The girl took away the remaining trash on the small bedside table and grabbed the bag from the accompanying chair.
Yan Ningxi on the hospital bed fell into thought.
If it had been Ming You who suffered a concussion from the fall today, could she have rushed over overnight like that, giving up a competition that proved her strength?
It was just a hypothetical.
There were plenty of competitions.
This one didn’t concern some grand future, nor was it a necessary condition like a scholarship, postgraduate recommendation, promotion, or raise.
So what if she gave it up? So what if she missed out on winning? Compared to such an insignificant competition, which was more important? Did it even need thinking about?
That time Ming You was sick and weak, “clinging” and unwilling to leave—she had managed to talk herself into indulging her. Why couldn’t she do it this time?
Why couldn’t she?
Yan Ningxi asked herself this question over and over.
The answer she came up with was: she could tangle with Ming You emotionally, but she couldn’t bear the responsibility for Ming You’s future. She was afraid Ming You’s bright prospects would be ruined in her hands.
…
In the stairwell corner closest to the ward, Luo Yongjun still sat properly on the chair.
When he saw the girl come out, he stood up to face her and extended his hand. “Hello, let me introduce myself. I’m Luo Yongjun, your Sister Yan’s senior from grad school, one year ahead of her.”
Ming You turned into the hallway to throw away the trash, mood sour as she wiped her hands with a tissue. “My hands are dirty. I won’t shake.”
Luo Yongjun pulled a folded receipt from his suit pocket. “I was the one who brought your sister here yesterday. I paid for the checks, but for today and the hospitalization fees, she probably won’t let me pay anymore. In the end, it was my fault she fell. Fortunately, nothing vital was hurt.”
Ming You took the receipt, her tone unkind. “Fortunately? She hit her head and ended up in the hospital, and you call that fortunate? Is that how you absolve yourself? And once absolved, you feel at ease?”
“Little sister…”
“My name is Ming You. Not ‘little sister.'”
“Sorry.” Luo Yongjun immediately corrected himself. “Ming You, I’m not trying to absolve myself. On the contrary, I want to take responsibility, which is why I’ve been waiting here for you.”
“What responsibility do you want to take?”
“First, all medical fees are on me. I’m afraid your sister won’t accept it from me directly, so I’m hoping you’ll help by taking the money and paying on her behalf. Second, I’m pursuing your sister. As long as she agrees, I’ll take any responsibility.”
“Pursuing? But from her attitude toward you just now, it looks like she rejected you, right?”
“To be honest, yes, she has rejected me. Just last night.”
Luo Yongjun smiled wryly. “But that’s nothing. I’ve liked her for many years. Our advisor and all my grad school friends know it, and they’ve all tried to set us up. I only have myself to blame for lacking confidence and waiting so many years before mustering the courage to pursue her formally. Just one or two rejections won’t deter me.”
“Don’t you feel embarrassed? Even if you’re thick-skinned, chasing someone with one-sided feelings so aggressively will only make her annoyed.”
The thick-skinned guys she’d encountered lately: one was Liu Xianhe, and now this one. But this one seemed much better than Liu Xianhe.
Being called out so bluntly for his thick skin by the little girl left Luo Yongjun displeased deep down, but he maintained his composure on the surface. “The third time’s the charm. I’ll try once more.”
The first time was with the roses, the second last night—the third probably wasn’t far off.
Scolded right to his face and still not backing down. Pretty shameless. Ming You leaned against the wall, sizing up Luo Yongjun. “What do you do? Are your finances and family background solid enough? Can you make her happy?”
Luo Yongjun was straightforward. “You were the one video calling her last night, right? You came all the way to see her, which proves you’re very close. No harm telling you. After grad school, I started a business with friends, opening a center for teaching Chinese as a foreign language. It’s done modestly well in three years. I have a car and a house now, and some savings…”
“Annual income.” It was just a small company—acting like it was some great achievement.
“It’s stabilized this year. So far, around a million.”
Ming You’s phone rang with a voice call notification. Seeing it was from Yan Ningxi, she swiped to hang up. One call and she thought she could summon her back? No way she’d slink back obediently.
Cursing Luo Yongjun felt good, but wasn’t she the same—one-track-minded, wishful thinking, shameless?
She handed the receipt back to Luo Yongjun. “The doctor said another head CT at 10. You keep her company. Tell her I have something to do, so I won’t stay.”
…
After switching perspectives, Yan Ningxi decided not to push Ming You to book a flight anymore. She called to discuss properly, but the other side rejected it? And the person who came back was Luo Yongjun.
“Senior Brother hasn’t left?”
“Your sister… Ming You said she had something to do first and asked me to stay and accompany you for the checkup.”
Yan Ningxi called again via voice, and it was hung up. She sent messages:
【Where are you?】
【Come back. I have something to say to you.】
Ming You slumped dejectedly in the first-floor lobby, chest tight and breathless. She messaged Gu Xirui: 【I can’t make the afternoon competition. I don’t regret it, and I’m not disappointed.】
【Gu Xirui: Take good care of your sister. I’ll explain to the classmates and organizers for you.】
Yan Ningxi in the ward went from angry to panicked. She gripped her phone with both hands, typing nonstop, treating Luo Yongjun like air.
【Yan Ningxi: Say something!】
【Yan Ningxi: If you’re really planning to buy a ticket back to Hengyuan, I can forgive you for leaving me behind.】
【Yan Ningxi: My head already hurts enough. Don’t make me angrier.】
Ming You saw the messages, her face twisting in fury. In a few taps, she bought a plane ticket, screenshotted it, and sent it to Yan Ningxi: 【Happy now?】
Yan Ningxi looked at the time on the ticket and calculated: as long as there wasn’t too much traffic midway, Ming You could make it on time.
