Chapter 73 I miss you.
There was still a chill at the hospital entrance in the early morning.
Chu Yi had just finished his night shift and there was a hint of fatigue in his eyes, but when he thought that today was the day Zhou Ai would come back, his brows unconsciously softened a little.
He stood on the side of the road, watching the position of the Didi car slowly move on the screen of his mobile phone.
It snowed a little last night. A sanitation worker was clearing the remaining snow not far away, and the broom made a rustling sound as it scraped across the ground.
Chu Yi's eyes casually swept across the street, where a black Maybach was parked quietly.
At first glance, I felt that the license plate number looked familiar, but I didn’t think much about it. I just buried my face in the soft cashmere scarf to block the cold morning breeze.
The phone indicated that a vehicle was about to arrive. Chu Yi started walking in the opposite direction. As he reached the middle of the road, two men in black suits silently blocked his way.
Chu Yi paused and looked at the license plate of the Maybach again.
This time, he clearly remembered who this string of numbers belonged to - Cheng Zhi, his father whom he only saw a few times a year.
Chu Yi raised his eyebrows in understanding, and a frank smile that was almost sarcastic appeared on his face.
He did not ask or resist, but just lowered his head and skillfully operated his mobile phone, canceled the online car-hailing service he had just called, and paid the penalty.
The whole process went smoothly, as if this scene had been anticipated.
"Lead the way." He put away his phone and said calmly to the bodyguard, with no emotion in his voice.
The bodyguard respectfully opened the car door for him. Chu Yi bent down and got into the car. A warm breath hit him, accompanied by a familiar woody scent.
In the back seat, Cheng Zhi was sitting upright reading a document. When he heard the noise, he just raised his eyes slightly.
He was wearing a well-tailored dark grey coat and his temples were meticulously combed, perfectly matching the image of the always busy and aloof man in Chu Yi's memory.
Chu Yi sat down on the other side, and the distance between them was enough for another person to sit.
He didn't say a word, not even a "Dad". He just looked out the window quietly, watching the people coming and going in front of the hospital.
The car fell into a subtle silence, with only the faint sound of the air conditioner running.
Chu Yi's fingers unconsciously stroked the edge of the phone. The screen occasionally lit up due to the movement of his fingertips, showing the time - two hours and thirteen minutes before Zhou Ai's flight landed.
He was even thinking about what vegetables he should buy at the supermarket after leaving here.
Zhou Ai prefers light Cantonese flavors, and the ingredients for the soup must be fresh. I wonder if I can still buy good grouper at this time...
"You are more patient than your brother."
Cheng Zhi's voice suddenly broke the silence. He still didn't look up, his tone as steady as if he was evaluating an unrelated person.
Upon hearing this, Chu Yi just raised the corner of his lips slightly, without even looking away from the window.
These words did not stir the slightest ripple in his heart.
Rather than this sudden meeting between father and son, he was more concerned about what ingredients to buy so that Zhou Ai, who had just returned from a long journey, could have a delicious home-cooked meal.
His almost indifferent attitude seemed to surprise Cheng Zhi. He finally raised his eyes from the document and his gaze fell on Chu Yi's profile.
That gaze was the same as before, full of scrutiny and the pressure of someone who had been in a superior position for a long time, trying to find some flaws in Chu Yi's calm face.
There were all kinds of emotions in that look, except for closeness to his son.
Chu Yi curled the corners of his mouth indifferently, turned his head slightly, and met Cheng Zhi's gaze. His eyes were clear and calm, without fear or closeness, as if he was looking at a... not very familiar person.
"It seems the rumors are true?" Cheng Zhi closed the document and set it aside, folding his hands on his knees in a negotiation posture typical of businessmen. "You and that kid from the Zhou family have caused quite a stir."
Chu Yi still didn't say anything, just looked at him quietly, as if waiting for him to get to the point.
This silence itself is an answer and an attitude.
Cheng Zhi looked at his stubborn expression and frowned slightly.
