"Alright, take your time. Don't make things worse. I'll handle it slowly." Qin Xiaoyu shut her out of the door and locked it from the inside.
Xiao Jin was persistent and kept banging on the door, but Qin Xiaoyu pretended not to notice.
Wang Meimei was already scared, so she hurriedly came out of the bathroom, wrapped in a bath towel. Qin Xiaoyu gave her a bathrobe to wear.
"Why did you sleep outside last night?" Unlike Qi Si, Qin Xiaoyu wasn't impatient; she wanted to analyze the situation and find out the truth.
“I have nowhere to go, it’s cold outside, I’m scared. There’s always light on in your windows…” Wang Meimei’s eyes darted around, but her last sentence touched Qin Xiaoyu: the light.
She understands that feeling.
When she lived at her maternal grandmother's house, her biggest worry every day was going home. She didn't want to return to that cold, a home filled with beatings and scoldings. She would stand outside other people's windows, watching the lights come on, seeing parents and children sitting around the table, and how envious she would be then. How happy she would be if she were one of those children.
"Go downstairs and get something to eat first, then I'll take you home," Qin Xiaoyu sighed.
"I'm not going back! They're going to beat me to death!" Wang Meimei shouted.
"Whatever, go down and eat first." Qin Xiaoyu didn't put any pressure on her.
Tang Fengqin brought over a few pieces of clothing, but Qin Xiaoyu told her to just take any set. The girl was very kind-hearted; everything was brand new, inside and out, and she had never worn it before.
Wang Meimei changed her clothes and dried her hair. Tang Fengqin helped her tie her hair into a ponytail. She looked like a completely different person, clean and neat. Although she wasn't exactly beautiful, she looked energetic and spirited.
Watching Wang Meimei wolf down everything in front of her, Zhou Xing's mother's eyes welled up with tears. She was also soft-hearted, so she gave Qin Xiaoyu a look and called her aside.
"This child is so pitiful. We have room at home, so why don't we..."
"Mom, let me find out more about the situation first. We can't make a hasty decision. Their family situation is very complicated." Qin Xiaoyu knew that Zhou Xing's mother was kind, but this kindness was easily taken advantage of, so she had to protect it.
"Tell me the truth, was it Wang Jian who kicked you out yesterday?" Qin Xiaoyu asked formally.
"My brother told me to leave, he pushed me, and he even kicked me..." Wang Meimei lowered her head. Qin Xiaoyu felt a pang of disappointment.
"Alright, let's get ready to go. I'll take you home." Qin Xiaoyu stood up.
"I really can't go back, they'll beat me to death." Wang Meimei's tears immediately fell.
"Problems need to be solved; you can't do it like this." Qin Xiaoyu hated getting stuck on something, and her face darkened.
Zhou Xing's mother hesitated, not daring to contradict Qin Xiaoyu.
Wang Meimei had no choice but to reluctantly follow her out the door.
Before she even reached the car, she suddenly bent over in pain, squatted down, opened her mouth, and vomited.
Qin Xiaoyu was startled by the scene before her, and hurriedly patted her back and waved to Building No. 4.
Zhou Xingma watched them leave from the window. She had already noticed something was wrong and had sent Tang Fengqin to find Deng Jianyan.
Wang Meimei's condition is very bad. Not only does she have acute gastroenteritis, but her body temperature has also risen rapidly. By noon, she also started to experience upper respiratory symptoms, and her breathing became labored. She needs to be hospitalized.
Qin Xiaoyu took her to the Second Light Industry Hospital.
She met the head nurse at the payment window.
"Sister, it's been a long time."
"It's been a long time. You're still as nosy as ever." The head nurse had already heard her stammering as she made up the patient's medical records and couldn't help but smile wryly.
"What can we do? We Northeasterners are just so enthusiastic and love to meddle in other people's business," Qin Xiaoyu said, troubled.
Wang Meimei needs care now. She originally wanted to ask Wang Jian to come over, but when she called home, Qi Si was furious.
"What a wolf cub! I only kicked him a few times, and he held a grudge against me, threw a tantrum, and left the house!"
"Brother, don't be angry. I don't think Wang Jian is that kind of person. Wait for me to go to his house and check on him." Qin Xiaoyu knew that calling Xiao Jin wouldn't work, and she couldn't let her know which ward Wang Meimei was in.
Xiao Jin has a strong personality and is spoiled by Zhou Yue, so when she found out where Wang Meimei was, she dared to come and pull out the needle.
Wang Meimei's illness was severe; she had a high fever and was barely conscious. Her eyes were half-open, filled with tears. She didn't say she was in pain, but she couldn't help whimpering a few times. She looked pitiful, and Qin Xiaoyu didn't dare leave her alone.
If we can't find a caregiver right away, we're worried that the nurses might not be able to take good care of us.
In the end, it was only after Tang Fengqin and Xiaoli came to help that Qin Xiaoyu dared to leave the hospital.
As the weather warmed in April, the permafrost began to thaw, and the ground seemed to be riddled with holes, like a dragon rising up restlessly. Wang Jian's house was located in a somewhat remote area, and the road conditions were even worse. Qin Xiaoyu was jolted half to death before finally managing to drive the car out of the alley.
Qin Xiaoyu didn't understand. School had already started long ago, so why were there still a group of children here? Didn't they need to go to school?
The children surrounded Qin Xiaoyu's car, acting like a bully due to their large size, as if they wanted to block her way. This was their territory.
Qin Xiaoyu got out of the car, almost hitting a child, before he slowly took a step back. She slammed the car door shut, which had some effect, and people made way for her.
She arrived at Wang Jian's house in a menacing manner, accompanied by a group of followers.
Someone was chopping firewood in the yard. The birch wood, as thick as a bowl, was cut into half-meter sections and placed on a wooden block. With one swing of the axe, it would split in two.
The man was wearing a tattered cotton-padded jacket, with blackish-gray cotton showing through the tears. The buttons at the front were probably missing, held together by a rope. His cotton-padded trousers were so worn that they could almost stand on their own. The shoes were also torn and patched up with some other cloth, just enough to cover his feet.
"This is Wang Jian's house..." Qin Xiaoyu couldn't ask any further. The person in front of her, dressed in tattered clothes, was Wang Jian.
"Aunt Qin, you can go back now. I'm home. Don't worry about Wang Meimei's matter." After saying that, Wang Jian turned around and continued chopping firewood, one piece at a time, as if he were gathering endless hatred.
"Wang Meimei is in the hospital." Qin Xiaoyu took a deep breath; the situation was a bit complicated.
“Then let her be discharged. Don’t pay any money. She won’t die. She’s faking it,” Wang Jian said without turning his head.
"Wang Jian! How could you become so cold-hearted? Are you even speaking human language?" Qin Xiaoyu could understand Qi Si's anger now. Was this still the gentle and refined child? Killed overnight?
"That's who I am. You've mistaken me for someone else. Also, tell Xiaojin that I broke up with her and that she shouldn't wait for me anymore." Wang Jian's voice choked up when he mentioned Xiaojin's name. This was probably his last bit of tenderness.
"Who is it? Why don't you come inside?" Wang Jian's stepmother came out, her clothes tucked in, and squinted at Qin Xiaoyu.
Qin Xiaoyu thought of the cramped and dirty house and couldn't imagine what it would be like in the cold winter. She shivered and quickly walked out of the yard.
"Huh? You're back! You're not that...you're back!" Wang Jian's mother realized what was going on and chased after him.
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