Chapter Sixteen: Take Good Care of Mother

“Of course I can come,” Xiao Li said, looking at her—her sister who now seemed completely unfamiliar.

Fu Luoning glanced at her once, then turned and walked away.

“I know you’ve come many times,” Xiao Li’s voice sounded behind her. “Every time you stand outside the door but never step inside.”

Fu Luoning pressed her lips tightly.

“You were there the day Mom went into surgery, weren’t you?” Xiao Li slowly approached her. “It was because of you that we were able to get into this hospital and receive such advanced medical treatment, wasn’t it?”

Fu Luoning was silent for a moment. She turned to look at Xiao Li. The sister she remembered was a beautiful, warm-hearted girl who often had a smile on her lips.

But now, from fifteen to twenty-four years old—nine whole years—she could only see Xiao Li’s exhaustion and weariness.

“Take good care of Mom.”

Fu Luoning said this and strode away.

Xiao Jin watched her retreating figure without turning back, biting her lip as tears slipped down her cheeks.

Back then, it was hard even to see a specialist at the hospital; they crowded into a large ward to care for their frail mother.

Lin Manshuang was ready to give up treatment. Her illness had already burdened what was once a modestly comfortable family. She wanted to end her life, but how could Xiao Jin and Xiao Li bear it?

They had already lost one sister, then their father.

They could not lose their mother too.

In despair, a new hope appeared.

A representative from a charitable foundation had found them by chance and began offering aid.

They came to Shengjing City, to this high-end private hospital, unlike their previous noisy, crowded hospital where seeing a doctor was a struggle. Their mother, undergoing chemotherapy, had a private VIP ward.

Both Xiao Jin and Xiao Li were puzzled. Could things really be this good?

They often heard nurses whispering that a VIP ward cost nearly two hundred thousand yuan a month. There was even Director Li, a formidable doctor who had returned from abroad to serve as chief physician...

Yet here they were, siblings who couldn’t even afford brand-name clothes, able to come to such a hospital.

Suspicion... doubt... hostility...

Xiao Li and Xiao Jin had seen a lot of this.

But Lin Manshuang’s condition truly improved and stabilized significantly.

So they slowly came to accept it.

Then Xiao Jin discovered Fu Luoning secretly visiting.

At first, she didn’t believe it until she saw it with her own eyes.

She saw Director Li escorting her away, or saw her stepping down from a luxury car at the hospital, then hiding to secretly watch.

Often with reddened eyes, a worried expression...

“Where is she?” Xiao Jin hurried over, leaving only Xiao Li behind.

“She’s already gone,” Xiao Li said, staring at the empty doorway.

“What... did you say to each other?”

“Nothing much,” Xiao Li wiped away a tear. “But she told me to take good care of Mom.”

“Luoning has always been silently supporting us,” Xiao Jin said with a dry voice. “But our family has been ungrateful to her.”

Xiao Li sobbed, crouching on the floor.

Xiao Jin stroked her sister’s head, glanced at the medical report in her hand, and said, “But you have to say thank you.”

After leaving the hospital, Fu Luoning exhaled deeply. She looked up at the sky, blinking, when her phone rang.

It was Qin Zhaoqing.

“Hey, girl,” his tone lifted playfully. “Stayed home a few days, time to get out, right?”

Fu Luoning smiled. “Wanna have dinner together?”

“Sure, I won’t go home first then. Where?”

Fu Luoning opened the car door, thinking for a moment. “Let’s go to your place.”

Qin Zhaoqing agreed. “Alright, I’ll bring some food back—how about our usual spicy seafood?”

“Sounds good. See you soon.”

Fu Luoning and Qin Zhaoqing lived in the same building, neighbors above and below. She went home to grab a bottle of fruit wine, just as Qin Zhaoqing was opening the door.

He looked at her outfit. “Out tonight?”

“Went to the hospital,” Fu Luoning said, closing the door behind her.

Qin Zhaoqing considered. “How’s Aunt Lin’s health?”

“Pretty good. Spirit and condition are both quite stable.”

Fu Luoning arranged the food on plates, Qin Zhaoqing poured the wine. The faint fruity aroma tempted her, and she couldn’t resist taking a sip. The subtle sweetness made her smile as she looked at him.

“Not bad at all. No wonder you know how to drink.”

Fu Luoning was indeed a bit hungry and began eating. They chatted casually when suddenly Fu Luoning remembered something.

“You sponsored DN Liming?”

Qin Zhaoqing nodded, pausing. “Will that cause any problems? I sponsored under my personal name.”

Fu Luoning smiled sincerely, raising her glass. “Thank you.”

Qin Zhaoqing sighed in relief. “I was worried you might have something going on and that my sponsorship would get in the way.”

“Thanks!” Fu Luoning raised an eyebrow. “But why did you decide to sponsor?”

“I saw Shan Yue and Fang Xue busy with DN Liming’s affairs, and then you successfully acquired shares. I checked and found that the glory days of that radio station company were long gone. You still invested, so I figured you must have a plan and wanted to help a bit.”

Fu Luoning smiled.

“Later I found out Xiao Jin was involved. You didn’t buy in just for your brother, did you?”

“Yes and no,” Fu Luoning sipped her wine. “Because of Mom’s illness, we came to Shengjing. It wasn’t easy for him to find a job at the TV station. DN Liming is no longer what it once was. Despite his good standards, he could only be a night-time anchor because he couldn’t attract sponsors, and he even faced the risk of layoffs...”

“You could have sponsored him... or pushed him to a prime-time anchor spot.”

“Eventually, he’d find out,” Fu Luoning reflected. “But DN Liming is mine now. I’m not just helping him.”

“What if he asks you?”

“If the chance comes, I’ll tell him. Business is business. The losses are mine.”

Qin Zhaoqing laughed heartily, nodding repeatedly.

——

At the Guanyun Golf Club,

Fu Luoning arrived early and had hit several shots when Fang Xue, finding a moment, came over to tell her the president of DN Liming and some directors had arrived.

Taking the water handed to her by the caddy, she glanced toward the VIP lounge behind her. Its panoramic glass revealed several people standing neatly inside, their gazes fixed on her.

“President Fu.”

As she entered, the group bowed their heads in greeting.

Fu Luoning settled into a single sofa. The attendant brought her a warm towel, which she took to wipe her face, her eyes scanning the group.

“Sit down.”

Though much younger than them, her steely aura was undiminished. She said nothing; neither did they.

After a moment, Fu Luoning asked, “Nothing to say?”

Shen Qi, the current acting CEO of the broadcasting company, pulled several sheets of paper from his briefcase.

“President Fu, the company has received two resignation letters from directors.”