Chapter 36 Where are you? I'm home.

Fortunately, Yu Xue was using a fruit knife, and Wen Feng's wound wasn't deep. Yu Xue wanted to find a doctor to take a look and, ideally, get a tetanus shot.

But Wen Feng insisted on not using it, saying that the fruit knife at home wasn't unclean, it was fine, he could just disinfect it with alcohol and bandage it.

Yu Xue got up to brush her teeth, and Wen Feng answered the phone.

She walked into the bathroom in the bedroom, and just as she put the toothbrush with toothpaste in her mouth, she suddenly heard Wen Feng's footsteps, one heavy and one light. She subconsciously looked out and saw Wen Feng hurriedly putting on his clothes, casually pulling out socks from the drawer, accidentally dropping two or three with him. He didn't have the energy to pick them up.

"What's wrong?" Yu Xue asked, also becoming anxious.

Wen Feng: "My dad is in the hospital."

"Huh?" Yu Xue swallowed hard, coughed twice, and quickly suppressed her urge. "What happened?"

Wen Feng: "My mom said she suddenly fainted during a meeting. The doctor said it was a brain hemorrhage and she's in surgery. I need to go see her."

“I’ll go with you.” Yu Xue quickly rinsed her mouth, took the clothes off the rack, and said, “Wait a minute, it’s cold outside. Here, put on your coat.”

Yu Xue didn't dare let Wen Feng drive. As a mentally ill person herself, she couldn't drive either, but at this time, the driver hadn't started work yet.

Yu Xue grabbed his sleeve, not daring to let go, and said, "Let's take a taxi. It's not good to drive when you're too nervous. It would be more troublesome if something happened on the way."

"Okay." Wen Feng nodded, giving Yu Xue a reluctant reply.

The two rushed to the hospital, where the mother was already waiting outside the operating room, with a man standing beside her.

Suppressing his panic, Wen Feng stepped forward and politely said, "Mr. Chen, thank you."

“It’s alright. I was right there at the time. I couldn’t just stand by and watch someone die,” Mr. Chen said. “Sigh, as people get older, they are prone to all sorts of illnesses. Mr. Wen, it’s time for you to step up.”

“I know.” Wen Feng nodded. “President Chen, I’ve been in charge of this project before, but my father took over for a while recently. I will still be in charge from now on, so please don’t worry.”

"Hey, no rush, no rush." ​​President Chen quickly waved his hand. "Let's leave it at that for now. You guys keep chatting, I'm leaving."

Liu Xin wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes and said, "Let the driver take you there, Mr. Chen."

Mr. Chen: "No need, no need, I'll just call my driver. Given the current situation at your home, it's convenient to have a driver around in case something happens."

After seeing President Chen off, Liu Xin turned to Yu Xue, took her hand, and said in a choked voice, "Xue Xue, why did you come too? You're not feeling well yourself."

"Mom, I'm much better now." Yu Xue let her hold her hand with one hand and stroked her back with the other, saying, "I've been receiving treatment recently and I'm almost fully recovered. It's okay, Mom, you don't need to worry about me."

Liu Xin nodded, her heart heavy with sorrow. She had no energy to discern whether what Yu Xue said was true or not. She sat down and leaned back in her chair.

Wen Feng sat down next to her and said softly, "Mom, Dad will be safe."

“I know.” Liu Xin opened her eyes and looked at him. “I knew he would be safe. He even bought me a bouquet of flowers when he came back last night. We were even talking about going to see a movie when he’s not busy this weekend…”

She put her hand on Wen Feng's shoulder and said, "He's still young, only in his fifties... I should have had him come to the hospital for a check-up a long time ago."

The doctor came out with the payment slip. Wen Feng was about to take it when Yu Xue stopped him, saying, "I'll go. You stay with Mom."

After she finished speaking, she grabbed the form and ran away quickly.

She couldn't stand there any longer; she felt that if she stayed there any longer, she would burst into tears.

It was because she was sick that her father had to go back to work. If she hadn't been sick, or hadn't been rescued, and Wen Feng had been working properly, how could this have happened?

