family’s dining table wasn’t ready yet, everyone gathered around the low table in the living room, listening to music on the radio, cracking sunflower seeds, chatting, and waiting for the buns to finish steaming. The atmosphere was warm and lively.

With laughter and conversation, half an hour passed quickly, and the buns were ready.

Everyone got a bowl of millet porridge and a big plate of buns in all shapes and sizes.

The children happily searched for the buns they had made themselves.

Dabao found his two buns and handed one to Xu Huaian and one to Gu Qinghuan.

“Dad, Mom, eat the buns I made.”

Beibei, not to be outdone, found her two buns and handed them over. “Mine are for Dad and Mom too.”

Lanting pretended to be upset. “So you’re only giving buns to your parents and not to your uncle?”

Dabao and Beibei quickly found a bun for their uncle as well.

Seeing this, Youran seemed thoughtful. She suddenly picked up the bun she had made and placed it in front of her mother. “Mom, eat.”

Zhong Luoning froze for a second, her eyes full of bittersweet emotion. Her child was starting to imitate others’ behavior, and in such a warm way.

She took the bun and took a big bite. “Thank you, Youran.”

Only then did Youran beam with happiness.

The family dug into the buns with laughter and chatter.

Zhong Luoning ate a third of the small bun her daughter gave her, but the smell of oil made her nauseous. Gu Qinghuan told her to just have some porridge instead.

Millet porridge is good for the stomach—Gu Qinghuan had made it especially for her.

Luckily, the porridge was fine. Zhong Luoning finished a small bowl and went back to her room to rest.

After the meal, Gu Qinghuan brewed some medicine for her with spiritual spring water and brought it upstairs, only to find Zhong Luoning already asleep.

Gu Qinghuan quietly went back downstairs, sent the kids off to bed, and then told Gu Lanting everything that had happened during the day.

Lanting was so agitated he looked ready to storm out and beat someone up.

“What are you getting so worked up for? Can’t you use your brain for once? Even if you go now, you won’t see Xu Jianguo—he’s in police custody. What we need to do is figure out how to make sure Xu Jianguo goes down for good, so he can’t turn things around.

Beating him up won’t solve anything—you’ll just end up in jail yourself.” Why was this kid always so impulsive? It was worrying.

“I get it, Sis. So what should we do now?” Gu Lanting deflated.

To be honest, Gu Qinghuan didn’t know what to do either. Xu Jianguo was with the Revolutionary Committee. If someone protected him, things could get tricky.

But she still had a trump card in her hand—one she wouldn’t use unless absolutely necessary.

She’d thought it through: if Xu Jianguo was shielded by his connections, she’d leak the photos she’d taken before and blow the whole thing up—ideally, to the point of making the news. Public pressure would force those behind him to abandon him for their own sake.

But once she did that, it would mean airing Sister Luoning’s private pain for all to see. She’d never have peace again—wherever she went, people would gossip.

This era placed so many restrictions on women. Even as the victim, she’d have to endure endless rumors and judgment.

So unless there was no other way, Gu Qinghuan didn’t want it to come to that.

Xu Huaian reminded her, “Didn’t you mention your mother-in-law’s old classmate? Maybe he can help us find out more.”

“That’s right! How did I forget about Uncle Xu? Even though he’s in a different district, he’s much better connected than we are. I’ll go see him tomorrow.” Gu Qinghuan made up her mind.

Speaking of connections, Gu Lanting thought of someone else.

“Sis, don’t forget Uncle Zhang, the one who helped you transfer locations before. He works at the Revolutionary Committee too. Maybe we can ask him about the situation.”

If Lanting hadn’t mentioned it, Gu Qinghuan would have forgotten about him. After all, it was the original owner who’d gone to ask for help, and the two families hadn’t had much contact.

Back then, when her stepmother signed her up to go work in the countryside—way out in the northwest—she’d been desperate. She remembered her mother saying that if she ever needed help, she could go to Uncle Zhang Zheng at the Revolutionary Committee. So she did.

Uncle Zhang Zheng had been her grandfather Zhong Weiqian’s student. When the Zhong family got into trouble, he’d tried to help. Though he couldn’t save them, he at least arranged for her to be sent to a better place.

Later, out of respect for Zhong Weiqian, he helped transfer her from the northwest to the northeast.

Come to think of it, she’d never properly thanked him—not even a piece of fruit. Uncle Zhang was truly a kind man.

She’d have to bring a gift to visit him tomorrow.

After a brief discussion, the three of them went to bed.

Gu Qinghuan’s room was right next to Zhong Luoning’s. She was a light sleeper, always listening for any sounds from the other room.

In the middle of the night, Zhong Luoning started talking in her sleep, then suddenly screamed and burst into tears, waking Gu Qinghuan.

She hurried over.

Maybe it was the vulnerability of midnight—every emotion felt magnified. Zhong Luoning looked utterly shattered, sobbing uncontrollably, nothing like her calm self during the day.

She hugged her knees, half-sitting on the bed.

“Huanhuan, I dreamed that Youran fell from upstairs again. There was so much blood! No matter how I wiped, I couldn’t clean it up.”

Youran, sleeping soundly beside her, had no idea her mother was having nightmares because of her.

Apparently, the daytime scare hadn’t left much of an impression on the child.

“Sister Luoning, dreams are always the opposite of reality. Look, Youran is right here, sleeping peacefully.”

Worried their voices would wake Youran, Gu Qinghuan carefully moved her to her own bed, to sleep with Beibei.

“Huanhuan, I want to take a bath. My hands are dirty. I feel so filthy—Xu Jianguo made me dirty.” Zhong Luoning gagged as she spoke, wanting to vomit but unable to.

“Sis, I’ll get you some water to wash up, but you can’t get your wrist wound wet, okay?” Gu Qinghuan knew she must be thinking of what happened last night and feeling sick.

Zhong Luoning, helpless as a wounded animal, curled up in the corner, tugging at her clothes.

“I feel awful. I just feel so awful.” It wasn’t just her body—her heart felt like it had a gaping hole that couldn’t be filled.

Gu Qinghuan quickly went downstairs to fetch a basin of hot water. Luckily, they used a coal stove and always kept warm water on it, so there was still some left.

She took a fresh, white towel and gently wiped Zhong Luoning down, again and again."

"Chapter 138: Comfort, and the Ways of the World