Chapter 53: Not on the Same Path p2
Seeing that Zhou Wanfeng was reading the medical record seriously, the attending physician thought for a moment and added, “The family should also be mentally prepared. The brain injury is very delicate. Based on our experience, in a situation like the patient’s, even if he wakes up, he might face some physical or mobility problems. And that’s a conservative estimate. In a more serious case, he might have hemiplegia, aphasia, hemianopia, dysphagia, bradykinesia, cognitive decline, urinary incontinence, hemiparesis, and so on. Of course, with active rehabilitation, there might be a change.”
Zhou Wanfeng held the medical record and looked up. “Thank you, doctor. I understand what you’re saying. So you’re saying that if he doesn’t wake up, he’ll be in a vegetative state, and if he does wake up, he might not be healthy, and might be paralyzed and unable to take care of himself, right?”
The doctor nodded.
Seeing Zhou Wanfeng come out, Yang Yijun followed closely behind and pulled her to a corner of the hospital corridor, her brow furrowed. “Why did you bring Jingya here?”
Yang Yijun had only told the homeroom teacher to inform Zhou Wanfeng, and had repeatedly emphasized not to tell Jingya.
Zhou Wanfeng sneered. “You want to protect her? But I don’t see how well you’ve protected her. Her parents are in an accident. Doesn’t she even have the right to know?”
Yang Yijun was at a loss for words. She glanced to the other side. Yun Jingya was hugging Yun Lan and trying to comfort her. She took a breath. “I never thought Yun Lan would do such a thing. She hasn’t even hurt an ant since she was a child. She doesn’t have the guts.”
“What are you trying to say? Just say it directly,” Zhou Wanfeng said, hearing the undertone in her voice. Yang Yijun’s real words were not these superficial ones.
“Auntie Zhang at home said she saw you go into the second-floor bedroom to talk to Yun Lan several times,” Yang Yijun said, trying to observe Zhou Wanfeng’s expression, carefully examining her features. But even as she said this, her calm and composed eyes did not even blink.
On the contrary, when Yang Yijun was being stared at by those eyes, it was as if she had been seen through, and she felt a little panicked.
“Then she must not have heard anything. Otherwise, you would be asking Yun Lan now, not stopping me,” Zhou Wanfeng said in an unhurried tone, even looking at Zhou Zhiru’s medical record in her hand again.
Yang Yijun’s heart was blocked. She took a deep breath and met Zhou Wanfeng’s eyes again, and just said it openly. “Did you instigate Yun Lan?”
Zhou Wanfeng sneered. “A sixteen-year-old instigating a forty-something to hit someone with a car? Instead of questioning me here, why don’t you go and comfort Yun Lan, and after you’ve coaxed her, ask her clearly if someone instigated her to kill someone, to hit someone with a car? And you’re so anxious to test me the moment I come. You’re the one who’s not right, aren’t you? What, Zhou Zhiru is half-dead, and your mind is active again? Am I a thorn in your side again? Do you want to go and instigate her? To have her hit me again? I’m a real loner. Unlike Zhou Zhiru, he still has immediate family in name.”
Hearing Zhou Wanfeng’s rebuttal, Yang Yijun supported her forehead with her hands. Before Zhou Wanfeng had come, she had already grabbed Yun Lan and questioned her many times. Yun Lan would only cry and ask if Zhiru would die, or if Zhiru still loved her.
When she received the call, her whole body was trembling. Yun Lan had actually hit someone with her car?
How was that possible? No one knew Yun Lan’s personality better than her. She was very timid.
Although she had been stimulated recently, she would not do such a crazy thing.
Now, looking at Zhou Wanfeng, Yang Yijun was a little uncertain again. It was just what Auntie Zhang had said before she came that had made her a little suspicious.
On the way here, she had thought about it carefully. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that the whole thing was being controlled by her. She had originally given up and just wanted Yun Lan and Zhou Zhiru to divorce. But she had interjected and changed it to giving all his assets to Chengbin.
