Volume 1, Chapter 66: Can You Forgive the Second Brother Once?

After Lu Ning sent the message, she didn't wait for a reply.

Looking at their chat interface, she felt for a moment that something had changed, yet she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She seemed to have grown accustomed to Ji Chiqian's presence beside her.

During her rebirth, at her most helpless and painful moments, it was Ji Chiqian who had appeared by her side, holding up an umbrella for her and shielding her from the wind and rain outside. He was both a mentor and a friend, and her feelings toward him had undergone a subtle shift.

With him gone these past few days, Lu Ning unexpectedly felt irritated and found herself longing to see him.

Sensing that her emotions were somewhat out of hand, she decided to head downstairs to buy some things to distract herself.

However, just as she had purchased some snacks, a car on the roadside pulled up and honked twice.

Lu Ning turned her head and saw her second older brother, Lu Nanfeng.

The expression on her face faded slightly. "Are you having me watched?"

"Ningning, this is City A. Finding your whereabouts is only a matter of time."

Lu Nanfeng's gaze was somewhat complicated. She had to admit that finding Lu Ning had cost him quite a bit of effort. That school doctor named Ji Chiqian had a very unusual background, but so far, investigation efforts had yielded nothing.

Guarding vigilance flashed in the depths of Lu Ning's eyes. "What do you want to say?"

"Ningning, I mean no harm. The exam results are about to come out. I'm just concerned about you. After all, filling out college applications is a very important matter."

Remembering her past life, Lu Ning recalled the scene where her second brother had agreed with the sixth brother's suggestion to make her apply to a tier-three college alongside Qin Xiang.

A mocking expression surfaced on her face. "There's no need. I can manage on my own."

"Ningning, don't throw a tantrum at a critical moment like this. Don't gamble with your own future, okay?"

Lu Nanfeng blocked her path, wearing a deeply earnest expression. "I specially hired a teacher to help you and Xiangxiang fill out your applications..."

"Enough! Are you ever not annoying?"

Lu Ning had reached the limit of her patience. "Second Brother, do you people never understand what others are saying? Is what I just said so hard to comprehend? I hate most of all this facade of yours—acting like it's for my own good while using it to emotionally blackmail me!"

Looking as though he had been deeply wounded, Lu Nanfeng turned pale and said, "I—I didn't mean it that way."

"It's better if you didn't. Please stay away from me!"

Lu Ning turned to leave, but a dull thump sounded from behind her as Lu Nanfeng collapsed directly onto the ground.

Lu Ning stood in place, hesitating whether or not to step forward.

The driver supported Lu Nanfeng and spoke loudly to Lu Ning, "The boss's stomach ulcer has been acting up for a long time, but he simply refuses to go to the hospital for treatment. I'm afraid something major will happen if this drags on."

Lu Ning noticed the blood at the corner of her second brother's mouth.

Irritated, she walked over and helped the driver get Lu Nanfeng into the car.

Just as she was about to leave, her second brother grabbed her hand tightly, refusing to let go, and said weakly, "Ningning, don't go. Second Brother was truly wrong."

Lu Ning's mood turned extremely complicated. "You should hurry to the hospital."

"Ningning, can you stay with Second Brother?"

Lu Nanfeng still refused to let go, his gaze carrying a plea.

From the side, the driver urged anxiously, "Eldest Miss, please accompany the boss to the hospital. His condition really can't be delayed any longer."

In the end, Lu Ning was pushed into the car by the driver.

Sitting in the passenger seat, she kept a stony face and remained silent.

A smile touched Lu Nanfeng's lips. "Ningning, it's been so long since you've had a proper chat with Second Brother."

Lu Ning spoke coldly, "Didn't you have Qin Xiang keeping you company? There's no need for me to be here at all."

It had always been like that in the past.

"Cough, cough, cough. It's not like that. You and Xiangxiang are different. We are biological siblings; to me, you are the most important one."

Lu Nanfeng coughed and spat out blood.

Unable to watch any longer, Lu Ning handed over a tissue.

