Chapter 84

Chapter 84

Concerned about Xie Zhigui's health, Xie Qingyuan woke him up early and took him to the hospital for a checkup.

They registered to see the same doctor as before.

The doctor looked at the medical report for a long time, then turned to Xie Zhigui with a look of surprise, clicking his tongue in wonder.

Impatient by nature and fearing for Xie Zhigui's well-being, Xie Qingyuan gripped his hand anxiously while asking urgently, "What's wrong with him? Doctor, please, you keep clicking your tongue, but what exactly is it?"

"He's fine," the doctor said, putting down the report and looking at Xie Zhigui as if witnessing a medical marvel.

"How can he be fine?" Xie Qingyuan exclaimed loudly. "He's so thin his bones are protruding, and you’re telling me he's..."

Xie Zhigui pulled his sister's hand down, blinked to signal her to pause, and asked, "When you say he's fine, what aspects are you referring to?"

The doctor smiled and said, "I mean, your body now is no different from that of a healthy, normal person. The signs of organ degeneration have stopped, and there's a rapid recovery."

"Congratulations, this is a miracle."

The doctor's voice sounded like an impossible auditory illusion. On this peaceful, warm, and bright morning, the sunlight streaming into the consulting room warmed Xie Zhigui's cold hands and feet for the first time.

Xie Zhigui was stunned for a long time, only returning to his senses amidst Xie Qingyuan's excited calling.

"This means you can live a long time now! You're not going to die! Hahaha—Ah!"

Overcome with excitement, Xie Qingyuan jumped up from her chair, shouted, and accidentally bumped into the corner of the table. The table nearly toppled over, and she immediately rolled on the ground in pain, curled up like a hedgehog, howling so loudly the entire building could hear.

"Ow, it hurts, ahh!"

"Sister!"

Joy often turns to sorrow, as no sooner had Xie Zhigui been discharged from the hospital than Xie Qingyuan was admitted.

A twisted injury compounded by stomach bleeding from the impact, a recently healed bone fractured again, and possibly a mild concussion – it was a whole-body shock that required a period of hospital observation.

Xie Zhigui gazed at her medical record with mixed emotions.

He had repeatedly chided her for her restless and impulsive habits, but she never listened, and now others were burdened with her care.

Upon returning with food and pushing open the ward door, Xie Zhigui saw her lying in the hospital bed, wailing in pain, her face ashen as if on the brink of death, leaving him with no heart to scold her.

"Come and eat, it's all your favorites."

Xie Qingyuan ceased her howling in a second, her nose twitching as she sniffed the air and edged closer.

Xie Zhigui adjusted the hospital bed to a slight incline, placed the takeout within her reach, and opened the lid of the food container.

Suddenly, his pocket vibrated with his cell phone. He glanced at it, shoved it back, handed her the chopsticks, and said, "I'm going to take a call outside. Eat up, I’ll be right at the door. Call me if you need anything."

"Go, go." Xie Qingyuan, unable to wait, grabbed a piece of her favorite spicy chicken with the chopsticks and began to eat with relish, the pain forgotten with food at hand.

Xie Zhigui stepped out of the ward, closed the door gently behind him, and ducked into a deserted fire escape to check his phone, returning the missed calls displayed on the screen.

After a few seconds, the call connected.

Before he could speak, Ming Feiyu's reproach came through, "Why did you hang up on me?"

Xie Zhigui, detecting the annoyance in his voice, replied with an appeasing tone, "It wasn’t intentional."

Ming Feiyu, hearing Xie Zhigui's clearly placating tone, softened his reproach into a grievance before speaking, "You promised me that whenever I contact you, you would always be there."

At the time, to pacify Ming Feiyu, Xie Zhigui had indeed said as much. However, who would have thought Ming Feiyu would be so clingy, calling him morning, noon, and night, sometimes even with surprise checks? If Xie Zhigui was even a minute late in answering, Ming Feiyu wouldn’t outright complain, but his tone would clearly show his annoyance.

"I'm at the hospital, it’s not convenient to talk with so many people around."

"Are you ill?"

"No, it's my sister who's been hospitalized."

