Things Remain, But People Have Changed, Ma Xianglian, Long Time No See!

Half an hour later, the taxi pulled up in front of the Sea City Orphanage.

Ye Wudao gazed at the rusted iron gate before him, memories of the thirteen years he had spent in the orphanage flashing through his mind.

Just as the taxi driver had said, the place seemed abandoned; even the white sign beside the iron gate had been removed.

The small side gate, however, remained ajar.

He walked forward slowly and gently pushed the half-open door.

"Creeeak..."

The sound of grinding rust rang out abruptly.

"Who's there!"

Suddenly, an elderly voice drifted out from the security booth beside the gate.

Ye Wudao paused for a moment and said softly, "Grandpa Fu, it's me!"

As the words left his lips, a hunched old man emerged from the booth. He was Wang Fu, the security guard of the Sunshine Orphanage.

Wang Fu put on the reading glasses hanging around his neck, peered closely at Ye Wudao, and said with some surprise, "Wudao? You're out of prison?"

Ye Wudao looked at Wang Fu, who was struggling even to walk, nodded, and replied, "Yes! I'm out."

Wang Fu nodded slightly, smiling as he said, "It's good that you're out! It's good that you're out! Come, come inside!"

He greeted him warmly, took Ye Wudao's hand, and patted it gently. "Sigh! I only heard from Mother Wang that you had hit someone with a car and gone to jail."

"I was saying just the other day, how could a child as obedient as you hit someone and then flee the scene?"

"Were you wrongly accused, and that's why you were released early?"

Ye Wudao pursed his lips and nodded. "Yes! The judge discovered that I wasn't the one who hit the person, so they let me go."

He knew that Wang Fu likely didn't know the specific details of what had happened to him and was only repeating hearsay.

He looked at Wang Fu and asked softly, "Where is Mother Wang?"

Hearing this, Wang Fu sighed and said, "Mother Wang and the others have all moved to the new orphanage. This place is about to be demolished!"

Ye Wudao looked at Wang Fu and asked in a low voice, "Then why didn't you go?"

Wang Fu glanced into the orphanage and shook his head. "I started working at this orphanage when I was thirty. I'm seventy-nine this year."

"I just can't bear to leave this place!"

"Besides, at my age, it wouldn't be right for me to follow them to the new orphanage."

"Mother Wang said the new orphanage needs a fresh start. She told me to just go there and enjoy my retirement in peace, and that I didn't need to work as a guard anymore."

"But I've been a security guard my whole life. I feel uncomfortable just sitting around idle at the new place."

"So, after staying there for two months, I came back."

He paused, his tone turning somewhat sorrowful. "I'm just waiting here for the demolition. I suppose this is my way of seeing it off on its final journey."

Ye Wudao listened to Wang Fu's rambling, knowing that this old man wouldn't be able to ramble for much longer.

Ten minutes later, Wang Fu reluctantly saw Ye Wudao off and gave him the address of the new orphanage.

Following Wang Fu's directions, Ye Wudao arrived at the gate of the new orphanage.

There was a brand-new iron gate and a brand-new building. The guard at the entrance was a man in his thirties.

Standing outside the gate, he could see children playing in the yard.

The number of children seemed to have increased, and there were many he didn't recognize.

He walked to the security booth but was stopped by the guard.

The guard scanned Ye Wudao and asked in a deep voice, "What are you here for?"

Ye Wudao replied softly, "I'm here to see Mother Wang!"

The guard frowned and shook his head. "We don't have any Mother Wang here. You've got the wrong person!"

Ye Wudao pursed his lips and said again, "I'm looking for Wang Cuihua!"

The guard had a sudden realization. "Oh... you're looking for Director Wang!"

"Give Director Wang a call and have her come out to get you!"

Ye Wudao's eyes narrowed as he heard how the guard referred to Wang Cuihua.

So, they call her Director Wang now?

He still remembered that back at the old orphanage, Wang Cuihua had made every new child call her "Mother"!

He looked at the guard and shook his head. "I don't have Director Wang's number. Please, could you inform her?"

In truth, he had no need to waste words with this guard; he could simply force his way in.

However, seeing the children playing in the yard, he held back.

He knew that if he were to barge in recklessly, it might cause psychological harm to these children.

Because he himself had once been an orphan, he understood deeply just how fragile an orphan's heart could be.

The security guard glanced at Ye Wudao, picked up the phone in the guard booth, and dialed Wang Cuihua's number.

"Hello! Director, there's a young man outside here to see you!"

With that simple sentence, the guard hung up the phone.

The guard said to Ye Wudao, "Wait here. Director Wang will be out in a moment."

Ye Wudao nodded, finding the guard's actions perfectly reasonable.