Yang Yijun admitted that she had also been tempted. She had only agreed reluctantly in the first place.
But now, thinking about it in reverse, it was terrifying.
The matter of having Zhou Zhiru transfer all his assets to Chengbin, it was as if she had known the result in advance.
Putting it all together, Yang Yijun suddenly reacted. How had Zhou Wanfeng managed to do all this?
After further thought, Yang Yijun became even more certain of her thoughts.
But now, Yang Yijun had no time to think about those things. Zhou Wanfeng had deliberately emphasized the words “immediate family,” as if to remind her. It sent a chill down Yang Yijun’s back.
She stared at Zhou Wanfeng in disbelief. “What… what do you mean?”
“Just what you’re thinking,” Zhou Wanfeng said with a cold smile, not denying it.
“You want to pursue Yun Lan’s responsibility?”
“Why not? Yun Chengbin is also Zhou Zhiru’s immediate family. But I think he will probably listen to you and issue a letter of understanding or something, and not pursue Yun Lan’s responsibility for hitting him,” Zhou Wanfeng said, glancing at Yun Jingya on the other side. She had already seen her peek over several times.
A flash of panic appeared in Yang Yijun’s eyes. “How could you do this? You and Jingya have such a good relationship. Can you bear to see her sad, to see her mother go to jail?”
Zhou Wanfeng handed Zhou Zhiru’s medical record to Yang Yijun. “The doctor said that even if he wakes up, he’ll be a useless person who can’t take care of himself.”
Yang Yijun took it but didn’t open it. She knew in her heart that he had been hit that badly. But now, she was just worried about whether something would happen to Yun Lan.
“Can’t you, for Jingya’s sake…”
“No,” Zhou Wanfeng refused very directly. Seeing Yang Yijun’s grim face, a cold smile appeared on her lips. “If you want me not to sue, not to pursue Yun Lan’s responsibility, then give me what Zhou Zhiru wants.”
Yang Yijun was taken aback. Hearing Zhou Wanfeng’s words, an indescribable sense of fear arose in her heart. She looked at the youthful face. It was clearly expressionless, but she felt that it was terrifying, as if a cold snake were crawling up her back.
“You… you want that dirt?” Yang Yijun hadn’t expected her to mention this matter at a time like this. She had a strange feeling that everything had gone in a circle and had returned to the study that day. It seemed that the cause of everything was the problem between Zhou Wanfeng and Zhou Zhiru.
Yang Yijun’s scalp tingled. She even regretted what she had said before.
“Yes. Give me that thing, and I won’t sue or pursue Yun Lan’s responsibility. But I have to make sure that what you give me is real. I have the ability to judge. If you just give me something to fool me…” Zhou Wanfeng sneered at Yang Yijun.
“Grandma, you should go and comfort Mom. She wants to go in now. The doctor said the patient is not stable and can’t be stimulated,” Yun Jingya said, running over, her eyes and nose red from crying.
“What were you and Grandma talking about?”
“You don’t need to know,” Zhou Wanfeng said, walking past Yun Jingya and following Yang Yijun to see Yun Lan. All she saw was Yun Lan sitting at the door of the hospital room. The medical staff and Yun Haisheng were trying to help her leave, but she was shaking her head and refusing, holding onto the doorknob tightly. “I’m not leaving, waaah! Why are you all pulling me? I said I’m staying here! Zhiru is inside! I’m waiting for him to go home with me! I’m not going anywhere!”
“Yun Lan, be good. We’ll just wait on the chairs over there, okay?” Yang Yijun said, going to pull Yun Lan up. But Yun Lan suddenly hugged Yang Yijun’s waist and cried even harder. “Mom, I really didn’t mean to hit him! I didn’t mean to! I love him so much! Why does he want to divorce me? I don’t understand! I just wanted to ask him, waaah!”
