“Dr. Jiang, Dr. Jiang…”

Inside an office, a petite nurse began vigorously shaking a woman sleeping on the desk. The woman seemed to be in a deep slumber as she did not respond to the shaking.

“Dr. Jiang, hurry up and wake up!”

In fact, Jiang Tingxu’s consciousness had been awake for some time, but she could not open her eyes. It was as if something was preventing her from doing so.

The petite nurse seemed to be rather anxious. Jiang Tingxu tried her best to fully awaken her consciousness and she soon felt her entire body being shaken.

Hiss—

Did that nurse have to shake her as though she was a dice?

Jiang Tingxu finally opened her eyes:

“What is it now? Have the enemies invaded again?” her tone seemed quite irritated.

The little nurse paused.

“It’s more terrifying than an enemy invasion. Abbess Miejue1 from the Thoracic Surgery Department is looking for you. She wants you to go to her office immediately.”

Abbess Miejue?

Hold up…

Her initially lazy expression became formal suddenly and his gaze sharpened at that moment.

She quickly scanned her surroundings. ‘What? What is going on?

‘Am I dreaming?’

Jiang Tingxu hardly had any time to consider that question, as the little nurse had spoken out again.

“Please hurry, Dr. Jiang. Abbess Miejue hates it when people are late. Don’t wait until she shows up here!

“Ahem, there are patients outside, so I’ll go out first.”

“Okay.”

Jiang Tingxu might have looked calm on the surface, but deep down, a turbulence was building up in her heart.

The scene before her was simultaneously familiar yet foreign. She felt some pain when she pinched herself on the thigh.

Did she travel back in time?

Back to 10 years ago?

…

About five minutes later, Jiang Tingxu was already in the elevator heading to the Thoracic Surgery Department. If one looked closely, one would notice that her eyes were filled with profound emotion.

…

Ding!

It was the sound of the elevator door opening.

She had reached the Thoracic Surgery Department!

“Phew—”

At that moment, Jiang Tingxu took a few deep breaths before lifting her feet and stepping out of the elevator. Her body began trembling uncontrollably and her eyes became blurry.

Someone then waved their palm in front of her eyes. “Little Jiang? Huh, what’s wrong?”

Jiang Tingxu looked up when she heard that sound. Once she had a clear look at the person in front of her, she nearly exclaimed out loud, “Professor?”

He was dressed in scrubs, had a smile on his face, and wore the same pair of black-framed glasses that he used for decades. That getup had long been a trademark of his.

“Are you that surprised to see me? If I remember correctly, didn’t we just meet yesterday? Or am I mistaken?”

‘Errr, no.’

Jiang Tingxu gulped. “Ah, you remembered correctly, Professor. I just thought of something else.”

The old man laughed again.

“Alright. You’re looking for Abbess Miejue?”

‘Gasp—

‘Professor, did you just call your last disciple Abbess Miejue behind her back?’

“Mm, yes.”

“Then you’d better not go in there. I just came out and Abbess is still angry at me. It’s like she ignores the fact that I’m her master. You might end up being roasted to a crisp if you go in.”

Jiang Tingxu’s heartbeat quickened slightly when she heard what the old professor said. Who told her to be so afraid of Aunt Wen since she was a child?

In hindsight, would there ever be a little kid who did not fear doctors?

It had undoubtedly cast a shadow over her psyche!

However, Jiang Tingxu was more than willing to bear the brunt of Aunt Wen’s anger if the latter really was going to chastise her. In fact, she was actually eager to go in and subject herself to the admonishment.

“You must be busy, Professor. Let’s talk again when we have the time. I’ll head in first.”

Jiang Tingxu’s tone sounded rather urgent, and she had already walked past the old man as soon as she completed her words. He could only watch on while his lips twitched.

Jiang Tingxu stood at the door to the office of the Thoracic Surgery Department’s chief. She patted her own face several times before knocking.

Knock, knock…

“Come in.”

It was that familiar voice!

Upon hearing that sound, Jiang Tingxu grinned suddenly as her eyes slowly turned red.

As soon as she went in, her gaze immediately landed on the person sitting behind the desk. The woman was still as unsmiling as ever!

“Aunt Wen!”

Jiang Tingxu thought that she could control her tears, but they trickled down her cheeks all the way to the ground.