She knew that in this situation, her sensitivity would only cause more trouble for the Wen family. She was better off being a puppet who only made sad expressions and not letting others see that she had something on her mind. Wen Feng was already working very hard, and she didn't want to make things worse.

However, she was not a real puppet after all. Human emotions are not controlled by subjective will. Just because she wanted to be carefree doesn't mean she could immediately be carefree.

She hated herself for being like this, but she couldn't help it.

She could only cry secretly on the way to pay the bill. She was not a child; she needed to shoulder her responsibilities and learn to control her emotions.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket.

She scrolled through the screen as she walked back.

Wen Feng: There are still many things to take care of at the company, I have to go there first, where are you?

Yu Xue: I'm paying the bill. It's okay. You can go ahead. I'll go upstairs to be with my mom right away.

She waited for a while, but didn't get a reply. She turned around and walked to the stairwell, intending to go up slowly and wait until her expression calmed down before going up.

She had just stepped onto the stairs when the phone rang.

"Hello?" she answered quickly.

Wen Feng: "I'm waiting for you at the top of the stairs on the second floor. I see you. I have something to tell you."

"Oh, okay." Yu Xue quickly lowered her head to wipe her face, making sure there were no tears, hung up the phone, glanced at him, and walked over.

She said, "I was just... just now I was worried about Dad, he didn't look too good. I was afraid of worrying Mom, so I thought I'd wait downstairs for a while before going up. What's wrong? Is there something you want to tell me?"

Wen Feng: "It's not your fault, don't overthink it."

Yu Xue nervously clutched the order form in her hand. "No, no, I really didn't think much of it. It's okay, you can go ahead and get back to work."

Wen Feng's complexion was not good; he looked like he was forcing himself to look good. He stared at Yu Xue's hand for a while and said, "Whether you think about it or not, just let me finish what I have to say. Just to put my mind at ease."

“Okay.” Yu Xue looked up at him. “I’m listening.”

Wen Feng: "Dad's illness this time is due to our negligence in not taking him for a check-up on time. He is old and his physical functions are declining, but he has not yet reached the legal retirement age. If his problem is caused by the intensity of his work, it means that our company's working hours and overtime system are unreasonable. If someone under retirement age suffers a brain hemorrhage due to work intensity, at this rate, everyone in our company will die young. Sooner or later, I will also be lying in the operating room. We don't know exactly why yet, but in any case, it's not your fault. Don't overthink it."

Yu Xueqian repeatedly told herself not to show any bad expression, but she still couldn't help it; the corners of her mouth kept turning down. She swallowed and said, "I know, I know, I understand. Don't worry, I'm fine. You can go ahead and do your work."

Wen Feng nodded, walked past her, and went downstairs.

Yu Xue looked at him and watched him go. He turned back and said, "I might be home late. You should go to sleep early. The caregiver will be here later. You should persuade your mother to go home early."

Yu Xue: "Okay. Uh...you..."

Wen Feng stopped again and turned to look at her.

Yu Xue could clearly see the tears in the corners of his eyes. She knew he was very sad and was putting on a brave face.

Yu Xue: "Want a hug?"

She walked down six steps and stood in front of him. Now she was the same height as him. She opened her arms and hugged Wen Feng.

Wen Feng could rest his head on her shoulder, "Let me lean on you for a while."

Yu Xue was two heads shorter than Wen Feng, and looked thin and frail. But when Wen Feng's head rested completely on her shoulder, she did not fall down; she remained steadfast in place, without moving.

While enjoying the comfort of her reliable shoulder, Wen Feng silently counted in his mind.

He counted to thirty with restraint, took her arm, and reluctantly straightened up. "It's been half a minute. I really have to go now."

"Okay." Yu Xue nodded and followed him down two more steps. "Be careful."

Yu Xue only went up after Wen Feng's figure had completely disappeared from sight.

Mom sat alone in a chair, staring at the ring on her hand, lost in thought.

Just as Yu Xue walked over and Liu Xin was about to stand up, her cell phone rang in her pocket.

She looked at the caller ID for about ten seconds, then swiped the screen and said, "Hello."

