Chapter 505: Chapter 505

As soon as Fan Xiuying entered the hospital room, she saw her mother staring blankly out the window, her expression numb.

The old lady suddenly snapped back to reality, looking up to see her daughter and son-in-law.

When the old lady turned around, Fan Xiuying finally saw clearly.

It had only been seven days, but the changes in the old lady were indeed significant—she seemed to have aged decades at once.

Her hair was already white, and the wrinkles on her face made one’s heart ache incessantly. Although there wasn’t much change in terms of weight, her eyes revealed a complex mix of emotions.

Fan Xiuying rushed over and hugged the old lady tightly.

At the moment the old lady saw her daughter, all the feigned strength and endurance of the past few days finally broke down.

Holding her daughter tightly, she burst into tears.

"Xiuying, Xiuying, your dad is gone. My heart is aching to death. Your dad finally got to enjoy a few days in the city, only to end up gone . Your dad was protecting me. When we fell into that pit, your dad was scared of something happening to me.

He held onto me desperately, hitting the ground first himself. Otherwise, your dad couldn’t have passed. It was me who dragged him down, I hurt your dad."

The old lady, remembering how her husband shielded her when they fell into that hole, knew if it weren’t for him protecting her all along.

She would not have escaped uninjured when falling to the bottom of the pit.

Instead, it was her husband who hit the ground, vomiting blood and fainting immediately. She knew then it couldn’t be good.

But there was no medicine or doctor there, and she couldn’t get out.

By the time they saw the children, her husband was already gone.

In her heart, she felt guilty, believing she had harmed her husband.

Fan Xiuying’s heart sank, "Mom, what are you saying? My dad is gone?"

At first, she had these worries, thinking her parents might face some health issues being stranded on the mountain due to their age. But after asking Jiang Xiao, she was relieved.

Jiang Xiao said all five were in the hospital, and he suggested going to a certain ward to find them.

Hearing they were in a hospital made Fan Xiuying feel much more at ease; being in a hospital indicated they were alive.

As long as they were alive, there were ways to heal them. They even had ginseng at home, surely they could save their parents’ lives.

But who would have thought, upon arriving, she’d hear the news of her father’s death?

The old lady nodded tearfully.

Fan Xiuying burst into loud sobs.

Jiang Xiao felt equally heartbroken.

His father-in-law and mother-in-law were good people; who would have thought such a thing could happen to them.

Someone fine and well a few days ago was now gone—it was hard for anyone not to feel anguish.

"Mom, what exactly happened? How did this happen?"

Fan Xiuying still couldn’t grasp how her parents encountered such a fate.

If the trouble stemmed from her brother’s money, she couldn’t comprehend it. Her brother hadn’t just started as the supply and sales director.

Nothing had happened over the past couple of years, yet suddenly now there was a problem.

Moreover, their family lived modestly, in an unassuming house, without any notable visitors.

Her brother was very cautious, never loud about his affairs, and people outside hadn’t heard of any wealth in their family.

The neighbors regarded them as regular workers; no one assumed they were affluent.

How could they be targeted?

The old lady wiped her tears, saying, "The police asked us, and I’ve told them everything. We don’t know what happened exactly when your dad and I were taken; we were blindfolded, just knew they wanted money.

But before that black brute threw us into the pit, he said some things I remembered. He said they took money to resolve disasters, chastising us for not distinguishing wolves from sheep.

If there’s a next life, we should keep our eyes open. He added that women can be even crueler than men."

The old lady had pondered the meaning of those words for several days. Although she didn’t fully understand, she deduced it meant a woman paid to harm them.

What grudge or hatred could this woman possibly hold against their family?

Fan Xiuying was stunned at these words too.

Paid to take the lives of her parents?

They had no enemies like that.

After comforting the old lady, the couple visited Jiang Xiaoxiao and her brother’s hospital room.

Fan Jianguo looked alright, though somewhat scruffy; having just emerged from the pit, unwashed and unkempt, it was unsurprising!

But at least he was uninjured.

However, when the siblings discussed their father’s death, they broke down sobbing.

When Fan Xiuying saw Jiang Xiaoxiao and Song Moting, seeing her daughter, she held Jiang Xiaoxiao in a mix of sadness and anger.

Sadness because, without Jiang Xiaoxiao and Song Moting, not only might her father have been lost, her mother’s survival would be uncertain.

Anger because the child hadn’t even completed her confinement period yet, but she secretly ran up the mountain alone.

Did she realize staying in that pit for a week might leave her with lasting ailments?

If a woman develops issues during confinement, she’ll suffer in old age.

How could she scold her daughter?

Her child genuinely loved her grandparents, and if not, why would she have done such a thing?

Fan Xiuying cried her heart out holding Jiang Xiaoxiao.

Jiang Xiao praised his son-in-law extensively.

After the crying, talking was over.

Then, Fan Jianfeng and his wife arrived at the hospital.

Upon hearing the shocking news, they were also subdued; the old lady and second brother survived, but the old man was gone.

The funeral had to be arranged.

Once their health improved slightly, the police took statements.

Given the elderly couple’s disappearance, leading to their kidnapping, it was a matter impossible to conceal.

This was a major case.

Up until now, all the leads had been cut off; many of the culprits were dead or wounded.

The mastermind, Brother Yong, had vanished without a trace.

These people were street-savvy, frequent visitors to the station, rather slick, refusing to confess.

They wouldn’t reveal who ordered them nor the specifics of the situation.

The primary reason was the police met staunch resistance during the arrest, killing several.

Ironically, those killed were the chief leaders; the underlings had no knowledge of the plan, knowing neither the mastermind nor the details, leaving the captured grunts unable to elucidate anything.

Though these individuals were sentenced, with the conspirator missing and the mastermind undiscovered, this case became a cold case.