Chapter 5

◎Her Heart Suddenly Beat Much Faster.◎

Xu Qingzhu’s episode struck too fast. The ward descended into chaos.

Zhao Xuning kept speaking to Xu Qingzhu, trying to soothe her emotions.

But Xu Qingzhu couldn’t hear a thing. Her hands gripped the blanket so tightly her knuckles turned white. After the initial harrowing scream, she buried her head against her knees and shook uncontrollably.

“Xu Qingzhu, listen to me. You’re in a hospital. No one is going to hurt you.” Zhao Xuning’s voice was far gentler when speaking to Xu Qingzhu than it had been with Liang Shi. “It’s okay. You can trust me. I’m Zhao Xuning.”

Xu Qingzhu pulled the entire blanket over her head, still trembling.

Zhao Xuning turned around, intending to check whether Doctor Gu had arrived, only to spot Liang Shi standing stiffly by the door. She frowned and snapped, “Why are you still here?”

Without waiting for a response, she instructed the nurses beside her: “Wheel her out. Don’t let her disturb the patient.”

Liang Shi’s brow creased. As the nurses tried to push her out, her long hair came loose.

The beautiful, commanding Alpha made the nurses instinctively freeze. One more push and they feared the Alpha might snap.

But Liang Shi shook them off gently and broke free on her own. “I can walk myself.”

If an Alpha truly refused to leave, no amount of pushing from Betas would work.

Liang Shi carried the strawberries toward the door but paused at the threshold. She pressed her lips together. Her voice was soft, yet carried an unyielding firmness.

She called Xu Qingzhu’s name in a low tone: “Xu Qingzhu.”

On the bed, Xu Qingzhu’s trembling stopped. She even peered tentatively out from under the blanket like a shy cat, but after one glance, she retreated immediately back into the darkness that felt safe.

“Whether you believe me or not, I will never hurt you.” Liang Shi turned back and offered a gentle smile.

Even though Xu Qingzhu couldn’t see it, she believed that sincere goodwill could reach across.

“Don’t be afraid,” Liang Shi said. “There are plenty of people here who can protect you. When you’re better, we’ll talk about everything else.”

“Get out,” Zhao Xuning said coldly. “The patient’s emotions are unstable. Everything can wait until she’s recovered. Don’t pressure the patient now.”

Liang Shi’s expression turned cold too. She looked straight at Zhao Xuning. “This is not pressuring the patient.”

“Then what is it?!”

Zhao Xuning challenged.

“I’m just making a promise to Xu Qingzhu.” At the mention of Xu Qingzhu’s name, Liang Shi’s voice softened instantly. “I want her to stop being afraid.”

“Xu Qingzhu.” Liang Shi called her name again, gently. “I’ll step out now. Listen to the doctors. I did many wrong things before, but from now on, I will absolutely not let you be hurt.”

Then she walked out, casually handing the strawberries to the nurses for them to share.

Soon, Doctor Gu arrived.

Liang Shi stood in the corridor listening to the commotion inside the ward. Before long, the room fell quiet.

She finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Gu Junru was Xu Qingzhu’s dedicated psychiatrist.

She had been treating Xu Qingzhu’s post-traumatic stress disorder from the beginning. The kidnapping had happened nearly twenty years ago, but it had left a profound mark on Xu Qingzhu’s personality.

For a long time, Xu Qingzhu had not spoken at all.

She didn’t speak again until she was ten, and it wasn’t until she was fifteen that her condition stabilized.

It had been a very long time since her last episode.

Today’s incident caught even Gu Junru off guard.

But fortunately, the situation wasn’t especially severe. By the time she arrived, Xu Qingzhu had already received some comfort.

Gu Junru administered a sedative and cleared the ward. Once Xu Qingzhu was fast asleep and fully relaxed, Gu Junru tucked the blanket around her, then beckoned to Zhao Xuning. “What happened? Why did she suddenly have an episode?”

Zhao Xuning adjusted her glasses, hands in her lab coat pockets, and said testily: “Who else could it be?”

“I saw Liang Shi at the door earlier,” Gu Junru said.

Zhao Xuning’s voice was laced with disgust. “Who else but her?”