“Why are you crying? I didn’t even scold you. Are you feeling guilty?”

Despite her words, she had already stood up and walked over.

That very moment, Jiang Tingxu cried out even louder. “Aunt Wen… Aunt Wen!”

At long last, Aunt Wen was neither cold nor was she in the form of ashes contained within that little jar!

Wen Jie was puzzled by the scene and could not figure out what was up with the girl in front of her. Was Jiang Tingxu actually crying?

From what Wen Jie remembered, Jiang Tingxu maintained a cold expression and shed no tears even when her father passed away in an accident.

Those tears had all but extinguished the blazing flames of anger in Wen Jie’s heart. She stretched out her hand and gently embraced the girl by the shoulders.

“Yes, I’m here.”

Jiang Tingxu held Wen Jie tightly. Her strength was like someone desperately trying to hold on to something that must never be let go because it felt as though she was bound to lose everything in front of her as soon as she loosened his strength.

It went on for some time, and Wen Jie could clearly feel that the tears had soaked her white coat and another layer of clothing inside.

“What’s happened? Tell me! Did someone in the Emergency Department bully you?”

Jiang Tingxu continued to cry, but she snorted and chuckled after hearing Wen Jie’s words. The tumultuous emotions of earlier had finally dissipated.

“No, nothing happened and no one bullied me. I just haven’t seen you for a while and I miss you.”

As the saying went, flattery worked every single time!

Jiang Tingxu was elated to see Aunt Wen, but there were some things that were better kept for herself.

It would suffice as long as she took good care of Aunt Wen in her current life and prevent whatever that happened to Aunt Wen in the past as a result of her own actions.

Wen Jie sighed.

“You… I was so mad at you earlier. You’ll become an attending physician very soon after getting your medical license and completing your one year of medical training. Why did you resign? Your resignation letter wasn’t approved by the chief of your department and was sent to me instead. Tell me, what’s going on exactly? Why did you resign when everything was going so well? Is it because of that guy from the Mo family?”

As she asked that last question, there was a marked hostility in Wen Jie’s tone and she was practically gnashing her teeth.

“I just don’t understand. What’s so good about him? Is it worth it for you to do this for him? I really regret everything. I should’ve stopped them firmly when they came to take you last time. All this bad stuff wouldn’t’ve happened otherwise!”

Wen Jie and Papa Jiang were childhood sweethearts and grew up in the ghettos together. Sadly, they were later separated when Wen Jie furthered her studies in a university outside the province and Papa Jiang joined the army.

Nearly a decade passed before the two of them met again.

At that time, they were both divorced and had a child of their own, though one thing led to another, and ended up getting together over time.

It was a pity that their happy days lasted only briefly, as Papa Jiang died suddenly in an accident sometime later.

That was when the Mo family came.

They were ruthless, and resisting was futile because Wen Jie did not manage to get a marriage certificate with Papa Jiang in time.

A transfer at work forced Wen Jie to leave with the children and come to Yun City.

She had no idea that the person who picked up Jiang Tingxu at that time was the Mo family—the highest-ranked elite family in Yun City!

Wen Jie only learned about it after Jiang Tingxu went to university and the two of them met again by chance on campus.

Unfortunately, it was already too late by the time she knew about everything.

Regardless, she was still Jiang Tingxu’s mother even though she was only a stepmother!

Which mother would be willing to see her daughter give up her bright future for the sake of a man?

Moreover, her daughter had sacrificed far too much for that Mo family man during those years.

Her early twenties were supposed to be the time when she could enjoy the best years of her life, but she had gotten married and had a child before even graduating from university.

That was not all—Jiang Tingxu was so madly obsessed with him that she was willing to do practically anything for him.

However, the man turned out to be a very irresponsible person. For years, he had never taken the liberty to enquire about Jiang Tingxu and hardly ever went home. Then there was the occasional scandal that circulated in the public.

As a mother, it would not have mattered as much to Wen Jie if she was completely oblivious to it, but it was difficult for her not to gnash her teeth and resent all that had happened once she found out!

“Don’t worry, Aunt Wen. My judgment used to be clouded, but it’s all clear to me now. I won’t ever hurt you again for the sake of that man!”

Why would Jiang Tingxu fall back and repeat the same mistakes again after getting another chance at life?

