Grandma was the only person in the family who didn't harbor ill feelings toward me because of Su Ning'an's acts. Unfortunately, her health had been deteriorating, and she had been bedridden for the past six months.
She had always seen my suffering, and I could feel her care. A week before my wedding, I visited her, and she gently stroked my hair, saying, "My dear granddaughter, if you don't want to marry, you don't have to. If it's not the right person, marrying will only bring you pain."At that time, my heart was filled with thoughts of exposing the truth and taking revenge during the wedding, but I turned down Grandma's suggestion."Don't worry, Grandma. I know what I'm doing. You need to get better soon."
"Child, I will hold on until my birthday. I know that after Su Ning'an returned, you've been wronged a lot. But to me, you'll always be my precious one. On that day, I will give you a big gift."Grandma owned 5% of the company's shares. When Su Ning'an came back, the family suggested giving her those shares as compensation, but Grandma refused. I knew she kept them to ensure that I wouldn't end up with nothing in the future.Sadly, despite all Grandma's planning, she would never be able to give me that gift. She passed away before her birthday.
Meanwhile, Lu Shiyan took care of the harassment calls and messages directed at Su Ning'an, his dislike for me growing deeper.To care for Su Ning'an, he personally cooked soup, blowing on each spoonful before carefully feeding it to her. The attention he gave her was meticulous, something he could never spare for me.I, however, knew that if the man had truly intended to hurt me, this period would have been enough to erase all evidence of my existence.I was curious though—what would their faces look like when they eventually learned of my death? Would they feel a twinge of regret for how they treated me?
That night, Lu Shiyan stayed at the hospital to keep Su Ning'an company, fearing she might be triggered again.In the middle of the night, he awoke with a start, drenched in sweat."Brother, did you have a nightmare?"His sudden movement had woken Su Ning'an, and she rushed to ask.Lu Shiyan wiped the sweat from his forehead, his face as pale as death."I—I'm fine."
Su Ning'an approached him with concern. "What kind of nightmare scared you so much?"Lu Shiyan sighed, exhaustion clouding his features. "I dreamt that Su Wen had died. In the dream, she bled a lot, and she kept begging me to save her."Su Ning'an gently patted his back. "Brother, don't be afraid. Dreams are always the opposite of reality. That means Sister is doing well and is healthy."
Lu Shiyan rubbed his temples tiredly. "I've had this dream several nights in a row.""It's because you're too worried about her. If you're so concerned, why not just bring her back? Then we can all rest easy."Lu Shiyan's eyes showed signs of hesitation. "Then..."Su Ning'an smiled softly. "I hope Sister will come back soon and forgive me. I was lucky this time, but I can't always count on luck."With that, Lu Shiyan seemed to abandon the idea of going to Cloud City. He ruffled Su Ning'an's hair. "Forget it. Let her stay in Cloud City for a while longer to cool down."
The next morning, Su Ning'an's family came to take her home from the hospital.I noticed how tired my parents looked, their faces drawn and weary from sleepless nights spent worrying over Su Ning'an's health."Dad, Mom, did you not sleep well?"My mother rubbed her forehead. "It's that damned Su Wen. She's caused too much trouble lately. Now, I can't sleep at night."
"You dreamt of Su Wen?" My father turned to my mother, his expression full of surprise.Even Lu Shiyan, who had been getting ready for work, paused at the door."Yes, that damned girl. She's been pretending to be dead. Last night, I dreamt that she really died."If one person had such a dream, it could be a coincidence, but if several people had the same dream, it became strange.
Su Ning'an suddenly spoke up, her voice filled with concern. "Could it be that Sister..."Lu Shiyan interrupted her sharply. "Impossible! Su Wen can't be dead!""Brother, I didn't mean that. I was just wondering... why did Sister go to Cloud City, a place so full of cults and danger? I've heard that there are people there who use dark magic to harm others. After everything that's happened, and considering that I almost died yesterday, could it be that Sister...?"My mother slammed her hand on the table, enraged. "No wonder I haven't been able to sleep! That girl must have used some kind of curse on us!"My father quickly tried to calm her down. "Don't be ridiculous. We're family. What possible benefit could it give us to harm her? This is all superstition, don't take it seriously."
As they left with Su Ning'an, I could still hear her voice filled with drama, saying, "Mom, I was just joking. Don't take it seriously."I walked behind Lu Shiyan, watching as his face remained troubled, his mind clearly elsewhere.Things had only gotten worse. Every night, he woke in a cold sweat, startled by nightmares.My phone still couldn't be reached, and Lu Shiyan tried to fly to Cloud City, but either the flights were canceled because of the weather, or they were sold out.As Grandma's birthday approached, he reluctantly gave up on the idea of going.He and Su Ning'an's family were certain I would return for Grandma's birthday.But they were wrong. I would never return.