Postoperative care
After the stitches were removed, Zhou Jianxing's postoperative recovery was much better than expected.
The wound healed well, the pain gradually subsided, and I was able to sit up by the raised headboard and eat some liquid and soft food.
The attending physician said during the ward round that the patient's condition was stable and the follow-up would mainly be rest and gradual rehabilitation training.
·
The hospital environment is noisy. Nurses start working before dawn, and the team of doctors making rounds in the early morning makes even more noise, with a lot of clanging.
Considering that it would be difficult to get enough rest while accompanying someone in the hospital, Zhou Jianjun and Zhou Shufen discussed it and decided to follow Wen Lingyi's arrangements and stay in the hotel that Wen Lingyi had booked for them in advance, which was not far from the hospital.
So, after nightfall, only Wen Lingyi and Zhou Jianxing were left in the ward.
The hustle and bustle of the day faded away, and only a small lamp at the bedside of the ward emitted a soft glow, casting the shadows of the two people on the quiet wall.
Wen Lingyi sat on a chair beside the bed, holding a Red Fuji apple and a small fruit knife in her hands.
The blade touched the peel, making a slight rustling sound, and circles of apple peel spiraled down.
Her movements were focused, her fingers steady.
Zhou Jianxing's gaze followed the ever-lengthening apple peel, and he felt that Wen Lingyi had almost cut off half of the apple flesh.
"So," Wen Lingyi began, sounding like she was just chatting casually, "your sister Hao, why hasn't she come to see you these days?"
She paused, then gently used the tip of the knife to pick off a small piece of the fruit stem: "It seems that her concern for you is limited to this."
Tsk, the tone sounds so sour that it can make vinegar.
Zhou Jianxing swallowed and his eyes fell on Wen Lingyi's fingers holding the apple.
In fact, after Wen Lingyi ran into Hao Tianni that day, Zhou Jianxing quickly found an opportunity to explain everything to her on WeChat.
Their relationship never really started, so naturally there was no official end either. They just tacitly stopped contacting each other and returned to being two parallel lines that no longer intersected.
There is a long geographical distance between City C and City B, and their hearts may be even farther than that 1,800 kilometers.
It was just a chance encounter. They briefly warmed each other up when they were at the lowest point in their lives, and then they went in different directions.
"There's nothing between her and me." Zhou Jianxing answered honestly, staring at the small piece of apple between Wen Lingyi's fingers.
"Besides, you're here from morning till night every day, how can she have the nerve to come?"
Why does this sound like it contains a hint of complaint?
"Really?" Wen Lingyi's hand, which was about to reach Zhou Jianxing's lips, retracted again, and her tone was indifferent, "Then it seems that I am in the way. I'll leave tomorrow and make room for her so as not to delay you."
…
Zhou Jianxing immediately wilted and muttered softly: "I've already told her that we won't see each other again." Now she was finally obedient.
She quite liked the way Wen Lingyi was jealous of her.
But why does he get angry when I just tease him?
"That's better." Wen Lingyi seemed satisfied, with an imperceptible curve at the corner of her mouth, and finally handed the apple to Zhou Jianxing's lips.
It's so sweet. Zhou Jianxing held the apple in his mouth and chewed it contentedly.
After the initial days when I could only rely on intravenous drips to survive and later could only drink rice soup, now even an ordinary apple seems extraordinarily delicious.
The flesh is delicate, the aroma is fresh, and the sweetness is so rich that it is almost cloying.
"Sister Wei told me before," Zhou Jianxing mumbled as he chewed contentedly, "She said you found her and offered her five million to leave me. Is that true or not?"
She blinked and looked at Wen Lingyi curiously.
Seeing that Zhou Jianxing had almost finished eating, Wen Lingyi cut off a small piece with a fruit knife.
He held the apple with his fingertips and handed it over. When it left Zhou Jianxing's lips, he deliberately and maliciously pressed his fingertips against the lips, which still looked a little pale due to blood loss.
"Really." Wen Lingyi sighed.
She deliberately acted out a melancholy look and a little exaggerated heartache.
