Chapter 18 She must stay away from him.
Chapter 18
Two black Maybachs sped along the road, one after the other, heading towards the nearest hospital.
Wen Yining was held in Li Changjing's arms in the back row, sitting on his lap with her face buried in his neck. She smelled his comforting scent and tears flowed even more uncontrollably.
She sobbed, burying her face in his neck, her hands instinctively reaching for his clothes. "Li Changjing, my stomach hurts..."
Li Changjing was holding Wen Yining in one arm and holding his phone in the other, about to make a call. Hearing this, he looked down at her. The girl, who was usually very tolerant and strong, almost like a steel-willed woman, was now curled up in his arms in pain. Her clear voice had become hoarse. Her face was buried in his chest and could not be seen clearly. The side profile and the stray hairs on her forehead were wet with sweat.
She gripped his shirt tightly with one hand, her wrist slender, her fingers thin and white, her nails neatly trimmed and rounded to the point of being almost bare, giving her a clean, earnest, and childlike appearance. The knuckle of her middle finger had a small, slightly raised bump from holding a pen for a long time.
He stared at her hand, and a strange tightness gripped his heart.
Li Changjing didn't move, maintaining that posture as she grabbed his arm, while he put down his phone with his other hand and gently patted her.
Then he took out a tissue to wipe her tears, but Wen Yining buried her face even tighter. Afraid of hurting her, Li Changjing didn't dare to move her too hard. He put down the tissue and gently patted her back like he was coaxing a child, while softly coaxing her, "Does your stomach hurt? Don't be afraid, Ningning, everything will be alright. We'll be at the hospital soon."
He could easily open her hand with the slightest movement, but Li Changjing didn't move. Instead, he gently stroked her hair with his other hand and spoke to her in a tender and patient manner, "Ningning, let go of me first, and I'll call the hospital, okay?"
The words she heard yesterday, her intuition over the past few days, and his gentle, coaxing tone combined to make Wen Yining's tears flow even more fiercely.
Not only did I feel wronged, but I also felt a touch of sadness.
Rationally, I know perfectly well that this person doesn't like me.
But at this moment, she didn't even want to explore how much of his tenderness and heartache was genuine and how much was fake; she just wanted to let herself weakly succumb to his tenderness.
Wen Yining closed her eyes and released his arm.
Li Changjing then picked up her phone to make a call. The call was answered quickly, and because she was close by, she heard someone call out, "Director Li."
Li Changjing's tone was serious and calm, leaving no room for argument: "Secretary Feng, contact the president of the Sixth Hospital and have them arrange for someone to be ready immediately. I'll be there in ten minutes at the earliest. Not me. Also, don't make this a public affair. You make this call yourself."
His tone and demeanor were completely different from usual. Although he was only a few years older than her, his tone and manner were authoritative and imposing.
After hanging up that call, he made another call, still in a serious and decisive tone: "Director Song, I'm on Shuangqing Road, just past the farmers' market. Please clear the shortest route from Shuangqing Road to the Sixth Hospital. You must ensure that my car can get to the Sixth Hospital within 20 minutes."
After arranging everything methodically, he looked down at Wen Yining in his arms, softened his tone, and gently stroked her hair: "Bear with it, we'll be at the hospital soon."
After saying that, he took her hand and placed it back on his arm, in the spot where she had been holding it.
Her heart felt as if it had skipped a beat, and Wen Yining's tears, which she had stopped, began to flow again.
She finally admitted in despair that she had fallen in love with Li Changjing, but he did not reciprocate her feelings.
Perhaps, as Gu Lingling said, there was a flutter in her heart, but that was all.
For a moment, she suddenly felt a little resentful of his gentleness.
His embrace was so reassuring, as if there was nothing to worry about, no matter how big the problem was. After being in pain for so long, Wen Yining's strength was completely exhausted. Gradually, her consciousness began to blur, and she was so tired that she almost lost consciousness, but she maintained the last bit of awareness because of the pain.
I vaguely felt that the car was constantly moving, not like driving in a congested city, but rather like driving on a highway with no traffic lights and no obstructions.
In what seemed like the blink of an eye, the car stopped; we had arrived at the hospital.
She opened her eyes and turned to look at the hospital outside, remembering the troublesome procedures, running up and down many floors, and the long wait for the elevator.
He couldn't keep holding her like this forever. Wen Yining took a breath and prepared to stand up to get checked.
Li Changjing carried her downstairs, and in the blink of an eye, she saw seven or eight doctors in white coats pushing a stretcher, waiting downstairs. Upon seeing them, they hurriedly pushed the stretcher over.
She was then placed on a hospital bed by Li Changjing. In the midst of the dizziness, all she could see was his taut jawline and the solemn eyes of a group of doctors in white coats.
Wen Yining was stunned for a moment, then realized it was the phone call he had made earlier. The next second, the bed beneath her moved, and the doctor pushed her quickly into the hospital. She panicked and subconsciously reached out to hold Li Changjing's hand, but as soon as she raised it, she remembered something and put it down again.
She was taken directly to the examination room on the first floor, where there was a strong smell of disinfectant. Seven or eight doctors surrounded her, and the glaring incandescent light overhead made her feel uncomfortable.
A middle-aged male doctor wearing a mask stood smiling beside her bed, his tone so gentle it was almost benevolent. "Young lady, I'm the head of the gynecology department, my surname is Wang. Don't be nervous, tell me, what symptoms do you have?"
Head of Gynecology?
She was stunned. Why would the director be here?
She remembered Li Changjing's phone call again, and paused for a moment, assuming it was just a notification that a patient was coming over.
She was in so much pain in her stomach that she could barely speak. "I think I fell into the water last month, and then I started having menstrual cramps."