Lu Nanfeng displayed a comforted expression. "I knew Ningning still holds this second brother of hers in her heart."

Lu Ning turned her head to look out the window, finding the whole thing deeply ironic.

In the past, she had desperately wanted to gain her brothers' attention, to be seen and to be acknowledged. She had given everything in her previous life and received nothing. In this lifetime, she no longer cared about any of it, yet her second brother had chosen to entangle himself with her instead.

People were truly pathetic creatures.

After the car arrived at the hospital, Lu Nanfeng was taken inside for examinations.

Lu Ning wanted to leave, but a doctor stopped her. "You're a family member of the patient, right? You should persuade Mr. Lu. His stomach condition requires continuous medication and treatment; otherwise, it could deteriorate into stomach cancer."

Lu Ning's expression was indifferent. "If he doesn't care about his own body, who else can make decisions for him?"

"Lu Ning, are those even human words? Second Brother's body ended up like this—wasn't it all for our sake?"

Lu Liu and Qin Xiang rushed over hurriedly.

Lu Ning tossed the medical record straight into Lu Liu's arms. "Is emotional blackmail your default setting? If you're so filial, how come you didn't even know Second Brother was this sick? What kind of younger brother are you? You spend every single day together, yet you didn't notice his condition getting worse?"

Lu Liu was left speechless, completely stumped. "That—that's because I wasn't paying attention."

"What a great 'not paying attention.' Instead of wasting time making excuses, you'd better spend it persuading Second Brother to see a doctor and take his medicine."

Having finished giving them a piece of her mind, Lu Ning turned and walked straight out of the hospital.

Lu Liu felt a sharp pain in his chest from anger. "Lu Ning is getting more and more insufferable."

Qin Xiang also harbored a knot of frustration in her heart. "Sixth Brother, Sister Ningning is a popular livestreamer on Douxia, and she's so good at gaming too. Of course she has something to back up her attitude."

"Hmph, no matter how much backing she has, she's still a member of the Lu family. Don't worry, I have a contract signed by Lu Ning in my hands. If she pushes me too far, I'll make sure she never gets ahead in this lifetime."

Qin Xiang's eyes lit up. "What kind of contract?"

Could there actually be something holding Lu Ning back?

"Sixth Brother, where is Ningning?"

Having finished his checkup, Lu Nanfeng emerged only to find no sign of Lu Ning, and disappointment instantly surfaced in his eyes.

"Second Brother, that ungrateful wretch just left. Why are you asking about her?"

Qin Xiang walked over. "Second Brother, are you alright? I was worried to death. Why didn't you tell us your stomach condition had worsened?"

"It's nothing major."

Lu Nanfeng could not conceal the disappointment in his eyes. He had thought Lu Ning would stay, but he hadn't expected her to leave after all.

Seeing the disappointed look on Lu Nanfeng's face, Qin Xiang felt a faint sense of crisis.

Despite all the effort she had put in recently, Lu Nanfeng still cared so deeply about Lu Ning.

At that moment, Lu Nanfeng's secretary hurried over. "Boss, the client is demanding to terminate the partnership, claiming there's a problem with the software firewall we designed."

Qin Xiang chimed in, "Then hurry up and find the technical staff to fix it!"

"We've been trying to fix it all along, which is why the client is demanding to terminate the partnership."

Lu Nanfeng smiled bitterly. "The firewall component was something Ningning was in charge of."

He couldn't bring himself to ask Lu Ning for help, which was why he had kept delaying.

Lu Liu snorted coldly. "I refuse to believe we can't solve this problem without Lu Ning. Second Brother, don't worry, leave it to me to fix."

Jealousy flared in Qin Xiang's heart, and she deliberately spoke up, "Second Brother, if only I knew how to do it, I would definitely solve this problem for you."

Lu Nanfeng sighed. "It was only after Ningning left that I realized just how important she was."

Qin Xiang could barely maintain her expression any longer.

Then what about her? What was she supposed to be?