He was used to absolute dominance in the business world and at home, but he felt a kind of resistance that was tantamount to a hidden threat in front of his youngest son, with whom he had not been close since childhood.
"The Zhou family's situation is complicated, and Zhou Ai is a reckless person. In the entertainment industry, which is a big melting pot..." Cheng Zhi tried to act like a father and analyze the pros and cons.
"He's fine." Chu Yi finally spoke in a calm voice, interrupting Cheng Zhi's unfinished words.
Cheng Zhi was choked. He looked at Chu Yi, and Chu Yi looked back at him without any dodging in his gaze.
The carriage fell silent again, but this time the silence was like a silent confrontation.
One tried to exert influence with the authority of an elder, while the other built a solid barrier with silence and the simplest affirmation.
Chu Yi's fingers lit up the phone screen again, and a few minutes passed.
What he was thinking was still: Time is running out, we must hurry.
"I wonder why you came here today?" Chu Yi went straight to the point, his tone calm, but with a barely perceptible hint of impatience.
He just wanted to end this meaningless conversation as soon as possible.
Cheng Zhi smiled calmly upon hearing this. The lines of his face were indeed somewhat similar to Chu Yi's, though he seemed more cold and hard, with the marks of time.
"It seems you still can't keep your composure." His tone was elusive. "Do I think too highly of you?"
Chu Yi looked down at the screen of his mobile phone again. The message "Prepare to board the plane" sent by Zhou Ai a few minutes ago was still there.
He felt that his appearance, which Zhou Ai described as "calm and good-tempered", was shattering bit by bit. Beneath the ice, something sharper and more rebellious was breaking out.
He even had a somewhat absurd thought that perhaps the "rebellious" nature in his bones was even stronger than that of Zhou Ai, the "devil" in the eyes of everyone.
"If you want to keep wasting time here, I might not be able to keep you company," Chu Yi said, reaching out to push the car door. His patience was running out.
"I want to talk to you about what's going on between you two." Cheng Zhi's voice sounded behind him.
Chu Yi paused in his attempt to push the door open. He slowly turned his head and looked directly at Cheng Zhi, his eyes sharp and clear. He asked word by word, "Why do I need to tell you about what happened between us?"
This rhetorical question was too direct and too distant, as if it had completely severed the thin blood connection between the two.
Cheng Zhi's face darkened slightly at his words, and the calm appearance he had maintained finally showed a crack.
"Do you think that your relationship is just between you two?"
His voice unconsciously rose a little. "The interests of the two families are deeply intertwined! Your mother wanted you to marry Xie Huaiming from the Xie family. Given your lukewarm personality, the other party's simple family, and Xie Huaiming's gentle personality, this arrangement was definitely for your own good! And what happened to you? You said nothing, and then turned around and got involved with that scoundrel from the Zhou family!"
Cheng Zhi took a deep breath, trying to calm his agitated emotions, but the anger in his words was still clearly discernible: "I don't know if you want to piss us off on purpose, or if you really want to have that with the Zhou family..."
He seemed to find it difficult to say the rest of the words and did not finish them, but the disapproval and contempt in his unfinished words were already clear.
At this moment, Cheng Zhi shed the calm exterior of a business tycoon and actually looked like a father who was so angry at his "rebellious" son that he lost his composure.
But this belated "fatherly love" with a desire for control was just ironic to Chu Yi.
Chu Yi listened to him quietly, without any anger or offense on his face. Instead, he smiled a faint and cool smile.
"For my own good?"
He repeated these four words softly, as if savoring something ridiculous. "You and my mother, from childhood to adulthood, haven't you made enough good arrangements for me?"
His gaze fell calmly on Cheng Zhi's face. His eyes were so clear that they seemed to be able to see through all the high-sounding reasons and the calculations about interests and decency.
"But this time," Chu Yi's voice remained steady, "I made my own choice. This is only about Zhou Ai, and only about me. It has nothing to do with the Cheng family, the Zhou family, and even less so... with you two."
