Using power to force marriage

After coming down from the mountain, Ruan Fu was so sleepy that she was completely drowsy.

"Zhao Jingnian, we're going back to the old house for lunch today."

Upon hearing this, he raised an eyebrow in slight surprise, "Back to the old house?"

"Yes, I made an appointment with Dad."

She rested her head on Zhao Jingnian's shoulder and spoke with her eyes closed.

Today is his and Su Yao's birthday, and Ruan Fu and Zhao Yuzhou had planned early on to treat the whole family to a nice meal.

"Can I not go?" Zhao Jingnian still had some reservations.

Ruan Fu shook her head, "No, that won't work."

Knowing that Ruan Fu wanted to ease the tension between him and Su Yao, he naturally wanted to as well, but he also felt that Su Yao had not forgiven him.

"I heard from Dad that two years ago, on your birthday, he called and asked you to come home for dinner, but you made an excuse to refuse."

That time it was actually Su Yao's idea; otherwise, Zhao Yuzhou wouldn't have dared to act on his own initiative.

Zhao Jingnian thought Su Yao was still resentful towards him and didn't know how to face her, so he refused.

When Su Yao heard Zhao Jingnian making excuses to refuse her on the phone, she assumed that Zhao Jingnian had not forgiven her.

In the past two years, she has often regretted that the harm she caused to Zhao Jingnian may never be erased.

During the years when Su Yao's mental illness was at its worst, he was sent to the Qi family, and the mother and son did not see each other for ten years.

After Zhao Jingnian came of age, Su Yao's illness had also been cured. However, the pain and rift between the two could no longer be easily repaired.

Both were indifferent and cold-hearted, not good with words, and could only let this blood ties stagnate in suspicion and indifference.

"Zhao Jingnian, you and your mother are the closest people in the world. You shouldn't have let things get to this point."

Zhao Jingnian deliberately changed the subject, "Xiao Fu, let me take you home to sleep, you're already very tired."

It's only a little past seven in the morning. She could easily go home and catch up on some sleep, then return to the old house at noon. The two options don't conflict.

Her eyes held a hint of comfort. "During these years of your cold war, Dad was actually the one who suffered the most. I told him that he would listen to me and would be willing to come back for dinner."

Ruan Fu reached out and cupped his face, gently kissing his lips. "You won't let me break my promise, right?"

-

Zhao Jingnian eventually agreed to go back for dinner, but changed the time to the evening.

Because he wanted Ruan Fu to get a good night's sleep.

At seven o'clock in the evening, the two returned to the old house together.

Zhao Yuzhou successfully stood up thanks to the intelligent bionic legs developed by Jiang Qiyu's company. During this time, he secretly trained with the technicians without Su Yao's knowledge and has mastered the basic movements of standing and walking slowly.

Zhao Jingnian was also unaware of this matter.

He was surprised to see Zhao Yuzhou suddenly able to stand.

"My brother's company has developed a very mature intelligent bionic limb technology. After a period of training, running and jumping will not be a problem."

Zhao Yuzhou had used a prosthetic leg in his younger years, but the old man scolded him, saying that he was neither human nor ghost, and that he looked like a monster with a metal leg.

After that, he gave up the idea of ​​standing up with the help of a prosthetic leg and obediently remained paralyzed in his wheelchair, becoming a useless person.

Now that the old man is no longer in the old house, he will never return to his villa in the suburbs, so Zhao Yuzhou no longer needs to be mindful of his feelings.

Ruan Fu often said that the old man from the Zhao family was the worst person in the world and that he was going to hell.

After 26 years, the family was finally able to sit down together for a reunion dinner on September 20th.

Su Yao's eyes welled up with tears twice.

One time, I saw Zhao Yuzhou stand up.

On one occasion, Zhao Jingnian personally served her soup.

Although the mother and son didn't exchange many words, they both understood each other's feelings.

Although we didn't wish each other a happy birthday or eat birthday cake, it was already a rare treat that we were able to sit together and peacefully have a meal on our birthdays.

Ruan Fu could sense that Zhao Jingnian was actually very happy, as was Su Yao.

After the meal.

On the way back to Xiyue Manor, Zhao Jingnian put his arm around her and said "thank you".

