Chapter 2 Rebirth

  The clouds in the western sky are thick and dense, half golden and half gray-blue under the afterglow of the setting sun, like countless clusters of large flowers blooming together, exceptionally charming and moving.

  The girl on the bed was extremely pale, her thin eyebrows tightly furrowed, and her long eyelashes fluttering wildly like trapped butterflies. Her bloodless lips opened and closed as if gasping for fresh air, as if she would suffocate otherwise. Suddenly, she abruptly opened her eyes wide, a pair of clear and bright eyes staring widely, as if shocked by something extreme, cold sweat dripping down her face like a small stream.

  Tang Wan felt that her whole body was aching, she suppressed the panic in her heart, looked around and saw that everything was white, knowing that this was a hospital. She remembered what had happened before wasn't a dream, she really had been in a car accident, now she should have been sent to the hospital.

  Why? Why didn't she die, and yet Tāng Yáo was still that trampled and disheveled person, why didn't she die?! Tāng Yáo, who had been oppressed by the continuous hardships in life, was overwhelmed by the surging bitterness in her heart, and big teardrops fell down like pearls.

  The door creaked open and a nurse in white clothes with a white bandana on her head walked in. She saw Tang Yao crying and comforted her gently, "Little girl, you're finally awake! You've been unconscious for a whole day and night. Are you in pain? Don't worry, it's just some superficial wounds, no bones were broken. In a few days, you'll be able to run around again. But next time, be more careful, don't get so caught up in chatting with your classmates that you walk into the middle of the road, it's too dangerous!"

  Tang Wan listened to the nurse's words and was stunned. She thought, who is this nurse talking to? She was clearly looking at herself, but why did her words seem like they weren't directed at her? Moreover, there was only one person in this room, no little girl?!

  That nurse saw Tang Yao's dazed expression and thought she hadn't woken up yet, so she continued: "I'm talking about you! Don't think you can avoid being scolded. I say that girls of your age are just like this, unaware of the height of the sky and the thickness of the earth. You're lucky this time, the car owner who hit you braked in time, otherwise you wouldn't have just gotten a flesh wound, lightly broken bones and tendons, or even lost your life! Your parents would be so heartbroken, thinking that you haven't enjoyed any blessings at such a young age, and it's too unfilial to let them send off their white-haired children with black hair! And the car owner was also very unlucky, accidentally hitting someone to death, leaving behind a psychological shadow! Alas, what a pity that such a handsome man can no longer drive his cool sports car!

  If this were a manga world, Tang Yao would have already had black lines all over her face! She was thinking how annoying this little nurse was! She had never seen anyone so annoying before! And did she have eye problems or something? She herself was clearly over thirty years old, so why was she calling herself "little girl"? Clearly younger than herself! But before she could get angry, she was struck by another fact - that despite remembering being hit by a car and bleeding profusely, with the sound of her own ribs breaking loud and clear in her ears, why did she say it was just a flesh wound?

  That feeling of death approaching was so strong, it had been etched in her mind. Tang Yao believed that wasn't a dream, but now also wasn't a dream. She felt the pain; there wouldn't be any pain in dreams.

  What's going on? Tang Yao was confused.

  The nurse saw that Tang Yao was still dazed, with a worried expression on her face, and asked: "What's wrong? Are you dizzy? Or is it painful to the point where you can't speak?" However, seeing that Tang Yao didn't seem to be in much pain, just confused, she suddenly clapped her hands, picked up a pair of large black-framed glasses from the bedside table, and put them on Tang Yao's face. She laughed and said: "Is it because you can't see my face clearly, so you feel like you're looking at flowers in the fog and have such a confused expression? You must be severely nearsighted! You must be an excellent student!"

  Tang Wan actually didn't need to wear glasses to see the nurse clearly, although she was nearsighted, it wasn't to the point where she would be blind without them. However, after putting on the glasses, she could indeed see more clearly. But she hadn't noticed these things, she was just shocked by the glasses in front of her.

  What did she see?! This pair of rustic black-framed glasses is still the same one from her junior high school days!!! It's also her first pair of glasses!!! She can't be mistaken, that pair of glasses had a small dent on the left lens rim because it fell once, but since it didn't affect her vision, she never replaced it. That's why she recognized it at a glance!!!

  How is this possible? This pair of glasses was clearly thrown away by my sister, how did it end up here now?! Tang Tao thought back to when the nurse called her "little girl" and said she was hit by a car while talking to classmates. She remembered that she had only been in one car accident before, when she was in junior high school. At that time, she was so upset and humiliated after being teased by classmates that she ran away without noticing the car and got hit. It was just a superficial injury, but she seemed to have fainted for a day and night!

  Tang Yao stiffly turned her head to survey the hospital room, and indeed it was just as she remembered - old and worn. She lifted up her own hand, and saw a slender white arm, with long and slender fingers, completely unlike the plump appearance in her memories. At this moment, Tang Yao finally confirmed one thing: that she had been reborn!

  The nurse changed the bandages on Tang Yao's arm and leg, and replaced the nearly finished IV drip. "I'll call the doctor to take a look at you later. You're probably just going to be under observation for tonight and can go home tomorrow. Don't move around too much after just waking up, get some rest." After finishing speaking, she turned and left the hospital room.

  Tang Wan saw the nurse leave, she lay in bed and calmed herself for a while, then sat up, feeling sore all over her arms and legs. She carefully looked at them and found that only her left arm and left leg were bandaged. She remembered they weren't serious injuries, just scratches from being rubbed against the asphalt road by the car, which would heal in no time. However, those marks that didn't match her skin tone lingered for a long time, lingering so long that she vividly remembered that humiliation, and from then on, she never dared to believe that someone could fall in love with her again.

  Tang Wan felt a bit thirsty, so she picked up the water glass on her bedside table and drank it all in one gulp. She felt refreshed after putting down the glass and found a shiny red apple on the desk with a piece of paper underneath it. There were only a few lines of words on the paper, written in neat and beautiful handwriting that looked like a girl's writing.

  "Sparrows may be ordinary, but they are great in that they can survive the icy cold and welcome spring without flying south. The phoenix may be noble, but it too must undergo rebirth to achieve eternal life. As long as you get through the suffering, you can welcome a new life."

  Tang Wan softly recited these few sentences, after a long time, she smiled slightly. She thought, yes, having gone through so much suffering, she finally welcomed a new life. In this life, she would definitely become a true phoenix!

  I also want to be reborn, so even if I don't become a great god, at least I won't fall flat on my face.