After returning home with the child, her ex-husband knelt down and gently coaxed her.

At night, the moon hanging in the sky seemed to be wrapped in a thick sweater, with fuzzy edges, hazy and not as bright as usual.

An Ning opened her phone and frowned slightly as she looked at the chat box where she had sent a text message but had not received a reply.

Are you still busy so late?

Why haven't you replied yet?

She cleared her throat, pressed the voice call button, and asked softly, "west Yan, are you busy? Have you had dinner? Look how lovely the moon is tonight, all fluffy like a cotton candy."

She sent the voice message, turned off her phone, stood by the window, and looked up at the moon in the sky.

Lu Xiyan was once the bright moonlight in her dark life. In the past four years, she thought her world had turned dark again and would never be bright again, but she never expected that the moon in her life would shine on her again.

"Ningning."

Li Chunfang stood in the living room behind her and gently called out to her, carrying a bowl of freshly washed fruit in her hands. "Mom washed some grapes for you and cut some watermelon. Come and have some."

"Mm." An Ning nodded gently and sat down on the sofa.

"Is Xianxian asleep?" Li Chunfang sat down next to her.

"She's asleep." Anning picked up a piece of watermelon, took a bite, and found it to be cool and sweet.

"Ningning." Li Chunfang glanced at her, then lowered her head, rubbing her knees with her hands. "Have you... found your parents?"

She didn't ask about it after returning from Anning, and Anning didn't mention it either.

Even as evening approached, Li Chunfang couldn't resist asking him any questions.

"Hmm." An Ning nodded gently, putting down the watermelon in her hand. "I think I've found it."

"What do you mean, 'found it'?" Li Chunfang didn't understand.

An Ning took a deep breath, looked at Li Chunfang and smiled slightly, "They have passed away, but I also know where I came from."

Upon hearing the word "passed away," Li Chunfang felt a slight tremor in her heart, as if she had been struck by a stick.

"Are there any other relatives?" she asked.

An Ning shook her head. "Not many."

She only has one aunt left.

"Well..." Li Chunfang hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped herself.

"Are you asking me if I will acknowledge my ancestors and take Xianxian back to Dianhai?" Anning looked at her, a slight smile always on her lips.

Li Chunfang did think that way. She was happy that Anning had found her biological parents, but she was also worried that if Anning went back like this, she would never return to Jinghai and would not recognize her. The once lively home would be empty and she would be all alone. Thinking about it, she felt quite lost.

"Do you want me to go back?" Anning asked again.

Li Chunfang held a grape in her hand, peeling it without looking at An Ning. "Back then, when Chen Laosi sold you to our family, he said you were abandoned by your parents and would starve to death if you stayed with him. At that time, we didn't feel guilty about buying you and raising you in the An family. On the contrary, we felt that we had done a good deed and saved a life."

She sighed softly and handed the peeled grape flesh to Anning.

Anning took it and put it in her mouth. It was more sour than sweet, just like life.

"But that day, Chen Laosi told me the truth, saying that she picked you up, not that your parents didn't want you. At that time, my mind was in a mess, and I couldn't sleep all night."

"I kept thinking, if you were lost, how worried your biological parents must be. They haven't seen their own daughter for over twenty years, how are they going to live their lives? The more I thought about it, the more guilty I felt, the more I felt sorry for you and your biological parents. It was as if I had taken their daughter away for over twenty years."

Only a warm yellow wall lamp was on in the living room. An Ning turned her head and stared at Li Chunfang. In the warm yellow light, she could see that her deep-set eyes were moist.

"Mom knows the grievances you've suffered at Anjia all these years. Mom was really selfish before, but I really had no other choice back then."

Li Chunfang turned to look at An Ning, tears streaming down her wrinkles. "In the first few years after you came to our family, your parents truly loved and doted on you, treating you like their own daughter. They only wanted to give you the best."

Anning felt a sudden jolt in her heart. Of course she remembered; she too had a happy childhood.

