Chapter 48 - The Cause of My Illness is You: I Think I See Fu Qingli...
Fu Qingli only received news of Lin Xi again a year after the Lin family father and daughter disappeared.
When Lin Xi returned to Jinan University of Technology to resume classes, Ji Jiali immediately notified Fu Qingli, who was in the United States.
At that time, Qingyuan was just starting out and could be described as "vulnerable".
Ignoring everyone's objections, Fu Qingli abandoned her work and flew directly to Jincheng, without even taking her luggage, only bringing a work laptop with her.
None of the imagined reunion came true.
Upon landing, Ji Jiali, who came to pick him up, took him straight to the Seventh People's Hospital of Jiangcheng.
On the way, he learned of Lin Fengyuan's death and Lin Xi's medical records from the past year.
After her father's death, Lin Xi developed severe post-traumatic stress disorder and was later formally diagnosed with depression.
For a year, she received closed treatment at the Seventh People's Hospital of Jiangcheng.
Lin Xi's condition only improved two months ago when Liu Zaiming, the murderer in the Lin Fengyuan case, was arrested.
According to the doctor's diagnosis, as long as she takes her medication on time and avoids strong stimulation, she can maintain a normal life.
So, after a period of adjustment, Lin Xi returned to Jinjiang University of Technology to attend classes.
Ke Lin only attended classes for one day. The next day, she returned to Jiangcheng Seventh Hospital and requested to receive treatment again.
According to her own account, she suffered from insomnia that night at school and even had the urge to go to the rooftop.
When the doctor asked if anything had happened at school that affected her mood, she lowered her head and remained silent.
Seeing this, Fu Qingli trembled all over, feeling as if countless needles were pricking her heart, and even breathing caused her heart to ache unbearably.
When they arrived at the hospital, Lin Xi had just finished a round of physical therapy.
Ji Jiali has some old photos of Lin Xi. She is cheerful and lively, with a delicate smile and a touch of baby fat.
The girl lying on the hospital bed was thin and small, covered with a white blanket, which made her face look bloodless.
The medical examination report showed that she had lost more than ten kilograms compared to a year ago.
Fu Qingli, who is usually good at controlling her emotions, immediately had red eyes and pursed her thin lips, but she still couldn't suppress the pain spreading across her face.
With the doctor's permission, they entered the ward.
Ji Jiali didn't have the courage to get too close. He couldn't imagine how the weak and helpless girl in front of him had endured a year of hardship and loneliness.
Fu Qingli walked closer, bent down, and reached out to stroke Lin Xi's head, but dared not use force.
She was so thin and frail that she seemed like she could break at any moment if you touched her even lightly.
"Xiaoxi." Fu Qingli called her softly in a breathy voice, pressing her cheek against her soft face and gently stroking it.
Lin Xi's eyelids twitched slightly, her long eyelashes trembling as they brushed against Fu Qingli's cheek.
Fu Qingli looked up and saw that her half-open eyes were glazed over and unfocused, like a porcelain doll that had lost its soul, bewildered and unaware.
The doctor standing to the side explained, "The patient just finished physical therapy, and the effects of the general anesthesia haven't worn off yet. He's currently in a state of confusion and can't recognize people. It's estimated that it will take two or three hours before he's fully awake."
Fu Qingli felt a pang of heartache with nowhere to vent it; she felt as if the person was right in front of her, yet she couldn't reach out and grasp her.
His thin lips gently pressed against Lin Xi's bloodless lips, and he could feel her faint breath on his skin, confirming that she was truly breathing and was really right in front of him.
A beautiful light suddenly flashed in Lin Xi's unfocused eyes, and her lips twitched slightly as if a smile was about to appear.
Before Fu Qingli could even make a sound, she lost her strength, closed her eyes, and fell into a coma again.
During this time, Fu Qingli met with Lin Xi's doctor, Han Fangyuan, and revealed her relationship with Lin Fengyuan and Lin Xi.
After listening, Han Fangyuan frowned and said, "Actually, I've had a question for the past year that I haven't been able to answer, but after listening to you, I think I have the answer."
“I conducted numerous psychoanalysis sessions with Lin Xi. Although her mother passed away when she was young, and her father, Lin Fengyuan, was often away from home due to work, she did not experience any negative emotions due to his absence during her upbringing. The influence her father left on her was mostly positive. It's evident that she was once optimistic, upright, and cheerful—qualities she learned from her father. I observed her closely, and even when her post-traumatic stress disorder was at its worst, she remembered to eat on time. She said her father told her, ‘No matter what happens, take good care of yourself and always look forward to the future.’ With such positive emotions, even if she couldn't immediately accept her father's passing, she could adjust herself. Coupled with physical and drug treatment, her recovery should have been faster than that of patients with negative emotions. However, for a long period at the beginning, her treatment progress stalled.”
“I tried hypnotherapy with her, but when it came to those happy memories of the past, her recollections were intermittent, and she was always deliberately avoiding recalling certain things from the past. I never understood why she resisted those things so much, but now I know that she was avoiding things related to you. You were a very important part of her past life, but until now, I have never heard you mentioned by her. It seems that her illness is due to the double blow of a breakup and the tragic death of her father in one day, causing emotional burden, so her brain subconsciously avoids the memories that make her feel painful.”
Given this situation, Han Fangyuan dared not rashly allow Fu Qingli to see the sober Lin Xi.
He went into the ward alone to check on things, leaving Fu Qingli to observe from outside.
