Chapter 43: The Seventh Outlying Island
Si Yan Sang really caught a cold.
When he woke up early the next morning, even Chu Wang, who had been healthy for more than three years, sneezed a few times.
Neil called and said that Si had a fever last night and had not yet seen a doctor. But the servant said that there was no hospital on the island, and that at 2:15 that morning, the hotel had called a doctor, a Chinese medicine practitioner. The British officer probably didn't trust Chinese medicine, so he just told her that no doctor had been called.
It wasn't that Chu Wang didn't trust Chinese medicine. She just subconsciously believed that Chinese medicine focused on nourishment, and without three to five days of medication, she wasn't sure if she'd recover. She was taking a boat back to Shanghai the day after tomorrow, and she was worried about being on a ship for three days at sea with no one to look after her. She hurriedly put on her shirt and pleated skirt and left the room, bumping into Mrs. Ge head-on.
Mrs. Ge asked first, "What are you doing in such a hurry?"
Chu Wang straightened the wrinkles on his clothes and replied, "Good morning, auntie. I'm going to visit the patient."
"I know you're visiting a patient."
Chu Wang smiled and said, "How did you know that, little aunt?"
"Yesterday I heard from the hotel that two kids came back in the rain, and this morning someone called for a doctor. Who else could it be but you two? I thought that kid didn't take good care of you and got you wet, so I came to check on you."
"Thank you for your concern, aunt." Chu Wang lowered his head.
"Since you're fine, that's good. But let me ask you: if you rashly went over there, other than causing more trouble, or getting infected by him and both of you getting sick, what else could you do?" After a pause, Mrs. Ge asked, "If you go to see him and give him psychological comfort, will he get better?"
Chu Wang was silent.
What Mrs. Ge asked was exactly what she was worried about, but she had no way to solve it now.
If this were the 21st century, she would have many options: ask someone she knew to carry him downstairs and take him to the hospital in a taxi; or simply call 120 for an ambulance. But this was 1927, on an island far from the mainland, and all the manpower and resources she could muster were insufficient to provide her with a correct option.
Mrs. Ge looked at her with a smile for a while. After a long pause, she asked slowly, "Which day does his ship leave for Shanghai?"
"It should be the 17th."
Mrs. Ge hummed, leaned against the railing and thought for a moment, then said, "Come down with me first, and I'll find a way for you."
Going down to the hotel's first floor, Mrs. Ge borrowed the front desk phone and made a call. She played with her nail-painted fingertips, and when the call was connected, she said, "Mr. Tang, please." After a moment, she smiled and said, "Mr. Tang? Hmm. Bringing me something from Shanghai? That's not necessary. It's hard for you to think about me all the time... Hmm. I have a nephew who's sick in Hong Kong and needs to take a boat to Shanghai on the 17th... You're also leaving on the 17th? Oh? What a coincidence? I was just calling to make inquiries. Mr. Tang, there's no need to bother changing your schedule to the 17th. Really? Thank you so much, Mr. Tang..."
Chu Wang was stunned when he heard this.
After a few words, the issue was resolved and she hung up. Mrs. Ge still wore her usual aloof, cold expression. She glanced at Chu Wang and said calmly, "That's all right. I'll have someone take him to the Hong Kong pier. There, someone will pick him up and take him to the hospital. He'll be on board tomorrow, the 17th. He'll have someone take care of him until he reaches Shanghai, so you don't have to worry."
Chu Wang remained dazed. He nodded again and again...
She had no better idea. Although she hadn't interacted much with her aunt, having mostly heard rumors about her from others, she felt a sense of security she had never felt before whenever she stood before her: as if this body was telling her that this person was the only place in this world she could completely trust and rely on.
"I'm also going to Shanghai on the 21st, so I'll send a few people out from the mansion to help look after your Mr. Si." Mrs. Ge pondered for a moment, fished out a cigarette from her windbreaker over her cheongsam, and was about to light it when she suddenly remembered Chu Wang was beside her. She put the cigarette back and continued, "Are you relieved now?"
"Chu Wang has nothing to repay..."
Mrs. Ge spat at her and smiled a rare smile. "Tell me, have you done the right thing? What has your eldest aunt taught you in the past three years? She's always cutting back on your daily expenses, intercepting your letters for your second sister, and forcing you to go out and be an apprentice to a French tailor in order to find some private space... In today's world, who would allow a daughter from a wealthy family to run wild? Fortunately, that tailor is quite good."
Chu Wang was stunned: "Aunt, how do you know all this?"
Mrs. Ge sneered, "The Qiao Mansion is full of my spies. What is going on with her that I don't know? Otherwise, would I allow you to live with her?"
