Chapter 2

 Lin Qingqing was utterly bewildered. She was pulled into the situation by Lin Zhenzhen, dressed in a random down jacket by her, and then stuffed into the car. Lin Zhenzhen said she wanted to take her to the hospital for a check-up.

"Why is this happening? How did it suddenly become 2018? No, no, this must be a dream," she muttered to herself, patting her cheeks with her hand. However, she could feel the pain when her hand slapped her face.

Lin Qingqing suddenly remembered something and asked, "Sister, what happened to my voice?"

Lin Zhenzhen replied, "Five years ago, before you went to the competition, you bought a cup of milk tea. There was a piece of glass shard in that milk tea. You drank the glass along with the pearls, which scratched your throat. Later, the wound didn't heal properly, got infected, and affected your vocal cords."

Lin Qingqing was struck as if by lightning. She spoke after a long time of silence, as if she had lost her soul, "So, that means I didn't participate in the competition in the end?"

Lin Zhenzhen nodded.

It was terrifying. Why did it happen like this? In the path she had planned for herself, there was no room for such a possibility five years ago.

She was born with a beautiful voice and had loved singing since childhood. Combined with her natural talent for music, her parents nurtured her musical talents since she was very young.

She played various musical instruments, except for stringed instruments, as she could only play the guitar. She was admitted to the best music college in college, where she excelled because of her talent and hard work.

Everyone thought she would be the most successful one in the future, even she believed that. She would become the best singer in the country, standing in front of thousands of people, singing with her beautiful voice.

This was her dream, and she had been working tirelessly to achieve it since childhood. She firmly believed she could do it because of her talent and hard work. But why was her voice ruined? Her voice was her most cherished possession. She had a lovely voice, and it was her pride. She loved singing from an early age and was passionate about music. If her voice was ruined, her soul would be as good as destroyed.

"Can it be cured, sister? Can my voice be cured?" she cried, heartbroken.

Lin Zhenzhen looked at her, her face was full of tears, and she looked very pitiful. Lin Zhenzhen didn't know how to answer her. No matter what the answer was, it was cruel for her.

The doctor came to a preliminary conclusion after several examinations. "From the results, it seems to be selective amnesia caused by a functional reason."

Lin Zhenzhen listened to this, her face a bit heavy. She hurriedly asked, "So can she remember? Can she never remember?"

The doctor said, "This is not clear. Maybe she can remember, or maybe she will never remember."

Lin Zhenzhen waited for a long time, and Lin Qingqing's expression was dull. She didn't pay any attention to what was said to her. Lin Zhenzhen couldn't bear to watch her sister like this. She didn't know how to answer her. Whatever the answer was, it was cruel to her.

Lin Qingqing waited for a long time but didn't see Lin Zhenzhen come back. She remembered that Lin Zhenzhen had just answered a call when she walked out of the doctor's office. She remembered Lin Zhenzhen was talking to someone, but she didn't know who she was talking to. She couldn't see or hear the person on the other end, so she didn't know who she was talking to.

"Who are you talking to?"

"No one, let's go," Lin Zhenzhen replied without looking at her.

Lin Qingqing nodded absently and followed Lin Zhenzhen. She looked absent-minded throughout the process. She couldn't remember anything in the past five years, and she didn't know what had happened to her, but she didn't believe she had lost her memory. She might have crossed over. She had slept for five years, and she had woken up five years later?

But why was her future like this?

Lin Qingqing sat here for a long time, but Lin Zhenzhen still hadn't returned. She remembered that Lin Zhenzhen had just gone to answer the call when she walked out of the doctor's office. She remembered Lin Zhenzhen was talking to someone, but she didn't know who she was talking to. She couldn't see or hear the person on the other end, so she didn't know who she was talking to.

"Who were you talking to?"

"No one, let's go," Lin Zhenzhen replied without looking at her.

Lin Qingqing nodded absently and followed Lin Zhenzhen. She looked absent-minded throughout the process. She couldn't remember anything in the past five years, and she didn't know what had happened to her, but she didn't believe she had lost her memory. She might have crossed over. She had slept for five years, and she had woken up five years later?

But why was her future like this?

Lin Qingqing had to wait for a long time, and when she saw Lin Zhenzhen finally walk out, she said, "What were you talking to?"

"Nothing, let's go," Lin Zhenzhen replied without looking at her.

Her sister, Lin Zhenzhen, just like at the beginning, had a strong aversion to Liang Xin and her daughter. As Lin Zhenzhen hadn't interacted with Liang Xin before, her attitude toward her remained unchanged. She remained cold and indifferent towards Liang Xin.

