TL: Hua
Chapter 31: Hospitalization
Xu Laizi pointed to her wounds: “In the past, you would have checked on me first.”
“You’re right, that was the past.” Yu Haozhou sighed lightly and pulled a chair to sit down. He still couldn’t be completely calm, yet he also couldn’t be completely cold towards her.
“Xu Laizi, our friendship ends here.”
“Take care of yourself from now on,” Yu Haozhou said. “I only want to know what exactly you did to Zhou Zizheng.”
Tears welled up in Xu Laizi’s eyes. She lifted her chin and replied, “I stabbed him with a dagger. I hit him several times. He bled a lot…”
Yu Haozhou’s heart suddenly constricted with pain. He fiercely clutched the fabric beneath him; only this way could he gather some strength. Xu Laizi continued to show off the bloodstains on her body: “Look, this is all his—”
“Enough!”
Yu Haozhou stood up, looking at her in shock as if he didn’t recognize the person in front of him: “What did he do wrong that you had to be so brutal? Were the hardships you suffered caused by him?”
“How could it not be?” Xu Laizi looked back. “If it weren’t for him—”
Yu Haozhou interrupted sharply: “If your father hadn’t had those greedy thoughts and hadn’t kidnapped a child, would the Xie family have retaliated against your family? Everything that has happened is caused by your father’s greed, and you know Zhou Zizheng is innocent!”
As if trying to expose the fragility in her heart, Yu Haozhou continued, sentence after sentence: “You know that you can’t entirely blame the Xie family for the death of your parents, so you haven’t taken action against the Xie family for so many years. And you know that if you moved against Mrs. Xie, you would only fail. But you’re also unwilling to give up, or maybe you’re tormented by nightmares, and then Zhou Zizheng happened to appear. You felt an opportunity came, and you’re just trying to free yourself, with Zhou Zizheng becoming the innocent target. Isn’t that right?”
Xu Laizi smiled contemptuously: “Zhouzhou, since you understand me so well, why do you like him? If it had been us together in the beginning, I would definitely have let go of those old issues.”
Yu Haozhou said coldly, “Don’t use me as an excuse.”
“The police are already waiting outside the door. You had better sincerely pray that Zhou Zizheng is fine. If he takes a turn for the worse, even slightly, the rest of your life will be spent in a cage. I will watch you grow old and die in there with my own eyes.”
“Do you think I’m afraid of death?” Xu Laizi said. “I already planned to perish with Zhou Zizheng.”
Yu Haozhou had already turned around. Hearing this, he turned his head slightly and said, “No, staying alive is the most painful thing. If you were the one lying in the operating room today, no matter the cost, I would have the doctors keep you alive by a thread. As long as you are conscious, you will never find peace.”
Xu Laizi gave a bitter smile, looking at that back she had seen countless times, and said clearly, “Yu Haozhou, you are truly ruthless.”
Yu Haozhou didn’t say anything else, lifted his foot, and left.
Several police officers were standing by the door. He nodded politely to them before they passed each other.
…
After nearly five hours.
The operating light for Zhou Zizheng finally went out. The doctor, wiping sweat, brought good news. Everyone waiting outside sighed in relief, except that the patient was still weak and hadn’t woken up.
Yu Haozhou persuaded the elders to go back to eat and rest first.
They didn’t delay. With age comes the need to admit weakness; after several hours of heart-stopping anxiety, their bodies were genuinely struggling to cope.
Yu Haozhou merely had some congee to sustain himself.
He lay down for a short nap on the accompanying bed in Zhou Zizheng’s ward. He wasn’t sleeping soundly. When Zhou Zizheng groaned awake in pain, Yu Haozhou woke up almost immediately.
His movement was too big, and the bed creaked.
The sky outside the window was completely dark. Yu Haozhou rubbed his eyes, walked over to his bedside in slippers, and saw Zhou Zizheng staring at him with his two dark eyes.
All the worry and fear were redeemed in this moment.
Yu Haozhou fearfully stroked his face: “Zhou Zizheng, you scared me to death.”
He had always believed that he would be strong and methodical in solving problems no matter what he encountered, but it was only when Zhou Zizheng lay in the operating room that Yu Haozhou realized his mind was blank.
He didn’t care about anything else; he just wanted to wait for him to come out. He even thought pessimistically about how long he could last if something truly unexpected happened to him.
He had many cuts on his body. Some wounds were too deep and had required stitches. His entire upper body was practically wrapped in bandages, he wasn’t wearing a shirt, and a thin blanket covered him. Yu Haozhou simply dared not touch him.
Zhou Zizheng was wearing an oxygen mask.
The warm air he exhaled completely fogged it up, making the weak smile he managed to pull off not very clear.
Yu Haozhou took off his oxygen mask, dipped a cotton swab in water, and moistened his dry and chapped lips. After repeating this several times, Zhou Zizheng’s scratchy throat felt a little better.
Yu Haozhou was about to put the oxygen mask back on him when he saw Zhou Zizheng pouting, seemingly wanting to say something: “What?”
Yu Haozhou bent down, his ear almost touching his lips, and asked patiently, “What do you want to say?”
“…Kiss, kiss me.”
Yu Haozhou didn’t hesitate. He gently pressed his lips to his, staring at him with bright eyes, like asking a child, “Do you want more?”
Zhou Zizheng blinked back.
So Yu Haozhou pecked him many times on the lips like a woodpecker but dared not deepen the kiss, afraid of causing him to lack oxygen. Several times, Zhou Zizheng couldn’t help but stick out his tongue, and Yu Haozhou would glare at him.