“Mom knows. My Qiqi is the kindest.”
Yun Lan lowered her head and sobbed, grabbing Yang Yijun’s hand. “Mom, Zhiru loves me, right?”
Yang Yijun’s hand was hurt by Yun Lan’s grip. Her nails were long and sharp, but she couldn’t feel anything. She just looked up with a pleading expression. “Mom, say something! Do you think Zhiru still loves me?”
“Yes, he loves you. Zhou Zhiru loves you, loves you the most,” Yang Yijun said casually, and immediately pulled her hand away. There were a few bloody scratches on it.
But Zhou Wanfeng stared at Yun Lan for a long time and said to Yang Yijun, “Instead of comforting her, why don’t you find her a psychological counselor or a psychiatrist?”
In Zhou Wanfeng’s eyes, Yun Lan, who had grown up being doted on, was indeed loved by Yun Haisheng and Yang Yijun. But the most important thing in the family, Yuxiang Pavilion, had been passed down to her cousin. There would be a psychological gap. So she was very persistent with the person who loved her, and also particularly sensitive.
For the person who had always loved her to stop loving her was more terrifying than death to her.
Yang Yijun hadn’t realized that in Yun Lan’s heart, the mother who had hit her and scolded her no longer loved her.
After finding out about Zhou Zhiru’s condition, Zhou Wanfeng turned and left.
She returned to the school that day to continue her studies. Yun Jingya, on the other hand, had taken two days off.
She didn’t know anything about the aftermath of Yun Lan’s hitting someone. The school’s new round of exams was counting down. When it was time for the exam, the whole class was on high alert and entered a state of active study and review.
Zhou Wanfeng was the same.
Yun Jingya, who had taken two days off, came back and only told Zhou Wanfeng that Zhou Zhiru had woken up, and that Yun Lan was taking care of him at the hospital. Even when Yang Yijun and Yun Haisheng had wanted to find two nurses to help her, they had been driven away.
Yun Lan, who didn’t know how to take care of someone at all, was now barely able to manage with the help of the medical staff.
After that, Yun Jingya would occasionally call home to ask for news, and the rest of her time was devoted to her studies.
The workload in high school was very heavy. Fortunately, during her two-day absence, Wanfeng had taken detailed class notes. After evening self-study, when she went home, she would copy the notes, and Wanfeng would be doing her test papers next to her, just like before.
The exam was always on a Thursday and a Friday. After the exam, the whole school would be on vacation. The students who lived far away would pack their things early and leave them in the classroom, waiting for the homeroom teacher to say, “Be careful on your way home, and get home safely.”
One by one, they would quickly get up from their chairs, grab their backpacks, and run for the school gate. They had to run. It was getting dark quickly, and the students who lived far away had to transfer buses. Not only would it be dark by the time they got home, but it would also be cold.
Yun Jingya was dawdling. Her gaze was fixed on Zhou Wanfeng. When most of the class had left, she finally walked over. “Wanfeng, let’s go back together.”
She was a little nervous. She didn’t know if Zhou Wanfeng would still go back to South Lake Mansion with her. After all, so many things had happened at home before.
Zhou Wanfeng stood up to pack her bag. Yun Jingya helped her, and then they walked out of the classroom together.
As they were walking, Yun Jingya took the initiative to link arms with Zhou Wanfeng. She had found that if they walked one after the other, Wanfeng would walk very fast. Only by linking arms could the two of them walk together.
“Grandma said that Mom and Dad are not divorced,” Yun Jingya said, looking at Zhou Wanfeng. She wanted to say that the house at South Lake Mansion was also her home in the future, but when she saw Zhou Wanfeng’s face, she suddenly felt that it was not a home at all.
Her grandmother had implicitly told her to stay away from Wanfeng. She had understood, but she didn’t quite understand. Just seeing her grandmother being so on guard against Wanfeng made her a little sad.
