Ning Xin settled them down and felt extremely tired herself. She went back to her room and fell asleep immediately.
After lying down for a while, she suddenly felt an unbearable itchiness in her hands. The more she scratched, the itchier they became, and she ended up scratching her skin until it bled.
Unable to bear it any longer, she decided to go downstairs to wash her hands. But as she stepped out of her room, something seemed off.
The asylum, both inside and out, was dilapidated, and the corridors were no exception. The walls were patchy, the floor was cracked, and mold and ivy grew in the corners.
But what she saw now?
The floor was smooth, new marble, and the walls were painted light gray with a faint golden border. Expensive-looking paintings hung on both sides.
Where was she? Was she dreaming?
Forgetting about the itching in her hands, Ning Xin cautiously moved forward.
Even the staircase had changed, with a soft carpet laid on it.
When she reached the living room and saw the luxurious furniture and decorations, it suddenly clicked!
This was exactly like the model house she had visited before!
When she had saved up a million yuan, as a treat for herself, Ning Xin had taken a day off and joined a house viewing tour.
Although she couldn’t afford anything too expensive, she enjoyed looking at them.
The most memorable one that day was a standalone villa, luxuriously decorated. She had even dreamt of living in it that night.
Unfortunately, the villa was priced at over 30 million yuan, way beyond her current income. She would need to save up for at least ten years without spending a penny to afford it.
Why was she back here again? Could it be another dream?
Ning Xin pinched her thigh hard, feeling the pain vividly, which didn’t seem like a dream.
She returned to the second-floor corridor, carefully feeling the walls, examining the paintings, and even sniffing the potted plants in the corners. Everything felt so real.
Taking a step back, she leaned against the wall, utterly bewildered.
There was a half-open door nearby, and she could hear sounds coming from inside.
Curious, Ning Xin walked in and was amazed by what she saw.
Inside was a bed, and lying on it was a furry big dog, almost bigger than her.
The dog, who had been sleeping, wagged its tail upon seeing her, looking incredibly adorable.
Unable to resist, she approached and stroked the dog’s head, asking softly,
“Why are you alone here? Where is your owner?”
The big dog naturally couldn’t answer her and simply licked her palm, quite docile.
Ning Xin had always wanted to have a dog. There used to be a small watchdog in the orphanage, and she often played with it.
Unfortunately, she had been too busy with work to fulfil her wish until now.
What breed was this dog? What did it eat to grow so big?
With no one around, she hugged it boldly, and the big dog obediently nestled in her arms, not moving an inch.
“It feels so good”.
Living in such a nice house, raising such a big dog, I don’t know who the owner is.
She kissed the dog’s head, feeling exhausted, she hugged it and fell asleep on the bed.
After some time passed, there was something moving in her arms, pushing her.
Ning Xin immersed in the wonderful dreamland, patting the head of that thing, humming softly.
“Don’t disturb me, let me sleep a little longer.”
The other person moved more vigorously, pushing her suddenly, breaking free completely.
She had to open her eyes, about to speak, but found the man she brought back from outside lying in front of her, on a rickety single bed from the asylum.
As for the mansion and the big dog, they were all gone.
…So it was all her illusion?
The mansion was the asylum, then the big dog she hugged and slept with for so long was…
She looked at the man almost face to face, chest to chest with her, swallowed saliva, blushing awkwardly, stammering and not knowing what to say.
“This… must be a misunderstanding, I just had an illusion…”
The man stared at her without blinking, making her feel uneasy. She lowered her head and said:
“I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to. After all, I also saved you. Can we just pretend nothing happened?”
The other person still didn’t speak or move, like a statue.
Ning Xin raised her head in confusion, about to ask, when he finally spoke.
“Who are you?”
His voice was still the same, but the tone had become high-pitched and childish, like a child.
Ning Xin was taken aback. “Don’t you remember me? I’m the one who brought you back from the cave.”
“The cave?”
“Big brother, you didn’t just wake up and lose your memory, did you?”
He furrowed his brows tightly, seeming unsure himself.
Ning Xin tentatively asked:
“What’s your name?”
“Nie Ran.”
“How old are you?”
“Six years old.”
“…”
A towering figure of 1.9 meters suddenly turned into a six-year-old child?
Was it amnesia or possession?
Ning Xin instinctively felt he was deceiving her and resolved to expose his disguise, forcibly pulling him up.
“Say it again, how old are you?”
“Six years old.”
“Oh, then how tall are you now?”
“I…”
“Is it possible for a six-year-old to be this tall? Look at your hands, they’re bigger than my face. How dare you lie and say you’re six years old?”
Talking nonsense with eyes wide open!
Nie Ran scratched his head, looking confused.
Seeing he hadn’t backed down, she frowned and said:
“Are you addicted to lying? If you don’t snap out of it, you… you can just… get out.”
Nie Ran stared at her with wide eyes, his mouth slightly agape.
She raised her eyebrows. “What are you looking at? Do you have any objections?”
Tears gradually welled up in his eyes, and as he blinked, a stream of tears rolled down, and he began to cry softly into the pillow.
Ning Xin: “…Shit.”
Was she seeing things?
While still crying, he said, “You’re so mean. I want to go home, I want to find my mother concubine …”
Mother concubine?
Based on Ning Xin’s years of experience watching period dramas, it should be the emperor’s consort.
He wanted to find his mother? Did he think he was a prince?