He could hear a sigh of relief over the phone, followed by Ming Feiyu's cool remark, "She didn’t get herself into this mess, did she?"

The guess was spot-on... Xie Qingyuan’s wails on the ground had attracted a crowd of onlookers at the clinic door, forcing them to endure the gawking as if they were monkeys in a zoo. Xie Zhigui responded with a resigned "Mhm."

Ming Feiyu had only two words to say: "Deserved it."

Xie Zhigui found these words harsh, yet he knew Ming Feiyu’s disdain was equally meted out to all humans except himself, akin to how people feel about ants biting.

"Alright, did you need something from me?"

Ming Feiyu paused, then softly admitted, "I missed you."

It seemed to be raining where he was; the voice of longing was so faint, it was almost drowned out by the pattering rain.

"Mhm." Xie Zhigui heard him clearly.

But he had grown weary of these words; Ming Feiyu had said them yesterday, the day before, in the morning, and again at night. Now, they left him feeling utterly unmoved.

He didn’t understand why Ming Feiyu was so fond of expressing his longing.

Ming Feiyu added, "I dreamt of you last night."

"Me?"

Xie Zhigui shifted his position, resting his forehead against the pristine white wall, drawing his phone closer with one hand while his fingertips absent-mindedly traced patterns on the wall. He asked out of curiosity, "What did you dream about me doing?"

"I dreamt you came back, hiding behind me and tapping on my shoulder, asking me to guess who it was."

Xie Zhigui asked, "And did you guess it was me?"

Ming Feiyu’s voice carried a hint of a smile, "Yes, and no."

Xie Zhigui was puzzled: "What do you mean?"

"I guessed it was you, but I didn’t say it."

"Why not?"

"Ah Gui, if I said it, the dream would have ended."

Xie Zhigui had been listening absently when suddenly his heart felt like it was struck, infused with a mix of spicy vinegar, the burning heat and sourness spreading to the tips of his heart and even welling up in his eyes with his blood.

It was as though the torrential rain at Ming Feiyu's end had traveled miles to fall upon his head, the droplets stinging his eyes.

His hand fell, and he realized with a start that the characters he had traced on the wall were "Ming Feiyu".

Was that the name he most wanted to write while doodling unconsciously?

When had the name seeped into his subconscious and taken root, becoming inextricable?

Ming Feiyu had been silent for a while, waiting for him.

Xie Zhigui knew of his eagerness; Ming Feiyu might not speak, but his rapid breathing gave him away.

More urgent than the rain pounding on the eaves.

"Ah Yu."

Ming Feiyu responded instantly: "I'm here."

Xie Zhigui’s lips curved in a shallow smile as he delivered the words that tortured Ming Feiyu so, "I miss you."

The light laughter of Ming Feiyu came through, "I know."

If Xie Zhigui were with him now, he would embrace him, kiss him, and spend this cold rainy night together in a warm bed.

The room would become heated by their presence, the air filled with a sweet fragrance, and Xie Zhigui's cheeks would be tinted with a blush that wouldn't fade until the morning.

But he wasn't there; he could only listen to his voice.

"Do you know what I'm thinking about right now?"

"It's raining where you are, isn’t it?"

"Yes, forget about it," Ming Feiyu said, eager to hear more of his voice, "Ah Gui, guess quickly."

Xie Zhigui smiled silently, placing the phone by his lips, and whispered, "You want to hold me, and then go to bed to sleep with me."

A teasing warmth tickled Ming Feiyu's ear, leaving him momentarily disoriented and unable to grasp Xie Zhigui's words, and in that brief lapse, Xie had slipped away.

Vanishing without a trace, not answering the calls when dialed back.

He was left alone to simmer with restless energy, sitting solitary on a cold bench, facing the endless dim rain of the night outside.

Xie Zhigui did it on purpose, seducing without giving everything away, leaving a hint of warmth for you to ponder over; one could only imagine how charming she must have sounded on the other end of the phone.

Yearning yet unfulfilled, heart searing and lungs grasping, Ming Fei Yu let out a deep sigh, and with a wry smile said, "Xie Zhigui, you really know how to torment someone."