Back then, An Yucan wasn't born yet. Her mother loved her and her father doted on her. Even though they were poor and had a hard life, An Tianhua would use the money he earned from collecting scrap all day to buy her milk and snacks. Li Chunfang would also cook the best meals for her within their means and always wash her clothes clean and fragrant.

However, that kind of childhood did not last more than a few years.

After An Yucan came into the picture, An Tianhua and Li Chunfang became even more tired and under greater pressure, and their patience with her gradually dwindled.

Later, An Tianhua started drinking and gambling, and the house was filled with the sounds of An Tianhua and Li Chunfang arguing every few days, as well as her pitiful and helpless appearance as she and Yu Can hugged each other and cried.

Those innocent and happy childhood days are gone forever. She can no longer feel the love her parents once had for her. The remaining years are a suffocating life where even breathing is a luxury.

"Mom and Dad are human too, and they can be selfish too. Yu Can is our own son, and he's sick. It's like a knife hanging over our heads every moment."

Li Chunfang choked up as she said, "What parents would stand by and watch their child die at any moment without doing anything? But we had no choice. We were too poor. Even if we didn't eat or drink, we still couldn't save enough money for Yu Can's surgery. So when there was even the slightest chance to save Yu Can, Mom desperately tried to grasp it."

"Mom knows it was cruel to break you and Xiao Lu up back then, but Mom had no choice."

Li Chunfang was in tears, and An Ning was also silently shedding tears.

"The Lu family's hospital, the Lu family's money, the Lu family can even buy a heart that matches your brother's. The Lu family is the only lifeline that can save your brother's life."

Li Chunfang held An Ning's hand tightly, sobbing uncontrollably. "I thought you and Xiao Lu were only separated temporarily, and that you could reconcile after your brother recovered and you cleared things up. I was too naive. I never imagined you were driven to such despair that you were willing to cut yourself."

She clutched the scar on Anning's left hand tightly and cried for a long time.

After calming down, she wiped away her tears and looked at An Ning. "I thought a lot about what you thought about when you came back to Jinghai. I didn't even want to get treatment anymore, but you were still willing to take care of me. At this age, there's nothing else I can't let go of except you and your brother."

"Now that you've found your biological parents, if you want to go back, Mom won't stop you. You never belonged to Jinghai or the An family. Over the years, the An family has owed you too much."

"I just hope that you won't become estranged from your brother in the future. Once his illness is cured, you won't have to support him. He can work and support himself after graduation. You've always had a good relationship since you were little, and you can still be siblings in the future. You're one of the few remaining relatives in this world."

"Ningning." Li Chunfang looked at Anning through teary eyes, "For so many years, Mom has owed you an apology. I'm sorry for making you suffer, for making you go through so much, my daughter."

An Ning tilted her head back, forcing back her tears. After a long while, she wiped her eyes, turned to Li Chunfang, and asked in a deliberately serious tone, "So, after saying all this, you just don't want me to go back?"

"That's not what Mom meant," Li Chunfang quickly explained. "Mom just felt that it was really hard to keep these things to myself without telling you. Now that I've said it, no matter what you think, Mom will feel better."

An Ning suddenly smiled, her eyes still wet. "My biological parents have passed away, but I still have a mother here, so of course I will stay here."

Upon hearing this, Li Chunfang's tearful eyes lit up with joy, and a smile appeared at the corners of her eyes.

"Moreover, Jinghai has the best education, and I hope that Xianxian can study at Jinghai."

An Ning smiled faintly and looked at the moon hanging high in the sky outside the window.

She's going nowhere else, as there's still Lu Xiyan in Jinghai.

Mentioning An Xian, Li Chunfang suddenly asked, "Ningning, tell me honestly, is Xianxian really Xiao Lu's son?"

She looked intently into Anning's smiling eyes. "You absolutely haven't remarried, and you certainly couldn't have gotten divorced again. Xuanxuan belongs to Xiaolu, right?"

An Ning stared at Li Chunfang for a long time. Now that she and Lu Xiyan had reconciled, there was nothing left to hide.

She nodded emphatically. "Yes, Xuanxuan's father is Xiyan."