Chapter 8

Emergency room, First Affiliated Hospital.

Bai Lu paced back and forth at the door, making Xu Xin, who was standing next to him, dizzy.

He came along just to find some peace and quiet, but he never expected that Bai Lu, looking at such a big guy, would be so anxious that he would shed tears.

"Brother Xin, do you think they're alright? They've been inside for so long, why haven't they come out yet?"

He gripped his fingers tightly, his voice trembling: "What if something really happens to Bai Nan..."

He recalled the scene he had just witnessed, and his heart clenched again, a wave of pain washing over him.

The hallway floor was very cold, and he helplessly curled up on the floor, holding his head.

"She'll be alright," Xu Xin said, offering a rare word of comfort.

He would never normally utter such words of comfort, after all, for him, time cannot be turned back, and the dead cannot be brought back to life.

Offering comfort is the most useless thing.

As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Lu hugged his leg, crying, and his trouser leg got wet from sobbing.

Xu Xin stared blankly at the liquid on his trouser leg; thankfully, it was just tears.

However, the peace of mind that had just been put down was completely shattered by the strands that Bai Lu pulled out when he changed his posture.

Nose, snot...?

Just as he was struggling to resist the urge to kick it away, the doctor came out pushing a transport cart.

"Which of you is the patient's family member? Quickly take her medical card to the lobby to pay the fees. After paying, go to the third floor to queue for the CT scan. After getting your number, go to the fifth floor ultrasound room to get a number. Be quick!"

The doctor was wearing a mask and spoke with an unusually serious tone.

Bai Lu quickly wiped his face, got up and went to the lobby to pay the fees as instructed by the doctor.

"You come here!" The doctor pointed at Xu Xin, signaling him to follow.

"Tell me the duration of the patient's asphyxiation, whether they have any underlying medical conditions, and what medications they are allergic to." The doctor walked to the computer and started typing, clearly treating him like a family member.

"It lasted for less than two minutes, and he showed severe discomfort in the last few seconds."

"I don't know about the rest," Xu Xin replied seriously.

The doctor pushed up his glasses: "What's your relationship? How come you don't even know this?"

Xu Xin: "...Stranger."

"Why are you following me to the hospital, stranger?! Do you have the patient's parents' phone number?"

"No."

"......"

Xu Xin was kicked out by the doctor, who told him to contact Bai Lulai.

Little did anyone know that Bai Lu was so busy that he was completely lost and hadn't found the CT room yet.

"You come over here first, I'll go get a number."

Xu Xin sighed helplessly. From the moment the chop shot started, he was no longer able to stay out of it.

He first asked the nurse at the reception desk to confirm the room numbers for the CT room and the color Doppler ultrasound room, and then went up to the third floor via the side staircase.

Elevators are slow when there are too many people, and it's easy to get confused by the crowd. If the floors are not too high, the stairs are the best choice.

After arriving on the third floor, I followed the signs on the floor to the CT room, but I didn't see a ticket dispenser.

After scanning the area, he found that the ticket dispenser was next to the triage desk opposite the CT room, and there were no stickers indicating it. No wonder Bai Lu couldn't find it.

The hospital signage here is really terrible compared to Taipei.

"...The one who just fainted was choked by him?"

"Hmm, I heard they're siblings..."

"That's ruthless."

"It's understandable that children don't know their own strength when they hit."

"I don't think so. Kids these days know a lot more. Last time I met a guy who killed someone and then yelled in the hospital that he didn't have to go to jail because he was under fourteen. Tsk tsk tsk."

"Sigh, kids these days... Dr. Wang? Okay, coming right away."

"Me too? No, does he think we nurses are too idle...?"

The footsteps faded into the distance, and the ward returned to silence.

Bai Nan slowly opened her eyes. The oxygen tube under her nose was inserted a little too deeply, causing an itchy sensation.

