Chapter 6

I got busy as soon as I arrived at the company, and it wasn't until after 6 PM that I finally had some free time.

"I'm so sorry, you guys work overtime first. I really can't get away from home. I'll make it up to you later!" I thanked my team members with my hands clasped. They all expressed understanding and told me to go quickly.

As I was leaving, I ran into Ms. Smith. Seeing me about to call a taxi, she lowered her car window and offered to give me a ride.

"I remember you have a car. Why haven't you been driving these days?" she asked.

"My brother-in-law borrowed it. He's about to graduate and has a lot of errands to run. It's not convenient for him to take taxis," I explained with a bitter smile.

"Your in-laws are quite problematic, aren't they? Is the whole family ganging up to try and tame you?" she said.

I fell silent. Looking at it now, it did seem that way. Only my mother's arrival had suddenly disrupted their plans.

I told her about what happened last night.

Ms. Smith listened and got so upset her breasts felt clogged.

"I shouldn't interfere in other people's family matters. But in your case, I can't keep quiet. I'm afraid you and Ryan won't be able to continue like this," she said.

We had reached my neighborhood. I wanted to buy some fruit to take up, so I thanked Ms. Smith and got out of the car.

As I entered the elevator with my bags, I noticed the neighbors looking at me strangely.

I didn't know what was improper about me, so I secretly adjusted my dress.

When I got to my door, I still felt something was off. The welcome mat at the entrance was crooked.

I opened the door to see Linda cleaning the house, with a pile of garbage by the door that hadn't been bagged yet.

I was too lazy to deal with her now and strode towards the ground floor bedroom. I pushed open the door and froze. My mother wasn't there, and even her suitcase was gone.

I quickly turned back to ask Linda, "Where's my mother?"

"Oh, her? She's got such a good son-in-law, she's gone to a nursing home," Linda said with an eye roll.

I was completely confused. I called my mother's phone, but it was turned off. I had no choice but to ask Ryan.

"A colleague came to my place today on business, and I mentioned Mom's condition. He said they have a specialist there, and even special medication. He suggested Mom stay there for a while," Ryan said slowly and calmly, making me feel at ease again.

"Why is my mother's phone always off?" I asked.

"Maybe it ran out of battery? I'll give you a number, you can call and ask. It's the number for the nurse on duty," he said.

"Never mind, I'll go see for myself. Give me the address," I said.

I was still uneasy. Even if my mother was going to stay in a hospital, I needed to see it with my own eyes to be reassured.

"I'll go with you tomorrow. It's about to rain, and the nursing home is in the suburbs, too far away," Ryan said kindly, back to his patient self from before we were married.

I ignored him and focused on checking the address he sent. It was indeed far, halfway up a mountain in the suburbs. The environment looked nice, but the transportation was very inconvenient.

Suddenly, my phone started ringing. It was a video call request from my mother.