"Exactly. You said it yourself, it was in the past. Besides, your son and that mistress of his are already so shameless. If they want to live together, fine—but why move in right across from his ex-wife? Do they think I'm that easy to push around? Reconcile? Not in this lifetime."
Lan Jin finished speaking and hung up without hesitation.
From her spot on the sofa, Ren Siqiao, who was snacking on some treats, noticed something off in Lan Jin's voice during the call and immediately asked, "Mama, who?"
"Your grandma. Not someone important."
After hearing that, Ren Siqiao nodded calmly and kept munching away like nothing had happened.
But after she finished the treat in her mouth, Ren Siqiao said, "Mama, grandma bad. Qiao Qiao no like."
Lan Jin paused. "Why don't you like Grandma, Qiao Qiao? You've never even met her."
It was true. Ren Siqiao had never seen that grandmother even once. They rarely spoke on the phone either. Every time Qiao Qiao called, Ren Xing's mother was cold at best and often hung up impatiently. Over time, even a child could sense something was wrong with the way she was treated. Naturally, Qiao Qiao stopped wanting to call.
As for meeting in person or visiting? That never happened.
It wasn't that Lan Jin didn't want to visit. After her and Ren Xing's wedding, she had made the effort. But until Ren Siqiao was nearly three years old, Ren Xing's parents had always found excuses to avoid letting her visit. With things like that, what kind of relationship could they possibly build?
Ren Xing's mother was very good to her son, though. Ren Xing didn't have a stable job, but his mother made sure to send him a monthly allowance. Twenty thousand yuan, like clockwork. Whether it was enough or not didn't matter. That was what he got.
But not a single cent of that money ever made its way to Lan Jin or the child. Lan Jin had always raised Qiao Qiao on her own. She never felt she owed Ren Xing's mother anything. To her, that woman was a stranger. There was no reason to be especially polite.
As for how she and Qiao Qiao survived—
Lan Jin had a job. Her monthly salary of 8,000 yuan was average, but it was enough for the two of them. And her savings? The rent from the two apartments under her name had been left untouched. She had saved every bit of it. She had never once been short on money.
So if Ren Xing's mother didn't like her, that was fine. But what was the point of calling Meng Ying by such an affectionate nickname in front of her? Was she trying to back Meng Ying up? If she kept calling, then she really was out of her mind.
Back then, Lan Jin had never tried to win her over. Now that Ren Xing was gone, she had even less reason to bother.
Meanwhile, Ren Siqiao tilted her head and thought for a bit before replying, "Seen. Before. When with Daddy Auntie. Grandma no like Qiao Qiao."
She hadn't hit her or yelled. But being ignored—completely and utterly ignored—was sometimes worse than being scolded. That's what hurt the most.
Lan Jin said gently, "Doesn't matter if she doesn't like you. My Qiao Qiao is the best little girl in the world. As long as Mama loves you, that's enough. We don't need the love of people who don't matter."
Ren Siqiao felt comforted. She giggled. "Mama, Daddy when throw away?"
Lan Jin replied, "It's only been a few days. Now that people have moved into the apartments next door, it's harder to do anything. Let's wait a bit, okay? For now, just pretend she doesn't exist, Qiao Qiao."
Ren Siqiao pouted but still nodded. "Mm. Okay, Mama."
…
On the other side—
After Lan Jin hung up, Ren Xing's mother immediately called Meng Ying.
She said, "I just asked Lan Jin. Ah Xing didn't go to her place."
Meng Ying couldn't believe it. "No way. He's been gone for a week. His phone's been off the whole time. Why else would he turn it off if not to avoid me?"
Ren Xing's mother paused. "He didn't go to her place. The way Lan Jin spoke, there's no way she'd get back together with him. I really don't think he went there."
But that made things even stranger. Where had Ren Xing gone? How could a grown man just disappear?
Meng Ying said, "Auntie, do you know where Lan Jin lives? I want to go check. I want to see for myself. If Ah Xing really wants to get back with her, I won't stop him. But I need to know the truth. If he's missing, we can't just do nothing."
Ren Xing's mother had never paid much attention to which properties belonged to Lan Jin. But she did remember the addresses of the places under her own name. She told Meng Ying the ones she knew.
Of the three addresses she gave, one was directly across from her current home. The other two were farther away. With transportation still not restored, they were too far to reach on foot. So if Ren Xing had really gone looking for Lan Jin, he couldn't have gone to those.
Which meant, if Lan Jin wasn't lying, then Ren Xing really had disappeared after leaving home.
But then Meng Ying remembered something important.
Lan Jin's phone could be reached. Ren Xing's mother had just called her, which meant Lan Jin hadn't changed her number—she had only blocked Meng Ying.
So if Meng Ying used a different number, she might be able to reach Lan Jin.
Without wasting a second, Meng Ying borrowed a phone from someone she lived with and immediately dialed Lan Jin's number.
Lan Jin glanced at the unfamiliar number on her screen. She didn't need to guess who it was. Without even answering, she hung up and added the number to her block list.
Hearing the call get cut off, Meng Ying exploded. She hurled the phone to the floor.
But she forgot—it wasn't her phone.
The moment the device shattered, the woman who had lent it to her stormed over. "What's wrong with you? Why are you throwing my phone? I was nice enough to let you use it, and this is how you treat it? You're paying for that phone!"
The woman grabbed Meng Ying's arm and refused to let go. Her posture made it very clear—she wasn't going to drop this.
The second the phone hit the floor, Meng Ying already regretted it. She had truly forgotten that it wasn't hers. "I'll buy you a new one once phones are available again."
"No way. Who knows when phones will even be sold again? You can't pay with money right now. I don't care. I want a phone."
"But there's nowhere to buy one now. Where am I supposed to find you a phone?"
"You know phones aren't for sale. And you still threw mine? I don't care. I need one now. The signal and internet just came back. We need these to survive. And you smashed mine. What am I supposed to do now?"
The woman was relentless. And to be fair, she wasn't wrong.
Others sharing the same apartment watched the scene unfold and didn't step in. Most of them thought Meng Ying was clearly in the wrong.
The shouting continued until finally, the two women reached a compromise. Meng Ying gave her own phone to the woman in exchange.
Meng Ying's phone was a brand-new model she had bought just before the poisonous fog descended. It had cost over ten thousand yuan and happened to be the exact same model as the one she broke. Giving it up as compensation was more than reasonable.