Chu Wang reflected on this for a moment. Over the past three years, despite Mrs. Qiao's constant dissatisfaction with her, none of the servants in the Qiao Mansion had ever put a foot in her way. Die'er, of course, was out of the question; neither Yunyan nor Zhenzhen's maids had ever contradicted their own mistress, otherwise they wouldn't have told Mrs. Qiao so early on that they wanted independence. Even Qiao Maling and Master Qiao were especially kind to her... She had always believed that her efforts to please others were the reason she could live so easily, but she had never considered that Mrs. Ge had helped her establish connections along the way.
She was lost in thought when Mrs. Ge interrupted her and said, "Let's send Mr. Si off first. Then you can come back to Hong Kong with me by boat this afternoon. It won't be convenient for you to visit him in Hong Kong these past two days. When we get to Shanghai, he'll be better, and his father will naturally bring him to visit. It won't be too late to see him then."
——
After noon, Si Yansang returned with the British soldiers. Most of the sailors knew Mrs. Ge and, having received her instructions from their superiors, expressed their willingness to take good care of Si Yansang. Furthermore, with Neil around, Chu Wang naturally felt more at ease.
But the farewell scene at the dock was quite interesting.
He was ill, having slept from yesterday afternoon until noon today. When he woke up, he was completely shrouded in a large black windbreaker, the hood pulled back from his head, revealing only his pale face—except for his dark pupils, everything else was pale. He could barely stand, feeling groggy, his distinct black and white eyes fixed on Chu Wang with a smile.
As the ship was about to sail, he still refused to go on deck and stood beside her. The British soldiers had watched them coming in and out of the hotel for the past two days, so they were now whistling at them from the second floor of the cabin.
Until he had to leave, he leaned over and kissed Chu Wang's left cheek in a daze, which startled her and made her shrink.
Seeing this, Si Yansang smiled weakly and said softly, "Don't be afraid, I just want to say goodbye to you."
Then he moved closer and touched her right cheek.
Chu Wang's face turned red at the whistles of the British sailors.
Mrs. Ge just stood aside pretending not to see anything.
Until the boat sailed away, Chu Wang was completely confused. He didn't know where this sudden kiss on the cheek came from. Maybe he was confused because of the fever.
On the way back to the hotel, I could only hear Mrs. Ge talking to Xie Zeyi in a daze.
Mrs. Ge asked, "What are you doing back here?"
Xie Zeyi said, "I just sent my girlfriend away."
"Are you arguing again?"
"Well, not really." After a pause, he added, "But those who don't quarrel are the cruel ones."
Mrs. Ge snorted and laughed, "What's going on?"
"I don't know where she heard that the Chinese character for 'li' (li) in Lidao (Lidao) doesn't mean a good omen. And now she's blaming me for bringing her here with ulterior motives. Isn't that just out of spite? My Chinese literacy level isn't high enough to even realize the true meaning of that character."
"Countless Hong Kong men and women have been to this island. Could it be that they all ended up getting divorced? White people are even more superstitious than Chinese people. You really are being wronged."
"What's wrong with that? We just said goodbye at the dock, isn't that appropriate?"
"Why, you don't plan to continue dating that American girl?" Mrs. Ge raised her eyebrows. "When did you become like this?"
Xie Zeyi gave a bitter laugh. "I've had a rough time in love since I was a child, and this isn't the first time, as you know. But I've had a good reputation, so Mrs. Ge doesn't have to worry."
"What's the matter?"
"She told me to marry her as soon as I return to the States. But I want to stay in China for a while, and once I've established myself, I'll marry her in Shanghai. Yesterday on the bus, she was so angry she slapped me in the face, saying that if she didn't want to go to the States, she could get married in England. She was clearly making fun of her by saying we'd have to wait a few years before getting married in Shanghai. If you want to break up with her, just say it directly. Why beat around the bush?" Xie Zeyi narrowed his eyes slightly. "But I'm serious about this. I'm serious about staying in Shanghai and getting married. Does that sound like a joke?"
Mrs. Ge said happily, "Your words would be a joke to anyone who hears them. How dare you talk about the current situation in China?"
"Yeah." Xie Zeyi also laughed. "If I can't tell the truth, then what should I say?"
Chu Wang was surprised to hear these words coming from the mouth of Hong Kong Island's number one playboy.
She couldn't help but ask, "So you were serious about marrying my cousin back then?"
As soon as the words fell, Mrs. Ge and Xie Zeyi both laughed.
Mrs. Ge spoke first, "He's quite bold. If they really want to get married, with his father's tactics, I wonder what will happen to my niece. I say I'll pay you two to go abroad for two years and endure some hardship. Then, when Mr. Xie becomes more relaxed, you can come back and get married. My niece has been spoiled since she was a child. How could she be willing to give up the luxury of life in her golden nest? Of course she won't. I say if you let go of this boy, I'll find you another suitable marriage, and Mr. Xie is also willing to give you a property on Barton Road. All of this is her own choice."
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