Chapter 60
"What? You're going to take the house down from the internet?" Xie Yiling held her phone, frowning as she listened to Huang Ruoyu on the other end of the line explaining in a soft voice why they had decided not to sell No. 5 Napa Valley.
Today was a nightmare for Xie Yiling. She had barely survived this exhausting day and was now on the verge of collapse.
Xie Yiling spent the entire morning at the Sixth Hospital, anxiously waiting for Hu Zhizhi's attending physician, Zhang Yongsheng, to have a consultation with her. However, Zhang Yongsheng seemed busier than usual this morning, and Xie Yiling was not summoned by him for a long time.
So Xie Yiling, wearing a mask, sat alone for a long time in the distinctive smell of hospital disinfectant. Impatiently moving from one chair to another, she finally got to sit at Zhang Yongsheng's desk before lunch break. Although Xie Yiling maintained basic politeness, her displeasure was written all over her face. Oblivious, Zhang Yongsheng, as always, snapped his fingers and told Xie Yiling that he judged Hu Zhizhi's behavior over the past few weeks to be "worrying," and that he believed Hu Zhizhi shouldn't be allowed to go out for at least the next month.
“But he behaved very well when he was with us,” Xie Yiling lied. “I came here today to tell you that Zhizhi has behaved exceptionally well on his recent outings. Well… he did lose control a little bit last time we went out, but only a little bit. Overall, he was still in a stable and cheerful mood.”
“Maybe,” Zhang Yongsheng continued counting on his fingers, seemingly unconcerned. “But we need to make a decision based on our professional judgment, which we do through continuous observation of him in the ward. But tell me, what is the patient's attitude like after each visit to a friend's house? Is he willing to come back to the hospital?”
“He’s very willing. Really, Dr. Zhang, he’s always so well-behaved and cooperative, like a little baby.”
"Really?" Zhang Yongsheng fiddled with the temple of his glasses, which were taped shut with his fingers. "But actually, you have to understand, if a patient is a little resistant or hesitant about returning to the hospital, that's a good sign. Here's what we'll do..."
As he spoke, Zhang Yongsheng picked up his phone and frantically tapped the screen. Then, frowning, he pushed his glasses up to his forehead, his face almost pressed against the phone screen, and said, "Well... let's wait until the end of August and see how things go then."
Xie Yiling felt that Zhang Yongsheng might as well say that he would never let Hu Zhizhi go out again, because by the end of August, Cheng Shi and Huang Ruoyu would likely already be in Dali.
So, after returning to her office that afternoon, Xie Yiling, exhausted, dialed Huang Ruoyu's number, wanting to cancel the previously agreed-upon visit to Napa Valley No. 5 that weekend. She even concocted what she considered a flawless reason to explain why Hu Zhizhi couldn't visit this week.
As it turned out, Huang Ruoyu's voice on the other end of the phone was very gentle, as if she were already in faraway Dali.
Xie Yiling didn't understand why everything changed. Now, she humbly prayed to various deities every day, hoping that everything could remain the same, such as Hu Zhizhi's illness, her business, Hu Yu's health... She just wanted everything to stay the same, she didn't ask for any other good fortune, so when she vaguely heard Huang Ruoyu say "the plan has changed" on the other end of the phone, she felt the blood vessels in her head throb.
"Sorry, I didn't hear you clearly. What did you say about the plans changing?" Xie Yiling asked hurriedly. "...Oh, oh, your plans to go to Dali have changed, so you don't want to sell Napa Valley No. 5 anymore?"
Xie Yiling breathed a sigh of relief, but as she spoke, she used her hand that wasn't holding the phone to draw circles of curves on the notebook. The curves were drawn so heavily that the messy strokes seemed to pierce through the paper.
"Oh, Xiao Huang, really, I can't believe how long it's been since I've heard such wonderful news. It means you guys will be staying with us..."
Xie Yiling choked up; she began to worry that she would burst into tears.
Fortunately, Huang Ruoyu then apologized, saying, "I'm so sorry to have troubled you with all this work for our house. If there's a penalty for breach of contract or agency fee..."
“Without a buyer signing a contract, there’s no penalty for breach of contract, and the contract states that the buyer will bear the brokerage fee.” Xie Yiling chuckled softly, quickly reverting to her cool and composed professional tone. “And it didn’t cause me any trouble at all, it’s a small matter. Okay then, Xiao Huang, let’s keep in touch.”
Xie Yiling gently pressed the "hang up" button, and then, as if cradling a small baby, she gently stroked the now-black screen of her phone, lost in thought.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
