Chapter 288: Chapter 288

Bai Zhirui woke up. Zhang Jing immediately leaned in close, her face alight with pure joy.

"You’re awake! That’s great."

It had been a long time since Bai Zhirui had seen such simple happiness on someone’s face.

She managed a weak smile. "Am I not dead?"

"With Auntie Ning here, you definitely won’t die!" Zhang Jing tucked her in. "Auntie Ning said that with proper rehabilitation, your legs will recover to a normal state."

Suddenly, Bai Zhirui’s eyes widened, her face filled with urgency. "Auntie Ning? Are you talking about Ning Wan?"

Zhang Jing looked baffled. "You know Auntie Ning too?"

Bai Zhirui trembled all over, her speech incoherent. "She... she’s still alive?"

She thought Ning Wan, having experienced such devastating highs and lows, couldn’t have borne it and must have passed away.

"She’s a senior relative of Sister Bing and is doing very well."

Bai Zhirui’s expression went blank for a few seconds. "Can I see—"

Before she could finish, the ward door was thrust open forcefully.

CLANG! The door slammed against the wall.

Bai Zhirui’s parents charged in.

Without a word, Bai Zifeng slapped Bai Zhirui across the face.

"You jinx! It’s not enough that you crippled yourself, you got Xiaofen crippled too! I’ll beat you to death today!"

Liu Lan stood beside Bai Zifeng, showing no intention of stopping him. Her eyes simmered with resentment.

Zhang Jing didn’t react at first. But as Bai Zifeng raised his hand for a second slap, she fiercely grabbed his arm and shoved him away.

"She’s still sick! Can’t you speak to her properly?"

She had never seen such unreasonable people!

Bai Zhirui’s cheek was badly swollen. Already weak, the slap from Bai Zifeng made her see stars. Her head was buzzing, and she felt like she could faint at any moment.

Zhang Jing said angrily, "She just crawled back from Ghost Gate Pass! It’s bad enough you don’t care about her, but now you’re hitting her! If you’re here to visit, then speak politely. If you’re here to cause trouble, then get out! Or don’t blame my fists for losing their manners!"

Sister Bing had asked her to take care of Bai Zhirui. Zhang Jing didn’t ask why; she just devoted herself to the task. Thinking of how young Bai Zhirui was, already reliant on a wheelchair, made Zhang Jing’s heart ache. Honestly, if she herself couldn’t run or jump, she’d rather die!

Bai Zifeng sneered, "Who do you think you are, interfering with how I discipline my own daughter?"

"I saved her, so now she’s under my care. If you want to be rough with her, you’ll have to answer to my fists!"

"What utter nonsense! Do you even know who I am?"

"I don’t care who you are! Just get out!"

Liu Lan shrieked, "Bai Zhirui, you’d better find a way to save your brother Xiaofen! If he ends up crippled, will you still have the face to live?"

Her daughter had always overshadowed her son, forcing him to live in her shadow. Finally, with her daughter crippled, her son had a chance to display his talents. She never thought this jinx would also drag her son down!

Bai Zhirui struggled to suppress waves of nausea, each stronger than the last. She looked at Bai Zifeng and Liu Lan with a cold gaze. Any affection she had for them had long since been worn away during the year of her disability.

She had given so much for the Bai Family. Yet, after they learned she couldn’t stand, they called her a good-for-nothing, called her trash! They even berated her for managing to cripple herself doing something as simple as jumping off a building! If it weren’t for them, how could she have become so utterly dejected?

"If you want to save him, fine!" Bai Zhirui said icily. "Transfer all of the Bai Family’s shares to me!"

Hearing this, Bai Zifeng raised his hand to strike her again.

Zhang Jing glared at him coldly.

Bai Zifeng’s arm still throbbed from where Zhang Jing had twisted it, so he reluctantly lowered his hand, cursing maliciously, "Bai Fen is your brother! It’s only natural for you to save him."

"And what about me? Why don’t you think it’s only natural for him to save me?"

"You’re a woman. You’ll be married off sooner or later," Liu Lan retorted without thinking.