Back when Wang Fu had been the security guard at the old Sunshine Orphanage, he had been even stricter than this young guard.

The orphanage was filled with children who had no fathers or mothers, and many human traffickers had set their sights on it.

Sunshine Orphanage had lost two children back then, which was why the security had become so incredibly tight afterward.

A short while later, a familiar figure walked out from inside the orphanage.

Ye Wudao's heart tightened as he looked at Wang Cuihua.

The Mother Wang who used to dress so plainly was now dressed in flashy, gaudy clothes, and she had even applied makeup.

He had spent thirteen years in the orphanage, and in his memory, Mother Wang had only worn light makeup on the rare occasions she received prospective adopters.

Even then, that makeup had never been as heavy or garish as it was today.

He felt that the current Wang Cuihua looked more like the wife of a wealthy family.

Wang Cuihua walked toward the guard booth with a light step, but when she saw Ye Wudao, her pace faltered.

She then forced a smile onto her face, waved at Ye Wudao, and called out, "Wudao!"

Watching the unnatural expression on Wang Cuihua's face, Ye Wudao already had a rough guess in his mind.

He smiled faintly and waved back at Wang Cuihua, saying, "Mother Wang!"

Wang Cuihua quickened her pace to the entrance of the guard booth. She scrutinized Ye Wudao and said softly, "I heard from others that you were sentenced to fifteen years. How did you get out of prison so soon?"

Ye Wudao's heart turned cold at these words.

In the past, if Mother Wang had seen him released early, she would never have asked such a question; she would have been concerned about whether he had been treated well inside.

Yet, the current Wang Cuihua was actually questioning why he had been released early.

This confirmed his suspicion: Wang Cuihua must have been aware of the fact that he had been framed by the Ye Family all those years ago.

Seeing him released, Wang Cuihua was clearly surprised, and even a little panicked!

Ignoring the change in Ye Wudao's expression, Wang Cuihua waved at him and said, "Come! Come inside!"

Ye Wudao nodded and followed Wang Cuihua into the new orphanage building.

"Our Sunshine Orphanage was demolished, so we moved here."

"Fortunately, some people were willing to invest in us, so the children's living conditions are much better now..."

Wang Cuihua led the way, talking about the changes in the orphanage over the years as they walked.

Ye Wudao listened silently from the side, saying nothing.

After entering the building, Wang Cuihua took him into an office, poured him a glass of water, and asked, "Wudao, is there something you need by coming back this time?"

Hearing this, the last shred of fantasy in Ye Wudao's heart shattered.

He still remembered what Wang Cuihua used to tell him: any child who walked out of Sunshine Orphanage could return at any time.

Sunshine Orphanage was their home!

Yet now, Wang Cuihua was asking him if he had "something he needed"!

He knew that everything had changed—not just the orphanage, but the people within it as well.

He looked at Wang Cuihua and said with a calm expression, "I'm looking for Ma Xianglian."

Wang Cuihua froze upon hearing this, because she noticed that Ye Wudao had addressed Ma Xianglian by her full name.

In the past, Ye Wudao had always called her Auntie Ma.

Her heart tightened. She looked at Ye Wudao and smiled, "Your Auntie Ma is off today! Why don't you come back tomorrow?"

Ye Wudao smiled. "Wang Cuihua, you don't seem happy at all that I was released early!"

Wang Cuihua was stunned. Had she heard him correctly?

Ye Wudao had called her "Wang Cuihua"?

Could it be... that Ye Wudao already knew?

Just as she was stunned, a knock sounded at the door, and a familiar voice reached Ye Wudao's ears.

"Sister Wang, I heard the children say someone arrived. Is it the new investor?"

Hearing this voice, Ye Wudao looked at Wang Cuihua and sneered, "Didn't you say she was off today?"

Regaining her senses, Wang Cuihua shouted, "Xianglian, run!"

But it was too late; Ma Xianglian had already pushed the door open and walked in.

Furthermore, as Ye Wudao was in the Liquid Condensation Realm, if he let a mere mortal escape, he might as well just commit suicide!

The moment Ma Xianglian pushed open the door and heard Wang Cuihua's scream, she was still somewhat bewildered.

When she saw Ye Wudao sitting on the chair, she froze in place.

Ye Wudao looked at Ma Xianglian and smiled. "Ma Xianglian, long time no see!"

Upon hearing these words from Ye Wudao, Ma Xianglian turned to run.

However, she discovered that she could not move at all, not even a single finger.

A massive force pressed down upon her, rendering her unable to budge.

Immediately following, that force pulled her straight into the room.

"Bang..."

Subsequently, the door was shut by an invisible force.

Ye Wudao glanced at Ma Xianglian, then at Wang Cuihua, and snorted coldly. "I think we should have a 'good' chat!"