Back To The 80s-Chapter 469 - 480: The Truth_1

Ou Ruoshui was a bit surprised, and she didn’t understand why Ji Xiangdong was so proactive. She looked blankly at Ji Xiangdong, unsure of how to respond.

Ji Xiangdong felt he might have been a bit presumptuous, and he chuckled lightly before explaining, "Your colleague is also a woman. I think you would have more in common."

Ou Ruoshui hadn’t had any friends for years, whether male or female. But now, hearing Ji Xiangdong’s words, she found herself unexpectedly nodding in agreement.

Ji Xiangdong glanced at the time, and realized work was almost over. He said, "Wait for me a few minutes, let me pack up, and then we’ll go together." He knew that Gu Xiaobei had been looking after the kids at home these last two days, so he took Ou Ruoshui on a bus ride directly to the residential community.

At Gu Xiaobei’s home, the family of four was fighting over wrapping dumplings. Hearing the knock on the door, Gu Xiaobei put down the rolling pin and ran to answer it. Seeing that mom was no longer using the rolling pin, Xiaopang quickly ran over, picked up the rolling pin, and started to roll the dough in her hand with a serious look.

"Brother, you..." Gu Xiaobei opened the door and was taken aback when she saw Ou Ruoshui standing behind Ji Xiangdong, and was so surprised she couldn’t utter a word, her hand still tightly gripping the doorknob.

Ji Xiangdong saw Gu Xiaobei’s surprised face and, smiling, said, "If something is amiss, we should discuss it inside."

Ou Ruoshui, however, was puzzled as to why there was such a familiar look on Gu Xiaobei’s face.

"Quick...quick...come in." Gu Xiaobei hurriedly moved aside, letting Ji Xiangdong and Ou Ruoshui in.

Lu Zhanguo, who was wrapping dumplings, looked up to see Ou Ruoshui, his eyes also flashing with surprise.

Gu Xiaobei was feeling a mix of excitement, surprise, and incredulity. She was certain this person was Ma Xuerong! How could there be someone else who looked so much like her?

Seeing Gu Xiaobei fall silent behind him, Ji Xiangdong ushered Ou Ruoshui to sit on the couch, and casually introduced her, "This is my younger brother Lu Zhanguo, this is your colleague Gu Xiaobei, and these are her twin treasures, Xiaopang and Mo Wang." Ou Ruoshui was only mildly surprised that Lu Zhanguo and Ji Xiangdong looked so much alike.

Then he turned to Gu Xiaobei and Lu Zhanguo, saying, "This is Ou Ruoshui from Fuqing Ming Tea."

With this introduction, Gu Xiaobei, who was already bewildered, became even more puzzled, standing in a daze, gazing at Ou Ruoshui.

Ou Ruoshui felt uncomfortable under Gu Xiaobei’s gaze, and her eyes turned to Xiaopang who was rolling out dough. A little chubby girl rolling dough with a braid swinging from the top of her head. Suddenly, a warm and gentle feeling welled up in her heart.

Gu Xiaobei quickly regained her focus, and as she looked at Ou Ruoshui’s smile revealing a dimple on the corner of her mouth, her mind started to whirl. If this really was Ma Xuerong, then why was she called Ou Ruoshui? Could it be that she had amnesia?

"Director Ou, are you from Nanhai City?" Gu Xiaobei asked with a smile, sitting next to Ou Ruoshui.

Ou Ruoshui shook her head, "No, I’m from Shaanxi Province."

Ji Xiangdong washed his hands and came over to help wrap dumplings. He asked Xiaopang for the rolling pin. Xiaopang hugged the rolling pin protectively. After she glanced at Gu Xiaobei then at Lu Zhanguo, she hesitantly handed it over to Ji Xiangdong.

Ou Ruoshui smiled and said, "Your baby is very cute."

Seizing this opportunity, Gu Xiaobei quickly asked, "Do you have a boy or a girl?"

