RGL – Chapter 194

Han Lei wanted to take Zhaodi to the hospital, but Zhaodi wasn’t willing. She didn’t want to stay here for another second—she just wanted to leave as quickly as possible.

Han Lei nodded and held her hand as they walked out. Zhaodi hesitated for a moment but didn’t pull away. She obediently followed him out the door. Just as they were about to get into the car, a policeman inside suddenly shouted:

“This guy has actually been involved in abducting women! There’s still a woman locked up in this house.”

It turned out that in one of the back rooms of the courtyard where Zhaodi had been staying, there really was someone locked inside. Several policemen together forced the lock open and brought the woman out.

The leading officer glanced at the disheveled figure and frowned. “Why does she look kind of familiar?”

The woman trembled in fear, shaking all over. “Don’t arrest me, don’t arrest me!”

Hearing that voice, Zhaodi instinctively turned her head. When she caught sight of the woman’s profile, her eyes widened in shock.

“Su Wenwen!”

No one expected that Su Wenwen, who had been on the national wanted list, was actually hiding right here in the county. The police, who had originally come to deal with a civil dispute, unexpectedly scored a huge success.

After Su Wenwen was taken away, Zhaodi quickly had Han Lei call Su Min to tell her the good news.

Su Min didn’t say much over the phone, only that she would come in person.

So Zhaodi decided not to leave yet and waited for Su Min. In the meantime, she and Han Lei stayed at the police station to give their statements. Just after they finished, the hospital called the station with news:

Zhu Qiang, whose health had already been poor, had been injured too severely this time. Despite efforts, the doctors failed to save him. Zhang Hui, who had accompanied him to the hospital, was now mentally unstable, and since they couldn’t reach any family, the hospital informed the police instead.

The officers, knowing Zhaodi had some connection with the matter, immediately passed the news on to her.

“The hospital just called. The man with the head injury… they couldn’t save him. They need a family member to handle the arrangements.”

Zhaodi froze, unable to react for a long time. After the policeman left, Han Lei gently patted her shoulder. “Do you want to go see them?”

After a long pause, Zhaodi shook her head. “I don’t want to see them anymore.”

She was already filled with regret. She never should have come back here. “I’ll go to the hospital later to settle the medical fees. But other than that, I don’t want to get involved anymore.”

She wasn’t sure if Han Lei would think she was being too cold-blooded, but she truly couldn’t force herself. This whole ordeal had shaken her to the core. Even now, she couldn’t forget the fear she had felt. If Han Lei hadn’t come for her, what would have happened?

Han Lei didn’t say anything more. He just sat quietly by her side.

By the time Su Min arrived, it was nearly dusk.

Su Wenwen had already given her statement and confessed to everything, including the arson case down south and the recent incident at Rongfang Supermarket.

It even came out that the reason Zhu Xiaobing had targeted Zhaodi in the first place was because Su Wenwen had casually mentioned Zhaodi’s current success and beauty in front of him.

The female officer in charge of the case explained, “She used to be such a decent girl, but she had to throw her life away like this. When she ran out of money while on the run, she went to the red-light district. That’s where she met Zhu Xiaobing. After a few days, she moved into the Zhu household and stayed hidden. Hardly anyone in the neighborhood knew she was there. No wonder we searched the entire county and came up with nothing—she was hiding at the Zhu house all along.”

Su Min didn’t comment. She had no interest in wasting more energy on Su Wenwen. She had only come here for one purpose: to confirm that Su Wenwen had indeed been caught, and to say a few words to her.

Although someone like Su Wenwen, a serious criminal, normally couldn’t be visited, the police made an exception. As a victim’s family member, Su Min was allowed twenty minutes of conversation.

When she entered the visitation room, two female officers stood nearby to supervise. Su Wenwen sat across the long table, her hair unkempt, her face worn and haggard. When she saw Su Min walk in, she gave a mocking laugh.

Su Min sat down calmly. “You didn’t expect to end up like this, did you? When you did all those things, did you never think there would be consequences?”

“I didn’t think about it. I didn’t do anything wrong, so why should I think about consequences?” Su Wenwen sneered. “Your parents are probably dying by now, right? That warehouse was all tin walls. Once locked inside, they’d be roasted alive.”

Su Min’s hands clenched tightly beneath the table. “Then you’ll be disappointed—they were rescued. They’re safe now and out of danger. From now on, nothing like that will happen again.”

“No! That’s impossible! There’s no way they’re fine!” Su Wenwen’s face twisted with disbelief. She had been hiding and hadn’t heard the follow-up, but she knew how devastating that fire was. With Su Changrong and his wife trapped inside, escape had been impossible—death was the only outcome. These past days, she had comforted herself with visions of Su Min crying her eyes out every day, bereft of parental love.

But now, to hear they had survived—it was a blow she couldn’t accept. Did that mean everything she had done was for nothing?

Su Min sneered at her incredulous expression. “The charges against you are serious. You’ll be in prison for at least ten years, if not more.”

Seeing Su Wenwen’s face pale in terror, Su Min felt a weight lift from her heart. “I know you’ve always hated me. You think everything that’s happened to you is because of me.”

“Isn’t it?!” Su Wenwen gritted her teeth.

“No—it’s because of yourself!”

Su Min’s voice grew sharp. “If it weren’t for your jealousy and constant scheming, Grandpa wouldn’t have met with that accident. If you hadn’t gone against Third Uncle and reported him at school, he wouldn’t have lost his job or ended up divorced from your mother. Later, even Wang Mingsong’s downfall was because of your manipulation. Do you know why your mother refuses to visit you? Because she hates you. You ruined her father, you ruined her happiness—she sees you as nothing but a curse. And your father? He doesn’t even want to acknowledge you anymore. Nobody in this world loves you, Wenwen. Nobody likes you. Because you are nothing but a curse—everyone despises you!”

