Reborn with the ability to read minds, I became a heartthrob.

In her hazy dream, Zhou Liwan seemed to return to the age of five, when she was abducted by human traffickers and locked in a suitcase to avoid being caught by the "Skynet" network.

In the small, enclosed space, the air could not circulate, and before fainting from lack of oxygen, his nasal cavity was filled with the sour smell of meat that had been suffocating for a long time.

Disgusting.

"Goodness, goodness..."

A concerned voice seemed to be urgently calling out to me from afar.

Zhou Liwan slowly opened her eyes, and a blinding white light greeted her.

"Drip-drip-"

The sound of the machines made the ward feel incredibly quiet.

When Jiang Hongshan saw his beloved granddaughter wake up, he quickly and carefully stroked her forehead, asking anxiously, "My darling is awake. How are you feeling now?"

Zhou Liwan stared blankly at the familiar face before her, her almond-shaped eyes suddenly filling with tears.

I realized that it had been many years since I had seen my grandfather or spoken to him.

In her past life, she was afraid of making her father angry, so no matter how many times the old man with the white beard called her, she never answered.

Even when he came to the Zhou family home full of hope, bringing a whole bunch of his favorite snacks, she coldly left him in the living room for more than two hours.

Just imagining it makes you realize how disappointed and sad this seemingly simple-minded old man must have felt at that moment.

I was practically inhuman back then.

"Grandpa, Grandpa..." Zhou Liwan's eyes were burning, her nose was blocked, and she couldn't breathe for a moment. She wished she could slap herself twice. "Grandpa, I was wrong, I was really wrong. Will you forgive me?"

Seeing his beloved granddaughter crying uncontrollably, Jiang Hongshan felt as if his heart was being torn apart. He trembled as he gently wiped away the tears on Zhou Liwan's face and coaxed her, "Don't cry, sweetie. What could you have done wrong? My sweetie is the best sweetie in the world, and Grandpa's favorite doll."

My dear little pig, even if you make a terrible mistake, Grandpa will unconditionally cover for you, as long as you still want to talk to Grandpa, as long as you still want to talk to this old man.

Hearing these words, Zhou Liwan cried even harder, her eyes red and swollen, gasping for breath.

Oh my goodness, it breaks my heart. I really want to hug her, but I guess she doesn't like being close to this old man.

Faced with his granddaughter crying uncontrollably, Jiang Hongshan, who seemed a little flustered, didn't expect that the next second his granddaughter would throw herself into his arms. His heart softened instantly, as if it had melted into a puddle of water.

Aside from being close to him when she was little, his granddaughter has refused to be close to him since she was rescued from Gouba Village by the police.

He originally thought she resented him for not rescuing her from human traffickers in time, and for making her suffer for so many years for no reason.

Surprisingly, she was still willing to talk to her useless grandfather.

Thinking of this, Jiang Hongshan's eyes reddened.

"Grandpa, I want to eat the jelly you bought." Zhou Liwan said in a soft, coquettish voice.

Back then, my grandfather must have bought a lot of his favorite yellow peach jelly.

Jiang Hongshan smiled, reached out and placed his hand on Zhou Liwan's head, stroking it affectionately for a moment: "Okay, you can have as many as you want, Grandpa will buy them for you."

"Mmm." Zhou Liwan smiled sweetly.

"Wanwan!" Zhou Jianguo anxiously pushed open the ward door and strode to the bedside, instantly disrupting the warm atmosphere in the ward.

He was followed by his assistant, who was carrying a briefcase, making it clear at a glance that he had just returned from a business trip and rushed over.

Zhou Jianguo received the notification as soon as he got off the plane, cursed under his breath, and went straight to the hospital.

What a bunch of brainless idiots, always getting themselves into trouble.

He can't afford to offend that old fox Jiang Hongshan right now. The Zhou family is facing a crucial moment in its IPO, and they can't do without Jiang's support.

Zhou Liwan's eyes were still brimming with tears. Hearing the word "Wanwan," she felt inexplicably aggrieved, and her fingers unconsciously clenched the quilt.

She stared intently at the man before her; in the play of light and shadow, his face appeared serious yet tinged with worry.

She had never seen such a look on the face of this man she called her father.

Because whether in her past life or this one, Zhou Liwan has never known what fatherly love is.

She has no memory of anything before the age of five, but since returning to the Zhou family, she seems to have rarely seen Zhou Jianguo.

He was always busy with company matters. Later, after Han Xiaofen brought Zhou Qingya into the family, the three of them became more like a family, while he was the superfluous, invisible person.

After she married Chen Jinghuai, they had no further contact and became like strangers despite being related by blood.

But all this doesn't mean she doesn't yearn for family affection; otherwise, she wouldn't have neglected her maternal grandfather to consider her father's feelings, nor would she have agreed to marry into the Zhou family in order to satisfy Han Xiaofen.

Thinking of this, Zhou Liwan's eyes were filled with both irony and sorrow.

Jiang Hongshan, on the other hand, saw his precious little one suddenly become listless, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

He couldn't stand it anymore. How could he see his precious grandson being wronged? As soon as that good-for-nothing Zhou Jianguo came, his darling got so angry. It must be because of him that his grandson was hospitalized.

He knew all along that this good-for-nothing was no good, and he was extremely unwilling to marry Xinyi back then, but he couldn't go against his precious daughter's wishes.

He had no choice but to agree, but if he had known what would happen later, he would never have agreed to their marriage, even if it meant his death.