Lin Qingqing hurriedly said, "I want to go find her. Can you take me to her, sister?"

"Find her?" Lin Zhenzhen scoffed. "You've lost your memory, so you've forgotten that she got together with Xiang Huayang when your voice was damaged."

"What...what?" Lin Qingqing couldn't believe it. "Liang Xin and Xiang Huayang?" She couldn't believe that these two would betray her!

This news was like a bolt from the blue for her at this moment, but she knew her sister wouldn't lie to her.

After a brief moment of shock, she was overwhelmed with anger. "I'm going to find them and ask them why they did this to me!"

Lin Zhenzhen held her back and said, "How are you going to find them? That was five years ago. Times have changed, and if you make a scene now, they will think you're being unreasonable!"

Lin Qingqing suddenly realized the present day. It was indeed 2018, and that event had taken place five years ago.

Why, why had everything changed overnight? Just a few days ago, she and Liang Xin had planned to move out after earning some money, completely severing ties with that family. But why, when she woke up, everything was different.

And Xiang Huayang, he seemed aloof, but he was a warm-hearted person on the inside. His tenderness was always reserved for her, and she had always believed he was her only choice.

Lin Qingqing suddenly thought of something and asked, "What about Dad? When Liang Xin did this to me, didn't Dad do anything?" She lived with Dad and should have woken up in Dad's house. So why was she at her sister's?

Lin Zhenzhen replied, "Dad? That loving dad, because of Liang Xin's influence after you had an accident, he has been protecting Liang Xin. You were heartbroken and cut off ties with him."

Hearing this, Lin Qingqing was stunned. How could her father protect Liang Xin after what she had done? She had always believed that, no matter what, her father loved her because she was his flesh and blood.

She couldn't believe it, she really couldn't.

Lin Zhenzhen saw her standing still suddenly and felt sorry for her. She patted her and said, "Come on, let's go home, and I'll make you some steamed egg custard."

Lin Qingqing followed Lin Zhenzhen home. She wasn't hungry, and she didn't have an appetite, but Lin Zhenzhen told her to lie down for a while.

Sitting down on the bedside, Lin Qingqing seemed lost in thought. She was bewildered by everything that had happened. When she was getting ready to change her shoes, she happened to notice a large tattoo on her calf. It was a witch with blood-red eyes, draped in a gorgeous robe and holding a magic wand. It looked eerie and alluring.

She quickly noticed some scars under the tattoo. She asked, "Why is there such a big scar on my leg?" She had great skin, which she had taken great care of since she was young. She couldn't tolerate having any scars.

Lin Zhenzhen replied, "You accidentally burned yourself there. You didn't like the scar, so you got a tattoo on top of it."

Lin Qingqing: "..."

Perhaps, after experiencing so many shocks on this day, if she saw this scar at any other time, she would have felt incredibly uncomfortable. However, hearing Lin Zhenzhen's explanation now, she didn't react too much. She sat down in front of the mirror, and the girl in the mirror had a bandage wrapped around her head, looking somewhat pale.

Even though she was pale, she was still beautiful. She had a coveted oval face, bright, large eyes, a delicate nose, and high cheekbones that gave her beauty a unique exotic charm.

Their facial features, to a large extent, inherited from their father. Their father, who came from a rural background, ventured to the city at a young age to find work and eventually landed a job as an apprentice at the Peace Hotel. Probably due to his good looks, he caught the eye of the hotel owner's daughter and ended up marrying her.

Their father was determined and expanded the small restaurant into a successful venture. Later, he made enough money to open a branch in Xianghai City, which eventually developed into the prestigious Peace Hotel, encompassing more than just dining.

After his success, his childhood sweetheart Liang Feifei, who had left him when he was poor in their village, returned to him. They quickly rekindled their old feelings. At that time, their father had achieved a lot, but for the sake of Liang Feifei, he even divorced their mother, willing to give up half of his business.

Both she and her sister resented their father deeply for his actions, but they couldn't deny that he had a significant role to play in their striking beauty.

Everything in front of her hadn't changed. She didn't wake up to the vibrant and energetic twenty-year-old she used to be.

Five years later, she found herself in this state—no voice, no lover, no friends. She felt like a complete failure, and her life was in shambles.

Everything seemed so hopeless, and she didn't know what to do. How could she accept the drastic changes that had occurred overnight? It appeared there was no way to go back.

She slowly lifted her head and stared at the haggard yet beautiful woman in the mirror. However, five years had passed, and she had moved forward. There was no turning back. The adversity that didn't defeat her five years ago wouldn't break her now.