CHAPTER 94: CHAPTER 94: BRINGING THE FOX HOME

However, at that time, the Fierce Beast uprising took her first child in the war, and her body suffered damage.

She fell into a long period of guilt and sorrow until later, when a new child was born, bringing her hope.

But she had no choice but to send the child away.

Ruan Ying looked at her with sad eyes.

"Little Li, I had no choice but to send you away back then... Can you forgive me?" she said self-reproachfully.

Ruan Li hesitated, regardless of whether Ruan Ying was telling the truth, she did not have the right to say she forgave her, as her daughter Ruan Li was no longer in this world.

The air gradually grew silent, and the gaze she hoped for gradually turned into disappointment.

She gave a bitter smile, "I won’t expect you to forgive me right now, after all, I truly did not fulfill my parenting duties."

Ruan Li looked lightly at the introspective mother before her, and after she finished expressing her emotions, she said, "Can I ask three questions?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"First question, what experiment are you doing now?"

"It’s just a potion improvement experiment, aimed at helping Beastmen heal themselves from sources of contamination without female treatment."

"Second question, why do you need my blood?"

"Little Li, you were seriously ill as a child, originally born with an extremely high talent for healing abilities, but after this illness, your healing ability dropped to Level 1 and hasn’t improved over the years. However, a month ago, your healing ability suddenly began to improve rapidly. Don’t you find that a bit strange?"

"I’m concerned about you too. If it’s truly a positive trend in your healing ability, I would naturally be happy for you, but if it’s an abnormality in your body, I also have a responsibility to help you."

Her answer was gentle yet powerful, resembling well-rehearsed lyrical prose, flawless to the point of perfection.

"Last question, were the first two questions answered truthfully?"

The air suddenly froze, and even Ruan Ying’s smile froze for a moment.

In the pure white space, her smile seemed to distort for a moment, or it might have just been Ruan Li’s illusion.

After all, in her heart, she had long labeled this biological mother with the "abandoned daughter" filter.

Her previously heartfelt words only made Ruan Li feel slightly itchy in her ears.

She had no blood affection for her, so she saw it clearly.

Ruan Ying’s guilt towards her might be real, and the emotional expression might also be real, but "Ruan Li" was no longer there. The one who might have killed her was Ruan Jiao, but after the last interaction, the possibility regarding Ruan Jiao greatly diminished, so Ruan Li’s gaze inevitably fell on the woman before her.

Her smile was harmless, her eyes pure.

"Little Li, I am your biological mother, why would I lie to you?"

Ruan Ying sighed, "It was me who neglected you all these years, from now on, I will make up for it piece by piece."

Ruan Li mentioned Xu Mo, "How is his situation now? Can I take him away?"

Ruan Ying showed concern, "Xu Mo’s missing memories will gradually recover, but it will take time. Until then, it would be best for him to stay here and heal."

"I want to take him back, is that okay? Mother," Ruan Li said calmly.

It was the first time Ruan Ying heard her say the word "mother," and an obvious joy appeared on her face. She agreed with a slight hesitation, "Little Li, I’m very happy that you can call me mother. Xu Mo’s current situation is indeed quite unusual, but since you want to take him away, you can. Remember to change the bandage on your wrist when you get home."

She spoke some casual words like an ordinary mother caring for her daughter.

After chatting for ten minutes, fatigue was evident on Ruan Ying’s face. "That’s it for now, my health isn’t great, and I can’t see you off, Little Li. If you can stay..."

She hesitated, ultimately leaving the sentence unfinished, "I’ll let Little Yi escort you out."

After Ruan Li went downstairs, she was directly taken to the aircraft, where there was a black blindfold and a metal cage on the table, inside which a red fox was sleeping.

Ruan Li opened the cage, wanting to take Xu Mo out, but heard the urging to put on the blindfold.

She simply held Xu Mo in her arms and then put on the blindfold.

All the way down, the little fox lay quietly asleep in her arms; if Ruan Li couldn’t feel his breathing and heartbeat, she might have suspected she was holding a fake fox.

When Ruan Li got home, it was already past eight in the evening. Fortunately, she had informed Bai He and the others earlier that she would return a bit later tonight.

However, when they saw her holding a fox in her arms, the three of them were somewhat surprised.

"She went to great lengths to capture Xu Mo, and now she sends him back..." Bai He murmured, but the sound was clear enough for everyone to hear.

Zhe Ye nodded, "Indeed suspicious."

"Although it should be undetectable, let’s have 003 do a simple checkup on Xu Mo anyway." Xi Han picked up 003 and activated its smart check function.

"Everything is normal," the outcome was not unexpected.

"If she wishes, only the Empire’s top-level equipment might detect any problems within him," Zhe Ye said.

Ruan Li nudged the little fox’s paws, "Why hasn’t he woken up yet?"

When her sleeve slipped, Zhe Ye sharply noticed the band-aid on her wrist.

"Ruannuan, your wrist is injured?"

Ruan Li instinctively pulled her hand back into her sleeve, "No, Zhe Ye, you saw wrong."

Zhe Ye’s brows furrowed slightly, he took two steps to Ruan Li’s side and gently pulled down her sleeve, confirming the band-aid.

"What is this?" the man’s voice lowered, hiding a simmering anger.

Ruan Li twisted her wrist, trying to pull her hand back, but Zhe Ye held it firmly.

Bai He said in a low voice, "You should release Ruannuan first."

Zhe Ye’s expression grew serious, "If I hadn’t just seen it, she probably planned to hide that she was hurt all along."

He took the little fox from Ruan Li’s arms with one hand, "Where did you go?"

Ruan Li lowered her head shyly; she had only informed them she was going to meet Ruan Jiao, but hadn’t mentioned her visit to the research institute.

Ruan Li had originally planned to try to heal her hand’s wound before returning home, but it seemed she temporarily couldn’t use her Life Force after having some blood drawn.

The robot had initially treated it with ointment and bandages, but Ruan Li, worried they might find out, replaced it with a band-aid.

Bai He spoke seriously, "Ruannuan, is there something you’re not telling us?"

Xi Han got even closer to her, sniffing her neck, his brows tightly knitted, "It’s the smell of disinfectant."

When Ruan Li saw these three behaving like detectives, and since they had easily seen through her lie, she decided to just confess the foolish thing she’d done to them.