After jumping into the Minjiang River, Jiang Ruo and Bai Guolin were swept downstream by the current. Following the riverbank upstream, they realized they had already left the city. With no large hospitals nearby, they found an orthopedic clinic instead to set Bai Guolin’s arm and re-bandaged Jiang Ruo’s wounds.
When they left the clinic, Bai Guolin wanted to take Jiang Ruo to a Western restaurant, but she shook her head and refused, “Let’s just find somewhere simple to eat. After we eat, I need to buy a face mask.”
From now on, she would no longer be the pampered daughter of the Jiang family. She needed to fend for herself and avoid being seen by the Feng family, so wearing a mask when going out was necessary. Considering the methods the Feng family had, locating her would be easy, but they might not bother once they found out how miserable her life was.
So from now on, she needed to change her spending habits.
Bai Guolin, as usual, followed her will without question. After they ate, they immediately went to buy a mask. “M-miss—…I—I mean R-Ruoruo… I will… I will send you home,” Bai Guolin stammered, hastily correcting himself after realizing his mistake.
Jiang Ruo shook her head, “No, I no longer have a home to return to. I wasn’t accidentally switched at birth; I’m the daughter of my father and another woman. The Jiang family is no longer my home.”
Bai Guolin was completely shocked. He had been wondering why Miss Ruoruo seemed so despaired but didn’t dare ask. Who would have imagined this would be the reason?
Jiang Ruo looked at Bai Guolin. “So, I’m no longer Miss Ruoruo—I’ve never been. I’m just the daughter of a mistress who took Jiang Li’s place and lived a privileged life for so many years. I’m a thief. If you despise me or feel uncomfortable being friends with me, you can leave anytime. I would understand.”
Bai Guolin shook his head vehemently. “N-no! I could never despise you. Y—you’re the best person in the world! I’m the one unworthy of being your… being your friend. And it’s not your fault! Y—you were just a baby and… and didn’t know anything.”
Hearing this, Jiang Ruo smiled. “Then, will you accompany me to withdraw some money? I need to buy a phone. Also, could you use your ID to help me get a SIM card? I lost my ID, and without it, I can’t get a new SIM.”
Her brother had packed her ID in the suitcase she had taken with her when she jumped into the river, dragging it along with her phone. During the process of being swept downstream, the phone had sunk to the bottom, and the suitcase was probably stranded somewhere. Finding the suitcase seemed impossible, and even if that wasn’t the case, her father had told her to live somewhere no one knew her, so she had no intention of using her ID for a SIM card replacement or requesting a new one.
Bai Guolin immediately agreed, “I’ll do whatever you say.”
They found a 24-hour ATM, and after weighing it a bit, Jiang Ruo decided not to use the card her brother gave her but instead took out the one Qin Zheng had sent to her. Seeing the balance on the card, Jiang Ruo was slightly surprised. If it was three years ago, she wouldn’t have thought this was a large sum, but now, given her situation, this money would be enough to start a new life.
So, she withdrew ten thousand yuan in cash, bought a phone, and then used Bai Guolin’s phone to get a SIM card at the service center. As she inserted the SIM card into the phone and saw only a few pre-installed apps on the home screen, Jiang Ruo couldn’t help but sigh.
From now on, like this phone, she would have to start over.
But before she even left the service center, she overheard the staff mentioning her name, along with terms like ‘vicious mistress’ and ‘switching the legitimate child.’
With trembling hands, Jiang Ruo opened Weibo, and when she saw the trending topics, she was stunned.
“Let’s go find a place to stay first.” Bai Guolin quickly urged. In his rush, he even stopped stuttering.
Jiang Ruo was trembling all over, and the shop assistants quickly noticed her distress and asked, “Are you feeling unwell? Do you need us to call an ambulance?”
Jiang Ruo knew they didn’t recognize her because she was wearing the mask. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be so caring—they would certainly scorn her instead. Fleeing in panic, she rushed out of the service center, with Bai Guolin grabbing the newly activated SIM card paperwork and following her.
Once outside, Jiang Ruo stopped running. She looked at Bai Guolin and said, “Can you help me get a room? I need to rest.”
Bai Guolin quickly nodded and took her to a hotel, but they soon discovered that without an ID, Jiang Ruo couldn’t check in, even if Bai Guolin booked the room. In the end, they had to settle for a small rural inn that doubled as the owner’s residence. The building itself was in a poor state, especially for Jiang Ruo’s standard, but at least the landlady was very warm-hearted.
Once inside the room, Jiang Ruo locked the door, drew the curtains, and curled up on the bed, hugging her knees and trembling. She knew her mother would hate her, but she never expected her mother to expose everything online and even buy trending topics. From now on, she would be drowned in scorn and contempt whenever her identity was exposed.
She had resolved to live strongly, and yet… she never imagined the life ahead would be so difficult.
Bai Guolin stood anxiously outside Jiang Ruo’s door, not daring to knock or call for her, mainly because he had no idea how to comfort her. Fearing that she might harm herself again, he finally decided to sit outside the door for the night, wrapped in a blanket from his own room.
…
When Jiang Zhou woke up, he found himself lying on a hospital bed. A sharp pain shot through his temples the moment he opened his eyes, while his mind was filled with the memory of what he had witnessed by the river. The sight of the drenched suitcase and the words spoken by the man by the river’s edge made it feel as though a death sentence had been handed down to Ruoruo.
The mere thought of this possibility made it impossible for Jiang Zhou to remain in the hospital. He ripped off the ventilator and pulled out the IV in his hand, rushing out without any regard for anything else.
But the hospital staff stopped him and only allowed him to leave after he had paid his medical bills and completed the necessary paperwork. After leaving the hospital, Jiang Zhou immediately headed to the hospital where Jiang Huai was staying and told him about Jiang Ruo’s situation, hoping he could use his connections to find her.
Jiang Huai’s condition had barely improved after a day in the hospital, but he nearly fainted again when he heard that Jiang Ruo had jumped into the river. With trembling hands, he called Assistant Zhu and told him to find a way to search for her.
After hanging up, he turned to his son, “Go to the police station and file a report. That way, if the police get any information, they’ll notify us immediately.”
Already at his wit’s end, Jiang Zhou could only follow Jiang Huai’s instructions. Unfortunately, after filing the report, he didn’t get any useful information. The spot where Jiang Ruo jumped into the river was in a remote area without surveillance, making it difficult to locate her whereabouts.
Jiang Zhou could only hope that the person who had jumped in after Jiang Ruo had saved her. As long as she was still alive, she should contact him sooner or later.
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