Chapter 418: Chapter 418: Not Few Mind’s Eyes
“Lan Yan, why do I feel like you’ve been out of sorts all day today?”
Su He squinted slightly, gazing at Lan Yan, who was sitting across from her at the lab bench, lost in a daze.
Today, every time she called her, she had to call at least twice before Lan Yan would respond.
She had never been like this in the lab before.
Lan Yan knew that her state today was indeed a bit off.
The text message she’d received this morning had left quite an impact on her.
She thought she wouldn’t care, but it turns out, she did care quite a bit.
Su He watched her closely and asked again, “Is there something on your mind?”
Lan Yan lowered her head slightly, pondering for a moment.
She then raised her head to look at Su He and said, “When I left the house this morning, I received a text from an unknown number on my phone. The sender said that if I wanted to know who my biological father was, I should follow the address in the message and meet them tonight.”
Su He asked, “Did you trace the source of the number?”
Lan Yan replied, “Yes, I did. It’s just a virtual number.”
Su He nodded upon hearing this.
Then she said, “Well, don’t just follow instructions blindly. Just don’t go. Make them approach you instead.”
Lan Yan was slightly taken aback. “Why?”
Su He explained, “If they’re using this to manipulate you, it’s likely because they want to exchange it for some kind of leverage. If you refuse to go, it signals that you’re not interested. The initiative then naturally falls to you, not them.”
“Besides, you’ve already waited over twenty years. Waiting a few more days won’t make a difference.”
Lan Yan found her words to be quite reasonable.
She couldn’t help but admire how decisive and clear-cut her boss’s line of thinking always was.
Whenever she was troubled, as long as she spoke to her, Su He would always hit the nail on the head and instantly clear the fog clouding her mind.
In truth, Su He had always been like a sacred beacon for her, one that could guide her out of confusion and despair at critical moments.
“Boss, I know what to do now,” Lan Yan said.
After listening to Su He, Lan Yan stopped obsessing over the matter.
At six in the evening, after leaving the research institute, she drove directly to the hospital.
The sky was streaked with alternating shades of red and orange, and the sun had just set.
When Lan Yan arrived at the hospital, Mrs. Xiao had just finished her dinner.
Seeing her, Mrs. Xiao asked, “Yanyan, what brings you here at this hour? Have you had dinner yet?”
Lan Yan walked over and said, “I just wanted to see how you’re doing.”
Seeing that Mrs. Xiao’s complexion was gradually improving, Lan Yan felt relieved.
“Oh, you child, working is tiring enough, yet you’re still running around like this,” Mrs. Xiao said, holding her hand. “I’m doing well; you don’t have to worry so much.”
Lan Yan smiled and said, “I know, I just wanted to make sure.”
Mrs. Xiao sighed helplessly, held her hand, and patted it. “Alright, alright. I can’t argue with you. Have you eaten dinner yet?”
Mrs. Xiao asked again.
Lan Yan replied, “Not yet. I’m waiting for Xiao Si. He’s not done yet.”
“Are you hungry? How about you eat a little first and stop waiting for him? Don’t starve yourself,” Mrs. Xiao suggested.
Lan Yan shook her head. “Aunt Yun, I’m not hungry. Let’s chat for a while.”
Lan Yan didn’t stay long. After chatting with Mrs. Xiao for a short while, Xiao Si arrived.
As soon as he walked in, he was scolded by Mrs. Xiao: “You rascal, why are you so late? Yanyan had to starve because of you. Go take her to eat right now! Even if you don’t care, I do.”
Xiao Si looked perplexed. What had he done to deserve this scolding?
“Who said I don’t care? Of course I care about my wife. That’s enough; you can save your concern for my dad,” Xiao Si retorted.
He walked over and naturally put an arm around Lan Yan’s shoulders.
“I came straight here after finishing surgery,” he explained.
Then he glanced at Lan Yan and said, “Let’s go, let’s not disturb Ms. Liang’s rest.”
Mrs. Xiao waved him off dismissively and rather irritably said, “Yes, yes, go. The sight of you gives me a headache.”
Her words carried no malice; she genuinely wanted Xiao Si to quickly take Lan Yan to eat.
“Aunt Yun, we’ll head out first then.”
“Alright, go ahead.”
Xiao Si led her out of the hospital room.
Lan Yan then said, “Please don’t be upset with Aunt Yun. She didn’t know you were in surgery.”
Xiao Si chuckled and replied, “Don’t worry, I’m not upset. Ms. Liang and I bicker all the time. You know that.”
“Are you hungry?” he asked.
Lan Yan shook her head. “I’m fine, not too hungry.”
“Right, how’s the head nurse doing?” she suddenly asked.
Xiao Si replied, “I don’t know, but she should be fine.”
He really didn’t know the details. After sending her in yesterday, he hadn’t inquired further. He’d been so busy today that he hadn’t even had time to check.
But he guessed it wasn’t anything serious. If there were an issue, the staff on the fifteenth floor would have spread the news by now.
“Alright,” Lan Yan replied. Then she asked, “Should we visit her?”
Xiao Si glanced at her. “Do you want to?”
“Back in the cardiothoracic department, the head nurse was quite good to us,” she said.
That, Xiao Si couldn’t deny.
He replied, “Alright, if you want to go, we can. But I’m hungry now. Let’s eat first and visit tomorrow if we have time. It’s too late to go now.”
“Oh, alright.”
…
Meanwhile, at the shabby little house at No. 8, Lane 10, Yunhe Road, the people inside were still waiting for Lan Yan to show up.
A man turned to a pale-faced figure sitting in a bamboo chair and asked, “Young Master, it’s almost eight. Could it be that she’s not coming?”
The man kept his eyes closed, saying nothing.
After a while, he finally spoke slowly, “Let’s wait a bit longer. If she doesn’t come, we’ll leave.”
The man asked, “Young Master, what if she never shows up?”
A faint smile appeared on the pale man’s face. “What else can we do?”
He slowly opened his deep, inscrutable black eyes. His bloodless lips curved into a faint smile that carried an eerie undertone. “We’ll just have to find her ourselves.”
“But Young Master, if Madam finds out, what do we do then?”
“So be it,” he replied nonchalantly. “They’re moving too slowly. One’s life ultimately depends on oneself.”
——
Two days later.