“But…” Gu Junru paused.

Zhao Xuning raised an eyebrow. “What is it?”

Gu Junru shook her head and fell silent.

This fell under patient confidentiality.

“Did Liang Shi comfort Qingzhu just now?” Gu Junru changed the subject.

“She did,” Zhao Xuning said. “A-Zhu even poked her head out when Liang Shi spoke.”

“What exactly did she say?” Gu Junru’s voice was composed. “Tell me in as much detail as you can.”

Zhao Xuning recounted Liang Shi’s words with a cold frown, then sneered: “Hypocritical.”

Gu Junru offered no comment on the matter.

She didn’t know much about the couple’s life after marriage, but she remembered that during Xu Qingzhu’s treatment years ago, Xu Qingzhu had once mentioned a girl who had given her courage. When they were kidnapped together, that girl had been braver than her and had encouraged her to be brave too.

Then, during her last follow-up, Xu Qingzhu had said she was getting married.

The bride was that very girl.

Zhao Xuning gazed at Xu Qingzhu’s pallid face and sighed helplessly. “It’s up to her.”

Gu Junru nodded. “She’s very brave.”

When Xu Qingzhu woke up, it was evening. The ward was empty.

Zhao Xuning had likely sent everyone away so Xu Qingzhu could rest, and left a note by her pillow telling her to press the emergency button when she woke or call her.

Xu Qingzhu simply sat there, lost in thought.

The past two days had drained her to the bone. She needed quiet and space to just be.

But her body was dehydrated after waking. She reached for the water cup on the bedside table, but her grip lacked strength. The cup slipped from her fingers and clattered to the floor with a sharp, ringing crack.

The sound made her flinch.

The ward door swung open and Liang Shi rushed in, her face tight with worry. “Are you okay?”

Xu Qingzhu’s brow furrowed as she stared at the intruder. Her hand was already hovering over the emergency button when an unopened bottle of water was held out before her.

Liang Shi said gently: “If you need it, I can unscrew the cap for you.”

An unopened bottle. Surely that was safe?

“It’s warm water,” Liang Shi added. “I’ve been keeping it warm in my hands.”

Xu Qingzhu gazed at her without moving.

The person before her felt unfamiliar.

Not quite the Liang Shi she knew.

When Xu Qingzhu didn’t respond, Liang Shi felt a flicker of panic but kept her composure. “Do you need me to open it?”

She started to pull her hand back, but Xu Qingzhu took the bottle and said flatly: “No need.”

She held the water. Liang Shi’s warmth lingered on the surface.

There was also a faint scent of tea, something like Silver Needle White Tea.

It was her late grandfather’s favorite.

Liang Shi had already grabbed the broom and dustpan from the ward and was bent over, sweeping up the shattered glass.

Xu Qingzhu gripped the bottle, watching these unfamiliar gestures, and suddenly asked: “Who are you?”

Liang Shi’s motion paused. She looked up and smiled. “I’m Liang Shi.”

Xu Qingzhu’s frown deepened. “Is that so?”

“It is. We’re married,” Liang Shi said. “Have you lost your memory?”

As she said this, surprise flickered in Liang Shi’s eyes.

Her acting skills were excellent, and she didn’t let Xu Qingzhu catch a single crack.

When she reached out to touch Xu Qingzhu’s forehead, Xu Qingzhu leaned away and avoided the contact.

Xu Qingzhu said nothing more.

Liang Shi cleaned up the debris on the floor, only to find Xu Qingzhu wrestling with the bottle cap.

Sick and weak, the Omega couldn’t even manage a bottle cap. Getting a drink was an ordeal. Liang Shi covered the distance in a few strides and stood there hesitantly: “How about I help?”

Xu Qingzhu kept trying, her pale-pink fingernails turning white from the effort.

Liang Shi couldn’t watch any longer and reached over to take the bottle. Her fingers brushed against Xu Qingzhu’s.

Such a simple touch, and yet Xu Qingzhu suddenly looked up.

Liang Shi belatedly tried to pull her hand away, but in the instant she withdrew, Xu Qingzhu’s fingertips traced lightly across her palm.

A tingling, ticklish warmth.

Her heart suddenly beat much faster.