Chapter 140: Chapter 139: The Bent Lotus Root
Qu Chaozong stared expressionlessly at Zhang Xin, paused, and still replied, "Meimei’s father is in the hospital. I came to see him."
Zhang Xin was startled, "Meimei? Ah, that little girl! Her dad’s sick? Is it serious?"
Qu Chaozong: "Pneumonia."
Zhang Xin nodded, indicating she understood.
Qu Chaozong said goodbye, "Well, if there’s nothing else, I’m leaving now. Goodbye."
After he spoke, he raised his leg to continue climbing the stairs. Before he could reach the landing, he heard the clatter of high heels striking the ground from behind him.
Qu Chaozong turned his head, looked down at Zhang Xin following closely behind him, and glared at her coldly, "Anything else?"
Zhang Xin’s face blossomed into a smile, with an air of a weasel offering New Year’s greetings, "Meimei’s dad is sick, I’m quite concerned too. Let’s go see him together, I’m not busy right now anyway."
Qu Chaozong sneered, "Doesn’t that make it boring for you?"
Zhang Xin smiled slightly, "As long as I think it’s fun, it’s fine."
Qu Chaozong had been in a hurry earlier and hadn’t noticed. Now he felt sweat sticking to the collar of his down jacket, so he pulled open the zipper, loosened the tight grip on his neck, pressed one hand on the stair rail, let the other hand hang naturally, and fixed his gaze on Zhang Xin. He looked very cool, with a cold demeanor, exuding a sense of masculinity.
Qu Chaozong and Zhang Xin exchanged glances in a confrontational manner, glaring at each other for a full half-minute.
Suddenly, Qu Chaozong raised his hand in front of Zhang Xin and snapped his fingers, his gaze deep and intimidating.
Zhang Xin was taken aback, couldn’t hold it in, and laughed out loud, her pretty eyes overflowing with amusement, playfully saying, "What was that about! You scared me!"
Qu Chaozong coldly snorted but said nothing.
Zhang Xin didn’t mind, proactively explaining, "My brother is good friends with Meimei in their class. Her dad is in the hospital, and out of common decency, I should take a look on behalf of my brother. Besides, aren’t we friends?"
Qu Chaozong, with cold eyes, "We’re not that close, are we?"
Zhang Xin raised her eyebrows and threw a charming glance at Qu Chaozong, "I’ve slept over at your place, and we’re not close? What constitutes close then? Do I have to sleep with you to be considered close?"
Qu Chaozong swore internally, what the hell kind of woman is this, with no shame at all.
Qu Chaozong, although flirted with, wasn’t angry but laughed, retorting, "It has to be if I’m willing."
Zhang Xin crossed her arms, raising her lips with an indescribable beauty, half-smiling as she asked, "Then how can I make you willing?"
Qu Chaozong was momentarily dazzled by her smile and furrowed his brows, "No way would I be willing."
Qu Chaozong turned his head and continued climbing, Zhang Xin following behind. Qu Chaozong really couldn’t deal with her, so he simply ignored her. He finally reached the eighth floor and hurriedly searched for the ward.
When Shi Yang, dripping with sweat, rushed into the ward, Zhao Dazhuang was still asleep. Liu Xiue was crowded next to Zhao Meimei on an empty bed, staring at the infusion bag with red-rimmed eyes. Zhao Meimei hugged her mother’s back, her little face flushed with sleep.
Shi Yang entered and, at a glance, saw Zhao Meimei in deep sleep, feeling a mix of relief and helpless amusement.
Liu Xiue, seeing him arrive, quickly sat up and greeted, "Yangyang, why are you here?"
Only then did Shi Yang realize that Zhao Meimei, when she sent a text to inform, didn’t tell anyone else.
Zhao Meimei, feeling empty in her arms, slowly woke up. Groggily, she saw Shi Yang and muttered, "Brother!" then subconsciously reached out for a hug.
Shi Yang’s heart immediately softened. While explaining to Liu Xiue, he reached out to support Zhao Meimei, afraid she might fall off the bed.
Zhao Meimei dove into Shi Yang’s embrace with skilled precision. Shi Yang held her in a natural manner, and even Liu Xiue didn’t find anything odd since these two had been close from childhood, making those around them gradually accustomed.
Shi Yang: "Meimei texted me. As soon as I heard my uncle was hospitalized, I rushed over. How’s the situation? Is it serious?"
Liu Xiue guiltily replied, "He was awake for a moment earlier, now he’s asleep again. It’s mainly my fault. Last night your uncle drank too much, probably didn’t cover with the quilt during sleep, and this morning I found out he had a fever. When we rushed him to the hospital, the doctor said it was pneumonia and ordered a two-day hospital stay for antibiotic shots."
Shi Yang comforted her, "How can you blame yourself for this? Are the admission procedures all settled?"
Liu Xiue nodded, "Yes, all taken care of."
Shi Yang let out a long breath, "That’s good. Aunt, you should lie down and rest. I’ll watch over things for a while."
Liu Xiue refused, "No need, I’m here. You go do what you need to do."
Shi Yang released Zhao Meimei, reached to unzip his down jacket, "I have nothing urgent, let me help keep watch for a while. It’s almost noon now, have you all eaten? What do you feel like having? I’ll go buy it later."
Zhao Dazhuang was still asleep, Liu Xiue was too worried to eat, so she turned to Zhao Meimei, asking, "Are you hungry?"
Zhao Meimei, unable to shake off the fatigue from the journey, rested her head on Shi Yang’s arm, mumbling dazedly, "I just want to sleep."
Shi Yang, feeling sorry for her, immediately helped her lie down, intended to pull the quilt but seeing the dirty cover, withdrew his hand, using his own down jacket to cover Zhao Meimei, gently saying, "Sleep, I’m here."
Zhao Meimei softly murmured, falling back to sleep.
Shi Yang was chatting with Liu Xiue when Qu Chaozong came over.
Liu Xiue quickly rose to welcome him but paused when she saw Zhang Xin following behind Qu Chaozong.
Zhang Xin wore a short fur coat that reached her waist, tight leather pants that hugged her thighs, and knee-high leather boots. She had dressed up meticulously, and standing in the ward, she was quite eye-catching.
Liu Xiue politely inquired, "Who might this be?"
Qu Chaozong was about to answer, but Zhang Xin took the initiative to introduce herself, "Hello, my name is Zhang Xin, I’m Chaozi’s friend."
"Oh, hello, please come in and have a seat," Liu Xiue automatically assumed Zhang Xin was Qu Chaozong’s girlfriend and couldn’t help but give a second look while welcoming her.
In front of Meimei’s mother, Qu Chaozong didn’t have the nerve to really refute Zhang Xin and thus didn’t bother to explain.
Qu Chaozong, usually talkative, noticed Meimei’s mother’s worried expression and deliberately conversed to cheer her up, soon bringing a smile to Liu Xiue’s face.
Zhang Xin sat quietly beside him the entire time, watching this seemingly rough man with a tender and sensitive core. Her heart inexplicably softened, as if she had dug through a dirty muddy heap and unexpectedly found a lotus root, washed it with water, revealing a pale skin, refreshingly appealing.