He glanced at the time on his phone screen again and saw that Zhou Ai was closer to landing.
"If there's nothing else, I'll leave first."
This time, Chu Yi did not hesitate any longer and pushed open the car door directly. The biting cold wind instantly rushed into the warm compartment.
"Chu Yi!" Cheng Zhi called out in a deep voice behind him.
Chu Yi paused slightly, but did not look back.
"You will regret this." Cheng Zhi's voice was firm, as if he had foreseen the inevitable failure of this relationship.
Chu Yi stood outside the car, the morning sun shining on him, casting a layer of light gold on the down jacket he was wearing.
"That's my business, too."
After saying that, Chu Yi closed the car door without hesitation, completely isolating himself from the space filled with repression, calculation, and the so-called "for his own good."
He pulled his scarf closer and walked towards the intersection with a clear goal - he was going to the supermarket, buy the freshest ingredients, and wait for Zhou Ai to come home.
Inside the carriage, Cheng Zhi looked at Chu Yi's resolute back as he left, his face gloomy.
For the first time, he saw such a clear and strong will to resist in his usually docile youngest son.
This feeling of being out of control made him extremely uncomfortable.
And Chu Yi's last words, "My business", were like a thorn that pierced his heart.
———
As soon as the plane landed and the taxiing had not yet completely stopped, Zhou Ai couldn't wait to turn on his mobile phone.
The moment the network connection was restored, WeChat message notifications began to ring. He deftly swiped the screen and saw the pinned chat box with "Guaiguai"'s name followed by a bright red number "3."
He clicked it, and the corners of his lips began to rise uncontrollably.
The first photo shows the "miserable state" of the kitchen workbench - several small bowls filled with different pickled seasonings, chopped green onions and ginger, and some splashed water stains, and the background looks a bit messy.
The second photo is still of the kitchen. With a slightly adjusted angle, you can see the pot of soup on the stove, steam rising from it.
The smile on Zhou Ai's face deepened, and his fingertips slid, and he saw the third picture - his breathing paused slightly.
It was a selfie. Chu Yi was wearing a soft beige pullover sweater and a plain apron string tied around her neck.
He was wearing a transparent kitchen glove on his left hand and was carefully holding the processed grouper. The fish body was silvery white with pink, and looked very fresh.
Chu Yi seemed unused to taking selfies, and the angle of the camera was a bit awkward. His handsome face was facing the front camera, with no expression on his face. However, the corners of his mouth that were slightly turned down revealed a rare cuteness of someone concentrating on cooking, and a hint of imperceptible "fluster".
Zhou Ai enlarged the photo with her fingers without hesitation, staring at Chu Yi's aggrieved and serious look. Her heart felt as if it was gently scratched by a feather, and it felt soft.
How could his doctor Chu be so cute?
He could almost imagine Chu Yi in the kitchen, referring to the recipe, meticulously yet inevitably a little clumsily handling the ingredients.
"Ancestor! Let's go!" Xu Yang's voice sounded in his ears, filled with anxiety.
Zhou Ai then looked up from her phone screen and found that the cabin door had been opened and passengers were starting to get off the plane.
Outside the passage, the noisy voices and dense flashing lights have formed a familiar airport reception scene.
The screams and shouts of fans came like a heat wave, and the cameras of the photographers were pointed at him.
He quickly saved the selfie to his phone's encrypted album, then put his phone away in a very good mood, with his usual lazy but impeccable smile on his face when facing the public.
"Let's go." He responded, and under the protection of Xu Yang, the bodyguards, and the human wall formed by the staff, he stretched out his long legs and walked out along the VIP passage.
The fans' enthusiasm threatened to overwhelm the security lines. Countless hands reached out, wanting to touch him, and the letters and gifts handed to him nearly filled the assistant's arms. His name and various nicknames were mixed in with the screams.