Without her, Zhao Jingnian would never be able to let go of the guilt; he would live forever in remorse and pain, and his relationship with Su Yao would become increasingly strained and distant.

There's also Zhao Yuzhou, who was encouraged by Ruan Fu to try intelligent bionic legs, which gave him the courage to become a normal person again.

Ruan Fu is like a sun that never sets, warming all things in the world.

To put it dramatically, she is like a deity, possessing the ability to illuminate all living beings.

"Xiao Fu, you are my lucky star."

"Little Star" descended from the sky, healing him, influencing him, and redeeming him.

-

As September drew to a close, the temperature gradually dropped, and the weather became much cooler after the start of autumn, with a chill in the air.

Thousands of miles away in a poor area in the southwest, landslides caused by continuous torrential rains swept away an entire mountain village.

Houses collapsed and roads broke.

Ruan Fu slept poorly that night, waking up several times in the middle of the night.

Just after six o'clock, she was no longer sleepy.

I don't know why, but I feel uneasy and extremely flustered.

The man beside her saw that her forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat and assumed that she had been woken up by the heat.

But when I touched her icy hands, I realized something was wrong.

She said sleepily, "Zhao Jingnian, I don't know why, but I felt anxious all night. I broke out in a cold sweat and had several nightmares."

Ruan Fu has always had good sleep quality, rarely dreams, and usually sleeps soundly until dawn.

Zhao Jingnian turned on the light, held her, and gently comforted her.

"Dreams and reality are opposites, so don't worry."

He gently patted her back, coaxing her like a child.

"It's only six o'clock, let me hold you and let you sleep a little longer, okay?"

But she really couldn't sleep.

"I'm hungry, let's get up and eat."

Having nightmares all night must have been exhausting, and my stomach is completely empty.

After washing up, she went downstairs to have breakfast, scrolling through her phone as she ate.

The urgent news pushed to her homepage made her heart pound.

A massive flash flood and mudslide struck the mountainous region of southwestern China, causing devastating damage and resulting in 4 deaths and 37 people missing.

She clicked to view the details of the news article.

My gaze was fixed on the words "Mountain Area Free Medical Clinic Team".

Two of the missing persons were doctors from the medical outreach team.

Ruan Fu felt a chill run down her spine. Her fingertips trembled as she opened her contacts and dialed Ruan Qian's number.

No wonder she had nightmares all night, dreaming that she was swimming in the sea and couldn't get out, surrounded by water on all sides, pitch black, and unable to see any light.

The receiver was filled with a dial tone indicating that the call could not be connected.

Ruan Fu called several times, but there was no response.

"Zhao Jingnian!"

The man who was watering her flowers turned around at the sound and met her startled eyes.

"What's wrong, Xiao Fu?"

Her eyes were red-rimmed, enveloped in helplessness and fear, and her voice was clearly trembling with sobs.

"A massive flash flood struck the mountainous area where my sister was providing medical care. I can't get through to her on the phone; she's out of contact. What should I do?"

Zhao Jingnian put down the watering can, walked quickly to her, and pulled her into his arms.

The man's broad hand gently stroked her back. "Calm down. Just because you can't get through on the phone doesn't mean you're out of contact."

Signal is poor in mountainous areas, and there has been a flash flood, so power outages are inevitable and it's normal that phone calls won't go through.

Ruan Fu couldn't stop her tears from flowing. "The news said that two of the 37 missing people were doctors from the medical volunteer team."

Zhao Jingnian called Yu Ming and asked him to confirm the list of missing persons. He also instructed Yu Ming to mobilize rescue helicopters and professional search and rescue personnel to the disaster area and to coordinate with the local government to keep track of the search and rescue progress.

He wiped away her tears, saying, "I will definitely help you find your sister."

With Zhao Jingnian around, Ruan Fu felt a little more at ease.

Signal strength is already poor in mountainous areas, and with the added threat of flash floods, it's normal to not be able to make phone calls.

That was the only way she could comfort herself.

As soon as he calmed down a bit, Yu Ming called back.

It has been confirmed that Ruan Qian is on the list of missing persons.

Upon hearing the news, Ruan Fu broke down in tears.

-

(I've been quite busy lately, so I'm sorry, the next chapter won't be available until noon.)