Having said her piece, Su Min stood up, feeling utterly relieved. “Enjoy your time in prison. Reflect on what you’ve done with your life—see if you can name even one good deed.”

After Su Min left, Su Wenwen sat there, scratching at the table absentmindedly, mumbling to herself over and over, “It’s not true, I’m not a jinx, I’m not a jinx… I’m not…”

Just as Su Min walked out of the police station, Liao Zhaodi and Han Lei came out of the car.

Seeing that Su Min looked fine, Liao Zhaodi knew she hadn’t suffered at Su Wenwen’s hands.  “Let’s go home.”

Su Min nodded. “You’re not going to the hospital to see your mother?”

“Han Lei already took me there earlier. I paid the medical fees and left her some money. As for the rest, I don’t want to bother anymore. I called my eldest and second sisters—they don’t really want to take care of her either. My second sister said she’ll send money regularly in the future, but she won’t come back to see her.”

Su Min understood. This was already the best arrangement the Liao sisters could offer Zhang Hui.

That mother’s actions had long since exhausted their tolerance. To think she actually wanted to push her own daughter into a fire pit just so she herself could live comfortably. Su Min thought, if it were her, she would probably cut ties completely.

Now that Su Wenwen had been caught, everything had finally come to an end.

Everyone’s hearts could finally settle. This time, Su Min didn’t ask Han Lei to stay behind. Instead, she let him go back to City B with Zhaodi. After all, there was no more danger around her, so she didn’t need someone to protect her anymore. Besides, she wanted to give Han Lei and Liao Zhaodi a little push. As for how far things would go between them—that would depend on fate.

A month later, Xue Mian came from City B, coinciding with Su Wenwen’s trial. He asked Su Min if she wanted to attend, but she refused.

After all, she already knew what the outcome would be. She didn’t want to see Su Wenwen ever again. Let her sit there all alone and face judgment.

In the end, Su Wenwen was sentenced to twenty years.

To Su Min, even that felt too light. In the darkest corner of her heart, she wished that lunatic would be locked away for life. But the law couldn’t account for the hatred inside a victim’s heart. The sentence was something she couldn’t change.

The only comfort was that, with Sun Qiufang and Su Min’s daily encouragement, speaking to him without fail, Su Changrong finally woke up.

But the injury had taken a heavy toll, and his health was no longer what it used to be. After two months of recovery in the hospital, he was finally discharged and went home to rest.

On the day he was discharged, Su Changfu and Grandpa Su came to the hospital to visit. Su Changrong ignored them completely and went straight into the car. Sun Qiufang, however, turned back and gave them a fierce glare.

Sun Hai had already told them what happened while they were unconscious. When the couple’s lives hung in the balance and their daughter had no one to rely on, those so-called relatives hadn’t shown a shred of care. Instead, they had only been eager to stab them in the back. Such relatives—Su Changrong no longer intended to acknowledge them. He wouldn’t even bother with superficial courtesy.

Having gone through a brush with death, he finally knew what to treasure and what to discard. In this world, besides his wife and daughter, no one treated him with genuine sincerity.

Once Su Changrong could walk again, he urged Su Min to return to school. He knew her passion was fashion design, and now she even had her own career in City B. He didn’t want family matters to drag her down.

But Su Min refused.

She decided to shoulder her responsibilities and take over managing the supermarket so her parents could rest at ease at home. When they got better, she wanted them to have the time to travel around.

“From now on, I guess I’ll be living like a flying trapeze artist. I’ll only be able to spend a part of each month in City B. The rest of the time, I’ll stay here with my parents.”

One evening after dinner, as she strolled with Xue Mian in the garden downstairs, she deliberately shared her plans.

Seeing him silent, she stopped and looked at him. “This might not just be for a year—it could be two, maybe three. I can’t let my parents keep overworking themselves. Older people are prone to illness, and the doctors already warned us. They’ve passed their prime years, their recovery will be slow. Even if they heal, they can’t go back to how they were before.”

Xue Mian still said nothing, his dark eyes fixed on her.

Su Min frowned, finally asking the question she had been dreading, “Will you wait for me?”

Honestly, she asked it with little confidence.

Though his support during the crisis had touched her deeply, feelings could change with time. When couples spent more time apart than together, it was easy for problems to arise. Wanting to be mature, she couldn’t ignore those possibilities.

Seeing her looking down, too timid to meet his eyes, Xue Mian couldn’t help but laugh. He cupped her face. “What’s this? Angry? I was just teasing you.”

He pulled her into his arms. “I’ve waited all these years already. What’s a few more?”

Surprised and delighted, Su Min looked up at him, then gave him a playful punch. “You’re still joking at a time like this!”

“I can’t help it. I understand, but the thought of only seeing you once in a long while—it feels unfair. Besides, didn’t we agree you’d marry me after graduation? But now you’ve suspended school… who knows how long that’ll be?” He looked at her pitifully.

At the mention of marriage, Su Min felt embarrassed. They had indeed planned that before, but life never followed plans. She couldn’t split herself in two. And besides…

“Marriage doesn’t have to wait until graduation. As long as we’re old enough…”

As soon as she said it, her face flushed red. She couldn’t believe those eager words had just come out of her mouth.

“You agreed!”

Before she could react, Xue Mian hugged her tightly, almost lifting her off the ground. “You agreed to marry me! Once we reach the age, we’ll marry—you can’t take it back. I’ll remember this forever!”

His voice brimmed with joy and excitement.

Su Min, utterly speechless, buried her face in his chest.

How utterly embarrassing. She had just handed herself over like that. She really had no face left…

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