Standing Next To You-Chapter 38: Runaway

"It’s a common ailment that comes with old age," the doctor told Bei Sangyun as he handed her the test results. "I can prescribe some medicines to alleviate her symptoms."

Bei Sangyun refused to accept the medical results. She looked directly at the doctor. "Doctor, this common sickness you mentioned will kill my grandmother. If you had informed me that your hospital lacked the proper equipment or if you admitted your inability to accurately diagnose her illness, I might have believed you."

Bei Sangyun stood up. "There’s no need for this prescription."

Bei Sangyun left the doctor’s office, leaving the dumbfounded doctor alone.

Grandma Bei was sitting in the patient’s yard. Her blood was just drawn from her and she underwent many tests so she looked a bit pale.

Bei Sangyun’s frustration from the doctor’s dishonesty eased as she looked at her grandmother.

"What did the doctor say? He assured you that I’m fine, right? This is merely a common ailment of old age," Grandma Bei tried to console her.

Bei Sangyun held her grandmother’s hand. "This facility isn’t adequate. Let’s go to a larger city."

"Don’t spend money needlessly just because you have enough now. Save it for your studies. How much money do you have left? We should manage it wisely."

"Don’t worry about money. I have plenty," Bei Sangyun assured her.

She carried two cards with her. One was given to her by her so-called father, while the other was the card each heir received from Old Master Lin.

The first card provided a monthly allowance, while the second card only received money when its holder achieved something noteworthy. However, the amount received each time on the second card was much larger than what her father’s card provided.

Bei Sangyun hadn’t used either of these two cards. The Lin family provided them with everything they required—food, clothing, necessities, and even payments for their tutors. There was no actual need for them to spend money on anything.

Unlike other heirs who were accustomed to indulging in luxury and vacations, Bei Sangyun typically remained at home, focusing on her studies with her tutors. She recognized her areas of weakness and diligently aimed for excellence in each domain.

It was her ’frugality’ and hard work that caught Old Master Lin’s attention.

In any case, despite living with the Lin family for numerous years, Bei Sangyun hadn’t utilized any money from the card. She only accessed the funds within the card when she left for the village.

Bei Sangyun let Grandma Bei rest first as she proceeded with her payment to the cashier. While processing the payment, she opened her phone to check the nearby hotels in the area.

But when she turned on her phone, her phone buzzed with dozens of notifications.

Bei Sangyun saw eighty messages and dozens of missed calls. It was all from the same person.

Bei Sangyun: "...."

Right. She forgot this person.

As she was mulling over it, her phone rang again. She stared at it for a few seconds before answering the call.

"You finally answered, Young Miss!" Mr. Xin yelled angrily. "What were you thinking?! Why on earth would you utter those rude words to Old Master Lin and in front of your uncles? Do you realize your father is furious right now?"

His tone was not polite at all for someone who was working under her.

Bei Sangyun blinked. Well, this brought back memories.

How long had it been since her butler had scolded her in this manner?

It had been so long that she found his angry tone oddly refreshing.

Right, This was the time when her butler was not yet tamed and scared of her.

"Heh, your courage is surely big." Bei Sangyun said lazily.

"What did you say? Did you get your head broken?! Where are you? Come back now!"

Bei Sangyun narrowed her eyes with a cold glint, "Now that I am hearing it again. It kinda made me angry how you manipulated my young self to be stubborn and fierce in front of others but meek and obedient in front of you and that so-called father of mine. If I hadn’t snapped out of it, I might have lived like your pet until I died painfully."

Mr. Xin involuntarily shivered at the strange tone in Bei Sangyun’s voice. She didn’t sound angry; instead, she exuded an unsettling calmness, speaking to him as though she were his superior.

This left him stunned, caught off-guard by the unexpected shift.

When had the usually compliant young miss developed this manner of speaking?

"Young miss, I’ll let this slide for now due to your illness. However, if you’re not back within an hour, you’ll face the consequences. You wouldn’t want others to ridicule you for your inadequacy, would you?"

