221: Chapter 221 Zou Luyao

Although the doctor said Zou Luyao might sleep until tomorrow morning, Zhao Xiaoshuai decided to rest in the hospital ward's partition for the night, just in case she woke up early and didn't see him.

Otherwise, exposing his identity would be a minor issue, but if the hero saving the damsel wasn't seen by the damsel, wouldn't it be a wasted effort!

However, the energetic Zhao Xiaoshuai couldn't sleep in the middle of the night, and the fact that he frequently got up to check on the sleeping beauty need not be mentioned.

Early morning.

"Doctor, didn't you say she would usually wake up after sleeping for seven or eight hours? She has been asleep for over ten hours now; could there be a problem?"

"Rest assured, all of the patient's vital signs are normal. She was likely too exhausted, so her body is taking this opportunity to rest for an extended period. She will wake up once she has slept enough."

Just as the doctor said, half an hour later, Zou Luyao's long eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes.

An unfamiliar ceiling, the smell of disinfectant.

'Where is this? Why am I here? What happened?'

She felt surprisingly refreshed, a sense of lightness and comfort she hadn't experienced in a long time.

Before she could even feel happy, a glance caught a strange man sitting on the chair by her bed. She was startled and reflexively moved backward.

"Who are you? Where did you bring me? What did you do to me?"

At this moment, Zou Luyao was like a different person compared to her appearance at the bar yesterday.

Yesterday at the bar, she didn't have this level of wariness even while sitting among a group of malicious scumbags.

Zhao Xiaoshuai was speechless, but he still replied gently:

"This is a hospital. You weren't brought here by me; you were brought here by an ambulance. I didn't do anything to you; I just called an ambulance for you."

As for the groping and searching all night, that was done by the sleepwalking Zhao Xiaoshuai, which has nothing to do with the current him.

"As for me, do you really have no impression of me at all?"

Zou Luyao then carefully examined this somewhat familiar face.

"You are... the student I met at the yoga class the other day?"

"I am very honored that you remember me."

"What happened to me? Why was I sent to the hospital?"

"You don't remember anything at all?"

The moment Zou Luyao regained consciousness, she started recalling everything that happened yesterday, but her mind felt like a segment of memory had been severed; she couldn't remember what exactly happened yesterday no matter how hard she tried.

"I can't remember. I only remember that I seemed to have decided to do something."

Seeming to recall some unpleasant memories, Zou Luyao's expression quickly dimmed.

Zhao Xiaoshuai carefully recounted the facts he knew one by one.

"Law enforcement officers should be coming soon to take your statement. You can confirm the truth of the matter with them later."

Zou Luyao was somewhat stunned, "So I really made up my mind to do that... Why did you save me..."

As she said this, a tear unconsciously slid from the corner of her eye. Despair, gratitude, and pain seemed to be mixed together.

Paired with her stunningly beautiful face, it formed a very poignant picture.

"You wanted to destroy yourself?"

Now that his Comprehension had greatly improved, Zhao Xiaoshuai immediately understood the crux of the matter based on her fragmented words.

Zou Luyao knew that those people were not good, and she had intentionally drunk the beverage, anticipating the potential outcome.

"Unfortunately, I failed, and I probably don't have the courage to do it again."

"Why? If you are willing, I, a stranger, can be your listener."

Looking up at the person who saved her, Zou Luyao felt very grateful. After all, until the very last moment, she was actually in a state of conflict. Deep down, who would truly want to hurt themselves?

After thinking for a while, she decided to pour her heart out.

There were many things that were difficult to talk about with acquaintances, but it was easier to pour her heart out to a stranger without reservation.

After all, they might not have any interaction in the future. At this moment, Zhao Xiaoshuai was no different from a hollow tree, merely a target for her to confide in.

"Can you imagine that your mother, in order to monitor your every move, would install surveillance cameras everywhere in the house—the bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen?"

"I have experienced this situation for over a decade."

"It's not that she only became like this ten years ago, but rather because when I was younger, she always kept me by her side, so there was no need for surveillance."

Zou Luyao gave a bitter smile and began to tell her story.

According to her, her mother was a very beautiful person, but the adoration and praise from those around her during her youth caused her mother to lose herself, spending her days immersed in various romances.

Mother Zou, who didn't get into college, was forced to enter society after dropping out, which made her wake up a little.

But it was too late by then.

Mother Zou lived through a very difficult period, but relying on her beautiful appearance, she accidentally met Zou Luyao's father.

Mother Zou thought her luck had turned and that she had found her true love and the rest of her life, but a few months later, after being caught by the original wife, she was kicked out and cut off by Zou's father, and her dream was shattered.

Zou Luyao's father did not have the surname Zou; she took her mother's surname because she was just an illegitimate daughter with no right to the father's surname. Her birth was not even allowed in the first place.

After secretly giving birth to her, Mother Zou thought she had a bargaining chip and went to find that man again, but in the end, she only received some child support as compensation each year.

Later, Mother Zou realized that she, a woman with no education, no talent, no background, and only a pretty face, could never marry into a wealthy family.

However, Mother Zou's life could no longer be changed, at least that's how she saw it.

Therefore, Mother Zou pinned all her dreams on her daughter, as if she wanted to live her life again, controlling everything about her daughter from every aspect.

Her daughter could only live according to her wishes.

Zou Luyao was forbidden from watching cartoons, making friends, or dating.

Her daily tasks were to learn etiquette, exercise to shape her body, and apart from that, it was study, study, and study.

Mother Zou attributed her failed life to not studying hard when she was young, which was why she lacked knowledge, ability, and talent.

"Living" again, she had to be a superior person!

She had to live again as someone who was the center of attention, not just during her student years, but forever and ever.

Consequently, Zou Luyao was subjected to comprehensive surveillance, and her life without selfhood continued for over a decade.

She had thought that getting into a university in a distant place would allow her to get away from her mother, so she moved from the south to the northeast, but she clearly underestimated her mother's obsession.

Her mother simply abandoned everything locally and followed her to Chuncheng.

She didn't even let her live in the dormitory, instead renting a house off-campus to continue monitoring her closely.

She couldn't escape her nightmare; it might follow her for the rest of her life.

She couldn't bear the weight of her mother's beautiful dreams, so she planned to destroy herself.