Chapter 37. [First Update] He was completely convinced of her worth. ...
Wen Xue belatedly felt the coolness of his palm, a very comfortable temperature that slightly reduced her dizziness, making her unwilling to move away.
It turned out that it wasn't his hands that were cold, but her body temperature that was rising, and even her breath was hot.
She hurriedly defended herself, her voice a little hoarse and sounding somewhat aggrieved: "Before you called me, I took my temperature, and I really didn't have a fever then, really, really."
He Yan withdrew his hand, feeling even more fortunate that he had driven over. If he hadn't come tonight, wouldn't she have been burning up until tomorrow morning?
He wouldn't argue with her over such trivial matters, and said slowly, "Sister Zhou said there's a flu virus in Xicheng recently, and her daughter's school has been closed. At this critical juncture, it's best not to let our guard down."
If it were just a common cold and cough, why would he waste his time driving two hours late at night to pick her up and take her to the hospital?
It's better to be safe than sorry.
To say that Wen Xue's body was particularly weak would be an understatement; she just looked frail. On cold winter mornings, before dawn, she could climb to the rooftop to watch the sunrise, and despite all that, she never seemed to get sick.
Wu Yuejiang said that Wen Xue is just like a domestic mobile phone: she looks like she doesn't have much battery, speaks softly, and does things slowly and steadily, but her standby time is amazing.
She was perfectly fine when I called her a couple of days ago, but today she started coughing without any warning. How can anyone be at ease?
Anyway, he couldn't rest easy.
Wen Xue paused, somewhat taken aback: "The flu?"
So now I realize this is no small matter?
He Yan nodded in satisfaction, "Otherwise, what did you think I would do—"
Why did I come all this way to take you to the hospital?
He had only said six words, and in less than half a minute, the person who usually walked slowly suddenly ran several meters away, instantly widening the distance between them and keeping a safe distance, while also covering his mouth and nose with his hand.
He Yan: "..."
Where are they?
Before this, Wen Xue had never even considered that she might have caught the flu. Even a common cold is contagious, let alone the flu. Her ingrained good manners made her first thought to prevent anyone else from getting infected by her.
Especially him.
Being sick is really uncomfortable; she's feeling a sore and dry throat right now.
He Yan looked at the figure a few meters away, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
He strode to catch up with her, and she seemed to sense his intention, walking even faster and in a hurry. It was rare to see this energetic side of her, but who would have thought it was when she was sick with a fever?
"Shut up." His lips twitched.
"Stay away from me," she shouted.
Many college students are night owls, so shops near the school close later than usual. There are several pharmacies outside the south gate, and one of them is still open at this hour. Wen Xue breathed a sigh of relief and lifted her leg to cross the pedestrian crossing. Before her foot even touched the ground, she felt a force pulling her back.
She turned her head in surprise, only to find He Yan grabbing the hood of her down jacket and stopping her in her tracks.
He pulled her back. "Are you delirious with fever?"
He pointed to the jeep lurking in the night, "The car is over there."
"No..." she explained, "I want to go to the pharmacy to buy masks; I still need to take precautions."
This is such a hassle.
He Yan thought helplessly to himself, but he really couldn't do anything about her. Besides, all she wanted was a mask, not the stars in the sky.
"I'll go buy it. It's cold outside. You come back to the car with me first."
He casually covered her with his hat, making her look even more like a mushroom. "Tell me everything else you want to buy."
"Alcohol."
Wen Xue kept her distance from him and came to the car, saying, "You can disinfect it."
He Yan hummed in agreement, opened the car door, and helped her into the back seat. He rested one arm on the door, bent down to look at her, who was pressed tightly against the other door, and solemnly instructed, "Lock the door after you close it. Don't open it for anyone except me, understand?"
Wen Xue covered her mouth, revealing only her bright eyes that shone even in the dimly lit carriage, and nodded haphazardly.
"I'll be back soon."
…
He Yan, with his long legs, quickly went to the pharmacy across the street, bought several packs of masks and some alcohol to carry with him. He was thinking about Wen Xue in the car, and while the clerk was scanning the code, he didn't forget to walk to the door and take a look.
"Sir, there are thirty-six in total."
He Yan went back to the cashier, took out a fifty-yuan note from his wallet, handed it over, and then took the bag containing masks and alcohol and walked straight out.
The shop assistant pulled open the drawer to get change, but when she caught sight of him leaving without stopping, she hesitated for a moment, then called out urgently, "Sir, wait, wait! I haven't given you your change yet!"
Keep the change, please.
After leaving those four words, He Yan hurriedly strode away, crossing the sidewalk. Before he even got close, he could vaguely see a familiar figure inside the car. As the distance closed, he could see her more clearly. She wasn't sitting properly; instead, she was pressing her forehead against the car window, staring wide-eyed out.
She was waiting for him to come back.
He gave her the car keys, gestured with his chin to let her unlock the car, but she shook her head while sitting inside.
"?"
She gestured to him and said, "Put on your mask first."
He Yan had never been so speechless in his life. He endured for a few seconds, wanting to just give up and tell her, "Come on, infect me."
Does she even know what's important and what's trivial?
The important thing is that she has a fever and needs to go to the hospital to see a doctor as soon as possible. Don't let him suffer from these unnecessary troubles.
Whether he wears a mask or not, and whether he will get infected, are all trivial matters.
