My Dearest General: It Has Always Been You

After hearing the news, Qiang Fei returned home two days earlier. Shi Nian, who took the day off because her fever shot up again, was surprised when she saw the woman. Before she could even open her mouth to speak. Qiang Fei had dropped her suitcase and rushed to hug her.

Her face was tinged with fatigue, dark circles below her eyes. "Niannian, are you okay?" She scanned her daughter up and down, trying to find the tiniest bit of injuries and relieved when she found none. "I have heard everything from Detective Xu. You're so bad! Such an incident happened and you don't even have a plan to tell Mama!"

Shi Nian received the scolding guiltily. "Sorry, Mama."

"Tell me, if Detective Xu didn't say anything, do you plan to never say it at all?" She touched Shi Nian's forehead anxiously. "You also got a fever! Niannian ah, why are you always like this!"

"Sorry, Mama.."

"Do you think everything can be solved just by saying—" Qiang Fei's words died down in her throat. She looked at her, dumbstruck. "You…" Tremblingly, she asked. "Did you just speak?"

"En." Shi Nian gave her a smile. "I'm sorry to make you worried."

Qiang Fei's mouth opened and closed and in the end, no words came out. She tried to take a breath but the pleasant surprise was too astonishing. She instantly burst into tears. Huge droplets of tears slid down her cheeks. "You're speaking again…you're really speaking again…"

Shi Nian's nose felt sour as she brought the woman into her embrace, hugging her thin and fragile shoulders. "Yes, I am."

It had been such a long time since Qiang Fei heard Shi Nian's voice. The last time she did was when she went to work on that fateful day. She said, "There is yesterday's curry in the refrigerator. You can heat it up for lunch and dinner. Sorry, Mama can't go home early today."

Shi Nian replied obediently as always. "Don't worry, Mama. I know what to do."

After that, she didn't receive any news from Shi Nian and only when Qiang Fei couldn't get through to her the day after did she start to panic. Subsequently, Shi Nian disappeared, leaving a portion of curry that hadn't been eaten yet.

Three months later, she got the news from the police that Shi Nian had been found. At the same time, the doctor told her to prepare herself for the worst because the chance for her to survive was abysmal. It was like being lifted to Heaven in one second and crashing down to Hell the second after.

Qiang Fei didn't even know how she survived those six long, arduous months. All she knew was, her daughter was still breathing. Shi Nian hadn't given up yet so she couldn't either.

She was already satisfied just by seeing Shi Nian open her eyes again. Or so she thought.

"Niannian…Niannian…thank you. Thank you for speaking again. Thank you for recovering." She hugged her beloved daughter tightly, her unstoppable tears akin to a violent burst after six months of suppressing herself.

Shi Nian hummed as she buried her face into Qiang Fei's shoulder, inhaling her scent which could always manage to calm her down. Both in past life and now, Qiang Fei had always protected her, shielding her, giving her warmth and in the end, she even died to give her a chance to live.

Maybe this life debt was what made them mother and daughter in this life. Shi Nian was bound to repay this favor for the rest of her life.

The mother and daughter spent the rest of the night talking about everything mundane. They didn't talk about the tragedy that befell Shi Nian, only about simple things in life like Qiang Fei's busy work, the menu for tomorrow, the weather forecast, and Shi Nian's school life.

Shi Nian talked about Li Qing and her death, so much that she felt she had spoken more than she did for the past few years.

"Oh, dear, I am sorry for your loss." Qiang Fei heaved a sigh. "How much suffering that child must felt to have committed suicide?"

Shi Nian corrected, "It's not confirmed yet, Ma. She might not commit suicide."

Qiang Fei frowned but didn't say anything more. She patted Shi Nian's head. "As long as you're okay." Maybe all mothers were selfish like that. When hearing that something bad happened, the first reaction they had was to ensure their children were okay and relieved when they were. "I hope that the police can solve it soon."

Shi Nian nodded in agreement.

"Speaking of it," Qiang Fei hit her forehead exasperatedly. "Mama has been quite busy that I forgot to tell you. Remember the thing you ask me to find out about? Auntie Si, our neighbor who often took you in and her child, Xiao Chun?"

Shi Nian nodded, curious. "Did you find them?"

"Well, yes." Qiang Fei grimaced. "Mama found out before I went on the business trip. It turns out that your Auntie Si has died quite a long time ago."

Shi Nian was stunned. "Died?"

"Yes, maybe you don't remember anymore, but when you're in primary school, Si Qingzhao and Xiao Chun moved away. For the first few months, we were still in contact with each other but after that, there was no news from them anymore. Mama doesn't even know where they moved to."

"So, how did you find out about it?"

Qiang Fei sighed. "It's a long story. Mama knows someone who was acquainted with Si Qingzhao and she told me that Si Qingzhao used to be her neighbor but then, it seemed that she got into some accident and her life couldn't be saved."

Shi Nian frowned. "What kind of accident? What about her child, Xiao Chun?"

"Aiyah, that's the problem." Qiang Fei frowned in doubt. "She didn't know anything about it and Mama couldn't find out more. About Xiao Chun, Mama heard that she disappeared after her mother's death."

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A/N: hmm, mystery child. Who exactly is Xiao Chun and why does Shi Nian dream of her? What did Xiao Chun have to do with the serial murder case? Let's see... _(:3」∠)_