【Yan Ningxi: Good. Win the championship, and I’ll give you a gift.】
Ming You didn’t reply.
Her heart conflicted, she buried her face in her hands, hating the self who spitefully lashed out at Yan Ningxi out of anger, and hating the self who lost herself.
The vengeful her was like a puddle of irredeemable mud, forcibly intruding into an innocent person’s—Yan Ningxi’s—life, dirtying herself and dirtying Yan Ningxi too.
If she hadn’t disrupted Yan Ningxi’s life, perhaps there would have been new encounters.
Maybe meeting a mature woman to weather storms together; or someone like Luo Yongjun, a successful young talent, to marry and have children with.
What had Yan Ningxi done wrong? From start to finish, Yan Ningxi had done nothing wrong.
…
After the new round of checks and hearing the doctor’s instructions again, Yan Ningxi returned to the room to pack. Luo Yongjun went downstairs to pay and get the medicine.
As they passed the first-floor lobby, Luo Yongjun glanced back at a figure he’d spotted earlier while picking up the meds. The person hadn’t moved.
“Ningxi, did you quarrel with that sister of yours?”
“Why do you say that?”
Luo Yongjun didn’t mention his conversation with Ming You. He held the plastic bag in one hand and pointed with the other. “Second row in the waiting area over there. A girl took off her jacket, covering her face with her hands. Isn’t that her?”
Yan Ningxi looked over. The girl hung her head, hands over her face, long curls draped on both sides, but not hiding the black hair tie on her right wrist.
She walked while calling via voice.
Sure enough, the phone on the girl’s knee rang.
Yan Ningxi watched her hang up, then wipe her eyes, then put on her jacket. As she stood to head out of the hospital, Yan Ningxi strode over and called out to her.
“Ming You.”
The girl turned back. Buying the ticket was just to stop Yan Ningxi’s headache, to let her checkup in peace, to make her think she’d returned to school, to keep her from feeling guilty.
She sat in the hospital because she was too tired and had nowhere to go.
Ming You gazed at Yan Ningxi, her tone distant. “Doctor approved discharge, so she’s fine. Sister Yan has company, so I’m relieved. Thanks for the trouble, Mr. Luo. I have things at school…”
“Things? It’s eleven. What things could you have?” Yan Ningxi was angry, but Ming You’s distance hurt her more.
At this point, the competition was definitely missed. No matter how much Yan Ningxi “scolded” or “berated” her, it wouldn’t help.
Luo Yongjun tried to play peacemaker. “Ningxi, I think Ming You was worried about you too…”
“Teacher Yan, I know you don’t want to see me. I’ll disappear from in front of you both.” Ming You’s eyes and heart ached from their back-and-forth, and Luo Yongjun’s voice annoyed her even more. “The competition is my own problem. Teacher Yan doesn’t need to take everything on herself or feel guilty about it.”
Yan Ningxi’s eyes reddened with anger. “So you’re just leaving like this?”
“What else? What do you want from me? What can I do?”
The little flame in Ming You’s belly flared up again. She pointed at her eyes. “Look at me now. Look at my eyes. In this state, even if I rushed back, I couldn’t perform at normal level. What right do I have to compete for first against those well-rested strong opponents? Knowing I can’t win, why go embarrass myself?”
“Rushing overnight, short on sleep and exhausted from travel—her body definitely can’t hold up.” Luo Yongjun got the gist and spoke up for Ming You. “Let’s all head back to the hotel first.”
Yan Ningxi domineeringly grabbed Ming You. “To the hotel. Don’t argue with me.”
…
Luo Yongjun had driven.
Yan Ningxi and Ming You sat in the back seat, her grip tight on Ming You’s hand, afraid she’d bolt.
At the hotel entrance, they got out. Luo Yongjun said, “You sisters go up to the room first. I’ll bring the stuff.”
“No need to trouble Senior Brother. Open the trunk—we’ll take it ourselves.”
“Alright.” The stuff wasn’t heavy anyway. Luo Yongjun didn’t want to annoy her further, so he didn’t insist on playing gentleman and did as asked.
Trunk open, Yan Ningxi reached, but Ming You stopped her. “I’ll get it.”
Looked like she wouldn’t run.
Yan Ningxi, distraught, walked into the hotel.
Ming You was like a puppy that lost its owner, glancing toward the lobby. She clearly saw Yan Ningxi but sulked and wouldn’t follow. Was she so sure she’d give in?
The tug-of-war drained the heart. One side had to “yield” first.
Yan Ningxi came back, weakly pulling Ming You’s hand. “Then tell me, what do you want from me? What can I do?”
The exact same two questions, now turned on her, left Ming You flustered too.
This wasn’t a math problem with a fixed formula, nor a reading comprehension with a few hundred words of background to summarize the main idea.
She lacked God’s-eye view, hadn’t even figured out her own heart—let alone Yan Ningxi’s, deep as an ocean?
Once in the room, door shut, Ming You wrapped one arm around Yan Ningxi, their eyes locking. The gaze grew fervent, and the next moment, she kissed Yan Ningxi’s lips.
“Mm… Ming You…”
The girl pressed on recklessly, refusing to yield.
If she couldn’t think her way clear on feelings, she’d find the answer with actions.
