Feng Xueling walked out of school feeling particularly relaxed. It had been two days since the confrontation with Zhang Qiqi. The deadline for leaving the school was fast approaching and Zhang Qiqi must be getting anxious. The pressure on Feng Xueyao must be mounting thought Xueling as she decided to make her way back to the Feng household. There must be a show to watch! Depending on how things go, I could even cut ties with them over this! Invigorated at the thought of putting an end to her relationship with the toxic Fengs, Xueling walked faster and was in a rare hurry to go back to Feng Household.
The bus stop she came to was deserted as usual. Jinhai First High School was wealthy enough that barely any students needed the public bus. Chauffeurs, carpools, and family sedans lined up at dismissal; by late afternoon the whole stretch emptied, leaving only the lonely shelter and the soft hum of the road.
But Feng Xueling didn't mind the isolation. After two lifetimes, a silent bus stop was nothing.
She sat on the sun-faded bench, bag on her lap, eyes half-closed in thought—until the faint, uneven sound of footsteps drifted toward her.
Xueling looked up.
An elderly woman was approaching. She looked elegant in a silk Qipao, like someone who was used to taking care of herself. But her appearance now was a little pitiful. She held one hand trembling against her temple. Her breathing was shallow, unsteady. Despite the distance, Xueling felt a strange familiarity tug at her chest. She frowned, unsure why.
Before she could stand, the woman staggered.
"Careful!" Xueling darted forward, catching her just as her knees gave out.
The old woman collapsed into her arms, gasping softly. Xueling guided her onto the bench, checking her pulse instinctively—too fast, too faint, heatstroke mixed with exhaustion.
"You're overheated, Grandma. Please rest a moment," Xueling said gently, unscrewing her water bottle.
The woman's cloudy eyes blinked open… then fixed sharply on Xueling's face.
For a breath.
Then another.
Her pupils focused with startling clarity.
"…You…" The old woman's lips trembled. "You You… Qingqing is that you?"
Xueling froze. Qingqing? "You are mistaken, grandma." Said Xueling patiently. "My name is Xueling"
The woman's hand shot out suddenly, gripping her wrist with surprising strength.
"Ling'er… I found you…my darling granddaughter." Tears filled her dimming eyes. "Child… my child… my granddaughter—"
Her voice broke.
Xueling's heart lurched painfully, her breath catching in her throat.
"Grandma, you're faint. Don't exert yourself—"
"No." The woman cupped Xueling's cheek with both shaking hands. "I have been searching all week, ever since we heard from the Chu family… Don't leave grandma… grandma can't take it anymore…"
Her tears spilled freely as she pulled Xueling into a weak embrace.
"My lost granddaughter… Qingqing's child… you've finally returned…"
Xueling stiffened, stunned speechless. Her mind raced as she put together what the grandma was saying and her encounter with the Chu family at the hospital. Alhtough Mo Shenyu had effectively blocked the Chu family from meeting her, she knew the gist of the story. She was apparently, the only daughter of the Chu family. So is this person the old madam of the Chu family?
Xueling's heart softened. She was always extra patient with the elderly, and this woman who was so desperately looking for her granddaughter simply melted her heart. Did she make a mistake in not meeting the Chu family?
"Let's take care of you first, grandma." She said gently as she sprinked water on her face and tried to help her. "Your sodium levels must be low. Here, please drink some water. I'll find a way to take you to the hospital"
"No…no… I don't want to go anywhere.. my Ling'er! I only want to be with you.."
Before Xueling could respond, hurried footsteps thundered from down the street.
A middle-aged man in a suit rushed toward them, face pale. "Mom! Mom, are you alright? Why did you wander off—"
He stopped dead when he saw who his mother was clutching.
His gaze landed on Xueling.
Lingering.Deepening.Shifting from confusion into something sharper— recognition, disbelief, and dawning understanding.
This was Su Jiancheng, the Su family's second child. Su Wanqing's younger brother. The one who managed most of the family affairs after his sister's disappearance.
"Mom…" he said slowly, eyes glued to Xueling. "Who is this girl?"
Grandma Su didn't hesitate. She tightened her grip around Xueling's hand.
"This is Wanqing's daughter," she declared with absolute conviction. "Our dear Ling'er."
The wind seemed to hold its breath.