Ning Xin couldn’t help but laugh in exasperation, standing by the bed and saying, “Alright, you’re amazing. You can continue your act slowly. I wish you become the Cannes Film Festival’s Best Actor soon. I’ll mind my own business, so don’t bother me until you recover.”
Although the other party was strong, he was currently injured and missing a leg, so she wasn’t afraid of him.
Back in her own room, she lay down intending to sleep, but couldn’t forget the hallucination from earlier. Looking at the scabs on her hands, she couldn’t sleep at all.
It must have been caused by those plants, right?
Nie Ran stood by without reminding her, watching her pull them out with her bare hands, truly detestable.
Unable to sleep anyway and feeling the stench from not having bathed for so many days, Ning Xin simply got up, went downstairs to fetch a bucket of water, and brought it back to her room to bathe.
With the daytime temperatures being high, using cold water was tolerable, and it also saved some fuel.
There was no gas in the asylum, and the quantity of discarded furniture was limited. While there were trees outside, she couldn’t go out to chop them down. Using less water meant she could conserve what little resources she had. Even if she found food later, cooking it would still be a problem.
Ning Xin washed herself thoroughly from head to toe, then changed into a clean patient gown that fit her well.
There were quite a few patient gowns in the warehouse that no one was wearing, all brand new, and there were several large packs of disposable underwear, probably for patients with mobility issues.
Unfortunately, there were no bras, but since there weren’t many people around anyway, it was more comfortable without one.
She didn’t want to throw away the clothes she changed out of, so she cleaned them and hung them in the corridor to dry.
While hanging the clothes, she always felt like someone was watching her. Holding the basin, she turned around, and half a face was hidden behind the partially closed door.
“Come out.”
Nie Ran opened the door and walked out, but being too tall, he hit his head on the door frame, letting out a miserable cry. He bent over, holding his forehead pitifully, and walked to her with dried tear streaks on his face and swollen eyes.
“Not acting anymore?”
Ning Xin asked unkindly.
Nie Ran asked, “Where is this?”
“You should know better than me.”
He looked bewildered, pursing his lips and saying, “Can you take me back? Mother will reward you with a lot of silver.”
“No, get lost.”
Ning Xin wasn’t interested in playing along with him, so she turned and walked away.
Nie Ran chased after her, dragging his injured leg, stumbling and running while also trying to avoid hitting the door frame.
“Wait! Auntie, wait!”
Ning Xin: “…What did you just call me?”
Auntie? Was she that old?
The other person stopped, hesitatingly asking, “Then… grandma?”
Ning Xin raised her middle finger at him and quickened her pace downstairs.
Nie Ran struggled to follow her to the living room. She couldn’t bear it anymore and turned around to scold him:
“If you keep following me, I won’t be polite!”
He stopped at a distance from her, not daring to come closer, and asked with a whiny tone:
“Can you give me something to eat? I’m so hungry.”
“…No!”
Nie Ran opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end, he said nothing and limped back to his room.
Ning Xin put the basin back in its place, poured herself a glass of water, and thought about his behaviour, suspecting that she had been tricked.
The reason she had been so proactive in bringing him back was that she valued his abilities and wanted to latch onto someone influential.
However, Nie Ran acted crazy and foolish, unable to do anything. It was one thing if he couldn’t do anything, but he might even become a burden, possibly ending up bothering her, turning into a big liability.
The potatoes were already finished. Where would the next meal come from?
She remembered the small village the old lady mentioned, poured another glass of water, and carried it upstairs to knock on the door.
“Grandma, are you thirsty? I brought some water for you.”
“Come in.”
Ning Xin walked in and stopped in front of the old lady, handing her the water.
“The last time I went to look for the village, I couldn’t find it. Could you give me more specific directions?”
The old lady gestured with her chin in a direction.
“Just go that way, it’s about ten minutes at most, and you’ll see the village.”
“Really?”
Then she had to try again.
“How’s the man you brought back?”
“Him?” Ning Xin curled her lip. “He’s just strange.”
“What do you mean by strange?”
She was worried about not having anyone to confide in, so she told the old lady about Nie Ran’s changes and vented her frustrations.
“He must be playing a prank, right? But for a grown man to claim he’s six years old and imagine himself as a prince, who would believe that nonsense? It’s just ridiculous.”
The old lady smiled knowingly. “Are you sure he’s making it up?”
“Then what else could it be?”
“What kind of place is this?”
“An asylum.”
“Who lives in the asylum?”
“Well…”
Ning Xin fell silent, and the old lady looked out the window and said, “Fate has its own ways. Sometimes, the most absurd things turn out to be true.”
After chatting for a while, Ning Xin left the room and stood in the corridor, feeling doubtful.
Could it be that Nie Ran wasn’t lying but had a mental illness?
She had heard before that some mental illnesses could cause the development of alternate personalities, where one could imagine themselves as someone else.
If that were the case, she had blamed him wrongly.
Nie Ran’s door was right in front of her. After some thought, she knocked on the door.
“Are you asleep? Can I come in?”
Nie Ran limped over to open the door, looking timid, as if he were afraid of her.
She sat on the edge of the bed, her gaze serious.
“Could you explain your situation in detail?”
He nodded and sat at the foot of the bed, speaking softly.
“My name is Nie Ran, I am the fourteenth son of the Xia Dynasty’s ruler. I’m six years old this year…”
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