The ceiling was bathed in the glow of the setting sun, and a colorful ring encircled the incandescent light bulb, dazzling the eye.

The stab made her close her eyes again.

Two hours later, the ward became lively again.

“My darling, you scared your mother to death! If I didn’t have you, I wouldn’t want to live anymore—” Huang Ying cried and lay by the bedside.

"Alright, Xiao Di is fine, don't act like you're mourning."

Bai Hua's tone was full of frustration: "Let's hurry up and figure out how to explain this to Master Zong."

"What can we say? The girl who was detained for questioning is from the Xu family, and Master Zong will definitely believe her."

"She's not even from the same family. Besides, it's normal for the siblings to play around and get a little heated, maybe even exchange a few blows! I just heard Grandpa Zong mention yesterday how he kicked his brother and broke his leg when they were kids..."

"Bai Hua! You have no conscience! He kicked your grandpa!"

"The bones healed eventually, didn't they? My grandfather, he just had to make a big deal out of it, causing the two families to fall out completely, and in the end, he didn't even get a decent burial plot—"

Bai Hua's tone was full of dissatisfaction with his grandfather. He thought to himself: If he hadn't made such a big fuss back then, he wouldn't be in this situation now, having to fawn over Grandfather like a grandson, without getting any real benefits in return.

The Xu family, the maternal family of Master Zong's first wife, reaped all the benefits.

"Wait! You mean that Xu Xin, could he be a member of the Xu family?" Bai Hua whispered, "As soon as he arrived, Master Zong arranged for him to stay with Bai Lu. I heard from the chefs that yesterday they suddenly added a lot of dietary restrictions, and the ingredients were changed to higher-end ones."

"...I remember he got into the ambulance?"

"Oh dear! There's always a way out. You stay here with our son, I'll go and beg him for mercy."

Bai Hua left as soon as he finished speaking, his legs feeling much lighter.

Huang Ying finally sat down on the edge of the bed, glancing at the IV drip bottle as she muttered, "Son, you really acted impulsively this time. Tell your mother what happened."

Seeing that Bai Nan didn't reply, he held her hand and comforted her, "Your sister is stupid, but you can't follow her blindly. The Bai family will rely on you to support them in the future."

"Besides, her mother has already made arrangements for her. Just wait for her to graduate, and all the money she earns will be yours. Don't make any more mistakes."

Bai Nan was startled upon hearing this, but couldn't figure it out no matter how hard she tried.

She lay on the hospital bed, her lips trembling as she tried to speak, but ultimately she couldn't utter a word.

But Huang Ying understood, and she teased:

"Li Rui has taken a liking to your sister, here's the dowry!"

She laughed heartily, her five fingers outstretched, but Bai Nan felt as if she had descended into the underworld, with a chilling aura seeping into her bones and making her vision blur.

This Li Rui is the son of Li Laokou's third daughter, and he is a cripple who was born with a limp.

Huang Ying continued muttering something, but she could no longer hear it at all.

Bai Nan only realized what had happened when Huang Ying hurriedly left and the ward returned to its empty silence.

She felt she should be sad, but in reality, she was more afraid.

She thought,

Have we just escaped one nightmare only to have to go through another?

She didn't want to continue, but what should she do?

She originally planned to wait until after the college entrance examination to go to the university furthest away from here and live an ordinary life in that unfamiliar city.

But even that has become a luxury?

She was completely speechless, and even her thoughts had ceased to be active; she was like a dead fish barely clinging to life.

"Beep beep beep—"

The hum of the instrument was both noisy and calming.

She suddenly began to hallucinate the cicadas in the mulberry tree in her grandmother's yard. Knowing that her life was nearing its end, she began to torment herself day and night, so that heaven and earth could hear her cries.

She wanted to go back and visit.

Not for any other reason than to hear the cicadas sing one more time before the autumn wind blows.

Perhaps heaven finally opened its eyes, for someone who could grant her wish actually came to her door.