Yu Xue sat next to her, very close, and could hear the voice on the phone.

"Editor-in-chief, Mr. Liu is here. He wants to discuss the magazine theme for the next quarter with you and would like to have a chat with you."

Liu Xin looked at the closed doors of the operating room. She had her bag in her hand, but she didn't stand up for a long time.

Liu Xin: "I have something very important to do right now. Could you ask him to send the document to my email? I'll reply to him later."

The other side: "Editor-in-chief, you forgot? You specifically invited him for a meeting, but he's leaving tomorrow, and who knows when we'll see each other again."

Liu Xin wanted to sigh, but she held back. She rubbed her eyes and said, "Okay, I'll be quick. Please invite him to sit in my office for a while."

Liu Xin hung up the phone, stood up, looked at Yu Xue, and hesitated for a long time.

"I heard you." Yu Xue stood up and said, "Mom, you go ahead. I'm fine. I'll wait here and let you know as soon as I have any news."

Liu Xin said, "Hey... Mom has a scarf and a hat here, you can cover yourself up so you won't be recognized." Liu Xin took off her scarf and hat.

Yu Xue reached out to take it, but Liu Xin immediately wrapped it around her, as if she were taking care of a child.

Liu Xin: "Mom has left. The caregiver and the uncle from the family will come to take care of you in a little while. Once they arrive, hurry back home. You're not feeling well either. Wen Feng said you just had surgery not long ago."

She had already taken two steps away when she came back and rummaged through her bag. "Didn't you eat breakfast this morning? Mom has chocolate and egg yolk pastries in my bag. Here, take them and make sure you eat them so you don't get sick."

Yu Xue: "Mom, have you had breakfast?"

Liu Xin: "I'm going down now. I'm going out to eat. I'm going out to buy two steamed buns. You don't need to worry about me. You sit down and rest. You can leave when the caregiver comes. Don't go hungry."

After she finished speaking, she turned to the side, looking at Yu Xue as she walked out. Only after seeing Yu Xue unpack the egg yolk pastry did she finally turn around and stride towards the elevator.

Yu Xue sat in the chair, feeling as if the egg yolk pastry hadn't gone into her stomach, but rather into her heart. With each bite, her heart clenched, the sweet, cloying taste spreading in her mouth without her even noticing.

She took three or four bites, but the spasms in her internal organs forced her to take a deep breath. There was only one bite left in the egg yolk pastry in her hand, but she couldn't swallow it.

She casually stuffed the unfinished egg yolk pastry and chocolate into her pocket and stood up.

She waited for news for four or five hours. The caregiver asked her several times if she wanted to go home, but she always said she would wait a little longer. Finally, the doctor came and said that the patient had come out of the operating room and had just been transferred to the intensive care unit.

"Can we go take a look?" Yu Xue asked.

Doctor: "It's not very convenient, there's not much to see, and he can't talk to you right now."

Wen Feng had anticipated that someone would need to guard the entrance to the ICU when he received the notification at noon, so he paid ten people to take turns guarding it in groups.

That evening, the driver found Yu Xue at the entrance of the ICU.

Yu Xue knew that staying here would only cause worry and wouldn't serve any purpose. Wen Feng had definitely found reliable people.

She just felt she was too idle. Wen Feng and her mother both had jobs and couldn't come to take care of her father. She didn't have a job, and the family didn't need her to do housework. She wanted to find something to do and contribute to the family's difficulties.

The driver called her again, and she snapped out of her reverie, saying, "Let's go. Could you please pick up Wen Feng on your way? I'll give you three times your overtime pay. I'm really sorry, I know it's so late and I'm keeping you from getting off work, but given our family's situation, I'm really worried about him driving alone."

"Okay," the driver said.

"Thank you, thank you," Yu Xue said quickly.

It was already nine o'clock, and all the lights on every floor of the company, including the top floor, were off.

Yu Xue called Wen Feng, and Wen Feng answered, "Hello."

Yu Xue: "Where are you? I've sent the driver to pick you up from the company."

Wen Feng: "...I don't know, I just got home."

Yu Xue: Oh, it's good that you're home. I'll go back now.