"Little Yue, don't cry. I'll ask Xiao Fan to let you stay and work here," Xia Xue said, her heart softening. She agreed immediately.
Hearing this, Song Yue stopped crying and declared resolutely, "As long as you give my mother and me enough to eat, I'll be your ox or horse!"
"Don't say that," Xia Xue replied, wiping Song Yue's tears with her sleeve. "I'll have Xiao Fan pay you a normal salary. We can't let you and your child suffer."
Lin Fan stood aside, watching dumbfounded. Was this matter settled just like that? He hadn't even agreed yet! Song Yue was faking it, absolutely faking it! She had at least ten thousand yuan in savings! Why was she crying about being poor here? Could it be... no way? Did she want to be his wife? This was bad!
"Little Yue, come to my place. I'll stew a hen for you to replenish your strength and increase your milk for the baby," Xia Xue said, pulling Song Yue away from the clinic before Lin Fan could even interject.
Lin Fan sighed helplessly. Since his sister-in-law had agreed, he could only default to this arrangement. After all, he didn't dare, nor did he want to, contradict his sister-in-law.
Lin Fan sat back in his grand tutor's chair and dozed off for two hours. He hadn't waited for a patient, but he had waited for Song Yue to return, now wearing a white coat and holding her child.
As soon as Song Yue entered, Lin Fan jumped up in surprise, "Why are you here?"
"I'm here to work tomorrow!"
"Why so anxious?" Song Yue liked Lin Fan and wanted to do a good job. However, despite her spirited personality and some cleverness, as a proper woman, she found it difficult to express her heartfelt, almost cooing feelings to the man she liked.
"Come in quickly, don't let the baby get sunburned," Lin Fan hurried into the room and turned on the air conditioning, which he was reluctant to use. "Since you know Western medicine, we'll combine Chinese and Western medicine. For headaches, fevers, and the like, you can be in charge of prescribing medicine and giving acupuncture. You'll also handle external injuries. You can stitch wounds, right?"
Lin Fan looked at Song Yue's pretty face and added, "Sister Yueyue, make sure you can really do this. Don't ruin the reputation I've worked so hard to build." Even though he said this, Lin Fan trusted her completely. After all, she had attended nursing school and was a professional nurse.
"Do I seem like someone who says unreliable things?" Song Yue stroked her daughter's little head and said, "Let me tell you, Xiao Fan, if it weren't for my family matters dragging me down, I would be the one opening a clinic, not you!"
Her eyes held a hint of reminiscence. "Back in the town hospital, I studied the most diligently and endured the most hardship. It was all for opening my own clinic in the future..."
Seeing her seriousness, Lin Fan couldn't help but sigh. A man fears choosing the wrong profession, and a woman fears marrying the wrong man. If she hadn't married a sick fool, but a normal person, they would surely have a very happy life running a clinic together.
"Wah..." The infant in the swaddle suddenly burst into tears. Song Yue gently swayed the swaddle and cooed, "Good baby, are you hungry again? You're quite a big eater." As she spoke, Song Yue unbuttoned her top, preparing to feed the baby.
Lin Fan saw this and immediately turned his back, saying helplessly, "Can you be a bit more discreet?"
"Discreet about what?" Song Yue snorted. "It's not like we're doing anything shameful!"
"Ahem." Lin Fan coughed twice, feeling utterly speechless after being rebuffed.
Song Yue fed her child while walking towards Lin Fan. She reached behind him and nudged his back with her shoulder, saying grumpily, "I know, you like your sister-in-law."
Lin Fan was startled and instinctively asked, "How do you know?" This was his secret, never told to outsiders. How could Song Yue know?
"I'm not blind, how could I not know?" Song Yue nudged his back again with her shoulder and asked, "How many years has it been since your brother left?"
Lin Fan sat down on a chair and replied, "Five... it's been six years since the New Year."
Song Yue sat in the chair opposite Lin Fan and asked again, "Hasn't a single word come back?"
Lin Fan sighed and replied, "No sign of him alive, no body found. The village has already listed my brother as missing." "If there's no news in another two years, he'll be declared deceased."
Song Yue also sighed and said, "Communications are so advanced now. Logically, if he were still alive, he would have sent some word, no matter what." She frowned and leaned closer, "Xiao Fan, do you remember Aunt He from the school cafeteria?" "The Aunt He who always scooped extra food for people when serving. Her husband went down into a mine and was buried." "It was a private, small mine, operating illegally. When people were buried, the boss immediately ran away. Where could they find him?"
Lin Fan lowered his head, silent. His thoughts were actually the same as Song Yue's. In his memory, his brother was an honest and decent person. Even if he had gotten rich elsewhere, he wouldn't have stayed away.
"I think your relationship with your sister-in-law can succeed!" Song Yue said with firm conviction.
"I think so too," Lin Fan replied unconsciously, speaking his true feelings. Only after saying it did he realize and feel awkward. "So, what are your thoughts?"
"Mine?" Song Yue's eyes held a hint of sorrow. "My life is ruined!" "Of course, I can't blame anyone else. It's all my own..."
At this point, Song Yue felt the topic was too depressing. She forced a smile and changed the subject, "Xiao Fan, you paid off my debts, twenty-eight thousand yuan."
Lin Fan smiled. "That's a small matter. Who wouldn't help when they see someone in need?"
"But I remember your kindness!" Song Yue said with a wistful expression, speaking from the heart. "My parents died early, my man is also dead. Anyway, I have no worries in this life."
A hint of resentment flashed in her eyes, and she continued, "I wanted to be your wife, but you still look down on me..."
Lin Fan shook his head and interrupted, "I don't look down on you."
"Alright, I know you have your sister-in-law in your heart." Song Yue's pretty face flushed, and she suddenly laughed, "How about I be your mistress!"
The moment she finished speaking, just as Lin Fan was about to shake his head, he heard footsteps approaching. Seizing the opportunity, Lin Fan immediately got up to open the door. He could tell it wasn't his sister-in-law's footsteps. Someone must be here for a consultation.
Opening the door, he saw two villagers he recognized walking towards him. "Uncle Zhang, Uncle Cai, please come in." Lin Fan smiled and greeted them politely.
"Xiao Fan, when did you get married? You even have a child?" they asked curiously upon seeing Song Yue holding the baby.
Just as Lin Fan was about to explain, Song Yue, seemingly jokingly but perhaps not, said, "I'm his secretly kept mistress, and I couldn't hide it after having his child, so I came to him for refuge."
"Hahaha..." The two men, considering Lin Fan's age, took it as a joke. Besides, everyone knew how poor Lin Fan was and that he was an honest child. How could he possibly keep a mistress?
"This is Song Yue, my junior high school classmate. She went to nursing school for three years, and I've asked her to help me." Lin Fan, fearing they might misunderstand and spread rumors, decided to explain.