He walked in, stood by the bed, and scrutinized her with his eyes down.

Ten years later, Bai Nan still remembers this scene clearly:

The young man, dressed in white, was tall and slender. The dim afterglow of the setting sun outside the window shone into his lowered eyes, giving them a golden glow.

Like a compassionate bodhisattva.

Bai Nan inexplicably gained courage. This energy seemed to pierce her lungs and break through her blocked throat, and she resolutely burst out of her mouth!

"you!"

She uttered the first word, and then she couldn't stop.

"Xu Xin! Please take me somewhere!" The words became more and more fluent, but the anger waned, and the last word turned into a shushing sound.

After she finished speaking, she stared nervously at Xu Xin, her heartbeat already drowning out the beeping of the medical equipment. She dared not miss any of his expressions and held her breath, waiting for his reply.

Like prisoners awaiting trial.

But his golden pupils were filled with coldness.

He said, "Who are you?"

A silent stillness filled the air, and the scent of mint sent chills down one's spine.

Xu Xin, having not received a reply for a long time, chose to turn and leave.

But as soon as he turned around, he encountered resistance at the corner of his white shirt.

"I am..."

"Bai Nan".

She said.

Summer nights are long, and cold winds howl.

"Cough! Cough cough!"

The coughing was carried away by the summer breeze, and swept into the night along with the exhaust fumes.

Aside from the barely audible coughs, the most unmistakable sound was the deafening roar of the motorcycle.

On a dusty country road, a dark figure sped through the air, carrying two figures on its back. In the moonlight, one could vaguely make out a man and a woman.

This was Bai Nan's first time riding a motorcycle. Her legs were shaking more than she had imagined, and the wind was colder than she had expected.

But for some reason, I felt no fear, only freedom and joy.

Without a helmet, the wind seeped in everywhere, even piercing her eyes and ears. If she hadn't kept her head down, she probably wouldn't have been able to cough or even breathe properly, and her tongue would have been tied in knots.

Yet she was happy; this was Bai Nan's first betrayal, and she accepted it willingly.

When night fell as dark as ink and some dark clouds gathered in the sky, they finally entered the village.

Even though the motorcycle was making a lot of noise, the village chief's big yellow dog started barking incessantly, which attracted other animals to join in.

Xu Xin was so disturbed by the noise that he had to turn off the engine and could only slowly push the bike into the village.

Bai Nan walked ahead of him, her yellow short-sleeved shirt acting like a road sign, conspicuously guiding the way.

The village roads are mostly dirt, and the stones are often piled up here and there, making them difficult to walk on.

The motorcycle was even more difficult to travel, so Xu Xin had to abandon it on the side of the road and walk with Bai Nan.

Fortunately, they were lucky; they had entered the yard a few minutes before the sudden summer rain.

Bai Nan skillfully slipped into the inner room and soon handed Xu Xin a white towel.

"Wipe it off, don't be disgusted."

As soon as she entered the house, her movements became much lighter, and her voice lowered.

It was as if they were afraid of disturbing something.

Xu Xin accepted it silently. He hadn't gotten much rained on, so he just shook off the dust from his clothes.

"This is my maternal grandmother's house."

After handing out the towel, Bai Nan didn't stop. He carried back an iron bucket from the backyard, which was half full of water. As he passed the room that could be considered a living room, he suddenly said this.

Xu Xin opened his mouth, as if to ask something, but Bai Nan had already continued talking to himself, seemingly without needing his words.

The house was built with old pine wood and red bricks. The walls inside were plastered with white lime, and the floor was just gray cement.

There wasn't much furniture, but it was covered in dust.

Bai Nan's voice came from the kitchen next door, her accent slightly tinged with speech, making it difficult to hear clearly.

Xu Xin simply followed her into the kitchen, brushing the dirt off his clothes as he listened to her talk.

Splash—

The sound of rain gradually intensified.