It was raining heavily outside. Ling Shuang and Hu Guile were sitting in the back seat of the taxi. Hu Guile held her mother's hand tightly. Although their body temperatures were equally cold, she seemed to have drawn endless warmth and strength from the clasped hands.

The taxi driver drove out of Beixinhe Community, flipped over the empty taxi sign, and peeked at them several times in the rearview mirror before finally asking, "Where are you going?"

Ling Shuang: "Municipal Forensic Hospital."

Perhaps the three words "Forensic Hospital" were too shocking, the driver remained silent for the rest of the journey and no longer glanced in the rearview mirror.

It was the middle of the night and there were few pedestrians and vehicles on the road. The forensic hospital was not far away and it took only half an hour to drive there. The driver was considerate and drove the car to the porch at the entrance of the hospital lobby, where there was shelter so that we would not get wet in the rain when getting out of the car.

The back seat got wet, and Ling Shuang paid 10 yuan more for the fare, although the driver said he didn't mind.

When they arrived at the hospital lobby, they directly registered two emergency room numbers. Ling Shuang also borrowed a mobile bed (flatbed) in the emergency hall, but neither of them lay down on it. Instead, they piled all their luggage on it and pushed it to the emergency department.

One person was bandaging it while the other was watching the luggage outside.

The doctor in the emergency department was a female doctor who hated evil and often saw patients suffering from domestic violence. With just a glance, she saw the cause of the injury clearly. While cleaning the wound, she asked Ling Shuang, "Can you call the police?"

Ling Shuang waved his hands: "Thank you, no need, I can handle it myself."

The female doctor nodded and stopped persuading her. She just wrote down the severity of the patient's injuries in detail in the medical record, which could be used directly as an injury report later.

After Ling Shuang's wound was treated, it was Hu Guile's turn. Although her injury was not as serious as Ling Shuang's head injury, it was not light either. The female doctor who hated evil could not suppress her sense of justice. When she learned that Hu Guile was not yet sixteen years old and was hurt by her stepfather, she was so angry that she insisted on calling the police.

Hu Guile called her mother in in embarrassment. She didn't know how to comfort the doctor sister. Why did her sister seem to be even angrier than herself?

Ling Shuang patted Hu Guile's back soothingly and said to the female doctor who was full of justice: "Doctor, it's raining heavily outside and it's so late. My daughter and I are really tired now. If the police come now, we may not be able to rest all night.

I am truly grateful for your outspokenness. Tomorrow I will take my daughter directly to the police station to file a report. This is also why we came to the Forensic Hospital today to treat the wounds."

There seemed to be a magical power in her voice that could convince people. The female doctor seemed to be persuaded by her and no longer insisted on helping them call the police. Instead, she agreed to their request for hospitalization and opened a double room for them, hoping that the poor mother and daughter could at least have a good rest in the second half of the night.

Hu Guile did not sleep well at night, screaming and mumbling from time to time. Later, Ling Shuang gave her a few needles on the acupuncture points, and her breathing became steady and long.

Ling Shuang also fell asleep quickly. Her original body had been neglected in recent years, with evil spirits running rampant in her internal organs and her spirit suppressed for a long time. This night's experience had almost drained all her energy and spirit, and her body was exhausted to the extreme.

After this matter is settled, she must take good care of her body.

I slept until dawn. Doctor Zhengyi had already switched shifts with her colleague. But before leaving, she came to the ward to check on Hu Guile and her daughter. Fortunately, neither of them had a fever, and there was no pus on their wounds. She had prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs for both of them and asked them to have an IV drip. She also asked the nurse to help take care of them.

The nurse pushed her away and said, "Don't worry, Dr. Li. We are here for you. Go home and rest. You've been exhausted all night."

......

Ling Shuang took Hu Guile to the cafeteria on the basement floor of the hospital to have breakfast and lunch. At around four o'clock in the afternoon, the last bottle of anti-inflammatory glucose solution was injected into the body. The doctor said that he could be discharged from the hospital, but he had to come back on time to change the dressing. He also asked him to keep the wound away from water to avoid infection. Ling Shuang took note of everything.

After leaving the hospital, Hu Guile looked at the people passing by in a daze. He turned nervously and asked Ling Shuang, "Mom, where are we going?"

Ling Shuang smiled gently: "Are you tired?"

Hu Guile shook his head: "I'm not tired. I've slept all day and I'm not tired at all." It's just that the wound hurts a little.

Ling Shuang said to her happily: "Then let's go celebrate."

Hu Guile was puzzled. "We're both covered in wounds, and your hair looks like it was gnawed by someone. Now we don't even have a place to stay. What's there to celebrate?" But she didn't want to spoil the fun. If her mother was happy, she would be happy too.

Ling Shuang hailed another taxi and, carrying several bags of varying sizes, headed straight to a famous four-star hotel in K City. Mother and daughter checked into a standard room. Hu Guile was stunned: "A night here costs three hundred yuan!" She glanced at her mother secretly. Her mother, always frugal, was truly irritated this time.

Little did they know that the excitement was yet to come. After pushing the luggage into the room and putting it away, Ling Shuang directly found a disposable shower cap, put it on Hu Guile's head, and then let her go in to take a hot shower, only asking her to be careful not to take off the shower cap while washing to prevent water from entering the wound.

Although Hu Guile wanted to remind her mother that the doctor had repeatedly told her not to take a bath recently, her body was indeed sticky and uncomfortable. Her mother said that she could take a bath with the hat on. Between the doctor and her mother, she chose to listen to her mother.

After taking a shower, the celebration began. Ling Shuang said she would take her to a big meal. Hu Guile touched her rumbling stomach and was full of anticipation. In the end, Ling Shuang took her to KFC.

This was a great surprise. Hu Guile had a table full of hamburgers, French fries, fried chicken, and ice cream. She ate to her heart's content, but she felt a little regretful: "It would be great if my brother was here. He loves fried chicken the most."

Hu Guile still remembers that before her parents divorced, her brother went to the city to participate in the Mathematical Olympiad and brought her KFC when he came back. Although the fried chicken and hamburgers were cold, Hu Guile still thought they were the most delicious things she had ever eaten.

Ling Shuang wiped the ketchup off the corner of her mouth and said, "Next time we'll bring our brother along to eat."

Hu Guile's eyes lit up: "Are we going back to our hometown?"

Ling Shuang shook his head: "Sorry, kid, we may not go back to our hometown in the future, but you can write to your brother. When we settle down, your brother should be on summer vacation, and he can come to K City to see you."

Hu Guile nodded vigorously, "Then we'll bring our brother over to eat fried chicken."

Ling Shuang agreed. Seeing that Hu Guile had almost finished eating, she waved her hand:

"Let's go to the next stop."