Su Jiancheng stared at Xueling — as if the face he had long given up on searching for had suddenly reappeared in front of him in school uniform.
"My… niece?" he echoed, voice hoarse.
Grandma Su nodded, tears streaking her cheeks."I've finally found her."
The moment Grandma Su finished speaking—"I've finally found her"—her eyes rolled back.
"Mom!" Su Jiancheng caught her as she collapsed again, this time fully unconscious.
Xueling's heart lurched."Heatstroke and exhaustion… she needs medical attention immediately!"
Jiancheng didn't waste another second. He scooped his mother into his arms and barked into his phone, "Prepare the VIP emergency suite. Now!"
Within minutes, a sleek black sedan screeched to the curb, and Xueling was ushered inside with them. Grandma Su lay between them, her breaths rapid and shallow.
During the ride, Su Jiancheng finally turned to Xueling.
"I'm Su Jiancheng, your uncle" he said quietly. "Your mother is my dearest older sister Su Wanqing."
========================
The VIP floor was a stark contrast to the chaos of the ER below—quiet, polished, private. Doctors rushed Grandma Su into a suite, the doors closing with a soft click.
And despite the flurry of activity moments earlier, Xueling suddenly found herself alone on the hallway bench.
Her heart was still racing. She thought back to all that Su Jiancheng had said to her during the short ride to the hospital; about the Su fmaily's search for her over the decades, the Chu family's intel last week, and how they had all rushed to Jinhai.
"I know you said you needed space" he had sighed, looking tired beyond his age. "But my mother simply couldn't leave. She wanted to be close to you….and see you from afar if possible. They have been searching for far too long to let go so easily"
The raw longing and exhaustion in Su Jiancheng's voice triggered Xueling's memories from her past life. She finally remembered why she felt the face was familiar. She had heard of them during her many business dealings in the capital.
The Su family had once been a household name in the capital—wealth, connections, prestige.But then tragedy struck.
Their precious eldest daughter, Su Wanqing, disappeared.Grandma Su fell gravely ill from grief.The Su Group spiraled under unstable leadership and internal power struggles.
Within a decade, the once-towering family had faded into obscurity.People pitied them.Some mocked them.
But even in her past life, Xueling had sensed something odd—
They had never replaced Su Wanqing.Never adopted a substitute daughter or a grandaughter.Never filled the empty space she left behind.
Unlike the Chu family.
Her lips tightened.The Chu family had so easily replaced her. The smiling face of the Chu family's spoiled daughter as she enjoyed the doting of her brothers.
Mother gone, and a new daughter installed, smiling smugly in her place.
Yet here… the Su family felt different.Grief, yes.Regret, yes.But also… longing.Yearning.
A family that waited for a daughter and a granddaughter who never came home.
They had even distanced themselves from the Chu family. In all the festivities of the Chu family's 'eldest' daughter, the Su family had been conspicuously missing. Infact, until today, she didn't know that the Su and Chu families had been connected by marriage.
Xueling's heart was a puddle as she thought about the misfortunes and grief of the Su family.
Turns out, their precious treasure had been her mother and now her.
They had never looked for a replacement, had not given their love to someone else. They had simply chosen to fade away in their grief and misery.
Soft footsteps echoed down the hallway.
A tall, dignified elderly man approached—silvery hair, straight posture, sharp eyes that had once commanded an empire. The air around him was steady, grounded.
Su Tianhong.Old Master Su.The patriarch.
Xueling stood quickly.
He stopped in front of her.His gaze swept across her face.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
But the emotion in his eyes was unmistakable—shock, recognition… and a grief so heavy it had turned into hope.
"You…" His voice trembled for the first time in decades. "You look like Wanqing… far too much."
Xueling opened her mouth, unsure what to call him.
"I—"
He raised a hand gently, stopping her.Not commanding.Just… overwhelmed.
"Child," he said softly, "come here."
She hesitated.
But he opened his arms—not wide, not dramatic, just enough for someone who hadn't hugged family in years.
And something inside Xueling cracked.
She stepped forward.
Old Master Su Tianhong rested a trembling hand on her hair, then pulled her into a quiet, dignified embrace.
"Welcome home," he whispered.
The words pierced straight through her guarded heart.
For the first time in two lifetimesFeng Xueling felt like someone was receiving her not as a replacement, not as a substitute,but as their own.