She spoke haltingly, her voice so soft that she could barely hear herself, and some words even sounded like breathy whispers; she wasn't even sure if she had uttered any syllables at all.
Looking at the room full of people waiting for her diagnosis so they could do the tests, she subconsciously started to feel nervous, afraid of being scolded. She remembered that when she was a child, most of the doctors at the hospital were very impatient, and some would even roll their eyes impatiently.
Dr. Wang could probably sense her nervousness, but he still smiled and leaned closer. "Don't worry, don't be nervous. Speak slowly. It's normal to not be able to speak because of stomach pain."
Seeing that the doctor wasn't angry, she breathed a sigh of relief, endured the pain, and managed to raise her voice to try and speak clearly.
However, it was still intermittent and required several repetitions, which wasted quite a bit of time.
Contrary to expectations, there were no eye-rolls or impatient scoldings; everyone waited patiently for her the entire time.
Several doctors seemed to be having a brief meeting. Dr. Wang came over and said, "It's most likely menstrual cramps, but just to be on the safe side, let's do a few tests. Don't worry, young lady."
Wen Yining nodded.
She suddenly remembered something and quickly looked up, saying with difficulty, "Doctor, I haven't registered yet."
One sentence made all the doctors laugh, their laughter enigmatic.
No one answered her question, so Dr. Wang said to the person next to her, "You can draw blood now."
Wen Yining understood immediately and turned to look at the door.
Dr. Wang noticed immediately and said, "Our hospital director is with Mr. Li in the office. He can leave after the examination."
Wen Yining was certain; it really was because of him.
She remembers that every time she went to the hospital when she was a child, she had to go through many procedures, run up and down countless floors, and undergo countless unimportant examinations. Because her parents were not knowledgeable enough, she also had to face the impatient disdain of some doctors.
Even when she was a child, whenever she got sick, she would foolishly pray that she wouldn't get a serious illness, because she was afraid of spending too much of her family's money.
These heartbreaking experiences are something that even a prodigy like Li Changjing probably never encountered in his life.
Wen Yining closed her eyes and fell silent.
In the communal office of the department's doctors.
Because of the rush, there wasn't enough time to tidy up, so the room looked a bit messy.
The dean looked on with embarrassment as the young master, accompanied by bodyguards, condescended to stand in the cramped office.
He invited again, "This place is really simple and crowded. Please come to my office for a cup of tea, Director Li. The department will report any issues immediately."
"I've already caused your esteemed institution a lot of trouble, so I won't bother you any further. I'll stay here." Li Changjing spoke in a calm and unhurried tone, very humble and polite, without the slightest airs.
He spoke eloquently, but he just stood there. He wouldn't sit down, and neither the dean nor the others dared to sit down. The group of people could only stand there with him while they waited for the test results.
After waiting a while, Li Changjing raised his hand, glanced at the time on his wristwatch, frowned almost imperceptibly, and tapped the dial lightly with his fingertips.
The dean's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly gave his assistant a wink, "Go in and see what the results are!"
"Yes." The assistant quickly ran out.
Soon, an assistant and a doctor came in together.
After listening to the doctor's report, it turned out to be just simple menstrual cramps.
Li Changjing looked out into the corridor and breathed a sigh of relief without even realizing it.
*
Wen Yining was given an injection, and soon her already strained consciousness began to blur. When she was wheeled out of the treatment room, she vaguely saw Li Changjing being surrounded by a group of people and walking towards her. Behind him was a middle-aged man who was old enough to be her father, with an extraordinary aura, who seemed to be the dean mentioned by Dr. Wang. He was smiling respectfully and ingratiatingly at this junior.
His figure gradually overlapped with the figure she first met at the palace, both with an extraordinary presence and the same adoration.
Wen Yining completely lost consciousness.
She didn't know how much time had passed before she slowly opened her eyes and saw the white ceiling of the hospital.
The room was very, very quiet and dimly lit, with only a small, dim yellow lamp on. It seemed she had been asleep for a long time, and it was completely dark outside.
My stomach only has a slight, negligible pain left, and my emotions, which were affected by my physical condition this afternoon, have returned to normal.
The moment she moved, the people next to her noticed that there was movement over there.
She looked up and saw Yue Feng, Li Changjing's bodyguard.
"Miss Wen, you're awake. Your husband had to go back first, and he asked me to stay here and watch over you."
Wen Yining lowered her eyes and lay back down. Although she had no hope, she still couldn't help feeling disappointed after hearing those words.
"How are you feeling? Do you want some water? If you need anything, I'll go outside and call a caregiver. When your husband left, he said to call him when you've recovered."
She remained silent for a moment, her face still pale, then gave him a distant smile and said softly, "Thank you, but I'd like to be alone for a while."
The bodyguard sensed that her attitude was a bit strange, so he nodded and said, "Okay, please call me anytime if you need anything."
The door was gently closed, leaving her alone. Wen Yining glanced around; it was a VIP suite, complete with a dining room, kitchen, and living room.
I didn't have the emotional capacity to process those phone calls in the car, or the special treatment I'm receiving at the hospital right now. But now that I'm more aware, I realize what it all means.
The name his friend whispered in her ear that night still rings like a thunderclap when he thinks about it.
What happened this afternoon made her acknowledge her feelings and, more importantly, made her realize the gap between them.
The gap between her and him was too vast. There were some people and some things that, no matter how hard she tried or how much she struggled, she could never reach that stage in her entire life.
Liking someone like that is utterly despairing.
That's perfect, he didn't really like her anyway.
Wen Yining slowly raised her hand and covered her eyes.
While there's still time, while she hasn't fallen too much for him yet.
She must stay away from him.
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