"Ah, I see. So this is how you resort to threats. I recall now. When my feelings of inferiority failed as a lever, you turned to exploit my longing for my father’s affection. And when even that proved ineffective, you resorted to provoking me with my grandmother. Naturally, provoking me with grandma is always your ultimate weapon."

Bei Sangyun said.

There were many times that Bei Sangyun wanted to rebel and leave the Lin family house because she couldn’t endure it any longer. Her first year in the Lin mansion, in particular, stood out as the most agonizing.

A child from the countryside who knows nothing was suddenly brought to a new world. The world she thought was a fairy tale was actually a living nightmare. The place was indeed beautiful, grandiose, and every material thing she needed was present.

However, she was surrounded by strangers who laughed and mocked her. They insulted her starting from her appearance, background, origin, and to her every action.

Those malicious gazes and hurtful words were a hundred times more painful for a sensitive child.

Bei Sangyun thought she had already experienced the worst at the school and the village. But her every moment in the Lin mansion was distressing and unbearable.

Back in the school and the village, there was someone who believed in her and comforted her. Her grandma’s hug and comforting words alleviated her sadness and hurt feelings.

But in that luxurious and grand place, no one was on her side. Even her personal butler who said he was on her side and her ally, always blamed her inferiority instead.

The affection she thought she would receive from her new family and her father was nothing but disgust and hatred.

She had no choice but to cry silently at night and call for her grandma in her dreams. Until she grew up while bottling up her feelings.

Perhaps that’s why she became crazy.

Anyway, during the earlier years, she tried to run away from the Lin family and return to the village.

But the capital was so big. And every time she left, Mr. Xin would find her in a few hours.

It happened many times because there were many moments when the child Bei Sangyun could not handle the pressure of living in the Lin mansion. Mr. Xin must have become too annoyed by her runaways so he contacted Bei Sangyun’s father to make an agreement with Bei Sangyun.

In the end, the agreement was like this. Bei Sangyun could return to the village and bring back her grandma if she graduated as the top ranker of the entire school.

Bei Sangyun tried her very best to be the top ranker and be obedient to her father. She followed their every rule and order until she achieved success.

Until the day she returns to the village comes.

However, there were also times when she couldn’t handle it and hide. Mr. Xin would show up then and convince her while saying that if she succeeded in this, her father would like her more and that she would soon see her grandma.

Ultimately, Bei Sangyun would swallow her grievances and persevere, carrying on until she triumphed.

"Young Miss, I am not threatening you. I am reminding you of the reality. Didn’t you want to bring your grandma here? Then follow my words. I am on your side not your enemy! Do you want the other heirs to use this opportunity to strike you down?!"

Bei Sangyun put away the phone. Mr. Xin’s yelling really hurt her ears.

"Young Miss, if you continue to be like this, your father will not look favorably at you. You are destroying everything you worked hard so far-"

Bei Sangyun ended the call.

The present-day Mr. Xin was too noisy. She suddenly missed the Mr. Xin back then who was silent as a mouse and who trembled at her every laughter.

"Geez, taming him was really difficult back then. Well, it won’t be hard anymore since I have done it in the past."

Bei Sangyun searched some nearby hotels on the phone while dismissing calls. After she was done, she turned off her phone again. She did not want to be disrupted by phone calls.

After leaving the hospital, she bought some clothes and shoes for Grandma Bei. Then they went to the hotel she had booked.

Their food arrived in the room.

Grandma Bei noticed that all the food was soft food for old people like her. She frowned, "Why there’s no meat?"

"You want meat? I’ll order some." Bei Sangyun was about to order when Grandma Bei stopped her.

"Not for me, for you. Don’t you like meat? Your favorite is meat in the past." frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

Bei Sangyun put down the telephone. "...I don’t like meat anymore."

"You like vegetables now?" Grandma Bei took the plain porridge bowl when Bei Sangyun took it.

"This is mine. The rest are yours."

Grandma Bei was stunned.

"There’s not much nutrients in your food. Here, eat this." Grandma Bei added some vegetables to Bei Sangyun’s bowl.

Bei Sangyun just smiled and accompanied her grandmother to eat.