Chi Nuan timed it and carried Little Wutong downstairs, pausing to rest several times. She finally reached the first floor.
Her lower abdomen hurt too much. Chi Nuan half-squatted, letting Little Wutong’s head rest in the crook of her neck. Feebly, he whispered, “Mom, did you get a ride?”
Chi Nuan replied, “Auntie Gu is coming soon.”
Little Wutong mustered some energy to talk. “Auntie Gu? Who…”
Chi Nuan said, “The pretty one who took us home and gave you candy.”
Little Wutong: “I’ve never met her before…”
He lay with eyes weakly open. The torrential rain blanketed everything; blinding headlights approached from afar. A figure with an umbrella emerged from the dark, rainy night.
Chi Nuan murmured softly in Little Wutong’s ear, “You have met her. You were very little then.”
…
Gu Ningzi took them to the emergency room. Chi Nuan pushed through the pain, running back and forth until Little Wutong lay in bed with an IV. Only then did she exhale in relief.
As her nerves relaxed, the abdominal pain sharpened. Chi Nuan shivered, realizing she hadn’t even grabbed her jacket.
Pale-faced, she pressed her lower abdomen and stared blankly at Little Wutong on the bed.
The hospital neared dawn and was utterly quiet. Little Wutong slept.
Gu Ningzi entered the room with two paper cups and handed one to Chi Nuan. As Chi Nuan reached for it, their fingers brushed—Gu Ningzi’s equally cold.
“You don’t look so good,” Gu Ningzi said.
The dark brown liquid swayed in the cup. Chi Nuan looked down with a smile, hiding her reddening eyes.
Coffee, not brown sugar water.
…Gu Ningzi, I know it’s greedy to think this, but will you remember?
…
Gu Ningzi stayed at the hospital without leaving early. She seemed very busy—perhaps due to the time difference, her work phone buzzed with new messages now and then.
To avoid disturbing Little Wutong, Gu Ningzi sat outside the room handling things.
Little Wutong murmured in his sleep for water. Chi Nuan fetched some from the dispenser and returned to see Gu Ningzi leaning her head against the cold white wall, glasses on the chair, eyes closed as she rubbed her brow absentmindedly.
“Thank you. I’ve caused you trouble,” Chi Nuan said, her heartache spilling over.
Gu Ningzi turned at the sound, slowly opened her eyes, and after a few seconds, her gaze focused.
“It’s fine,” she said.
Little Wutong’s IV lasted until past two in the morning. Gu Ningzi drove them home. Little Wutong dozed against Chi Nuan. At the complex entrance, Chi Nuan hesitated to wake him and prepared to carry him upstairs when he stirred. “Mom, I’m much better. I can walk myself.”
Little Wutong: “…I’m growing up. I know you can’t carry me anymore.”
Chi Nuan’s heart ached. “Okay.”
Gu Ningzi got out, opened her umbrella, and escorted Chi Nuan and Little Wutong into the building.
Little Wutong waved weakly at Gu Ningzi. “Auntie Gu, thank you. I caused you trouble.”
“…” Gu Ningzi glanced at Chi Nuan, then told Little Wutong, “Get better soon.”
Little Wutong nodded.
…
After the night of Little Wutong’s high fever, Chi Nuan didn’t see Gu Ningzi for a while. She mustered the courage to invite her to dinner as thanks, but the reply was that she was out of the country, so it fell through.
In the meantime, Chi Nuan submitted her resignation to the school. After negotiations, she agreed to finish the semester before officially leaving.
On the day she got the result, Chi Nuan met He Liwen and Old Mo. She told them she was leaving the school. He Liwen exclaimed in surprise, “Why? Did you find a new job?”
“No,” Chi Nuan said. “…I’m not suited for it.”
He Liwen knew Chi Nuan’s temperament—she was never capricious. If she said she wasn’t suited and quit without a new job, something irreconcilable must have happened.
“Still because of that incident?” The school had investigated Chi Nuan about having a child underage, leaving He Liwen furious at the time. Surprisingly, Chi Nuan had comforted her, saying it was fine once the misunderstanding cleared.
“No,” Chi Nuan said.
“I thought teaching elementary would be easier for you, and the pay’s better than average…” He Liwen trailed off with a sigh.
Chi Nuan said, “Teacher was kind. I let her down.”
He Liwen waved it off, telling her not to say that.
Old Mo said, “It was going so well. Chi Nuan teaching at No. 1 Middle School—alas, such bad luck!”
Chi Nuan gave a wry smile. “Yeah.”
He Liwen said, “If you really want to come to No. 1 Middle School, grad school isn’t hard for you. Two or three years fly by, but with your current situation…”
Chi Nuan nodded. “Mm.”
During the meal, both He Liwen and Old Mo promised to keep an eye out for job openings for her, whether teaching or something else, and let her know if anything came up.
Chi Nuan thanked them profusely.
After that, Chi Nuan kept watching job listings until the last day of December. With no word from Gu Ningzi for so long, she received a voice call from He Zhen during lunch.
“BOSS is back in the country. She’ll arrive home around… five or six in the evening your time. Miss Chi, are you available to go over? I’ve drafted your contract preliminarily; you can finalize details with BOSS.”
Chi Nuan held her mobile phone; the surrounding clamor faded to silence. She stood stunned for a long moment.
He Zhen chuckled softly. “If it’s convenient, cook some light food for BOSS tonight. Several projects have gone wrong lately; she’s a bit overheated. I’ll send the address and door code shortly.”
It felt like stumbling into spring amid biting winter. Chi Nuan stammered, “C-Can I?”
He Zhen: “Of course. BOSS approves of you.”
