Chapter 968: Taking a Turn Leads to a Vast Sky

Since one is willing to strike and the other is willing to suffer, she could not say anything.

Zhu Qingxiang had not been caught, but Ji Yingjie had forgiven Nianyin and finally relented, acknowledging her as her daughter once again.

It was just that she proposed a new condition—once Zhu Qingxiang was caught, Nianyin would return to the Ji Family with her, and everything could be treated as if it had never happened, starting over from the beginning.

Nianyin was unwilling, yet she dared not say so.

She secretly consulted with Shi Youxuan: "Sister, help me think of an idea. How can I avoid going back? I don't want to go back."

Although she and Lao Qi still spent more time apart than together, their feelings for each other had increased rather than diminished.

She could also see that without Mother interfering, there was nothing wrong between her and Lao Qi.

But if she returned to the Ji Family, then everything would return to the starting point.

And she did not want to lose the bond with her mother; she wanted both her mother and her husband!

Nianyin felt that thinking this way was too greedy.

Shi Youxuan told her this was not greed, but a very normal thought, and gave her an idea: "Since your aunt said you can return once you catch Zhu Qingxiang, then if you never catch him, wouldn't that work?"

Nianyin was shocked: "No, that bastard wants Mother's life and yours; I will not let him off."

Shi Youxuan:...

This girl usually looked quite smart, but at critical moments, she couldn't turn a corner.

She whispered a reminder: "I didn't tell you not to catch him, just that after you catch him, send him to Prison and don't tell your aunt."

Nianyin:...

She had never thought that it could be done this way.

"Can I?"

She was somewhat hesitant.

In the Ji Family, Mother was a sacred existence that could not be defied.

The laws were made by Mother, and the prisoners in the Prison were all Mother's enemies.

She had never thought about deceiving Mother; although this method was the best of both worlds, she felt extremely uneasy in her heart.

Shi Youxuan tilted her head and asked: "Do you have a better way?"

Nianyin:...

Of course not.

If there were another way, she wouldn't be worrying like this.

"Then it's settled." Shi Youxuan made the final decision.

Nianyin worried: "But, how can I catch him?"

"I watched that brat run away in front of me twice with my own eyes; I am truly useless."

Shi Youxuan: "You can't blame yourself for this. In order to survive, he has long since practiced a set of escape skills over the years. If it weren't for this ability, he would have been caught long ago."

The facts were indeed so; for many years, Ji Yingjie had never relaxed her search for the two sons of the Zhu Family.

Ji Yingjie had remarkable means, yet there was not a single piece of news!

Zhu Qingxiang was not so easy to catch, but Shi Youxuan had a way.

She asked Jian Yixin to coordinate with her hospital colleagues to have the list of people who had recently sought treatment for knife wounds or poison injuries sent to her.

There were also the major pharmacies; they had to note the characteristics of anyone purchasing detox pills.

Don't ask why not report it to the police?

Ji Yingjie would not allow it.

She felt that handing the Zhu Family brat over to the police would be letting him off too easily.

The slums.

In the dark and cramped room, there was not enough sunlight to begin with, yet thick curtains were drawn, and an old light bulb in the room emitted a dim yet glaring light.

The room was very cluttered, with instant noodle cups and biscuit bags piled randomly on the table.

At the other end of the table sat an alcohol lamp; Zhu Qingxiang used a Dagger to sterilize it over the lamp, then gouged out the rotting flesh from his wound.

He bit down on a towel, his face covered in sweat from the pain, nearly fainting.

After cutting away a bit, he sprinkled on some pain-relief powder.

He waited until he felt a bit better before continuing...

The day he escaped from the Shi Family, he was pursued by Nianyin's bodyguards outside. He ran wildly, and by the time he reached a safe place, the toxins had already spread.

Although he had taken the antidote and his life was not in danger, the wound had ulcerated.

He dared not go to the hospital.

He didn't even dare to go to a large pharmacy to buy bandages and anti-inflammatory drugs.

Although the women of the Ji Family were smart, they were arrogant and conceited, and might not necessarily think of these details.

However, Shi Youxuan might think of them!

That woman was not only smart but also meticulous; the few times he had almost succeeded, he had fallen into that woman's hands.

Zhu Qingxiang did not dare to underestimate Shi Youxuan, and this strengthened his resolve to get rid of her as soon as possible.

Finally finished cleaning the wound, he sprinkled it with anti-inflammatory powder, wrapped it layer by layer with bandages, and then collapsed onto the dirty, messy bed, feeling lightheaded and drowsy.

The bedding on the bed was so dirty that its original color could not be seen, and the quilt had a smell of sweat mixed with the musty odor of not having seen the sun for a long time; this mixed scent had almost made him faint the first time he stepped into this room.

Zhu Qingxiang had a mild case of mysophobia; although he had changed residences countless times over the years, this was the first time he had lived in such a filthy place.

Even when he lived in the Underground Palace, his residence was kept spotless.

Now he was too exhausted to care about the environment.

He did not know how long he had been lying there.

Outside, children are playing and frolicking, making quite a racket.

The children's mother is playing along with the children.

"Hee hee, you little rascal, watch out, I'm going to catch you, don't run."

"Mommy is a dummy, you can't catch me. I'm not a dummy, so of course I have to run. If I don't run and get caught by Mommy, I'll lose."

Father's voice: "You all just keep playing wildly out there; what time is it already, why aren't you back for dinner yet?"

Baby girl: "Not eating, not eating."

Baby boy: "Daddy is annoying, let us play for a while longer!"

Mother: "Just a little while longer."

In the courtyard next door is a married couple with two children.

The children are chirping away incessantly every day, and there is never a moment of peace.

The man gets up early in the morning, and there are almost no hours in the day that are quiet.

Zhu Qingxiang likes quiet, yet he does not dislike the noise from next door at all!

The life next door has the warmth of a real home, and the daily hustle and bustle makes him endlessly envious.

He even thinks, if his father hadn't been the richest man in L Country back then, without so many responsibilities on his shoulders, would he not have had to marry another woman?

Their family of three... plus his younger brother, a family of four could also have lived a harmonious and happy life.

His mother was a kind woman; although his younger brother was not born to her, she had loved him just like her own child back then. If his own family had been as poor as the one next door, they should have been just as happy!

He closes his eyes, listening intently to the sounds coming from next door, his heart filled with longing.

Gradually, he feels a sense of imagery in his mind.

It is as if he has returned to his own childhood.

His father smiles at him, a rare sight, and says to him: "Qingxiang, hurry home for dinner; your mother made dumplings for you, the three-delicacy filling you like best."

He answers and runs toward home, but he runs and runs, yet the gate that looked close by cannot be reached no matter how he runs, and his father's figure becomes increasingly blurry.

"Dad, Dad, don't go."

"Don't leave me behind."

He lies on the bed, murmuring in a low voice.

His face is flushed bright red, and his whole body is as hot as a burning coal.

Next door.

The family of four is eating dinner, chatting as they eat.

Gu Zhihao asks his wife: "A young man just moved in next door; he looks clean and tidy, why would he move here?"

"I don't know." His wife shakes her head, eating dumplings in large mouthfuls, saying indistinctly: "So delicious."