Seeing that he wasn't moving, Wen Xue assumed he had closed the car door, and since the windows were tinted, he couldn't hear or see what she was saying. She frantically pulled out her phone and texted him: "Put on a mask."
He Yan's phone vibrated.
He gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, I give up. I'm completely convinced by her."
A few minutes later, He Yan, wearing a mask and expressionless, sat in the driver's seat, fastened his seatbelt, and started the engine.
He didn't speak to her at all, from the university to the hospital.
She was also quiet.
While waiting for the green light, he casually raised his hand to adjust the angle of the rearview mirror, which allowed him to see her clearly. She was also wearing a mask and seemed very interested in the city's night view, constantly looking out the window.
…
Sister Zhou wasn't exaggerating. There were quite a few people coming to the hospital emergency room, mostly children who were not quite grown up. Coughing was everywhere. During the peak season for viruses, it was mostly children who were infected. Doctors ordered blood tests for each of them.
He Yan took the form and led Wen Xue to the blood drawing area. Although there were medical staff on duty at night, it was still not as crowded as during the day. There was a queue at this time. Wen Xue was worried and felt that the air was full of dangerous viruses. She glanced at He Yan again and was hesitating whether to ask him to wait for her outside when a loud shout suddenly rang out, startling her.
"If you don't know how to draw blood, get someone else!"
"You don't care about your child since it's not yours?!"
With that roar, the sobbing child burst into loud wailing, so loud it felt like one's eardrums were vibrating.
Wen Xue craned her neck to find out what was going on, catching a few words of the parents' cursing. She subconsciously turned around and looked at He Yan, whose face was cold and stern. Their eyes met, and he frowned, wearing a mask, and asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"
Nothing much.
She lowered her eyes, her gaze fixed on the back of her hand.
When I was sick and getting injections before, a nurse once said that her veins were thin and particularly hard to find.
She doesn't have to have blood drawn or IV drips very often, but each time, the nurse has to try two or three times to succeed, and she's used to it.
Is He Yan good-tempered?
To be fair and just, it's not very good.
When she was helping out at the company, she often heard him being rude to people; he just wasn't rude to her.
I heard that Wang Yuan was even scolded to tears by him.
She could already imagine what would happen if she failed to acupuncture several times. Knowing him as she did, she knew he would never yell at people, but he would give her a cold shoulder.
"It's nothing." She hesitated and shook her head. After a brief period of chaos, order was restored. The man who had just roared walked past them, his face still showing anger.
With her turn fast approaching, Wen Xue, her mind in turmoil, turned back again, looking at He Yan, whose eyes were growing increasingly impatient, with a look that seemed to want to say something but couldn't.
He Yan's impatience wasn't directed at anyone; he was just inexplicably irritable.
"Are you feeling unwell?" he asked, softening his voice.
"I just saw that they have hot water over there." She cleared her throat. "I'm a little thirsty and want some water."
Is it really such a small matter?
Why did she keep turning back, with an expression that said she wanted to say something but dared not?
"Okay." He nodded. "Wait a minute—"
She selectively ignored what he said next, took a thermos from her bag and handed it to him, saying softly, "Don't fill it too full, just half a cup is fine."
He Yan hummed in agreement: "Very thirsty? Why didn't you say so before?"
"It's probably a fever; the body is losing fluids quickly."
She glanced at him quickly, her face not red, but she felt a little guilty.
"Can you manage by yourself?" He glanced at the medical staff and patients in the blood-drawing area, then looked away and asked her.
"able!"
She watched He Yan leave until his figure was completely out of sight before letting out a sigh of relief. Better safe than sorry.
She was called in a short while. She sat down at the blood-drawing window and, as usual, it took two or three tries to get the blood drawn.
After the blood was drawn, she made way for him and pressed hard on the cotton swab to stop the bleeding. He Yan quickly returned with hot water. Seeing that she was having some difficulty pressing her hand, he helped her unscrew the cap, and instead of letting her hold it, he brought the cup to her lips, saying, "Drink it like this."
Wen Xue's guilty conscience had not completely dissipated.
She was the one complaining of being extremely thirsty; if she said she'd drink later, it would seem like she was playing a trick on him.
She then tilted her head to remove her mask, put her mouth to the rim of the cup, and tilted her head back slightly to drink the water, matching his movements.
…
In the early hours of the morning, Wen Xue's test results came out, and they were exactly as He Yan had predicted. She no longer just had a fever, but a high fever, and her condition was rapidly deteriorating. Considering that the fever might continue, she was immediately hospitalized for intravenous infusion.
It was late at night when she was lying in the hospital bed receiving an IV drip.
Unable to resist the overwhelming drowsiness, she watched He Yan bustling about, feeling inexplicably at ease. Her eyelids grew heavier and heavier, and just a second before she drifted off to sleep, she suddenly opened her eyes and flinched—a conditioned reflex from her body.
"Go to sleep, it's okay."
He Yan stood by the bed and leaned down to touch her forehead. He felt her eyelids and eyelashes moving, as if she was very uneasy and wanted to pull away. He lowered his voice and comforted her, "Sleep."
Wen Xue slowly closed her eyes again.
It is safe, reliable, and will protect her, He Yan.
Touch recorded his calluses and palm lines.
I heard his deep voice.
His sense of smell picked up on his cold, sharp scent.
The three elements combined form a code at this moment, telling her body that next time he touches her, she shouldn't be afraid or try to avoid it.
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