Under normal circumstances, facing such a huge crowd, Zhou Ai might feel a little tired and habitually alienated.
But today, his mood seemed to be completely illuminated by the sunshine.
For the first time ever, he didn't wear sunglasses, and even took the initiative to look in the direction where the fans were gathered. There was a genuine smile in his peach blossom eyes, and he would occasionally raise his hand to respond to the fans' shouts.
This rare "people-friendly" move excited the fans and the atmosphere on the scene became increasingly heated.
"Zhou Ai!! Look here!"
"Thank you for your hard work, brother!"
"Zhou Zhou! Your new hair color looks so handsome!"
As Zhou Ai walked steadily forward, surrounded by the crowd, she thought distractedly: That grouper looks really good. How would Chu Yi prepare it? Steam it? He seemed to have mentioned wanting to learn how to make Shunde steamed fish...
Also, that beige sweater makes him look so soft and cuddly.
I can't wait to go home.
In the kitchen, Chu Yi was concentrating on "fighting" with the slippery grouper.
Wearing transparent gloves, he tried to regain control of the fish that had just been picked up from the basin and was almost out of his hands again. His brows were slightly furrowed, and his lips were lightly pursed because of concentration.
"hiss--"
The fish tail swung, splashing a few drops of water. Chu Yi subconsciously leaned back, exerting force on his wrist, and his posture looked a little clumsy and cute.
At this moment, a pair of arms quietly wrapped around his waist from behind, and a warm body pressed against him.
Chu Yi was startled, his body tensed instantly, and he subconsciously turned his head—
Zhou Ai, with the slightly cool air from outside, was close at hand with a smiling face.
Before Chu Yi could react, he quickly moved closer and kissed her lips, which were slightly opened due to the fright, with a firm "boo" sound.
“!”
Chu Yi's eyes widened slightly, and when he saw that it was Zhou Ai, his tense nerves suddenly relaxed. He sighed helplessly, "How come you're so fast?"
He thought it would take at least another half hour.
"I missed you, so I asked the driver to drive faster." Zhou Ai said confidently, rubbing his chin against Chu Yi's shoulder affectionately. His eyes fell on the fish still twisting in vain in his hands, and he couldn't help but chuckle, "Is our Doctor Chu going toe-to-toe with it?"
Chu Yi's ears felt slightly hot, but he tried to remain calm: "It's too slippery."
Zhou Ai's heart melted. He loosened his embrace and grasped Chu Yi's gloved wrist, using his hand to firmly grasp the restless eastern starfish.
"Like this," he placed his palm on the back of Chu Yi's hand, with reassuring strength and warmth, "I'll help you hold it."
With the combined efforts of the two, the fish finally became more obedient.
Chu Yi felt the warmth on the back of his hand and the firm touch of Zhou Ai's chest, and his heartbeat quietly accelerated.
He tilted his head slightly and could see Zhou Ai's profile close at hand. Her newly dyed black hair was curly, making her skin look whiter, and her eyelashes were unusually long.
"Are you tired?" Chu Yi asked softly.
"Not tired," Zhou Ai turned her head, the tip of her nose almost touching his, a tiny light in her peach blossom eyes, "I'm not tired anymore when I see you."
His eyes fell on Chu Yi's apron and soft beige sweater. He lowered his voice, with a magnetic allure, "Besides...if our Doctor Chu dresses like this and cooks for me in the kitchen, I can live for another hundred years."
Chu Yi's cheeks flushed at his frank love talk, and she struggled against his grip: "Stop talking nonsense... The fish needs to be processed."
Zhou Ai smiled and quickly kissed him on the cheek before reluctantly letting go of his hand. However, she did not leave the kitchen. Instead, she leaned lazily against the sink and watched Chu Yi return to the "battle."
The kitchen was filled with the aroma of soup and a faint smell of fish, but because of the return of another person, it was instantly filled with the warmth of home.
For Zhou Ai, this is the most moving atmosphere of fireworks in the world.
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