"Where is this place?"

Ling Ning looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. She had clearly been asleep, so how did she end up here? Wait! Could it be that another memory fragment had surfaced?

Ling Ning carefully observed her surroundings, realizing that she was in an ordinary courtyard, filled with children’s play equipment like swings and a seesaw.

Just as Ling Ning was taking in her surroundings, two little girls came running out of the house. She recognized the girl trailing behind—wasn't that herself as a child? She had indeed been this cute even back then. But who was the girl in front?

Filled with curiosity, Ling Ning quietly stood by to observe. Even if she had shouted, no one would have noticed her—this was only a memory.

Despite watching two young girls playing childish games, the pure, innocent smiles on their faces made Ling Ning feel her heart being healed. Yes, little lolis were the best.

Ling Ning wanted to learn the other girl's name, but every time she tried to call out, her voice seemed muffled, as if the sound itself was being erased. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t make out the little girl's name.

It seemed like the girl's name had three characters, but young Ling Ning mostly called her by the last two. Only when anxious would she use the full name. Ling Ning tried to read young Ling Ning's lips, but she couldn’t make it out.

After a while, the two little girls seemed to tire of playing. They ran to a corner of the courtyard, apparently discussing the plot of some soap opera. They seemed to have a difference of opinion. Ling Ning was lost in her thoughts and didn't pay much attention to their conversation, catching only words like "kiss" and "tongue."

And then, to Ling Ning's utter shock, the two little girls kissed!!!

Ling Ning was stunned. This wasn't just a simple peck—this was a full-on French kiss! These two little girls couldn't have been more than five or six years old. Even if one of them was seven, wasn't this way too early?

Fortunately, nothing more happened afterward, and Ling Ning breathed a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to keep observing, the surroundings changed again.

One moment, she was in the small courtyard, and the next, the scene shifted to a funeral. Ling Ning was there, but this time she was a bit older, perhaps around seven or eight. Her eyes were swollen, indicating she had been crying not long ago.

Whose funeral was this? Ling Ning looked at the photo on the altar, which featured two people—a young couple.

There were names on the memorial tablet. Ling Ning leaned closer to take a look. The man was named Ling Xia, and the woman was Song Xueqin. If Ling Ning guessed correctly, these were probably young Ling Ning's parents.

Just as Ling Ning was trying to understand more, a commotion broke out at the funeral.

A group of people, who appeared to be relatives, were arguing. As Ling Ning got closer, she realized they were fighting over her parents' inheritance—a substantial insurance payout and this large house.

"I’m Xia’s older brother! Of course, I should be the one to take care of his daughter!" said a greasy-looking middle-aged man. Ling Ning looked at the photo of her father on the altar, then back at the man in front of her. She couldn’t believe they were even related, let alone brothers.

Upon hearing the man's words, a scrawny man next to him erupted in anger, shouting, "Stop joking! Don’t think I don’t know what you’re after! You just want—"

Before he could finish, the scene shifted again, this time to a school. Ling Ning hated when scenes changed just as someone was about to reveal something important. It was just like reading a novel where the author always ends the chapter at the best part, leaving readers frustrated.

She looked at the surroundings—unfamiliar yet familiar—and felt a pang of nostalgia. How long had it been since she had last been at school?

"It’s probably recess now." Ling Ning scanned the room and noticed that students were either playing on their phones or chatting in small groups.

"Where am I, though?"

Ling Ning scanned the room but didn’t spot herself. Had she gone to the bathroom or something?

Just as Ling Ning was about to step out of the classroom to check, she noticed herself in a corner. The disheveled hair, the hollow eyes with dark circles underneath, the loose-fitting school uniform—the awful green color completely hiding what was actually quite a nice figure. No wonder she hadn’t recognized herself at first glance.

She sat in the corner, as though she existed in a completely different world from everyone else.

Ling Ning looked at the date on the blackboard and realized that this memory was from not long ago. At this moment, young Ling Ning was busily working on her assignments. There was a workbook in the corner of her desk, stomped on and torn—don’t ask how Ling Ning knew it was stomped on; there were literal shoe prints on it. It seemed school life hadn’t been very pleasant.

And despite it being recess, not a single classmate approached her to chat. Did she not have any friends at school?

Just then, as if on cue, a beautiful girl walked over. She saw the workbook on Ling Ning’s desk, stomped and torn, and angrily said, "They bullied you again, didn’t they?"

Ling Ning shook her head silently and continued doing her homework.

"I know exactly who did this, even if you won’t say. I’m telling the teacher," she said, turning to leave, but Ling Ning grabbed her arm.

"Xu Qing, don’t," Ling Ning rasped, her voice hoarse. Her eyes, deep and unfathomable, looked at Xu Qing.

This was the first time Ling Ning learned that this girl’s name was Xu Qing. Nice name—she wondered if Xu Qing was into girls.

Xu Qing looked at Ling Ning, sighed in resignation, and said, "Fine, fine. But promise me, if they bully you again, you’ll tell me."

Ling Ning nodded, and just then, the bell signaling the end of recess rang. Once again, the scene changed.

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"Ugh~"

Ling Ning slowly opened her eyes, her mind still filled with the events from the memory fragments. It took a while before the feeling of her brain being force-fed information finally faded away.

She gently moved Ling Ye's small hand off her arm, got out of bed, and walked over to the window. The sky was just beginning to lighten, and she took a deep breath of the fresh morning air.

"I’m starting to understand you better now, Ling Ning."

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Author's Note:

Double updates are the worst~

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com