"If I donate that money to some astronomical organization, it would probably be enough for me to buy the naming rights for a thousand small stars."
"Hehe," Zhou Jianxing laughed a little foolishly, "So, should I find a few more people to pretend to be my girlfriends, and then I'll split the profits 50-50 with them?"
The more she thought about it, the more she felt that this idea was genius. She had never expected that she was so valuable.
Five million? She felt that even if she worked normally all her life, she would not be able to save so much money.
"You're stupid," Wen Lingyi extended her index finger and gently tapped Zhou Jianxing's forehead. "The core value of this business lies in you. Why should you give them so much money?"
This little head is really not very smart.
Zhou Jianxing frowned and thought seriously for a while, feeling that what Wen Lingyi said made sense.
I am the indispensable core resource. A 50-50 split seems a bit too much of a loss. The bulk of the profit should belong to me.
"Besides," Wen Lingyi cut off another small piece of apple and continued to feed her, "Why do you always want to team up with outsiders to cheat me? What good will it do you if you cheat me into bankruptcy?"
Zhou Jianxing's bulging cheeks make him look like a rodent, especially with his round eyes.
"Even though you're bankrupt," she said, swallowing the apple with great effort, "but I'm rich now. I'm a wealthy woman, and I can support you..."
The following words were automatically muted under Wen Lingyi's half-smile gaze.
Wen Lingyi slowly peeled off another piece of apple, and Zhou Jianxing naturally opened his mouth and waited to be fed.
But Wen Lingyi turned her wrist, rubbed the apple gently across her lower lip, and then put it into her mouth.
"Apples are cold in nature," Wen Lingyi said, taking small bites of the apple. "You've just started eating, so don't be greedy. This is enough for today."
"Zhou Jianxing," Wen Lingyi swallowed the last bite of fruit pulp and looked directly into Zhou Jianxing's eyes, "Let's start over."
The soft light from the bedside lamp cast a halo in Wen Lingyi's eyes, like the gentle moonlight that had settled down.
Zhou Jianxing's face was immersed in this halo, looking somewhat unreal.
The ward fell silent again, and Zhou Jianxing said nothing.
Wen Lingyi lowered her head and took a tissue to wipe her hands and the fruit knife.
"Okay." Zhou Jianxing moved closer to her, enduring the discomfort in his chest, and gently kissed Wen Lingyi's lips, which still tasted of the sweet apple. "But this time, you're the one chasing me."
Her cheeks were a little hot, but her eyes were shining.
"Okay." Wen Lingyi responded, raising the corners of her lips and catching up with the departing lips.
·
At lunch time, the meal that Wen Lingyi had ordered in advance was delivered to the ward door on time.
It is a well-known restaurant that specializes in providing meals for patients and accompanying patients. The ingredients and tastes are carefully considered.
The light meal that belonged to Zhou Jianxing was taken out, which was a small bowl of tender yam and pork ribs porridge and a few exquisite side dishes.
She brought it to the bedside, stirred it gently with a spoon to dissipate the heat, then switched to chopsticks, picked up a small piece of boneless ribs, blew on it carefully, and then handed it to Zhou Jianxing's mouth.
Seeing this, Zhou Shufen picked up the two meals for herself and her husband very naturally, and with her other hand, she pulled Zhou Jianjun, who was still staring at the TV news, and walked out.
"Lingyi, take your time feeding Xingxing. Your uncle and I are going out to talk to the head nurse about something. We'll ask her what to pay attention to after she's discharged from the hospital."
Zhou Jianjun was bewildered by the situation. He held his bowl of rice, his eyes still fixed on the TV screen. "Hey, honey, why do you have to chat with the nurse every time it's time to eat? It was the same yesterday, and the day before yesterday. How can you have so many days to chat?"
He really couldn't understand.
Zhou Shufen pinched her husband's arm hard and whispered in his ear, "Why don't you understand?"
Zhou Jianjun looked bewildered: "What do you understand? Do you have to choose a time to chat?"
Zhou Shufen looked at her husband's confused look and sighed deeply in her heart.
She finally knew who her daughter inherited her emotional stupidity from.