"What's wrong with your family? How come my precious child fainted at home and there was no one to ask for help? I, the grandfather, had to step in to get him to the hospital?" Jiang Hongshan sneered and questioned sharply.

Zhou Jianguo lowered his head: "Father-in-law, there must be some misunderstanding in this matter. I will definitely find out the truth and give you and Wanwan an explanation."

"Wouldn't it be better to ask me, the person involved, what exactly happened? Dad, how much more do you want to investigate? Are you going to just drop the matter here and then never find out?" Zhou Liwan sighed softly, her tone sarcastic, but if you listened carefully, you could also hear a hint of sadness in her voice.

Zhou Jianguo was surprised that Zhou Liwan was being so direct today, but he didn't show it on his face: "Why would Wanwan think that way? If I knew someone was bullying you, I definitely wouldn't let them off easily."

“It’s Auntie.” Zhou Liwan stared quietly at Zhou Jianguo, her dark eyes hiding a hope that even she herself didn’t realize.

"what?"

"It's my aunt. She forced me to agree to let Han Xiaofen marry you, and she even made me call her 'Mom.' When I refused, she locked me in my room. My aunt knows I have claustrophobia, yet she still treats me like this. This mistress hasn't even married into the Zhou family yet, and my aunt is already siding with outsiders. If the mistress does enter the family, won't she team up with her to bully me to death?!"

"This is outrageous! I never knew the Zhou family was so domineering. Treating a lowly woman like a treasure while so disrespecting your own children. Truly remarkable! Huh?"

Zhou Jianguo bowed deeply in apology, his face grim.

"Don't worry, Wanwan, I will definitely give you an explanation for this."

After saying that, Zhou Jianguo turned and left.

After he left, the light in Zhou Liwan's eyes slowly faded. He never asked her if she was alright.

how is it now.

It was as if they were just there for a routine task, without any emotion.

I never imagined that a relationship I'd never had would be so fragile.

If that's the case, why hold onto any illusions...?

A brief silence fell over the ward. After a moment, Jiang Hongshan sighed and said with heartache, "Sweetie, let's move back to Grandpa's. Let him take care of you for the rest of your life. We'll never have to suffer like this again!"

Zhou Liwan tilted her head to look at the scenery outside the window. The sun was shining brightly and the sky was so blue. Tomorrow should also be a sunny day.

How wonderful...

It would be so wonderful to be able to live another life. I really want to agree to my grandfather's request and spend my twilight years with him.

But she can't forget; she can't forget the pain of her tragic death in her past life.

"Grandpa, it's okay. If I back down when I encounter difficulties, I will never grow up in this life. Just you wait and see, I will definitely make those who bullied me pay the price."

Hearing his grandson's words, Jiang Hongshan felt very gratified. Sure enough, he still had the blood of the Jiang family in his veins, and he had backbone and courage.

Inside Han Hyo-fen's luxury apartment.

Inside the bedroom, a middle-aged couple is doing what lovers do.

The woman's wanton moans grew louder and louder, and her methods of pleasing the man became increasingly stimulating, showing no signs that she was already over forty years old.

Zhou Jianguo took a deep drag on his cigar, then placed his left hand behind his head so he could see more clearly the woman kneeling beneath him, using her mouth to relieve his arousing sensation.

He would occasionally reach out and tease her with the hand holding the cigar.

Half an hour later, Han Xiaofen, panting, leaned against Zhou Jianguo's chest and asked sweetly, "Are you satisfied?"

Zhou Jianguo kept his eyes closed, as if he hadn't heard the ambiguous sentiment.

After a while, he coldly pushed Han Xiaofen away, sat down, and lit another cigar.

The wisps of smoke made Zhou Jianguo's face appear even more sinister: "You old bastard!"

"Jianguo, don't get angry with that old man who's about to die. It's not worth it, and it'll only hurt your health." She remembered that the old man didn't really care about Jiang's affairs anymore; it was mostly that person who handled things.

Thinking of this, Han Xiaofen cautiously probed, "I think Jiang Hongshan's adopted son is now the real decision-maker of the Jiang family. If we could let our Ya Ya marry into that family, would she still have to put up with Master Han's temper? Wouldn't the entire Jiang family change its surname to Zhou in the future?"

Zhou Jianguo silently turned his head, his gaze fixed on Han Xiaofen, his deathly silence sending chills down one's spine.

Han Xiaofen's smile was more like a grimace, and she asked tremulously, "Jianguo, wh... what's wrong?"

Zhou Jianguo's chuckle interrupted Han Xiaofen's continued: "You're quite the thinker. Do you really think Shen Nanzhou would be interested in our Qingya? Others may not know, but we know ourselves. Qingya's half-baked skills! If I hadn't spent money to open that useless, lousy psychological counseling room for her, she would still be at home doing nothing!"

Han Xiaofen immediately felt indignant and pouted, "Shen Nanzhou is just an adopted son after all, and his own status isn't that noble. Besides, Ya Ya isn't that bad."

Zhou Jianguo stubbed out his cigar in the ashtray, then stood up and headed straight for the bathroom: "Given his current methods and status, he's not someone a small company's illegitimate daughter like us can even dream of. Get your act together. You can't even handle a girl, yet you want to snag a rich husband? Stop dreaming about being fucked!"

After coming out of the bathroom, seeing that Han Xiaofen still wouldn't give up, he said with a dark face, "I told you not to think about it, so don't think about it. Don't fucking cause me any trouble."

After saying that, he changed his clothes and left.

Han Xiaofen was left naked on the bed, venting her anger with a pillow.