Once, Bai Zhirui could bring attention and value to the Bai Family; she was their precious darling. The task of bringing glory to the Bai Family fell to her, and Bai Zhirui worked hard out in the world. Meanwhile, they gave everything to Bai Fen, coddling him. When Bai Zhirui became disabled, their first reaction wasn’t displeasure. Instead, they sought to maximize the benefits from her disability and promote the son they had always doted on!

Zhang Jing felt her scalp tingle with disgust and immediately shooed the shameless couple away.

Peace returned to the hospital room.

Zhang Jing muttered, "People who favor sons over daughters are truly disgusting!"

Her own family favored sons over daughters. They would beat and scold her at the slightest provocation. She had learned martial arts for self-protection. Many of the women in Fu Family Food Records had also been harmed by such patriarchal values and domestic violence. She hadn’t expected Bai Zhirui to be in the same situation.

Zhang Jing comforted her, "Don’t pay any mind to those who don’t love you. Once you’ve recovered, I’ll take you to Jiangcheng to meet our sisters. They’re doing very well after escaping their families."

As she spoke, she opened the lunchbox. "Taste this. Aunt Zhang made it; it’s delicious."

Bai Zhirui had no appetite at all. But when Zhang Jing opened the lunchbox and arranged the dishes, the aroma of the food instantly made her mouth water, and she swallowed.

Zhang Jing placed the spoon in her hand. "Aunt Zhang’s cooking is exceptional; she’ll definitely nurse you back to health and have you looking plump and rosy!"

Bai Zhirui took a bite of the braised pork. It melted in her mouth without being greasy. Beside it, there was also a small dish of pickled vegetables.

She tentatively tried a bite. The flavor was excellent. It lacked the usual overpowering, pungent sourness of pickled vegetables; instead, the acidity was more like a natural tartness from the vegetables themselves, making it absolutely delicious. The chicken was also tender and savory.

Before she knew it, Bai Zhirui had eaten more than half. It was the first time in her life she’d eaten so much. In the past, she had always been restricted from eating too much; food was never a pleasure for her. During the year of her disability, she had found it even harder to eat properly.

Zhang Jing watched her with sparkling eyes. "Isn’t it delicious? Aunt Zhang came all the way from Jiangcheng because Auntie Ning is treating you, and with no one to look after Sister Bing, she came specially."

Bai Zhirui put down her bowl. "Are there many people who like Fu Bing?"

"Of course! Sister Bing is such a wonderful person; naturally, tons of people like her." Zhang Jing, realizing her words weren’t quite accurate, added, "Actually, I should say many people *love* her!"

Come to think of it, there was no deep-seated hatred between her and Fu Bing. She was merely jealous. Jealous that Fu Bing, already an exceptionally talented and glamorous superstar, still used her celebrity status to encroach upon the medical field, taking opportunities from others. They, on the other hand, worked so hard, studying medicine day and night. Yet Fu Bing effortlessly obtained the qualifications they had struggled with all their might to achieve. While jealous, she also felt a hidden thread of envy. She envied people like Fu Bing, who could do everything so well...

"Thank Sister Bing for me. I’ll give her everything that belongs to the Bai Family." Tʜe source of this ᴄontent ɪs NoveIＦire.net

Instead of looking pleased, Zhang Jing gazed at her with worry. "After you give the Bai Family to Sister Bing, are you planning to die?"

Her thoughts exposed, Bai Zhirui said nothing.

"I know you’re prejudiced against Sister Bing, and I won’t try to change your mind. I love Sister Bing dearly. If one day I could save her by giving my life, I wouldn’t hesitate for a second. In my heart, Sister Bing is a truly, truly wonderful person."

"Aunt Zhang, the others, and I were in the same prison as Sister Bing, though we didn’t live together. None of us had family who loved us. After we got out, we had nowhere to go."

"It was Sister Bing who gave us a place to stay and showed us a way to support ourselves."

"We can’t alleviate Sister Bing’s burdens, so we can only do what little we can. Aunt Zhang doesn’t have other skills, so she used her cooking talent to open a shop. She takes in sisters newly released from prison, giving them a sanctuary when they’re lost and confused."

"And because she cares about Sister Bing, she left her shop again to come take care of her."

"It’s because of Sister Bing that we feel there’s still warmth in this world."