Xincheng.
Even after the beginning of autumn in August, the weather was still unbearably hot.
There was an osmanthus tree in the yard of Mei Mengzhen's house. In her childhood memories, it took two adults to wrap their arms around it. It grew lush and dense, and when it bloomed, its crown was like a yellow umbrella—offering shade and spreading fragrance.
The osmanthus tree grew larger and larger, and its branches gradually stretched into the house.
A gentle breeze would carry the petals throughout the room, filling the place with osmanthus scent, sweet and refreshing, making one feel at ease just breathing it in.
With that rich osmanthus fragrance, people's moods were always relaxed.
That pure and mellow scent lingered in her mind, no matter how many years passed.
...
'Creak'
The old wooden door was slowly pushed open, and a little boy poked his head inside, cautiously calling, "Sister, sister, are you asleep?"
Mei Mengzhen was always a light sleeper, so whenever she rested, she would make sure the door and windows were tightly shut. Hearing the sound of the door opening, she lifted her head and asked, "Hmm, not asleep yet. What's wrong?"
This little boy was her younger brother, named Mei Mengchen. Mei Mengchen said timidly, "Sister, I'm scared to sleep alone. Can I sleep with you?"
"Alright."
After getting her answer, Mei Mengchen quickly jumped onto the bed and snuggled into Mei Mengzhen's arms.
He twisted and turned for a bit, finally finding the most comfortable position. Once he settled down, he asked, "Sister, why aren't you sleeping yet?"
Mei Mengzhen glanced at the Little Douding in her arms and sighed, "Shouldn't I be asking you that? I already coaxed you to sleep, why are you awake again?"
At this, Mei Mengchen became upset: "I used to sleep with Mom and Dad. When I woke up and saw no one beside me, I got scared. Sister, I'm still little, please don't dislike me. When I grow up, I won't be scared anymore."
"I don't dislike you. Go to sleep."
"Sister, you sleep too."
"Sister needs to think about some things. You go ahead and sleep first."
Mei Mengchen didn't know what Mei Mengzhen needed to think about, but obviously, he couldn't help. Without the earlier fear, sleepiness hit him immediately; as soon as he finished speaking, he drifted off.
Mei Mengzhen looked at her sleeping brother and couldn't help but laugh, though more than anything, she felt pity and ache in her heart.
A week ago, their parents took her brother on a trip. On the way back, they had a car accident. The parents died of their injuries; her brother, belted in the child seat in the back, suffered only minor injuries.
As for why a family of four only went out as a family of three, the reason was obvious.
The parents blatantly 'forgot' Mei Mengzhen at home, which also meant she avoided the fatal disaster.
But fate isn't something that's easily escaped.
By the time Mei Mengzhen made it to the hospital, all her relatives were already there.
Some people cried, some panicked; everyone seemed swallowed by sadness, very busy, very busy, but no matter how she asked, nobody could tell her what had actually happened.
After a long while, it was Auntie who couldn't bear it and told her the truth.
The news came so suddenly that Mei Mengzhen was stunned for ages, unable to recover.
Just then, the relatives, saying she wasn't sad enough, accused her of being heartless and beat her harshly in the hospital. Even Auntie couldn't stop them.
No exaggeration—she was beaten unconscious right then and there, and her injuries were even worse than her brother's from the accident.
But when she woke up in the hospital, her soul had been replaced by the Mei Mengzhen who would later die falling down an elevator.
That's right, she had been reborn.
Reborn at seventeen, and at such an awkward time—she needed some time to adjust.
This adjustment took several days. After handling her parents' funeral and bringing her brother home from the hospital, she finally had time to sort through the chaotic memories in her mind.
When she died in her previous life, she was already thirty-one. According to her memory, her parents had been gone fourteen years, but she scarcely remembered their funeral. What was vivid was the high school life she was about to face.
Seventeen-year-old Mei Mengzhen was a soon-to-be senior in high school. Neither she nor her brother was an adult, and without parents at home, the relatives couldn't just let them fend for themselves, so after the funeral, everyone gathered to decide how to place her and her brother.
The relatives couldn't possibly adopt both children together, which meant from then on, she would live apart from her brother.
The little uncle's youngest son was four; her brother was three. Since the boys were about the same age, everyone figured they'd be companions growing up together, so her brother naturally went to little uncle's house.
Auntie's kids were twins, both in university and rarely home, so Auntie's house happened to have no children—Mei Mengzhen went with Auntie.
The siblings lived with their relatives for a year. In that year, neither she nor her brother had a happy moment.
Because those parents who never did right by their kids caused trouble even after death—Mei Mengzhen had to juggle high school courses and the college entrance exam along with her parents' messes, leaving her little energy for a brother she didn't particularly like.
And a year later, shortly after their home was demolished, her brother died.
Wrapped up in trouble, failing her college entrance exam, she barely had time to think. After burying her brother beside their parents, she left the city to work and pay off debts.
For many years, she believed her brother's death was an accident, until one day, little uncle drunkenly spilled the 'truth', finally letting Mei Mengzhen realize there was a huge secret behind it all.
She tried to find evidence at the time, but it had been years. Evidence was nonexistent; even traces of her brother during his lifetime couldn't be found. Thinking back to the strange signals her brother tried to give her before he died, his death became the regret rooted in Mei Mengzhen's heart.
But her relationship with her brother had always been bad, and ultimately, it was their parents' fault.
When she was born, her parents resented her for being a girl, handing her off to Grandpa shortly after birth. She became a 'left-behind child,' and although she and her parents lived in the same city, they only saw each other once a year—so it's no wonder their relationship was so distant.
Before Grandpa died, he worried she'd have no support, so he transferred this home to her. Grandpa died at the start of the year; her brother was born at the end. After her brother's birth, her parents banded with relatives to force her to hand over the house to the newborn brother—this hit her hard.
She struggled, she fought, but it was useless; within days, the house was transferred to her brother.
Mei Mengzhen already felt estranged from her brother, coupled with her parents' favoritism...
In short, Mei Mengzhen was full of regret afterwards.
Now, living again, nothing matters more than protecting her brother's life—everything else can wait.