She recalled her past experience where she either fell into the sea and almost drowned after stowing away on a ship, or was bombed to bits and pieces.

Would she do it a third time when she had already experienced it twice?

Certainly not!

“Are you sure?”

Aunt Wen was evidently still suspicious, not least because Jiang Tingxu had frequently done too many things to disappoint the people who cared for her.

“I’m a hundred and one percent sure. I’ll deal with my relationship with the Mo family as soon as possible. Trust me, Aunt Wen!”

Cough.

Wen Jie was still dumbfounded, but there was nothing more she could say after Jiang Tingxu’s show of conviction.

“As long as you know what’s important. It’s not like you have to do anything to the Mo family. No matter how you look at it, you’ve been married to him for many years. Let me offer you some advice. You shouldn’t just give up everything you have for a man. If you do that, you might eventually end up with nothing at all!”

‘Exactly. Truer words have never been spoken. Back then, I ended up with nothing, didn’t I?

‘Not even ashes were left after death!

‘Heh—’

“Mm, I’ll listen to what you say, Aunt Wen. You couldn’t have said it better.”

Wen Jie’s solemn expression, which had been molded through decades of her professional career, finally broke.

“Alright then, I called you here to talk about this, but since you’ve already figured things out, I’ll explain it to your chief. Now head back to the Emergency Department and fulfill your duties. Don’t think too much about anything else.”

The hospital was always a busy place.

…

Ding!

Jiang Tingxu stood in the elevator again. Her demeanor had changed completely compared to before. She felt as though she had reached enlightenment and everything was crystal clear to her!

After all, she had just experienced actual death!

There were actually many things that she had already understood, but all of it was simply hanging on her last thoughts. Now that those last thoughts no longer existed, it was only natural for her to come out a completely changed person.

Boom!

A loud roar of thunder startled many people.

Jiang Tingxu was so shocked that she held her arms close to her body and chanted silently in her heart,　’Almighty God is most powerful. Let’s talk about this, okay? As they say, things get easier the second time. This is our third transaction with each other, right? Can’t you let me die of ripe old age this time?’

‘Umm…’

God did not respond at all after waiting for some time.

“Okay. I’ll take Your silence as acceptance! Don’t regret it, whoever regrets it is a sore loser!” she remarked, while silently gesturing by pointing her middle finger downward.

After waiting for some time, God still remained completely silent.

There were plenty of things that she no longer wanted to keep score of, but she was adamant about her decision not to spare those who harmed Aunt Wen and the others!

Although she was once a sweet and naïve young woman, spending 10 years in the battlefield did not make her a Holy Mary.

Jiang Tingxu smirked coldly when she went out of the elevator.

Little did she expect a huge surprise to be waiting for her.

…

The nurse at the triage desk stopped her just as she walked into the emergency room. “Dr. Jiang, over here! Someone is looking for you!”

Someone was looking for her?

She looked over and staggered back in shock after seeing the small figure standing next to the triage desk.

Why was it him?

Hiss—

The little figure then walked over solemnly and stood straight in front of Jiang Tingxu. His expression was as arrogant as could be.

“Jiang Tingxu. Where have you been? I’ve been waiting for you for a long time, you know?” A cutesy childlike voice sounded even more adorable with that hint of arrogance.

As a military doctor with more than 10 years’ experience, Jiang Tingxu had calmed herself down in just a few seconds.

“What did you call me?” she asked in a rather flat tone. She appeared not to speak in as warm a tone as other mothers speaking to their child.

The little kid was exactly the same as she remembered. He took after his father from head to toe and was far from the definition of cute!

She seemed to finally understand the disgust her own mother felt. The little figure was so angry that both his cheeks were red.

“Humph!” He snorted coldly and did not even greet her.

Jiang Tingxu did not really take issue with how the kid addressed her. His height barely even reached her thighs and she glanced condescendingly at him.

“Come with me,” she ordered, as she lifted her feet and left without waiting for the child to answer.

It was his choice whether to follow or not. This is a mid-grade elixir.

That little guy was smart, and there were no shortages of bodyguards around him to protect him.

It just so happened that no one else was in the office. Jiang Tingxu sat on a chair while the small figure leaned against the door and scanned the entire office.

“Out with it. Why did you come here? And at this time too. Shouldn’t you be in class? Or did you skip class?”