A few minutes later, Liang Shi came downstairs and saw her car almost immediately.
Liang Shi offered to drive, but Xu Qingzhu said, "You'll sit in the passenger seat today."
Xu Qingzhu was somewhat depressed. It was clear that she had tried to suppress it, but some of it still slipped out of her voice.
After Liang Shi got into the car and fastened his seatbelt, he asked, "Did you encounter any problems at work today?"
"No," Xu Qingzhu said coldly. "I only interviewed a few people."
"Did I make you angry?" Liang Shi asked again.
"No," Xu Qingzhu said. "We haven't even spoken, why would I be angry because of you?"
Liang Shi: "..."
A moment later, Xu Qingzhu realized something was wrong and added, "What I meant was, it has nothing to do with you."
"So, why are you angry?" Liang Shi asked with a smile.
Xu Qingzhu: "..."
After a long silence in the car, Xu Qingzhu suddenly smiled, her cool voice carrying a hint of allure, her tone lazy and casual, her voice indifferent, making it impossible to discern her emotions, "Zhou Yi'an is Su Yao's student."
Liang Shi was taken aback. "What? Zhou Yi'an?"
Xu Qingzhu nodded: "Yes."
Liang Shi was somewhat taken aback. "Is it Zhou Yi'an, the one I know?"
She asked twice, looking a little silly, but Xu Qingzhu couldn't bring herself to laugh. "It's her. And the girl who went to Yunfeng Mountain with me last time is Su Yao's niece, who is also the daughter of Haiwei Jewelry."
Xu Qingzhu told Liang Shi about all the external shocks she had experienced that day.
Liang Shi was stunned for a few seconds, then smiled wryly and said, "Should I say it's fate?"
"It's quite a coincidence," Xu Qingzhu smiled.
The world seems vast, but it's actually like a spider web, connecting everyone together.
But upon further reflection, it seems reasonable.
These people belong to the same social circle, so their perspectives and overall outlook attract similar people.
"And then?" Liang Shi asked, "Did you try to find out anything?"
"We chatted a little," Xu Qingzhu said. "Zhou Yi'an seemed to know quite a lot about these things. She wanted to tell me, but I didn't ask."
Liang Shi: "..."
Xu Qingzhu's rationality once again refreshed her understanding.
"It's good that you didn't ask," Liang Shi comforted her. "Anyway, they're not exactly important people."
Xu Qingzhu didn't answer, but after a while, she asked, "What kind of people do you think would stay in a mental hospital for a long time?"
“Patients and doctors,” Liang Shi replied, “and caregivers.”
After answering, Liang Shi suddenly realized, "You mean Su Yao?"
“Yes.” Xu Qingzhu’s tone was as if she were discussing a stranger, if one could ignore the slight tremor in her voice at the end, “Zhou Yi’an said she has been staying in a mental hospital for many years.”
"Does she have any mental health issues?" Liang Shi asked cautiously.
Xu Qingzhu shook her head: "Perhaps."
That was the last time they discussed the topic.
Liang Shi sat there alone, lost in a jumble of thoughts.
Su Meiqi is the daughter of Haiwei Jewelry's CEO, and Su Yao is Su Meiqi's aunt. So Su Yao is the sister of Haiwei Jewelry's CEO.
So the reason why nothing about Su Yao was exposed back then was because she came from a fairly powerful family.
Her family protected her very well.
Su Yao disappeared for a time after Sheng Qinglin's death, and was hidden by her family.
He has been living in a mental hospital for many years...
Has she suffered a mental breakdown due to some kind of trauma? Perhaps she still remembers that she has a daughter?
Liang Shi felt the truth was close at hand, but he was reluctant to investigate.
He was afraid of upsetting Xu Qingzhu.
But as an outsider, she couldn't help but want to know the ins and outs of this matter. After all, Su Yao and Sheng Qinglin loved each other so much that they couldn't possibly not raise their child.
Given the financial means, Xu Qingzhu would never fall into the hands of the Sheng family.
But... why exactly?
How much effort did Xu Qingzhu have to suppress her curiosity about her own background?
As Liang Shi pondered this, he suddenly let out a heavy sigh, his face filled with sorrow.
This sight amused Xu Qingzhu.
As they turned a corner, Xu Qingzhu said, "Teacher Liang, you should think more about your own situation and stop worrying about me."
Liang Shi: "..."
"Let me think about it some more," Xu Qingzhu said. "Who knows, I might figure it out someday."
//
The journey to the Ciai Nursing Home wasn't too boring, but the atmosphere was somewhat somber.