Ou Ruoshui was taken aback. She shook her head, "I don’t have a family."

Gu Xiaobei looked at Ji Xiangdong and Lu Zhanguo. How should she start to tell Ou Ruoshui that she might be Jiujiu’s mother?

Lu Zhanguo gently shook his head, hinting for her to wait for a better time to tell her.

Gu Xiaobei, being an impatient person, was now bottling up all her words. Ou Ruoshui felt somewhat uncomfortable and, noting that it was mealtime, she made preparations to leave.

Unable to hold back any longer, Gu Xiaobei grabbed Ou Ruoshui’s wrist and said, "I would like to speak to you alone." She then hurriedly pulled Ou Ruoshui into the spare room.

In a low voice, Ji Xiangdong said to Lu Zhanguo, "Doesn’t she look a lot like Jiujiu? And I suspect she is Jiujiu’s mother because her accent is entirely that of someone from G Province."

Lu Zhanguo nodded. He had seen the softness in Ou Ruoshui’s eyes when she looked at Xiaopang. Only a mother would have such tender affection in her gaze.

Inside the bedroom, Gu Xiaobei looked at Ou Ruoshui and said straightforwardly, "You look very much like a girl I know. Her name is Jiujiu. Unfortunately, her mother committed suicide by jumping off a cliff when she was less than a month old." Gu Xiaobei finished the story, then fixed her gaze on Ou Ruoshui’s face.

Ou Ruoshui didn’t know why her heart ached after hearing these words, and her facial expression changed subtly.

As they sat on the edge of the bed, Gu Xiaobei took Ou Ruoshui’s hands into her own. Although slender, Ou Ruoshui’s hands were firm, rough and calloused, not delicate, and were even a bit prickly.

"May I tell you the story of Jiujiu?" Gu Xiaobei asked cautiously, monitoring Ou Ruoshui’s reaction. She was afraid that Ou Ruoshui hadn’t lost her memory but just didn’t want to talk about her past.

Ou Ruoshui nodded without saying anything, her heart suddenly feeling a bit restless and fearful. For some reason, she felt an unusual connection to this girl, Jiujiu.

"Jiujiu’s mother was an extraordinary woman. Due to unavoidable circumstances, she committed suicide by jumping off a cliff a few days after giving birth to Jiujiu..." Gu Xiaobei started from the moment Xuerong jumped off the cliff, explaining how Xuerong fell in love with Jin Jiadong, how they ran away together while she was pregnant with Jiujiu due to persecution, why she had to leave Jiujiu behind and then jump off the cliff amidst desperation. She also mentioned Jin Jiadong’s sacrifice. "When I met Jiujiu, she was nine years old but looked only five or six due to chronic malnourishment. Her face was thin and pale. But now, living with her grandmother, she has grown much taller and looks like a young lady."

For some reason, as Gu Xiaobei relayed each event, Ou Ruoshui had a strange sense of familiarity. And her heart ached as if it was being pierced, to the point it became hard to breathe. Yet her memory was blank, and her eyes were filled with uncontrollable tears.

Seeing Ou Ruoshui crying, Gu Xiaobei wiped the tears from her own face, apologizing, "I’m sorry, I couldn’t control myself, telling you such a heartbreaking story."

Ou Ruoshui remained silent, crying, and snippets of blurry scenes began to flash within her mind:

A young boy said shyly to a girl of the same age, "The cornbread in this bag is still warm. Eat it quickly before anyone sees it."

A young soldier in uniform said to a girl in a red dress, "You look so beautiful in red, just like a bride. Xuerong, wait for me to come back from the battlefield, and I will marry you in style."

The girl carefully touched the new red dress she was wearing and cried, "Jiadong, can I be your bride today?"

"Xuerong, I can’t hurt you. If I don’t come back, you can still marry someone decent."

The girl, tears falling, began to unbutton her red dress and sobbed, "Jiadong, if you leave today, I will die to show you..."