After finishing their meal, the two bid farewell at the mall entrance.
Zhao Shutong smiled and patted her shoulder.
“Alright, Money God… oh wait, now it’s the lovestruck girl,”
“Be careful on your way back home. Don’t bump or knock your right hand.”
“As for those little thoughts of yours… just let nature take its course! Report to the strategist anytime if there’s any development!”
“Got it! You should head off now!”
Feng Miwan hurriedly waved her off.
Watching Zhao Shutong walk away, Feng Miwan stood alone amid the bustling street, unable to resist taking out that coin again and examining it on her fingertip.
Sunlight reflected off the metal surface, casting a glint of light.
So… what exactly did this mean?
She sighed and carefully put the coin away. She called a car and headed toward Xiong Yibai’s home.
Back in the living room, Feng Miwan’s mind was still filled with Zhao Shutong’s “one in ten thousand miles” analysis.
She took out the still-heavy red envelope from the drawer in her room, staring at the embossed golden cloud patterns on it, lost in thought.
“Yeah… how could Uncle Xiong just hand a ten-thousand-yuan red envelope to anyone he meets?”
“And given Xiong Yibai’s personality, she probably never let anyone stay at her place before… So Uncle Xiong must have been so excited that day when he saw her preparing the guest room and saw me arrive, calling out ‘son-in-law’ and ‘daughter-in-law’ left and right…”
“Then… why did Xiong Yibai agree to let me move in? Was it really just a doctor’s compassion? She sees so many patients at the hospital every day—does she bring every inconvenient one home to care for? That’s definitely impossible.”
This question was too brain-burning. Feng Miwan shook her head, deciding to temporarily cast aside these tangled thoughts.
But one thing was clear—regardless of the original intent, she couldn’t accept this money, not emotionally or logically.
She found some sticky notes and a pen, and with her left hand, she scribbled a few large, crooked words: “This is Uncle Xiong’s ten thousand yuan.”
Then she stuck the note on the red envelope and placed it in the most conspicuous spot on the living room coffee table.
Having done all this, she felt as if she’d accomplished a major task and let out a light sigh of relief before turning back to her room.
Meanwhile, during a break in the hospital office lounge.
Xiong Yibai habitually picked up her phone and opened the home surveillance feed, catching the exact moment Feng Miwan set down the red envelope and turned to leave.
The corners of her mouth curved up slightly, a flicker of amusement passing through her eyes as she thought:
Little pup… you’ve finally come around?
That evening, Xiong Yibai finished work and returned home.
She opened the door to a quiet house, with only the sensor light in the entryway glowing.
Sure enough, the “large dog” that used to come bounding over at the sound of the door today did not appear.
Over the next ten-plus days, their days settled into a calm yet somewhat distant rhythm.
Except on nights when Xiong Yibai was on duty, Feng Miwan would leave a lamp on in the living room, waiting for her return.
But she wouldn’t rush to the front door; instead, she’d peek her head out from behind the sofa only after hearing the door open, saying, “You’re back?”
For the rest of the time, it was as if they had tacitly divided their territories.
Xiong Yibai went to work, read books, and occasionally watched TV.
Feng Miwan focused on simple physical maintenance training with her left hand, communicating with her brother and the team about future plans, or playing games by herself.
They would meet at the dining table for necessary exchanges, such as:
“Does your hand still hurt?”
“How’s the recovery?”
“There are fresh fruits in the fridge.”
But there were no more of those slightly intimate interactions from before.
Feng Miwan seemed to be intentionally keeping her distance, and Xiong Yibai never took the initiative to break it.
Until that morning.
As usual, the two were having breakfast.
Feng Miwan finished her last sip of honey milk and wanted to slip back to her room.
“Feng Miwan.”
Xiong Yibai suddenly called out to her.
Feng Miwan paused and turned around.
“Yeah? What’s up, Yibai?”
Xiong Yibai’s gaze fell on her still-immobilized right wrist. “Sit on the living room sofa for a bit. I’ll go get the medical kit.”
She stood up and headed toward the cabinet where the medical supplies were stored, adding as she went:
“It’s been two weeks. Time to take it off and check the recovery.”
Feng Miwan grew a little nervous upon hearing this.
Two weeks already? Time had flown by that fast?
She obediently went to the sofa and sat down.
Xiong Yibai soon returned carrying a white household medical kit.
She sat on the sofa next to Feng Miwan, opened the lid, and took out medical scissors, disinfectant cotton pads, and some dressings.
“Extend your hand. Relax.”
Feng Miwan stretched out her splinted right hand and placed it on the sterile pad cloth that Xiong Yibai had laid out.
Xiong Yibai checked the fixation of the splint, then picked up the scissors and carefully began cutting away the securing bandages.
She glanced up at Feng Miwan.
“It might feel a bit tight. If anything hurts particularly during removal, tell me right away.”
“Mm…”
Feng Miwan held her breath, watching her movements unblinkingly.
The bandages and securing tape were peeled away layer by layer, until finally, the high-polymer splint that had bound her wrist for two weeks was gently removed.
The skin on the exposed wrist looked somewhat pale, slightly wrinkled, with faint bruise marks still visible at the joints and the surrounding muscles appearing a bit thinner than on her left hand.
Xiong Yibai cradled Feng Miwan’s wrist, her fingertips carefully pressing around several key points on the wrist joint.
“Does it hurt here?”
“A little sore…”
“And here?”
“Hiss… a bit.”
“Try slowly moving your wrist. Very slowly—upward… then down… to the left… then to the right…”
Her gaze closely followed every movement of Feng Miwan’s wrist, observing for any signs of stiffness, weakness, or pain on her face.
Feng Miwan followed her instructions, working her stiff joints. It felt somewhat laborious, accompanied by a faint ache, but the piercing pain was indeed gone.
“Recovery is better than expected.”
Xiong Yibai finally concluded, her furrowed brows relaxing a bit.
“No obvious ligament laxity, and the swelling has mostly subsided. But the joint strength is still weak, and mobility is far from restored.”
She took a disinfectant cotton pad and wiped away the residual adhesive marks on Feng Miwan’s wrist.
She looked up at Feng Miwan.
“So, you don’t need the splint anymore. But starting today, you need to do rehabilitation training every day.”
Feng Miwan’s eyes lit up.
“Rehabilitation training?”
“Meaning… I can start moving it?”
Xiong Yibai’s tone was serious.
“Not so you can grip the steering wheel.”
“It’s very gentle, targeted training for joint mobility and muscle strength.”
“I’ll teach you a few simple movements. Do them once in the morning and once at night. Don’t do too many reps per set, keep the range small, and absolutely no intense pain allowed.”