Although Xu Qingzhu casually said that she might figure it out someday, Liang Shi could still sense the vulnerability in her feigned composure.
She must be scared.
They were unwilling to show their fear to others.
Liang Shi didn't express his opinion on that matter again, but instead told her, "Teacher Xu, whatever decision you make, I will support you."
He paused, then added, "Just like you support me."
"I didn't support you either," Xu Qingzhu said calmly. "I was just curious."
Xu Qingzhu attributed everything she did to curiosity, rather than to help Liang Shi or try to alleviate his psychological burden.
Liang Shicheng accepted her kindness, but secretly made up his mind.
—Find out the truth.
If one day Xu Qingzhu wants to know the truth buried beneath the surface of her current life, then she will give her the truth.
If Xu Qingzhu doesn't want to know, then she will completely bury the truth.
The journey from the city to the Ciai Nursing Home involves a long mountain road, during which Liang Shi and Xu Qingzhu switched places.
Driving for too long can easily lead to driver fatigue, and it took nearly an hour to reach the Ciai Nursing Home.
The Ciai Nursing Home is nestled against a mountain. In late autumn, the mountain has turned a withered yellow, and the road in front of the nursing home is covered with fallen leaves.
It must be very comfortable here in the summer.
Liang Shi parked the car on the side of the road and waited for Xu Qingzhu to get out before they went to the entrance together.
The gatekeepers were two young security guards. One was playing games in the security room, and the other was sitting at the entrance with a red desk in front of him and a visitor registration book on it.
The one sitting by the door is watching a TV series on his phone.
It happened to be Zhao Ying's drama, and he watched it with a silly grin.
Liang Shi walked over and asked, "Hello, I'd like to ask..."
Before he could finish speaking, the security guard interrupted him, "Who are you here to see? Register."
Liang Shi said, "I've come to see the dean. Is he here?"
"Looking for the dean?" The security guard paused the TV series. "Who are you? What do you need the dean for?"
Liang Shi said, "There are some things I'd like to ask."
The security guard frowned: "What do you want? Our director is very busy."
"No need," Xu Qingzhu said. "Let's call him ourselves."
The security guard looked at the two of them with a speechless expression.
Xu Qingzhu got the dean's phone number from Lin Luoxi, made a call to him, and the other party quickly came out of the office.
Liang Shi once again experienced what it means to have connections that make things easier.
Xu Qingzhu met with the director because she wanted to see the current management of nursing homes in Haizhou City and their material needs.
If needed, funding can be provided.
This nursing home doesn't actually need much funding, but Xu Qingzhu learned from Lin Luoxi that the director is currently thinking about rebuilding the orphanage, so he will need money.
It also needs the attention of people from all walks of life, so the dean makes friends widely.
The dean was short and thin, wearing black-rimmed glasses, casual sportswear, and new sneakers. He even jogged a few steps when he came to see them.
Liang Shi and Xu Qingzhu introduced themselves and learned that the dean's surname was Gu and his given name was Zhaoyuan.
All the information was exactly what Xu Qingzhu had found out from Lin Luoxi before.
Gu Zhaoyuan's father founded the Angel Orphanage, which took in abandoned infants and disabled children from Haizhou City. Some of the more promising children were adopted by wealthy and powerful families, but all of them were adopted anonymously.
Later, Gu Zhaoyuan's father fell seriously ill and converted the Angel Orphanage into the Compassionate Nursing Home. In an instant, the orphanage, which was losing money, became a nursing home with income. Moreover, many of the children who had grown up in the Angel Orphanage became employees of the Compassionate Nursing Home.
Most of these people are disabled individuals who cannot find work in society.
Because the orphanage had not accepted any new children for many years, the youngest of the last group of children to enter the Angel Orphanage was already 15 years old this year.
Moreover, after establishing the nursing home and having enough money, Gu Zhaoyuan would send school-age children to study. In their spare time, the children would return to the nursing home to work, and their pocket money would be given from their wages.
To some extent, orphanages and nursing homes have achieved a balance.
With this model already in place, Gu Zhaoyuan's mind started working again, and he wanted to establish another orphanage, because he himself was an abandoned child who was adopted by the former director and then became his adopted son, inheriting the nursing home.
In fact, Dean Gu never married or had children. He devoted all his energy to the construction of the orphanage in the first half of his life, and Gu Zhaoyuan was also influenced by him and planned to do this work as a lifelong faith.
Liang Shi and Xu Qingzhu followed him as they toured the nursing home, learning about its history and current development from his explanations.
The nursing home's fees are at the average level in Haizhou City, but because most of the staff are former abandoned children, they take very good care of the residents and get along well with them.