"Haven't you figured it out yet?" Zhou Shufen lowered her voice and glanced around the ward. "Aren't we two a bit redundant staying in here?"
"What did you see? Why is it redundant? What does it mean?" Zhou Jianjun couldn't understand his wife who always liked to play cryptic games.
"Don't worry, our daughter will be well taken care of by someone." Zhou Shufen gave up explaining.
·
Wen Lingyi wrung out a hot towel and adjusted the water temperature to just the right level.
"Why are you still shy?" Wen Lingyi said as she carefully wiped Zhou Jianxing's fair skin with a warm towel. "We've seen it so many times."
Her tone was calm, stating a very common fact.
"With my eyes closed, I can tell you where every one of your moles is."
From last winter to this spring and summer, Zhou Jianxing has indeed become a lot whiter.
The intensive study in City B did not require running around in the sun every day. I stayed indoors most of the time, so I had fewer opportunities to get sun exposure. My skin naturally returned to its original fair color.
At first, Wen Lingyi was a little uncomfortable seeing Zhou Jianxing's white body.
"I really want to take a shower." Zhou Jianxing said aggrievedly.
She felt that her hair was going rotten and could smell a bad odor.
And the fact that Wen Lingyi was so close to her every day made her care even more.
"I feel like a piece of pickled sauerkraut that's about to ferment."
Wen Lingyi burst out laughing at her vivid and pitiful metaphor.
She put down the towel and reached out to rub Zhou Jianxing's messy hair.
"Just be patient for a few days. The doctor said it will be over soon." She rearranged the blanket around Zhou Jianxing, leaving only his legs exposed for massage. "I don't even dislike you, but you're the first one to do so?"
She gently lifted one of Zhou Jianxing's legs and placed it on her own leg covered with a towel, her movements light and steady.
Then he carefully took off the medical compression stockings used to prevent blood clots, revealing the pale skin.
Her palms were warm, and she began to massage Zhou Jianxing's calf muscles with moderate force, slowly moving upwards from the ankles to help promote blood circulation.
During this period, Zhou Jianxing recovered quickly thanks to Wen Lingyi's meticulous care and the nourishment of various nutritious soups.
The doctor said she would soon be able to try to walk a little with help.
Zhou Jianxing raised the head of the bed, half leaning on the pillow, his eyes fixed on Wen Lingyi who was bending down to massage her seriously.
Wen Lingyi seemed to notice her overly direct gaze, and moved uncomfortably, subconsciously trying to avoid her sight.
In order to take care of Zhou Jianxing during this period, she has indeed become much more haggard.
I had to get up frequently at night to check on the situation and almost never had a full night's sleep. There were two light blue bags under my eyes.
The black and shiny curly hair that was always meticulously groomed before is now just casually tied behind the head, and the ends of the hair look a little dry.
She is now bare-faced, and her complexion does look a little dull and tired compared to the radiant glow she had in the past after careful care.
I run around in the hospital every day, so I wear flat shoes that are convenient for walking.
If it were the Wen Lingyi of the past, she would never have imagined herself to be so unkempt and unkempt.
She's the kind of person who has to look her best before the end of the world.
When Zhou Jianxing sees her, will he dislike her current appearance?
·
However, in Zhou Jianxing's eyes, Wen Lingyi was a completely different picture.
She saw that Wen Lingyi's head was covered by the light that diffused in through the white gauze curtains outside the window, forming a hazy and soft halo.
The edges of the soft hair look fuzzy.
She saw Wen Lingyi's naturally thick and curly eyelashes drooping, casting a small dense shadow under her eyelids, trembling slightly with her massage movements.
She saw the light blue capillaries on Wen Lingyi's fair eyelids, and a small freckle on the side of her nose that was usually covered by makeup.
She saw Wen Lingyi's undecorated lips, like red clay warmed by the sun at dusk, and that mouth could speak many sweet words.
Wen Lingyi is the most perfect creation of nature in this world.
Every tiny flaw seems real and vivid to her, like a vital brushstroke left by the Creator.
Just being there was enough to make her heart flutter.
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