Whether it was a dream or reality, she whispered, "Can I really go back?"
An Nuan spoke weakly.
She struggled to prop herself up, wanting to see everything clearly.
Looking at Zhou Chumù before her, she still found it hard to believe. When she was forced to leave, Zhou Chumù was still in the hospital. Now, Zhou Chumù was here, safe and sound, which felt rather surreal.
She wished more than anything that it was all true.
Because seeing Zhou Chumù now, unharmed and well.
She wanted to tell Zhou Chumù to protect Li Tián well, to cherish Li Tián.
Don't wait until you lose her to regret it.
But at this moment, she had no strength left. She wanted to speak, but she couldn't.
As Li Tián's hand tightly grasped hers, An Nuan instantly felt a sense of peace and passed out, a smile on her lips.
An Nuan woke up in a room.
She didn't see anyone.
She wondered, was everything that happened yesterday just her imagination? Did Zhou Chumù not appear, nor Li Tián?
Then, who brought her here?
As she was contemplating, the door was pushed open from the outside. The person who entered was not a nurse, and her heart nearly leaped out of her chest.
She was certain she didn't recognize the person before her.
She thought that person would attack her. Because the person walked over, stopped beside her bed, and kept watching her.
She kept her eyes tightly shut, not daring to make any mistakes.
This person had something in their hand, and she was weak, so naturally, she dared not act rashly.
Perhaps, this person was Xu Ruòwēi's accomplice. After all, only Xu Ruòwēi wanted to harm her.
Besides Xu Ruòwēi, she couldn't think of anyone else.
She didn't know what that person was doing there. She didn't look, only heard the sounds. The woman seemed to be doing something, making some noise.
The person seemed to have bumped into something, making a clanging sound, and the person cried out in pain. As if worried about her getting up, they kept glancing in her direction, as if worried she might wake up.
An Nuan was covered in a cold sweat, not even daring to breathe loudly.
Seeing that An Nuan showed no signs of movement, the person continued to work on something with confidence.
The person left.
An Nuan hesitated. Did that person come in and leave without doing anything?
Impossible.
She had been making some noise earlier, was she looking for something? But she didn't recognize this place.
So looking for something was impossible.
At that moment, An Nuan smelled a strong odor of gas.
She inwardly cried out a bad omen.
She couldn't care about anything else anymore. She got out of bed and tried to open the door, only to find that it was locked from the outside. She couldn't open it.
She yanked at the door with all her might, pounded on it, and shouted loudly, but it was all useless. She slumped against the door, slowly sliding down.
It seemed as if God was playing a joke on her, giving her hope only to shatter it again.
Just then, the woman who had left earlier returned. Upon seeing An Nuan awake, the woman showed no fear. Instead, when she saw An Nuan looking at her, she not only wasn't scared but also had a smile on her face.
She looked at An Nuan provocatively, a cold smile on her lips. Her eyes emitted a sinister gleam, as if anticipating something.
The woman took out a lighter and threw it inside.
With a 'boom,' there was a loud explosion.
Zhou Chumù and Li Tián, carrying thermoses, looked at the ruins before them, both shocked.
They had only been gone for an hour; why had it become like this?
Where was An Nuan?
What had happened?
Li Tián's gaze fell upon a figure in the distance. Her eyes widened in shock as she looked at the person.
The person put a hand to their mouth, signaling her not to speak loudly.
Li Tián covered her mouth, trying her best not to make a sound.
She tugged at Zhou Chumù, who followed her gaze. Upon seeing the person, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Even if injured, it was good that they were alive.
Li Tián and Zhou Chumù sneaked over and took the person away.
However, everyone's attention was focused on the ruins, so no one noticed their presence.
This incident caused a huge stir.
Shěn Xīzhōu had originally intended to look for An Nuan, but later learned that the site of the explosion was where An Nuan was last seen, and all her belongings were found there. Yet, even with all this evidence, Shěn Xīzhōu refused to believe it.
If alive, bring them back. If dead, bring back the body.
As long as there was no confirmation of An Nuan's death, he would believe that An Nuan was still alive. Alive and well.
A month passed.
The people Shěn Xīzhōu had sent out to investigate had already found An Nuan's whereabouts.
Just as Shěn Xīzhōu had suspected, An Nuan was not dead.
When he saw An Nuan again, although she was very thin, her complexion was excellent, and most importantly, her face was filled with smiles.
Beside An Nuan was Zhou Chumù, and the two sat opposite each other, seemingly talking about something, with smiles on both their faces.
Everything looked so beautiful, and his appearance seemed to disrupt this beauty.
However, he had to appear.
He wouldn't easily give up on the person he had finally found.
His appearance might cause the person with a smile on her face to lose her smile. It might make her mood instantly turn unpleasant. But even knowing this, he still chose to appear.
Why should she be so calm here when he was suffering and heartbroken for her?
"An Nuan." Shěn Xīzhōu's voice descended like a demon.
Destroying all that was beautiful.
When An Nuan heard the voice, so familiar it was etched into her bones, she was in shock. She thought that after what happened a month ago, everyone believed she was dead. Shěn Xīzhōu must have thought so too.
But Shěn Xīzhōu had appeared before her.
This meant that perhaps, from the beginning, Shěn Xīzhōu had never believed it.
Seeing Shěn Xīzhōu's arrival, Zhou Chumù shielded An Nuan behind him and whispered to An Nuan, "An Nuan, you go first. I'll stall him here."
"An Nuan."
An Nuan looked at Zhou Chumù and shook her head, her voice filled with helplessness. "Senior Zhou, after all this time, you should know Shěn Xīzhōu's character. The more you block him, the less he will leave."
"Even knowing the consequences, I won't let him take you away."
"Senior Zhou, I..." An Nuan was conflicted. She didn't want Zhou Chumù to get involved.
At this moment, Li Tián also stepped forward. She looked at An Nuan and said firmly, "An Nuan, I agree with Chumù's decision."
"You can't go with Shěn Xīzhōu. Haven't you forgotten? He almost cost you your life."
"This time, you narrowly escaped death. If you were to be alone with him, I fear another accident might happen," Li Tián said worriedly.
This time, Zhou Chumù and Li Tián stood on the same side.