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The last time he saw Gu Ci genuinely smile was one year when she was playing the violin, enjoying herself and finding joy in it. She had learned a violin piece, and he was her first audience. He felt happiness through her music.

Later, the violin was destroyed, and she lost her smile. Since then, she became more and more obsessive and melancholic with each passing year. He watched helplessly as she faced injustice, never crying out in pain or seeking help. He had always been by her side, but she had never called for help. She bore all the pain alone, in solitude.

Gu Ci lightly smiled as she looked out the window, not minding Lu Zhiyuan’s silence.

Lu Zhiyuan, eyes don’t lie. You like me, even though I don’t know why you’ve always rejected me. But I’m willing to wait.

Anyway… I’ve also been waiting for many years.

Nurse Zhang lived in a small community by the seaside. After resigning years ago, she came to Haicheng and settled down there. She still worked as a nurse at the People’s Hospital and had a son and a daughter.

Gu Ci and Lu Zhiyuan pressed the doorbell. Nurse Zhang was on a day off and at home. When she saw Gu Ci’s face change drastically, she hurriedly tried to close the door, but Gu Ci forcefully kicked it open.

She stood at the doorstep, cold and sharp, looking at Nurse Zhang who had fallen to the ground. “What are you afraid of, Zhang Xiaomei?”

Lu Zhiyuan followed Gu Ci into the room and casually closed the door. Zhang Xiaomei, nearing her forties, had taken good care of herself. She had fair skin and still exuded charm. When she saw Gu Ci coming to find her, she knew that the truth couldn’t be concealed any longer.

However, she adamantly refused to admit anything. No matter how Gu Ci questioned her, she dared not admit, “I’m going to call the police. You’ve trespassed into a private residence.”

She held her phone ready to call the police, and Gu Ci said, “Sure, that’s perfect. The police can come, and we can investigate the hospital’s swapping incident back then together.”

Gu Ci retrieved the transfer records between Lu Man and herself.

Zhang Xiaomei’s legs went weak, and she collapsed onto a chair.

“Within fifteen years, I transferred a total of 2 million to you,” Gu Ci lazily leaned against a nearby surface and kicked the chair. “Tell me, how did she manipulate you? Since I was able to find you, naturally, I already know that Gu Chuyun is her biological daughter.”

With the evidence in hand, Zhang Xiaomei couldn’t deny it. She painfully revealed the truth to Gu Ci, “Back then, Jiang Mingyue and Lu Man were brought to the hospital together. Lu Man had given birth before and gave birth within an hour. Jiang Mingyue had a difficult delivery and ended up having a cesarean section in the middle of the night. The baby girl was born much later. The adults were all focused on Jiang Mingyue, and Jiang Minghua got into a fight with Gu Wenliang. The hospital was in chaos, and Lu Man found me. She asked me to switch the identification tags of the two babies. At that time, the ID tags for the two infants had just been made. She gave me 500,000 yuan. My mother had uremia, and we had almost exhausted all the money in our family to treat her. She offered me money and even promised to help me find a kidney donor. I was tempted and foolishly agreed. Miss Gu Ci, I’m sorry.”

Lu Zhiyuan recorded the conversation, his anger growing. Just 500,000 yuan, and she sold her soul, causing Gu Ci to suffer injustice from a young age, deprived of everything.

Damn it!

Gu Ci, however, remained calm and unaffected. There was no ripple in her eyes. “What happened afterward? Why did she continue to transfer money to you?”

Zhang Xiaomei felt embarrassed, but she had no choice but to reveal the truth. “After I came to Haicheng, I married my current husband, and we lived a stable life. However, he got involved in gambling and borrowed money at high-interest rates. I had no choice but to turn to Lu Man and ask for her help.”

That’s why she had seen Gu Ci.

“Money is truly important, isn’t it? One’s integrity can be sold as well, right?”

Tears poured down Zhang Xiaomei’s face. “You haven’t experienced the pain of having no money, so of course, you can casually say that I sold my integrity for money. I needed to save my mother, to survive. All beings suffer. For the sake of money, people can truly do anything. Those who uphold their integrity simply haven’t been tempted by enough money.”

Lu Zhiyuan furrowed his brow, feeling the injustice Gu Ci had endured. “Crime is still crime. Don’t make excuses!”

Zhang Xiaomei crawled on the ground and knelt before Gu Ci. “Miss Gu Ci, I still have two children to support. I beg you, please have mercy and spare me.”

“Let the law handle it!” After obtaining the evidence, Gu Ci left calmly, with Lu Zhiyuan following closely behind.

Lu Zhiyuan drove with her to the seaside. The sky was overcast as if it was going to rain, mirroring his state of mind. He hadn’t expected Lu Man to be so malicious. The truth was so embarrassing.

“Do you hate her?” he asked.

“Lu Man?” Gu Ci shook her head. “I don’t hate her. It’s meaningless.”

The people she hated were Gu Chuyun and Lu Shijie. Lu Man couldn’t stir up any storms. It was pointless to dwell on the past, and she wanted to avoid the tragedy of this lifetime.

But her emotions were still complex. If she hadn’t switched the children, the Jiang family would have fought for custody. Regardless of how Lu Man and Gu Wenliang mistreated her, the Jiang family would have taken her away. Her life would have been completely different. She would have had a loving older brother, as well as an uncle, aunt, and grandparents who doted on her.

She wouldn’t have grown up alone, and she wouldn’t have ended up in prison.

“Don’t be sad, Gu Ci. You’re not alone,” Lu Zhiyuan embraced her from behind. His embrace had always been warm and reliable for her.

The storm was about to arrive, and the sea and sky turned a deep, ink-like black. The fierce wind blew over the restless sea, carrying the dangers preceding the storm. Gu Ci held onto Lu Zhiyuan’s hand.

She didn’t fear the turbulent sea ahead because behind her stood steadfast mountains.

*

As the typhoon approached, flights were grounded, and Lu Zhiyuan and Gu Ci found a coastal hotel. Only the presidential suite was available. A lightning bolt struck from the sky, followed by rolling thunder. Lu Zhiyuan stood by the window, raising his hand to check his watch—it was half past five.

Torrential rain poured down, and the wind roared. The sea surged and churned. His eyes resembled the darkened sky, echoing the rumbling thunder. In his ears, he heard the sound of a video call between Gu Ci and Gu Ziyu. They asked him to sleep early and said they would return home tomorrow. Gu Ziyu caught a glimpse of Lu Zhiyuan’s silhouette through the video call and knew that they were together.

Gu Ziyu said, “Okay, Mom. I’ll wait for you to come home.”

Gu Ci ended the video call and looked at Lu Zhiyuan, remembering his hesitation when booking the room. If it weren’t for the approaching typhoon and the pouring rain, Lu Zhiyuan would have taken her to find another hotel and booked two rooms.

She recalled her previous life when they were released from prison, and Lu Zhiyuan took her to a hot spring hotel to relax, where they also ended up with only one room. That night, they sat by the window, talking heart-to-heart over a glass of wine. She poured out the hardships and grievances she had endured during her five years in prison. She wanted revenge, she wanted Lu Shijie and Gu Chuyun dead. Lu Zhiyuan was exceptionally silent and calm that night, like a mute listener. She was emotionally overwhelmed, crying in his arms until she fell asleep, comforted by his soothing presence. She begged him to sing her a nursery rhyme, finding solace in his voice.

The next day, Lu Zhiyuan said that he deliberately had the receptionist say there was only one room. He wanted to cherish the rare opportunity of being together, away from their usual surroundings, and create a romantic atmosphere. He didn’t want to spoil the mood by booking two separate rooms.