At that time, Lin Xi had slowly regained consciousness, but her mind had not yet fully recovered.
"How did you feel this time?" Han Fangyuan asked softly.
Lin Xi looked at him, gave a bewildered smile, and murmured, "I think I saw Fu Qingli."
After she finished speaking, her eyes flashed, as if she had thought of something, and her smile froze on her face.
After a long while, tears fell.
Han Fangyuan tentatively asked, "Do you want to see him?"
Lin Xi looked up and stared at him blankly, her watery eyes filled with a hint of expectation.
Just when Han Fangyuan thought she would nod in agreement, she suddenly reached out and knocked things off the table, screaming as she tried to rush towards the window.
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When Fu Qingli and Lin Xi arrived at the open-air café downstairs, the atmosphere around the table was unusually silent.
Even the usually lively Zhou Qi looked serious and didn't notice them approaching.
Lin Xi thought something was wrong, so she patted Zhou Qi's shoulder and asked with concern, "Qiqi, what's wrong?"
"Huh?" Zhou Qi came back to her senses, saw that it was Lin Xi, and forced a smile. "It's nothing, I just heard a sad story."
No wonder there were still faint tear stains at the corners of her eyes.
Lin Xi took out a tissue, handed it to Zhou Qi, and gestured for her to wipe it. She couldn't help but ask curiously, "What story?"
Zhou Qi sniffed, unsure how to respond.
Zou Song reacted quickly, casually making up an excuse: "It's just those touching stories made up by marketing accounts. They're not very interesting. It's just that Zhou Qi is easily moved to tears."
Ji Jiali, the "marketing account" writer, couldn't help but roll his eyes at him, but he didn't object to the explanation.
"so."
Lin Xi stopped asking questions, but Fu Qingli wasn't so easily fooled. She frowned and looked sharply at Zou Song.
Unable to withstand his gaze and not daring to speak directly, Zou Song changed the subject: "Brother Fu, are you dressed so formally for the sea?"
White shirt, black suit pants, except he swapped his dress shoes for sneakers.
Then look at him and Ji Jiali, they're wearing those big floral shirts and beach shorts that suit their indigenous style, they look very much like they're on vacation.
Zhou Qi, dressed in a beach dress, looked at Lin Xi's T-shirt and jeans and shook her head: "Xiao Xi, this outfit won't do! You should wear something like mine to the beach, cool and brightly colored, perfect for taking great photos against the blue sky and white clouds."
Lin Xi hesitated for a moment: "But I don't have a dress like that."
Although Fu Qingli had prepared several dresses beforehand, they were all princess-style formal dresses, which were not suitable for the beach.
“I saw yesterday that there’s a market in a village not far from the dock, selling all sorts of things. Why don’t we go there before we board the ship and see if we find anything we like?” Zou Song suggested. “However, that would mean we’d be setting sail under the midday sun.”
Fu Qingli herself didn't mind, but seeing Lin Xi looking at Zhou Qi's dress with a hint of envy in her eyes, she immediately made a decision: "Okay, it's settled then."
The group drove there.
The village does have a market, but it's mostly street vendors selling cheap goods, usually no more than three digits, so you can imagine how poor the quality is.
When Zou Songgang saw it, he was somewhat annoyed by his suggestion: "Why don't we go through the trouble of buying it in the city? We're just killing time anyway, and we can take a night cruise later on the ship."
"No need." Fu Qingli looked ahead with affection at Lin Xi, who was strolling hand in hand with Zhou Qi. "This arrangement is excellent."
Zou Song and Ji Jiali had never experienced such things before, as they had always lived a simple life.
But Fu Qingli was different. During his time with the Lin family, he lived the life of an ordinary person. He would go to the market and vegetable market with Lin Fengyuan and Lin Xi, and he would wear clothes that they gave him for tens or hundreds of yuan.
That kind of life, though seemingly ordinary, was full of warmth and life.
It made up for the fatherly love and "home" that he lost at a young age.
For Fu Qingli, these memories are invaluable.
Years later, strolling through the market with my loved one and friends felt like reliving an old dream, suddenly bringing back memories of those warm and companionship-filled days.
"Fu Qingli," Lin Xi, who was picking out things, turned around and waved to him, "Come here for a moment."
He raised an eyebrow and walked over.
Lin Xi picked up a shirt with a green coconut leaf print and held it up to him to show him the size: "What do you think of this one?"
"Buy it for me?"
His question made Lin Xi a little nervous, afraid that he wouldn't want to wear it: "Well, you said you would wear it last time."
Fu Qingli did mention at the airport that she wanted to buy an outfit to wear, but everyone was busy and there wasn't a proper occasion to wear it, so the matter was put on hold.
"Hmm," Fu Qingli took it, held it up in front of her, and asked, "Does it look good?"
Lin Xi nodded, quite satisfied with her own taste: "Good-looking, very handsome."
It was a genuine compliment.
Such casual clothes create a strong contrast with Fu Qingli's cool demeanor, yet it doesn't seem out of place. Instead, it adds a touch of unruly aura, perfectly matching his outstanding appearance.
"Then I'll buy this one." Fu Qingli took the clothes and went to pay for them.
Lin Xi was clearly impatient. She pointed to a piece of cloth that had been stretched out in the corner, serving as a fitting room: "Do you want to change now?"
This time, Fu Qingli didn't grant her wish. Instead, he smiled and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "You can wear it, but you have to call me 'brother' first!"
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Author's Note: Fu Lili made Lin Xiaoxi call him "brother" not because it was tacky!
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