Suddenly, Yun Jingya stopped and pulled on Zhou Wanfeng’s arm as if in a fit of pique. “Forget it. Let’s not go back. Wanfeng, let’s go back to the rented house. There are cooking utensils there. We can cook for ourselves,” she said, trying her best to think of the dishes she could make. She looked at Zhou Wanfeng with a confident expression. “I can make noodles, and I can also fry eggs. If there are tomatoes, I can also make scrambled eggs with tomatoes. I can also stir-fry some green vegetables after blanching them.”
“Why do you have to blanch the green vegetables?” Zhou Wanfeng could almost see through what Yun Jingya was thinking and couldn’t help but laugh.
“After you blanch them, you just have to put them back in the pot, add some soy sauce and vinegar, and a little salt, and you can eat them. That’s what Grandpa said,” Yun Jingya said with a sheepish expression. She had just heard it somewhere and hadn’t actually done it before.
Zhou Wanfeng smiled. “Let’s go back to South Lake Mansion. I still want to eat what your grandfather made,” she said. She still had things to do.
Yun Jingya looked at Zhou Wanfeng, who was walking straight ahead, and quickly chased after her. “Wanfeng, what do you like to eat? You can order…”
When they returned to South Lake Mansion, Zhou Wanfeng first went up to the attic. But when she went in, she just glanced around and knew that the room had not been aired, the quilt on the bed had not been sunned, and there was a thin layer of dust on the table.
Before, the room had always been cleaned spotlessly when she came home.
Yang Yijun’s intentions were already very clear.
Zhou Wanfeng didn’t even put down her backpack and turned to go downstairs.
Yang Yijun was in the Go room. Zhou Wanfeng went in with her shoes on. There was a document on the Go table. The person seemed to not want to talk to Zhou Wanfeng anymore. Yang Yijun directly handed the thing to Zhou Wanfeng.
“This is what Zhou Zhiru has always been thinking about. I’m giving it to you now. I hope you will keep your word.”
Zhou Wanfeng took the thing and took out a few yellowed receipts and vouchers from it. The dates on them showed that they had been stored for many years.
Yang Yijun was afraid that Zhou Wanfeng was too young to understand these things, so she explained, “Although that person has retired now, he’s still alive. As long as the evidence is handed over, it can be quickly investigated. Zhou Zhiru will get at least three years.”
Zhou Wanfeng stuffed the things in and stood there, looking down at Yang Yijun. “Actually, you don’t dare to hand these over yourself. The relationships in that circle are even more complicated. Even if he’s retired, his connections might still be there. An ant trying to shake a big tree.”
“It’s just that if you hand it over, the one who will die the fastest will be Zhou Zhiru. He knows that himself.”
Zhou Wanfeng put the things in her backpack.
Yang Yijun reached out and pressed down on her hand, her expression complicated. “Wait a minute.”
Zhou Wanfeng didn’t move and just looked at her.
“I’ve seen countless people, but I’ve never been able to see through you. I admit that you’re formidable, and I also know that you have no ill intentions towards Jingya, and you even protect her. But you also know in your heart that you and she are not on the same path.”
“We’ve never been on the same path. I’ve been to the attic. Your meaning is very clear. I understand!” A hint of sarcasm flashed in Zhou Wanfeng’s eyes.
And because of this, Yang Yijun had to stop her. “Yun Lan… and Zhou Zhiru are not divorced. So, I will give you your living expenses in the future, including your university tuition. It’s just…”
Before Yang Yijun could finish, Zhou Wanfeng had already slung her backpack over her shoulder and left the Go room, heading straight for the main gate. Probably in the future, she would never come here again.
Yun Jingya was still changing on the third floor. She looked in the mirror and fiddled with her hair. She felt that her hair was frizzy and wanted to take a shower, but she also wanted to find Wanfeng to go over the exam paper. She was not sure about a few questions, and she didn’t know if her ranking would drop this time.