Seeing the wronged expression on his face, Yu Haozhou then tenderly indulged him, symbolically kissing the tip of his exposed tongue: “I’ll kiss you again when you’re better.”
After all, he had lost quite a lot of blood, and his vitality was damaged. After playing for a while, Zhou Zizheng grew tired, his eyelids drooped, and he fell into a deep sleep. Yu Haozhou put the oxygen mask back on him, tidied up, and took this opportunity to go next door to see Han Jin’s newborn daughter.
…
Although she gave birth a month earlier than her due date, the Han family took good care of her during the pregnancy, and the baby was well-nourished. There weren’t any major problems, but because she was quite small, she still needed to stay in an incubator for a while.
When he arrived, Han Jin had just gone to see his daughter. Only Cheng Qianyu and Han Jin’s mother were in the ward. Seeing Yu Haozhou enter, the auntie discreetly left.
“He’s fine. His vital signs are stable now. He woke up briefly, drank some water, and is now asleep again.”
As if knowing what Cheng Qianyu cared about, Yu Haozhou went straight to the point as soon as he entered. Cheng Qianyu was visibly relieved, but fearing he might misunderstand, she quickly added, “Don’t think too much of it. It’s just a concern as a friend. I no longer like him.”
Yu Haozhou chuckled softly: “It’s alright, I know. You don’t need to be nervous. But you, after suffering such a shock, need to rest and recuperate well for a while.”
He continued, “It’s good that both you and your daughter are safe.”
Cheng Qianyu frowned: “Did Han Jin tell you more nonsense again?”
“Huh?” Yu Haozhou was puzzled. “Did you give birth to a boy instead of a girl?”
“It’s a girl.” Cheng Qianyu explained, “But why are you acting like you’re here to apologize?”
That was because she was emotionally agitated after hearing the news about Zhou Zizheng. Before Yu Haozhou could reflect on that, Cheng Qianyu spoke again: “At that time, Han Jin was driving and talking on the phone with me when he suddenly hit something. The noise was very loud. I kept asking him what was wrong, but he couldn’t hear me, and the phone was hung up. I was anxious, and that’s how it happened…”
“I see…” Yu Haozhou finally understood. He had misunderstood; Cheng Qianyu really did understand his brother well. “Han Jin thought you went into premature labor because you heard the news about Zhou Zizheng’s car accident.”
Cheng Qianyu showed no surprise: “I knew he would think that. Forget it; let him be. That’s just how his brain is.”
Seeing her disdainful yet slightly indulgent attitude, Yu Haozhou couldn’t help but be curious. Was his friend’s spring finally arriving?
“Are you… planning to leave?”
During their last conversation, Cheng Qianyu had mentioned that her uterine wall was thin. If she had an abortion forcibly, it would be difficult for her to conceive again later, and her physique wasn’t great; it was already hard for her to get pregnant.
Cheng Qianyu was worried that she wouldn’t be able to have her own children again, so after a long deliberation, she decided to keep the baby. She believed she could raise the child well by herself, which is why she laid her cards on the table with Han Jin.
However, her original plan was to leave quietly after giving birth, leaving the child to Han Jin and the Han family. Now, her idea seems to have changed.
Cheng Qianyu didn’t offer too many explanations, only saying, “He’s quite good.”
Yu Haozhou looked thoughtful and agreed: “Indeed.”
After expressing a few more words of concern, Yu Haozhou left her ward. Walking down the distant corridor, he saw Han Jin sitting on a chair, staring blankly. Yu Haozhou walked over and patted his shoulder: “What are you thinking about? Why don’t you go in?”
“Haozi, Chengcheng plans to leave after her month of confinement. Tell me, what can I do to make her stay?”
“…”
If Yu Haozhou had been uncertain before, after their recent chat, he was quite clear about Cheng Qianyu’s choice. He raised an eyebrow, deliberately trying to get him to speak the truth: “Pester her relentlessly. A good woman fears a persistent pursuer. If you grow a thicker skin, you might be able to make her stay.”
Han Jin didn’t take this suggestion seriously: “Wasn’t I persistent enough back in college? I’m afraid I’ll anger her into getting a postpartum illness.”
Yu Haozhou shrugged: “Then just watch her go.”
He finished and walked away. He only heard Han Jin cursing him behind his back for being an unhelpful brother. Yu Haozhou curved his lips. Hmm, everything is developing in a good direction now!
…
Zhou Zizheng must be having a rough year. First, he had stitches on his hand, then stitches on his arm. While he was recovering in the hospital, Mrs. Xie pulled Kang Lanxiang along to the temple she frequently visited to pray for peace and safety.
In the ward, it was just Zhou Zizheng and Yu Haozhou. They stayed there for over two months. His wounds had already scabbed over and were itching intermittently, yet the hospital still wouldn’t approve his discharge. Perhaps due to the impact of the car crash, which nearly fractured his leg, the doctor said a broken bone takes a hundred days to heal, so he had to stay for three months.
Zhou Zizheng was bored out of his mind. One moment he’d ask Yu Haozhou to take pictures of the kittens at home; the next he’d tell him to keep an eye on the vegetables he planted on the terrace so they wouldn’t all die when he returned.
But the most unbearable thing was seeing meat and not being able to eat it. Yu Haozhou dressed like a university student every day, wandering in front of him, occasionally flashing a slender white arm or showing off his long legs. Zhou Zizheng was so tempted he was drooling.
Sometimes when it was just the two of them in the ward and he wanted to hold him and be intimate, Yu Haozhou would always splash cold water on him just when the fire was burning highest: “Wait until you’re healed before we do that.”
